The Phantom of the Opera

by Cavan Scott, José María Beroy (Illustrator)

From the original libretto of Andrew Lloyd Webber's world-famous, multi-award-winning musical that has been playing continuously around the world for over 33 years comes this fully authorized graphic novel adaptation.

In 1881 the cast and crew of a new production, Hannibal, are terrorized by the Phantom of the Opera, a mysterious, hideously disfigured man who lives beneath the Paris Opera House. Hopelessly in love and obsessed with one of the chorus singers, the Phantom will stop at nothing to make her the star of the show, even if that means murder.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Horror, Gothic, Comics, Graphic Novels Comics, Romance, Fiction

Unknown Binding

Published June 2, 2020

About the author

is a freelance comic writer and author. He is best known for his work on a variety of spin-offs from both Doctor Who and Star Wars, as well as comics and novels for Vikings, Pacific Rim, Sherlock Holmes, and Penguins of Madagascar.

Cavan Scott, along with Justina Ireland, Claudia Gray, Daniel Jose Older, and Charles Soule are crafting a new era in the Star Wars publishing world called Star Wars: The High Republic. Cavan's contribution to the era is a comic book series released through Marvel Comics titled Star Wars: The High Republic.

Reviews

[Christy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

I read this for an on the cover reading challenge- A Mask. I liked the art style and it followed The Phantom fairly well, just a really condensed version.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

still can't believe that ALW made Christine entertain romantic thoughts about sewer man when in Gaston Leroux's original, the relationship between her and the Phantom was one of abuser and abused 😃

[Schizanthus Nerd · Rating 5 out of 5]

This graphic novel is an adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera, itself based on Gaston Leroux’s novel. While I would have loved to have been able to indulge in a scene by scene replication of the entire musical, that would have been a much larger volume. The scenes that were adapted still clearly told the story that I know so well, and I sang along (in my head, of course, so I didn’t frighten the neighbours) with all of the song excerpts.

The illustrations were gorgeous, evoking the feel of the scenes, from the bright, colourful masquerade to the leaching of colour when the Phantom appears in Christine’s mirror.



I spent much of the 90’s obsessed with this musical, having travelled to Melbourne for the best school excursion ever. I’d never imagined that a musical could be so immersive; we gasped and pointed each time we saw the Phantom appear off stage and I’m not embarrassed to admit that I really thought that chandelier was going to hurt someone.

It was even more exhilarating the second time I witnessed the chandelier fall, in Sydney many years later, as our seats were directly beneath its arc. I also got to watch the conductor do their thing and all of the musicians warming up prior to the performance. It was like being able to sneak a peek behind the scenes and it was breathtaking.

My Nan and I listened to the double cassette tape (back in the 90’s here) so many times I’m surprised we didn’t destroy it; we’d get up and dance, with much abandon but little rhythm, around the room each time a new song began. We became so familiar with the entire musical that we’d recite it to each other as it was playing.

While not many of my childhood belongings followed me into adulthood, I still have two Phantom keyrings, the coffee mug where the Phantom’s face glows when you add hot water (it still works!) and the program I bought in Melbourne in the 90’s. I also have all of the piano sheet music and yes, I do intend to finally get around to mastering at least one of the songs one day.

I’m always going to be biased where the Phantom is concerned but I absolutely adored this adaptation. It made me wish I could walk out the door and straight into a performance of the musical. Since that’s not currently possible, I’m going to do the next best thing … reread this graphic novel and indulge in some nostalgia.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Titan Comics for the opportunity to fall in love with this graphic novel.

