The Encounter (Animorphs Graphix #3) (Animorphs Graphic Novels) Paperback – October 4, 2022

Animorphs The Encounter is the third graphic novel adaption by Chris Grine of the Animorphs series. Previously Tobias had ended up trapped in his red-tailed hawk morph. Ever since then he has been flying and living in Jake's attic. His struggles with his identity of being either a human or hawk comes to a head. At the same time he found a Yeerk ship going towards the mountains and eventually the Animorphs form a plan to strike a blow to the Yeerk invasion of Earth.I remember growing up and loving this series as it treated me like an adult. K.A.Applegate (author of the original series) trusted me to be able to tackle dark subjects and come out stronger. This book in particular has some dark themes to it. It is my belief that Tobias purposefully trapped himself in red-tailed hawk morph so that he could escape his abusive living situation. But now that plan is backfiring as he's having to deal with the hawk's instincts.While I'm not one of those that believe Tobias is a transsexual, I do think his character arc throughout the series is a good metaphor for the trans/non-binary community. He has to deal with the fact that his mind and body aren't the same thing. His mind is human but his body isn't. Rachel at one point even says it doesn't matter what his body is.There were changes made from the original book that were absolutely necessary. The original book is told in the First Person Point of View (POV) which wouldn't work for this graphic novel. One way Chris Grine adapts the internal struggle Tobias has with himself is having the hawk be like another person. He also tends to have different shading to also indicate this struggle.Animorphs is a series where the main antagonists crawl up a person's ear to get to their brains. This is not physically possible. So since you have to suspend disbelief, the authors can get away with some of the more unrealistic elements. Such as in the original book I didn't mind that the term alpha wolf was used even though alpha wolves are a myth and the creator of the term doesn't like it. But in this graphic novel adaptation Cassie dismisses the term. Which wouldn't be bad but it makes Marco appear really stupid and the scene is awkward for a few panels.I would highly recommend The Encounter by Chris Grine to Animorphs fans. I would also highly recommend The Encounter by Chris Grine to science fiction fans.

Loved this adaptation of one of my favorite books from the series I grew up with. Chris Grine's art somehow manages to capture the fun and innocent youth of the characters without sanitizing the heavier situations and themes of the stories--a concern, I think, whenever anyone adapts "kids" books with depth and complexity.The graphic novel beautifully captures this dichotomy--in particular, during one of the most heartbreaking moments in the entire series found in this book, Grine's manipulation of the panels, colors, and other elements unique to the medium intensify the drama, letting the visuals of the scene speak for themselves rather than simply including the narration found in the book (a crutch that a lot of book adaptations seem to rely on).Tobias is one of the fictional characters who's meant the most to me over the years, for a variety of reasons. It brought such joy and comfort to my heart to see his story adapted so authentically. These stories, meaningful to such a wide range of people, are clearly in good hands with Grine.

This is the third in a series of graphic adaptations of classic animorphs novels, targeted at children.As far as adaptations go it is very faithful leaving a lot of dialogue and plot intact. This story in particular is very internal. How do you show emotions in the face of a hawk? Grines does a good job moving the story to a visual medium and showing something of Tobias' internal struggle.For a goofball story about kids turning into animals it has some dark themes. A possible suicide attempt, giving in to violent instincts, being trapped in the wrong body, eating mice...Tobias's friends don't know how to help him and he doesn't know how to accept their help or love. He's trapped as much by his own demons and lack of connection to humanity than his circumstances.The first five books in the series deal with each protagonist's reason for fighting. Tobias feels useless to the team and disconnected from humanity. He has to accept his dual nature, learn that he could contribute to the team, and refund his connection to humanity in Rachel.What can I saw, it was the story that convinced me to love reading as a kid and it still slaps

very few stories will let kids get harm but seeing this wow is the best thing i have ever read

I've bought all three of these and they're doing a great job at transferring over the stories to a new medium.My only gripe with these is that they're coming out one per year. I appreciate the work and dedication. I just wish we could get 2 a year. I really want to see the entire series in this form, but at this rate I'll be retired before I do.

My daughter loves this series and there are enough in the series to keep her entertained for a while.

As a fan when the series first came out I love these. It's amazing to see them out for another generation to enjoy and to see them in graphic form. My only complaint and it's enough that I only gave it 4 star is the art. The characters all tend to look a like in the face. They all have the same ruddy cheeks and slightly bulbous nose. Think Santa Claus noses and cheeks. And this is the main characters. Jake and Rachael are basically the same face with different hair.Would still 100% recommend getting though.

This is a great gift idea for those comic book lovers!