rltinha's review
4.0
O conceito é um sucesso.
A execução peca pela apoucada habilidade da arte e do argumento. Tem detalhes hilariantes, mas, a espaços, notam-se aquelas faltas de habilidade e desgusta-se o amargo de boca que é saber da existência de um potencial para a perfeição, estacionado muito aquém disso por contingências técnicas.
Ainda assim, aconselha-se vivamente a leitura deste regabofe comic gráfico-novelizado.^^
A execução peca pela apoucada habilidade da arte e do argumento. Tem detalhes hilariantes, mas, a espaços, notam-se aquelas faltas de habilidade e desgusta-se o amargo de boca que é saber da existência de um potencial para a perfeição, estacionado muito aquém disso por contingências técnicas.
Ainda assim, aconselha-se vivamente a leitura deste regabofe comic gráfico-novelizado.^^
librarycobwebs's review
informative
slow-paced
2.0
Informative but perpetuates a very particular white male history of comics
ashleylm's review
3.0
A slight disappointment, but relative to my initial high hopes this lands squarely in the middle.
You know how some of us recoil a bit at the sound of "history," remembering names, dates, treaties, wars—all the boring stuff from school? (Unless you love history, of course). Somehow I thought I'd be free of that in a history of comics, and yet, not so. This was very much a names, dates, treaties (i.e. contracts), wars (i.e. contract disputes) kind of history.
There was so, so much about this company and that writer and this artist and that law and this distribution method and that lawsuit and on and on and on, but nothing about, say, Peanuts. I don't know how you do a history of comics without talking about Peanuts, I really don't.
And the "comic book" style history didn't really lean into its comic-book-ness. Instead of appreciating the panels as text and image combined, almost every panel was narration and illustration; sometimes the illustrations had a word balloon or two, but for the most part the illustrations were unnecessary for the telling of the story. So it really felt like your usual history.
(Because of the format, I was especially thinking we'd see a lot about technical innovations, stylistic choices, things that could best be expressed visually—but all the topics covered could have been handled just as easily in a normal narrative without visual assistance).
So I was disappointed, because the title and format led me to expect something quite a bit different. We coincided on "it's about comics," but that's as far as my expectations met their delivery. I'm an Art Historian by training, all the way up to a Masters degree, and I can assure you the interesting part of Impressionism or Cubism or the Rococo, to me, is What It Looks Like (and how that differs from what art looked liked previously), not the age, background, and trials and tribulations of the artists.
Retitle this A Comic Book History of the Comic Book Business and it would be far more accurate.
Note: I have written a novel (not yet published), so now I will suffer pangs of guilt every time I offer less than five stars. In my subjective opinion, the stars suggest:
(5* = one of my all-time favourites, 4* = really enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = actually disappointing, and 1* = hated it. As a statistician I know most books are 3s, but I am biased in my selection and end up mostly with 4s, thank goodness.)
You know how some of us recoil a bit at the sound of "history," remembering names, dates, treaties, wars—all the boring stuff from school? (Unless you love history, of course). Somehow I thought I'd be free of that in a history of comics, and yet, not so. This was very much a names, dates, treaties (i.e. contracts), wars (i.e. contract disputes) kind of history.
There was so, so much about this company and that writer and this artist and that law and this distribution method and that lawsuit and on and on and on, but nothing about, say, Peanuts. I don't know how you do a history of comics without talking about Peanuts, I really don't.
And the "comic book" style history didn't really lean into its comic-book-ness. Instead of appreciating the panels as text and image combined, almost every panel was narration and illustration; sometimes the illustrations had a word balloon or two, but for the most part the illustrations were unnecessary for the telling of the story. So it really felt like your usual history.
(Because of the format, I was especially thinking we'd see a lot about technical innovations, stylistic choices, things that could best be expressed visually—but all the topics covered could have been handled just as easily in a normal narrative without visual assistance).
So I was disappointed, because the title and format led me to expect something quite a bit different. We coincided on "it's about comics," but that's as far as my expectations met their delivery. I'm an Art Historian by training, all the way up to a Masters degree, and I can assure you the interesting part of Impressionism or Cubism or the Rococo, to me, is What It Looks Like (and how that differs from what art looked liked previously), not the age, background, and trials and tribulations of the artists.
