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Anne McCaffrey's Dragonflight #1-3
Dragonflight
Volume I of The Dragonriders of Pern®, the groundbreaking series by master storyteller Anne McCaffrey
On a beautiful world called Pern, an ancient way of life is about to come under attack from a myth that is all too real. Lessa is an outcast survivor—her parents murdered, her birthright stolen—a strong young woman who has never stopped dreaming of revenge. But when an ancient threat to Pern reemerges, Lessa will rise—upon the back of a great dragon with whom she shares a telepathic bond more intimate than any human connection. Together, dragon and rider will fly . . . and Pern will be changed forever.
On a beautiful world called Pern, an ancient way of life is about to come under attack from a myth that is all too real. Lessa is an outcast survivor—her parents murdered, her birthright stolen—a strong young woman who has never stopped dreaming of revenge. But when an ancient threat to Pern reemerges, Lessa will rise—upon the back of a great dragon with whom she shares a telepathic bond more intimate than any human connection. Together, dragon and rider will fly . . . and Pern will be changed forever.
144 pages, Paperback
First published February 22, 1993
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
November 21, 2021
As a teenager I was a massive fan of the Dragonriders of Pern. I re-read the first trilogy last year and from today‘s view there are some issues with it, but the series will always be close to my heart. For completion‘s sake I got a copy of this graphic novel, published in 1993.
What did I think? For info, I read comics regularly.
The artwork is pretty bad. But in my experience many book-to-comic adaptations have pretty mediocre artwork. Besides of anatomically dodgy looking humans, lack of detail and poorly drawn backgrounds in general, characters change their look quite dramatically at one point. Presumably at the start of issue #2, which I can‘t tell, as there is no indication when one issue ends and the next one begins. The difference was so pronounced that I couldn‘t tell who was who and I struggled to tell characters apart till the end.
Storytelling: I doubt that someone who hasn‘t read the novels can make much sense of the plot. If I hadn‘t re-read Dragonflight recently, I would probably have scratched my head. There simply is no decent storytelling, explaining the world or who everybody is and the plot is full of holes.
My recommendation? Don‘t bother!
For newcomers to the series: Read the book instead.
For fans: If you are a completionist, go for it. But this didn‘t do anything for me, except annoy me.
(Anne McCaffrey's Dragonflight #1-3)
What did I think? For info, I read comics regularly.
The artwork is pretty bad. But in my experience many book-to-comic adaptations have pretty mediocre artwork. Besides of anatomically dodgy looking humans, lack of detail and poorly drawn backgrounds in general, characters change their look quite dramatically at one point. Presumably at the start of issue #2, which I can‘t tell, as there is no indication when one issue ends and the next one begins. The difference was so pronounced that I couldn‘t tell who was who and I struggled to tell characters apart till the end.
Storytelling: I doubt that someone who hasn‘t read the novels can make much sense of the plot. If I hadn‘t re-read Dragonflight recently, I would probably have scratched my head. There simply is no decent storytelling, explaining the world or who everybody is and the plot is full of holes.
My recommendation? Don‘t bother!
For newcomers to the series: Read the book instead.
For fans: If you are a completionist, go for it. But this didn‘t do anything for me, except annoy me.
(Anne McCaffrey's Dragonflight #1-3)
January 15, 2019
I am an enormous "Dragonriders of Pern" fan, and the books will always hold a special place in my heart. So when I came across this graphic-novel adaptation of the first book of the series, I was ecstatic. I've wanted to see the world of Pern and his heroic dragons and riders translated to some visual medium for a very long time, and was excited to see it happen. And while the Dragonriders fan in me can't help but nitpick this book a bit, it's an exciting and fun adaptation that can be enjoyed by a casual reader as well as a fan.
The world of Pern has gone two hundred years without the destructive rain of Thread, the space-borne organism that destroys all it touches, and many have come to believe it will never fall again. The dragonriders who have long protected Pern from Thread believe otherwise, and one, F'lar, has come to Ruatha Hold in search of a woman who can bond with the new queen dragon and help lead the dragonriders to victory. He comes across Lessa, a tough and powerful survivor of a massacre, and recruits her reluctant help in getting the dragonriders ready for battle. But the dragons are few in number, not nearly enough to defend the planet... unless Lessa can pull off a dangerous stunt that, if successful, could save the planet!
