From A Game of Thrones to The Wheel of Time, over the years there have been countless fantastic comic book adaptations of seminal fantasy novels. In this list, we countdown 5 of the best.
Whether you’re seeking to dive into a fantasy world for the first time, or you want to return to a beloved work in a different medium, these 5 comic book adaptations of beloved fantasy novels are for you.
The Golden Compass
Phlip Pullman’s His Dark Materials is one of the best gateway fantasy series for newcomers. This graphic novel adaptation from Stephane Melchior and Clément Oubrerie is gorgeous, enhancing the story through its gorgeous visual identity. It only adapts the first book, and Northern Lights is told over 3 volumes. The third book, Subtle Knife, has yet to be adapted.
The Wheel of Time (The Eye of the World)
Based on the seminal novels by Robert Jordan, The Wheel of Time was brought to the comics medium by Chuck Dixon and illustrator Chase Conley. Given just how sprawling the Wheel of Time novels are, only the first novel, The Eye of the World, has been adapted for comics. Split into 6 volumes, Dixon does a masterful job at adapting the story for comics, leaving it as unabridged as possible.
The Wheel of Time has since seen an excellent TV adaptation from Prime Video, which was sadly axed before it could cover the entire story. We’re still bitter about that. But if you want to experience the story from another angle, this is a stellar work to pick up!
Discworld
Terry Pratchett’s Discworld is a classic of fantasy literature. There are 41 novels in the entire series, so adapting all of them would be a monumental undertaking. However, there have been a few over the years. Notably, The Colour of Magic and The Light Fantastic have had graphic novel adaptations, and they’re really good. Both novels have been collected in comic format in one massive edition published by Doubleday in 2007.
The Hobbit
The Hobbit comic is just as you’d imagine… a version of the story adapted for the comics medium. But what I love most is that it tries to stay as unabridged as possible, whilst also giving readers some absolutely gorgeous illustrations. It adds a whole new perspective and side to the story that you simply can’t get from the original novel. And it uses direct quotes and descriptions from the source material too, making it a word-heavy comic. If you read this and not the original, you wouldn’t really be missing out on anything.
I actually find that I love The Hobbit graphic novel more than the original book. I’ve read it through more times than I can count. The script by Chuck Dixon (who also did The Eye of the World) is great, and the illustrations by David Wenzel are absolutely exquisite, seamlessly bring to life Tolkien’s vision.
A Song of Ice and Fire (and A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms)
George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire is one of the most adored and celebrated fantasy series of all-time. Gritty and brutal, the epic fantasy heralds no introduction. And if you haven’t read the books, there’s a high chance you’ve already watched the live-action adaptation. But switching to the comics medium, all of the original novels have been adapted into seven complete graphic novels. Don’t heavily compromise on content, especially given how dense the original novels are. Additionally, the art is glorious! You can find the entire collection here.
Plus, there’s also A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, which currently consists of three novellas: “The Hedge Knight” (1998), “The Sworn Sword” (2003), and “The Mystery Knight” (2010). By 2015, the three novellas were combined into a novel titled A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Martin has since revealed that he plans to write more tales about Dunk and Egg, but he hasn’t published any further works yet.
We could implore you to read the novel, which you definitely should. But as we’re a site that celebrates the comics medium, I can’t recommend Ben Avery and Mike S. Miller’s full-colour graphic novel adaptations of the A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms saga enough!
The comics are a magnificent adaptation of the original work. Avery keeps it faithful to the source material, while Mike D. Miller’s art adds a while new perspective to the story. It helps visualise what the TV show will end up looking like. Whether you’re suffering from Game of Thrones withdrawal and want a visual story to read now, or you want to get ahead of the curve before the upcoming TV adaptation of A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, these are the perfect books for you!
