Customer Reviews

It's a Bird

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

 

 

If you haven't tried a graphic novel yet, this one should get you on board with this awesome genre of lit. The story is powerful and very cleverly told, and the art is spectacular. I think it was actually painted with watercolors and oils. I tend toward superhero material and while this has Supes in it I was surprised to find a really sophisticated story with a hero in it that is also intellectually challenging. Maybe this book signals a new direction to relieve some of the exhaustion that old school comics storylines are facing.

I have an affection for comic books but haven't kept up with the various graphic novels. I heard a radio spot on this book and was intrigued. The story has a real emotional kick that I suspect will be relevant for many people. I read it for Father's Day and couldn't help but reflect on the message that this has about the decision to have children as well as the many other thoughts that are expressed about how we choose to live our lives. Variously introspective and contemplative about the world condition, the book grabs our interest with both ideas and art. Highly recommended.

It amazes me sometimes what you can find amid the mass of superhero spandex in the comic world these days. Don't get me wrong there is a large, and growing larger, area of comics that has nothing to do with superheros. But this book is a mix of both. Steven takes his mostly true tale of having the opportunity to write superman and the trouble he faces trying to write a character that he feels he can't write. He's know for his surreal vertigo work and getting superman seems just beyond him. How does a man that wants to be a serious writer and a serious writer of comics take on the biggest of american comic book icons? well you'll have to read this incredibly drawn and written graphic novel.

Steven Seagle presents a wonderful journey into the mind of a writer and the search for meaning in an iconic character that has almost lost meaning as being the ultimate American hero. The author takes issue with the "reality" behind the fantasy and ends up seeing the strengths and the beauty behind Clark Kent/Superman/Kal-El.

The art is whispy yet strong and striking. An oddity in modern superhero comics and manga influnced books, which is a shame.

A very entertaining and enlightening book.

This is the autobiographical story of writer Steven T. Seagle's struggle with an offer to write one of the monthly Superman comics. Why the struggle? Seagle has associated Superman with a disease that runs in his family. He resents Superman's perfection in relation to the slow, nasty death he fears awaits him. Despite being annoyed by the patent irrationality of resenting a fictional character, and the self pity about possibly dying of this disease (few folks' death is actually pleasant, after all), I found myself respecting the book for the skill with which the story was told. It's not easy to get inside a character's head the way this book does. Seagle's words are honest, and the art work is very expressive.

I first saw this graphic novel advertised in Wizard magazine a few years ago, and I was intrigued by the description, I was also familiar with Steven Seagle writing, I was hesitant to purchase it though because I've never really been into non-superhero GN's.I actually had this sitting in my Cart for quite awhile, when I finally did buy this GN I kicked myself for not buying it sooner. This was one of the best stories I've read, period.
Just the person-ness of the writing is enough, the art is what I consider stark and on the dark side, almost Kubrick like if Kubrick drew comic books, Teddy Kristiansen's art is amazing!!!
Buy this book!!!!

A beautiful book that had me utterly engrossed. I would recommend this book to anyone, especially any family suffering with congenital disease. It tells a unique, adult story in a whimsical and heartbreaking way. I love too see the graphic novel used to such affect.

I took this on a recommendation from a comic shop for a deep, moving book that grabs you like Blankets because I have read nothing like that since. This is a wonderful and searching story of this man's wrestling with his life and family. Highly recommended.

"They're actually not funny anymore. People who read comics now want drama and adventure more than laughs", Steven T. Seagle explains to his doctor in It's a Bird.... This innovative novel reveals a new revolution in comic books. No longer are readers captivated with a super power (Steven's nemesis in the story), but are thrilled by more serious, realistic issues that capture the mind identically.
When he was young, Seagle was in the waiting room of a hospital. His family had been called to the hospital as his grandmother was deathly ill with Hutchinson's disease. His father gave Steven and his brother a copy of Superman to occupy their mind in a time of sadness. This is how Seagle opens It's a Bird.... He finds a great trouble with Superman internally, yet becomes a successful comic and is eventually offered the job to redo the famous comic.
In his own comic autobiography, Seagle creates sections of conversations with frames and word bubbles. Every scene is specific to one character or issue. Either with his girlfriend or doctor, Seagle uses illustrations and quotes to fully develop an idea in a nontraditional way. Regularly Seagle will separate these scenes with a separate comic strip. These brilliant placed short comics let the reader go inside Seagle's mind and allow Seagle to express more than is stated in his dialogue with the fellow characters. When in a car with Rafa, his automotive and friend, they start a discussion around the controversial Superman. Debating who would win in a "fantasy super-hero battle", Rafa promises that "Superman versus anyone? It's Superman. America, baby. Red, white and blue." (40). Seagle goes to explain in his comic entitled "Red, Yellow, Blue" that really Superman is not all that American, rather his colors are the primary colors and each individual color could represent evilness, such as yellow being associated with the Nazis and red as fire (41).
Yet Seagle uses his autobiography to create a comic strip that encompasses a complete narrative. He has to select specific scenes to get his story across to the readers. He brilliantly synthesizes his proposal to compose Superman and his journey to discovering if he has Hutchinson's disease. His mind will be captivated by the idea of drawing his nemesis, while researching the symptoms of the serious disease. Seagle is able to synthesize a story of two journeys, the decision to draw or not to draw Superman and discovering his disease, from one occasion that happened when he was a young child.

I spend a wonderful couple of hours this afternoon with the graphic novel "It's A Bird..." written by Steven T. Seagle and art by Teddy Kristiansen. This is a book that I think deserves a place among the all time great graphic novels, such as Frank Muller's "The Dark Knight Returns" and Alan Moore and Dave Gibbon's "Watchmen" (for any of you out there that are not familiar with these books- they are widely considered among the best mainstream comic novels ever produced)

The book tells the story of Steve, a guy who has become a comic book author, a career path that surprises him since he spent much of his childhood not liking comics because he associates them with the death of his grandmother when he was five. When we meet the Steven of today, he is dealing with his father going missing, a long term relationship, and being offered by his editor the chance to write the character he most associates with the tragic events of his past, Superman.

It's amazing the way Seagle weaves his charactersers views of the man of steel with the events going on in his life. Not once does it feel forced. They help us to see what is going on in (the character) Steven's mind, and his emotions.

The art by Teddy Kristiansen is perfect for this volume as well. The style changes for the different aspects of Superman's world we look at, and there was not once where I thought he made the wrong choice.

This book works on so many different levels, and doesn't misfire on any of them. From human drama, to superhero deconstructionism, and even as an insight to the creative process of an author. It's one of the finest comics I've read in a long long time, and I really hope some others out will share in the experience of this book