Pride and Prejudice and Marvel Comics

Here’s a sneak peek of the new Marvel comic version of “Pride and Prejudice” due out April 1.

Check out the sisters. Is it me or does Jane look like Reese Witherspoon?

[Thanks to Rebecca for the link.]

Comments are Closed

  1. joanne says:

    OMG!  I just have to get that for my daughter!

  2. MB says:

    Got to say that the artwork looks way too modern in feel.  That would be a problem for me.

  3. Rene says:

    Wow, that art is wrong for the story.  I wish they had used art similar in feel to that in the banner ad.  I love me some comics, and I love me some P&P, but… no. 

    OK, I’ve looked at some of the scenes from the ball later on, and I like that a little better, but the portrait of all the sisters together grates on me.  They look too plastic-y and made up.  And in the second panel, Mrs. Bennet appears to have misplaced her face.

    captcha: ball28; I don’t think there were that many in the book, but it’s been a while. 🙂

  4. Jennie says:

    Whoa. And yes, very Reese-ish.  I’m not sure how I feel about it.  Great intro to the book, maybe? But those images are not my version of P&P at ALL.
    Again, whoa.
    p.s. thanks for the heads up on the Harlequin giveaway, picked up “His Lady Mistress” and loved it.

  5. Erica says:

    I’m thinking maybe they should have courted someone like Charles Vess if they wanted artwork that would be taken more seriously.

    But maybe this (blatantly anachronistic hairstyles and all) will help introduce Austen to readers who wouldn’t otherwise stumble onto her.

  6. SonomaLass says:

    I have to have it.  I just subscribed.  Of course, I also pre-ordered Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.  All things Jane-derived seduce me (Jane Austen action figure?  Tarot cards?  Oh yeah, I’m there.).

    Thanks for posting this!

  7. Phyllis says:

    Yeah, the hair styles and the collagen lips… But as for maybe introducing the story to some new readers? Might all be worth it.

  8. ghn says:

    Utterly _dreadful_ artwork. Those chicks look as if they are more at home in leather and spandex than muslin. And I don’t even know how they have fucked up the storyline *quietly gags*

  9. DS says:

    Nope, don’t like the art work at all.  The sisters all look the wrong ages and they are all wearing the same color of lipstick. 

    For the past forty years I have heard people suggest that reading a comic book is going to encourage someone to read the print book.  I don’t think it works that way. 

    I loved Marvel comics (better than DC) when I was a kid because of the story and the drawings (Doctor Strange’s increasingly psychedelic adventures anyone?)  From this brief look, I think the illustrations would irritate me rather than add to the narrative. 

    I am looking forward to Pride and Prejudice with the Zombies though.

  10. ev says:

    This one is not getting added to my monthly pile at the comic book store. ew. The artwork alone just creeped me out, I can’t even bother to try and read it.

    The Zombie one is another story.

  11. Lara F says:

    Oh, that is so sad.  I either need to count myself as officially OLD now and out of touch, OR that is just as painful to look at as I think it is.  The artwork is wrong for the period, and all the subtlety is missing.  And the daughters don’t even begin to resemble their descriptions.  That will NOT be joining my Jane collection.

  12. MzSpell says:

    Who knew the Bennett sisters were aspiring porn stars (I’m lookin’ at you Jane and Lizzy)?  Or video vixens practicing to be on American Idol (Lydia)?  Or seriously on Prozac (Mary) or amphetamines (Kitty)?  This opens up whole new vistas of fan-fic!

  13. JoanneL says:

    Darcy looks like his mouth sketch was dropped in a puddle then printed anyway.

    For God’s sake…. It’s DARCY!…. is there no respect? No decency? Damn rebels …. damn …. mumble… mumble… gripe…

  14. SusannaG says:

    That is baaaaaad artwork in my book.  I wouldn’t buy that.  And I’m a sad Janeaholic.

    Kitty on amphetamines?  I love THAT idea, MzSpell!

  15. Ew, I really, really don’t like the art.  It reminds me of Greg Land; all of the women look extremely similar, and they all have pornface.

    Now, if they’d used the artist who did the cover, that would have been perfect.  That story would really benefit from a softer, more whimsical art style, not the semi-realistic superhero style that it’s using now.

  16. Carmael says:

    Nooooo… they looked like over-dressed prostitutes. That’s so wrong. Is there anything that’s sacred anymore?! Leave Jane Austin and her beauties alone! Don’t turn them into some adolescent epeen stroking fantasy comic book babe! Have some respect for the classics!

    And that’s not to say that I don’t like comics—I’m a huge fan. But… it’s… Jane Austin…

    *Cries herself to sleep*

  17. That artwork is pretty cringe-inducing.  They should have hired the guy who did the cover.  “Pornface”- LOL! 

    What sucks about this, is that I know this person that was working hard on a Pride and Prejudice manga for Tokyopop, which was canned after she did over 50 pages of art for them.  Her artwork is delightful, and way better than what was done for Marvel.  Check it out:  http://mentacle.deviantart.com/gallery/#PRIDE-AND-PREJUDICE

  18. Sarah says:

    This is the problem when traditional American comics decide to take on a project like this—WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?  The hair, the clothes, that superhero plastic-glaze coloring!  It all works in Superman, but with Jane Austen?  Really?

