5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not a Book for Beginners - But Helpful for Those with Experience, August 14, 2009
This review is from: Incredible Comics with Tom Nguyen: The Ultimate Guide to Creating Kick-Ass Comic Art (Paperback)
I counted recently, and I have about 85 "How to Draw" books of all kinds; I've seen the Good, the Great, the Bad, and the Just Plain Awful when it comes to books purporting to teach you to draw. I have to say that "Incredible Comics" (I'll hereafter refer to it as "IC") is one of the better books I've seen. I have to warn you, however - if you're just starting to learn how to draw, this book won't help you very much. But, if you've got a few years of practice and experience under your belt, IC just might be the book for you.
IC is one of what might be called the "Omnibus" category of "How to Draw" books - basically, it has a section on everything, from anatomy to shading to character costumes to perspective to adding details to storytelling. The problem with most such books is that there just simply isn't enough space devoted to each subject to really teach you much - whole books could be written (and have been) on the subjects covered in each section. IC is no different, really - it is full of brief (although well-drawn) sections on essentially everything you'll find in your run-of-the-mill "Draw Comics Now!" book.
What sets IC apart, however, is Nguyen's style - Nguyen has a solid ability to communicate his ideas and has an exceptional store of common sense in what he teaches. He makes his little lessons entertaining, and, indeed, more informative than most other books of this size and configuration. Another added bonus, which I think was very well done, is that Nguyen also looks are some drawings done in the styles of popular comics artists and points out what has been done wrong in them. I've rarely seen this done and, while he does it tongue-in-cheek, it nevertheless opened my eyes to what I should be careful of when I draw, and shows that even the pros make big mistakes. For those artists who have their fundamentals down but are trying to fine-tune their work, this will prove very useful.
In conclusion, "Incredible Comics" is a fairly average "How to Draw Comics" book, but Nguyen's artistic style, wit, and unique teaching ability help separate it from the rest of the pack. For those artists who have been practicing for a while, you may find this useful. Enjoy!
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Fun High Octane Sizzle That's All Too Brief..., October 9, 2007
This review is from: Incredible Comics with Tom Nguyen: The Ultimate Guide to Creating Kick-Ass Comic Art (Paperback)
There's a plethora of how-to comic book drawing titles out there and far too many are worthless, I've seen more than my fair share. Not to worry, Nguyen's effort is far from the bottom of the barrel. This work is a fair blend of humor with quickly crisp examples of what to and not to do.
The rather fast-pacing of this title belies a simple and unfortunate fact, that it's all too brief. There's a good bit of ink devoted to muscle groups and how they should be drawn. However, much of the book whips past in a jack-of-all trades master of none manner. I have seen each and every concept in this book conveyed in other books with more depth, detail and instruction.
For parents considering this title for their young artists, there are a few drawings of bare female breasts. It's nothing that's salacious or out of context with anatomical drawing (or any number of manga books for that matter) but I know a good many parents would rather their kids not be exposed to such artwork.
All said, given Nguyen's obvious talent and engaging style... I wish this book was more thorough than topical. It may whet the appetite for some just starting out but there really is better to be had elsewhere.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
High Energy Level "How To" Book is a Fabulous Way to Get Started Drawing Comics!, February 18, 2008
This review is from: Incredible Comics with Tom Nguyen: The Ultimate Guide to Creating Kick-Ass Comic Art (Paperback)
The "Ultimate Guide to Creating Kick Ass Comic Art" delivers!
Incredible Comics with Tom Nguyen is fantastic for tons of reasons! First, it gets you excited and pumped to draw. As a bodybuilder himself, Tom clearly understands how bodybuilders' minds work and utilizes that psychology when he readies his readers for getting going on lessons of how to draw comics. I was excited (Pumped!) by reading his book before I even tried to draw anything -- It gives you the sense that YOU can do it, and it helps you understand what is important in an easygoing, humorous, yet, I repeat, charged-up manner. Be your own Superman, or Superwoman! Draw it yourself, with Tom's help! How does Tom do this? As an author myself, I am not sure I know, but he does it really well.
What I particularly like is that, because he is a bodybuilder, he can deliver through his drawings accurate renditions of anatomy. Before you learn to play the piano, you have to learn your scales. Before you learn to draw comics, you have to study the human form. As a bodybuilder, Tom knows every muscle, every part of the body. He delivers his information in a fun and interesting way so that the beginning artist (who is also told what tools he or she will need) can have that crash course in drawing which begins this book. An essential.
As you progress along, you begin to enjoy his sense of humor (I would read this book just for that alone!) as well as the lessons you are learning. A big part of his teaching style involves as many "don'ts" as "do's", which, because he is so fun, is an easy way to understand how to correct common mistakes you might make while drawing. For example, in a small section which is a part of "Drawing Stud Muffins and Real Bad Dudes", entitled "Dial M", he has explained that one way to view the trap muscles is to see them as forming the shape of an M. On the other hand he has a "Don't" with that, and illustrates it, with an alarmed looking dude sporting a little bitty M on his back, not at all correctly proportioned.
On the next page, we see the "Do" -- the guy's back muscles are "aesthecially pleasing", as Tom says! There is a lot of action on all the pages: suited to comics. For example, above what I just described is a full-on view of a back where the author has explained the "Christmas tree" shape manner of drawing the erector mucles in the lower back of a guy wearing little pink lacy briefs with hearts on them. haha. I wanted to draw that immediately. I don't care, I'm saying it! Same page: a hot babe saying "Hey, nice sssssspine!" to a half turned he-man, accompanied by an explanation of how to draw a more dynamic picture by rotating your character into a half turn.The "s" for spine is the way to remember this. Tom is not wasting our time with his drawings or information.
This is just part of the first section: I gave you an in depth on a tiny bit. We learn to draw "studs", and then how to draw "babes" : their hair (even "what hair says"!--I would hate to think what mine is saying)!, faces, breasts, total bodies, everything. These are the gorgeous super girls you see in bikinis with the high hips, flat stomachs and fine chests...he has his "do's" and "don'ts" going strong here as well and it is very informative and amusing, the way he explains it. This guy is a famous judge in pin up competitions in his spare time. He knows what he is talking about. Yet he wastes no space. I think this is due to the fact that he is a comic book inker (among many other things), and the book reflects this.
That was just part one: your crash course in drawing. If you followed, step by step, chapter by chapter, you would end up at part four, which is "Your Own Kick-Ass Comics". Now doesn't that sound fine? Just follow this through, and practice. You obviously have to love comics (I have a son who loves comics who is getting this as a gift from me -- he is a total comic book freak) and it makes a great gift for anyone who does. It is printed on really nice paper, it's a fine high quality book in every aspect, it's terrific and fun to read; I thoroughly recommend it. Get it! It's GREAT! Incredible Comics RULES!
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