I Am Legend - Ricard Matheson (adapted by Steve Niles and Elman Brown)

Pete lent me the graphic novel version (1981) of the novel (1952) that inspired the Will Smith film (2007). Gets around, eh?

I read through this in one Friday evening. Now, I don't like the film (as I've said before, the ending was way too contrived). The graphic novel was better, and told an entirely different version of events than the film did (with "real" vampires, and a next door neighbor who taunts the protagonist every night - "Come out, Neville!" - all night). The end was different too: different classes of vampires who "take over" etc. Seems that Neville truly is legend (as the last human, I guess, and as the last line in the book).

I wasn't entirely taken with the artwork either - the black and white lines lent too much of a "sketchy" reality (pun intended) to the story. I must say, though, the panel where the dog died had me in tears.

I don't think I would re-read, but this book saved the story from the clutches of a horribly done film.

Finished: 1/12/08
Pages: 240
Total Page Count: 1,046