Customer Reviews

Incredible Comics with Tom Nguyen: The Ultimate Guide to Creating Kick-Ass Comic Art

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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!

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.

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!

This book was a change in pace for me. There are plenty of focused fine art books covering anatomical approaches to drawing and then there's the glut of "I want to draw comics" titles. Tom has found the balance here, humor with a focused approach to the development of whatever natural abilities you have. A great book... highly recommended to anyone who wants to learn how to be the best from the best.

i'm an aspiring artist and have lots of drawing books. This ones so different and the drawings are so good and funny. i know this guys work from the comics too, he is good! This teaches you lots of diffrent things you dont see in alot of the other books like each muscle parts and different types of people. and the pics of tom nguyen and the girls are funny too!

this book is great for beginners learning how to draw dynamic poses and muscle detail. the book goes step by step into showing how each muscle group works, for both men and women.

This book could have easily been 3 or 4 books. I bought "How to Draw Incredible Comic Book Women" by Tom Nguyen first and I have to say that it was a bit more in depth than this. Don't get me wrong, it's a great book to own but Tom tried to cover too many subjects that just could not be covered in one book alone. For example, foreshortening was discussed in one tiny space in the entire book. This is a pretty important subject in comics as it's used in almost every panel to create action in the comic book world!

I would ignore the people who complained about his joking or lack of professionalism. It's written in a way that's easy to understand and down to earth. Tom comes off as a regular Joe that knows his stuff. He tries to make the reader feel that art should be fun. It reminded me of "How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way" by Stan Lee and John Buscema. If that book annoyed you, don't buy "Incredible Comics".

While reading it, I was pleasantly surprised to see women and men drawn by "an artist" then, in the next panel Tom would discuss all his/her short comings. He would present his rendition of the same subject, in a similar pose, and finally discuss what and what not to do. The differences were huge!

It certainly does try to show you comic book basics and the pitfalls of other less informed artists. Unlike other books, where the artist seems to be more about showcasing his drawing skills (look what I can do!) than trying to give you first hand information and instructions on how this or that is done and more importantly, why. Or, the artists that assume you already know anatomy and go from a stick figure to a completed drawing in two panels with no discussion concerning muscle, development, orientation, location, etc...

I'm very happy with the book overall but only give it 4 stars because it left me wanting more.

This book's strengths are its outstanding, crisp illustrations (this guy really knows how to draw shadows!) and attention to the types of problems that plague aspiring comic artists -- particularly in regards to anatomy. Nguyen is primarily a drawer of sexy supergirls, but his overall style reminds me of the late Greg Irons's MAD Magazine caricatures.

I wish I could say the same about his writing. I don't think this man ever met an exclamation point he didn't like; there must be 2-3 on every page. It is difficult for him to write a paragraph without a grating "joke!". While this may sound like griping, the truth of the matter is that this kind of casual style takes me right out of the lesson. It's like the author is imposing his personality into your curriculum, which is unprofessional.

Most of the subjects in this book have been covered elsewhere (Hamm, Loomis, and many of the other classics) but it's always interesting to see a glossy new presentation. In the end, "Incredible Comics" is a collection of tips and about layout, inking, etc.; it will probably find its best audience with those who already have a good grasp of the basics but are struggling with drawings which seem a little "off".

This is a pretty nice book according to drawing comics in pencil and ink. It has all the basic informations about drawing comics in general. BUT.... something was missing.... It was the COLORING! How do you finish your work without color? It looks black and white, and nearly 90% of people won't read your black/white comics, because people will think it's "unfinished". You have to find "how to color" somewhere here on the internet, unfortunately, because he doesn't explain anything how to COMPLETE your book in coloring.

I can see he was trying to be humorous throughout this book, but he was just flat-out un-funny. He has some sort of an immature humor in here, and sometimes they can be insulting to you as a reader in general. Plus it kinda hurt the book making it seem child-ish. So one point taken down for lame humor, skipping the details in how to color, and bad quality design of each page making them look like they're for ten year olds. I think that's what he was trying to do? I know I'm being pretty brutal, but that's how I felt when I read this book.

What I love about this book is his "Don't" and "Do" category explaining what you should draw and what you should NOT draw. That was definitely a fun read! All his art and explaining how to draw exactly what you want are very good. You won't be disappointed. I guarantee you. The problem is the design of the pages around his drawings, they made this book look like it's only for childeren. That's one flaw in this book including his weird humor. It's just hard to explain.

Again, this is a very good "how to draw comics" book. It will be worth your money to get it. Just beware of weird feeling of "Am I reading a childeren's book?".

Brandon

I love this book. I'd never heard of Tom Nguyen, but his art rocks. I'm working on several comic projects myself and am draw some. I wanted to get away from the manga stuff and back into American comics, that's the style I like to draw (though I do like some fusion stuff). I used to get these kind of books all the time, so I'm happy to find new books that offer fun and fresh design and information on the topic.

-Nate