Released June 30, 2010, Dante's Inferno is the latest graphic novel from WildStorm, an imprint of DC Comics. Based off the EA video game (not the epic poem), Dante's Inferno follows Dante, a holy warrior from the Crusades. His beloved, Beatrice, has been murdered, and due to a lost bet with Lucifer is now consigned to Hell. Dante must fight his way through Hell to save her, but on the way he must confront all the sins he committed in life. Dante's Inferno is written by Christos Gage with art by Diego Latorre. The graphic novel carries an MSRP of $19.99 US / $23.99 CAN and has been suggested for Mature Readers.
Diego Latorre's Art in Dante's Inferno Graphic Novel
Diego Latorre does some bold things with the art in this graphic novel. Though there are distinct lines for the people, colors are blurred and smudged, making the figures look hazy. Background scenes are nonexistent, just murky blurs of light and dark. This combines to give the graphic novel an ethereal feeling.
But it also makes it almost impossible to tell what's going on from the images alone. It's like looking through someone else's prescription glasses – you get a vague idea of figures and action, but it's not enough to understand what's happening, and you might feel dizzy afterwards.
Because the art makes things unclear, action has to be explained. In this graphic novel Beatrice, who also acts as narrator, describes Dante's battles, so readers know who he's fighting and what the outcome is. But this is boring. A comic shouldn't need extra words to describe the action. That's the job of the images, and that is where the art fails.
Dialogue and Plot in Dante's Inferno Adaptation
Though this version of Dante's Inferno shows little resemblance to the epic poem, it's entertaining to see different elements pop up. Dante fights through each of the 9 circles of Hell, and encounters famous sinners like Antony and Cleopatra.
The graphic novel moves along at a fast pace, which it doesn't benefit from at all. Epiphanies and encounters, like Dante's interactions with his parents, are diminished as Dante moves right on to the next task. Character development also suffers; readers never get examples of Dante as a soft, kindhearted man that Beatrice often speaks about.
Another problem with Dante's Inferno is the stilted dialogue. The language is forced, lacking enough emotion to cause readers to empathize. Certain sentiments, like Beatrice's pondering of Dante's nature, are repeated so often it's as if the characters have to remind themselves what they're feeling.
WildStorm's Dante's Inferno, Based On the EA Video Game
Maybe it's because it was based on another property, but the story in Dante's Inferno is nothing spectacular. Characters don't invoke strong emotions, and readers might find themselves simply bored by the end. The art is beautiful and ghostly, but it fails to serve the purpose of graphic novel art, hindering the story more than it helps it. This might be a fun read for fans of the video game, but for others Dante's Inferno isn't worth picking up.
Dante's Inferno the graphic novel gets 2/5.
- ISBN: 978-1-4012-2812-5
- WildStorm and DC Comics
- Suggested for Mature Readers
- MSRP $19.99 US / $23.99 CAN
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