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Sad to see the series ending, good to see it ending on a high, with an epic tale spanning generations. Art, storytelling all as good as at any point in the whole run, and overall a perfect end to an exciting title that offered a real alternative to superhero comics.
Other reviewers have already more than covered the 3 stories making up the "Icelandic Trilogy", and Sam's review, particularly, says even more than I would have to say about them, and does so probably with more eloquence than I could've managed. So this review will be more about my general impressions with this collection and the "Northlanders" series as a whole.This is a fitting end to a great series. After 4 strong volumes and 2 more that were good-but-not-great (that's volumes 5 & 6, folks),
Bought this because Brian Wood is the author. This book covers the early history of the settlement of Iceland. Basically there are two warring tribes, at one point one side converts to Christianity while the other clings to pagan beliefs. In the end the Christians win. The ending leaves us with some unresolved issues. The plot moves along nicely, but the ending is dull, probably due to the inevitability of the story. Graphics are nice (a 7 on a 1-10 scale).
A (post)modern view on the birth of Iceland. Almost reads like a Nordic version of Godfather. The trio of artists, each illustrating a trio of chapters, capture the savage core of the story. A fine ending to a very good series...
This review (plus Book 6) can be found on my blog: https://graphicnovelty2.com/2018/10/0...Brian Wood’s Northlanders saga has drawn to a close. Seven books have given us intimate portraits of Viking individuals and families through out the years, in three geographic areas- Iceland, Europe and the Anglo-Saxon regions. I am sad that this series has come to an end, and will miss these emo, petulant and violent warriors!This last book details a family’s rise and fall through several generations in I...
This is by far the biggest scope for the series. We take the Hauksson clan and their years through ruling Iceland. It's actually pretty amazing how this chapter jumps from generation to generation of characters. We start with a child's point of view of coming to the land and end up with not even a full blooded Hauksson but instead a wife of a Hauksson bloodline. It just goes to show you how much could actually change through the generation and really pushes the feels of "you are not your family"...
The idiotically named Iceland Trilogy is actually ten parts long. It is the end of the excellent Nortlanders series. It may, stupid name aside, be one of the best stories written yet. Starting in the mid 900's AD it tells the story of the Hauksons. Fleeing from Norway they settle in Iceland and start a multi-generational saga that goes on until the mid 1200's AD. Perhaps the only part of this that could be considered a trilogy is the fact that the first act shows the foundation of the family, th...
This gets 5-stars partly for the story itself (which follows the Hauksson family from it's arrival on Iceland in 871 with father Val Hauker; through to 1260 with the 11th Generation Oskar Hauksson) and partly for the non-stop high quality of everything to do with this series.I've never given a single volume 5 stars on Northlanders, and that seems like an oversight on my part.I just feel like damn, as soon as Wood gets a good thing going, it's over; first DMZ, now Northlanders...this guy can writ...
Okay, so Wood is going for the typical Viking saga this time around. I applaud him for the effort, ad I'll judge him as mostly succcessful. He traces one family, the first to settle on Iceland, down through 11 generations and 400 years, from the dawn of their power to their fall. Throughout these generations we see many characters who personify the evolution of a ruling class, and Wood sums them up quite nicely by making the 11th generation son echo the actions of the 2nd generation son but to a...
As I probably will not finish this one let me vent, ... er, review this one.This writer has always rubbed me the wrong way, yet my love of Vikings and comics has led me to pick up a few of these from my local library.This one started out decently, ...then the art turned to crap (in my opinion) and so, like poop, I dropped it.
The year is 871 AD and Val Hauker arrives on the shores of Iceland with his wife and son, escaping the monarchic tyranny of Norway. Iceland is uninhabited and barren, a naturally beautiful but harsh environment to begin a new life – and a dynasty. His son, Ulf, will begin the ruling family, the Haukssons, and the book tells their brutal and violent reign in Iceland over 4 centuries from their auspicious beginnings to their rise in power and their eventual downfall. The final book in the brillian...
Finally, like a true viking, I put up my shield wall and fought my way all the way through this terribly-written series. The whole time I was wondering if I'd made some sort of mistake, if, in fact, I would die in this battle. And, I did. I died. These books killed me, and now I'm writing this from Valhalla (I died with a sword in my hand, to be clear).Woof, this was a poor (as expected) dismount. After 6 straight volumes of Viking nonsense and zero commitment to any level of consistency of stor...
A fabulous close to one of the strongest graphic novel series I've ever read. There is a real cinematic sweep to most of the stories in this series and I would be surprised if some of them didn't end up being made into movies. Seriously, the Hauksson saga from this volume is screaming out for an HBO miniseries.I also enjoyed the depth of historical and sociological context throughout the series, all handled with such a discerning touch that it is possible to read the stories as character portrai...
A suitably epic ending to an epic series (in both cases, 'epic' in the proper sense of the word), The Icelandic Trilogy spans generations in the tale of a prominent family of Iceland. It's an absolute treat to read, equal parts treachery, politicking and bloody revenge. As all of the tales have been, it is grim, but incredibly satisfying.
This is the final book of the Northlander series and it ended just as I had hoped. We had family dysfunction and love, bravery, history, deception, religion and philosophy all wrap up in nine separate stories. We follow the story of the Hauksson family through many generations and how they are keeping their family name alive amongst other clans in Iceland and the religious presence that threatens their pagan ways. I think this is the best novel of the entire series. So sad this series is ending
A great final story arc to this incredible Viking/Norse set series, I hope Brian Wood might return and continue to build this body of work someday soon. A perfect read for non-mainstream or non-traditional comic book fans (actually a great read for anyone), it'll especially appeal to fans of historical fiction.
"The Icelandic Trilogy" is the last novella in the series, and the longest spanning nine issues, and having no less than three different artists contribute, one for each century, as the Wood shares the centuries long crime drama of the Haukson clan, passing through civil war, and the bloody birth of modern post Dark Age Iceland. 7.5 out of 12.
This marks the end of the Northlanders series. and what a strong note it ended on. this is Brian Wood's best writing of the whole series. was hooked from the get go and when I reached the end i was left anxious for more. Brilliant series this has been. Bravo.
A serious, but engaging graphic novel about the first settlers of Iceland and the descendents of one particular family, the Hauksson clan. A harsh plot to complement a harsh land. In order to thrive, the Hauksson clan adopts a cold, merciless family code that sees them through several generations. But generations later, changing times may call for less confrontation and more compromise. The beginning and middle of the book were strong. I was disappointed by the ending though. There was not much
On the whole I have enjoyed The Northlanders series, but I found The Icelandic Trilogy lacking and failing to keep my interest. The art was good and evocative of the time and place. However, the characters just were not engaging and seemed only placeholders for telling the story-arc rather than snippets of life that could serve to advance the story. If you are wanting to read all The Northlanders saga, read on, but this is definitely not Wood's best work.