Comicsthe roadThe graphic novel adaptation of post-apocalyptic classic The Road is one of the most frightening and beautiful comics you will read this yearWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Comicsthe roadThe graphic novel adaptation of post-apocalyptic classic The Road is one of the most frightening and beautiful comics you will read this yearWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Manu Larcenet / Abrams ComicArts)
Set sometime after the end of the world, The Road follows two survivors – a father and his young son – as they scrape a desperate living amid the ash-coated ruins of a fallen civilization, all while fighting starvation and trying to avoid murderous strangers. As with McCarthy’s novel, the plot is simple, the dialogue sparse, but Larcenet’s book is dazzling in its depiction of both the harsh landscapes and the moments of heartbreaking humanity between its two main characters.
Newsarama caught up with Manu Larcenet to find out more about this extraordinary project, his contact with McCarthy shortly before the writer passed away in 2023, and what it was like to be immersed in the world of The Road for two years.
(Image credit: Manu Larcenet / Abrams ComicArts)
Newsarama: Hello Manu. Tell us a little bit about your relationship to Cormac McCarthy’s original novel and why you wanted to adapt it?
I know that you wrote to McCarthy personally, asking his permission to make this adaptation. What was his response, and how much of your work did he get to see before he passed away?
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It so happens that I had complete freedom. Today I like to think that it was the way McCarthy wanted and I believe that he would have been happy with the result.
(Image credit: Manu Larcenet / Abrams ComicArts)
Your art for The Road is staggeringly beautiful and extremely detailed. This must have been a massive project. How long did it take to create?
Larcenet:Thank you, it’s always rewarding to know that the readers have been so attentive. It took me most of my days and some of my nights during two long years to draw this album. At the end my copy of the novel was not in such a good shape…
Manu Larcenet’s very worn copy of the novel.(Image credit: Manu Larcenet)
The Road is a story that’s as much about the world and its environments as it is its characters. Did that present you with new challenges as an artist?
(Image credit: Manu Larcenet / Abrams ComicArts)
Did you have any strong visual reference points for this book?
Larcenet:Not really, I wanted to distance myself from the movie. The graphic style was imposed from the start, that of a classic drawing far from caricature. I knew that immediately and, if any, inspiration could have come from Gustave Doré.
I had also made the resolute choice of black and white, but it turned out to be very violent, too binary, radical. I then remembered my classes when I was an art school student and my discovery of colored grays. A way to soften the drawing without denaturing it, a very sparing use of color. I am my own colorist, and I think I used 14 shades of gray and readers tell me that I owe some of the most beautiful pages of the album to these colored grays.
This is a very bleak story and you had to be immersed in it for a long time. Was that ever difficult?
Larcenet:For two years I spent most of my days and some of my nights reading and reading again The Road, immersed in McCarthy’s world and words. Of course, living in such a universe has been demanding and somehow depressing. And I sometimes suffocated in that coldness and got lost in the dark universe I had recreated.
(Image credit: Manu Larcenet / Abrams ComicArts)
The Road was originally written in 2006 and became an instant classic. What do you think it is about this story that makes it endure?
Larcenet:What is The Road about? A father wanting to pass on to his son and at the same time to prepare him for his absence. Their endless wandering, fighting cold, hunger and fear in a hostile, lifeless and dangerous post-apocalyptic world.
It seems to me that the importance and duties of paternity and the fear of an apocalyptic future are eternal themes. And Cormac McCarthy staged them with extraordinary efficiency and economy. I hope that the readers will see The Road graphic novel as a great tribute to an immense writer.
What’s next for you as a creator? What are you working on at the moment?
I am presently working on a very personal new album which is also an ambitious and long-term project. The torments of creation will be at the heart of this new album. One last word: drawing is my life, but it does not mean that my life is easy.
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GAME REVIEWSMOVIE REVIEWSTV REVIEWS
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
1
Nemesis review: “A magical sense of tension”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
2Arcs review: “A whole lot of game in a small package”
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3Path of Exile 2 review: “A stellar start to a thrilling and brutal dark adventure”
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4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
4Indiana Jones and the Great Circle review: “The best adventure Indy has embarked on in over 30 years”
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1Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review: “Keanu Reeves as Shadow is wasted whilst Jim Carrey steals the show”
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3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
3Kraven the Hunter review: “The insistence on an R-rating helps save this, with a decent helping of bloodthirsty action”
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4The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim review – “An uninspired expansion of the most iconic screen take on Tolkien”
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5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
5Nightbitch review: “Amy Adams' disappointing dark comedy is all bark and no bite”
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2Doctor Who 2024 Christmas special review: “Ncuti Gatwa is as magnetic as ever in this delightful festive treat”
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3Secret Level review: “An uneven experience with serious highlights that ultimately make up for the misses”
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Creature Commandos review: “James Gunn’s heartwarming, R-rated tale about super-monsters proves that the DCU is in good hands”