View source for The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier

{{Infobox comic book title
<!--Wikipedia:WikiProject Comics--> 

| image = BlackDossierCover.jpg
| caption = Cover of Black Dossier
| schedule = 
| format = 
| genre           = [[Alternate History]]<br>[[Horror fiction|Horror]]<br>[[Spy fiction|Spy]]<br>[[Steampunk]]<br>[[Superhero]]
|LoEG       = y
|Chthulu    = y
| publisher = [[WildStorm]]/[[DC Comics]]
| date = November 14, 2007
| issues =
| main_char_team = [[Mina Harker|Mina Murray]]<br/>[[Allan Quatermain]]<br/>[[Orlando (comics)|Orlando]]<br/>[[James Bond|Jimmy]]<br/>[[Emma Peel|Emma Night]]<br/>[[Bulldog Drummond|Hugo Drummond]]<br/>[[Prospero]]<br/>[[Fanny Hill]]<br/>[[Golliwogg|Galley-Wag]]<br/>[[Harry Lime (character)|Harry Lime]]/[[M (James Bond)|M]]<BR>[[Billy Bunter]]
| writers = [[Alan Moore]]
| artists = [[Kevin O'Neill (comics)|Kevin O'Neill]]
| pencillers = 
| inkers = 
| colorists =
| letterers = [[Bill Oakley (artist)|Bill Oakley]]
| creative_team_month = 
| creative_team_year = 
| creators = 
|subcat              = Wildstorm Publications
|altcat              = 
|sort                = League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier
|nonUS               = 
}}
'''''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier''''' is an original [[graphic novel]] in the [[comic book]] series ''[[The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen]]'', written by [[Alan Moore]] and illustrated by [[Kevin O'Neill (comics)|Kevin O'Neill]]. It was the last volume of the series to be published by [[DC Comics]]. Although the third book to be published, it was not intended to be the third volume in the series. Moore has stated that it was intended to be "a sort of ingenious sourcebook", and not a regular volume.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.newsarama.com/2786-mondo-moore-looking-back-on-the-black-dossier.html|title=Mondo Moore: Looking Back on The Black Dossier|website=Newsarama|date=8 December 2023 }}</ref>

''Black Dossier'' was released on November 14, 2007.<ref name="Black Dossier solicit">{{cite web | title=The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier (solicitation) | work=Graphic Novels: Wildstorm | url=http://www.dccomics.com/graphic_novels/?gn=5977 | access-date=2007-03-06 }}</ref>

==Background and format==
Originally referred to as ''The Dark Dossier'' during early announcements of its existence, ''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier'' differs from the other regular volumes, as it is a self-contained [[graphic novel]] designed to be a "sourcebook" for the series. While the first two volumes included prose stories as backup features, the majority of ''Black Dossier'' consists of non-comic pieces, taking the form of prose stories, letters, maps, guidebooks, magazines and even a lost Shakespeare folio. Also included is a '[[Tijuana Bible]]' insert that adapts [[George Orwell|George Orwell's]] novel ''[[Nineteen Eighty-Four]]'' and a [[Stereoscopy#3D viewers|3-D section complete with custom glasses]]. However, these prose pieces and inserts are framed by a comic story, in which [[Mina Harker]] and [[Allan Quatermain]] obtain the Black Dossier itself and are then pursued by government forces.

All illustrations are done by Kevin O'Neill, the artist on the first two volumes. Alan Moore also recorded a [[Gramophone record|vinyl record]] of him singing an original song that would be released with the book, but DC did not include it.{{citation needed|date=October 2015}}

After many changed shipping dates, the Absolute Edition was released with no vinyl record, no script/sketch companion book (something that had shipped with Absolute "League" volumes 1 & 2), and a price point of $99 – $24 higher than the two previous Absolute ''League'' volumes.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.dccomics.com/graphic_novels/?gn=9047|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080418024902/http://www.dccomics.com/graphic_novels/?gn=9047|archive-date = 2008-04-18|title = Comics}}</ref>

[[Bill Oakley (artist)|Bill Oakley]] died halfway through designing the book, so the last half was designed by [[Todd Klein]]. The book is dedicated to Oakley's memory.

