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Kill Shakespeare: Backstage Edition Volume 1
Kill Backstage Edition collects the entirety of the first 12-issue arc of the award-winning series in one gorgeous hardcover volume. Filled with never before seen art, sketches, a brand new back-up story, and fun annotations by top Shakespeare scholars, the Backstage Edition is a must-have for both fans of the series and those looking for a thrilling new comics adventure.
- GenresComicsGraphic Novels
344 pages, Hardcover
First published October 21, 2014
4 people are currently reading
21 people want to read
About the author
Anthony Del Col
122 books47 followersAnthony is a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer/producer of podcasts and comics. His stories include KILL SHAKESPEARE, ASSASSIN'S CREED, the controversial graphic novel THE DEATH OF NANCY DREW, and the award-winning Insider comic I ESCAPED A CHINESE INTERNMENT CAMP, a first-person exploration of one Muslim Uyghur woman’s imprisonment by the Chinese government (2022 Pulitzer Award for Illustrated Reporting and Commentary).
His 2020 audio drama ASSASSIN’S CREED: GOLD, starring Oscar-nominee Riz Ahmed, was Audible’s top-rated release of the year. HIs first project with Audible, the found-footage thriller UNHEARD: THE STORY OF ANNA WINSLOW, hit #1 on Audible and broke download records.
Other projects include the Ringo Awards-nominated graphic novel SON OF HITLER (“few war stories are this much fun” - NPR); LUKE CAGE: EVERYMAN (Marvel), three seasons of Wondery’s hit podcast AGAINST THE ODDS, over 50 episodes of the Army Matters podcast and a series of acclaimed and award-winning comics for Insider that explore subjects such as anti-Muslim policies in India, filtration camps in Ukraine and migrant workers in Qatar.
A proud Canadian, he lives in Brooklyn with his lovely - and patient - wife Lisa, son Dashiell and daughter Siena.
His 2020 audio drama ASSASSIN’S CREED: GOLD, starring Oscar-nominee Riz Ahmed, was Audible’s top-rated release of the year. HIs first project with Audible, the found-footage thriller UNHEARD: THE STORY OF ANNA WINSLOW, hit #1 on Audible and broke download records.
Other projects include the Ringo Awards-nominated graphic novel SON OF HITLER (“few war stories are this much fun” - NPR); LUKE CAGE: EVERYMAN (Marvel), three seasons of Wondery’s hit podcast AGAINST THE ODDS, over 50 episodes of the Army Matters podcast and a series of acclaimed and award-winning comics for Insider that explore subjects such as anti-Muslim policies in India, filtration camps in Ukraine and migrant workers in Qatar.
A proud Canadian, he lives in Brooklyn with his lovely - and patient - wife Lisa, son Dashiell and daughter Siena.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
August 27, 2024
What happened to Hamlet on his way to England? The play tells us through a letter to Horatio, but writers Conor McCreery and Anthony Del Col, along with artist Andy Belanger, have a different idea. In the 12-issue comics series Kill Shakespeare, they basically use Hamlet's exile as a launching pad for a story in which Hamlet finds his way to the shores of a fable-land where all of Shakespeare's creations co-exist. A prophecy proclaims him the "shadow king" that must one day find the lost creator, William Shakespeare, and two factions try to lay claim to him. On one side, Richard III, Lady Macbeth and Iago, on the other, Falstaff, Juliet and Othello. The first wants to kill Shakespeare and steal his power over creation, the other to convince Will to rid the land of evil.
It's a fun exercise, more approachable than League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, though more contained than Fables, its two most obvious antecedents. McCreery and Del Col make a lot of references to the Shakespearean canon, not just with the characters, but in tropes (there's a play, cross-dressing, a tempest), details (place names are in-jokes, Hamlet and Juliet speak through a chink in a wall, some of the action takes place on Twelfth Night), and dialog (many lines are referenced). It certainly keeps readers who know their Shakespeare interested. But they also don't mind fiddling with the stories so they can interact regardless of their fates in the original plays.
It's a fun exercise, more approachable than League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, though more contained than Fables, its two most obvious antecedents. McCreery and Del Col make a lot of references to the Shakespearean canon, not just with the characters, but in tropes (there's a play, cross-dressing, a tempest), details (place names are in-jokes, Hamlet and Juliet speak through a chink in a wall, some of the action takes place on Twelfth Night), and dialog (many lines are referenced). It certainly keeps readers who know their Shakespeare interested. But they also don't mind fiddling with the stories so they can interact regardless of their fates in the original plays.
