Richard Wagner’s The Ring of the Nibelung
Gods, monsters, magic gold, incestuous twins, and one hell of a Valkyrie with daddy issues. That’s The Ring of the Nibelung, Wagner’s operatic fever dream, now smuggled into the world of comics by Roy “I wrote Conan, bitches” Thomas and penciled with high drama by Gil freakin’ Kane. This ain’t your grandma’s opera—unless your grandma rides into battle on a flying horse with a flaming spear.
DC Comics’s graphic novel version, Richard Wagner’s The Ring of the Nibelung? It bangs. You got Das Rheingold, Die Walküre, Siegfried, and Götterdämmerung—four chapters of cosmic soap opera where gods fall, mortals rise, and everybody’s lusting after this cursed gold ring like it’s the last Royale with Cheese in Valhalla. At the center? Alberich the creepy dwarf forges the ring, Wotan the god-king makes terrible decisions, and Siegfried, our muscled golden boy, swings a big sword and breaks even bigger hearts. Oh, and Brünnhilde? A Valkyrie with more emotional weight than a fat lady singing opera.
Thomas doesn’t try to mimic Wagner’s epic German poetry—thank Odin. He cuts through the Wagnerian fog with lean, myth-soaked narration that’s all killer, no filler. This is adaptation done right: reverent but ruthless. He knows comics are about moments, not museum pieces.
Visually, this thing punches you in the face with operatic bombast. Gil Kane’s gods don’t pose—they explode onto the page. His Valkyries leap like they’re dodging bullets in a samurai flick.
Now let’s talk tone. This isn’t just a myth. It’s a ticking time bomb of fate, betrayal, lust, and cosmic comeuppance. You feel the tragedy, the grandeur, the desperation. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never heard a note of Wagner’s music—this thing sings in ink and paper.
Bottom line: DC’s Ring of the Nibelung isn’t just a comic—it’s a damn opera with fists. A lightning bolt of mythology filtered through the language of panels, splash pages, and gut-punch pacing. It’s heavy, it’s weird, it’s beautiful—and it absolutely earns its place in Valhalla.
Final verdict? Read it. Worship it. Just don’t put on the ring.
