The first issue of the New Spring comic book was surprisingly good. I wasn’t sure how well Robert Jordan’s writing would translate to the medium, and of course a lot of details are lost, but Chuck Dixon has done a good job adapting the story, and Mike Miller’s art is incredible.
The book opens with a brief description of the world, then a series of splash pages showing the scope of the Aiel War, starting with thousands of Aiel pouring over the Dragonwall. From there it moves to Lan’s story, then to Moiraine’s. Two pages stand out for me: The panorama of Tar Valon, and Gitara’s Foretelling, the latter of which is most effective because it contrasts with the very realistic style of the rest of the book.
Believe it or not, I’d recommend this. Who would’ve thought I’d be excited about The Wheel of Time again?
Other cool stuff:
—You can tell some of the Aiel in their panoramas are female, even though there’s no mention of it.
—Hyperattentive series readers will be able to tell all sorts of stuff quickly, based on minute detail. (e.g. shield designs, armor style, local fashion)
—Looks like there’s going to be icons on out-in-the-middle thoughts/dialogue to let you know who’s saying it. Nice carryover of the chapter symbols.
—Moiraine and Siuan make a cute couple.