This adaption of the classic work by Franz Kafka was my first encounter with Metamorphosis. I've seen the book thousands of times, of course, but never read it. I could make a wild guess what it was about and was in no hurry to read about a giant insect! However, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to read this adaption. It was definitely a quick read, filled with black and white illustrations. I honestly fill like the illustrations and the lack of color set the perfect tone for this story. While I can't say that I love the story, this adaption did compel me to finally read the book. I think it's a good quick read, but I was left with so many questions. ( )

I wish I could rate this more, because Kafka comics is obviously the best combination ever, except apparently it isn't. :( The pictures make the story ridiculous, unfortunately, instead of adding to it. ( )

This graphic novel is a great visualization of Kafka's work. The heavy-handed, dark artwork matches Gregor's existential crisis, getting progressively darker throughout the story. Some of the framing is excellent! I especially liked the one scene where the narration scuttled around the page as Gregor did so around his room. ( )

Classic story well rendered. Artwork suitably dark and expressionistic-ish though not completely to my taste. Requirement of the form that there is some slimming of the story but the artist Kuper does a solid job hitting the key emotional notes though the music never quite soars. ( )

Who has not at least heard of the plight of Gregor Samsa, though probably not knowing the name, who awakens one morning to slowly realize he's turned into a cockroach. There is a problem around which to construct a plot! This story was written by Franz Kafka and published in 1915. The characters and settings and conflicts all had to be mentally visualized by the reader. Kafka created the story with words. Just words.

But The Metamorphosis is extremely visual, so it is only natural it would be embellished with illustrations by some publisher. Storyteller and cartoonist R. Crumb published an illustrated biography of Kafka, and he included in it a version of The Metamorphosis in a comic format.

Illustrator Peter Kuper adapted the story as a graphic novel. Very effective, with shifting framing and viewpoints. Kuper has a heavily inked style and packs a lot of emotion—mostly angry emotion—into his drawings. I don't particularly like his style, but that didn't keep me from reading/viewing the entire book. It is, of course, consumed more quickly than Kafka's text, but it leaves less to the imagination. It's okay.