The Unwritten: Tommy Taylor and the Ship That Sank Twice by Mike Carey & Peter Gross - Paul's Review

*I received this graphic novel as an eARC on NetGalley from Vertigo Comics in exchange for an honest review*

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Title: The Unwritten: Tommy Taylor and the Ship That Sank Twice
Author: Mike Carey & Peter Gross
Year Published: 2013

Synopsis: This exciting, original graphic novel explores the world of the Tommy Taylor novels in a visceral and direct way and is a great entry point for new readers.

Twenty-five years ago Tom’s father, Wilson Taylor, devised his subversive literary masterpiece. Now the blueprint of how a father gave his son vast power in order to accomplish a greater scheme is revealed. Partly told through Wilson’s own journal entries, juxtaposed with Tommy’s swashbuckling deep sea adventures with his trusty companions Peter and Sue, the story is at once a prequel and a parallel story to the ongoing series.


Review: I did not realize this was a prequel until after I started reading this. But, this did make me want to pick up the first volume of Unwritten. I'm sure there were many references I did not get, but here goes my review.

This story uses many tropes, cliches, and archetypes. But it uses them in a way that lets you know it knows its using them. There are also many references to popular works of fiction. These also seem to be done in a tongue and cheek way.

It feels like the story was supposed to come together fluidly like a Harry Potter book with clues interwoven throughout, but the solutions to later problems seemed very obvious and predictable.

There are two stories within this graphic novel. One of the author writing his book and one of the fictional story within the book. I found the author's story hard to read because it was written in cursive. I was reading this on a computer and the words blurred together. I'm sure the print copy won't have the same problem.

Overall, this was a fun story, but I don't think I could look at it the way a fan would enjoy it. If you are a fan of the Unwritten series, you will love this. It made me want to read the series. I'll give this graphic novel a 3/5, but remember I'm not familiar with the series.


--PAUL