IT as comic

  • This message board permanently closed on June 30th, 2020 at 4PM EDT and is no longer accepting new members.

AtomicAgeEthan

Well-Known Member
Dec 6, 2009
46
16
52
Portland, Oregon
So my favorite King story is IT. There is so much to love about that tale. I think my favorite part might be the history of Derry as seen through the eyes of Mike Hanlon, town librarian. Anyway, my point is this; I would love to see a comic book representation of IT. I thought that the Dark Tower comics were wonderful and I really enjoyed the comic version of The Stand. And now, I think it's about high time we got a version of IT in comic book format. There are a number of reasons as to why I think this. One; IT is a highly visual horror novel and much of the imagery King creates is just BEGGING to be translated into comic book form. Two; Room for author extras. Comics are great for this. They allow an author to take a finished work and add any little extras they might have wanted to add way back when the novel was published but just never got around to it. Three; The ability to expand on previous story bits that are already in the novel. Not the same as adding new material, but giving extra beats to certain elements within the novel that the author might enjoy. Four; I've drawn IT as the creature that is stalking Mike Hanlon through the marsh and I got goosebumps. Rarely do comics have that ability to evoke such terror. The only other time I've seen a comic do that to me is "Pigeons From Hell" by Dark Horse Comics.
So there IT is. My vote for IT as a comic book adaptation.
Let me know what you folks think. I think it could be a real winner.
 

Neesy

#1 fan (Annie Wilkes cousin) 1st cousin Mom's side
May 24, 2012
61,289
239,271
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
So my favorite King story is IT. There is so much to love about that tale. I think my favorite part might be the history of Derry as seen through the eyes of Mike Hanlon, town librarian. Anyway, my point is this; I would love to see a comic book representation of IT. I thought that the Dark Tower comics were wonderful and I really enjoyed the comic version of The Stand. And now, I think it's about high time we got a version of IT in comic book format. There are a number of reasons as to why I think this. One; IT is a highly visual horror novel and much of the imagery King creates is just BEGGING to be translated into comic book form. Two; Room for author extras. Comics are great for this. They allow an author to take a finished work and add any little extras they might have wanted to add way back when the novel was published but just never got around to it. Three; The ability to expand on previous story bits that are already in the novel. Not the same as adding new material, but giving extra beats to certain elements within the novel that the author might enjoy. Four; I've drawn IT as the creature that is stalking Mike Hanlon through the marsh and I got goosebumps. Rarely do comics have that ability to evoke such terror. The only other time I've seen a comic do that to me is "Pigeons From Hell" by Dark Horse Comics.
So there IT is. My vote for IT as a comic book adaptation.
Let me know what you folks think. I think it could be a real winner.
I think that would be a good idea - I can get some graphic novels from our local library - it might get the younger kids interested in reading!
 

AtomicAgeEthan

Well-Known Member
Dec 6, 2009
46
16
52
Portland, Oregon
Chuggs, Locke & Key is one of my all time favorite comic series. It's fully collected now so you can pick it all up and blast through it.
Neesy, getting kids into reading through comics is something I am keen on. I think that some of the material in IT might be questionable for a kid depending on the age (especially the end of IT with the, ahhh...orgy...even though that scene is more about love than about sex) but I know a bunch of kids who read Walking Dead comics so what do I know!!
 

Robert Gray

Well-Known Member
I suppose if they were true to source and got the right artist I could get behind the idea. The biggest problem with visual mediums is that they are oppressive (even when done right). It is hard for people to see things on their own as they would have before they got a glimpse of someone else's visual representation. It is one of those reasons I am adamant about people reading the book before they see a movie. I think the same would hold true of graphic novels. I don't want to be a slave to someone else's vision of what Roland looks like or how Derry is laid out. I really can't put into words how I dislike the Lord of the Rings movies (particularly these new Hobbit travesties) because they have robbed a whole generation of seeing Middle Earth on their own (not to mention the butchering of the story).

I'm on both a soapbox and a tangent, so I'll reign myself in for the moment. With the right artists and person to lay it out, I'm sure it could be great. I'm just not convinced it is a good thing.
 

Mr. Gray Robert

Well-Known Member
Aug 28, 2015
61
178
Dallas, Texas
I suppose if they were true to source and got the right artist I could get behind the idea. The biggest problem with visual mediums is that they are oppressive (even when done right). It is hard for people to see things on their own as they would have before they got a glimpse of someone else's visual representation. It is one of those reasons I am adamant about people reading the book before they see a movie. I think the same would hold true of graphic novels. I don't want to be a slave to someone else's vision of what Roland looks like or how Derry is laid out. I really can't put into words how I dislike the Lord of the Rings movies (particularly these new Hobbit travesties) because they have robbed a whole generation of seeing Middle Earth on their own (not to mention the butchering of the story).

I'm on both a soapbox and a tangent, so I'll reign myself in for the moment. With the right artists and person to lay it out, I'm sure it could be great. I'm just not convinced it is a good thing.
I agree! Unfortunately I saw IT the movie first and now I have to picture grown up Bill as a bald John Boy...
 

AtomicAgeEthan

Well-Known Member
Dec 6, 2009
46
16
52
Portland, Oregon
It's true that I don't see anyone but Tim Curry playing Pennywise when I read It because I saw the TV series first. However, I do have different visions of the main characters in the book. Ben especially. Not sure why that is. But I was able to dislodge those actors from my brain and just take a more organic look at the characters and how my minds eye saw them first.
Not that this would ever happen, but if King himself chose the artist who was going to draw this hypothetical comic and guided the artists hand as to what King initially saw as the visuals of the characters and Derry et. al., I wonder if this would appease those that don't appreciate the GN approach to a prose novel? I remember when Dark Tower was first being worked on by Jae Lee and King was just in love with his art and felt like it was the next step for that series.
 
  • Like
Reactions: GNTLGNT and mjs9153

Rrty

Well-Known Member
Jun 4, 2007
1,394
4,588
I think a comic adaptation is an excellent idea, and I agree that it would be great to see more of the history of Derry. Each comic could include a story plus a shorter interlude. Do you think when the movie comes out that a comic could possibly become a reality?

I also would love to see either an anthology series, or an anthology comic, called Derry that would tell about other stuff that goes on in the haunted city, maybe not even It-related. Maybe Mike sometimes takes on the supernatural happenings (although maybe that no longer technically makes it an anthology).
 

Steffen

Well-Known Member
Aug 9, 2015
2,233
12,800
I would love to see this book adapted as a comic. Marvel so far has done really good work on The Stand and The Dark Tower adaptations. However, a key to any proposed adaptation would be the creative team. There would have to be a writer/artist team that commits long term, because we're talking an adaptation that could easily reach 50 issues. Due to the nature of the comics industry, it's rare for writer/artist teams to last beyond 6 issues for non creater-owned work. Also, the very nature of story means we need to get a crackshot artist, or at least a small (no more than 2-3) team of regular artists to handle the past/present eras, thus maintaining consistency while putting a visual stamp on different aspects of the story.
 

muskrat

Dis-Member
Nov 8, 2010
4,518
19,564
Under your bed
Maybe 20, 30 years ago. Trouble with modern comics is that it takes them at least six issues to tell just one dinky story arc. Imagine them trying to tackle It? It'd take em two hundred issues just to make it to the first Derry Interlude. There are some great artists out there, but they just keep putting less and less words on the page, less panels, too many full page splash pages (an average modern comic has about five), thus, yer modern comic is hardly more than a glorified picture-book. A buncha pin-ups. Takes less than five minutes to read one comic.

Ah, but have an old master like Steve Ditko do it (in his prime, I mean), and he'd do ya the whole book in ten issues. Neal Adams. Bernie Wrightson. Oh, Will Eisner, Lordy, couldna imagine? Great writers like Roy Thomas, Steve Gerber, David Micheline. These cats today don't know how write comics. Alan Moore could do it, but talent like his you don't waste on adaptions, you wanna see what he has in his own brain. Ditto Neal Gaiman. Frank Miller is great, but then the Losers would all be wearing trench coats and wielding .45s--Blam!

Case in point: back in the Bronze Age, Roy Thomas and Barry Smith adapted the Conan short The Tower of the Elephant in one single 22 page issue. Years later, when Dark Horse did the same story, it took em six.

Oh well, ain't saying it can't be done...just saying I doubt it could be done right.
 

Steffen

Well-Known Member
Aug 9, 2015
2,233
12,800
Maybe 20, 30 years ago. Trouble with modern comics is that it takes them at least six issues to tell just one dinky story arc. Imagine them trying to tackle It? It'd take em two hundred issues just to make it to the first Derry Interlude. There are some great artists out there, but they just keep putting less and less words on the page, less panels, too many full page splash pages (an average modern comic has about five), thus, yer modern comic is hardly more than a glorified picture-book. A buncha pin-ups. Takes less than five minutes to read one comic.

Ah, but have an old master like Steve Ditko do it (in his prime, I mean), and he'd do ya the whole book in ten issues. Neal Adams. Bernie Wrightson. Oh, Will Eisner, Lordy, couldna imagine? Great writers like Roy Thomas, Steve Gerber, David Micheline. These cats today don't know how write comics. Alan Moore could do it, but talent like his you don't waste on adaptions, you wanna see what he has in his own brain. Ditto Neal Gaiman. Frank Miller is great, but then the Losers would all be wearing trench coats and wielding .45s--Blam!

Case in point: back in the Bronze Age, Roy Thomas and Barry Smith adapted the Conan short The Tower of the Elephant in one single 22 page issue. Years later, when Dark Horse did the same story, it took em six.

Oh well, ain't saying it can't be done...just saying I doubt it could be done right.

Jeez, tell me about it! Everything now is "written for the trade," so it takes six issues just for characters to get frigging dressed in the morning. An "IT" adaptation demands stellar core talent like Tomb of Dracula back in the 70s. Now those guys (Conway, Wolfman, Colan on pencils) knew how to put out great work.
 
  • Like
Reactions: muskrat and GNTLGNT

Steffen

Well-Known Member
Aug 9, 2015
2,233
12,800
Good example GG. I'm also reading their adaptation of the Dark Tower and so far, so good (except when it gets to The Gunslinger, the art sucks. IF (and that's a big If) SK had to consider any more comics based on his books, I'd suggest Dark Horse. They have done great work in adapting the Conan books and I could see them being as authentic as possible to the original work.
 
  • Like
Reactions: muskrat and GNTLGNT

GNTLGNT

The idiot is IN
Jun 15, 2007
87,651
358,754
62
Cambridge, Ohio
Good example GG. I'm also reading their adaptation of the Dark Tower and so far, so good (except when it gets to The Gunslinger, the art sucks. IF (and that's a big If) SK had to consider any more comics based on his books, I'd suggest Dark Horse. They have done great work in adapting the Conan books and I could see them being as authentic as possible to the original work.
...the art quality has been very uneven throughout the dozens of DT issues....
 
  • Like
Reactions: muskrat and Steffen