One of these movies was The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen, which was a box office failure. The original premise was solid; along with artist Kevin O’Neill, Moore wrote two miniseries and a deluxe graphic novel (The Black Dossier) that took place in a world where literary figures interacted with each other. The titular League was made up of Wilhelmina Harker (from Bram Stoker’s Dracula), Alan Quatermain, Captain Nemo (Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea), Hawley Griffin (better known as the Invisible Man), and Dr. Jekyll and his brutish alter ego, Mr. Hyde. Today, Moore has taken the franchise to Top Shelf Productions for a trilogy that begins with The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen (Volume III): Century – 1910.

The story begins when “ghost-finder” Thomas Carnacki has a vision of a sinister cult, seeking to call down a “moon child,” which would plunge the world into “a strange and terrible new aeon.” Carnecki is a member of the current League, along with Mina Murray, Alan Quatermain (rejuvenated in Black Dossier and posing as his own son, though that is never mentioned outright in this book), master thief A.J. Raffles and gender-bending immortal Orlando. As the League investigates, a young girl named Janni runs away from her father – the dying Captain Nemo – and starts a new life in London. And while the locals prepare for the passing of Hailey’s Comet and the coronation of George V, Jack MacHeath – a.k.a. “Mack the Knife” – returns to stalk the streets.

For readers who are not really involved with literature, Century might pose some problems. The palate of characters ranges from Ishmael (Moby Dick) to Andrew Norton (Slow Chocolate Autopsy), a man who is trapped within London, but not bound to any one time period. One four-page sequence taking place at the Merlin Society will send readers scurrying to the search engines, looking for the origins of the assembled psychics and mystics. Moore also throws in something for music fans by bringing in characters from Threepenny Opera to function as a chorus. As Suki chronicles both the abuse that Janni takes and the foreshadowing of doom, Mack sings from the gallows about those who commit deeds far worse than his. While a little odd at first, the songs help move the story along.

The League itself fares less than successfully in this outing, as dysfunction reigns supreme. One can feel the impatience building within Mina, especially towards Orlando, who is presented as history’s greatest name-dropper. Thanks to the dependable O’Neill, the League looks good anyway. The artist brings his usual A-game, ranging from crowd scenes, to the abuse heaped upon Janni, to the League itself. The story serves as set-up for the next two issues, but Moore does manage to keep things interesting. Although the first issue doesn’t reach Moore’s better stories, it does serve as a solid foundation for the remaining chapters.

While those familiar with The League Of Extraordinary Gentlemen should snap this up, newcomers might want to start with either of the two prior volumes or Black Dossier, if not all three at the same time. And while the story doesn’t shift gears that much, it does serve as a proper set-up for the next volume.

Reviewer’s Note: The preview copy of the book did not come with Minions Of The Moon, a text-story that will run in all three issues of Century.