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The Shrinking Man #1-4
The Shrinking Man
Richard Matheson s exploration of shrinking manhood is brought to vivid life in this comic-book adaptation! Scott Carey, reducing 1/7 per day, faces tension big and small as his body continues to shrink away."
104 pages, Paperback
Published February 9, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
June 9, 2016
Such a tragic story Matheson paints. I loved this adaptation, but it's a hard read. You don't need an explanation why he's shrinking, that's not the point of this tale — it's watching a man's life disintegrate, watching his family collapse, his marriage fade away and his morals change as he tries to come to grips with what is happening. Sad, sad and more sad. Ted Adams did a great job adapting the story to visual form.
December 27, 2015
I received THE SHRINKING MAN as an ARC from NetGalley.com.
It's possible that I'm biased because I love Richard Matheson, but I really feel that this story loses something in its adaptation to a comic/graphic novel. Perhaps my issue with it stems from the fact that the art wasn't anything special. Certainly it was better than anything I could do myself but nothing about it stands out for me compared to other comics I read. As a matter of fact, the most outstanding thing about it might be how mediocre it is in comparison. It didn't do the job of replacing prose well enough to make the story come alive for me.
It's possible that I'm biased because I love Richard Matheson, but I really feel that this story loses something in its adaptation to a comic/graphic novel. Perhaps my issue with it stems from the fact that the art wasn't anything special. Certainly it was better than anything I could do myself but nothing about it stands out for me compared to other comics I read. As a matter of fact, the most outstanding thing about it might be how mediocre it is in comparison. It didn't do the job of replacing prose well enough to make the story come alive for me.
November 28, 2015
'The Shrinking Man' by Ted Adams with art by Mark Torres is a graphic novel adaptation of the original classic SF work by Richard Matheson. Matheson could always get to the heart of what scared us with the famous novel 'I Am Legend' and his screenplay for the famous Twilight Zone episode 'Nightmare at 20,000 Feet.' This book proves that this story is still creepy almost 60 years later.
Scott Carey has an accident and, while it's not as noticeable at first, begins shrinking 1/7 of an inch every day. The graphic novel flips back and forth through his life as he shrinks, alternating with his survival in his basement against what seems to him now a giant black widow spider, and his deteriorating marriage. Scott gets smaller and smaller. He is mistaken for a child, and eventually as a doll. The doctors are baffled and Scott realizes eventually he may shrink away to nothing.
Matheson's character coming to grips with his diminuization in the world around him is a physical manifestation of the fear we might feel as we get older. Being unable to care for those we love, or even ourselves. Scott becomes dependent on his wife, and eventually becomes embittered towards her because of this.
This version is a well told adaptation. I felt like the art was okay, but not spectacular. If you like good classic SF or just a good story of a man whose life is out of control, check it out.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
Scott Carey has an accident and, while it's not as noticeable at first, begins shrinking 1/7 of an inch every day. The graphic novel flips back and forth through his life as he shrinks, alternating with his survival in his basement against what seems to him now a giant black widow spider, and his deteriorating marriage. Scott gets smaller and smaller. He is mistaken for a child, and eventually as a doll. The doctors are baffled and Scott realizes eventually he may shrink away to nothing.
Matheson's character coming to grips with his diminuization in the world around him is a physical manifestation of the fear we might feel as we get older. Being unable to care for those we love, or even ourselves. Scott becomes dependent on his wife, and eventually becomes embittered towards her because of this.
This version is a well told adaptation. I felt like the art was okay, but not spectacular. If you like good classic SF or just a good story of a man whose life is out of control, check it out.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
December 12, 2015
While I haven't read the novel yet, the comic version was enjoyable, and cool to see with the artwork to illustrate how much he was shrinking. *Note to self if I shrink 1-7th on an inch a day, Be more careful!*
I received an advanced copy of this from NetGalley.com and the publisher.
I received an advanced copy of this from NetGalley.com and the publisher.
February 28, 2019
No he leído el original, así que leí con algo de miedo esta adaptación ya que Matheson es un maestro y adaptarlo, es fregado...JODIDO.
Un hombre por una razón químico/fortitua recibe una radiación que lo hace encogerse de manera geométrica, llegando a pasar al tamaño de un niño, de un bebe, de un muñeco y de un insecto, y todo nos lo cuentan al tiempo que lucha por sobrevivir a una araña que se la tiene jurada y a una maldición que se lo llevara con el tiempo.
El guión es atropellado, quiere contarte muchas cosas que probablemente sean geniales en la novela, pero eso hace que en el mismo dialogo el protagonista insulte y pida perdón, sin que te lo creas, ya que la distribución de viñetas tampoco ayuda. El arte es sucio, en ocasiones muy detallado y opresivo y en otros casos, falto de expresión, sintiéndose acartonado.
