Customer Reviews

Prince of Persia

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Actually, I found the storyline in this gem-like graphic novel to be somewhat challenging- I must have skipped back three or four times to figure out exactly what was going on. This is not a criticism, for the interweaving of the storylines from the ninth and thirteenth centuries is rather like that of a Persian carpet. As is brought out in the afterward, from the Arabian Knights to the Sufi tales, the conflict tends to be with the nature of reality itself. That is what makes you think, that is the challenge. If you want a simple-minded, chop-socky hero tale then look elsewhere.

If I was to compare this work to anything it would be with the Sandman graphic novels- I could readily see this story woven into those books.

In some places the artwork approaches that of an illustrated manuscript. Indeed, the overall design of the book is of high quality including the reflective lettering on the cover and the maps under its folding flaps.

Oh yes, I had heard of the original computer game, but I had never played it, but that doesn't seem to be necessary to enjoy the story.

About a year ago someone recommended that I read a pair of graphic novels, Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood and Palestine. I was amazed at how well graphic novels could hold up to traditional books for strength of message and emotion. Now our seven year old son is really getting into comic books and graphic novels which seems like a great way to get him interested in reading. So I picked up a copy of Prince of Persia since I remember the video game from years ago.

I was a little disappointed that this book was a little too mature for a seven year old to read (some violence and adult themes, glad I read it first) but I was not disappointed by the story for myself. It is a well crafted intertwined tale which segues dreamily back and forth. It read quickly and sucked me in so well, I couldn't put it down once I started. It is not overwhelming strong artistically but not bad.

You definitely don't need to have experience with the game to appreciate the story, although it does kind of end like an open ended prequel. Don't worry though the story stands on it's own well. There is a short history of the Prince of Persian from the creator of the original video game which was a nice bonus. But for me, one of the best things about the book though was the list of other graphic novels that are available. We have a half dozen more coming to us now.

I loved comic books as a kid. My friends and I would buy and share our comic books. I remember the excitement when received a new issue of my favorite comics. Sadly those days seem to be part of a bygone era.

Being an older parent ([...]); I've been trying to share my enthusiasm for comics. Unfortunately, the few comics series that are still around are hard to find and don't appeal to my son. So I tried graphic novels. After reading "Watchmen" and a few others highly recommended novels, it was clear the themes in these are, well, mature. My son isn't old enough to understand the complex and mature tone of these graphic novels.

However, I was encouraged when I ran across this graphic novel. After looking through it, it appeared (at least from a fathers perspective) appropriate for my son. I gave it to him and he devoured it. It took him a couple of evenings to read it. He loved it and is asking for more for Christmas.

My son is a good reader for his age. However, he isn't really ready the chapter books that have mature enough stories for him (Ron Dahl books come to mind). Though we read these books to him, he's independent and likes to read to himself. This novel was at his reading level and he found it engaging. We also had several good discussions about people's motivations and the historical context in the story.

I'd say, for me and my son this novel was a definite winner.

Having said that, there are a few negatives about the book.

My wife and daughter had issues with the violence in this novel. To be fair, it is violent, but the violence makes sense in context and the language and themes in the book seemed appropriate for a mature 8 year old.

I found the art work to be average at best. The story was a little complicated for my son, but nothing some minor parental help couldn't resolve. But even with that, my son enjoyed the story and I was able to share the fun of comics with my son. So this was a good start.

My next comic purchase for my son will be the "Ender's Game" series. Hopefully, he will find that even more engaging.

I've played a couple of the versions of Prince of Persia, including the orginal on a monochrome PC monitor & the recent updates on the Playstation 2 that followed the series re-vitalizing Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. The basic premise of all the series is the same: the Prince is looking for something, and there is usually a Princess involved. In between him and his goal are a variety of traps and guards, cumulating with the person who stole the object in the first place, often a Vizier. The Prince of Persia games originated as a challenge in reflexes and memory, and they took their art design from Arabian Nights, and, perhaps moreso, western intrepretations of Arabian & Persian culture such as The Thief of Bagdad and the series itself has influenced other culture items such as Disney's Aladdin. Ironically, later installments in the series were themselves influenced by elements from Disney's animated film.

