Disney's "Return to Oz" has had a couple of comic treatments: the official Disney paperback comic and the Sunday Strips (which have yet to be seen more of).
In mid 2009, I came up with the idea to do my own comic of it (because, after a time, I found I didn't really like the official comic): an "elaborate" 3-part fan comic that told almost the entire story, but also added in the Deleted Scenes as well as a few variations of scenes, from my own thoughts or illustrating those from Joan D Vinge's movie novel.
At the end of 2009, I had completed Part 1.
By June 2010, I had completed and uploaded the remaining two parts, entirely on Photobucket, for its 25th Anniversary:
http://s476.photobucket.com/user/SamAM_album/library/ReturntoOz25thcomic?sort=6&page=1
When I started having computer problems in October 2013, I decided to get back into the comics and revise it for the upcoming 30th Anniversary.
While the "Photobucket" version had all been in pencil and rough, this new "Revision" would be Inked, with spare use of colour.
But as before, I used the same pages I did the first time, recycling and reusing the sheets so that when you turned them over, it was almost like a real comic with words and images on both sides.
This involved a lot more detail and serious consideration to be better than before. There were some pages I had done I just could NOT LOOK AT!! It would also allow me to redo and fix up mistakes I had let in before.
It was much harder this time around, often frustrating and lonely because no one else could do this the way I could ... and as it usually happens, other people and things would occupy you from your work.
But finally, even though the date June 21st had long gone, I was finishing the comic, had added more pages ... and became the first thing I shared as my new profile on DeviantArt:
http://hand-sam-art.deviantart.com/gallery/55287957/Return-to-Oz-the-Fan-Comic?offset=0
It is amazing to see these two side by side. Were it not for such similarities, they could almost be considered done by different people.
There are differences between the two: quantity, detail, spare use of colour ... and there are similarities too: black-and-white telling, the pacing and telling.
I am glad to have this work done and (although I'm still editing the pages' descriptions on DeviantArt) can now move onto other projects that may need me to draw, Oz or otherwise . . .
. . . but I will always be happy to talk about my adaptation!
I can definitely respect the amount of passion and dedication that must go into tackling such an ambitious undertaking. I've long yearned to do longer, visual narratives with my art, but find the prospect so daunting, it's difficult to make much headway. I am currently not even halfway done with a brief, two page comic and am already prepared to surrender to exhaustion. To do a sixty nine page long comic is almost too mind-boggling for me to think about... though having an actual movie to guide your art must make the process at least somewhat easier, or so I imagine. Congrats on finally completing your project, Sam; it's an accomplishment of which you should be proud. It must be very satisfying to be able to look back on your adaptation and see what you've managed to achieve.
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