The artwork of this book is decent, even good. The world of Pern is rendered in glorious color, and it's nice to see visual representations of some loved (and loathed) characters in the series. The illustrators nicely avoid the "same-face syndrome" that's distressingly common in a lot of comics, and the watercolor-painting style makes each page look more like a work of art than a simple comic. Panel layout is generally easy to follow as well. Some of the facial expressions and poses get a bit wonky at times, and part of me still wants to insist "the dragons aren't supposed to have external ears!" at times, but for the most part the artwork is pretty good.
The story can be a bit tricky for non-fans of the series to follow -- there are times when it seems to assume the reader is already familiar with the story and the world and runs on that assumption. And part of me is irritated that some good dialogue and conversations were left out of the graphic novel. Still, I understand why those cuts were made -- graphic novels are a visual medium, not suited for depicting long conversations, and some streamlining was necessary to maintain the flow. Still, a few elements could have been better explained.
Despite its flaws, this is still a decent graphic novel, one that fans of the series will appreciate and newcomers can still enjoy despite some confusion. Probably best for teens and up -- there's some frightening images of the effects of Threadfall and a non-graphic but still suggestive sex scene.
The world of Pern has gone two hundred years without the destructive rain of Thread, the space-borne organism that destroys all it touches, and many have come to believe it will never fall again. The dragonriders who have long protected Pern from Thread believe otherwise, and one, F'lar, has come to Ruatha Hold in search of a woman who can bond with the new queen dragon and help lead the dragonriders to victory. He comes across Lessa, a tough and powerful survivor of a massacre, and recruits her reluctant help in getting the dragonriders ready for battle. But the dragons are few in number, not nearly enough to defend the planet... unless Lessa can pull off a dangerous stunt that, if successful, could save the planet!
The artwork of this book is decent, even good. The world of Pern is rendered in glorious color, and it's nice to see visual representations of some loved (and loathed) characters in the series. The illustrators nicely avoid the "same-face syndrome" that's distressingly common in a lot of comics, and the watercolor-painting style makes each page look more like a work of art than a simple comic. Panel layout is generally easy to follow as well. Some of the facial expressions and poses get a bit wonky at times, and part of me still wants to insist "the dragons aren't supposed to have external ears!" at times, but for the most part the artwork is pretty good.
The story can be a bit tricky for non-fans of the series to follow -- there are times when it seems to assume the reader is already familiar with the story and the world and runs on that assumption. And part of me is irritated that some good dialogue and conversations were left out of the graphic novel. Still, I understand why those cuts were made -- graphic novels are a visual medium, not suited for depicting long conversations, and some streamlining was necessary to maintain the flow. Still, a few elements could have been better explained.
Despite its flaws, this is still a decent graphic novel, one that fans of the series will appreciate and newcomers can still enjoy despite some confusion. Probably best for teens and up -- there's some frightening images of the effects of Threadfall and a non-graphic but still suggestive sex scene.
January 22, 2024
This is not really a review of the story, more of how well this comic adapts the original book. Dragonflight and the Dragonriders of Pern series are some of my favourite books of all time. I've reread Dragonflight too many times to count and, honestly, if I hadn't I probably wouldn't have understood what was going on here.
Characters aren't introduced well, if at all, and panels skip around in the narrative in a way that doesn't really make sense. The whole Fax thing, for example - a reader of this comic would have no idea why he was so disliked. There are some things it shows better than the books did (Lessa's influence over people, the wher's thoughts, dragon sizes and how Mnementh 'cages' Lessa) but I just don't think it makes up for how badly this tells the story.
The artwork falls to personal taste. I really really enjoyed it and found the first volume was the best. The fully painted panels were gorgeous and very much matched the style of art I associate with both this era of sci-fantasy and the other materials surrounding the Pern books from this era. I do wonder if the very detailed painting work is one of the reasons so much of the story is glossed over, because it would have just taken too long.
While a great thing to have as part of a Pern collection, I wouldn't recommend reading the comic over the book. If you've tried to read the first book and didn't like it, but wonder if this would be a better gateway to Pern, it's not I'm afraid.
Characters aren't introduced well, if at all, and panels skip around in the narrative in a way that doesn't really make sense. The whole Fax thing, for example - a reader of this comic would have no idea why he was so disliked. There are some things it shows better than the books did (Lessa's influence over people, the wher's thoughts, dragon sizes and how Mnementh 'cages' Lessa) but I just don't think it makes up for how badly this tells the story.
