Comic Quick Pick: The Last Unicorn

How was everyone’s comics week last week? I had some pretty fun reads that I picked up, including the Shadowland: Ghost Rider tie in and the third installment of the X-Files/30 Days of Night crossover. For this week, however, I’d like to highlight something a little bit different: IDW Publishing’s comic version of Peter S. Beagle’s famous novel The Last Unicorn.

I can’t remember how old I was when I first read this timeless classic, nor can I recall how old I was when I first watched the animated movie, starring the likes of Jeff Bridges and Mia Farrow, but I do remember that I loved the story very much. I still do.

Enter IDW Publishing. Already, I’m a big fan of this company. They’ve done a great job with the relaunch of the Star Trek franchise within the comics world, and that makes it hard for me to dislike them right off the bat. But, no, Star Trek wasn’t enough. Soon it was Transformers and G.I. Joe and Doctor Who — and, of course, The Last Unicorn.

For those of you who may be unfamiliar with the story of The Last Unicorn, let me share the brief overview provided by IDW Publishing:

Both darkly humorous and deeply moving, The Last Unicorn follows the journey of what may be the very last unicorn as she searches for what happened to the rest of her kind. Along the way she encounters a magical cast of good and evil characters, in a world transformed by the lack of unicorns – and by the callous, selfish disillusionment of the king who has stolen them away.

The comics are, of course, closely related to the source material — there’s even a three-part interview with the original author, Peter S. Beagle, himself. The comic is an adaptation penned by writer Peter B. Gillis and lovingly illustrated by Renae de Liz, and colored by her husband Ray Dillon.

Adapting a classic novel to comic form can’t be an easy task, but Gillis does a great job. The thing that blows me away, however, is the art:

The Last Unicorn #3. Click to Enlarge.

The artwork is, in a word, beautiful. It so perfectly captures the essence and feeling of this book. I can’t even describe how lovely it is, and how perfectly it works with this particular story. It’s hard for me to put into words the kind of affection I have for this story, positively difficult to explain how beautiful this book has been so far. Issue #4 comes out this week, and I urge you to pick it up. If you’re a lover of the book, the animated movie, or just fantasy stories in general, you will adore this book.

That said, the rest of my pull list this week seems to be my normal fare of superhero-related things such as Avengers and The Flash. What’s on your pull list this week? What are some good stories that have come out recently that might have been overlooked by others but are worth picking up? Sound off in the comments!

 
Comic Quick Pick is a weekly column discussing the pull list and favorites of a comic book fan.

About Tiarra

Tiarra Wantz is a comic book and sci-fi geek girl who enjoys reading, playing video games, creating typography art, and comparing everything to “that one episode of TNG where…” Tiarra lives in Las Vegas with the love of her life, Dan, where they live together with two cuddly kittens named Panda Face and Ser Pounce-a-lot and a precocious pup named Pippin.

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