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The Invisible Man
One of the most gripping of H.G. Wells' science-fiction sagas, The Invisible Man is the story of a brilliant young scientist who impetuously experiments upon himself, and then becomes invisible and mad, imprisoned in a nightmare of his own making. A spellbinding and unforgettable fantasy, it also provides a lesson in the calamity that can result when knowledge is used toward a corrupt end. Eisner-Award winner Rick Geary's fanciful artwork captures the tragedy and irony of Wells' fascinating tale.
56 pages, Hardcover
Published June 24, 2008
2 people are currently reading
74 people want to read
About the author
Rick Geary
194 books202 followersRICK GEARY was born in 1946 in Kansas City, Missouri and grew up in Wichita,
Kansas. He graduated from the University of Kansas in Lawrence, where his first cartoons were published in the University Daily Kansan. He worked as staff artist for two weekly papers in Wichita before moving to San Diego in 1975.
He began work in comics in 1977 and was for thirteen years a contributor to the Funny Pages of National Lampoon. His comic stories have also been published in Heavy Metal, Dark Horse Comics and the DC Comics/Paradox Press Big Books. His early comic work has been collected in Housebound with Rick Geary from Fantagraphics Books.
During a four-year stay in New York, his illustrations appeared regularly in The New York Times Book Review. His illustration work has also been seen in MAD, Spy, Rolling Stone, The Los Angeles Times, The Old Farmer’s Almanac, and American Libraries.
He has written and illustrated three children’s books based on The Mask for Dark Horse and two Spider-Man children's books for Marvel. His children’s comic “Society of Horrors” ran in Disney Adventures magazine. He was the artist for the new series of GUMBY Comics, written by Bob Burden, for which they received the 2007 Eisner Comic Industry Award for Best Publication for a Younger Audience.
His graphic novels include three adaptations for the Classics Illustrated, and the nine-volume series A Treasury of Victorian Murder for NBM Publishing. The new series A Treasury of 20th Century Murder began in 2008 with “The Lindbergh Child.” His other historically-based graphic novels include Cravan, written with Mike Richardson, and J. Edgar Hoover: A Graphic Biography.
Rick has received the Inkpot Award from the San Diego Comic Convention (1980) and the Book and Magazine Illustration Award from the National Cartoonists Society (1994).
He and his wife Deborah can be found every year at their table at San Diego’s Comic Con International. In 2007, they moved to the town of Carrizozo, New Mexico.
(from http://www.rickgeary.com/bio.html)
Kansas. He graduated from the University of Kansas in Lawrence, where his first cartoons were published in the University Daily Kansan. He worked as staff artist for two weekly papers in Wichita before moving to San Diego in 1975.
He began work in comics in 1977 and was for thirteen years a contributor to the Funny Pages of National Lampoon. His comic stories have also been published in Heavy Metal, Dark Horse Comics and the DC Comics/Paradox Press Big Books. His early comic work has been collected in Housebound with Rick Geary from Fantagraphics Books.
During a four-year stay in New York, his illustrations appeared regularly in The New York Times Book Review. His illustration work has also been seen in MAD, Spy, Rolling Stone, The Los Angeles Times, The Old Farmer’s Almanac, and American Libraries.
He has written and illustrated three children’s books based on The Mask for Dark Horse and two Spider-Man children's books for Marvel. His children’s comic “Society of Horrors” ran in Disney Adventures magazine. He was the artist for the new series of GUMBY Comics, written by Bob Burden, for which they received the 2007 Eisner Comic Industry Award for Best Publication for a Younger Audience.
His graphic novels include three adaptations for the Classics Illustrated, and the nine-volume series A Treasury of Victorian Murder for NBM Publishing. The new series A Treasury of 20th Century Murder began in 2008 with “The Lindbergh Child.” His other historically-based graphic novels include Cravan, written with Mike Richardson, and J. Edgar Hoover: A Graphic Biography.
Rick has received the Inkpot Award from the San Diego Comic Convention (1980) and the Book and Magazine Illustration Award from the National Cartoonists Society (1994).
He and his wife Deborah can be found every year at their table at San Diego’s Comic Con International. In 2007, they moved to the town of Carrizozo, New Mexico.
(from http://www.rickgeary.com/bio.html)
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
January 30, 2015
Very good book, interesting, easy to understand and awesome pictures. I like the storyline.
January 16, 2021
I've now read H.G. Wells' The Invisible Man three times in three different formats. I read his initial book 35 or so years ago in high school. I then read another graphic novel retelling of this sometime in the late 80's or so. Now I've read Rick Geary's version and I love Geary's books and am tracking them all down but this wasn't completely successful for a couple of reasons.
Number one is I think Geary's are is much better in plain black and white, everything comes across as more attractive and dramatic with those brilliant clean lines Geary is known for. I guess he did the coloring of this version because no-one else is listed as a colorist, and his coloring is as good as anyone else's, it's just that his art is better uncolorized.
Number two and this isn't Geary's fault probably but the "in media res" telling of the story was a bit laborious for me to get through. I think this is Wells' way of telling the story in the original novel where the invisibility of the main character would still be shocking and a mystery to readers from the late 1800's. Not only our readers from the early 2000's quite familiar w/the invisible man character but as well invisibility is a well-worn trope of horror and science-fiction these days so going over the alarming events in the village of Iping for half the book was laborious to me, it took me several days to get through 30 or so pages.
The second half book where the invisible man starts to recount the events of his initial experimenting and becoming invisible and his arrogance in the said recounting, flows much better as a story. This is something we can sink our teeth into, a mad-genius extolling his life of crime.
Then of course the mad genius declaring war upon mankind and specifically his one-time friend and colleague, the beleaguered Kemp.
