Ahira's Hangar

I've been noticing that this is the hot new trend in fantasy.

One of the first that really came to my notice was George R. R. Martin's novella of The Hedge Knight ~ I actually own that one, and think they did a very good job with it. And then there was Tolkien's The Hobbit.

Then they started coming faster and faster - some I have heard about (but not seen) would include Robert Jordan's New Spring and Laurell K. Hamilton's Guilty Pleasures. I know that there are a bunch more that I cannot think of right now, but I have seen discussion threads for them over at the Martin board.

I saw on Garth Nix's website that a graphic novel for Sabriel is in the works. Now I love that book, and am not sure about seeing it as a graphic novel - it might completely change my perceptions of the characters and my mental images of them.

What do all of you think? Do you enjoy seeing your favorite novels being turned into comic books and/or graphic novels? Are you pleased with the quality of the ones you might have seen? Are there any novels you would really like to see turned into a comic?

Uh, no. No and no.

Literature for the masses...

Don't get me wrong, I love a good graphic novel. That was always supposed to be a graphic novel.

--A

Oh yeah - Sandman and others that were intended from day one to be comics/graphic novels can be great works of both literature and art!

I am just leery of some of the regular novels which are being adapted.

Like the Laurell K. Hamilton books - the earlier books in the Anita Blake series were extremely violent and the later ones are nonstop plotless orgies. I have trouble picturing how they could be turned into graphic novels without some serious pruning (and the later ones will have literally nothing left after you take out the gratuitous sex scenes).

Here is a link to some of the character sketches from the upcoming Erikson/Malazan adaptation.

Tattersail doesn't look like my mental image in the least little bit.

Gaiman might have started this style. His work with short stories and novels have opened up a lot of people to his comics, and I must say has given more respectability to the form. Myself included, I never read comics until I found Gaiman, now I buy them a lot, but I only buy ones that are associated with authors. The Hedge Knight, any Gaiman, and Stephen King's The Dark Tower (surprised no mention of it).

Also of note Terry Brooks has a graphic novel coming out too, but he made a story especially for the format. Also I think Tad Williams is also joining the comic craze, although I don't know a lot about it since I don't read him.

Anyway, I like them, but I would choose a book over a graphic novel every single time.

yea the King ones are pretty good, the storytelling is good and they are using the graphic artist (colorer) Richard Isanove, who makes the comics look very nice. He did a great job in Neil Gaiman's 1602, also.,