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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A DREAM BOOK FOR MARVEL COMIC BOOK FANS!, September 22, 2006
This review is from: Amazing Marvel Universe (Hardcover)
We've all heard audio commentary on DVD's but audio commentary on a book? That's just what you get in a fabulous new book from Sterling Publishing, "The Amazing Marvel Universe". The book is a beautiful, over-sized hardcover that has a very unique feature to it. It has a speaker with push buttons that play audio comments from longtime Marvel Comics writer, editor-in-chief, and publisher, the legendary Stan Lee. The book itself is written by another Marvel legend, himself a former Marvel Editor-in-chief as well as writer and comics historian, Roy Thomas. The book features Stan's choices of the 50 greatest moments in Marvel Comic's history.
These moments begin not with Marvel Comics, but rather in the Golden Age era of Timely comics when a young Stanley Leiber took the pseudonym of Stan Lee and had his first comic story published, a two-page Captain America text story in Captain America #3 in 1941. As you flip through the 200 page book and read about these great moments in Marvel history, you'll see a number that corresponds to the appropriate audio track to hear Stan's comment on that particular event. There are 68 comments in all for a total of 45 minutes of audio.
One of the interesting moments to make the Top 50 moments is the second one which introduced Fin Fang Foom in Strange Tales #89 from 1961. This is chosen I think as an example of pre-super hero Marvel Comics and how the restrictive Comics Code was dealt with by Stan. Of course the first major moment comes with the introduction of the Fantastic Four in November 1961. In his audio comment, Stan relates how he was about to quit the comic book business and was asked by publisher Martin Goodman to come up with a team of heroes to compete with DC's Justice League. Stan decided to do a hero book the way he wanted to, thinking it would flop. Of course, the rest is history.
In talking about the Hulk, we hear the oft-told story of how the Hulk's color was changed from grey to green because the printer was having a hard time getting the grey a consistent color. Stan says he decided to do a book about Thor because he wanted to have a mythological God, and the Norse mythology was not as well known as Greek or other myths. Other great moments that made the list are the release of Spiderman #1, X-men #1, Avengers #1, Daredevil #1 etc. But don't think it's all about number one issues. Once you move into the mid-60's, the moments focus on the first appearance of various characters as well as classic storylines.
One moment that I was very excided to see make the list was the wedding of Reed Richards and Sue Storm in Fantastic Four Annual #3 in 1965 and starring just about every hero and villain in the Marvel Universe. I remember buying that comic at a convention sometime in the 70's and still have it today. Other great moments include the first appearance of the Silver Surfer and Galactus, The Black Panther, and one of my personal favorites, The Vision. The Vision was a brilliant concept by writer Roy Thomas who used his love of Golden Age heroes to come up with his unique android creation.
The Kree-Skrull War, the Death of Gwen Stacy, the debut of the New X-Men, they are all here and you could not find two men better fit to present these 50 great moments than Stan Lee and Roy Thomas. Loaded with great art by the likes of jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, Wally Wood, John Buscema, Neal Adams, Jim Steranko, and John Romita!This is an absolute must have for fans of marvel Comics. Well worth the $50!
Reviewed by Tim Janson
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8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A true friend in The Marvel Marching Society, February 22, 2007
This review is from: Amazing Marvel Universe (Hardcover)
If you are a comic fan, this book is a must read
If you are a fan of the history of comics, this book is a must read
If you love Marvel comics, this book is a must read
Former Marvel editor Roy Thomas composed and writes the true pictoral history of Marvel comics, better than anyone has-because he was there for most of it. Stan "the Man" Lee, in a special feature of this book, narrates his version of the Marvel History in a small recorder on the side of this book. This is not a book on tape, but a visual mass media production that "True Believers" and all the Merry Marvel Marching Society (Classic Marvel fans would understand that term) out there should get. If you love how your favorite favorite characters were created, this history is for you, Both Stan and Roy tell the begining of Marvel story to the present like NO ONE else could!
So Make Mine Marvel!
Bennet Pomerantz AUDIOWORLD
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Stan Lee's Amazing Marvel Universe is an entertaining read, April 6, 2007
This review is from: Amazing Marvel Universe (Hardcover)
Surely, an adequate test of whether or not you've purchased a good book is a faint sadness at turning the last page. If so, then Stan Lee's Amazing Marvel Universe is a good book.
Written by Roy Thomas, a Marvel scribe and editor for many years, the book catalogs the major works of Stan Lee at Marvel in an insightful and entertaining manner.
Highlighting 50 "legendary Marvel moments," the book also treats fans to hundreds of full-color cover and page reproductions dealing with important events in Marvel's vast superheroic history.
Making the book even more enticing is the digital playback device that is attached. Containing 68 voice tracks from Stan the Man himself, the device lets readers gain special insight from the uber-imaginative creator. These selected excerpts from an interview with Lee enhance the printed information and illustrative glory found within the pages to such a degree as to make this a must-have for Marvel fans, comic book enthusiasts, pop culture nuts, or what have you.
If I were to wish one thing about this book, it would be that it could be thicker, with more pages and more information. Considering the years Roy Thomas spent behind the scenes at Marvel, he is in a position to reveal historical tidbits that many fans-turned-researchers could only dream of. As it is, he brings to light several items that I never knew, even after close to 35 years of reading comics. You might be surprised, as I was, to learn that Marvel's character the Black Panther once changed his name for political reasons, or that the Comics Code Authority rejected artwork for a particular Marvel comic due to a puff of smoke in the panel. Interesting stuff, to be sure.
Stan Lee's Amazing Marvel Universe is highly recommended for all fans of superhero comics, comic book history or Marvel Comics in general.
Commentary by Mark Allen, Suspended Animation[]
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