Graphic Classics #8: Mark Twain
by various artists
(Eureka, 2004)

Eureka's Graphic Classics #8: Mark Twain should be a great read. One of America's best writers and a selection of artists of varying levels of notoriety create the potential for highly inventive work.

A few artists take advantage of the opportunity in the graphic medium. Lance Tooks presents "A Dog's Tale" as a minimalist play, with the art standing in for photos of the production. The props, staging and actors of a family theater highlight a deeper layer of meaning within the text. "A Ghost Story" is a more exact representation of the story, but Anton Emdin's illustrated reenactment has a manic animation that adds character to Twain's often dry narration. Twain's "Advice to Little Girls" turns from stolid, slightly wry statements to single panel comedies in the hands of various artists.

But the majority of Graphic Classics: Mark Twain is just another highlight collection of Twain tales, with fewer stories and more illustrations than most. Twain's prose never disappoints, but many of the chosen illustrators do. When even the notable Gahan Wilson falls back on simple talking head shots, the graphic medium is done a severe disservice, and the stories gain little in the exercise. Some, such as "An Encounter With An Interviewer," receive nothing but a single illustration or varied font treatment.

Twain's prose, by itself, is of course entertaining without embellishment. But it's also widely available as plain text, in collections and single booklets that have few or no illustrations to distract the reader. A graphic novel offers the chance for something more than another literal presentation of the work. Graphic Classics: Mark Twain is a solid, attractive look at Twain's work. It just could have been much more.

- Rambles
written by Sarah Meador
published 30 July 2005



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