Fanbase Press’ coverage of the 2018 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards continues with the “Countdown to the Eisners” series. From Monday, June 4, through Friday, July 13, 2018, Fanbase Press will highlight each of the Eisner Awards’ 31 nomination categories, providing comic book industry members and readers alike the opportunity to learn more about the nominees and their work. Stay tuned for Fanbase Press’ continued coverage of the Eisner Awards, including live coverage of the ceremony at San Diego Comic-Con on Friday, July 20.
Added to the Eisner Awards categories in 2010, the Best Adaption from Another Medium includes nominated graphic novels or comics which have been adapted from another literary work. This year’s group spotlights one of the oldest surviving Anglo-Saxon poems, terrifying cosmic horror stories, one man’s obsession, and a slave narrative time-traveling sci-fi/fantasy.
Here are the 2018 Eisner Award nominees for the Best Adaptation from Another Medium category:
Beowulf adapted by Santiago Garcia and David Rubin (Image)
“Just when it seemed that this 1,000-year-old Old English epic poem by an anonymous author, detailing the adventures of the legendary Scandinavian hero Beowulf, had been translated and adapted in a very conceivable fashion, along comes this stunning graphic retelling to breathe new life into the story. After a dozen years at the mercy of the monstrous Grendel, a Danish kingdom is saved with the help of Beowulf. But our protagonist isn’t merely altruistic, he sees an opportunity to gain greater glory for himself by dueling the beast. And it’s this conflict in his character that writer Garcia (On the Graphic Novel) and artist (The Hero: Book One) exploit in order to bring a fresh, modern spin to the text. Garcia’s script hews closely to the events of the original, inventing only some dialogue and moments of reflection to deepen the characters, and Rubin’s dynamic illustration combines slightly cartoonish figures with moments visceral horror and expert pacing.” – Library Journal (dated March 30, 2017; review by Tom Batten)
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H.P. Lovecraft’s The Hound and Other Stories adapted by Gou Tanabe, translated by Zack Davisson (Dark Horse)
“H.P. Lovecraft’s The Hound and Other Stories is a wonderful, modernized retelling of these famous short stories, adding complementary visuals for the reader to flesh out the story. The entire book is in black and white and this brings the mystique and familiarity of a Lovecraft work. The art in H.P. Lovecraft’s The Hound and Other Stories breathes life in these almost 100-year-old stories that will surely captivate a brand-new audience. Overall, this is a lovely and honored tribute to one of horror’s greatest, original creators, and I would highly recommend it for Lovecraft fans, horror fans, or even anybody who has wanted to dip their toe into the dark world of H.P. Lovecraft and isn’t quite sure where to begin.” – Wicked Horror (dated June 19, 2017, review by April Bennett)
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Herman Melville’s Moby Dick adapted by Christophe Chabouté, translated by Laure Dupont (Dark Horse)
“A wandering narrator in search of adventure finds friendship in the form of a heavily tattooed South Sea chieftain and more than he bargained for as a crewman aboard the whaling ship, Pequod. The sinister captain Ahab is tormented by an all-consuming thirst for revenge against the whale that ate his leg. Herman Melville’s 1851 great American novel is now a newly translated graphic novel, rendered in stark black and white by illustrator/author Chabouté (Alone). Winnowing Melville’s text down to its essential passages, focusing on the trials faced by the crew of the Pequod as they chase the great white whale across the treacherous sea, Chabouté leaves much of the original work intact in the form of captions and spoken dialog. This gives readers a sense of the novel even as some of Melville’s diversions and discourses on ocean life and natural history are not included. – Library Journal (dated March 30, 2017; review by Tom Batten)
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Octavia Butler’s Kindred adapted by Damian Duffy and John Jennings (Abrams ComicArts)
“Equal parts slave narrative, fantasy, and time-travel tale, Kindred is as beloved as it is acclaimed, which makes it particularly difficult to adapt into a graphic novel. Yet Damian Duffy and John Jennings have risen to the challenge; their book highlights all of the medium’s strengths while still respecting Butler’s original words, first published 38 years ago. Jennings’ blocky, visceral art brings the story of Dana—a modern black woman who moves back and forth between the antebellum South and the 1970s—to life, giving faces to names and capturing the harsh realities of slavery. Now, readers can lose themselves in illustrated scenes of Butler’s vision. It’s a good introduction not only to Butler’s body of work but also to the potential of the graphic-novel form.” – Entertainment Weekly (dated January 26, 2017; review by Nivea Serrao)
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Stay tuned to the Fanbase Press website tomorrow as we continue our “Countdown to the Eisners” coverage! Plus, follow Fanbase Press’ Facebook, Twitter (@Fanbase_Press), and Instagram (@fanbasepress) with the hashtag #FPSDCC to stay up to date on our SDCC and Eisner Awards updates, including a live-tweet of the 2018 Eisner Award Ceremony from the Hilton Bayfront Hotel at San Diego Comic-Con on the evening of Friday, July 20th.
