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A review by jhamm
Bone: Quest for the Spark #1 by Tom Sniegoski
3.0
The original Bone series is arguably one of the greatest graphic novels of all time. This pales in comparison and honestly feels a lot like fan-fiction.
One of the biggest aspects that made Bone so delightful was its vibrant illustrations by Jeff Smith. While it is true that he still drew several pictures for this book, the bulk of the story is in novel form, forgoing the colorful images found within the original comics.
Another aspect that elevated the original series were the characters. Every single character was very unique and it was interesting getting to learn more about them all! In this book, every single character is a one-dimensional stereotype from a better-written story. The only characters who I actually thought were pretty good were the Bones themselves, seeing as how they’re supposed to be over-the-top cheesy. That’s kinda the point of them. The rest of the characters have the “illusion” of depth without anything substantial.
The last aspect of the originals that is absent here is the escalation and mystery of the plot. The first Bone series brilliantly grows from a cute little story about three quirky characters run out of their hometown and becomes a fantasy epic akin to Lord of the Rings. The readers are swept up in the story, and have a lot of questions about what is going on. What’s cool is the Bones have these exact same questions, and since the comic series is told from strictly their perspective, as they learn more about the plot, so too do the readers. In this book, all that mystery and escalation is absent as readers are told near the beginning everything that is going on and it’s more of an ensemble piece instead of the strict focus on the titular Bones.
To sum it all up, this book is eh. Just reread the original run!
One of the biggest aspects that made Bone so delightful was its vibrant illustrations by Jeff Smith. While it is true that he still drew several pictures for this book, the bulk of the story is in novel form, forgoing the colorful images found within the original comics.
Another aspect that elevated the original series were the characters. Every single character was very unique and it was interesting getting to learn more about them all! In this book, every single character is a one-dimensional stereotype from a better-written story. The only characters who I actually thought were pretty good were the Bones themselves, seeing as how they’re supposed to be over-the-top cheesy. That’s kinda the point of them. The rest of the characters have the “illusion” of depth without anything substantial.
The last aspect of the originals that is absent here is the escalation and mystery of the plot. The first Bone series brilliantly grows from a cute little story about three quirky characters run out of their hometown and becomes a fantasy epic akin to Lord of the Rings. The readers are swept up in the story, and have a lot of questions about what is going on. What’s cool is the Bones have these exact same questions, and since the comic series is told from strictly their perspective, as they learn more about the plot, so too do the readers. In this book, all that mystery and escalation is absent as readers are told near the beginning everything that is going on and it’s more of an ensemble piece instead of the strict focus on the titular Bones.
To sum it all up, this book is eh. Just reread the original run!