Oz: The Emerald City of Oz

Marvel's Oz Comics #6

by Eric Shanower, Skottie Young (Illustrations), L. Frank Baum (Text)

The Eisner Award-winning team of Eric Shanower and Skottie Young bring you the best Oz series yet! Uncle Henry, Aunt Em and Dorothy must leave their Kansas home - but where can they go? To Oz, of course! Dorothy and the Wizard take Em and Henry on a grand tour - but will anyone in Oz be left alive after the Nomes attack, allied with the disagreeable Growleywogs and the evil shape-shifting Phanfasms? Ozma discovers the Nome Army's impending invasion, but too late - and she, Dorothy, the Tin Woodman and their friends can only watch helplessly as the Nome King's hordes pour into the Emerald City. But the Scarecrow has a plan to save the day, and Glinda the Good has another! Can they rescue the Land of Oz from destruction? COLLECTING: THE EMERALD CITY OF OZ 1-5

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Fantasy, Classics, Childrens, Magic, Fiction

120 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2015

Reviews

[Alejandro · Rating 4 out of 5]

The last journey to Oz, at least in this editions


This is the sixth comic book adaptation of the original works by L. Frank Baum.

I was lucky to get it on the 5 single issues, but I will do the review on the collected edition to be able to do an overall review.


Creative Team:

Writer: Eric Shanower (based on the original works by L. Frank Baum)

Illustrator: Scottie Young


FAMILY TRIP

This time Dorothy won't be on Kansas anymore, but her uncles neither.

Finally, Uncle Henry and Aunt Em travel to the marvelous land of Oz and they will be able to confirm that those all wonderful adventures of Dorothy were true.

Meanwhile, the evil Nome King wants revenge on Ozma and Dorothy and getting back his magic belt. For this, he finds the perfect general for his Nome army, Guph, who will contact other evil groups to invade Oz.


WONDERFUL STORY

This is a wonderful book where you will get glimpses of almost all major characters whom appeared on the previous books. And also, you will get to meet even more totally new characters here.

In this book you will be able to realize how powerful really is Glinda, the Good Witch of the North, and how much she has impacted in the land of Oz.

Ozma is totally great here, since she is rational, open to advices and ideas, and also she doesn't compromise her principles.

And the Scarecrow shows yet again why he is the smartest being in all Oz.


A HUMBUG SHOULD REMAIN HUMBUG

Something that I didn't like is that now the Wizard of Oz is able to perform real magic (learned from Glinda). The whole concept that he is a humbug is what makes truly great this character. Definitely that was a bad development to this character on this book.


ALL GOOD THINGS...

The sad thing is that it seems that the creative team of Eric Shanower and Scottie Young will do a pause in the graphic adaptations of the original works by L. Frank Baum.

There is a similar "closure" on the original book, however, still there are several books written by Baum.

I really hope that Marvel Comics would continue with Shanower and Young as the creative team.


--O--

To check my reviews of the previous five graphic adaptations:

#1 The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

#2 The Marvelous Land of Oz

#3 Ozma of Oz

#4 Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz

#5 Road to Oz

[Chad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eric Shanower's and Skottie Young's 6th and final adaptation of L. Frank Baum's Oz novels. (Yes, I know there are fourteen. This is the last one with Dorothy in it and where they decided to stop.)

This time Dorothy brings Auntie Em and Uncle Henry with her, as they all move to the Emerald City permanently. While they tour some unseen (and goofy) nooks and crannies of Oz, the Nome King is planning his revenge. He has the nomes digging a tunnel under the great desert to protects Oz, planning to come up right inside the Emerald City and pillage the countryside.

I want to thank Shanower and Young for bringing these books to life. I've always wanted to read some of the further books but know there's always something closer to the top of the pile to read. Young's art is delightful, making the pages sing. Shanower's adaptations brings what are sometimes threadbare stories into focus.