    I’m so disappointed that Tintin Pantoja’s P & P was canned, and this is what comes out.

  19. SB Sarah says:

    Just showed it to Hubby. He says Lizzie looks like Paula Marshall.

    I also think Jane could resemble an extremely blonde Rhianna.

  20. blueviolin says:

    Okay, Darcy’s fug, the sisters look like pornstars, and the art is anachronistic at best, but… I think I must own this.  Yes, I must own this.  I don’t even know why.

  21. Linzenberg says:

    As a Marvel fan and an even bigger Jane fan, I am weeping.  My comic book buddy (a guy) didn’t get why I was so upset until I compared it to ruining Captain America.  You just DON’T screw with Jane.

  22. Pai says:

    Wow, that artwork is horrific. The sisters all look like floozies and their makeup is completely ridiculous for the era.

  23. Pai says:

    And Mr. Darcy looks like a clueless male artist’s attempt to design a character that women would consider ‘attractive’, only he doesn’t actually KNOW what women find attractive or how to draw a ‘romantic hero’ without making him look like a ninny. So epic fail there.

  24. Kelli says:

    I have to agree that they look like porn stars, and they all look like they’re the same age.  Isn’t there supposed to be a significant range in age?  If the whole thing had been done like the cover, that would have been neat, but this is…ouch.  And to me Mr. Darcy will always look like Colin Firth, and I think it’s the same for me as it is for a lot of others—once you’ve got that picture of what Mr. Darcy looks like in your head (no matter what you picture him as), seeing anyone else play him or him be drawn differently is practically blasphemy.

  25. Sarah says:

    Actually, I feel I need to change my mind about my previous statement on the coloring—the color works!

    The pencils do not.

    Neither does the American comic format.

    And odd how the man who drew this drew it as though other men would read it!  Give us lovely women, and smoking hot men.  Not slutastic “super babes” and strange looking men.

  26. Amelia says:

    Left to right:
    Jane is Rihanna (good call, Sarah)
    Lizzie is Jessica Biel
    Lydia is Ellen Page with collagen injections
    Kitty is Isla Fisher

    and I’m blanking on who they used for Mary… Kelly LeBrock with a nose reduction?

  27. quichepup says:

    Actaully Mrs. Bennet scares me, she reminds me of Lanie Kazan.

  28. Actually, I love the art.  It looks a lot like what Jay Anacleta did at Image for Aria back in the day.

  29. krsylu says:

    In the panels where Mrs. B has a face, she looks like Kathy Bates…

  30. Wendy C. says:

    Is this aimed at men or women? Because the Bennett sisters look like a bunch of floozies and the men like afterthoughts.

  31. *shudder* I couldn’t look past the second page portrait of the sisters. It’s all so wrong!

  32. Ziggy says:

    Lizzy looks quite pretty in the inset on page 3. I don’t know why they have made Mrs B quite so grotesque. I kind of like it when they tweak Austen and other classics so I approve of the idea. Maybe not the execution. Too rushed and shrill.

  33. vanessa jaye says:

    The panel of the sisters made me think there’s going to be a wet T-shirt contest held at one of the balls in this graphic novel.  Or, there should be a 1-800 at the bottom of the page.

    I much prefer the artwork on the cover, it feels more true to the story, but I think I could get used to the artwork inside. Maybe.  I thought the Manga stuff really worked (and I”m not a big fan of manga, but I got the ‘romance & drama’ feeling from those few black/white images far more than the colored sample pages from Marvel

  34. DS says:

    I wonder if it’s too much to hope that Chris of Chris’s Invincible Super Bloghttp://www.the-isb.com/ —will review P&P.  I adored his hilarious reviews of the Anita Blake comics.

  35. Elizabeth Wadsworth says:

    I agree with most of the posters here—this artwork looks far too modern for the subject matter.  My first thought when I saw the illustration of the sisters was “1980’s all-girl pop group”, but porn stars isn’t too far off the mark either.

    Personally I’d have gone with a pen-and-ink-and-wash look, similar to the old Godey fashion illustrations, but the watercolor style of Jon J. Muth would be nice too.

  36. closetcrafter says:

    Reader, I ordered it.  The artwork is cringeful, but that is kind of what comics are all about, no? Did none of you see and enjoy Heavy Metal or Aeon Flux? Come on. I will explore P & P in all of its mediums. It is not porn for God sake.  I, personally, find all the pseudo sequels offensive. We are not not really supposed to know what happens after.

  37. Jodie says:

    Mary seems to have had some work done. In fact I think all the girls have had some collagen implants.

  38. Rose says:

    I think Jane looks like the model Bar Rafaeli; Kitty, as Amelia noted, looks like Isla Fisher. Lydia and Mary have really bad wigs, while Lizzy looks completely stoned. Are there opium dens in Meryton in the Marvel version?

  39. God says:

    I am so looking forward to Pride & Prejudice and Zombies. It looks ridiculously awesome.

    And of course there is the much anticipated film Pride & Predator.

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