Looking at lavishly drawn and colored mice with swords was pleasant enough for a few pages, but I am afraid it only does so much for me. The high fantasy world of Mouse Guard feels underdeveloped and surprisingly generic underneath its furry surface - I got the impression that David Petersen was so keen on seeing his mice in action that he neglected the basics of fantasy storytelling, namely world building and character development.

Gorgeous book. The story owes a huge debt to Redwall, but the artwork is the real reason to read this book (and slowly). One review called the illustrations "sumptuous," and I can't beat that word. The colors are lush and glowing, and pattern & texture are used to great effect to show depth and distance. I noticed that David Petersen earned his BFA in printmaking, which would explain the care taken in composing each panel. Even though these aren't prints, I can imagine that when you get in the h...

The cuteness of the mice is in stark contrast to the seriousness of the comic. The setting is harsh, survival is difficult for mice, given the many predators they face. The Mouse Guard are sworn to protect their brethren, but there is a secret party who believes that the Guard must be replaced as it's not effective any more. The Mouse Guard will be threatened in their own home by an unexpected and well-organized foe and will need to band together to face him.Lieam, Kenzie, Saxon, all of the Mous...

Sort of an illustrated Redwall, but there are only mice. The doughty warriors of the Mouse Guard are faced with a new challenge when one of their own tries to overthrow their leader.

David Petersen's Mouseguard is a so-far-incredible series that pits medieval mice against both their common predators (snakes, owls, weasels, etc.) and their own kind. As the series is yet to be completed, it's hard to judge how well the series-as-whole will hold up—but if Petersen continues to show the kind of storytelling attention and illustrator's care that we see in the first two volumes, the final result will be worthwhile indeed.With Fall 1152, Petersen introduces a world within (presumab...

I don't like anthropomorphic stories. The Secret of NIMH never did it for me. I never finished Watership Down. Animal Farm was way too clever and even its political similies were lost on me when I was 15. I have seen and heard and spoken with Brian Jaques, but I haven't cracked the cover of Redwall yet.Lieam, Saxon, and Kenzie are the primary characters of Mouse Guard and they are, yes, mice. So are Gwendolyn and Sadie and Conrad. Ditto Celanawe. Mice. I hate stories with mice in them.But not th...

A book about warrior mice comes off as the sort of comedy comic I'd pick up in the 90's, flip through, and put back dismissively. There's been a certain disdain for talking animal comics among serious comic writers for about as long as the comic industry has existed in America.What sets Mouse Guard apart is that the creatures don't seem all that anthropomorphized. The author basically took a step back and observed that life for a mouse civilization would be much scarier and more difficult than a...

Okay, I’m going to start off by saying my friend Matt at work let me borrow this, I gave him The Wayward Children books and in return gives me books to reads and so far this has been my favourite!It follows 4 mice, 3 together and 1 on her own and they have to save their kingdom.The art is really really good which I cannot fault at all and then they’re trying to discover who the traitor it! Is was so much fun!

Very cute and ferocious mice! I love that there is an entire "mouse world", complete with fortified cities where each mouse has their place in the world. The drawings were excellent, especially the full-page drawings featuring natural mice foes (snake, crab, owl). And the added maps, guides, and gallery at the back of the book were fun to look through.

We mice have little chance in this world, considering all the critters that eats us.And so, the Mouse Guard was formed to keep the borders safe and protect against all evil and harm that may threaten their territories.They slay serpents and giant crabs, (oddly enough, owls, hawks, and even cats don't seem to be a problem), but their biggest threat comes from other mice.When a grain merchant is found dead, the guard discovers he was carrying a map of their city, and the race is on to find out to

So dark for a graphic novel about mice, but I loved that. It's a dark and gritty tale about mouse survival; against the elements, predators, and themselves.I'm also 90% sure I played a tabletop version of this in High School in our Role Playing Game Club. (which of course I was in)

The artwork is magnificent. It's worth reading this book just for the pleasure of falling into its gorgeous pages. And the basic idea -- a civilization of mammals near the bottom of the food-chain -- is great (though hardly original). But not much is done with that idea after the first issue or two. In fact, the storytelling is pretty inept. There's very little world-building and almost no character development beyond sketchily rendered cliches. Without the text summaries at the start of each is...

as someone who literally has a little mouse knight tattooed on my arm, i simply cannot review this book in an unbiased manner. i love fantasy mice. this hit the spot. i gave it four instead of five stars bc i would have liked to have seen more of the average villagers' lives, but that's just personal preference. the guard is also very cool.

As always, David Petersens work is always extraordinary to me. Unique art with a twist of woodland creatures epic saga of strife and conviction. This first book in the original series, Fall 1152, follows the struggles of sword wieldingSaxon, staff bearing Kenzie, dagger slashing Lieam, and a handful of other mouse heroes. The mysterious Black Axe makes his appearance for the first time, and it is unclear if he is the true legend of old or a myth. If Redwall had a graphic adaptation of its novels...

Wanted to start reading this one for ages. This has some interesting ideas and sets up an intriguing lore, but the main story is a bit mundane and basic. Art needs improvement also, especially in backgrounds but it looks promising. Let's see where the series goes.

I tried to like this. I really did. My buddy told me it was great. I opened the book and right away liked the art. I told myself, hey, it's Mice. This could be good...IT COULD BE....but sadly it was not. The idea behind this is the mouse guard send out three warriors to find out what happened to a missing mouse. Death occurs and the big fallout happens where we have to find out why we have traitors in our midst! Then a side story of someone else meeting a old guy because...oh man I dunno. What I...

I wanted to like this book for the artwork. The mice are portrayed in some strange land between cute and serious that is very enjoyable. Something about a mouse with a sword. It's nice. But unfortunately the writing is pretty bad. Several of the moments in the book that should have given the author an opportunity to explore, instead were highly derivative. When a mouse is caught inside a besieged town, the general proclaims that it is not them who is trapped inside with the enemy, it is the enem...

My girlfriend picked this up for my son, who has recently turned 7.He's a big reader, and he loves comics. Though he hasn't been tested, is probably reading years ahead of whatever the standard metric is.Unfortunately, Sarah made one of the classic mistakes here, and judged a book by its cover. In fact, she made the mistake twice. 1. She assumed that because it was a comic, it was probably for kids.2. She assumed that a book with animal characters is for kids.This is a mistake that someone who h...

Sincerity and simplicity are endangered concepts in much of today's fantasy offerings -- be they books, movies or games -- but "Mouse Guard" recalls the fare of my youth, like "Watership Down" and "The Secret of NIMH," where even the most unassuming creatures face epic trials of life and death and morality.Think of it as a "Lord of the Rings" for mice, but instead of battling balrogs, these warrior mice struggle against snakes and crabs, and instead of Sauron and his minions, they combat treache...

Basically, this is one of the most beautiful graphic novels I've ever read. The amount of time it must have taken to perfectly craft the color and lines for every every panel is enormous. The characters and scenery are beautifully beautifully executed, and their drama is very real and comes to life as a result of the painstaking work of David Peterson. Great for fans of Redwall or Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, or for anyone who loves full color pages where you can spend inordinate amounts of...