[Michael Emond · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would like to say "What a great end to a wonderful run by Shanower and Skottie Young and their graphic novels of the beloved Oz books" but the best I can say is - This was a wonderful series and the two of them did their best with some spotty source material by Baum. I admit I never read the novels this series was based on and after seeing these graphic novels I am not too upset about that. It was only the outstanding art by Skottie that made some of these paper thin plots bearable. Out of all of them it is only 1 and 3 that had strong stories and as we neared the end the stories got weaker and weaker. Even this one was barely a fleshed out idea. The King of Nomes gathers an Army to attack the Emerald City while Dorothy and her Aunt and Uncle explore Oz. Dorthy's exploration is whimsical but just a series of half formed ideas with no dramatic stakes. The army about to attack has a lot of dramatic stakes but the way it gets resolved is too silly even for a children's book. And Ozma looks like a fool ready to die without even giving the slightest effort to come up with a plan...um..she has a magical belt that can teleport people away...so um...do that. Or Glinda the powerful witch could, you know, save them. Just weird/stupid that Ozma comes across looking like an idiot who will idly stand by while all her subjects get killed or enslaved. But it is indicative that Baum put about the same amount of effort (i.e. none) to come up with the stories. Sure there are still some funny ideas that we see as Dorthy visits the different lands but clever ideas alone don't make a story. So why 3 stars? Because I can't blame Eric or Skottie for Baum's mess and because the series as a whole was wonderful. Kudos to them for seeing it through.

[Philip · Rating 5 out of 5]

REREAD UPDATE: Okay, last one — and it was a true joy to revisit this outstanding series of graphic adaptations, especially having recently finished the also fascinating The Real Wizard of Oz: The Life and Times of L. Frank Baum. Going against my general rule, I’m also bumping this one up another star, as it is considerably better than the previous two books (i.e., it actually has a plot, slim as it is), due in full to the remarkable illustrator/colorist team of Skottie Young and Jean-Francois Beaulieu, who absolutely excel in capturing both the characters…



…and landscapes of Baum's famous fairyland*:



Story-wise, I was glad to see in this "final" Oz book (at least according to Baum's original plan, before he realized he needed the money and so wrote a further eight books right up until his death, with the last one actually being published posthumously), that Dorothy finally smartens up; and so rather than keep trying to return to the hellhole that was early-20th-century Kansas, she takes Uncle Henry and Auntie Em with her to Oz, where they apparently lived out the rest of their lives in royal luxury.

Am off now to revisit Skottie Young's own "I Hate Fairyland" series, which is a hilariously un-PC parody of the Oz stories; will reread the original four books as well as look for the additional three volumes which have only recently (well, since 2023) been published. Good fun!

* A term I've always hated, and viewed as the very definition of "twee;" but was then surprised to see both in Life and Times and several of the actual books that this was how Baum himself described his universe…uugh.
__________________________________

ORIGINAL REVIEW: Okay, so finished the MARVEL series, which apparently was the "whole story" Baum originally wanted to write, before he relaunched the world of Oz several years later, apparently (or so Wikipedia claims) "due to financial hardships." Well, whatever...my interest ends here, with the last of the Shanower/Young books.

As with the previous two, much of this book is just an excuse for Baum to send his main characters off on another journey around Oz, so that he can introduce yet another slew of new characters and races — Whimsies, Cuttenclips, Growleywogs, Fuddles, Phanfasms, the inhabitants of Utensia, Bunbury, Bunnybury and I'm sure many others I can't recall. And in this book — more than in the earlier ones — Baum's love of puns nearly gets the better of him. But the saving grace here is the presence of an actual sub-plot here — or rather, a subterranean plot (sorry; couldn't resist) — as the King of the Nomes resurfaces and hatches a plan to tunnel under the Deadly Desert and sack the Emerald City, along with the help of the other evil tribes of Oz...

...all of which culminates in fairly hasty and totally bloodless conclusion, but which is good fun nonetheless.

