Customer Reviews

Spider-Man: The Ultimate Guide (Amazing Spider-Man (DK Publishing))

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Spiderman - The Ultimate Guide is a very thorough and informative book. New fans of comics and people who know little about Peter Parker and his alter-ego Spiderman will find this an enjoyable read and will leave it with a strong knowledge of the 30+ year history of the character.

The book covers everything from Spidey's origin and powers to his supporting cast including Aunt May, J. Jonah Jameson, Mary Jane, and plenty more. Key points in Spiderman's adventures are also covered including: the Death of Gwen Stacy, the Alien Costume, the mystery of the Hoblgoblin, and the Clone Saga. Villains and vigilantes are also reviewed like: Green Goblin, The Vulture, Sandman, Electro, Venom, Carnage, and several minor characters that you might not expect to see included in a 170 page book.

The Ultimate Guide also mentions alternate creations of Spiderman like Spiderman 2099 and The Ultimate Spiderman (my personal favorite).

If DeFalco's Guide does have a weak spot it's that many entries have captions and paragraphs that simply reiterate the same material. With two pages of information on a character this can become annoying to read the same fact three times in such a short space. Also a personal gripe of mine is that sometimes laughable characters like The Rocket Racer were included while a more common classic villain like The Shocker was overlooked. Instead of pages devoted to Will O The Wisp and Silvermane, I would have much rather preferred a more indepth look at some of the runs of Spiderman stories and the various plots they dealt with...alas maybe in Ultimate Guide #2 (hint).

All in all I recommend this book for anyone who wants to learn about the incredible character of Spiderman before the movie premieres on May 3, 2002.

This the most comprehensive look at Spider-Man out there. There are a lot of books out now about Spider-Man the Movie, but this is Spider-Man the comicbooks. The comicbooks give you a real sense of the charater and this book takes you into every aspect of the adventures of the webslinger. Covering the major points in the Spider-Man mythos, it captures great moments from the introduction of Venom to the not so popular Clone Saga. All villains and supporting cast members are covered. From the Green Goblin to the Prowler (One of my personal favorites). From Aunt May to Debra Witman. This book has it all. From the large format of the book with incredible pictures and great text. Tom DeFalco did a great job, and he is a Spidey expert. This even has references to the individual issues where the major events took place. Recomended highly for fans of the Comics and especially the Movie.

I have been a rabid Spider-Man fan, reader, and collector for the past 13 years. In that time, I've seen some of the best (1980's to 1993) and worst (Clone Saga) this hero has to offer. IN addition, I have collected every issue ever published. So, I'm very knowledgable about SPider-Man and his world. Still, this book is a delight to read. I didn't learn anything new, but it is well written, spectacularly illustrated with original comic art from some of Spidey's most legendary artists (Ditko, Romita Sr., Romita Jr., Frenz, Andru, Sal Buscema, Gil Kane, McFarlane, Bagley, Larsen). New fans will learn a lot from this book, but no matter how long you've been a fan of Spidey, this book is a treasure trove for you!!

Tom De Falco's comprehensive SPIDER-MAN guide is one of my favourite spidey books, covering everything from the comic's origins in the 60s to the recent movies. With some great insight into the characters in the world of comics and good layout, this guide tells you all you need to know about Peter Parker, Mary Jane and assotment of villians (Green Goblin, Doc Ock, Venom et all). DeFalco's extensive research has paid off, making this an essential addition to the already bookshelf-breaking collection of comic book guides. This is a must-have book for any SPIDER-MAN enthusiast.

I have been a rabid Spider-Man fan, reader, and collector for the past 13 years. In that time, I've seen some of the best (1980's to 1993) and worst (Clone Saga) this hero has to offer. IN addition, I have collected every issue ever published. So, I'm very knowledgable about SPider-Man and his world. Still, this book is a delight to read. I didn't learn anything new, but it is well written, spectacularly illustrated with original comic art from some of Spidey's most legendary artists (Ditko, Romita Sr., Romita Jr., Frenz, Andru, Sal Buscema, Gil Kane, McFarlane, Bagley, Larsen). New fans will learn a lot from this book, but no matter how long you've been a fan of Spidey, this book is a treasure trove for you!!

We bought this book for our five year old who loves Spiderman, but our whole family has enjoyed learning more about the villains and other characters in Spidey's world. It is fun to learn the origin of characters we are familiar with and some we had never heard of before. There are lots and lots of illustrations to keep the kids' attention, and the stories and bios are interesting enough for adults as well. The binding has fallen apart on our book- which may have survived better under normal wear and tear- but that is mostly because my son takes it to bed with him since he loves this book so much. Overall, a great book for kids and adults too.

"Spider-Man: The Ultimate Guide," by Tom DeFalco, is full of information and colorful illustrations. The book covers the history of Spider-Man as the character and his world have developed in the comic books. Included in the book's artwork are reproductions of many comic book covers spanning decades of Spider-Man's history.

The book includes information about Peter Parker, his family and friends, Spider-Man's origin and fantastic abilities, and Spider-Man's allies. Topics such as Spider-Girl and Spider-Man 2099 are also covered. A great deal of space is devoted to the many supervillains faced by Spidey over the decades: the Vulture, Doctor Octopus, the Lizard, Mysterio, Silver Sable, Venom, Carnage, and many more. Also fascinating is the book's coverage of important storylines such as the history of Spider-man's clone.

The book includes a foreword by Spider-Man creator Stan Lee, an index, and a gazetteer that lists the first appearances of many characters. This is a really enjoyable and informative book. The illustrations give the book tremendous visual appeal. DeFalco really gives you a sense of the epic sweep of the Spider-Man mythos--I felt I was getting a comprehensive look at a richly peopled saga that is full of drama, tragedy, and hope.

"Spider-Man: The Ultimate Guide" is a must-have book for all the wall-crawler's fan! It has information about lots of characters and a fantastic spidey's time-line! The illustrations are as good as well, and you can even find information on alternative Spider-Man series, like Spider-Girl, and Spidey 2099. Although the book is very nicely done i still missed more detailed profiles, anyway you will sure not regret for buying this one!

this guide is truly the best spider-man guide in existence. it's like my unauthorized biography. this is a MUST BUY. if you love spidey, you need this book.

This guide was very helpful. I am a big Spidey fan and have been since I was six years old. It has as much information as you ever wanted to know about Spideys enemies and allies. They even go up to Spidey 2099. I was very impressed with this book. I also thought it was neat that Stan Lee even did a foreword in it. If it weren't for him, we would never have this cool superhero or supervillains. Tom Defalco went into a lot of detail about the events and Spideys coool gizmos. The only thing is that they should have included monster Ock from the game. I also thought Shocker deserved to be in this book as well. After all he has made it to one of Spideys deadliest enemies. To all you Spider Man fans out there, you should definitely buy this book !.