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Rex Mundi (Dark Horse Comics)
Encyclopedia
Rex Mundi is an American comic book
series
published by Image Comics
(2003–2006) and Dark Horse Comics
(2006–2009), written by Arvid Nelson
and drawn by Argentinian artist Juan Ferreyra. In all, 19 issues were published by Image before the series moved to Dark Horse, where a further 19 were published before the title ended.
The series is a quest for the Holy Grail
told as a murder mystery. It is set in the year 1933, in an alternate history Europe
, where magic is real, feudalism persisted, and the Protestant Reformation
was crushed by a still politically powerful Catholic Church. All of this is woven together as "... a meditation on the prophecies surrounding the advent of the Bahá'í
era." The book takes its name from the Latin
term meaning King of the World. It is derived from the Cathar heresies
of the Middle Ages
, and taken up in works like The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail
. Within the Cathar context it seems to have been equated with the Demiurge
.
helping to film a documentary on The Paris Review, a literary magazine founded by Ivy League
ex-pats
in the 1950s
Surrounded by the juxtaposition of being in an ancient city in otherwise modern times, Nelson says he had the idea, although very vague at the time, about a story set in a place that looked modern but was actually medieval. When speaking of his plans for the story, Nelson said that it would remain primarily set in Europe, but the very end will involve a Muslim Spain
.
Rex Mundi artist, Juan Ferreyra, cites photographer Eugène Atget
, artist Alphonse Mucha and Coco Chanel
among the many visual references for his work in Rex Mundi.
Nelson described the impact his Bahá'í faith had on the concept:
Rex Mundi was initially published by Image Comics
, starting in 2003
. In August 2006
it moved to Dark Horse
. This came about after Nelson and Eric J split over creative differences. Eric J described the situation in a note to members of the Rex Mundi mailing list announcing his departure from the title:
Subsequently, Nelson sent the Image collections to Dark Horse editor Scott Allie. Dark Horse then expressed interest in taking over the publication of Rex Mundi, and Nelson described it as "an incredible opportunity that he wanted to take full advantage of".
The official website for Rex Mundi initially carried a spin-off comic series called Brother Matthew. Prior to the breakdown in the creative team of Nelson and Johnson, Nelson had commented that he was considering another comic series set in the same universe as Rex Mundi with different characters.
.
was hired to write a script for Johnny Depp
to star in and produce. It is not known how much further production has progressed since then.
Arvid Nelson confirms the rumor of the movie, and working with Johnny Depp. In December 2008, Nelson described that "the wheels of Hollywood grind slowly. ... We are at a second revision of the screenplay, so that's good. The way this works is there are periods of feverish activity, followed by lulls ... We're in one of the lulls now." An interview with MTV
's Splash Page in March 2009 confirmed the film was still progressing and searching for a director.
American comic book
An American comic book is a small magazine originating in the United States and containing a narrative in the form of comics. Since 1975 the dimensions have standardized at 6 5/8" x 10 ¼" , down from 6 ¾" x 10 ¼" in the Silver Age, although larger formats appeared in the past...
series
Ongoing series
The term "ongoing series" is used in contrast to limited series , a one shot , a graphic novel, or a trade paperback...
published by Image Comics
Image Comics
Image Comics is a United States comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties. It was immediately successful, and remains...
(2003–2006) and Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
(2006–2009), written by Arvid Nelson
Arvid Nelson
Arvid Nelson is an American comic book writer, best known for Rex Mundi.-Biography:Nelson started writing comics while at Dartmouth College, where he also converted to the Baha'i Faith...
and drawn by Argentinian artist Juan Ferreyra. In all, 19 issues were published by Image before the series moved to Dark Horse, where a further 19 were published before the title ended.
