The Prisoner: Shattered Visage Graphic Novel Review

Titan Comics has published a graphic novel collection in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the original broadcasting of the iconic TV series The Prisoner between September 29th 1967 until February 1st 1968; that itself was a direct sequel to a previously aired TV series titled Danger Man with both Danger Man and The Prisoner starring the late, great legendary actor Patrick McGoohan. There was also a remake of The Prisoner as a miniseries that was broadcasted in 2009; starring Jim Caviezel and Ian McKellen in the main roles of Number Six and Number Two respectively. The Prisoner: Shattered Visage was originally released by DC Comics as four individual comic book issues in 1988 to 1989 before being released as a complete volume collection comprising all four comic book issues in 1990. Does The Prisoner: Shattered Visage graphic novel capture the story and quality of dialogue from the iconic The Prisoner TV series?

The Prisoner’s graphic novel continuation is in very experienced hands as Dean Motter is an illustrator, designer and writer that as a writer has written for Superman Adventures; Star Wars Trade; Will Eisner’s The Spirit; and Wolverine, while as an artist he has appeared in Batman: Black & White; Classics Illustrated; Grendel: Red, White and Black; and John Constantine graphic novels; having originally co-written and illustrated the story of The Prisoner: Shattered Visage for DC Comics in 1998, alongside Mark Askwith. Mark Askwith is a Canadian writer, TV producer, editor and publisher specialising in science fiction and comics; having written for Batman, Justice League International and Fantagraphics, while also producing and writing a Canadian news magazine program named Prisoners of Gravity that explored speculative fiction and ran for five seasons comprising of 139 episodes. Meanwhile, David Hornung has also provided colour art for Batman: Gotham by Gaslight, while Richmond Lewis has also been a colourist for Batman: Year One – Deluxe Edition and Deborah Marks who has previously provided lettering for comics at Comico and DC Comics.

The Prisoner: Shattered Visage is the officially authorised sequel to The Prisoner TV series that is reflected by the graphic novel being set two decades after the conclusion of the final episode. The story follows a retired secret agent named Alice Drake who unfortunately becomes shipwrecked upon the shores of The Village; leading to her meeting an older Number Six that has continuously battled Number Two, but that is merely the beginning of the further gradual unfolding of the story.

Titan Comics’ expanded release of The Prisoner: Shattered Visage begins with a fascinating foreword written by Abigail McKern, daughter of actor Leo McKern who portrayed Number Two. Abigail’s foreword was written in August 2018; detailing how she felt about sci-fi and horror, her memories of The Prisoner’s filming, her father’s chemistry with Patrick McGoohan, The Prisoner’s lasting legacy and why it is as relevant today as it was five decades before Titan Comics published the expanded graphic novel. There is also a quote from the Ozymandias sonnet by Percy Bysshe Shelley that was originally published within the January 11th 1818 edition of The Examiner. The quality of writing throughout the story itself is superb as it delves deep into each character’s respective personality traits, mannerisms and what they believe about the purpose of The Village in a way that honours and remains true to The Prisoner TV series. Dean Motter wrote a feature named My Adventure in the Village in October 2018; chronicling how The Prisoner’s graphic novel sequel came to be and how different his approach was for the graphic novel he was at the forefront of creating for DC Comics in comparison to the previously abandoned attempt from Marvel to adapt the TV series into a graphic novel.

The Prisoner: Shattered Visage’s presentation is amazing from the engrossing front cover artwork featuring the iconic Penny Farthing partially covered by sand with torn material upon the awning as sea and a cloudy sky is all that can be seen for miles away from the beach that continues onto the back cover that depicts a statue mostly situated within the sand as the foreboding white balloon is located slightly off the ground, alongside a synopsis of the story and a bio of the writers and illustrator. All of the illustration panels throughout the graphic novel are brilliant as every character, object and environment is brought to life in stunning detail that really helps to establish the story of The Prisoner: Shattered Visage that are further complimented by excellent colouring and lettering, while there are also front cover artwork, character sketches and promotional artwork included as extras towards the end of the graphic novel.

The Prisoner: Shattered Visage’s value originates from fans of Danger Man and The Prisoner wanting to know how the story continues after the conclusion of The Prisoner TV series that is complimented by bonus materials such as an excellent foreword from Abigail McKern, Ozymandias sonnet by Percy Bysshe Shelley, Dean Motter’s chronicle of how the graphic novel occurred and additional artwork within the 112 pages.

Fans of The Prisoner, Danger Man and Patrick McGoohan should also look at other The Prisoner graphic novels from Titan Comics including The Prisoner: The Uncertainty Machine – Volume 1 containing four previously individually released comic book issues that were published in 2018 having been created by Peter Milligan, David Leach, Colin Lorimer and Joana Lafuente and The Prisoner: Original Art Edition by Jack Kirby, Steve Englehart, Gil Kane and Bob Wayne.

Analysis
• Title: The Prisoner: Shattered Visage Graphic Novel
• Writer: Dean Motter and Mark Askwith with an introduction by Abigail McKern
• Art: Dean Motter (Artist), David Hornung and Richmond Lewis (Colour Art) and Deborah Marks (Lettering)
• Publisher: Titan Comics
• Length: 112 pages
• Cover: Paperback

The Prisoner: Shattered Visage graphic novel can be purchased in the UK from Amazon and Forbidden Planet and digitally at ComiXology, while The Prisoner: Shattered Visage graphic novel can be purchased in America and Canada from Amazon. You can also find Titan Comics’ official website including a back catalogue of captivating comics and graphic novels and product details regarding The Prisoner: Shattered Visage graphic novel.