Almost a year after reading Saga of the Swamp thing- my previous Alan Moore- I gave this space opera a go. Regarded by many as one of the author’s greats and a fantastic tale of feminism and space exploration, it took me a lot to really get into the story, mainly due to Gibson’s art being quite outside my taste. I did, as I read further in, get to appreciate his style better but I still think an artist like Moebius would have been a better fit for a writer of Moore’s caliber.
The story itself revolves around Halo Jones, a young woman who lives on The Hoop (a space complex where the jobless and outcasts reside in) and who wants out. It follows her as she does different jobs and meets different people; some friends, some enemies, most just people like her. It is worth noting, that it always remains rounded, with the character never reaching great highs just for dramatic purpose.
Originally published in the UK in the 80s, the story is made up of three, sixty-ish-page-long issues, making the overall length under 200 pages. Despite this relatively short length, the story feels very expansive, mainly due to Moore’s storytelling, managing Halo to “do everything” and explore various places in her quest to “get out”. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t have minded another issue or two of further exploring her journey through the stars.
What makes the character of Halo Jones so remarkable is how unremarkable she is. She is not hyper competent in anything and just about average at most things. She wasn’t as “chosen one” or a “one-in-a-million” character but an average Joe (which may be where the name comes from). As she herself says, “anyone could have done it”, which is very much true.
The plot itself is unremarkable, as it isn’t the focus of the story, but still managed to surprise me with a few of its twists as well as deliver great punch-in-the-gut moments throughout.
As I said in the beginning, Gibson’s art never really got to me and definitely wasn’t what made me keep reading. It did get better as the story went on, gaining better shadowing as well as less angular features, and it gradually lost its very weird lip portrayal (which really bugged me for some reason). I do have to say I read the original, black and white version and not the newer, recolored one. This was mainly because I really didn’t like the colored art and I felt it made the world feel weird. That said, it is just my personal preference and for those out there who don’t know which version will better fit their taste I’d recommend looking up art online.
Overall, I would recommend this graphic novel to anyone looking for a different science fiction story, with a larger focus on character and with an everyday person at its center. Alan Moore definitely proved his worth as an author and I’ll continue reading his work, probably with “The league of extraordinary gentlemen” or “Promethea”.
Spoiler Commentary:
One of the things I really appreciated was Moore’s handling of grief and Halo’s befriending people to only have them die on her. First Brinna, then Toy and later Life Sentence. The way Halo ones dealt with the passing of those close to her was different for each, which demonstrated great authorial skill. Her killing Luiz wasn’t my favorite moment, though I totally understand why both the author and the character did it (and I kind of knew that their romance wouldn’t last because it went contrary to the themes of the story).
One aspect that left me a bit puzzled was the fact that Halo became a historical/mythical character who was talked about millennia later. As of the story, Halo didn’t do anything worth getting that status, and I would have preferred either the history lesson scene be omitted or the story enlarged to make up for that fame the character would eventually gain.
The twist of the robot dog being the one who killed Brinna wasn’t my favorite, as it made her character more important, and the initial plot more Halo-centric (whereas a random death would have better fitted the themes). On the other hand, it added to the feeling that she was alone out there and that anyone could be a potential threat, which may have been what the author was going for.
What I really enjoyed was how she explore different jobs and places, making the world feel bigger without her character becoming important within the universe (which somewhat contrasts with the status she later supposedly earned). Moore’s exploration on live aboard the Clara Pandy and on the army were great and definitely among the more enjoyable aspects of the story.
In conclusion, The ballad of Halo Jones was an enjoyable exploration of character in a futuristic world full of scum and wonder by one of the greatest authors of the medium.
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