Blog - https://schizanthusnerd.com

[Laila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Technically just 4 stars but there is an article in the back explaining the history & making of the iconic musical, which made me really happy since I live for this kind of most-likely-never-useful-knowledge.
The original book was also mentioned and the fact that the romantic relationship of the Phantom & Christine, though only hinted at even in the musical, is entirely non-existent in the novel.
Personally, I remember being quite shocked at Eriks even more abusive nature once I read the original (I must admit, I was a total Phantom-apologist up until that point) and I think it’s really important to point this out to people trying to romanticise the WHOLE thing. (Though Music of the Night will still get me every time and I’m not even sorry)
So anyway, that’s why the fifth star is there! xD

[Chelsea · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice collector's piece, indeed.
With the devastating announcement that the Hal Prince production of Phantom of the Opera will be closing it's historic 35 year run on Broadway, I felt it appropriate to dust this one off and give it a read. Honestly the artwork is fairly "meh"; and the book is just a visual representation of the soundtrack. But pop in the CD and follow along cause it's just another way to consume the media. And it is a lovely story.

[Andrea Zuvich · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautifully illustrated, true-to-the-musical graphic novel perfect for Phans and newcomers alike.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Ooooo, is that a new Phantom graphic novel?” I said to the librarian working the circulation desk at my local library. She laughed at how grabby I was—but I tend to gravitate toward any adaptation of The Phantom of the Opera. I still have not read the original novel The Phantom of the Opera and really, really need to rectify that in 2024. Pardon me while I go jot myself a 2024 reading goal.

This graphic novel adaptation was done off Andrew Lloyd Webber and Richard Stilgoe’s book for the musical production we all know, love, and have seen multiple times. So, it should be no surprise, that with the opening line, “Sold! Lot 664 then ladies and gentlemen. A wooden pistol and three human skulls from the 1832 production of “Robert Le Diable” by Mayerbeer.”, every feeling, emotion, and tingle that I got while attending the musical resurfaced. The artwork beautifully illustrates all my favorite scenes: the crashing chandelier, the journey across the lake, the rooftop serenade, the Masquerade, and the mask on the throne. I truly felt like I was back in my seat in the Orpheum Theater in San Francisco, ready to witness Franc D’Ambrosio embody my favorite musical villain once again and be immersed in the magic of my favorite Webber production. How I yearn to see it again…but now that it has closed on Broadway, I guess I’ll have to settle for the film starring Emmy Rossum and Gerard Butler and playing that powerful soundtrack on repeat.

[Věra Škodová · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not sure, why is the sword fight taking place in so many adaptations, but otherwise stunningly faithful musical adaptation, most of the lyrics were included and only a handful of scenes shortened. The wait was entirely worth it!

[Christina Sedillo · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much fun! I always love this story!

[Theediscerning · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having once upon a time seen a graphic novel of the original (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...), it's very interesting to see this, the graphic novel book of the stage show. And yes, this is just as full-on 80s, cheese, Meatloaf video, OTT bonkersness as we'd want. (In other words, yes – the boat does float through a gazillion tea-lights, for neither rhyme nor reason.) In actual fact, there are instances of the book trying to outdo the stage version – sconces are skeletons emerging from the walls, and the whole descent to the Phantom's S&M dungeon features a whole Escher staircase, and more colossal wrecks than Ozymandias ever laid claim to.

There's also an actual benefit here, that I'd not realised until I got to the first major bicker at the Phantom's demands – you can actually see the script, and not have six people shriek different lines at you at the same time in an unintelligible mess. Fans of the songs, however, may object to them being cropped – the whole 'Masquerade' number is over in one double-page spread, leading to that entrance. Visually, we're sticking pretty much to the design of the stage show, from the opera house's rooftop statuary to the ballet mistress's dowdiness. Only her buxom charges break with tradition.

So, questions do remain – would this work as a souvenir of the stage version, or make a graphic novel fan of someone who knows it note for note? Probably not. Would it entice someone to check the live act out, given the liveliness of what we have here? That remains to be seen. Is it a worthwhile substitute, allowing one the inside look at the Lloyd Webber staging? Again, that's probably a no – one certain fatality here had a splash page yes, but none of the shock of the real deal. But none of that is to deny the success of what we get here – the lyrics actually succeeding in telling the story in print just as when they're sung, the whole piece given a sharpness and clarity the musical can be lacking, and the whole thing doing what it set out to do, without the hammy music. Try it – that's all they ask of you.