The real star here, as with all the other books, remains Skottie Young's amazing artwork. In many cases — the Nome King, Tin-Man, and Ozma herself — he has maintained the spirit of John Neill's original drawings, while updating (and IMHO) vastly improving on them. This is particularly true with Ozma, who I always found just a little creepy but who is now a truly charming little girl.

And that should be it for me and "comic books" (a decidedly generational term) for awhile — except that I see the library has just gotten the latest "Walking Dead" update, so maybe just one more...

[Sesana · Rating 3 out of 5]

An adorable, affectionate, faithful adaptation of one of the middling Oz books.

[Tony Laplume · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, that was a little odd.

Last year I finally read L. Frank Baum's complete Oz saga, something I'd wanted to do for years, spurred on in large part by Marvel's adaptations by Eric Shanower and Skottie Young, which unlike the Judy Garland musical seemed to capture the true whimsy of Baum's Oz as I had once experienced it as a kid.

A strange thing seems to have happened since I last read Shanower and Young's comics. Actually, it's partly Young's fault. Emerald City of Oz was the last book he and Shanower adapted together. Young then moved on to I Hate Fairyland, in which he kind of savages his Oz legacy. This was unfortunate, because it was his artwork that seemed the biggest selling point of the Oz comics. I had actually reached a point where it seemed impossible to think of Oz depicted any other way. When he decided to do a comic where he rejects this image, it kind of broke the spell.

So as I was reading this volume, it actually became difficult to view his art the way I once did. I suppose this is more my problem than the work's fault. It's ironic, really, because the original Emerald City was Baum's feverish attempt to leave Oz behind as well.

But eventually I settled back into the story and found it, again, to be a wonderful little allegory for everything Baum saw around him in the real world, including the then-impending World War I, and the notion some people had that it could simply be wished away, especially in the United States. To get the full effect of the story, you probably need to read the book. To feel its whimsy, you can still rely on Young's artwork.

[katyjanereads · Rating 5 out of 5]

1. The pictures are SOOOOOO gorgeous!!!
2. I read this but haven’t read any more in the series. I didn’t need the rest of the books, though, to become obsessed.
3. I laughed out loud several times.
4. The rest of the series is on my wishlist now, so if anyone wants to buy them for me, thanks.
5. Such an amazing, wise conversation:
“Every little while I want to do something magical, but I can’t because my magic belt is gone! That makes me angry!”
“S-some people enjoy being angry.”
“But not all the time! It prevents my gaining any other pleasure in life.”
6. I giggled that the Nome King threw people away and “sliced them into slices”.
7. “Drink a glass of melted silver to quiet your nerves.” HAHAHA
8. Another great conversation:
“These Oz people are good, aren’t they”
“As apple pie.”
“And happy?”
“As the day is long.”
“And contended and prosperous?”
“Very much so.”
“Your majesty? I’ll be your general. I hate good people, I detest happy people, I’m opposed to anyone contended and prosperous.”
9. I laughed at the picture of the little nome laying all over the Nome King so casually.
10. Ozma is so gorgeous and kind of reminds me of Princess Leia.
11. Metaphors I got from all the people of Oz:
-The Whimsies with big heads are trying to look smarter to fit into society rather than just accepting themselves for who they are. “We will no longer be ashamed that our big, strong bodies have such teenty-weenty heads!”
-The Royal Athletic College: “These are the algebra pills-one at night is equal to four hours of study. In the next bottle are the Latin pills-one three times a day.” “Our boys are never obliged to interrupt their games to acquire the lesser branches of learning-it’s easier to swallow knowledge.” “Some folks can swallow anything-but this seems too much like taking medicine.” I think this metaphor shows the laziness of modern man or lack of a thirst for knowledge. It’s taking the easy way out to gain an education.
-The Cuttenclips are paper people who are fragile. Any little thing can break them. It shows that people may not have thick skins and take themselves too seriously.
-Fuddlecumjig: That people have many parts of themselves and we have to spend time with them to get to know them, but if we won’t ever try, we may be missing the whole puzzle. “Every day or so some munchkins or winkies come to amuse themselves by matching us, so there’s no harm in leaving these pieces where they are.” I think this is so sweet that the Munchkins and Winkies care enough to come put them back together. Also, I think The Lord High Chigglewitz looks like Humpty Dumpty. They were both put back together again.
-Maybe Bunbury is a metaphor for gluttony.
-Bunnybury is a lesson in never being happy with what we have. The bunny wasn’t grateful for his new life of luxury.
12. I love the chicken that named all of her female children “Dorothy”.
13. The little wooden horse that pulls the wagon is adorable. “But he never says much. He can’t talk and think at the same time, so he prefers to think.”
14. The Kingdom of Utensia was so cute and had fire puns and quotes:
“Why is the colander the high priest?”
“He’s the holiest thing we have in this kingdom.”

