This first volume, entitled Disenchanted, collects the story first published in issues 1-10 of the monthly comic, published by DC's 'mature readers' arm, Vertigo.
Usual comics discussion caveats apply here; I'm not the most widely read when it comes to the big mainstream comics universes of Marvel and DC, and have next to zero interest in the seemingly endless Superhero titles that throng the shelves, choosing to mainly concentrate on self contained, often creator owned, serials. My DC consumption is almost entirely limited to Vertigo titles, because they are more likely to fit those criteria, and when they do tie in to DC continuity, as is the case here, they're on the periphery, and don't require a huge commitment to buying 97 titles a month. All of which is just to say, I've not read anything else featuring this character. And it didn't matter in the slightest.
Madame Xanadu is a mystic, a fortune teller, and a guide to those who need aid when supernatural threats come knocking at their door. But why did she decide to dedicate her life to helping others? More to the point, what are the origins of the powers she uses to do so?
With this, suitably epic, opening storyline, Wagner gives us as thorough an origin story for the character as anyone could ask for. In 2 issue jumps we get snapshots of Xanadu's life over the centuries, from the fall of Camelot (you'll never guess who she was in Arthurian myth), through the court of Kublai Khan, Paris in the days of the revolution, and London at the height of Jack the Ripper's spree, to New York City in the 1930's.
Along the way we see Xanadu at the highest peaks of her powers and at her lowest, near death ebb, and come to understand how she became the person she is today, and presumably will continue to be as the series continues. She has lived a long time, and has made a lot of mistakes over that time, many in regards to an equally long lived Phantom Stranger, and it would seem destiny requires her to make amends.
Hadley, ably assisted by Major, produces some absolutely stunning artwork here, and shows a remarkable range, given the wide scope of the settings. The contrast could not be more apparent than in the lush green of her woodland home pre-camelot, and the seedy, dark underbelly of London, as Jack stalks the fogbound alleyways; these disparate settings never derail the book, always managing to feel, for all their differences, like part of the same world. I sometimes struggle to discuss the art in comics, but as the cliche says, I know what I like. And I love this.
The story features a number of references to the wider DC world, but they're very subtle, never once intruding on the story or leaving me feeling that I lacked some obscure piece of canon required to understand the tale at hand. It actually would not surprise me to learn that many other references existed which I'd missed entirely; they are there for the faithful, but the uninitiated are welcome too. Indeed, if you are a relative newcomer to comics, looking for a place to start but put off by decades of continuity, you could do worse than heed the words painted on Madame Xanadu's shopfront; Enter Freely And Be Unafraid.
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