Retitle this A Comic Book History of the Comic Book Business and it would be far more accurate.
Note: I have written a novel (not yet published), so now I will suffer pangs of guilt every time I offer less than five stars. In my subjective opinion, the stars suggest:
(5* = one of my all-time favourites, 4* = really enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = actually disappointing, and 1* = hated it. As a statistician I know most books are 3s, but I am biased in my selection and end up mostly with 4s, thank goodness.)
honniker's review against another edition
funny
informative
medium-paced
2.75
An informative look at the history of the comics industry,. My main issues were that I'd does skip around time wise a lot. Additionally, it was a little difficult to keep track of who was who, especially at the beginning.
I did especially like the sections on Manga and how direct sales got started. I would like to see an update on the state of comics today as this ends in the 2010s.
I did especially like the sections on Manga and how direct sales got started. I would like to see an update on the state of comics today as this ends in the 2010s.
jasonfurman's review
5.0
I absolutely loved The Comic Book History of Comics. As the title says, it is in graphic novel (or comic book) format which works really well because the imagery shifts to gently mirror whatever subject the authors are talking on. The chapters are in thematic order that are roughly chronological but with lots of moving back and forth at is it covers the birth of the funnies, how they turned into comic strips, the first comic books, the golden age of superheroes, romance, horror, the legal battles over IP in the comic book industry, underground comics, graphic novels, French comics, and Japanese manga--among other topics.
All of this is grounded in a broader cultural history. For example, LA based Disney and a more gritty, Jewish/urban group based in New York are competing. The former ends up winning out by developing feature length animated film, driving the later out of business--and creating a supply of Jewish artists in New York for the emerging comic book industry. Much later, Stan Lee becomes like an "auteur" at a time when auter's are rising in cinema. Pop culture like Lichtenstein and Warhol ends up legitimating comic books. The Nazis didn't allow American comic books in occupied France and Belgium, leading them to miss out on superheroes and develop their own independent comic cultures. The comics code in the 1950s in the United States limited what could and could not be shown in comics, leading to stagnation in traditional forms but eventually to the underground comics and the liberation of regular comics.
I don't particularly like superhero comics but love graphic novels. Regardless of ones interest in these forms, this was an exciting literary and cultural history.
All of this is grounded in a broader cultural history. For example, LA based Disney and a more gritty, Jewish/urban group based in New York are competing. The former ends up winning out by developing feature length animated film, driving the later out of business--and creating a supply of Jewish artists in New York for the emerging comic book industry. Much later, Stan Lee becomes like an "auteur" at a time when auter's are rising in cinema. Pop culture like Lichtenstein and Warhol ends up legitimating comic books. The Nazis didn't allow American comic books in occupied France and Belgium, leading them to miss out on superheroes and develop their own independent comic cultures. The comics code in the 1950s in the United States limited what could and could not be shown in comics, leading to stagnation in traditional forms but eventually to the underground comics and the liberation of regular comics.
I don't particularly like superhero comics but love graphic novels. Regardless of ones interest in these forms, this was an exciting literary and cultural history.
valjeanval's review
3.0
This book is packed with a lot of information on the history of comic books both in the US and abroad. While at times the writing is a little caustic and opinion-laced, it's still a good primer for people looking to learn how the industry grew and the challenges the medium has faced over the last century.
howattp's review
This book took me longer to read than I ever planned. It's excellent but I never had the opportunity to actually sit down and read it. Fortunately ask my flights lately have afforded me such a time. I loved it!
jackphoenix's review
5.0
Deftly researched and just as entertaining, the history of comics comes to vivid life with a level of care and appreciation that only a comic insider could bring.
libraryrobin's review
2.0
A solid history but hard to follow at times. Best for those with some knowledge of the field
leaton01's review
5.0
Ok, this is the book seems the logical next step from Scott McCloud's Understanding Comics. A meaty volume on the history of comics in comics form. Lente and Dunlavey put together a great history that doesn't necessarily cover everything but covers a heck of a lot of stuff since the dawn of comics. They focus mainly on the US comic history but bringing Europe and Japan at relevant times to talk about how they influence the form. They also do a bit of discussion around personalities within comic history. Overall, well done and if I had one criticism it is that they never really touch upon the idea of comics scholarship and it's role in the last thirty years within and around comics.