“I demand they be killed several times until dead!”

“Compose yourself, Mr. Paprica. Your remarks are piquant and highly seasoned, but I don’t see that it’s necessary to kill this girl at all.”

The corkscrew: “I’m a lawyer--I’m accustomed to appear at the bar.”
“You’re crooked and that debars you. You may be a corking good lawyer, Mr. Popp, but I must ask you to withdraw your remarks.”
15. The Rigamaroles were funny people who wouldn’t shut up about things when you asked them questions.
16. I have a foster daughter who acts like the Flutterbudgets. She’s always looking at the worst side of things and thinking about a bad future when things are going well.
“All your troubles are due to those ifs. If you weren’t a flutterbudget, you wouldn’t worry.”

“Foolish fears over nothing, with a mixture of nerves and ifs, will soon make a flutterbudget of anyone.”
17. The Nomes being scared of eggs crack me up.
18. Love this quote:
“But it’s wrong to worry over anything before it happens. Time enough to be sad afterward. Let’s not deprive ourselves of the happy hours remaining.”
19. “Because the Nome King intends to do evil is no excuse for my doing the same.” Such a great quote!

[Scott Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many evil peoples conspire to take over Emerald City from Princess Ozma. Will Ozma give up the kingdom without a fight, and how can Dorothy and pals help?
This book was decent, but its real value was how it brought the whole saga to an end. I realize that this graphic novel adaptation was merely cliff notes of L. Frank Baum's works, but it was interesting to see what happened in the world after the popular story ends. I did really like the last page that wrapped up the saga.

[Logan Polk · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet ending to a fun series of books.

[Nathan Dehoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

This, at least for the time being, is the last Oz book they'll adapt for Marvel Comics; and it was released in only five issues. The first four had eight issues each, and the fifth had six. It's a logical stopping point, as it was L. Frank Baum's attempt to end the series and hence was clearly designed to wrap things up; but that does mean they're not going to get to my favorite, The Patchwork Girl of Oz. Despite the shortened length, most of the episodes from the book are included, just in somewhat condensed form. The Cuttenclips, the Fuddles, Utensia, Bunbury, Bunnybury, the Rigmaroles, the Flutterbudgets, the Whimsies, the Growleywogs, and the Phanfasms are all here; as are minor but entertaining incidents like Aunt Em subduing the Cowardly Lion and the Wizard of Oz making tents out of handkerchiefs. The argument between the zebra and crab is not present, but that's no big loss. I only noticed two significant alternations in Baum's plot, one being to introduce the Forbidden Fountain earlier in the text so it didn't just come out of nowhere at the end, and the other is to have Dorothy's party visit the Scarecrow before the Tin Woodman. The former makes sense, but I can't see the logic behind the latter. I mention pretty much every time I write these reviews that Young's style is rather bizarre, certainly not at all how I picture Oz. He's very creative without deviating too far from Baum's descriptions, however, and seeing how he'll draw new characters is part of the fun of these adaptations. His Scarecrow is such that you really can't see why the crows WOULDN'T have been afraid of him, but this style is quite appropriate for the evil beings. His kangaroo is comical, his scarlet alligator reminds me of the crocodile in Disney's Peter Pan, and he managed to make the Shaggy Man's sneeze in the Cuttenclips' village positively apocalyptic. I'm still not sold on how he draws his Nomes, though.

