Customer Reviews

The Best of the Spirit (Spirit (DC Comics))

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Eisner's "Spirit" work is landmark watershed etc. no question about it. And perhaps the stories in this volume are cream of that crop (there were so many Spirit stories that it seems impossible to really assemble just a few into a "best of") but be warned that this particular package has its drawbacks. As another reviewer noted, they are reprinted at standard comic book size, while the originals were at magazine size, so the art is a bit cramped and details muddied. That's to be expected but the cheap paper doesn't help any, causing some of the finer lines to look blurry, at least to me. Add to that what could be a recoloring job that seems slapdash, and it's not the easiest read. I'm not sure if the coloring follows the originals, or IS the originals in most cases, but in the case of the character Ebony, Spirit's youthful sidekick, he is definitely recolored. The original was a pretty standard (and admittedly, to current views, extremely offensive) "boy" in his coloring: looking like he's stepped off the stage of a minstrel show. In this volume he's been recolored as a blond caucasian. It's an understandable alteration, given what I assume is the wide -- and not necessarily Eisner- or old-comics- fluent audience for this volume. I'm not really complaining about the recoloring of the character (though I'm not sure why he couldn't have been recolored black but w/out the white lips etc.), but if they recolored that, what else was retouched?

In short, for the price (esp here on Amazon) and convenience, it's hard to beat this as an intro to Eisner and the Spirit. The hardcover archives are much more expensive, even for the better quality, and the old reprints (from Warren & Kitchen Sink) were the right size, but B&W, so these are a good choice to start. But still, they look kind of crappy.

Btw, my fave spirit stories (not included) are "The Spirit in Space" -- amazing Wally Wood art in a story about the Spirit going to the moon w/a bunch of convicts. Wood at his best.

Will Eisner is a genius, plain and simple and his genius extends to far more than his work on the Spirit. Eisner was only 19 when he and partner Jerry Iger opened the Eisner & Iger studio to produce comics for comic publishers. Among the artists they recruited were legends Jack Kirby, Lou Fine, and Eisner's high school friend, Batman creator Bob Kane. Then in 1939 Eisner was approached to produce a weekly comic supplement that would be syndicated in numerous Sunday newspapers. The shrewd Eisner agreed as long as he could keep the copyright to the characters, including the main feature of the supplement, the crime-fighting Spirit. This was quite a coup for Eisner as he knew he would never be able to get the same rights if he had his work published by an actual comic book publisher. And as the owner, Eisner also had creative control which other artists and writers of the day didn't have. Thus Eisner was decades ahead of his time.

This collection from DC comics includes 22 eight page Spirit adventures beginning with the Spirit's origin from June, 1940. Eisner would lose a few years to World War II but returned to his strip when he got back home in 1945 and continued with it until 1952. The Spirit is Denny Colt, private investigator and criminologist. While tracking down the devious villain Dr. Cobra, he is saturated with experimental chemicals and goes into a state of suspended animation, making him appear to be dead. He crawls from his grave and dons a simple mask and the moniker of the Spirit to battle crime in Central City. The cast of the Spirit includes Police Commissioner Dolan and the Spirit's sometimes sidekick, the orphan African American kid Ebony White who provided some comic relief.

Eisner loved sexy, beautiful, bad girls and women were the Spirit's antagonists as often were men. In "Postage Stamp he tussles with the beautiful thief Dulcet Tone and later with a spy called Satin as he tries to locate a secret letter filled with the names of war criminals. It's often said that artist Jim Steranko introduced pop culture and cinematic art to comics, but Eisner did it long before Steranko. Eisner often cleverly utilized the Spirit logo on the splash page making it part of the story. He lettered his text in creative ways such as pyramid or circular forms, not seen in other comics of the times.

Eisner used true cinematic vision in laying out his panels, like a meticulous film director. He used downward perspective and other interesting angles that are still innovative today. What truly sets the Spirit is that while comic books were written for kids, Eisner clearly aimed the Spirit at an adult audience, employing sly, sometimes tawdry humor that would be over the head of most children. Another interesting device Eisner employed is that quite often the Spirit would barely make an appearance in his own stories. A good example from this collection is the story "Christmas Spirit of 1948". At the state prison, convict Basher Brains is sick of hearing about Christmas until he receives a visit from Santa Claus himself who says that even Basher is on his list. Basher's request is to get out of jail and borrows Santa's outfit to escape. But Basher would soon learn the true spirit of Christmas from some street kids. The Spirit does not make an appearance until the final few panels.

