I was so excited for a new collection of short stories by Alan Moore …
Some background may be useful: Moore was a relatively significant figure in my academic work for a few reasons. First, the formal structure of graphic narrative–comics–is an interesting one to me and Moore is a dominant figure in the field in the late 20th century. Second, his occult practices are of interest as well. Moore essentially decided that he wanted to make a run at experiencing this religion thing, and somewhat arbitrarily chose an early Greco-Roman snake goddess, and had (and presumably is still having) a fascinating relationship with 20th century neo paganism. Whatever one takes away from his experiential claim, the notion that the act of devotion matters more than the object of devotion is a good question to ponder.
All that to the side, when Moore nails something, he’s also a truly gifted writer. Illuminations (2022) has some examples of that: Hypothetical Lizard (which also exists in a graphic novel form), Cold Reading, and Location, Location, Location are great: smart, spooky, taut, and evocative.
And then comes What We Can Know About Thunderman. 240 pages of inside joke fiction set in the the comic book industry of the 70s, 80s, and 90s. I would assume it was cathartic for Moore to write, and that, if that kind of long-form parody is your thing (or if you know the people being caricatured), is probably amusing. But it is also awfully self-indulgent, and, along with a few of the other pieces, makes the whole collection feel very lightweight.
So, ultimately, disappointing. Some jewels for the completist in you, but otherwise, skippable in the Moore canon.