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The armies of Persia -- a vast horde greater than any the world has ever known -- are poised to crush Greece, an island of reason and freedom in a sea of madness and tyranny. Standing between Greece and this tidal wave of destruction is a tiny detachment of but three hundred warriors. But these warriors are more than men -- they are Spartans!
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English
User reviews
LibraryThing member stephmo
If there's one thing Frank Miller is good at, it's atmosphere. His talent for creating living, breathing universes for each of his works shines through best in the story of the Battle of Thermopylae.
First, to get the problem of Herodotus out of the way. The Battle of Thermopylae was recounted in
Onto Frank Miller. This is the technicolor, hyper-testosteroned (my word), retelling of a story we've all come to know and love: the few against the many with impossible odds for nothing but the sheer glory and rightness of what they're doing. Miller tells this story in a brisk fashion, fleshing out Leonidas in ways that make him both more human and more of a larger than life myth than even Sparta could have hoped. This is a story of war and carnage with the backdrop of the Spartan way and nothing else. It's a graphic novel one simply sits back, takes it in and enjoys.
First, to get the problem of Herodotus out of the way. The Battle of Thermopylae was recounted in
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The Histories and has been largely taken as the factual accounting of Sparta's valiant effort to hold off Xerxes and his forces. 300 does not assume to replace Herodotus, nor does it ever claim to be more than a story of what might have happened those days. Discuss amongst yourselves: What makes Herodotus' version anymore accurate than other accountings?Onto Frank Miller. This is the technicolor, hyper-testosteroned (my word), retelling of a story we've all come to know and love: the few against the many with impossible odds for nothing but the sheer glory and rightness of what they're doing. Miller tells this story in a brisk fashion, fleshing out Leonidas in ways that make him both more human and more of a larger than life myth than even Sparta could have hoped. This is a story of war and carnage with the backdrop of the Spartan way and nothing else. It's a graphic novel one simply sits back, takes it in and enjoys.
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LibraryThing member smitkevi
For fans of graphic novels or of classic Greece, this is a must. It is an exciting and beautifully illustrated tale of the 300 spartans and their allies who marched into the pass of Thermopylae against a force who would overwhelm and kill them. If you are a stickler for historical accuracy, hold
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your criticism long enough to consider the way stories were told in the time of Heroditus. The storyteller would have painted fantastic pictures of the heroes, villains, and events of the battle, not unlike those in this novel. With that in mind, I think this is an even more enjoyable yarn. Yeah, I said yarn. Show Less
LibraryThing member Terpsichoreus
Fun and exciting. A worthwhile story to be told, though the omission of the Thespians and other abuses of artistic license mark the fault of Miller's sensationalism. Like the four-color comics before him, Miller takes archetypes and symbols and drives them full throttle to the epic, gun-blazing
However, when Miller is forced to give up some of his control, the improvement of realistic emotion shows how good his work can be. In The Dark Knight Returns, he had to keep much of the character's past and could not transform him entirely into an unfeeling, heroic killing machine. Likewise, in the film adaptation of 300, the actors and director helped to infuse the characters with more emotion and depth.
All in all, 300 isn't a long enough read for Miller's drawbacks to really hurt it, and he picked a fittingly manly story to showcase his histrionic machismo.
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climax. Unfortunately, character and emotion suffer. This is not quite the liability that it could have been, as the Epic tradition is often purposefully guilty of the same and 300 fits into this traditio...more Fun and exciting. A worthwhile story to be told, though the omission of the Thespians and other abuses of artistic license mark the fault of Miller's sensationalism. Like the four-color comics before him, Miller takes archetypes and symbols and drives them full throttle to the epic, gun-blazing climax. Unfortunately, character and emotion suffer. This is not quite the liability that it could have been, as the Epic tradition is often purposefully guilty of the same and 300 fits into this tradition (or the modern swords & sandals permutation).However, when Miller is forced to give up some of his control, the improvement of realistic emotion shows how good his work can be. In The Dark Knight Returns, he had to keep much of the character's past and could not transform him entirely into an unfeeling, heroic killing machine. Likewise, in the film adaptation of 300, the actors and director helped to infuse the characters with more emotion and depth.
All in all, 300 isn't a long enough read for Miller's drawbacks to really hurt it, and he picked a fittingly manly story to showcase his histrionic machismo.