[Becky B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aunt Em and Uncle Henry are about to lose the farm. They are disheartened and not looking forward to a future of hard work for themselves and Dorothy, but Dorothy comes up with a perfect solution. She asks Ozma to move them all to Oz. As her aunt and uncle struggle to deal with their culture shock (and shock that Dorothy's stories were all true), Ozma and Dorothy decide that a tour of Oz might help them out. So Dorothy, Toto, Belina, the Wizard, the Shaggy Man, and the Wooden Horse take Aunt Em and Uncle Henry on a tour to meet the weird and wonderful inhabitants of Oz. Meanwhile, the Nome King is plotting to get his magic belt back and take over Oz as paybacks. His new General Guph is out recruiting allies from the most unsavory groups in the land (and of course they are all plotting to double-cross each other). It looks like Ozma and Oz are in for some serious trouble, but the Scarecrow and Ozma have a peaceful solution up their sleeves.

Once again, I think these graphic novel versions of the Baum classics are so true to the original and superior in presentation, I would hand this version to a patron over the text only version 10 times out of 10. I am somewhat sad to hear that this is the last one Shanower & Young are doing, though perhaps like Baum they may be convinced in the future to come back to it. It is a nice conclusion to a graphic novel series that excels in bringing classics alive for modern young readers. (A word of warning though, if you don't like pun-saturated writing, skip the part when Dorothy visits Utensia...it had me groaning. But I'm positive that is entirely Baum's fault, he seemed to like puns.)

Notes on content: No language issues. No sexual content. The major potential violence gets resolved peacefully, so the most "violent" part of the story is a destructive sneeze.

[andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE the Oz series by Frank Baum. As a child, it captured my imagination with wonder, adventure, and fun. I jump at the chance to read any spin-offs/fan fiction inspired by the world of Oz that I come across, but am usually disappointed at their failure to capture the whimsy and magic of the original series.

When I found this Marvel adaption at my local Dollarama of all places (!) I had to pick it up immediately, even though it was the only book of the series available there. I read this with my three year old daughter and we both loved it! It is true to the original story and the graphics are BEAUTIFUL! The Emerald City of Oz is one of my least favorite stories from the original Baum series, however this graphic novel succeeded in bringing these silly characters to life and made Dorothy's tour through Oz with her Aunt and Uncle feel less episodic and more adventurous than in the original.

This series was written by Baum as a form of escapism for young children. Yes, there isn't a lot of action, the ending is simplistic, and the silliness of the characters paired with the excessive number of puns may not appeal to adults. I do, however, feel that it connects perfectly with the audience it was originally intended for. I love that this is a copy my daughter can flip through on her own, and would love to buy the rest of them for her as well.

(With that said, friends, if you ever find more of these at your local Dollarama, please let a girl know?! Thanks a million!)

[K · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Nome King plans to invade the land of Oz and not only take back his magic belt, but plunder the entire kingdom and enslave its people. He summons a huge army of new & horrible creatures who are eager to visit pain upon the happy people of Oz. Meanwhile, Uncle Henry & Auntie Em are going to lose the farm due to their inability to pay the mortgage. Dorothy offers for them all to simply go and live in the Emerald City, where she has been named a princess by Queen Ozma. They are instantly transported to the Emerald City with the use of the Nome King's belt, and spend the majority of the book visiting new cities and lands within Oz. All the while the Nome King is tunneling under the dessert to conquer the Emerald City. Even though Ozma learns of the invasion, she is a true pacifist and refuses to fight the approaching armies. Thanks to the Scarecrow's brilliant mind, Ozma is able to defeat her enemies without any loss of life. And everyone lives happily ever after.

