Now, I can hardly pronounce it and much less explain what it is. Secondly, Hinds tried very hard to keep to the iambic pentameter of Shakespeare’s dialogue intact. And even with all that time given to linger, concentrate and re-read, the story didn’t lose the gut punch reaction. Gareth Hinds’ Rome & Juliet allows the reader to do that. You don’t get to linger on their faces or the expressions. Sure, seeing a movie version or a play helps but actors move around. I didn’t realize how much easier it was to understand the anger, the humor, and all of the emotion in Shakespeare’s words until I could match it with still illustration. So what makes Gareth Hinds version worth picking up and reading?įirst off, it is a graphic novel. It’s a story line that everyone knows so well. Highly recommend.įrom forth the fatal loins of these two foes,Ī pair of star-crossed lovers take their life….”īlah, blah, blah, blahbly blah…thus is the opening to one of history’s most well-known tragedies that has spawned hundreds of years’ worth of tropes-Tony & Maria (West Side Story), Jack & Rose (Titanic), Buffy & Angel (Buffy the Vampire Slayer). It shows it as is, and Romeo is as annoying as ever. That will help too.Īnyway, I liked how this play doesn't romanticize this story. If everyone in the play took a hot second to think critically, everything would be solved. The whole play is about the lack of knowledge (irony).
He's not supposed to be the ever enchanting Leo. Romeo is supposed to be this emo, annoying teenager who is WAY TOO RASH (I MEAN, JUST TAKE A SECOND TO THINK FOR ONCE, ROMEO. I just don't like how our society has romanticized this story so much to the point it loses its original meaning. It's the characters that really stick with people. However, they don't have such a hold as R+J does. I could only think of Macbeth and Hamlet, which are also popular tragedies. Along with great storytelling, the characters are extremely compelling. In fact, this particular tragedy has among the best and tightest storytelling out of all Shakespeare's stuff. I'm not really fond of this particular play. I think the part I like the best is how true to the source material this graphic novel was. Hinds pretty much kept everything intact.
The priest was a very smart and wise man but is in the same way an enabler. There was a whole lot of illiteracy, as usual. Juliet was about the same (somehow I'm always only annoyed by Romeo in all these reincarnations). It made it easier to spot out a Capulet and a Montague, but that was about it. Their race changes pretty much did nothing to the plot.
Instead of Italians in Verona, the Capulets were Indian, and the Montagues were Black. I'm not sure why, but it bothers me that Hinds used the word "universal" to express why he changed the race of the characters. I really liked how the illustrator took liberties with using a diverse cast of characters.
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