Classics Illustrated, Berkeley Editions
A Christmas Carol
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This is one I was looking forward to reading since A Christmas Carol is one of my favorite stories and movies. The cover is well done and a I like how the artist drew both the main characters.
Two good points right off. One, the illustrations are done in a very reasonable manner. They don't over-emphasize anyone's features and they capture the spirit of the original book quite well. Two, they stick to the original text as much as possible.
Jacob Marley's ghost is drawn quite well. The Ghost of Christmas Past is drawn a little oddly, though, especially her legs. The scene where he meets the Ghost of Christmas Present is quite well done. There are parts covered in this comic that are not usually covered in movies that tell the story. The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Be is also done well.
This is an excellent version of the story and well worth getting.
Aesop's Fables
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1991, First Publishing.
A text page discusses Aesop and the fables, including their origins. The introductory page is really cute since it's a fox teacher in a classroom with younger foxes and he's teaching them about the fables.
The fables include The Wolf and the Crane; The Fox and the Crow; the Astronomer; the Mouse, the Frog and the Hawk; the Flea and the Man; the Tortoise and the Eagle; the Wild Boar and the Fox; the Grasshopper and the Ants; the Crab and his Mother; the Bee and Jupiter; the Fox and the Stork; the Viper and the File; the Ass Carrying the Image; the Spendthrift and the Swallow; the Monkey and the Camel; the Quack Frog; the Snake and Jupiter; the Prophet; the Beekeeper; the North Wind and the Sun; the Soldier and His Horse; the Fox and the Snake; the Old Man and Death; the Town Mouse and the Country Mouse; the Fox and the Grasshopper.
What is so great about the stories is that they have good morals, yet they are very short. The artwork in the whole book is also really good.
Dr. Jeckyl and Mr. Hyde
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1990, Berkeley Publishing Group.
The issue starts with a brief history of the story. As with many of the other Berkeley editions of Classics Illustrated, the artwork in this version is absolutely terrible, totally distracting from the story. In addition, the text balloons are not printed in a nice, clear, even text and that makes things even worse.
I cannot understand why this series was brought out. So far every one I have looked at has had this type of artwork. It's a total waste of time, in my opinion, to get this printing when the originals are so much better.
Ivanhoe
1991, Berkeley Publishing.
For once the artwork in this version of the series has artwork that is fairly decent, especially in comparison to artwork in other books in the series. The story has already been done in Classics Illustrated format and is, basically, superior to this version.
It is interesting to note the prejudice against Jewish people noted in the story. It's also interesting about the Knights Templar and that there is interest in them even today. The story also revolves around the very old Christian/Islam battle which was partially spirituality but also over money, power and land.
Robin Hood makes an appearance in the story and, again, there is still interest in Robin Hood as is shown by the television series.
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