[Hew La France · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm, regrettably, uncertain what to make of this one. On the one hand, the scene depictions were great. I loved being able to see Eric cut down the Chandelier, for example.
On the other hand, some of my favorite lyrics were cut out. I don't know. Slight mixed bag, but... for adapting a novel into a musical and then adapting said musical into a graphic novel... not a bad attempt. Frustratingly enjoyable.

[ashtin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve been obsessed with The Phantom of the Opera lately and I really enjoyed this! It’s comic based off of the musical and I just got done watching the 2004 movie so this was just like watching the movie.

[Pug · Rating 3 out of 5]

Um, okay. I was surprised to see that it was an adaptation of the musical, and not the original book. Which was fine by me, as I am a huge fan of the musical..... except, instead of reading it, you'd be better off listening to the soundtrack. Reading the lyrics doesn't exactly have the same effect.

[Ava · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a fun graphic novel!!

I just adore The Phantom of the Opera, so I loved being able to see it in graphic novel form!

[Katie Sapphire-Star · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I saw this book in a comic shop I knew nothing about it other than the title. I couldn't even see the cover properly due to the way it was wrapped. But as a Phan and collector of all things Phantom I HAD to buy it! I then discovered it was a graphic novel version of Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical, so a slightly lighter version of the story and the art reflects this. I prefer much darker graphic novels usually (in art & subject matter) and, while the artwork does accurately reflect the stage show, it's just a bit too cartoony for me. The words follow the lyrics from the musical mostly so I was singing it in my head as I was reading but obviously some had to be cut for space and I found this annoying as it ruined my singing-reading flow! Overall a good adaptation of the musical into a graphic novel but the points I've mentioned means it loses a star.

[Sophie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Getting re-hyperfixated on phantom again 😭

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hier wurde 1:1 das Musical umgesetzt, oftmals mit den Liedtexten unterlegt. Somit ist ein netter Band erschienen, der für Musicalkenner aber leider nichts neues bietet.

[Zellizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Overall, this is a fantastic adaptation of the ALW musical into graphic novel form. Sure, some cuts to the script had to be made (RIP Twisted Every Way and Prima Donna), so it might feel a little bit rushed to uberfans such as myself, but it keeps the heart of the story intact, and any criticisms I might have are mostly nitpicks.

Things that were especially great:
- The way the monkey music box is the only spot of color in the black-and-white auction scene (also the monkey music box's little smile!! he's adorable!)
- The Hannibal elephant is included in 4 glorious panels
- The architecture of the opera house looks stunning
- The Phantom's initial reveal in the mirror is stunning, and the journey to the lair is mind-bending and magical, with spooky skeleton candelabras, Escherian staircases, candles rising up through the lake, and a labyrinthine maze of ghoulish faces, emphasizing how the journey feels more than what is literally happening.
- The mirror bride is so spooky it's incredible- also, Christine later throws the mirror bride mannequin at the Phantom during his line "this face, the infection which poisons our love," unintentionally suggesting a reading of the line where the Phantom thinks it's his face that's the problem in their relationship, while Christine is trying to show him that his unhealthy possessiveness (literally owning a mannequin of her in a wedding dress) is the problem.
- Good pacing for Notes 1 (I like the reinterpretation of Piangi's line "Appease her" as a whispered suggestion to the managers on how to handle Carlotta)
- I like the little peeks at how the Phantom is watching everything go down through the walls and such
- All of Carlotta's outfits are rendered with such detail and accuracy to the stage show (special shoutout to her Notes II red dress and her Don Juan dress- and I love that her grief for Piangi is given specific focus in two panels)
- Christine's Serafimo outfit looks great, and so do the Il Muto ballet dancers in the brief glimpse we see of them (and one of Raoul's best but often overlooked moments is included- the line "Don't worry, I'm with you.")
-Two words. Chandelier. Crash. It is magnificent.
- Love the Firmin reveal at the beginning of Masquerade.
- The Phantom's Red Death outfit looks particularly sumptuous, and his mask is rendered in even greater detail than in the stage show
-I can pick out several Masquerade outfits pulled directly from the stage show. The Little Band is there, there's Meg, there's the Butterfly Girl, the Flower Girl, the Half-Man Half-Woman, the animal-headed mannequins, the Golden Mask lady mannequin, etc.
-Don Juan rehearsal with the self-playing piano is included, although the transition from there to the graveyard is a little weird
-It's snowing in the graveyard and the Phantom's wearing white, so he looks like a real ghost from Christine's POV!!
- We get to see moments that are implied but not shown in the stage show, like Piangi's strangling (RIP), Madame Giry's POV of young Erik during her exposition of his backstory, Raoul and Madame Giry going to the lake together (the lake jump is included), Raoul swimming across the lake, Meg initially leading the mob to the Phantom's lair, etc.
- Christine's Aminta dress looks fantastic- all the ruffles are there, and so is a lot of the embellishment like the apron and tassels (though no shawl)- compared to her relatively less detailed Wishing dress, you can tell which is the artist's favorite. Similarly, the Phantom's Don Juan cloak is rendered in intricate folds despite its relative simplicity.
- The almost-kiss in Point of No Return!! The deformity is shown in all its glory- very show accurate that it's mostly hidden from the audience's view until now.
- Christine's feistiness in the Final Lair, and the framing of Raoul watching from the portcullis
-We get to see the Phantom pulling out the boat for them, actively pushing them onto the lake and yelling at them to leave, and then the saddest most pathetic face as he makes eye contact with a crying Christine and says he loves her, and then she buries her head in her hands as Raoul rows away.
- The Phantom's presence is indicated by all the candles in the room suddenly going out, as the do one last time while he prepares his disappearing act.
- "Ornate if slightly warped opulence" is the perfect description of the Phantom's lair.

Nitpicks:
- Why was the decision made to represent Christine hitting the high note at the end of the title song as THREE PANELS ZOOMING CLOSER AND CLOSER INTO HER OPEN MOUTH?? No one wants to see Christine Daae's uvula.
- Christine was drawn with some unintentionally goofy faces in some panels- it really feels like the artist put more effort into drawing the Phantom than Christine. (Also, I like her original ringlets better than the looser waves she has in this, though I bet that made her hair much easier to draw.)
- We didn't see a lot of vulnerability in the Phantom's expressions until the Final Lair- it feels like his anger was emphasized a bit more when we need to see some vulnerability or even sadness in moments like Stranger Than You Dreamt It (which was cut down a lot- the moment when Christine hands him his mask back is important, but we only get to see their hands. This is the moment when, according to original director Hal Prince, the Phantom finally falls for Christine as a real person, not just an ideal or avatar for his music!)
- Christine's Masquerade dress being changed into a fluffy purple and gold ensemble covered in roses, with one eye covered in facepaint?? What happened to her original Star Princess dress, with the symbolism of Christine as the pinks and purples of evening, caught between day (Raoul, "share each day with me") and night (the Phantom, "listen to the music of the night)??
- Why was Meg a redhead? Sure, the original London Meg, Janet Devenish, wore a red wig, as did Ellie Young, who played Meg in the 2021 reopening cast in London, but the vast majority of Megs are blonde, including the 2004 movie Meg and the 25th anniversary Meg.
- Why was there a swordfight in the graveyard. Did we learn nothing from the 2004 film. (I miss the fireballs- his ambiguously supernatural nature is really downplayed here. No throwing fireballs, just good old-fashioned swords and daggers like regular people.)
- Why does Christine only have one cloak, and why is it pink and fluffy and reminds me of Belle's winter getup in Something There?? It goes with neither of her outfits and looks especially out of place in the graveyard.
- They fully drew but did not include the almost-kiss in Music of the Night??
- On my favorite line "God give me courage to show you: you are not alone!" we get a closeup on Raoul being strangled instead of, I don't know, Christine moving in to kiss the Phantom. It interrupts the flow- first she's afraid, then she's crying, then she's reaching out to touch his face, then... strangled Raoul face followed by one full page panel of her and the Phantom kissing (and I might be biased, but I feel like the kiss should've taken at least another panel after that- we only get the Phantom's surprised face, and not his leaning into the kiss, 'I'm so sad but this is also the best day of my life' face as he registers what's happening).
- No ring or ring return :( He just says "Christine, I love you" as she makes eye contact as she's leaving on the boat

[McKenzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ordered this the day it released after seeing a couple of the images advertised. This is probably more like 3.5 stars, but rounded.

Loved the opening, it had a Broadway playbill feel and The Phantom’s hand opening the curtain was perfect.

The lighting and backgrounds on all the images were incredible. The artist nailed the Paris Opera aesthetic. However, a lot of the facial drawing choices felt super odd to me. The expressions didn’t seem to match up quite a few times and in one box Christine’s neck is so long I almost laughed, she looked like an actual giraffe. The Phantom was much more well drawn throughout than Christine.

Overall, it also felt rushed and the ending fell flat for me.

[Rebekah · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a phantom of the opera lover, this book was nothing short of brilliant! The original book by Leroux will always be my all time favourite but this is a very close second! The illustrations are beautiful!
The only thing that was slightly disappointing was the absence of the gold ring Erik wears and gives to Christine during the point of no return in the musical - it’s a very important part of the story and was sad to not see it.
Otherwise it is absolutely fantastic!

[Sarah S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Condensed, but still a very fun version of the story. You miss out on some of the emotions, but the beauty of the art makes up for it! And it’s fun to sing along as you read the word.

[baillie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have such a love-hate with this story but it's such a beautiful musical, so naturally when the musical inspires a graphic novel, I'm going to love it.

Guess what?

I did!!

[Frank Lang · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kann eine Graphic Novel zu einem Musical funktionieren? Die Antwort ist sehr eindeutig. Nein! Dennoch ist dieses Buch lesenswert. Warum? Weil die Adaption von Andrew Lloyd Webbers Musicals “Das Phantom der Oper” sehr gut umgesetzt wurde. Voraussetzung ist nur, dass der Leser das Musical gesehen bzw. gehört hat. Ich empfehle sogar, während des Lesens zu den passenden Stellen die Musik im Hintergrund laufen zu lassen. Damit kommt das Kopfkino so richtig in Gang. Ich empfehle die deutsche Fassung mit Anna Maria Kaufmann und Peter Hofmann.

Die Umsetzung ist nämlich sehr vorlagentreu ausgefallen und vor allem deshalb so gut gelungen. Nicht nur die Texte, sondern auch die Umsetzungen aus dem Musical wurden in der Graphic Novel übernommen. Und so kommen Erinnerungen auf, wenn das unterirdische Reich des Phantoms gezeigt wird oder die unterschiedlichen Kostüme. Optisch werden die gesungenen Sprechblasen mit Musiknoten markiert, so dass der Leser weiß, welche Passagen im Musical gesprochen und welche gesungen werden.

Optisch finde ich sowohl die unterschiedlichen Farbgebungen als auch die Zeichnungen als sehr gelungen. Sie passen zu den jeweiligen Szenen des Musicals. Größere bzw. entscheidende Ereignisse werden zudem großflächig auf einer Doppelseite gezeigt. Diese laden zum Verweilen ein (während im Hintergrund weiterhin die passende Musik läuft).

Kurz zur Handlung:

Das Phantom der Oper ist eine klassische Liebesgeschichte, in der das Phantom und seine Liebe zur Opernsängerin Christine, die Hauptrolle einnehmen. Die Besessenheit des Phantoms wird deutlich als der Besitzer des Opernhauses wechselt und die Eigentümer nicht auf die Wünsche des Phantoms eingehen.

“…dann soll Krieg sein zwischen uns.”

In klassischer Dreiecksbeziehung offenbart die zweite Hauptfigur Raoul seine Liebe zu Christine:

“Liebe, mehr will ich nicht von Dir”

Wodurch die Situation weiter eskaliert und das Phantom den Kronleuchter der Oper in die Zuschauermenge fallen lässt.

“Nun bist Du dem Untergang geweiht.”

Anschließend wird dem Phantom eine Falle gestellt, nachdem es dem Ensemble seine eigene Oper aufgezwungen hat.

Fazit

In meinen Augen (und Ohren) gehört das Musical zu Recht zu den erfolgreichsten Musicals der Welt und kann auf viele erfolgreiche Aufführungen zurückblicken. Diesen Erfolg kann die Graphic Novel nur dann einfangen, wenn die Musik und wie ich finde auch die Umsetzung als Musical bekannt sind. Nur dann entfaltet diese Adaption ihre wahre Kraft und kann den ursprünglichen Flair einfangen und wiedergeben. Vor diesem Hintergrund kann ich die Adaption sehr empfehlen.

Zum Ende gibt es als Bonusmaterial eine Übersicht zu unterschiedlichen Charakterentwürfen und wie die Zeichnungen entstanden sind. Anschließend folgt eine Übersicht zur “Geschichte von Das Phantom der Oper” von Scott Matthewman.

[Marielle Davis · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is an adaptation not of the original book version of The Phantom of the Opera but instead of the very famous 1986 musical version by Andrew Lloyd Webber. I honestly wondered just how the hell a graphic novel based off a musical based off a book would turn out, given the whole, y'know, fact it is a musical that usually requires the person to be able to listen to the songs rather than reading them on the printed page. The answer? Well......it doesn't translate very well at all, given every single line of dialogue and song is verbatim from the musical itself, which again doesn't make for a very exciting graphic novel to read when you're just reading essentially poetry with musical notes surrounding it to denote when they're singing.

The fact also too that there is NO deviations whatsoever from the musical to make the tale its own also makes for a boring read when you can just listen to one of the versions of the musical itself and get the exact same effect in a far more exciting and creative manner. When an adaptation fails to make itself stand out from the original and stand on its own two legs, unfortunately, it's not a very good adaptation at all.

One would hope the saving grace would be the art but unfortunately this also rates 'eh' on a scale from ghastly terrible art all the way up to the most beautiful pages ever put into a comic. The unfortunate truth is everything is drawn just a little too realistically and the pencil lines a bit too thick to make it stand out or look spectacular. With how campy the musical is, this is one case where over-exaggeration might have actually helped out a little bit. Notice how awkward the cover looks up there with the characters just spliced in instead of looking cool and dramatic or some beautiful dreamy watercolor as would befit the book more? Yeah, that's pretty much what it looks like throughout the entire book.

I'm not sure the motivations of why this graphic novel was made, for it seems to purely be a cash grab to get dedicated "phans" who have already seen the musical to buy the book as well rather than expanding on the mythology and lore that comes with a 116 year old tale. This interpretation certainly isn't meant to purely inspire new phans to join the ranks. I recommend this book purely for hardcore completist phans only. As for me, I'm just glad I didn't spend money on this and instead read it at a library, which helps to keep from feeling cheated out of my money.

[Vivienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

My thanks to Titan Books/Titan Comics for a temporary digital review copy via NetGalley of ‘The Phantom of the Opera Collection’ a graphic novel adapted by Cavan Scott based on Andrew Lloyd Webber’s original libretto with art by José María Beroy.

While I have not seen Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical or read Gaston Louis Alfred Leroux’s original novel, I am aware of the general story of the Phantom. I felt that this grand-guignol of a Gothic tale translated well to the graphic novel format.

José María Beroy’s artwork was stunning and contained a great deal of movement and energy. At times I felt almost breathless, swept up in the story.

After the main section there are his sketches for the main characters of ‘Phantom’, followed by a few examples of ‘From Script to Art’, demonstrating how the original script was converted panel by panel.

The collection is completed by an essay by
Scott Mathewman , The History of the Phantom of the Opera’, that details how Leroux’s novel was adapted and set to music for the West End and went on to worldwide success.

Mathewman does address the softening of the character of the Phantom and how this change drew upon the dynamic of the Beauty and the Beast to create a more romanticised relationship between the Phantom and Christine. Personally, I doubt that the musical would have been so popular without this shift in emphasis.

The essay includes photographs of the sets and costumes. I felt that these underlined how faithful this graphic novel adaptation is to the stage production.

Overall, a very impressive graphic novel with additions that rounded out the story of this important work of musical theatre.

[Sue Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Phantom of the opera by Cavan Scott.
Book 1 of the Phantom of the opera collection.
From the original libretto of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s world-famous, multi-award-winning musical that has been playing continuously around the world for 33 years comes this fully authorized graphic novel adaptation. In 1881 the cast and crew of a new production, Hannibal, are terrorized by the Phantom of the Opera, a mysterious, hideously disfigured man who lives beneath the Paris Opera House. Hopelessly in love and obsessed with one of the chorus singers, the Phantom will stop at nothing to make her the star of the show, even if that means murder.
I really really enjoyed this book. It was different. 4*.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've actually just downloaded the original book after reading this graphic novel and having seen the play (I think twice, but definitely at least one memorable time in Canada), so I wanted to go back to the roots since the graphic novel seems to have captured the main points that I remember from the play but also what's in the original (serial) that I would want to explore in further detail?

The story is easily understood and the fright and terror of the stagehouse is more than palpable in how the characters' reactions and emotions play out on the pages as well as the nicely-created scenes especially as the phantom takes Christine away to his lair.

[Bookshortie · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you say the words The Phantom of the Opera to anyone then of course the first thing that they will associate those words with is the theatre, the music of Andrew Lloyd Webber or the book that the theatre production is based on. It’s the very well-known story of Soprano Christine and a mysterious man who is called ‘Opera Ghost’ aka the ‘Phantom’ who becomes obsessed with her.

I am a big fan of the theatre and I’ve not had the chance to go for a while. It just so happens that The Phantom of the Opera is top of my list to see so I was delighted to read this graphic novel which is based on Andrew Lloyd Webber’s version. I truly loved reading this book. It felt like I was at the theatre house with Christine. The narrative of the characters is both shown as conversations between the characters but also written as lyrics, making it feel very much like a theatre show wrapped in graphic novel. The graphics are stunning, beautiful and so vibrant that they jumped off the page. I would love to have some of these graphics as a picture to display on a wall or a bookcase. No reading of this book would be complete without listening to the novel at the same time which really made the experience complete.

This is a must for any fan of The Phantom of the Opera or theatre fans. I do hope that other theatre productions are given the graphic novel treatment in the future!

[Worthy · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I am a massive fan of musical theatre so this was an obvious pick up for me! While the graphic novel itself is great and I love how the songs are integrated into speech bubbles, I will say that this graphic novel is quite overpriced and while I’m not disappointed by it, I do think that it could be at least £7 cheaper considering it comes with a U.K. price tag of £26.99. I would say if you’ve got some in store credit or discount to redeem then this is an easy recommendation but I wouldn’t recommend anyone pay full price for this.

[Cla Popik · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is meh. It isn't the best adaptation from the musical and I honestly expected more. Meg role was really shortened making her unnoticeable and I really dislike how they cut off the musical songs. With that being said, the illustrations were amazing. They felt on point with every scene represented and made book so much better.
Overall I wouldn't recommend the book if you are expecting to be as well done as the musical