Abadazad
Encyclopedia
Abadazad is an American comic book
written by J.M.DeMatteis and drawn by Mike Ploog
, with color by Nick Bell. Published in 2004 by Crossgen Comics to rave reviews , the series halted when Crossgen went out of business. Abadazad was co-owned by DeMatteis, Ploog, and CrossGen but in the stories the historical author is Franklin O. Davies.
Disney acquired Abadazad along with the rest of CrossGen's intellectual property
and, in June, 2006, the story was reborn in a unique hybrid format: a children's book series that combines diary entries, full-page illustrations, and sequential art. At least eight Abadazad volumes were originally planned, though only three volumes were published and all further volumes cancelled.
novel
s written a century
ago by one Franklin O. Davies. When Kate suddenly finds herself journeying through the real Abadazad in search of her beloved younger brother, Matt—who vanished five years earlier—she discovers that the truth
of Abadazad is far stranger, and more amazing, than fiction
. She is guided to enter Abadazad by Little Martha, the protagonist
of the novels which she had read, and is given cause to confront the villain
known as Lanky Man, to whom is ascribed the disappearance of Matt.
Book 3, originally scheduled for US publication, appeared only in Great Britain, while Book 4 did not appear at all. The sypnosis for Book 4 from Amazon.UK reads as follows: "A groundbreaking mix of fiction and full-colour comic strip that follows a headstrong girl's journey into the bizarre fictional world of Abadazad to rescue her brother. In 'Historcery', Kate has finally gathered the group of friends she hopes will help her to rescue her brother Matt from the evil Lanky Man: the walking candle Master Wix, Professor Headstrong, the puppet Mary Annette and Mr Glum."
Although he and artist Mike Ploog originally signed up for eight volumes (with hopes for twelve, depending on sales), J.M. DeMatteis has posted on his blog Creation Point that the Abadazad book series ended after three books with the third book not to be released in the United States. DeMatteis credits the Abadazad experience as inspiring his 2010 prose children's fantasy novel Imaginalis.
series of Wizard of Oz books
; as a result, Oz fans may find Davies' backstory very familiar.
Davies
wrote "nineteen or twenty" Abadazad books, from 1898 to 1924, starting with Little Martha in Abadazad. Other titles mentioned include Queen Ija of Abadazad, The Eight Oceans of Abadazad, Professor Headstrong of Abadazad, The Enchanted Gardens of Abadazad, The Balloonicorn of Abadazad, The Edges of Abadazad, The Battle for Abadazad and The Wretchedly Awful City of Abadazad. Most of these feature Martha Cooper, a small, determined girl who possesses the means, in the form of a blue sphere
, of travelling to Abadazad at will. The historical book series reveals that Martha herself had related the stories to Davies, who had written them into books, altering the appearance and characters as he thought best suited the audience. The difference between his version of Abadazad and the version Kate encounters in person is a recurring theme throughout the story. In the original Crossgen comic book, the fictitious author's name had been Franklin O. Barrie.
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
written by J.M.DeMatteis and drawn by Mike Ploog
Mike Ploog
Michael G. Ploog is an American storyboard and comic book artist, and a visual designer for movies....
, with color by Nick Bell. Published in 2004 by Crossgen Comics to rave reviews , the series halted when Crossgen went out of business. Abadazad was co-owned by DeMatteis, Ploog, and CrossGen but in the stories the historical author is Franklin O. Davies.
Disney acquired Abadazad along with the rest of CrossGen's intellectual property
Intellectual property
Intellectual property is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which a set of exclusive rights are recognized—and the corresponding fields of law...
and, in June, 2006, the story was reborn in a unique hybrid format: a children's book series that combines diary entries, full-page illustrations, and sequential art. At least eight Abadazad volumes were originally planned, though only three volumes were published and all further volumes cancelled.
Story
Abadazad is a magical land that Kate Jameson—a surly, cynical fourteen-year-old child—has only known through a series of famous fantasyFantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
s written a century
Century
A century is one hundred consecutive years. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages .-Start and end in the Gregorian Calendar:...
ago by one Franklin O. Davies. When Kate suddenly finds herself journeying through the real Abadazad in search of her beloved younger brother, Matt—who vanished five years earlier—she discovers that the truth
Truth
Truth has a variety of meanings, such as the state of being in accord with fact or reality. It can also mean having fidelity to an original or to a standard or ideal. In a common usage, it also means constancy or sincerity in action or character...
of Abadazad is far stranger, and more amazing, than fiction
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
. She is guided to enter Abadazad by Little Martha, the protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
of the novels which she had read, and is given cause to confront the villain
Villain
A villain is an "evil" character in a story, whether a historical narrative or, especially, a work of fiction. The villain usually is the antagonist, the character who tends to have a negative effect on other characters...
known as Lanky Man, to whom is ascribed the disappearance of Matt.
Book Series
- Abadazad: The Road to Inconceivable (June, 2006)
- Abadazad: The Dream Thief (June, 2006)
- Abadazad: The Puppet, the Professor, and the Prophet (July 2007, UK only)
- Abadazad: Historcery'’ (cancelled)
Book 3, originally scheduled for US publication, appeared only in Great Britain, while Book 4 did not appear at all. The sypnosis for Book 4 from Amazon.UK reads as follows: "A groundbreaking mix of fiction and full-colour comic strip that follows a headstrong girl's journey into the bizarre fictional world of Abadazad to rescue her brother. In 'Historcery', Kate has finally gathered the group of friends she hopes will help her to rescue her brother Matt from the evil Lanky Man: the walking candle Master Wix, Professor Headstrong, the puppet Mary Annette and Mr Glum."
Although he and artist Mike Ploog originally signed up for eight volumes (with hopes for twelve, depending on sales), J.M. DeMatteis has posted on his blog Creation Point that the Abadazad book series ended after three books with the third book not to be released in the United States. DeMatteis credits the Abadazad experience as inspiring his 2010 prose children's fantasy novel Imaginalis.
Franklin O. Davies
In the Abadazad series, Kate makes references to the "original" book series, written by Franklin O. Davies and illustrated by Arthur N. Pierson. This fictional series is heavily based on L. Frank Baum'sL. Frank Baum
Lyman Frank Baum was an American author of children's books, best known for writing The Wonderful Wizard of Oz...
series of Wizard of Oz books
The Oz books
The Oz books form a book series that begins with The Wonderful Wizard of Oz , and that relates the fictional history of the Land of Oz. Oz was created by author L. Frank Baum, who went on to write fourteen full-length Oz books, all of which are in the public domain in the United States...
; as a result, Oz fans may find Davies' backstory very familiar.
Davies
Llewelyn Davies boys
The Davies boys were the sons of Arthur and Sylvia Llewelyn Davies . They served as the inspiration for the characters of Peter Pan and the other boys of J. M...
wrote "nineteen or twenty" Abadazad books, from 1898 to 1924, starting with Little Martha in Abadazad. Other titles mentioned include Queen Ija of Abadazad, The Eight Oceans of Abadazad, Professor Headstrong of Abadazad, The Enchanted Gardens of Abadazad, The Balloonicorn of Abadazad, The Edges of Abadazad, The Battle for Abadazad and The Wretchedly Awful City of Abadazad. Most of these feature Martha Cooper, a small, determined girl who possesses the means, in the form of a blue sphere
Sphere
A sphere is a perfectly round geometrical object in three-dimensional space, such as the shape of a round ball. Like a circle in two dimensions, a perfect sphere is completely symmetrical around its center, with all points on the surface lying the same distance r from the center point...
, of travelling to Abadazad at will. The historical book series reveals that Martha herself had related the stories to Davies, who had written them into books, altering the appearance and characters as he thought best suited the audience. The difference between his version of Abadazad and the version Kate encounters in person is a recurring theme throughout the story. In the original Crossgen comic book, the fictitious author's name had been Franklin O. Barrie.
J. M. Barrie
Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, OM was a Scottish author and dramatist, best remembered today as the creator of Peter Pan. The child of a family of small-town weavers, he was educated in Scotland. He moved to London, where he developed a career as a novelist and playwright...