The artwork falls to personal taste. I really really enjoyed it and found the first volume was the best. The fully painted panels were gorgeous and very much matched the style of art I associate with both this era of sci-fantasy and the other materials surrounding the Pern books from this era. I do wonder if the very detailed painting work is one of the reasons so much of the story is glossed over, because it would have just taken too long.
While a great thing to have as part of a Pern collection, I wouldn't recommend reading the comic over the book. If you've tried to read the first book and didn't like it, but wonder if this would be a better gateway to Pern, it's not I'm afraid.
December 10, 2022
The graphic novel adaptation of Anne McCaffrey's first book in the Pern series.
The deadly Thread has been absent for so long that the Lords of the Holds have begun to chafe at their traditional subservience to the dragonriders of the Weyrs. However, when the Thread does return, the dragonriders are dangerously under-strength and only a daring mission can secure them the reinforcements they desperately need.
It's been a very long time since I read the proper novel version of 'Dragonflight' and I had forgotten just how much I disliked it. I found the world McCaffrey created to be singularly unengaging and her characters largely irritating. This adaptation rapidly reminded me of all those faults and then added a bunch more itself.
The artwork here is pretty bland and uninspiring, which should not be something you can say about a book featuring lots of dragons if it's been done right. On top of that, the original novel (three or four hundred pages maybe) has been so compressed here that it becomes all but incomprehensible. If I hadn't already read the original I'm sure I wouldn't have had a clue what was going on here at all.
Just awful.
* More reviews here: https://fsfh-book-review2.webnode.page *
The deadly Thread has been absent for so long that the Lords of the Holds have begun to chafe at their traditional subservience to the dragonriders of the Weyrs. However, when the Thread does return, the dragonriders are dangerously under-strength and only a daring mission can secure them the reinforcements they desperately need.
It's been a very long time since I read the proper novel version of 'Dragonflight' and I had forgotten just how much I disliked it. I found the world McCaffrey created to be singularly unengaging and her characters largely irritating. This adaptation rapidly reminded me of all those faults and then added a bunch more itself.
The artwork here is pretty bland and uninspiring, which should not be something you can say about a book featuring lots of dragons if it's been done right. On top of that, the original novel (three or four hundred pages maybe) has been so compressed here that it becomes all but incomprehensible. If I hadn't already read the original I'm sure I wouldn't have had a clue what was going on here at all.
Just awful.
* More reviews here: https://fsfh-book-review2.webnode.page *
January 17, 2020
I remember admiring a relative's collection of Dragon riders of Pern books when I was little. I don't think I asked if I could borrow them, as I might have been intimidated by the number of books in the series. So imagine my delight when I found this graphic novel at the local library: this was my way to overcome my trepidation, an easier way to get into the world of Pern. At least that was the idea.
I liked the graphic novel well enough, with its pleasant art and mostly-followable story. It did not, however, inspire me to pick up the series of novels like I expected. Ah well.
I liked the graphic novel well enough, with its pleasant art and mostly-followable story. It did not, however, inspire me to pick up the series of novels like I expected. Ah well.
June 11, 2023
It's Dragonflight. Very condensed Dragonflight, and I'm not sure that it would make sense if you haven't already read the novel. A lot of details are glossed over or unmentioned, making some scenes very confusing. Otherwise, it's fine. The art's nice, if a bit goofy.
February 14, 2022
The original Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey is one of my favorite books. This graphic novel version ain't so great.
April 2, 2015
I must've read this for this first time well over a decade ago, but I'm surprised by how much I remembered. It's a very good book! A bit cheesier than I remembered, but very good still. It's got a few character tropes in it, but given that it was written in 1968...maybe it started them?
May 13, 2014
הציורים חמודים. הקומיקס עצמו כתוב רע ולא עובד כמשהו שצריך לעמוד בפני עצמו... אבל:
אם אתם חובבי פרן, הקומיקס הזה הוא פינוק נדיר. כיף.
אם אתם חובבי פרן, הקומיקס הזה הוא פינוק נדיר. כיף.
November 27, 2014
Fantasy and time travel
December 25, 2015
Very faithful adaptation of Anne MaCaffrey's Dragonflight
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews