The Discworld Graphic Novels: The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic (Discworld Graphic Novels, Books 1-2)

by Terry Pratchett

[empressbrooke]

When I saw this on the library shelf, I thought it would be the perfect supplement to the first two Discworld novels. I spent so much time mentally visualizing things while reading the books - the elephants that stand on the giant turtle, the chest with hundreds of little feet, the giant tower where the final showdown takes place - I was really keen on seeing someone else draw it all out for me.

The only problem is, it didn't really match up with what I'd had in my head. The Discworld seems so Legoish - I was expecting bold colors, bright designs, something cartoonish to go with the jubilant humor. It didn't LOOK funny, if that makes any sense whatsoever.

Also, the text-to-graphic-novel adaptation wasn't extremely successful. If I hadn't read the novels first, I doubt I'd have been able to follow what was going on. The novels skip from location to location with minimal transitioning, and the graphic novels completely strip what transitions there were. There is NO explanation of how they go from one scene to the next.

And, finally, most of Pratchett's humor is in his words. When you change the words into pictures, that humor disappears. So while it was nice to see the Discworld finally, the translation to pictures removed its heart.