It's utterly amazing that these stories were produced at a time when comics were churned out as quickly and mundanely as they were. Sixty years later they have lost none of their potency or their humor. This is a marvelous collection, especially if you are new to the Spirit. My highest recommendation! By the way, I am uploading a picture of the actual book cover, which is not the one Amazon displays.

Reviewed by Tim Janson

The only reason I'm holding one star back is because I'm old. The art in these stories is so nuanced and rich that it should have been presented larger than standard comic book size. But that's the only bone I have to pick with this volume. Younger readers who don't have to squint to read this will be well rewarded.

And with a price like this, there's really no excuse not to treat yourself.

Will Eisner may not have invented the comic book, but he was one of the people who made them good. His talent and influence helped transform the medium from kids' throwaway entertainment to literature. "The Spirit" is Eisner at the height of his powers, and this collection is the best of the best. The phrase "no collection should be without it" has become watered-down through overuse, but in this case it is no less than the truth. If you're at all interested in comic books, this is where you start.

I've always essentially liked Eisner. I have both of his how-to books on comics, and a couple of the B&W Warren Spirit reprints from the 70s. But it wasn't until this collection that I got hooked.

The stories in this collection have the elegance of the best harboiled crime writers, and a stylish approach to visual storytelling that must've inspired what was best about the early Mad Magazine (and other EC titles). While The Spirit himself is pretty much of an affable do-right, the villians are usually very textured and often very funny.

And, for a vintage crime comics fan like me, the fact that this is pretty hard-hitting for the sunday funnies-- with somebody getting plugged in almost every story, and a few unsavory surprises besides-- make this a true addition to the genre. And man, could Eisner draw them dishy dames! I've now pretty much resigned myself to the fact that I'm going to have to get a few of the post-war Spirit Archives.

The only problem with the book is that it's a flimsy trade paperback, and should have been printed to the same standards as the Archives. But, due to the inventiveness of the stories, I can't bring myself to give it less than four stars.

I'm new to The Spirit but decided to read about it before I watch the movie. I wasn't really expecting anything because I've read some comics from the Silver Age and they were not too good. The writing was very dated and the stories very uninteresting. Much to my surprise, this was not the case with The Spirit. I can tell why they would call this the Citizen Kane of comics since, at the time, these stories must be quite revolutionary. Some of these stories are just as good if not better than the current or more recent comic book stories and the artwork is quite beautiful and would put to shame a lot of the more current renown artists. If you enjoy beautiful women in your comics, look no more. The women in these stories are very beautiful and would make Lois Lane, Mary Jane Watson, or Gwen Stacy look average in comparison. My favorite story which I found quite touching is the last story on the origin of Sand Serif who is possibly the most beautiful woman in all the Spirit stories. It's ashame a certain actress that looks nothing like her is going to play her in the movie. Given these stories are quite old, I'm am extremely impressed overall by the quality of writing and artwork. Highly recommended!

I love Will Eisner's creation "The Spirit", but let's face it: when it comes down to buying all 26 volumes of the Archives at $50 a pop, I'm not THAT big of a fan. Luckily, I can purchase the affordable trade paperback THE BEST OF THE SPIRIT, containing 22 classic stories from 1940 - 1950 that I feel serve as an excellent overview of the series. Contents include:

"The Origin of the Spirit", in which criminologist Denny Colt becomes the titular masked hero. This is a fairly typical origin for a Golden Age character, though the storytelling is much more refined - and the art, cleaner - than what was usually seen during that period.

"Introducing Silk Satin", "Meet P'Gell", and "Death of Autumn Mews", which showcase Eisner's trademark bombshells.

"Life Below", "Two Lives", and "The Story of Gerhard Shnobble": tales of the city and how it affects its inhabitants, a theme which would be used to great effect in Eisner's groundbreaking graphic novels of the `70s.

"The Last Trolley", "Wild Rice", "The Last Hand", and "Sand Saref": hard-boiled crime.

And one of my favorite comic stories of all time: "The Killer", which shows a double homicide through the eyes - literally - of the guilty.