Now, nearly 20 years after it debuted on the Apple II, the prince makes another nearly impossible leap into a new medium; comics. How does it hold up? Does it continue the simple story of the original game? Does it involve the time bending of the sequels? Does it relate to the new game? In a move that might initially confuse fans of the game, this comic takes almost nothing from its source material other than the title. There is no dagger of time, no evil Vizier, no elaborate traps to be circumvented. There is a Prince, a Princess, a nominally villainous government official and some intriguing twists of time in the story. But the actual story of a lost prince, his sister and adopted brother and the mysterious temple that houses an ancient prophecy has some elements from various games, but is bound together by a wholly original story. This originality serves the game well, as it makes it easy for a person who has not followed the games that closely to jump in and enjoy the story. It also lends the story a timeless quality and frees it from following any conventions of the video games.

The story, plotted by Jordan Mechner, creator of the series, and written by A.B. Sina, an actual Persian author who now lives in Canada, never runs low on action and keeps even the most expository passages from becoming dull with clever wordplay and inventive dialogue. The one flaw with the writing is that it takes a great deal of time for the relationship between the two stories that are being told to become clear, and even at the end it is left for the reader to determine all the relationships. On the one hand this is very mature storytelling that leaves a lot of work to the reader's imagination, but on the other hand, it is just plain
confusing at points and the relationship between the two stories never has the payoff that I was expecting. After all the mystery being built up between the split stories, I was expecting a more meaningful revelation at the end. It is not unsatisfying, but I don't think it justified the extended mystery.

One aspect that leaves nothing to be desired is the artwork. LeUyen Pham and Alex Puvilland deliver stunning visuals throughout the book. The art is a visually delightful mix of classical cartooning, painterly colors and sketch-like line work. It creates a distinctive and attractive look that is very different from many mainstream comics being done today. Although it has a very painterly style it is consistently clear and detailed, at times in unexpected ways. This is perhaps the first comic book I've seen that so graphically depicts the aftermath of sword-play. It is violent, but the trauma and bloodshed is more reminiscent of
medieval tapestry battle scenes than modern horror films. The only flaw I could find with the art is that some of the characters are drawn identically, but I believe this was deliberate. Mechner's overview of the series as a whole in the afterward is quite interesting, and he has some well thought out comments on the influences on the series and its place in the tradition of Eastern-themed Western-fiction. All in all, the book is visually stunning and entertaining to read, even if it does get a bit hard to follow, especially in the first part of the story.

The physical book is very attractive. It features a substantial soft cover and heavy glossy pages, and every image is bright and full color.

Unfortunately the content doesn't really live up to the pretty packaging. The story is only okay. It features two storylines taking place at different times in history. I felt confused while reading the story, because I kept seeking some connection between the two storylines - I thought I was "missing something". After finishing the book though, I thought the storylines were just not really related, which I found disappointing.

The book has some oddly graphic imagery. It's odd because it's seldom the main focus of a scene. Clearly not intended to grab attention or shock, but it's still present. For instance, the king battles constipation (maybe this is symbolic of the stagnancy of the society?), the prince cuts open his own leg, the girl trips over and spills a bucket of severed tongues.

The book also seems pretty much unrelated to the video game.

When i first looked at Prince of Persia, I wondered if it would be reflective of the videogame. To a point it is - in the sense that it showcases how Prince of Persia is changing and becoming a tale about many tales. As the maker of the game comments in the back of the book, Arabian nights fostered many of the thoughts about the game and, carrying this over into the gaming world, it collectively impacts the story. That said, it is also a stand-alone storyline that tells the tale of a prince and the way he survived the unthinkable: a massacre of untold singularity just to keep a prophecy from transpiring. The story was a good one, too: the art didn't detract from the story elements and the tale was strong enough to be a tale and not some growth plodding along in the steps of a videogame.

Personally, I was happy with that.

The thing I really liked about the story is that it wanted to be a little like the videogame but also like itself, and that let it establish an identity that many stories about games never have. It had complexity in some parts, touching scenarios in others, a rise to power and a little birdie that has something to say about everything, and a city beneath a city that holds so many secrets. This gave it elements that took it beyond romance and beyond action and made it something that I personally found interesting.

I was glad I read it and would say that anyone looking for a diversion might want to look here, too.

Prince of Persia. You probably have some questions so let's start with those:

1. Is this based on the video game series Prince of Persia? Yes.

2. Did the game people work on it? Not really. The author (Sina) and the artists (Pham and Puvilland) did not work on the video game.

3. Does it follow the plot of the games? i don't know, i never played. But from the author comments in the back, it sounds like this is a new story. However, the Prince is one of the main characters (along with brothers, dads, princesses and viziers).

4. Is it graphic? Sometimes. There's a lot of talking and dancing and talking peacocks, and all of that is PG or less. But there are decapitations, tongues cut off, a disemboweled deer, several conversations on the toilet and a guy throwing up in a bucket.

So what's the book about? Long, long ago (9th century perhaps?) the head of the army forces the prince to flee, leaving his brother on the throne. The prince goes to a remote mountain temple to speak to the legendary prophet but since no one's there, he moves in, him and his talking peacock. 400 or so years later, a princess wants to dance, her dance teacher is fired and she runs away. She runs into a man who lives in a well who tells her a story about a prince forced to flee to a remote mountain temple.

The story constantly switches back and forth between the prince and the water boy and it's not obvious if the first Prince is the water boy, if he has been reincarnated, if he's a figure from history or just a story the water boy made up. The book is confusing. It took me a while to decide that i actually liked the book. Not a huge fan of the simple, cartoony (maybe stylized?) drawings but it's good enough. i really didn't like the lettering. But i liked the story and if they make a volume 2, i'll probably pick it up to see if they ever explain the talking peacock

I'm not very familiar with the video games on which this graphic novel is based, but I am a big fan of comic books and sequential art, so I decided to check out Jordan Mechner and A.B. Sina's adaptation of Prince of Persia. This graphic novel, set in 9th Century A.D, chronicles the rise and fall of the Persian royal family and the resulting convergence of politics, betrayal, prophecy, love, magic and war.

It's easy to lose track of when the events in this graphic novel are supposed to take place. At the very beginning there is an informative box that tells you when each of the separate (but interlocking) storylines is taking place, but after that you're on your own. This was very confusing, though it became clearer as the story progressed. The various prophecies and dream sequences only complicated things. Perhaps familiarity with the video game(s) is necessary to keep track of events.

LeUyen Pham and Alex Puvilland provide highly stylized artwork that may take some getting used to if you're a fan of traditional superhero comics. The duo's style brings to mind Jeff Smith and Bruce Timm, and has a decidedly animated feel. This style doesn't always suit the seriousness of the subject matter (it's a bit too cartoony at times), but the visual storytelling on each page is truly exceptional.

It takes some getting used to, and will no doubt be better with repeat readings, but Prince of Persia is a much better executed adaptation of a video game than anything else I've seen. Again, I'm not familiar with the game so I can't gauge how its fans will react, but open-minded comic book fans should find a lot to enjoy in Prince of Persia.

Prince of Persia debuted in the late 80's as a title originally available for the Apple II computer. It's popularity has spawned numerous sequels on nearly all console and computer platforms over the past 20 years.

This graphic novel addresses the back story behind the legend. My familiarity with the game is only tangential; I played the original Prince of Persia game when it was released on the Apple II platform. I approached this book with an open mind and dove right in. Readers of this book need not be familiar with the game.

First, the book itself. The quality of the actual book - including binding, printing, and cover - is uniformly excellent. That said, it's time to move onto the contents of the book itself:

Story: This is not a casual read, by any means. The book intertwines two separate stories, each taking place in separate time periods - and the shift between them can be confusing to follow if you're not paying particular attention. I found myself re-reading certain sections over again to clarify my understanding of the story. There are flashbacks, and time shifts - and I think that's where one can get easily confused.

Art: I have mixed feelings about the artwork. On the one hand, the panel breakdowns were spectacularly done. The action is easy to follow. However, there was some confusion on my part with two of the lead characters in the story. Their looks are very similar, and this - coupled with the time shifts that take place in the story - lead to my confusion. The colors used in the book serve to delineate the passage of time, but I think it was a bit too subtle.

Content: This is not a book for children. There is violence - from tongue slicing to bloody decapitations. The violence is not gratuitous - it fits the story well - but caution must be given if you are a parent considering this book to give to your children to read. This book is best suited for teenagers on up.

As a computer aficionado, I quite enjoyed the section concerning the history of the game itself, which follows after the story's conclusion.

While this book isn't necessarily bad, it's not necessarily a standout either. My recommendation would be to check the book out in person first, before making a purchase.

I played the original Price of Persia game. I've played almost every version since be it on PSP, Xbox, PC and soon PS3. So I was eagerly anticipating reading this graphic novel. But what I found was something quite different. While I believe that this was supposed to be more of an origins novel, the story line kept meandering and made little sense. The art was decent but made it difficult to tell characters apart. The story didn't stay consistent on a timeline and the art didn't help differentiate the different areas. That being said, this is not an easy read or a good read.

Perhaps the most interesting part of this is the section at the end where they interview Jordan Mechner who created the series. I found it more interesting to read his interview than reading the wandering mess of a story.