''Empire'' is a 1978

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

written by

Samuel R. Delany Samuel R. "Chip" Delany (, ) (born April 1, 1942), is an American author and literary critic. His work includes fiction (especially science fiction), memoir, criticism, and essays (on science fiction, literature, sexuality, and society). His ...

and illustrated by

Howard Chaykin Howard Victor Chaykin (; born October 7, 1950) is an American comic book artist and writer. Chaykin's influences include his one-time employer and mentor, Gil Kane, and the mid-20th century illustrators Robert Fawcett and Al Parker. Early life ...

Plot

Thousands of years in the future, a powerful device has been hidden in separate pieces. Qrelon, whose planet was destroyed by the

empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

, leads a small group of rebels that risk everything to collect the pieces of the device that, once complete, will be the weapon powerful enough to destroy the planet-sized computer that runs the empire. Wryn, an

archaeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landsca ...

student, is chosen by the empire to assassinate the rebel leader.

Style

''Empire'' is categorized as speculative fiction and

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

. The graphic novel is a fantastical foray into space and planetary travel. It is 120 pages long. Delany challenges traditional stylistic approaches to the science fiction genre by selecting a protagonist and

sidekick A sidekick is a slang expression for a close companion or colleague (not necessarily in fiction) who is, or is generally regarded as, subordinate to the one they accompany. Some well-known fictional sidekicks are Don Quixote's Sancho Panza, ...

who are both female. In a 1979 interview, Delany notes the lack of representation of

women in speculative fiction The role of women in speculative fiction has changed a great deal since the early to mid-20th century. There are several aspects to women's roles, including their participation as authors of speculative fiction and their role in science fiction ...

as well as female friendships within this genre, highlighting how he has broken "a lot of mythical patterns" by selecting this approach. Yet, despite this claim, Delany continues to comment that he wishes he had focused on this female friendship more, arguing that they may not have "done enough with the woman sidekick" and that "there are times when the male point-of-view-character almost displaces her." In regards to illustrations, Chaykin primarily utilizes three-panelled pages which feature bold, detailed, and colourful painted graphics. This artistic approach allows Delany and Chaykin to portray "action

hich Ij ( fa, ايج, also Romanized as Īj; also known as Hich and Īch) is a village in Golabar Rural District, in the Central District of Ijrud County, Zanjan Province, Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also ...

shifts from landscape to landscape pretty quickly."

Reception

Reviews contemporary with ''Empires publication identify issues with the visual novel's integration of literary and visual storytelling techniques. Richard E. Geis' review in ''Science Fiction Review'', derides ''Empire'' as a "basic interstellar Star Wars plot" that is not at par with some of Delany’s other fiction and suggests "the pretty comic book pictures rewhere it's at in this book." Bob Toomey in ''The Comics Journal'' writes a more detailed criticism of ''Empire'''s failings in terms of literary merit and visual design and concludes that "in nearly all respects" ''Empire'' is "boring, hard to follow, and poorly conceived."

Algis Budrys Algirdas Jonas "Algis" Budrys (January 9, 1931 – June 9, 2008) was a Lithuanian-American science fiction author, editor, and critic. He was also known under the pen names Frank Mason, Alger Rome (in collaboration with Jerome Bixby), Jo ...

thought that while the story was imperfect, recommended the work overall: "Some of the plot transitions are a trifle abrupt, and it seems characteristic of this kind of story that the brave revolutionaries overthrow the interstellar oppressors rather easily when all is said and done. But the saying and the doing are first-class." The graphic novel received 8th place in the 1979

Locus Award The Locus Awards are an annual set of literary awards voted on by readers of the science fiction and fantasy magazine ''Locus'', a monthly magazine based in Oakland, California. The awards are presented at an annual banquet. In addition to the pl ...

for Best SF Art or Illustrated Book.

Publication history

Published in 1978, ''Empire'' is regarded as one of the first graphic novels in the United States. The first edition of ''Empire'' was published as a hardcover by Berkley Windhover with

Byron Preiss Byron Preiss (April 11, 1953 – July 9, 2005)Byron Preiss
at the

Delany and Chaykin, illustrator of

Star Wars comics ''Star Wars'' comics have been produced by various comic book publishers since the debut of the 1977 film ''Star Wars''. Marvel Comics launched its original series in 1977, beginning with a six-issue comic adaptation of the film and running for ...