I'm thankful that I've been given a shortened version of Baum's works in these graphic novels. It's been interesting to see his creations, as well as learn more about Baum & his works in the foreword written by Shanower.

[Jacquline · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's sad to see that this is the last installment of Dorothy's adventures. The book was amazing, and I loved this book. I enjoyed the beautiful art by Skottie Young. His artwork is astounding, and I look forward to see what else he produces. Eric Shanower stays true to the original book, adding his own vision to the story. Besides the beautiful illustrations and brilliant story, The Emerald City of Oz is a wonderful children's story taken on a whole new level. The only flaw that I didn't like about the book, which is on Baum's end, was how simple it was to defeat the Nome King and his followers. It was all too simple, and I feel like the book deserved more of a dramatic way to follow through with a huge fight that was brewing from the beginning of the book. One of the best pats about the book was the play on words on the name of the townspeople in different countries. It was creative and fun, especially for an older audience. Overall, the book was a huge success, and it was a great way to end a wonderful series. I wish that there was more for it to go on.

[Lee Födi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, how I love Oz, and this is a wonder edition to the series, both in the original book and in its graphic novel incarnation. My biggest disappoint comes on the final page of the graphic novel, which tells us that they aren't continuing the franchise in this format. I was SO looking forward to the next two, as The Patchwork Girl of Oz and Tik-Tok of Oz are two of my favorites in the series.

In any case, Skottie Young does wonderful work with the characters in this book--and he has a lot of them to deal with. Not only does he have to continue to bring to life all our old favorites, he has to show us all the enemies who are swarming to devour the Emerald City. He does it ambitiously, and wonderfully.

[Mark Bondurant · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so sorry to see this series finish. There's so little simple adventure being published these days. Everything has to have action, action. Or worse. Simple adventure is refreshing. I must admit that the series lagged towards the end, mostly because Baum himself lagged. It was picked up by others and carried on with renewed energy, but unfortunately this is where this version ends. I had hoped for more, but I still have to congratulate this crew for carrying this forward this far. A magnificent work, a monumental effort. Thank you!

[Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect end. Oh, how I have enjoyed these books.

[Books on Stereo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oz introduces far too much content that fails to add relevant to an already captivating story resulting in a drawn narrative.

[Izzati · Rating 5 out of 5]

The illustration was on point, I just love how the artist reimagined Baum's colourful tale. I loved the original novel and I think this graphic novel did justice to it.

[Hare Llow · Rating 4 out of 5]

No puedo con ese final AHHHHHHH

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Better than the last couple books because at least the Nome king feels like a threat. He’s not and it’s still mostly a tour through the lands. Which I guess, in hindsight, is a lot of the original Wizard of Oz. But the threat of the witch and the mystery of the Wizard adds a lot.
This was the first of these adaptions I hadn’t read before so it was very fun to read for the first time. And it’s a nice end to Dorothy’s adventures (even if there’s like 40 more Oz prose books).

Kinda love that Marvel committed to adapting 6 of these!!

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

via Hoopla.

I'm sad to be done with this adaptation, it's one of if not the most true to the books and selfishly I wish the entire span of Baum's books had been able to be included by this creative team.

But a nice end and a lovely and whimsical visual take on the first 6 books.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's interesting how your perspective on some books differs as you grow up. I remember this being one of my favorites as a kid - I thought the twist at the end was immensely clever, and I adored the evil Nome King and his plot to conquer Oz. I still think it's very clever in some ways, and the odd little towns we encounter as Dorothy takes Aunt Em and Uncle Henry on their first tour of Oz are particularly memorable. But it's hard not to judge some of the choices in a way I suppose I didn't when I was little.