Un hombre por una razón químico/fortitua recibe una radiación que lo hace encogerse de manera geométrica, llegando a pasar al tamaño de un niño, de un bebe, de un muñeco y de un insecto, y todo nos lo cuentan al tiempo que lucha por sobrevivir a una araña que se la tiene jurada y a una maldición que se lo llevara con el tiempo.
El guión es atropellado, quiere contarte muchas cosas que probablemente sean geniales en la novela, pero eso hace que en el mismo dialogo el protagonista insulte y pida perdón, sin que te lo creas, ya que la distribución de viñetas tampoco ayuda. El arte es sucio, en ocasiones muy detallado y opresivo y en otros casos, falto de expresión, sintiéndose acartonado.
February 25, 2026
Really great adaptation of the Richardson Matheson story. One of my favorites of his work and it is drawn and adapted well (while shorter in parts, it gets the main beats and emotions). The spider is truly terrifying.
January 14, 2018
Muy metafísico. No he leído el libro y esta adaptación me ha gustado mucho por su tono y las implicaciones, todo lo que cuenta a medias.
October 21, 2021
Jesus Christ. Matheson is so horny!
February 16, 2016
This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 2.0 of 5
Sometimes you read something and you wonder why anyone thought it was a good idea to proceed. This is one of those instances.
Richard Matheson's novel of The Shrinking Man is a classic and anyone interested in the genre has likely either read the original or seen the film that was a Hugo winner in 1958 and is named to the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress. So why make it in to a graphic novel now? That's the question I was asking myself as I finished this.
I thought - hoped? - perhaps that there was something new here, but there really isn't. This is the story of Scott Carey, a man who suddenly finds himself shrinking in an even proportion so that his entire body is getting smaller and smaller. The doctors don't know why this is happening and they don't know of any cure, though they hope that can at least stop the shrinking. Frustrated and feeling out of touch with his wife, he heads out and meets a circus midget who is his own size and they find comfort in each other. But he continues to shrink and eventually heads home to his wife, but his home becomes a chamber of horrors for someone of his very small size.
It's a great story and a wonderful study in human behavior and how an ordinary, common world can be so alien when seen from a different viewpoint. But the adaptation doesn't completely capture this but instead focuses on the horror and angst of Scott.
The art is weak, at best.
So once again I have to ask myself...what's the point? I'm sure that there are people who haven't read Matheson's original novel, or seen the classic film and that there's some hope or desire that this will introduce a new readership to this great classic, but I fear this adaptation will do more harm than good.
Looking for a good book? If you want to read the classic sci-fi story The Shrinking Man, by Richard Matheson, look for the original and ignore this graphic novel adaptation.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
Sometimes you read something and you wonder why anyone thought it was a good idea to proceed. This is one of those instances.
Richard Matheson's novel of The Shrinking Man is a classic and anyone interested in the genre has likely either read the original or seen the film that was a Hugo winner in 1958 and is named to the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress. So why make it in to a graphic novel now? That's the question I was asking myself as I finished this.
I thought - hoped? - perhaps that there was something new here, but there really isn't. This is the story of Scott Carey, a man who suddenly finds himself shrinking in an even proportion so that his entire body is getting smaller and smaller. The doctors don't know why this is happening and they don't know of any cure, though they hope that can at least stop the shrinking. Frustrated and feeling out of touch with his wife, he heads out and meets a circus midget who is his own size and they find comfort in each other. But he continues to shrink and eventually heads home to his wife, but his home becomes a chamber of horrors for someone of his very small size.
It's a great story and a wonderful study in human behavior and how an ordinary, common world can be so alien when seen from a different viewpoint. But the adaptation doesn't completely capture this but instead focuses on the horror and angst of Scott.
The art is weak, at best.
So once again I have to ask myself...what's the point? I'm sure that there are people who haven't read Matheson's original novel, or seen the classic film and that there's some hope or desire that this will introduce a new readership to this great classic, but I fear this adaptation will do more harm than good.
Looking for a good book? If you want to read the classic sci-fi story The Shrinking Man, by Richard Matheson, look for the original and ignore this graphic novel adaptation.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
November 21, 2015
The idea of The Shrinking Man is very interesting and it's always great when comic adaptations are made from classic stories. The comic tells the story of Scott, who suddenly begins to shrink. He has a family, a wife and a daughter, and he gets smaller than them until he supposedly disappears. No one knows the reason for his condition, since it's not a sickness. In a way The Shrinking Man is a psychological journey into being human and then suddenly being something else until you're nothing. Scott tries to find refuge in a circus and a similarly small woman, and the whole thing feels logical in a way, except that the way it's portrayed doesn't work. The rhythm of the whole comic is simply off (not just the small woman part). Also, too many pages are used to depict the spider that has no function - same with the small woman and how Scott's suddenly in love and whatnot, then getting back to his family. The characters are either annoying or don't have a persona and the structure of the comic is epileptic and hard to put on a timeline.