The series is a quest for the Holy Grail
Holy Grail
The Holy Grail is a sacred object figuring in literature and certain Christian traditions, most often identified with the dish, plate, or cup used by Jesus at the Last Supper and said to possess miraculous powers...
told as a murder mystery. It is set in the year 1933, in an alternate history Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, where magic is real, feudalism persisted, and the Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
was crushed by a still politically powerful Catholic Church. All of this is woven together as "... a meditation on the prophecies surrounding the advent of the Bahá'í
Bahá'í Faith
The Bahá'í Faith is a monotheistic religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 19th-century Persia, emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind. There are an estimated five to six million Bahá'ís around the world in more than 200 countries and territories....
era." The book takes its name from the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
term meaning King of the World. It is derived from the Cathar heresies
Heresy
Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...
of the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, and taken up in works like The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail
The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail
The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail is a book by Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, and Henry Lincoln....
. Within the Cathar context it seems to have been equated with the Demiurge
Demiurge
The demiurge is a concept from the Platonic, Neopythagorean, Middle Platonic, and Neoplatonic schools of philosophy for an artisan-like figure responsible for the fashioning and maintenance of the physical universe. The term was subsequently adopted by the Gnostics...
.
Publication history
Rex Mundi writer and co-creator Arvid Nelson came up with Rex Mundi while in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
helping to film a documentary on The Paris Review, a literary magazine founded by Ivy League
Ivy League
The Ivy League is an athletic conference comprising eight private institutions of higher education in the Northeastern United States. The conference name is also commonly used to refer to those eight schools as a group...
ex-pats
Expatriate
An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing...
in the 1950s
Surrounded by the juxtaposition of being in an ancient city in otherwise modern times, Nelson says he had the idea, although very vague at the time, about a story set in a place that looked modern but was actually medieval. When speaking of his plans for the story, Nelson said that it would remain primarily set in Europe, but the very end will involve a Muslim Spain
Al-Andalus
Al-Andalus was the Arabic name given to a nation and territorial region also commonly referred to as Moorish Iberia. The name describes parts of the Iberian Peninsula and Septimania governed by Muslims , at various times in the period between 711 and 1492, although the territorial boundaries...
.
Rex Mundi artist, Juan Ferreyra, cites photographer Eugène Atget
Eugène Atget
Eugène Atget was a French photographer noted for his photographs documenting the architecture and street scenes of Paris....
, artist Alphonse Mucha and Coco Chanel
Coco Chanel
Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel was a pioneering French fashion designer whose modernist thought, menswear-inspired fashions, and pursuit of expensive simplicity made her an important figure in 20th-century fashion. She was the founder of one of the most famous fashion brands, Chanel...
among the many visual references for his work in Rex Mundi.
Nelson described the impact his Bahá'í faith had on the concept:
Rex Mundi was initially published by Image Comics
Image Comics
Image Comics is a United States comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties. It was immediately successful, and remains...
, starting in 2003
2003 in comics
-January:* January 2: Kid Colt artist Jack Keller dies at age 80.- April :* Action Comics #800: Double-sized anniversary issue, "A Hero's Journey," by Joe Kelly, Pascual Ferry, and Duncan Rouleau...
. In August 2006
2006 in comics
-January:*January 1, 2006: Newsweek offer a look back at 2005 through editorial cartoons. *January 2, 2006: The Cincinnati Enquirer cartoonist Jim Borgman starts a blog to detail his creative process...
it moved to Dark Horse
Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
. This came about after Nelson and Eric J split over creative differences. Eric J described the situation in a note to members of the Rex Mundi mailing list announcing his departure from the title:
Subsequently, Nelson sent the Image collections to Dark Horse editor Scott Allie. Dark Horse then expressed interest in taking over the publication of Rex Mundi, and Nelson described it as "an incredible opportunity that he wanted to take full advantage of".
Related comics
Rex Mundi devotes space in each issue to a fictitious newspaper, Le Journal de la Liberté, which enables Nelson to embellish events elsewhere in the setting without writing them entirely in his storylines, thus giving readers some useful, but not always essential, background.The official website for Rex Mundi initially carried a spin-off comic series called Brother Matthew. Prior to the breakdown in the creative team of Nelson and Johnson, Nelson had commented that he was considering another comic series set in the same universe as Rex Mundi with different characters.
