This interpretation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a very satisfying one. The overall effect is one of ethereal elegance, with a delicacy that emphasizes the gossamer-lightness of fairies and plot. This is also apparent in the pages that use colour.

 The style here has a lovely, clear and delicate use of line, with a distinct Art Nouveau feel, as well as manga influences. In keeping with the former, some of the elements are tableau, although the artist creates some terrific naturalistic images of the younger characters as well. The way that they are drawn is often very touching, giving the reader gets a sense of their youth, vulnerability and awkwardness. Their emotions, shown in very varied facial expressions, are also well realized throughout and there is a great sense of movement in the images.

The humour of the play is clear, even given the elegance of the illustration. The panels are often used to emphasize particular moments, for instance, by following the panel in which a line appears with one in which characters are shown reacting to the line (double-takes and double-beat panels are also used to emphasise the theme of pairings and binaries throughout). Further, that shojo (girls) manga like the major series Ranma ½ by Rumiko Takahashi features humour, magical transformations, romance and ‘odd’ couples means that there is a good match between Shakespeare and manga here, offering, again, a huge amount of additional pleasure for the manga reader .

As with the other titles in the Manga Shakespeare series, it should be noted that it is abridged, but this should not be seen as problematic, given the exceptional support the series offers readers in understanding the narratives and language of the plays. Varied angles, pacing and page layout create a great deal of interest and support and direct the reader. There is an expressive use of speech balloons too, including a number of very sweet heart-shaped ones.

Reflecting the combination of futuristic and historical that is apparent in the whole series, technology is used to good effect here, acting as a counterpoint to the woods and magic. The first colour double-page spread shows this well, with lovers beneath the trees under the moon at one side and a city lit by electric light on the other.

The use of video phones at the start is clever, in that there are often several screens in use at once, and the spaces between them are used to indicate tensions and divisions between the characters. Further, there are times when the reader sees the image on the screen, and the person behind the screen simultaneously, allowing further points about relationships between characters to be made.

 Dress also has futuristic, contemporary and historical elements, with juxtapositions between toga and suit, for instance, adding to the other-worldly effect. This is a lovely object, as well as a touching and effective interpretation, which has a very distinctive visual voice.

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2008-06-14