The Mummer's Dance - Loreena McKennitt

The Professor's Daughter

Author: Joann Sfar & Emmanuel Guibert
Genre: graphic novel, fantasy
Pages: 64
Publisher: First Second
Brief Summary:
In this fantasy version of London during the Victorian era, remarkably well-preserved Egyptian mummies walk around and even fall in love. Lillian, daughter of a renowned professor, takes Imhotep IV out of his sarcophagus for a walk one afternoon and sets some crazy events in motion, which even include the kidnapping of the queen.

Review:
The story is a weird but interesting one. I really enjoyed the beginning where the two of them walked the streets of London. Imhotep IV and Lillian bond over their marginalization and powerlessness in society. Both are loved by the professor, but more as possessions than as real people. They also both suffer from daddy issues.

After the opening though, I thought the story went downhill. The plot is a bit far-fetched, even for a fantasy story. The actions that the characters take at pretty much any point do not seem particularly likely. The perfect example of this is the kidnapping of Queen Victoria, which, while funny, serves absolutely no point. It is merely to be entertaining. The plot, such as it was, failed to wrap up in a way I found satisfying, as the big issue with the romance was entirely ignored.

I was also a bit bothered by the fact that the mummies were capable of just sloughing off their bandages and looking like real men again. If so, why wouldn't they just do that? Why live the life of a mummy, destined to be stuck under glass for a museum display, when you can just walk around like a normal man?