Again we have that odd selfishness from the last book, demonstrated this time by our heroine Dorothy, who tells the edible villagers of Bunbury that it's really their own fault they proved too irresistible for a hungry dog and chicken. She complains, then, about their hospitality in feeding her their stale wheelbarrows and fences and doormats.

It's something to be expected from Billina, but not from theoretically good-hearted Dorothy. I can't help wondering what Ozma would think of her best friend's actions here. Ozma, after all, refuses to put together an army to fight the invading forces, because she doesn't believe in harming even evil creatures. (Although there's much to unpack there, too: by refusing to harm anyone, she's making the choice to doom the inhabitants of Oz. Of course, since this is a fairyland with convenient magic plot devices, it's easy to come up with a way to solve everything with minimal damage done.)

This book also signals Baum's attempt to end the series - similar to Doyle pitching Sherlock off a cliff so he could move on to other stories, Baum has Glinda cut Oz off from the rest of the world to protect its inhabitants for good.

It didn't last, of course. Readers didn't want to leave Oz behind, and Baum was forced to return to it. (Thankfully, since my two favorite books come later in the series.) Sadly, though, this is the end of the run for the graphic novel adaptations. I wish they'd do the rest. Perhaps, like Baum, they'll eventually come back.

[Karissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the final book in Marvel’s Oz graphic novels series. It was a decent book in the series, not my favorite (I think Ozma of Oz was still my favorite) but still really well done. It’s a great fantasy graphic novel read that is appropriate for all ages.

Dorothy’s aunt and uncle are about to lose their farm and Dorothy decides it’s time to ask for help from Ozma. She has Ozma transport the five of them (Dorothy, her aunt and uncle, Toto, and Eureka) to Oz to live there. After their arrival they go on a tour of some of the stranger residents of Oz. Meanwhile the Nome King has decided to attack the Emerald City in hopes of recovering his magic belt. He is allying with all sorts of evil creatures. Will Ozma and her friends be able to protect Oz from the Nome King’s invasion?

I continue to enjoy the spectacular drawing in these books. I love the full color pictures and the quirky characters.

The story spends an equal amount of time between the Nome King and Dorothy. Dorothy visits a land of paper people, a land of puzzle people, and a land where everyone is edible in her parts of the story. The Nome King’s general visits many dark lands and recruits a number of evildoers to his side in his parts of the story.

I did enjoy the quirky lands and people we meet in this book. I also enjoy the irony of how the story ended, very cute and funny.

However, I didn’t find the story as engaging as say Ozma of Oz. There is a bit of a plot here, but it’s pretty straight-forward.

Overall another fun and entertaining installment in this retelling of the Oz series. This is a great graphic novel series for all ages, I have really enjoyed it and am glad I read it. Recommended to fans of fantasy graphic novels.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aunt Em and Uncle Henry end up in Oz after they can no longer support themselves on the farm. They take a grand journey through the country and meet Dorothy's friends and other memorable characters.

Ozma, meanwhile, is preparing for an attack by the Nome King who is still angry over the loss of his magic belt in a previous Oz story. He devises a plan to tunnel underneath the great desert that surround the Emerald City and drive an army of awful creatures to defeat Ozma. Ozma doesn't want to fight and doesn't believe that the Nome King's ill intentions should force her hand even though she anticipates losing the kingdom to an evil ruler.

A clever twist involving a magical fountain turns the tides in Ozma's favor and she gets the rare opportunity to forever divert the Nome King's evil nature.

This series is so very well done. The zaniness of the artwork is perfect for the classic fantasy story. I love the introductions written by Shanower that help readers understand how Baum approached each volume in his series and sets the stage for the adventure the reader is about to begin.

Highly recommended for fans of the Oz series and comic book enthusiasts.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great end to the series of graphic novels by Eric Shanower. It was really nice to see the Land of Oz brought to life through pictures. I enjoyed the artwork and the different stories so much.

This last installment is about how Dorothy brings her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry to live in the Emerald City. Dorothy and her friends travel around Oz visiting the other kingdoms, while the Nome King plots to take over Oz and get back his magic belt.