If you've never read the Invisible Man before I recommend the original HG Wells novel. If you are a Rick Geary fan, definitely you'll want this in your collection. It pains me to say though that if you aren't a fan of Geary already and haven't read the book don't start w/Geary. Read Wells first.
Number one is I think Geary's are is much better in plain black and white, everything comes across as more attractive and dramatic with those brilliant clean lines Geary is known for. I guess he did the coloring of this version because no-one else is listed as a colorist, and his coloring is as good as anyone else's, it's just that his art is better uncolorized.
Number two and this isn't Geary's fault probably but the "in media res" telling of the story was a bit laborious for me to get through. I think this is Wells' way of telling the story in the original novel where the invisibility of the main character would still be shocking and a mystery to readers from the late 1800's. Not only our readers from the early 2000's quite familiar w/the invisible man character but as well invisibility is a well-worn trope of horror and science-fiction these days so going over the alarming events in the village of Iping for half the book was laborious to me, it took me several days to get through 30 or so pages.
The second half book where the invisible man starts to recount the events of his initial experimenting and becoming invisible and his arrogance in the said recounting, flows much better as a story. This is something we can sink our teeth into, a mad-genius extolling his life of crime.
Then of course the mad genius declaring war upon mankind and specifically his one-time friend and colleague, the beleaguered Kemp.
If you've never read the Invisible Man before I recommend the original HG Wells novel. If you are a Rick Geary fan, definitely you'll want this in your collection. It pains me to say though that if you aren't a fan of Geary already and haven't read the book don't start w/Geary. Read Wells first.
August 12, 2021
A guy covered in bandages shows up at an inn and later takes up living in what we would now consider a cross between a hotel and a bed and breakfast. Later in the story it's revealed that he had dropped out of college but studied medicine and physics, among other things.
It's pretty evident that his studies were for his own pursuit of power. He steals, lies and assaults people. He's willing to kill to pursue his greed. The story is centered on his misdeeds and how he attempts to get away by taking off his clothes (which means he has to find some clothes later.)
The story to me seems to be a little simplistic. Evil guy finds some way to get away with his crimes, his motive is the pursuit of power and it's obvious he has not thought everything through. Then he dies at the end.
What was interesting was the extra at the end, The Strange Visitor. It's centered on Abraham Lincoln and tells first about his dream of being dead and in a casket on display. That part is true and is repeated in many books.
The other part is about a séance that is going on when his spirit is supposedly contacted and makes a couple of predictions. Seances were popular at the time but there is a lot of evidence that most of them were tricks played by the medium to fleece people of their money.
It's pretty evident that his studies were for his own pursuit of power. He steals, lies and assaults people. He's willing to kill to pursue his greed. The story is centered on his misdeeds and how he attempts to get away by taking off his clothes (which means he has to find some clothes later.)
The story to me seems to be a little simplistic. Evil guy finds some way to get away with his crimes, his motive is the pursuit of power and it's obvious he has not thought everything through. Then he dies at the end.
What was interesting was the extra at the end, The Strange Visitor. It's centered on Abraham Lincoln and tells first about his dream of being dead and in a casket on display. That part is true and is repeated in many books.
The other part is about a séance that is going on when his spirit is supposedly contacted and makes a couple of predictions. Seances were popular at the time but there is a lot of evidence that most of them were tricks played by the medium to fleece people of their money.
September 23, 2022
Another great adaptation from this 1990s graphic novel reboot of Classics Illustrated. Every one of these has been an excellent translation.
I hadn’t read Wells’ Invisible Man novel in a few years, but this brought it right back. And Geary’s art is fantastic. Really enjoyed this.
I hadn’t read Wells’ Invisible Man novel in a few years, but this brought it right back. And Geary’s art is fantastic. Really enjoyed this.
December 27, 2017
fun and extremely quick read. 😉
September 28, 2018
The best of the comics/graphic novel adaptations.
August 2, 2023
Decent story adapted from H.G.Wells's The Invisible Man; excellent illustration!
August 6, 2016
Very good comic. I have read the original story and this added to it by seeing the visuals.
It something we all wonder if we have a special ability. How we would we use it? Would it be to help or hurt others. Griffin comes across this issue when he solves the equation of invisibility.
On one hand he was able to be undiscovered but he was also very lonely. He was unable to work so he had to steal for money. And there was a part of him that wanted to get back at anyone who caused him any harm.
I look forward to reading more of these comics.
It something we all wonder if we have a special ability. How we would we use it? Would it be to help or hurt others. Griffin comes across this issue when he solves the equation of invisibility.
On one hand he was able to be undiscovered but he was also very lonely. He was unable to work so he had to steal for money. And there was a part of him that wanted to get back at anyone who caused him any harm.
I look forward to reading more of these comics.
Read
June 3, 2009This is a graphic novel adaptation by Rick Geary of the classic H.G. Wells novel.
Why I read this book: I'd read the prose version before, and enjoyed it, and also a fan of Rick Geary.
I enjoyed this, but a little less than I expected to. I think I like Geary's artwork better in black and white ;-).
(Finished 2009-06-01 21:07)
Why I read this book: I'd read the prose version before, and enjoyed it, and also a fan of Rick Geary.
I enjoyed this, but a little less than I expected to. I think I like Geary's artwork better in black and white ;-).
(Finished 2009-06-01 21:07)
October 13, 2013
You can read my thoughts here.
February 1, 2015
very dry.
November 7, 2015
Another good Geary graphic novel.
December 31, 2015
I read the graphic novel adaptation of the story. While I did enjoy it, I wonder if I missed any detail in the story due to the format. It could just be that it is an old story!
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews