Customer Reviews

Avalon High Manga: The Merlin Prophecy

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I wish she would continue this series in actual novel format. The illustrations didn't go with the original descriptions in the book and the story was kind of weak. It could be so much better. There was such potential with Avalon High and it's being wasted in the graphic novel format.

The manga sequel to Avalon High has finally hit the shelves. Ellie's adventures continue (but not until after explaining everything that happened in Avalon High for a third of the book) as she meets our dear Morgana Le Fay, reincarnated as Morgan, Will's (Arthur's) bad half-brother Marco's (Mordred's) girlfriend. Really, what seems to be about all that happens is she sets up the intro of Morgan and at the very end (not really a spoiler because we all knew it had to happen), Marco breaks out of the institute where he was getting "help" after he tried to kill Will in the last book.

I was really disappointed in the size of the book. It sits at just barely 110 pages, yet still cost me $8 to buy. And it really didn't give a lot of new story or plot. I did feel that we got to know Jen and Lance better, and the visuals can be pretty nice. But I think Will's character design is lacking (he does not look like a king, or even a high school class president), and his haircut is horrid. Now, I like shaggy hair on guys, but Will just looks like nobody's bothered to give him a trim in the last few years.

The art style is also this hybrid of American comics and Japanese manga style that I don't really like. As I read it, I'm very aware that this is not a Japanese manga, yet is trying to look like one. TokyoPop is trying to sell this as a manga, implying that it is Japanese in style, yet it doesn't really follow any of the standards. There are no silly places (like when the characters go chibi or you see humorous background images, elements that even "serious" manga tend to have), the lines are very dark, the panel set up is traditional American comic, and it just doesn't have a manga to feel to it. Granted it's hard to get American manga that turns out well, and many manga fans won't count anything that wasn't Japanese first. I think one American manga that worked was TokyoPop's Van Von Hunter, which follows the same conventions and tropes of a manga. I think maybe it's the faces in the case of Avalon High. The artist is trying to follow traditional American comic style faces, with defined eyes and noses, but then again, maybe it's not that. All I know is that as I read it, I was very aware that it was not a manga and that disappointed me. I had much higher hopes for TokyoPop's new crossovers with HarperCollins.

Overall, I kind of wish Meg Cabot had just written another book. It's nice to visually see the characters, and it does give more room for development for the minor characters, but it was just too short and didn't translate that well. I think an illustrated novel might actually be the best way to go for the Avalon High books. Let us get some visual pictures of the characters, but still let Meg write the text. Meg is good at engaging the reader in the story, though, unfortunately, her characters often fall flat and are stereotypical, and I think the manga version brings out these negative qualities even more.

Still, I am buying the next one. Even at $8 a pop, I'll get it and read it. But, I'll have to see after that if I want to buy it any more or not. I was excited about these books, and I still am, because I'm interested in modern interpretations of the Arthurian Legends, and the mixing in of high school drama is really intriguing to me.

This wasn't too entirely horrible... I just didn't like the fact that it was so short and didn't really add much to the story. It would be way more worth it if there was more to it...

Still, it was interesting and easy and quick to read, I just wouldn't recommend buying it unless you really like manga. Or really like Meg Cabot. I really like Meg Cabot, but I would suggest you spend your money on her other full novels instead of the short manga. They're good to read, though. Interesting.

I was a little disappointed when I heard that the "sequel" to Avalon High was going to be in manga format. I loved the original story: girl moves to new town and finds that she and other students are actually reincarnations of characters from Camelot who are destined to play out the story over and over again. That said, this wasn't a bad beginning. The artwork is beautiful and although much of the book is a re-telling of the original, there are some added plot lines and the ending is quite a cliffhanger. Meg Cabot has stated that the rest of the series will be done in manga format. This first entry kept my attention enough that I will keep my eye out for future books.

I absolutely loved the original book, but this manga literally took me half an hour to read, which I thought was too short. The pictures were ok, but I didn't really like the style. The entire book just set up questions, and the end was really sudden and a total cliffhanger. It was a good idea, and the writing, as always for Meg, was good, but I thought it would have been better if she had just done a regular book for a sequel. I don't regret buying the book (it was only $5 for me) but I wish it had been a bit better.

"... this adaptation should appeal to fans of the original work." I strongly disagree with whoever wrote the Publishers Weekly review. I _loved_ the original novel, I had the release date for this on my calendar, and I made a special trip to another bookstore because the one I usually shop at didn't have it.