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LibraryThing member -Eva-
A fictional retelling of the story of the Battle of Thermopylae and King Leonidas of Sparta and how he gathered 300 of his best men to stand up against the Persian army. This story ignores a lot of the actual history of this battle and the preparation beforehand, but it makes for an impressive tale
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(as well as for one very aesthetically appealing film). I'm not a huge fan of Miller's and get slightly irked by some of his more slapdash story choices (such as describing how Spartans fight and then ignore his own words when drawing the same), but I do enjoy this story as long as I remember it's in the action genre, not history. I have to admit I'm partial to the film, though, mainly because of its very striking post-production effects. The movie has a permanent place in my shelves, but the book will go in the donation-pile, unfortunately. Show Less
LibraryThing member Zare
Interesting art and story now known to almost everybody - brave stand of 300 Spartans (plus hoplites from some allied states) against overwhelming odds of Persian army.
Do not expect realistic drawings of Spartans and/or Persians because entire art feels like it comes from some dark fantasy
Very Interesting work.
Do not expect realistic drawings of Spartans and/or Persians because entire art feels like it comes from some dark fantasy
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universe. Very Interesting work.
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LibraryThing member BenjaminHahn
As a person who appreciates historical accuracy in media of any form, 300 had a strong chance of rubbing me the wrong way. Fortunately, I was able to put all notions of verisimilitude aside, and just enjoy the fantastic artwork and outrageous exaggerations of adventure. I recommend watching the
Despite the fact the half of the plot devices and events in the book never happened, the story is remarkable for its surrealism, sweeping vistas and silhouettes, and grand battle scenes. The overall message: Futile resistance is sometimes a very beautiful thing. In this world where scenes of altruistic sacrifice are rare, it helps to see such an example targeted towards the audience that probably needs to see it the most: American male youths.
I also recommend reading Herodotus or at least the chapters dealing with this battle for some of the more interesting pieces of relative truth that did find there way into the graphic novel and thus the film. For instance, the Persian delegation being pushed into the Spartan well.
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film "The 300 Spartans" and then read the book, since it is the film that inspired Miller to draw the comic. Then go see the new film 300. Despite the fact the half of the plot devices and events in the book never happened, the story is remarkable for its surrealism, sweeping vistas and silhouettes, and grand battle scenes. The overall message: Futile resistance is sometimes a very beautiful thing. In this world where scenes of altruistic sacrifice are rare, it helps to see such an example targeted towards the audience that probably needs to see it the most: American male youths.
I also recommend reading Herodotus or at least the chapters dealing with this battle for some of the more interesting pieces of relative truth that did find there way into the graphic novel and thus the film. For instance, the Persian delegation being pushed into the Spartan well.
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LibraryThing member Angelic55blonde
This is a great book (comic book). I studied it for one of my MA classes in history and the book has many political and social commentaries. The movie adaptation is AMAZING. The graphics are insane and the social and political commentaries are even that much more apparent. This book is a great
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addition to any book collection and will be a great companion to the DVD (which is bound to come out here in the semi-near future). Show Less
LibraryThing member badgenome
A gripping, bloodspattered masterpiece. To dwell on historical "inaccuracies" is to miss the point of this very stylized presentation of the Battle of Thermopylae entirely.
LibraryThing member Clurb
Leonidas leads 300 Spartan soldiers to war against the entirity of the Persian army. I can't say I'm the biggest fan of Miller's art work, but the story here is just as fast-paced and comic as the film. I'd rather watch the film, however.
LibraryThing member unihighlibrary
This is book was the basis for the new and popular movie 300. This is an amusing read. If you are a fan of the movie I would highly recommend the book. Its not entirely factual, but it is a graphic novel, not a history textbook. This happens to be one of my favorite stories and the book does a good
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job of immortalizing the Spartans. It follows the battle of the 300 Spartans at Thermopylae. Also, this graphic novel is not disturbing, it could easily be read to a child without causing nightmares due to violence, etc. EY Show Less
LibraryThing member perfectleft
have to grade on a graphic novel scale. great story, great illustrations. less homoerotic than the movie :)
LibraryThing member tapestry100
Frank Miller's retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae, 300 was originally published as a limited series and later collected as a graphic novel. I'm fairly sure without further research of my own that Miller was rather liberal in his retelling. The story is quickly paced, leading from the events
300 is illustrated in Frank Miller's typical, graphically strong style. Lynn Varley's colors help set off Miller's artwork appropriately, and overall the artwork compliments the story well.
This is a very quick read, and if your only experience with 300 is the film version, you may be disappointed in this original print version, but it is still worth reading if you are interested in the graphic novel.
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that sparked the battle to the defeat of Leonidas by Xerxes which prompts the Spartans to take arms against Xerxes and the Persian Empire.300 is illustrated in Frank Miller's typical, graphically strong style. Lynn Varley's colors help set off Miller's artwork appropriately, and overall the artwork compliments the story well.
This is a very quick read, and if your only experience with 300 is the film version, you may be disappointed in this original print version, but it is still worth reading if you are interested in the graphic novel.
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LibraryThing member thierry
Having heard that the movie adaptation was being released, I had to read the book. It recounts the story of the Battle of Thermopylae, where Spartan King Leonidas with his Spartan and Thespian soldiers checked an enormous invasion force led by Persian King Xerxes before being annihilated. This
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delaying action enabled the Greek states to re-group and defeat the Persians at the Battles of Salamis and Plataea. With beautiful and dramatic imagery, the story is quite entertaining and briskly paced. Although the book has no pretense of being a serious historical work (although a small bibliography of works of relevance is included), I do have some questions over the interpretation of a historical event. Chief among them would be the portrayal of the ‘enemies’, including Xerxes as African, the ethnicities of the various Persian army units and the reinvention of the traitor, Ephialtes. In my mind, this raises serious questions about our perception and representation of the other (ie. not white), infirmity (ie. evil), masculinity and the warrior ethos - ugly undertones, if you ask me. 300 is a graphic novel, and it is for pure visual entertainment only. Show Less
LibraryThing member theboylatham
Six out of ten.
The story of the Battle of Thermopolyae told in typical Frank Miller style.
The story of the Battle of Thermopolyae told in typical Frank Miller style.
LibraryThing member mikemillertime
Having seen the movie first, I still thoroughly enjoyed this book. Very striking and bold art accompanied by Miller's typical hard-boiled aplomb, the movie was a quite direct translation of this story. Perhaps there's a little bit more levity in the dialog, but otherwise the two are nearly
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identical. King Leonidas is definitely one of literature's and history's biggest badasses. Show Less
LibraryThing member lauren.castan
I really loved the movie of this, but this book didn't quite fascinate me in the same way. Beautiful work though.
LibraryThing member Tyler51
300 was a pretty good book, it shows a lot of fighting and determination through out the situations of battling the Persians I feel it kind of told me in a way that will power is given to you, you have to create it for yourself. It really showed me that back then you have to push yourself no matter
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how bad it gets and in the end either it will all pay off or it may not go your way. Leonidas is a good leader and he shows alt of strength he has taught his team well and they are all strong. In the story it says that his wife says," A Spartan shows no emotion or any signs of weakness toward his lady or his team. A Spartan stays strong and shows his will power and strength through war and skills. My favorite part is when Leonidas turns down the offer of the Emperor and stays a strong man he will not give in to wealth or a life of luxury. Show Less
LibraryThing member Kurt.Rocourt
If you've seen the movie than this book will feel differently to you. When I first read this book I read the main character as though he was Frank Millers Batman in ancient Greece. It's a good story but not so in your face as the movie is.
LibraryThing member TysonAdams
I decided that I needed to read this graphic novel after watching the movie again recently. While this was a good read and captured some very tough and manly themes nicely, I felt the movie actually had more to it. I know that sounds laughable, but that's the way I feel about this.
Either way this
Either way this
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is a man book. Honour, courage, determination, pride, it makes you feel good to be a man! Show Less
LibraryThing member providencia
I really loved this story. I do think that I prefer the graphic novel to the movie. It may just be that the graphic novel is a format that reminds me of being a child and reading the dry mythologies/stories of ancient Greece. The books lacked the richness of storytelling that they deserved. This
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will give you a much greater appreciation of the histories. You will wonder again about those hidden stories no one tells. Show Less
LibraryThing member amanda4242
A lot of chest thumping dialogue and weirdly fetishistic art. I'd recommend it over the movie, but don't take that for a ringing endorsement.