Customer Reviews

How To Draw Comics The Marvel Way

5 star:		(47)
4 star:		(24)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The art of drawing comics can be very demanding, and any attempt to create a how-to that can teach all of its elements in equal depth is doomed to imperfection. That being said, this is a good starting point for young artists who think they may have some skill and need to know what to do with it.

This was one of the first real "how to draw comics" books and has become a classic over the years. The book describes the tools of the trade, the terms used, and the "Marvel" creation process, covers the basics of anatomy, form, perspective, layout, and the use of black, gives techniques on inking and lettering, and shows examples of how the art can make a story more exciting. Stan Lee's prose is fun to read and John Buscema's art is very clear in illustrating the principles being taught.

If Buscema's art looks a little dated today, it may be because first off, this book was made to be simple and easy to understand, and the art is done likewise, not cluttered up with intense detail and crosshatching. It may also be because he has a solid foundation of a knowledge of anatomy and how to compose a picture for maximum clarity and effect which, unfortunately, certain influential contemporary artists don't have.

This book does not have the room to go into depth on the deeper concepts of comic theory (how to lay out a page, for instance, or how words and images can be used together to heighten mood). For that I would reccomend Will Eisner's "Comics and Sequential Art." For giving a good, basic overall foundation, however, this book does, however, deserve a place on the shelf of any comic artist.

I think every serious or aspiring artist should own this book. I've had a copy since the early '80s, andit became so dog-eared from frequentuse, that I had to buy another. John Buscema is an excellent teacher. After all, if you're goingto learn to draw, you might as well learn from the best; and John IS the best, IMO. Among other things, the book contains vital rules for drawing in perspective, and drawing lifelike human faces and figures. This is not just a book for comic fans, or kids, it's for everyone!

This is not only the best and most comprehensive book in learning to draw comic book style art, this has some of the most basic, yet most critical drawing techniques, techniques such as the vanishing point, character swatches, layouts and breaking figures down into shapes, for example... I did not have this advantage when I was learning to draw. When I started out as a child, I discovered all of these techniques the difficult way, through trial & error...A process that regrettably takes years. I wish I knew about this book when I was a kid. If I had, I would have advanced so much more as an artist, I couldn't even imagine where I'd be today.

Anyways, I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning how to draw, period. This really is THE book, people. Search no more. It LITERALLY contains everything I know on drawing techniques (& I've been drawing since I've been old enough to hold a pencil). And not only is it informative, it's extremely fun! The way they present thier lessons, reading & practicing along with it makes you feel like you're goofing off with a comic book, as if you weren't learning anything (although you are). Ideal for those with a 30 sec.(or less) attn. span. The only thing that keeps me from rating it 5 stars, however, is that they should encourage readers to take up more of an interest in drawing real life, things around you, as well as comics. Because it's real life elements that serves as inspiration for the true comic book artist. Real life drawing is the foundation for comic book style art.

I received this book over 20 years ago, and I can't begin to tell you how it ignited a fire within me to draw. This is a great book for those who wish to draw superhoroes, but don't have a clue where to start. There are very few books that we remember as we age, but for me this is one of them.

A bestseller for people of beginning-to-intermediate ability, this book has been an inspiration to many, many people...

Its real popularity and genius lie in its effective use of exciting, pencil-drawn Marvel characters to give us a basic understanding of Marvel comic-making in general. It's *still* one of the BEST introductions to comicbook making available today.
My favorite things here: Stan Lee's writing- he keeps things lively & entertaining; John Buscema's drawing- his pencil drawings in this book compare favorably with even *today's* newest professionals (at least in my opinion...); the *entire* chapter on drawing the human head; the crisp pencils & teaching in chapters 9 & 10- on composition & penciling the actual professional comics page; *every* Jack Kirby drawing; and then maybe most inspirational & influential of all- this book's semi-*famous* Bibliography (???)...

It's true- The reason this part is semi-famous is because it successfully recommends to us some of the BEST how-to-draw type teachers ever: George Bridgman, Burne Hogarth, Ernest Watson, Jack Hamm, etc. Personally, I prefer *different* titles than what's recommended here (e.g. My favorites= The Book of a Hundred Hands; Dynamic Figure Drawing; and The Art of Pencil Drawing), but mentioning these authors effectively steers a person in the right direction. In this sense- this Bibliography *itself* is worth the entire price of the book(!). Many professionals *today* have picked up skills from these great teachers. In conclusion: Highly Recommended!

My Mom bought this book for me when I was about 12 years old. I was going to be the next Frank Frazetta/ John Byrne... so I was very excited to get it for a birthday. It taught me alot about perspective, figure drawing, presentation, and lettering..at least it got me started. But the most important thing I learned from this book was to draw constantly-- draw anything and everything, every day for the rest of my life. That's what will make you a good artist.

I'll start off by admitting that this book is a bit on the begginers level. However, the first time I picked up this book was when I was seven. Over the years I kept checking it out of the library over and over just to draw the pictures in the book. I didn't even read it until I bought the book at the age of 16. Any time since then that a person has asked me how they can learn to draw super heroes, I always reference this book. I tell them to skip the reading, draw everything, and then go back to read it, then draw everything after they do that.

It's an easy read and was truely inspirational to me in developing my own style of comic art. One of my top favorite books ever.

-Matt

Even if superheroes are not your cup of tea, get this book. You'll learn more about inking, perspective, proper form, drawing for impact and structure than any other tome. Action comics are hard to do and the beginner needs all the help they can get and you'll find it here.

Have you ever wanted to learn to draw comics? If you have, this book is the place to start. How to Draw Comics: the Marvel Way teaches A-Z on comic-book drawing, using the Marvel comics style.
The book is written by one of the founders of Marvel comics, Stan Lee, and is illustrated by veteran Marvel artist John Bucema. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who wants to draw comics.
The writer uses many pictures with excellent analysis of each. He writes as if he's talking to you, using a humorous tone. This book would be comprehensible for teens through adults.
The book includes many excellent pictures which make it very comprehensible, and fun to read.
How to Draw Comics: the Marvel Way is an great starting point for any "wanna-be" comic-book artist.

I remember when this book came out years ago, and was always curious about it. But other of life's callings caused me to never pursue it. Now that I have a six-year-old boy who likes to draw, it renewed it's interest with me, and yes, I picked up a copy from Amazon.com. I'll review it on two fronts.

First, I looked through it myself. I was impressed with the way they started you off with the basics, and got progressively harder. One could say "Duh!" to this, but the good point about it is that it gets you into actually drawing the famous Marvel characters relatively early. Like with the second lesson. It also takes you into the world of the things to look out for if you were involved in putting an actual comic book together. So not only do they cover how to do the action figures, it shows how to draw backgrounds to provide prospective, covers the topic of inking, and even has a chapter on drawing covers! So it does cover the entire spectrum.

Second was how the boy took to it. While he has a busy schedule, and while no, he doesn't spend every waking hour with it, when he does he has been known to spend a couple hours per sitting practicing the drawing. Once I got him past the idea that the first one had to be perfect, and that practicing over and over again was what made you a good illustrator, he took to it very well.