The art is OK, nothing spectacular though. The line work is kind of smudgy and basically there's too much black. The original work was written in the 1950s and the art perhaps mimics that time or just looks old. The faces look distorted from time to time and are by far the worst part of the art. The colors are wonderful though, and the dark hues fit with the melancholic atmosphere. Overall the plot isn't bad and the art isn't mostly ugly either, it's just that the whole package doesn't work and perhaps the original one would be better, who knows.
The art is OK, nothing spectacular though. The line work is kind of smudgy and basically there's too much black. The original work was written in the 1950s and the art perhaps mimics that time or just looks old. The faces look distorted from time to time and are by far the worst part of the art. The colors are wonderful though, and the dark hues fit with the melancholic atmosphere. Overall the plot isn't bad and the art isn't mostly ugly either, it's just that the whole package doesn't work and perhaps the original one would be better, who knows.
November 26, 2015
Probably as good as it was going to be, this graphic adaptation of the book that became a famous film only has a couple of minor faults. For one, it's a little too bitty – jumping backward and forward in ways I certainly don't remember the film as doing. Despite all artistic use of scale it doesn't put dread on to the page as that did to the screen. And after a few lengthy, wordy encounters along his path downward, and conversations that really might have been shorter, our hero has an ending that is far too blunt and sudden here. But there is also a heck of a lot going for it – it doesn't belabour its critique-of-feminism issue, it has a sterling and subtle palette, and it adapts the novel into a very entertaining read, one that really conveys the issues this particular disenfranchised man has to face.
January 9, 2016
This is based on the book written by Richard Matheson in the 50s. And from what I understand, it follows the plot (and structure) pretty close.
At first it was interesting. Great use of perspective!
And I thought the structure of the timeframe was excellent. The way it started in media res (kinda). And jumped back and forth.
But then it got a little weird when it got into his relations with his wife. And the creepy dude who tried to pick him up because he thought he was a 12-yr-old boy.
This was less than halfway in, and it never seemed to recover. It just kind of lost me.
I'm not sure if this is something that is because of the original story, or if it was the adaptation. I'll have to read the novel to find out.
Great idea. Strong start. Weak finish.
Thanks to NetGalley and IDW for a copy in return for an honest review.
At first it was interesting. Great use of perspective!
And I thought the structure of the timeframe was excellent. The way it started in media res (kinda). And jumped back and forth.
But then it got a little weird when it got into his relations with his wife. And the creepy dude who tried to pick him up because he thought he was a 12-yr-old boy.
This was less than halfway in, and it never seemed to recover. It just kind of lost me.
I'm not sure if this is something that is because of the original story, or if it was the adaptation. I'll have to read the novel to find out.
Great idea. Strong start. Weak finish.
Thanks to NetGalley and IDW for a copy in return for an honest review.
October 11, 2016
De Comic isch sehr guet gmacht (schöni Zeichnige, flüssigi Übergäng usw) doch i tu de orginal Buch meh empfehle. Gschicht isch sehr schön. Es geit umne Mah wo jede Tag chly schrumpft. Es geit drum wie geit er damit um (isch nid würklech eifach. Jedi Minute het er neui Problem) - ma erkennt chly Sisyphus - und es geit um Sex und zwar sehr viu Sex ohni das ma würklech öpis gseht.. Es isch SciFi aber es chunt sehr real übere.. . De Schluss isch sehr sehr schön u zguete a die Comic Edition vo IDW isch es het no 3 verschiedeni Essays.
February 4, 2016
Ted Adams has taken one of Richard Matheson's more famous stories and made it into a very dull comic. The shrinking man was become such a woe is me sad-sack that you just want him to go ahead and shrink down to nothing. The art and coloring are both dull and drab and just add to the dreary nature of the book.
Advanced copy received from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Advanced copy received from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
March 14, 2016
Great story by Matheson, wvery good comic book adaptation!
September 27, 2016
this is really homophobic lol
April 27, 2017
Although a very depressing read, it is made bearable by the stunning illustrations. Scott Carey's life becomes one mountainous terror after another as he shrinks on a daily basis. Humor added to the story helps the reader to cope with the tragedy, however there is still that splinter of mysogynistic attitude that pervades Matheson's work.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews