Review: Manga Classics: Great Expectations

Manga Classics: Great Expectations (Manga Classics)

by Stacy King (Editor), Charles Dickens, Crystal Chan (Editor), Nokman Poon (Illustrations)

Great Expectations has it all: romance, mystery, comedy, and unforgettable characters woven through a gripping rags-to-riches tale. Naive Pip, creepy Miss Haversham, beautifully cold Estella, terrifying Abel Magwitch, and the rest of Dicken’s fantastic cast are perfectly envisioned in this new adaptation in this 300-plus page volume featuring artwork by artist Nokman Poon. Manga Classics editions feature classic stories, faithfully adapted and illustrated in manga style, and available in both hardcover and softcover editions. Proudly presented by UDON Entertainment and Morpheus Publishing.

Having read all previous titles in the Manga Classics collection, I've decided to dive yet again into a new classic brought to life in manga form. It seems to have become a tradition now to end up wanting to read the original work after falling in love with the graphic novel, as it was the case with Great Expectations, this time beautifully illustrated by Nokman Poon.

Unfamiliar with the plot of Great Expectations, I found it to be a very interesting story that I would love to learn more about. According to the note at the end, the manga adaptation doesn't stray from the original work of Charles Dickens, but only leaves secondary plots aside so as to fit perfectly in the format of around 300 pages Manga Classics has used us with.

The story follows Pip, a young boy who helps a prisoner with some food, an act which ends up changing his life in ways he would have never imagined. Pip, who lives with his sister and her husband, after visiting Miss Havisham and her adopted daughter several times, dreams of a better life for himself, one as an educated gentleman which is later granted to him by a mysterious benefactor whom he believes is Miss Havisham herself. As he gets accustomed to his new life, he completely changes himself, no longer feeling comfortable around his old friends and acquaintances who remind him of his old lifestyle.

As for the artwork, while the artist is a different one from the other Manga Classics titles, his style is very pleasant to the eye, and the characters are drawn uniquely enough so the reader won't get confused and follow the story easily.

Like always, I recommend all Manga Classics titles, either as an alternative to a chunky book, or as a way to remember a classic you already read and loved. People reading a manga adaptation of a classic they haven't tried before might be surprised to realize they will end up picking the original work soon after reading the manga. They're that good.