Ringworld: The Graphic Novel, Part Two: The Science Fiction Classic Adapted to Manga

by Larry Niven, Robert Mandell, Sean Lam (Illustrator)

Adventure Beyond Known Space! The concluding volume to the manga adaptation of Larry Niven's classic SF novel

Rocket with a group of intergalactic explorers to the Ringworld, a massive artificial world looped like a giant ribbon the size of Earth's orbit around the sun.

Stranded on this bizarre world, they soon discover that what was once conceived as a Garden of Eden has now reverted to savagery. Civilization has disappeared, leaving powerful machines in charge. Vast ruins litter the surface where mighty floating cities fell from the sky, deadly plants use sunlight to kill, terrifying hurricanes the size of worlds swallow everything in their paths, while roaming gangs of native humanoids stand ready to attack.

Louis must now face the greatest challenge of his life. How can he and his friends possibly escape such a hostile place? What happened to the extraordinary treasures of this world? What kind of incredibly powerful alien could destroy the mightiest of the universe's worlds? And what happened to the legendary engineers who built the Ring?

The answers lie in the conclusion to the most exciting, action-packed science fiction adventure ever conceived!

Genres: Science Fiction, Graphic Novels, Comics, Fiction

272 pages, Paperback

First published November 10, 2015

About the author

Laurence van Cott Niven's best known work is Ringworld (Ringworld, #1) (1970), which received the Hugo, Locus, Ditmar, and Nebula awards. His work is primarily hard science fiction, using big science concepts and theoretical physics. The creation of thoroughly worked-out alien species, which are very different from humans both physically and mentally, is recognized as one of Niven's main strengths.

Niven also often includes elements of detective fiction and adventure stories. His fantasy includes The Magic Goes Away series, which utilizes an exhaustible resource, called Mana, to make the magic a non-renewable resource.

Niven created an alien species, the Kzin, which were featured in a series of twelve collection books, the Man-Kzin Wars. He co-authored a number of novels with Jerry Pournelle. In fact, much of his writing since the 1970s has been in collaboration, particularly with Pournelle, Steven Barnes, Brenda Cooper, or Edward M. Lerner.

He briefly attended the California Institute of Technology and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in mathematics (with a minor in psychology) from Washburn University, Topeka, Kansas, in 1962. He did a year of graduate work in mathematics at the University of California at Los Angeles. He has since lived in Los Angeles suburbs, including Chatsworth and Tarzana, as a full-time writer. He married Marilyn Joyce "Fuzzy Pink" Wisowaty, herself a well-known science fiction and Regency literature fan, on September 6, 1969.

Niven won the Hugo Award for Best Short Story for Neutron Star in 1967. In 1972, for Inconstant Moon, and in 1975 for The Hole Man. In 1976, he won the Hugo Award for Best Novelette for The Borderland of Sol.

Niven has written scripts for various science fiction television shows, including the original Land of the Lost series and Star Trek: The Animated Series, for which he adapted his early Kzin story The Soft Weapon. He adapted his story Inconstant Moon for an episode of the television series The Outer Limits in 1996.

He has also written for the DC Comics character Green Lantern including in his stories hard science fiction concepts such as universal entropy and the redshift effect, which are unusual in comic books.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/larryn...

Reviews

[The Void Reader]

Glad to hear you enjoyed it! "Ringworld The Graphic Novel Part Two: The Science Fiction Classic Adapted to Manga" is a stellar continuation of the first part, masterfully bringing Larry Niven's vision to life through the combined efforts of Robert Mandell and Sean Lam.

The story maintains its gripping narrative, seamlessly picking up where the first part left off. The fusion of classic science fiction elements with the dynamic art style of manga results in a visually stunning and engaging read. The characters are well-developed, and their journeys are both thrilling and thought-provoking, keeping readers hooked from start to finish.

Sean Lam's illustrations are particularly impressive, capturing the vastness and intricacy of the Ringworld with meticulous detail. His artwork enhances the storytelling, making the complex environments and futuristic technology feel tangible and immersive. The emotional expressions of the characters are vivid, adding depth to the plot and making the reader feel connected to their struggles and triumphs.

Overall, Part Two of the Ringworld graphic novel does not disappoint. It continues to build on the rich world and compelling narrative established in the first part, offering fans a satisfying and visually captivating experience. Whether you're a long-time fan of Niven's work or new to the series, this graphic novel adaptation is a must-read for any science fiction enthusiast.

[Vince · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was okay. I approached this adaptation having never read Niven's classic 1970s novel, Ringworld, or its sequels, though I have read several of Niven's collaborations with Jerry Pournelle from that period.

The art is decent.
The dialogue feels stilted.
The story is chauvinist. While the adaptation team perhaps deserves kudos for faithfulness to the novel in this regard, I didn't care for the attitude.

Evaluated purely as an adventure romp, the story is too long and characters are too shallow. Two stars.

[Same review for Volume #1 of the Graphic Novel Adaptation]

[James Traxler · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read the original Ringworld novel many years ago and I enjoyed it.
I thought I'd give the graphic novel a go, but it is not great.
I mean, the artwork is fine, in a manga comic kind of way, but the novel doesn't seem to have transferred well to this medium.

