I dinnae think yon Coohen issa Bigjobs heero.
Whut?
A heero wud be ail bluey, lik a Feegle. Coohen only has some bluey lines.
So, The Last Hero is called a fable on the cover. I’m not sure exactly why that category was chosen. It doesn’t really matter. What does matter is that this is also largely a picture book. (Yay!) Paul Kidby, the illustrator, really shines in this one – and not only on the covers. Of course, Paul always shines, but I really like not having to picture everything in my mind’s eye for this story.
Since there are so many great pictures in The Last Hero, which is an oversized book, especially compared to all the others (except the Eric picture book), I decided to include many of them in this “review”. Actually, this isn’t going to be so much a review as it is a retelling of the tale in pictures.
Let me show you what I mean.
Begin at the Beginning
We’ll start with the Bard, or the Minstrel, or the Singer, as he’s called. He’s the unnamed artist who is “hired” to compose the saga that will be the Silver Horde’s last journey.
He’s reluctant at first because he doesn’t think he’s up to the task. Cohen and company convince him otherwise along the way. In the end, he doesn’t have much choice, but who would, considering it’s the Silver Horde we’re dealing with.
Speaking of the Silver Horde, here are Cohen and his friends – all except Old Vincent who met his match a few novels ago.
I think that, after examining those pictures closely, not much else needs to (or can be) said about the Silver Horde. They obviously work well together.
While the Horde is getting organized, word comes to Ankh-Morpork that these legendary heroes are going to head to Dunmanifestin to blow up the gods there. As this would more than likely destroy the whole of the Discworld, there is some amount of concern on the part of Lord Vetinari, Patrician of Ankh-Morpork.
He “commissions” (“commands” would be a better word, but Leonard wouldn’t take it that way anyway) Leonard of Quirm to find a way to stop the Horde. Thus, the Kite is…born, so to speak.
I won’t go into all the details of the plans of either group. Again, I’ll let the pictures do most of the talking.
Proceed to the Middle
Along the way to Dunmanifestin, Cohen and crew join some old “friends”.
Evil Harry Dread had his own henchmen – Armpit, Slime, Slime, Butcher, Dat’s me, and Gak – but they didn’t survive the journey to the top.
In the End…
I could show you the gods of Dunmanifestin, but I’ll leave you something to discover when you read the book yourself. There are many more illustrations for you to find – The Great A’Tuin (though unnamed this time around), Ankh-Morpork, Harry’s henchmen, Swamp Dragons, DEATH, the circumfence, and more.
I also won’t spoil the ending for you, since I’m going to stop right here.
