5 comments about 300: The Art Of The Film.

1. A great companion to a great movie and a great graphic novel.
   Not often do you get to see behind the blue (or green) curtain to see how a movie is made.
   This book gives you that insight!



2. It seems that some people are having a hard time realizing that the title of this book includes "The Art of the Film" and are searching for filming procedures, or sociopolitical explanations on behalf of the film when, in fact, this IS an art book. And for what it is, it does a great job revealing the artistic vision behind the film 300. From makeup effects to storyboarding to the comic conversion of the film, "300: The Art of the Film" makes a stylistic presentation that is worthy of the aesthetic care of the movie itself. Anyone who is interested in the artistic background in the movie 300 will appreciate the clean layout and complete presentation of this book.



3. This book has quite a few photos showing the making of 300 but the biggest draw (to me) was the similarities to the 300 Graphic Novel. Size, shape and cover picture are the same. The book shows a lot of photos of how the digital images were added to bleak green screen sets, how things like the wolf were made, etc. Its a good book for 300 fans it's a must have for those who have the Hardcover graphic novel (to display them side by side).



4. Translating a graphic novel into the world of cinema can be a tricky business.
   
   And the first step is concept art -- creating basic images of the characters, costumes, and important, visually-striking scenes. "300: The Art Of The Film" is crammed with such images, detailing virtually every part of the movie... but it's very skimpy on explanations and information.
   
   It starts off with a couple of prefaces -- one by an expert on military history, and the other explaining the purpose of revealing the concept art. Then concept art itself: it basically outlines the story, beginning with the "inspection" of newborn Spartan boys and ending with another battle brewing between the Spartans and Persians.
   
   These include pages and pages of rough sketches and detailed drawings for the cinematogrpahers, some representing only a few seconds (a fist hitting a slave's face). Then there are plenty of costume sketches, depictions of unreal-looking monsters, tents, and the gorgeous sets for things like Xerxes' opulant golden litter. Actually, it's more of a portable house.
   
   But it has more than just concept art -- there are clay models, special effects shots, elaborate makeup and costume for things like the hunchbacked traitor, Xerxes' chain-porn costume, and things like knives stuck in a eye, and even green-screen shots before the CGI gloss was put on. And there are shots showing how they managed certain effects, like the people who controlled the animatronic "wolf."
   
   And with every sketch and behind-the-scene shot, they show the finished result as it appears in the movie. A lot of them have the original art by Frank Miller as well, to show us how close the movie actually is to its source material. Visually speaking, it's a feast of behind-the-scenes information.
   
   Buuuuut....
   
   "300: The Art Of The Film" suffers from a lack of background information -- they show us loads of information, but don't tell WHY they were done, or even the intricacies of HOW. Come on, they must have had some trial-and-error in this film. While we can see the art for ourselves, we're rarely told much about why they chose this costume, or that monster, and how they created some of the weirder visuals.
   
   So while the book is visually rich, it feels incomplete, like they left a lot of the text out to keep the guide from getting too long. Sometimes pages and pages will go by with only a few sparely-written paragraphs describing the intricacies of the movie. "300" is a visual movie, but come on, there's more to it than that.
   
   "300: The Art Of The Film" has loads of art, but not much explanation in how it got from art to movie. It stumbles badly as a behind-the-scenes guide, but it's still an intriguing visual read.



5. Great. I've complained 3 times cause I haven't received my order and now you ask me to review it? How the hell do you want me to review something I've never seen. Send me the bloody books and I'll review them.

No comments about Random Lot of comic books.

5 comments about Mego 8" Super-Heroes: World's Greatest Toys!.

1. Very nice history of the Mego Company. Mego was one of the premier toy manufacturers in the Seventies. If you had any of these toys as a child this book will bring back memories. The book is also very detailed in which figures were released when and with what accesories which should satisfy any collectors. Be advised this book covers ONLY Greatest Super Heroes, just as the title suggest. For some reason I had expected the Star Trek and Planet of the Apes line would be included. My fault. Never the less, this book more than made up for it. Great for the avid collector or the person who wants to relive his or her childhood.



2. No complaints here! Excatly as a MEGO book should be done with lots of color pics!



3. I had all of the items shown in the book as a kid so paging through it was a big trip down memory lane. It reminded me of a lot of fun times.



4. Simply put this is a fantastic book. It is a walk down memory lane for Mego fans who had the pleasure to grow up with these wonderful action figures in the 1970s. The photographs are splendid and bring to life Mego's WGSH line. The author's attention to detail cannot be matched by any other book out there that purports to touch upon this fine line of Mego action figures. If you are debating between Mego books to buy, please don't pass this book up. It is a decision you will regret a year or so from now when you are trying to track down this book from online auction sites, etc. For anyone looking for a wonderful trip into the past, jump on and enjoy the ride!!!



5. This book does not cover everything Mego, but its a wonderful collection of photos and important information. I recommend the book for any Mego collector.

5 comments about Ultimate Guide to G.I. Joe 1982-1994.

1. GI Joe toys of the 80's were some of the most fun and exciting ever seen, and this book chronicles them with brilliant excellence! A must have for any fan of the toys!



2. What this guide is essentially comprised of is clinical pictures, bland details and a very dry presentation. This book is entirely geared towards the Joe collector who isn't necessarily interested in the fun or cool aspect of the toy line. For the casual Joe fan or those looking for some glorious nostalgia, the book fails miserably.
   
   The promise of the immense amount of full-color pictures are what sold me on this book. What it actually delivers are unenthusiastic shots with no fun factor at all. Each figure is shown with legs and arms straight out laid on their backs on a flat white background. Each piece of personal equipment is shown beside the figure, not on it. It is all quite cold and boring to flip through.
   The vehicles and bases fare even worse in their representation. They are mostly photographed from a full-on top-down view. A small handful are shown from the side. You only get one photo per vehicle, so if the angle doesn't inspire you (and it never really does), you are out of luck.
   While there is absolutely no action to the pictures, they are very sharp in quality.
   I would have liked to have seen pictures of the cards the figures came on and the boxes the vehicles came in, since the artwork was always amazing. Since this is an aspect to some collectors, I would have assumed it to be included. You can see the actual carded figure or vehicle/playset box about 5 times throughout the whole book. What a travesty!
   
   The information presented with the photos spits out name, classification and then proceeds to take some direct quotes from the file cards. The whole file card is never printed and would have been a great inclusion. Instead you are forced to read what the author decides is important enough to document. In most listings you are given other proposed codenames for the figure, which are obscure tidbits of info I found worthless. Specific figure variants, when actually mentioned, are discussed only briefly with no accompanying pictures. Suggested prices are given but compared to actual prices at hobby shops and eBay, they are practically useless.
   Unless you are a collector looking up banal manufacturing details, there isn't much enjoyment to be gleaned from reading what is printed.
   
   Nearly a full third of the guide covers the 90s era Joes, which many agree are easy to dismiss as part of the Joe universe. Again, only the most avid collector would care for this much info. The guide even goes so far as to cover the Street Fighter series of figures put out by Hasbro in 93. That has so little to do with actual Joes it's not funny.
   
   I had an enormous GI Joe colelction up until my teens and I still love the Joes to this day. I am not a rabid collector. I am a nostalgic fan. For me, this book was a waste of money. No cool photos of the Joe figures with their gear on and no fun displays of the vehicles and such. I read the comics and watched the shows. For me, there was nothing worth reading into here. No interesting information or exhilerating facts.
   Before you go out and get a copy of this guide, ask yourself if you are a general fan or a collector. If you answer fan, pass on this book. It is strictly for the OCD collector.



3. For those of us that collect this is an excellent reference guide. It details weapons, vehicles and just about anything you can think of. The only thing I was expecting was to have pictures of the figures/vehicles..carded. And thats one thing that would have made this book perfect, that aside its a great book and I am glad I picked it up. The pictures included are crisp, clear and the information on them is detailed. Enjoy...



4. My husband and I enjoyed this guide and found it very useful for our collection. Great pictures with accessories. Just seemed very complete for the collector. Well done in my opinion and would recommend.



5. As an avid childhood collector of GI Joe 3 3/4 figures and vehicles, I can certainly say that this guide seems extremely accurate. Although most of my collection sadly did not survive my childhood, this book certainly brings back some memories. It also helps to appraise some the pieces that did survive. I'm only depressed now that I didn't take better care of my original collection as it would have been worth a lot. As a GI Joe geek, it was interesting to see Larry Hama's (the original author of the Joe's Filecards) comments and thoughts on the characters. As a kid, I can certainly say I never gave the ideas behind the characters much thought. I also didn't understand half the things written on the filecards as they had more military jargon than a Tom Clancy novel. It does contain numerous references to the GI Joe cartoons and comics to help illustrate complete character biographies - which is interesting only if you were (or are) well-versed in the comics, the cartoons, and the toys. Overall, this is a great resource for serious collectors and devoted GI Joe disciples, but it's probably a bit too technical for casual fans.

5 comments about The Art and Flair of Mary Blair.

1. Beautiful and unique look into the life and developed portfolio of a retro animator. This book is nostalgic, child-like awe packaged. Wonderfully whimsical images.



2. When I visited Disneyland last year with my daughter I expected to fall in love all over again with various attractions at the park: Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Caribbean, the Carousel. I honestly didn't expect to fall in love all over again with "It's a Small World" but I did.
   I had already heard the name, Mary Blair, but I didn't know anything about her so I decided to research her online and I found this book.
   What an incredible artist she was! John Cane tells her story and her contributions to everything Disney. She was an incredible artist! Her works now sell for many hundreds of dollars. It's too bad that she didn't live long enough to see herself become famous. Like most artists, she became famous after her death. At any rate, here is the story of the woman who created so much of the Disney magic. It's very well illistrated and an enjoyable read.



3. The work of Mary Blair is well-known to animation and Disney aficianados, but there is a dearth of material available about her. Her influence on animation and Disney design was enormous. John Canemaker, as one has come to expect of his work, has written a terrific book on Blair. Well-illustrated, carefully noted.
   Although this book is very good, Mary Blair deserves a full-length biography.



4. For anyone interested in the cartoon drawings of the familiar Disney era, (think Cinderella and Peter Pan)Mary Blair's art will delight. Her style was decidedly "folksy" in the early days and it's simplicity told the story with clarity. Disney commisioned Blair to create the characters in the exhibit "IT'S A SMALL WORLD" at Disneyland. With Mary Blair, Disney found a foil to show his unique view to the world...a truly American look.
   This book, THE ART AND FLAIR OF MARY BLAIR, is very well produced book by Disney editions, that shows the prolific Blair's drawings and art work, not only from the Disney era, but beyond.



5. Great product! As always, Amazon delivers a quality product at a great price in record time! Very pleased with item.

2 comments about 2008 Comic Book Checklist & Price Guide (Comic Book Checklist and Price Guide).

1. I've been very vocal in my support for the Comic Buyer's Guide Comic Book Checklist & Price Guide. To me it is the comic book price guide of choice over the Overstreet guide for a number of reasons. First, the CBG guide is not weighted down by literally hundreds of pages of advertisements like the Overstreet guide is. I mean, what is the point of endless pages of ads for comic dealers and shops anyway? Who buys mail order with eBay around?
   
   Secondly, the CBG guide is not filled with dozens of pages of market reports from dealers around the country. Yes, at one time I found these market reports to be very valuable. But again, this we in the pre-eBay/Internet days. If I want to know what a certain book has been selling for, I can just search completed auctions on ebay or other auction sites. It's no longer useful to me to read what a dealer in Podunk, Idaho sold a Hulk #181 for.
   
   Lastly, while concentrating its efforts only comics from the Silver Age to the present, the CBG guide is able to provide much more information about individual issues. True, the Overstreet Guide does go back to the Golden Age but at a cost of condensing it's information so tightly and with such a small font, it's almost unreadable. I much prefer the CBG guides where each issue of a title is listed individually, rather than as a range of issues. This allows the guide to provide more information such as notable events as origins, first appearances, and the issue's artist, as well as noting the month and year of each issue.
   
   The CBG price guide provides only the near mint price for each issue but comes with a detailed, full color grading guide that explains how to calculate the prices for books that are less than near mint. Like the Overstreet, literally hundreds of cover pictures are included in the book's 808 pages. This is my price guide of choice. It is all meat without any of the Overstreet fat.
   
   REVIEWED BY TIM JANSON



2. this book is fairly complete to about june 2007. has listings for alternate covers and fairly accurate pricings for older books. the grading guide that is inside has great color descriptive images to define different grades , with great written explanations.

5 comments about The Marvel Vault: A Museum-in-a-Book with Rare Collectibles from the World of Marvel.

1. I bought this as a Christmas gift for my boyfriend who LOVES comic books. He LOVED IT!!!!!!!!! YAY



2. Quality ring binder book, some pages upside down.
   A book of many parts as they acknowledge a bit like Frankenstein monster and you need to be into Marvel.



3. THE MARVEL VAULT is by no means an essential part of your comics history library. The text gives merely a brief overview of the history of Marvel (as others have noted, Les Daniels' MARVEL: FIVE FABULOUS DECADES from 1991 is far better). The art chosen is often unremarkable, and the design leaves much to be desired. But most curiously, the "Vault" aspect of the book is a huge missed opportunity. Most of the pieces recreated and housed in plastic sleeves (and they are scant) could just as easily have been reproduced as art on a page, and the quality of reproduction is horrendous (by contrast, THE HANNA-BARBERA TREASURY contains inserts that truly feel like the originals). If you're one of the legions of Marvel Zombies, then surely you'll find enough to make the book worthwhile, but more discerning fans of comics, writing and design will most certainly be disappointed.



4. This was purchased as a gift for my husband who is an avid comic book collector. He was thrilled with the book and is enjoying it very much. Even though my order was close to Christmas, I received it in time to make it a Christmas gift.



5. Thit book has a lot of long lost memories for older comic readers but it seems to focus too much on marvel "cash cows" spiderman and wolverine same story different cover.

5 comments about The Complete Peanuts 1950-1954 Boxed Set.

1. Who doesn't like "Peanuts"? Well Charles Schultz hated the name "Peanuts" but that's another story altogether. Collected here are the entire daily strips and Sunday strips for the first four years of the comic. Most of them have been complied over the decades but more than most are seeing the light of day for the first time since they originally ran. Here we saw the genesis of Charlie Brown and Snoopy and the introduction of Lucy Van Pelt and Schroeder as infants. Things were very embryonic at this stage and Schultz was still finding his footing with his characters behaviors and future neuroses but still manages to make you laugh.
   
   If you a fan and your looking to start a collection here is your chance. Enjoy.



2. I am so glad I purchased these books. I love Peanuts and it is wonderful to have a collection in chronological order. I have really enjoyed seeing the early stages of Peanuts as they were evolving into the familiar characters. As my finances are slim, I cannot get all the books at once, but I will be getting the subsequent years as soon as I can afford them. The packaging of the books is also very attractive and of good quality. They will last for many years and many readings.



3. When I first heard that "The Complete Peanuts" was going to be published, I could not wait for the first one. The wait was very rewarding; not only could I read the comics and see the characters as they grew in the strip, but I could also see the flow of the strip with the Sunday comics in the proper order. Schulz would often continue a story line in the Sunday comics, which many strip writers do not. As a child I had over 150 of the small paperbacks, watched all the specials, and loved the lessons in the story lines. As an adult, I watch "A Charlie Brown Christmas" with my family every year and still read the comics to start my day off right. If you have a love for Peanuts and want to rediscover the characters, buy a few sets or the whole series and connect with them again.



4. I received this set as a gift for someone else & ended up keeping it myself because I didn't want to part with it! Really nice little set of books, it's so much easier to have everything neatly compiled like this. I'm looking forward to getting the rest of the set.



5. My wife has always been a fan of Peanuts, and I found these to be perfect. She's so happy each time she opens a new one.

5 comments about The DC Comics Encyclopedia.

1. I got this book as a gift to an avid comic book fan. He says that although there may be a character or two missing, the book was well done and pretty much accurate. For newbie collectors, this is really informative.



2. This is a great product for any DC fan. The only issue that may be had is a desire for more. Many less well known and darker characters are left out, also seemingly no character within Vertigo are present. Still a great buy.



3. Book delivered the powerful punch I was expecting. Bought for my son and he loves it. It is very informative.



4. At the rate Character Bio's change within the DC Universe its amazing that an Encyclopedia can even be put together at all but since a lot of the writers now a days are referencing characters i might not be familiar with, this Book at least makes it possible to get an idea about who it is or was at one point... its only drawback is because of when it was published a small percent of the information is not canon with todays stories.



5. Loved this and being I am not a comic guy and only know story lines via cartoons and movies so this filled in the blanks and back stories, orgins and the anamation is great.

1 comments about The Official Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide #38 (Official Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide).

1. A must have for serious comic book collectors. Whether you collect as a hobby or for investment, this is the major authority on comic prices. Overstreet sets a guide line for you to go by when purchasing and selling comic books. I've been a collector for 40 years. Could'nt do without my Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide!