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jackphoenix's review against another edition
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 against another edition
2.0
A solid history but hard to follow at times. Best for those with some knowledge of the field
leaton01's review against another edition
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.
philipf's review against another edition
4.0
Great exploration of the history of American comics (there is some info on European and Japanese comics, but it's primarily about the U.S.). Comics is a great medium for presenting information, so this is a good fit. It seems odd that it took so long for somebody to do a history of comics in comics form. I hope Van Lente & Dunlavey do more non-fiction comics to sit alongside this and their earlier "Action Philosophers Comics."
reginaexmachina's review against another edition
3.0
I found The Comic Book History of Comics somewhat difficult to rate. There's a LOT of panels on each page with a LOT of word panels and dialogue. On top of this the panels aren't always connected and rarely flow. It was really difficult to process and I found myself by around halfway through giving up on trying to read everything and just sort of glanced over each page and skimmed afterwards. I think the novelty of having a history of comics in comic form was interesting and the art was alright. The actual content was informative and I did learn a lot from reading it. I just think that perhaps it would have been easier to read and process the large amounts of information as an actual traditional book than as a comic.
captainjaq's review against another edition
4.0
Great start
While this is a great start, I thought it was a complete book, not just the first part of a series.
While this is a great start, I thought it was a complete book, not just the first part of a series.
neonnikki's review against another edition
4.0
This book is dense, but had me hooked the whole time. I feel like I understand the comic book world so much more. Obviously it can't cover everything, but seeing the way all creators, world events, trends, the economy and more all interwove to impact funny books is super interesting. Also, four for you, Jack Kirby. You go, Jack Kirby.
ederwin's review
3.0
This is more a "history of the comics industry" than a "history of comics". It talks more about publishing trends and publishing houses and fights over character ownership than it does about artistic style. And it is very much focused on the USA, with only a little content about Europe and Japan, and not very much about underground or independent comics. And that is OK, and interesting, but the title is a bit misleading.
In this telling, the creation of classic characters like Batman, Superman, Archie, etc., mostly seem to come about by a messy process of trial and error. Some talented people working in factory-like conditions just came up with a bunch of semi-random ideas and then kept going with whatever sold well. And then the credit and profits would go to the company, not the creators. Though, to be fair, the popularity of many of those characters is due not to the original version, but to many factors including things added by later creators working for the companies.
The story of the _art_ of comics, rather than the business, is also interesting, and there is more of that in works like [b:Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art|102920|Understanding Comics The Invisible Art|Scott McCloud|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1328408101s/102920.jpg|2415847] and [b:Reading Comics|586106|Reading Comics|Douglas Wolk|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1348295561s/586106.jpg|572948].
In this telling, the creation of classic characters like Batman, Superman, Archie, etc., mostly seem to come about by a messy process of trial and error. Some talented people working in factory-like conditions just came up with a bunch of semi-random ideas and then kept going with whatever sold well. And then the credit and profits would go to the company, not the creators. Though, to be fair, the popularity of many of those characters is due not to the original version, but to many factors including things added by later creators working for the companies.
The story of the _art_ of comics, rather than the business, is also interesting, and there is more of that in works like [b:Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art|102920|Understanding Comics The Invisible Art|Scott McCloud|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1328408101s/102920.jpg|2415847] and [b:Reading Comics|586106|Reading Comics|Douglas Wolk|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1348295561s/586106.jpg|572948].
therainbowshelf's review
funny
informative
slow-paced
3.0
This was more than so-so but wasn't a pick. The authors cast a very wide net and offer a lot of interesting information about the history of the comic industry. The narration and illustrations were entertaining throughout. Sometimes the scope seemed a little too wide, leading to surface-level coverage on several topics and creating something that was hard to follow at times.