Collected editions
Rex Mundi has been collected in the following trade paperbacksTrade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
.
| Vol | Title | Material collected | Publisher | ISBN | Published |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Guardian of the Temple | Rex Mundi #0–5 (Image Comics) | Image Comics Image Comics Image Comics is a United States comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties. It was immediately successful, and remains... |
ISBN 978-1-582-40341-0 | February 18, 2004 |
| Dark Horse Books | ISBN 978-1-593-07652-8 | November 1, 2006 | |||
| 2 | The River Underground | Rex Mundi #6–11 (Image Comics) | Image Comics Image Comics Image Comics is a United States comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties. It was immediately successful, and remains... |
ISBN 978-1-582-40479-0 | June 1, 2005 |
| Dark Horse Books | ISBN 978-1-593-07682-5 | January 31, 2007 | |||
| 3 | The Lost Kings | Rex Mundi #12–17 (Image Comics) | Dark Horse Books | ISBN 978-1-593-07651-1 | September 20, 2006 |
| 4 | Crown and Sword | Rex Mundi #18 (Image Comics); Rex Mundi #1–5 (Dark Horse Comics); "To Weaver a Lover", The Dark Horse Book of The Dark Horse Book of... The Dark Horse Book of... was the banner title given to a series of four Dark Horse Comics one-shot hardcover comic book horror anthologies edited by Scott Allie and featuring the work of Mike Mignola and others.-The Dark Horse Book of Hauntings:... Monsters (Dark Horse Comics) |
Dark Horse Books | ISBN 978-1-593-07824-9 | December 12, 2007 |
| 5 | The Valley at the End of the World | Rex Mundi #6–12 (Dark Horse Comics) | Dark Horse Books | ISBN 978-1-595-82192-8 | December 3, 2008 |
| 6 | Gate of God | Rex Mundi #13–19 (Dark Horse Comics) | Dark Horse Books | ISBN 978-1-595-82403-5 | February 10, 2010 |
Film adaptation
There have been a number of rumours about a film version of Rex Mundi. In 2006, Jim UhlsJim Uhls
Jim Uhls born as James Walter Uhls is an American screenwriter and producer who rose to fame with his script adaptation of the critically acclaimed novel Fight Club...
was hired to write a script for Johnny Depp
Johnny Depp
John Christopher "Johnny" Depp II is an American actor, producer and musician. He has won the Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild award for Best Actor. Depp rose to prominence on the 1980s television series 21 Jump Street, becoming a teen idol...
to star in and produce. It is not known how much further production has progressed since then.
Arvid Nelson confirms the rumor of the movie, and working with Johnny Depp. In December 2008, Nelson described that "the wheels of Hollywood grind slowly. ... We are at a second revision of the screenplay, so that's good. The way this works is there are periods of feverish activity, followed by lulls ... We're in one of the lulls now." An interview with MTV
MTV Networks
MTV Networks is a division of media conglomerate Viacom that oversees the operations of many television channels and Internet brands, including the original MTV channel in the United States...
's Splash Page in March 2009 confirmed the film was still progressing and searching for a director.
External links
- Juan Ferreyra's blog
- Arvid Nelson's website (in-development)
Interviews
- Podcast interview with Arvid Nelson at comiXology
- Americans in Paris: An interview with EricJ and Arvid Nelson, Ninth Art, November 11, 2002
- Interview with Rex Mundi Creators Arvid Nelson & Eric J, PopImage.com, undated
- Interview: Rex Mundi Collected (part 1, part 2), PopImage.com, undated
- Arvid Nelson on Rex Mundis final arc, Comic Book ResourcesComic Book ResourcesComic Book Resources, also known as CBR is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book-related news and discussion.-History:Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1996 as a development of the Kingdom Come Message Board, a message forum that Weiland had created to discuss DC...
, December 18, 2008
Reviews
- Review of Rex Mundi Book III, The Lost Kings, The Daily Cross Hatch, March 8, 2007