June 23, 2017
Wasn't bad... I'm just not big on Graphic Novels; but I did love that it was a book about what could have happened after all of the plays Shakespeare wrote.
February 11, 2021
Ich kannte bisher nur das deutschsprachige Hörspiel, das auf den Comics beruht. Die Comics selber sind deutlich besser, vielleicht auch, weil es zu jeder Ausgabe einen Commentar eines Shakespearegelehrten gibt, der die Hinweise und Zitate zum Original erleutert und interpretiert und dem Comic somit deutlich an Tiefe verleiht.
Um den Comic wirklich schätzen zu können, sollte man seinen Shakespeare schon kennen und zwar auch ein paar der obskurerern Stücke wie "Timon of Athens". Die meisten Figuren stammen aber aus den bekanntesten Stücken.
Shakespeare ist in dieser Welt der Gott der dort lebenden Menschen. Er hat eine Welt geschaffen, in der seine Figuren frei entscheiden können. Aufgrund ihrer Charaktereigentschaften entgleitet ihm aber bald die Kontrolle. Richard III reißt die Macht an sich und will die Feder Shakespeares, um selber diese Welt zu beherrschen. Er verbündet sich mit Lady MacBeth, die erst einmal ihren Mann aus dem Weg räumt. Ausgerechnet Hamlet, soll es richten, währen Julia und Othello die Rebellion gegen Richard III anführen. Die Neuinterpretation der Balkonszene fand ich am besten.
Interessantes Mashup für Shakespeare Fans, ein ähnliches Konzept wie A christmal Charol mit Shakespearefiguren von Ian Doescher. Das Shakespearean English ist nicht ganz astrein, thee and thou werden ab und an durcheinandergeworfen, das dürfte aber kaum einem auffallen.
Netter Comic für Shakespeareinteressierte mit halbwegs solider Grundlage der bekanntesten Stücke.
Um den Comic wirklich schätzen zu können, sollte man seinen Shakespeare schon kennen und zwar auch ein paar der obskurerern Stücke wie "Timon of Athens". Die meisten Figuren stammen aber aus den bekanntesten Stücken.
Shakespeare ist in dieser Welt der Gott der dort lebenden Menschen. Er hat eine Welt geschaffen, in der seine Figuren frei entscheiden können. Aufgrund ihrer Charaktereigentschaften entgleitet ihm aber bald die Kontrolle. Richard III reißt die Macht an sich und will die Feder Shakespeares, um selber diese Welt zu beherrschen. Er verbündet sich mit Lady MacBeth, die erst einmal ihren Mann aus dem Weg räumt. Ausgerechnet Hamlet, soll es richten, währen Julia und Othello die Rebellion gegen Richard III anführen. Die Neuinterpretation der Balkonszene fand ich am besten.
Interessantes Mashup für Shakespeare Fans, ein ähnliches Konzept wie A christmal Charol mit Shakespearefiguren von Ian Doescher. Das Shakespearean English ist nicht ganz astrein, thee and thou werden ab und an durcheinandergeworfen, das dürfte aber kaum einem auffallen.
Netter Comic für Shakespeareinteressierte mit halbwegs solider Grundlage der bekanntesten Stücke.
February 23, 2017
Wow! Shakespeare as God (the author and finisher of our lives) and his characters battling each other for supremacy. Yes, please! This was an amazing read! Fantasy fiction, Shakespeare's greatest characters, and magic. What else could one ask for?! However, the ending is a bit wonky, but it leaves it open for another series.
February 4, 2016
I wanted to like it. A graphic Novel, with Shakespeare as a hunted leader... But I don't know if it was because it was all in one volume and weighed 1000 pounds, or I don't know as many Shakespeare characters as I thought I did, but I was confused and couldn't keep reading. Maybe it's where I'm at, but it certainly didn't grip me.
February 4, 2016
Pros: Love how it plays with the world of Shakespeare's plays. The artwork is well-executed and suits the story. Great characters
Cons: Resolution was a bit sloppy. Sometimes the transitions didn't work very well.
Cons: Resolution was a bit sloppy. Sometimes the transitions didn't work very well.
November 23, 2015
This book had a very intriguing story! I enjoyed how it had some very bloody and humorous moments!:)
January 18, 2016
Kill Shakespeare
July 6, 2016
I'm not a huge fan of graphic novels, but I really liked this one. It was clever, entertaining, and fun to read. Maybe I should try to read more of this genre.
January 6, 2017
So much fun! If you like Shakespeare, this is the graphic novel for you. Intense, gruesome, smart, funny - I devoured it!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews