When Toni Morrison sold the rights to her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel "Beloved" to Marvel Comics, no one was sure who would be at the helm to write the script for the original adaptation.

But according to the Comics Journal, it looks like the speculation is over and "Invisibles" creator Grant Morrison will be working with artist Frank Quitely on the new thirty-issue comic that will debut in May.



"I'm very fucking excited to be working with this little piece of history," said Morrison. "It's got everything: slaves, drugs, ghosts, UFOs."

The novel follows the trials and tribulations of a family of escaped slaves as they try to deal with the past before it destroys them and to cope with the lingering brutality of slavery on the human heart. The book does not contain UFO's.

In a controversial decision, the female character "Sethe" will be drawn as a bald white man by Quitely, which has provoked outrage and recrimination among some in the African-American community.

"It's upsetting," said the Reverend Al Sharpton.

Toni Morrison could not be reached for comment, but her agent said that they were pleased with how the property was being treated by Marvel and that Mrs. Morrison thoroughly enjoyed Mr. Morrison's run on the Justice League. Mrs. Morrison also hoped that her character Paul D would resemble Aquaman in integrity and strength of character, if not ability to breathe underwater.

Posted by miracle on Wed, 01 Apr 2009 16:27:56 -0400 -- permanent link