The books in the middle of the series started to get repetitive in the plotline: (Review of previous book: Road to Oz). But this one had a unique plot that I felt was very refreshing and interesting!

I am sad that I have completed the series, because I liked reading more about the Land of Oz since I was initially only familiar with The Wizard of Oz. But I am also glad that it is over. I feel like if they would have continued the series it would have gotten more and more repetitive, and I would have slowly lost interest. So I am glad that the series ended the way it did!

[Molly Lazer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this with my four-year-olds, who enjoyed it. They liked meeting all of the different types of characters in Oz and were able to follow the Nome King's nefarious plot.

Once again, for me, this volume was another one in which Dorothy and her friends travel around Oz and meet unique and strange beings with no real goal other than to go on a tour of Oz and meet unique and strange beings. I was hopeful about the plot of this one because there was an actual conflict involving the Nome King's attempts to take over Oz. However, even his (and Guph's) actions before the actual invasion were another way of just showing different creatures that exist in Baum's world. The device to make all well at the end was easy to see coming as soon as it was stated that the invading force would tunnel up next to the fountain, so there weren't many surprises.

All the credit goes to Young and Beaulieu for making the artwork that kept this volume engaging. Shanower once again did a nice job of translating Baum's work into graphic form. But in terms of actual plot, the last three volumes of Oz graphic novels don't stand up to the first three.

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

The final episode to the Oz graphic novels ends the series on a high point. Skottie Young's art is a revelation as always. Of particular joy is a series where Dorothy and Co. visit a town of silverware and then a village of pastries. His ingenuity and talent for anthropomorphism is nothing short of miraculous. Shanower does a great job once again of editing this tale, and more importantly, Baum writes this one with more of a consistent story line. So much of these Oz tales seem to be like Lewis Carroll lite. Weird little vignettes of visiting different silly races, but without the satire Carroll aimed for in his tales.

The plot of this one links to Ozma of Oz. The Nome King plots to regain his magic belt and invade Oz. Dorothy shows her displaced aunt and uncle around Oz, so there is still a bit of that "let's wonder around looking at the goofy creatures." But preparations for the mission and defense of Oz are prevailing here which keeps the story and the reader focused up to the very end. Shanower also adds a great meta touch to the ending.

[Toi Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book in comparison with the original story and was very pleased.

Kudos to Marvel for doing a great job releasing a quality product. Eric Shanower adapted the story simplistically and beautifully. The art of Skottie Young was intricate and engaging.

Here's my short review of the original story- 5 - This is, or it should have been, the culmination of this series. This story brought all the past characters and storylines together and delivered a climax that should have left readers satisfied for the ages. Dorthy and her real family are united with all her OZ friends to defeat their greatest enemies and close off the Emerald City from any future threats. I have no idea what I'm going to read as I continue 4 or so other books in this series. This story was the perfect end.

The comparison- Much of what I felt reading the original was there when reading this version. This is a perfect children's series for a reluctant young reader and any adults who may not have the time to read the original. I'm so blessed to have been able to read both.

Highly recommended

[Nicola · Rating 5 out of 5]

The final of Baum's Oz books - Dorothy, Auntie Em, and her Uncle relocate to Oz by means of the wishing belt. Their jaunt through various Oz locales is more whimsy than plot but it provides a pleasant backdrop to the villainous planning of the Nome King and his evil allies. The story explores concepts of good / community / being grateful for what we have v.s. evil / selfishness / grasping / love of destruction; it also touches on the moral concept of good people doing evil actions (for the greater good) not being justified. At the end Ozma makes an important decision on how to protect Oz and the series of books is neatly wrapped up.

Miss 5 and I like to explore different books and authors at the library, sometimes around particular topics or themes. We try to get different ones out every week or so; it's fun for both of us to have the variety and to look at a mix of new & favourite authors.