, had been looking to collaborate since the late 1960s. In 1976, Delany, Chaykin and Preiss, who knew Chaykin from school, finally began to discuss and devise a visual novel which would become ''Empire''. Before its publication, ''Mediascene'' reported that

Berkley Publishing Berkley Books is an imprint of the Penguin Group. History Berkley Books began as an independent company in 1955. It was founded as "Chic News Company" by Charles Byrne and Frederick Klein, who had worked for Avon; they quickly renamed it Berkl ...

science fiction editor David Hartwell was so confident about this "breakthrough novel in graphic story form" that the print run for the $9.95 paperback edition was planned for 50,000 copies, with 1,500 signed and numbered hardcovers retailed at $24 each.

Edits by Byron Preiss

In 1977, Preiss told convention-goers that for ''Empire'', "separate, type-set text was necessary for commercial reasons." In a 1979 interview with ''

The Comics Journal ''The Comics Journal'', often abbreviated ''TCJ'', is an American magazine of news and criticism pertaining to comic books, comic strips and graphic novels. Known for its lengthy interviews with comic creators, pointed editorials and scathing r ...

'', Delany recalled Preiss suggesting that ''Empire'' would use no speech balloons because "they made things look too comicy," which Delany thought "was a mistake." Despite being marketed as a "science fiction novel," the writer protested that "I never thought of it as such... I think of it as a comic book." In the same interview, Delany also remarked that Preiss "rewrote a good number of my sentences… I take full responsibility for maybe half the sentences in the text." A more exact figure was provided by Delany in a later volume of ''

'' in a Letter to the Editor, in which he says "a mere 39 percent" had been rewritten by Preiss.

Influences

When asked about his influences for writing ''Empire'' in a 1979 interview with

, Delany acknowledges being largely inspired by comic writers he admires, including, but not limited to:

Dennis O'Neil Dennis Joseph O'Neil (May 3, 1939 – June 11, 2020) was an American comic book writer and editor, principally for Marvel Comics and DC Comics from the 1960s through the 1990s, and Group Editor for the Batman family of titles until his retir ...

Neal Adams Neal Adams (June 15, 1941 – April 28, 2022) was an American comic book artist. He was the co-founder of the graphic design studio Continuity Associates, and was a creators-rights advocate who helped secure a pension and recognition for Sup ...

Jim Aparo James N. Aparo (August 24, 1932 – July 19, 2005) was an American comic book artist, best known for his DC Comics work from the late 1960s through the 1990s, including on the characters Batman, Aquaman, and the Spectre, along with famous stories ...

, S. Clay Wilson,

Jan Strnad Jan Steven Strnad (sometimes credited as J. Knight) is an American writer of comic books, horror, and science fiction. He is known for his many collaborations with artist Richard Corben, as well as his work in the ''Star Wars'' expanded universe ...

Lee Marrs Lee Marrs (born September 5, 1945) is an American cartoonist and animator, and one of the first female underground comix creators. She is best known for her comic book series ''The Further Fattening Adventures of Pudge, Girl Blimp'', which lasted ...

Richard Corben Richard Corben (October 1, 1940December 2, 2020) was an American illustrator and comic book artist best known for his comics featured in '' Heavy Metal'' magazine, especially the ''Den'' series which was featured in the magazine's first film ada ...

, and

Trina Robbins Trina Robbins (born Trina Perlson; August 17, 1938, in Brooklyn, New York) is an American cartoonist. She was an early participant in the underground comix movement, and one of the first female artists in that movement. In the 1980s, Robbins beca ...

. Chaykin identifies his greatest artistic influence as former DC Comics' and Marvel Comics' artist,

Gil Kane Gil Kane (; born Eli Katz ; April 6, 1926 – January 31, 2000) was a Latvian-born American comics artist whose career spanned the 1940s to the 1990s and virtually every major comics company and character. Kane co-created the modern-day versio ...

. Delany and Chaykin have each acknowledged their interest in working together as well as their admiration of each other's work. Aside from Delany's and Chaykin's personal influences, ''Empire'' is undoubtedly influenced by the creative direction of Preiss, who took many personal liberties in editing as he altered the style and content of the creators' work. Oxford Bibliographies also identifies '' Métal Hurlant,'' a French science fiction magazine, as a potential source of inspiration or influence for ''Empire.''

References

{{reflist 1978 American novels 1978 graphic novels American graphic novels Novels by Samuel Delany Style (fiction)