Now I'm hating myself for having paid the price of an entire novel for something that had less content than a 1000-word short story. "Chapter One" is a sketchy recap of the original novel, and the rest of the "book" had one new character, virtually no plot, and no ending. "To be continued" works only if there's something to continue. Unless you really like the illustrations, don't waste your money.

Avalon High was a joy to read, yet frustrating at the same time. This is a continuation of the novel of the same name by Meg Cabot. While I really enjoyed the novel, the first volume of the manga series is almost blah. The beginning was really well done. The back story was given, and all the characters were nicely introduced. Yet for the rest of the first volume, it just seemed a little too repetitive. Ellie is constantly trying to find ways to tell or convince Will of the prophecy. While I understand this is not an easy task, I found the dialogue to be stale. Thankfully, my interest was recaptured by the introduction of the "evil" characters.

All in all, this was not the worst manga I have ever read, but it also was not close to the best. The drawings were pretty well done. I really loved the Arthurian outfits that were included. It gave a nice authentic feeling to it. While I am not too sure, if that is enough to make everyone keep reading, I think that I am willing to give the series another chance and attempt Vol. 2. I honestly hope that the second novel picks this series up a little bit because I really do want to like it, but it just hasn't given me much of a reason to yet.

Having fallen completely in love with 'Avalon High', I couldn't wait to get my hands on this sequel, despite the bad reviews. I was determined to like it anyways, to really feel like I was journeying back on that fantastic journey I so loved in the first book.

Sadly, I was gravely disappointed.

The art reminded me more of cheap comic books than a well done graphic novel. The art was incongruous with the descriptions given in the first book, and there was an overall feeling of clutter in the pages.

The storyline was... uninspiring. So much of the book was spent reviewing what the original plot, and every other sentence was a flashback. The idea of Elaine running for homecoming Queen was uninspiring, Will seemed very out of character the whole time, and while one page Elaine would believe the Order of the Bear, the next she was making fun of it.

I truly felt that only ten or so pages were really original plot - the second new things really start to happen, it ends.

Also, Cabot's writing seems stilted... it didn't feel like I was reading her at all.

I wish she had continued in novel form, as this was a joke of a Manga.

The Merlin Prophecy is a continuation of Avalon High in manga form, but even if you haven't read the book, it's doubtful that you'll get lost. There's a recap of pertinent events at the beginning, so any new-comers to the series won't be confused -- too bad it takes an ample portion of the graphic novel to do so. This plus the fact that the manga is already on the shorter-side makes the To Be Continued page even more dreadful, for it ends just as the plot really starts to move forward. The back-history, while interesting, slows down the action too much. There are redeeming qualities for Meg Cabot fans, however. Her trademark writing style isn't lost in the change of format, and Jinky Coronado's illustrations liven up the story in a fresh, quirky, and sometimes mesmerizing way. Despite its faults, The Merlin Prophecy is a fun, promising start to a trilogy, the King Arthur-reincarnation concept leaving me intrigued enough to read the next two volumes.

Avalon High Coronation: Volume 1 The Merlin Prophecy

Ellie Harris is still just trying be a typical teenager. All she wants is to go to homecoming with her new boyfriend, Will, but that just doesn't seem possible when her boyfriend happens to be the reincarnation of King Arthur. Not to mention Ellie herself is the reincarnation of the Lady of the Lake, and apparently the fate of the world rest on their shoulders. To make matters worse, Ellie can't stop dreaming about Will's half brother, Marco, breaking out of the mental hospital he was put in after trying to kill Will!

Could the forces of darkness really be building and can Ellie and Will find the strength to stop them a second time?

Avalon High Coronation is the first MANGA book written by Meg Cabot. It's also the sequel to her novel Avalon High. Meg Cabot has written numerous books for teens and adults including All American Girl and Jinx. Her Princess Diaries series was made into two Disney movies and her 1-800-Where-R-You series has become a cable TV series.

The storyline is very interesting and I can see it's building for bigger things to come. I was very excited to see Morgan La Fay being added as a character. The artwork is very good and I will definitely be getting the next one.

One thing I didn't like was about half the book is back story but it's so vague you would still have to read the novel to know what is going on. On the bright side, the next book in the series should be really great.

-Rebekah R.