And of course, there's more! This collection shows that Eisner was a pioneer of the comic medium, and perhaps its earliest master. His experiments in narrative, layout, perspective, color, and photo-collage show that he was decades ahead of the game, influencing a number of Silver Age writers and artists who were considered "originals" in their own right... and short of Jack Kirby, NOBODY can draw a fight scene better than Eisner. As far as the reproduction goes, it's just fine for a $15 trade format, and I don't see any recoloring of the Spirit's sidekick Ebony, as mentioned in another review; however, the Spirit does have a blonde white kid named Sammy as another sidekick later on.

In closing, please note that the more recent movie tie-in trade collection, FEMMES FATALES, reprints quite a few stories contained in this volume. If you have THE BEST OF THE SPIRIT, there's really no need for the other book.

Reading the comics of the 1940s tend to be an "educational" experience. You can see the seeds of modern comic books. You can marvel at the kind of stories that probably entertained your grandparents in their youth. You can even enjoy some of the book until you get tired. However, most of these old comics are simply old. Despite the "golden age" monicker, you can't really call them classics because they spend too much time plagiarizing themselves and telling the same stories about mad scientists and master criminals who need a good solid sock to the jaw. Even old Batman and Superman comics get old after awhile.

Even if you don't have those old comics to compare them to, this book can be a revelation. At first you'll not how crisp the artwork is and how much it looks like the original Mad Magazine artwork. The stories will move along at a fast pace than most Golden Age comics and there's a clarity to the artwork that eschews the cramped little drawings that tended to dominate at the time. Eisner likes to sprawl out and take his time with the art which means that he has to pack more into the pieces than usual.

THen as the book moves along into Eisner's post-war comics, the title becomes even more innovative. Stories are told from the perspective of toy guns and men who can fly (but are sadly ignored by the Spirit as he's fighting crooks). The tonal shifts from noir to twilight zone to children's comedy are delightful. The last story in which the Spirit realizes that he must arrest an old girlfriend is beautifully tragic.

A classic does not mean that a book is old. There are plenty of old books that are just terrible. They may have been popular in their time but a classic is a work that leaves an impression and can be just as relevant 100 years after its out as it was in its inception. By that definition, this is a true classic.

I really enjoyed this collection of Eisner's Spirit comics. I became interested in them during the hype of the now fate-fallen movie by Frank Miller. The collection here provides an excellent introduction to the world of the Spirit. I think viewers will be surprised to find the obtuse morality and self-analysis present in these comics; they are an excellent precursor to the golden age of great graphic novels.

One criticism: what makes this the 'Best Of' collection? It seems to have been complied after the artist's death, and there is no reasoning behind the selections in this volume. It's a great collection, but I wish the introduction explain why these works were chosen as the 'Best Of' and why they were set in the given order. Also, I feel rude giving Eisner 5 stars because he stereotypes blacks and Muslims in a few of his stories.

I had never heard of THE SPIRIT until I saw a trailer for Frank Miller's film version. Curious, I went online to see what the book was all about. What I learned was that THE SPIRIT was a detective-type comic written in the 1940s. It was said that Will Eisner, the creator, had raised comics to an art form and that he was ahead of his time. I am inclined to agree.

I purchased this "Best Of..." collection to see for myself why THE SPIRIT was so celebrated. The book is great. Each story is a mere seven pages long, but each story is filled with mystery and suspense. The artwork is terrific. It has style! I love the cover artwork for each story. It incorporates the words "The Spirit" into an image that sets the tone for the pages ahead. Eisner uses the panels not only to advance the plot, but to create a mood. Many of the narratives have a sort of "Twilight Zone", Rod Serling feel.

The stories in this collection are thoroughly enjoyable, even after sixty years. The stories aren't too dark or mature-themed, but there are gunshots and fatalities. As I write this, Frank Miller's movie has not yet been released, so I cannot compare it with its source work. But where the film seems to have a colorless, Sin City-like quality, the comics are very colorful. There are dramatic shadows, yes, but it's not a black-and-white book.

I encourage any curious readers like myself to check out this inexpensive "Best Of..." and discover THE SPIRIT for themselves. This sampler left me wanting to read even more of the adventures of The Spirit!

This book isnt for everyone but for those who do appreciate the golden age of story telling then this may be the book for you. Its a perfect book for those who are willing to get into the Spirit comic. Its also good required reading if you want to get into Darwyn Cooke's 'The Spirit' series currently being published at DC.