The vinyl record was eventually produced in the UK.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bleedingcool.com/2014/11/30/league-of-extraordinary-gentlemen-black-dossier-with-vinyl-record-now-available-for-mail-order/|title=League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier, With Vinyl Record, Now Available For Mail Order|website=www.bleedingcool.com|date=30 November 2014}}</ref>

==Development==
According to Moore the ''Black Dossier'' was created because Moore was uncomfortable with the idea of O'Neill being unemployed during the planned hiatus between Volumes II and III of ''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen''. Wanting to do a source book for ''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen,'' Moore began writing the ''Black Dossier'', expanding the original idea to include numerous different prose sections of different styles from a ''[[Fanny Hill]]'' "sequel" to a beatnik style story and a comic narrative that frames the ''Dossier'' sections.

Moore and O'Neill also took the main characters Mina Murray and Allan 60 years into the future out of fear that the Victorian era was already waning in interest. Because many of the characters used in the ''Black Dossier'' are not in the public domain, Moore became more creative in alluding to the characters' identities but never directly revealing who they were, thus avoiding legal issues with the owners of those characters. For example, the character of "Jimmy" is a thinly veiled reference to James Bond; hints to this include owning Campion Bond's cigarette case and lighter, his preference for Vodka Martinis, having a scar from the novels, as well as owning a James Bond trademark [[Walther PP|Walther PPK]] pistol with 007 engraved on it. The names of other characters are shortened or otherwise changed to mask their origins: Mrs. Peel from the ''[[The Avengers (TV series)|Avengers]]'' uses her maiden name throughout the graphic novel (here spelled "Night" instead of "Knight"), and [[Billy Bunter]] is only referred to by his first name.

A DC press release confirmed it would not be released outside the United States "due to international copyright concerns and related issues".<ref>[http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=124381 LoEG: The Black Dossier to Only be Published in The U.S.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070826222444/http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=124381 |date=2007-08-26 }}, [[Newsarama]], August 7, 2007</ref> This was not an issue with previous volumes, as the Victorian setting meant that the majority of characters that were used were from works no longer under copyright. However, the book is available in the United Kingdom as well as in Canada.

==Plot==
Unlike earlier volumes, the comic book portions of ''Black Dossier'' are not set in the Victorian era; rather, they are set in 1958, after the fall of the [[Big Brother (Nineteen Eighty-Four)|Big Brother]] government from ''[[Nineteen Eighty Four]]'' (the explanation for this discrepancy is that Orwell's book was originally set in 1948, but the dates were changed by the publisher). The frame story sees [[Mina Harker]] and [[Allan Quatermain]]—now immortal after bathing in the fire of youth from ''[[She: A History of Adventure]]''—on their quest to recover the Black Dossier, which contains the secret history of the now-disbanded League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

The book starts with Mina Murray (going by the name Odette O'quim) at a bar in London, where MI5 agent [[James Bond (literary character)|James "Jimmy" Bond]] (grandson of [[List of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen characters#Campion Bond|Campion Bond]]) attempts to seduce her, taking her to the decaying remains of the "[[Ministry of Love]]", once one of [[Big Brother (1984)|Big Brother]]'s government departments. Jimmy attempts to rape Mina but is subdued by a brick hidden in Mina's handbag. Allan quickly arrives and the two retrieve the Dossier. [[The Third Man|Harry Lime]], the new [[M (James Bond)|M]], teams Jimmy up with [[Emma Peel|Emma Night]] and her uncle, an aged [[Bulldog Drummond|Hugo Drummond]], to hunt down Mina and Allan, who are believed to be heading North.

Mina and Allan take a detour to [[Greyfriars School]] in [[Kent, England|Kent]] which houses [[The Thirty-Nine Steps|the thirty-nine steps]] and was attended by Harold Wharton, a.k.a. Big Brother. The caretaker, [[Billy Bunter|William]], reveals that many British spies were groomed at the school and that Bob Cherry is Harry Lime. Mina and Allan agree to visit a spaceport on their detour (space-travel technology has flourished since the [[The War of the Worlds|Martian invasion]] of [[The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Volume II|''Volume II'']]). At the spaceport, Jimmy, Emma and Hugo find Allan and Mina, who escape via a robot-piloted rocket that references British children's show ''[[Fireball XL5]]''.

The two escape the crashing rocket by parachute and land in the Scottish countryside to find a ruined castle they were heading for. [[Golliwog|Galley-Wag]] rescues them from Jimmy and escorts them into the castle. Hugo follows them inside, where Mina reveals that they are the same Mina Murray and Allan Quatermain who fought off [[Professor Moriarty]] and the [[Martian (War of the Worlds)|Martians]]. They also reveal that Jimmy's career is mostly fabricated, that he is a double agent for the United States and that he killed John Night, Emma's father and Hugo's brother. Hugo lets them leave and tries to kill Jimmy for his actions, but he is shot by Bond at point-blank range.

Mina and Allan successfully return to the mysterious, utopian universe of ''[[The Blazing World]]'', where they are reunited with their mutual lover [[List of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen characters#Orlando|Orlando]] and have safely hidden the dossier.

===''The Black Dossier''===
As Murray and Quatermain read the dossier, the contents of the dossier interrupt the narrative in different sections. Stories include:
* "On the Descent of the Gods", an account of the gods of the ''League'' universe, as written by [[The Magician (Maugham novel)|Oliver Haddo]];
* a twenty-five page ''Life of Orlando'' comic strip which tells the entire life of [[Orlando (comics)|Orlando]], from his birth in the city of [[Thebes, Greece|Thebes]] in 1260 B.C. up to the [[Second World War]], told in the style the 1950s British comic ''Trump'';<ref name="Winter, Andrew">{{cite news
 | last = Winter
 | first = Andrew
 |author2=Moore, Alan
  | title = Northampton's Finest: Alan Moore Interview
 | work = Tripwire Annual 2007
 | pages =12–17
 | publisher = Tripwire Publishing
 | year = 2007}}</ref>
* a faux [[William Shakespeare]] play detailing the foundation of the League by [[Prospero]] from ''[[The Tempest]]'';
* an imaginary sequel to [[John Cleland]]'s ''[[Fanny Hill]],'' with full-page illustrations akin to those that [[Franz von Bayros|Marquis Von Bayros]] illustrated for the book;
* a [[Bertie Wooster]] and [[Jeeves]] prose story involving one of [[Great Old Ones]] from the stories of [[H.P. Lovecraft]];
* "The Crazy Wide Forever", a short story written in the style of [[Jack Kerouac]].

Other features include:
* a picture map of the Blazing World and its location;
* a cut-away of Nemo's Nautilus Mark II submarine;
* a series of postcards Mina and Allan sent between the years 1899 and 1913;
* profiles of the second twentieth century Leagues and the group's French and German counterparts.

==Reception==
''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine's [[Lev Grossman]] named it one of the "Top 10 Graphic Novels of 2007", ranking it at #2 and praising it as "effing genius".<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20071212161209/http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/top10/article/0,30583,1686204_1686244_1692070,00.html Grossman, Lev; Top 10 Graphic Novels], ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]''</ref> Jesse Schedeen of [[IGN]] gave ''Black Dossier'' a 9.5 rating, praising the complex detail of Kevin O'Neill's artwork and the literary quality of Moore's writing, whilst criticising the quality of the paper, the printing style of the hardcover version and some aspects of the storytelling.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20071219174532/http://uk.comics.ign.com/articles/841/841499p1.html The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier (HC) Review], ''[[IGN]]''</ref>

==Awards==
* [[2007 in comics|2007]]: Won the "Favourite Original Graphic Novel" [[Eagle Awards#2007|Eagle Award]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin}}
*{{comicbookdb|type=issue|id=111798|title=''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier''}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20071020045754/http://www.comp.dit.ie/dgordon/League/loeg0025.html About ''Black Dossier'']
*[http://www.enjolrasworld.com/Jess%20Nevins/Black%20Dossier/dossier.html ''Black Dossier'' Annotations] by [[Jess Nevins]]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20071203191334/http://dcboards.warnerbros.com/web/forum.jspa?forumID=29209150 The DC Comics Message Board for ''The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen'']
*[http://www.ew.com/article/2007/10/18/first-look-alan-moores-new-graphic-novel Preview of ''Black Dossier''], ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''

===Interviews===
*[http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=11958 Alan Moore: Inside "The Black Dossier"], [[Comic Book Resources]], November 14, 2007
*[http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=12003 Kevin O'Neill Talks "The Black Dossier"], [[Comic Book Resources]], November 20, 2007

{{Alan Moore}}
{{The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen}}
{{Fanny Hill}}
{{Bulldog Drummond}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier, The}}
[[Category:2007 comics debuts]]
[[Category:Comics by Alan Moore]]
[[Category:Fiction set in 1958]]