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SHAKESPEARE’S HAMLET - THE MANGA EDITION |
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Reviews
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Wednesday, 21 May 2008 |
 | | ▪ | RELEASED BY: | | WILEY PUBLISHING | | | ▪ | EDITOR / ART: | | ADAM SEXTON / TINTIN PANTOJA | | | ▪ | FORMAT: | | WESTERN / B&W | | | ▪ | PAGES: | | 186 | | | ▪ | RATING: | | T | | | ▪ | RELEASE DATE: | | 01/14/2008 | | | ▪ | REVIEW DATE: | | 05/21/2008 | | | ▪ | REVIEWED BY: | | HOLLY ELLINGWOOD |
Hamlet is Shakespeare’s hallmark tale about one young man’s descent into madness after terrible betrayal. A tragedy among tragedies, Hamlet’s grief for his dead father is only surpassed by frightening hallucinations and a growing horrific awareness of a deceit that will undo not only Hamlet’s mind, but all those within betrayal’s foul reach. Subterfuge, insanity, ambition and greed all turn into one murderous plot that will leave few if any survivors. Like the other original English language manga editions from Wiley showcasing Shakespeare’s masterpieces, Hamlet is streamlined, taking its most pivotal scenes and memorable lines to give a faster paced experience of the play. Because it keeps a good portion of the original content it is a faithful retelling. The added visuals help provide interpretation for those who may find Shakespeare’s prose to be rather difficult to understand. For Hamlet, the artist, Tintin Pantoja does a dark illustrative rendition that helps exemplify the tragic and gothic atmosphere of the story. Although I cannot say that it strikes me as being particularly manga-like in the illustrative style, the main character of Hamlet most closely fits a manga design. The artist adds an interesting interpretation regarding Hamlet’s eyes as he descends into madness, one that I feel truly brings out the insanity that grows and seethes within the young man. And even though the graphic novel is more Western comic book style than manga-style, the Gothic background designs to the castle and dark atmospheric quality suit the tale well. Page 182 has a particularly effective visual of the phrase “and flights of angels sing thee to thy rest”. I like the interpretations the illustrator has chosen and find quite a bit of such imagery to be inspired.
IN SUMMARY:
Hamlet the manga edition offers a faster paced and appealing visual look at one of Shakespeare’s most famous tragedies. |
