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sarahanne8382's review
4.0
What a fun and faithful adaptation of the L. Frank Baum classic. Honestly, The Marvelous Land of Oz is one of my favorite Oz stories because it's just such a charming adventure, so it was great to relive that tale with such delightfully quirky illustrations. I know this is kind of arbitrary, but the pictures in this book so closely matched the pictures I had in my mind while reading the story. This was really just a fun way to relive a favorite story.
saroz162's review
4.0
Eric Shanower and Skottie Young's follow-up to their adaptation of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is no less kinetic, fun, or colorful, but because it moves beyond the boundaries of the most famous Oz characters and adventures, it's at least slightly more surprising - which is good. Baum's theatrical tale of enchantments, inanimate objects brought to life and the invasion of the Emerald City is golden material for the graphic novel format, and some of the least familiar scenes from the original work - such as the consultations between General Jinjur and the witch Mombi - actually become some of the most memorable here. Baum's satirical sense of humor gets a good outing as well, with lots and lots of groan-worthy puns (which is lampshaded in the character of the Wogglebug).
If I have any complete, it's only that Young seems to have pulled back a little in finding new and different ways to depict the Oz characters. His Ozma is clearly based on John R. Neill's Ozma; his Sawhorse is clearly Neill's Sawhorse; his Jack Pumpkinhead, while not exactly Neill's Pumpkinhead, is dressed in precisely the same garments. That's authenticity to the text, to be sure, but it would have been nice to see Young's art push beyond those boundaries a little bit. His Tin Woodman isn't much like the description we get of the Tin Woodman in Wonderful Wizard, but he is a highly effective creation all the same. I would have liked to see a Young-styled Ozma created from a similar position of carte blanche.
If I have any complete, it's only that Young seems to have pulled back a little in finding new and different ways to depict the Oz characters. His Ozma is clearly based on John R. Neill's Ozma; his Sawhorse is clearly Neill's Sawhorse; his Jack Pumpkinhead, while not exactly Neill's Pumpkinhead, is dressed in precisely the same garments. That's authenticity to the text, to be sure, but it would have been nice to see Young's art push beyond those boundaries a little bit. His Tin Woodman isn't much like the description we get of the Tin Woodman in Wonderful Wizard, but he is a highly effective creation all the same. I would have liked to see a Young-styled Ozma created from a similar position of carte blanche.
sqeeker's review
5.0
- I have only read the first Oz book, so I wasn't familiar with this story, but I loved it! I want to read all the original Oz books now.
- Again, the illustrations are perfect and amazing!
- I loved the introduction of new characters. They were all endearing and wonderful. I was surprised Dorothy didn't make an appearance.
- The ending is surprising yet predictable. That isn't an easy accomplishment.
- Again, the illustrations are perfect and amazing!
- I loved the introduction of new characters. They were all endearing and wonderful. I was surprised Dorothy didn't make an appearance.
- The ending is surprising yet predictable. That isn't an easy accomplishment.
ktneil7's review
3.0
Graphic Novel #2
Once again, while reading this I made the obvious connection of it to The Wizard of Oz. This book follows a boy in the land of Oz though, it isn't about Dorothy. Besides that, it reminded me of somewhat of Tangled and somewhat of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It reminded me of Cinderella because the boy, Tip, lives with a woman who is not his mother and who doesn't care for him. She makes him work all day every day and he never has time to do things for himself. I then switched over to recognizing similarities to Huck Finn because he runs away from home and starts traveling with a friend. This is only the first volume so they do not get very far in their adventure, but I think they will hit many obstacles just like Huck Finn does. You can relate this book to real life by thinking of the opposite of what the book shows. They book focuses a lot on how the sorceress (or mom) treats Tip and you can take this as a "what not to do" scenario. It is important to be kind to people and show them that you care otherwise they are going to want to leave. As for my own life, I thought of how when I was younger I would imagine my stuffed animals and I going on these great adventures. I would dress myself and them up and we would set off. Tip made a pumpkin man in the story and, while the sorceress was the one to bring him to life, Tip was the one that went on the adventure with him. He had a great imagination for making him look real, just like my imagination took me away when I was little.
Once again, while reading this I made the obvious connection of it to The Wizard of Oz. This book follows a boy in the land of Oz though, it isn't about Dorothy. Besides that, it reminded me of somewhat of Tangled and somewhat of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It reminded me of Cinderella because the boy, Tip, lives with a woman who is not his mother and who doesn't care for him. She makes him work all day every day and he never has time to do things for himself. I then switched over to recognizing similarities to Huck Finn because he runs away from home and starts traveling with a friend. This is only the first volume so they do not get very far in their adventure, but I think they will hit many obstacles just like Huck Finn does. You can relate this book to real life by thinking of the opposite of what the book shows. They book focuses a lot on how the sorceress (or mom) treats Tip and you can take this as a "what not to do" scenario. It is important to be kind to people and show them that you care otherwise they are going to want to leave. As for my own life, I thought of how when I was younger I would imagine my stuffed animals and I going on these great adventures. I would dress myself and them up and we would set off. Tip made a pumpkin man in the story and, while the sorceress was the one to bring him to life, Tip was the one that went on the adventure with him. He had a great imagination for making him look real, just like my imagination took me away when I was little.
bugaboobear's review
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
starburns's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
lorathelibrarian's review
2.0
This was disappointing. However it was very true to the original version by L. Frank Baum. Exact portions of diagolue were taken from the original 1904 book for this graphic novel interpretation. Because of that it read very stiffly. The talking was very formal and false. The story was true to the original, but the story is just strange. As are all the Oz books.
I love the illustrations, they are quirky and fantastical and colorful. But the illustrations alone (even in a comic) cannot support the story.
I love the illustrations, they are quirky and fantastical and colorful. But the illustrations alone (even in a comic) cannot support the story.