[Eric Stodolnik · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't even realize they had made a Ringworld graphic novel until I stumbled upon a copy of this Part Two at a local Half Price Books. Of course, being such a huge fan of Known Space, I had to get it.

Now this Graphic Novel has many issues. The biggest issue I have with it is that the story, and the events in general just feel so damned rushed in it. Like if it were padded out more, if it were at least twice as long, then it might have done the novel a bit more justice. I mean, I read through this Part Two in maybe 30 minutes or so. It was just so damn quick to breeze through. Another thing was the art wasn't what I was hoping it would be. There were some very cool aspects about it, but overall, it felt extremely rushed and at times even unfinished, in areas plain 'ol sloppy. I understand it is in a way, more of a stylistic choice than poor art skills. And most likely the time constraints of the creation of the book was the deciding factor when it came to how much work could be put into it. But that being said, I would have preferred that if they were going to make a graphic novel version of Ringworld, they just wouldn't go ahead with it until they really had the right amount of time and effort and money into the project to do it justice.

Anyway, I would have given this a 3 star rating if it weren't for the source material to begin with. I just love Known Space and Ringworld. And even if this adaptation isn't what I hoped it would be, it's still Ringworld. And I will be looking for Part One to complete the pair and read it as well.

I just hope that the Amazon Prime series that is ALLEGEDLY being made on ringworld right now has the right amount of love and hard work and... well... money... to do it real justice and spark more interest in Known Space to have some more big-budget adaptation of the universe, cause I can't get enough Known Space, and I've already read all the printed material, and I don't think Niven is going to make any more Known Space novels. :( Anyway... here's hoping.

[John (JP) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is part 2 of the graphic novel representation of Larry Niven's Ringworld. Part 2 seamlessly continues Part 1. The writing and inking styles are consistent between the 2 parts. The action in Part 2 intensifies. The ramifications of the Puppeteer manipulation of the Humans and Kzin genetic and political histories come to roost, The exploration of Ringworld begins in ernest. There are more encounters with the local population of Ringworld. The reason behind Ringworlds's condition is revealed. What's impressive about the story as whole is the consistency of the story telling and world building. Each of the species represented acts in character. There is no no magic technology saving the plot lines that comes from nowhere. The purpose of the mission viewed from each characters perspective remain consistent. Graphic novels tend to dumb down the story in order to make it accessible to younger readers. This is one of the rare novels that does not o that.

[Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just a brief review of the implementation, not the story. I "read" both Part One and Part Two of this monochrome Ringworld interpretation in Manga. I think it's been available only since 2015. I read the printed novel just a week earlier. I'd say that for maximum effect, the Ringworld novel should be read prior to the graphic novel. I missed some events reading the novel that were highlighted in the graphic novel. One example was the humor in Louis and Teela's repeated attempts to get some "alone time." Ok in the book; unmistakeable in the graphic novel. The manga version captured the humor and forward motion of the story very well. I downloaded the graphic novel rom the Amazon kindle site to the large-screen iPad Pro.

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think there were some gaps trying to fit the whole narrative in this format. I definitely felt that the plot got lost in a few spots. It seemed to jump in the story.
I remember enough from the novel to fill in the gaps, and I think it is almost necessary to have read the novel to get the whole story. I think this is insufficient on it's own.
I would have appreciated a full color graphic novel treatment versus this manga style.
The base story is still great and inventive, it just doesn't shine as well in this format.

[Wayne Webb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Part 2 is obviously more misogynistic and colonialist in its attitude than part 1 - which is mostly plot. But when the story extends to philosophy and free will it gets dangerously close to racism and squarely sexist. Women as objects of ownership, defined by their relationship to men, and lesser beings and savages in need of gods to worship. Still an intriguing concept and the underlying mystery. The time and visual story telling show up the negatives from whenever decade it was.

[Jedidiah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very confusing adaptation. If I hadn't read the source novel already I'd have been lost. The black and white artwork is poorly suited to Niven's nuanced story and is at times just as confusing as the adaptation. An interesting novelty, but read the novel instead. The visuals in your head will be far superior to this.

[William Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice to read through the Ringworld story again. Oddly enough, this made me want to read the original version more. The graphic representation is nice, but part two suffers from a lot of dark pages and as it's in black and white, it's hard to make out some of the detail. The story is also complicated enough that I felt it missed some of the wonder in translation to speech bubbles.

[Robert Gilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Part two continues from the cliff hanger ending of the previous book. I've really enjoyed these two book. They have down a great job taking the grand scope of the novel and giving us a fun visual version to enjoy.

[Jeff Thomas · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. Not the Ringworld story I remember, not an improvement, and not a very compelling effort, either. In the original, the world was the central character. Here, it's just background for a 'heroic struggle'.

[Ian Lloyd-williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the great classic sci fi novels a huge work great aliens and superb plot line.

[Andrew Schriber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Continuation of book 1. But just like book 1, this book is good but the real book is better.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good conclusion to the series. I wasn't expecting the solution to their problem of returning home at all.