Henry V Graphic Novel by Brigit Viney

Henry V Graphic Novel Reviews

• 
  Eric Piotrowski

  I didn't realize, until I'd gotten it home from the library, that this is a modern-language "translation" of Shakespeare's play. Doubly unfortunate, the language becomes dull and nearly incoherent at times. Boldface appears at random moments, causing bizarre inflections to those of us who have trained our eyes to emphasize boldfaced words in our mind's ears.
  
  I can see no reason to mutilate Shakespeare in this way, when making a comic book. The biggest stumbling block to understanding The Bard is getting a sense for what's going on in a scene. But comics can alleviate this dilemma through format alone. Dumbing down the language (especially in such a milquetoast fashion) only drains the scenes of their life and passion.
  
  The artwork is great -- characters are memorable, and the battlefields are rendered in stark detail. I'm not familiar enough with the original to say how well the story adheres to the play, but I can say that this isn't worth the reader's time.
• 
  Sydney Young

  Nice quick read this with pictures. I chose the real version, but wonder if I should have sacrificed for straightforwardness because I am hoping my son will read this (he loves the Mark Twain graphic novel). But in the end I was glad to read the famous quotes, especially the rousing: "We few, we happy few, we band of brothers."
• 
  dave grimmett

  Not Shakey's finest, but I really enjoyed this.
  Some amusing moments with the Anglo- French relations, and some rousing speeches from the main man.
  I loved reading this as a graphic novel with the full unabridged script - a new way of reading the plays.