Customer Reviews

Black Superheroes, Milestone Comics, and Their Fans (Studies in Popular Culture)

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

 

 

I'm not really here for a review, I just wanted to correct a misperception in the previous review. All of the Milestone founders were interviewed at length for this book. We're quoted from those interviews in the text.

That said, I do think it's a very good book, right on the money as far as his core "images of masculinity" thesis. I disagree with how he presents the history of Milestone's "feud" with another publisher. But even there his position is defensible from the facts as he knows them.

I think if you're interested in comics fandom, issues of racial representation or even just like the Milestone characters, this book is well worth reading.

Of course, I'm biased...

Jeffrey A. Brown's work is important, however his conclusions are perhaps a little overblown. His impression on how important Milestone was to both comic fans and in its influence is a little overstated. Milestone, upon the date of this work's publication, had been defunct for several years. While it's been about six months since I last looked at Brown's work, I don't believe he mentions this fact once. His last chapter on gender is important but doesn't necessarily fit as neatly into the work as I would like. However, the work in this chapter is very good. Perhaps it would have been better served as an article or the basis for another book.

I really appreciate the amount of time the author put into writing this book. He did an excellent job discussing comic books in great detail. But he also acknowledged the other media formats and sociological factors that influence comic books and readers. I also appreciated his honesty. It appears that he did his best to let us know where the validity of his study could be called into question because of the circumstances that happen while trying to conduct this type of study. This book also introduces the reader to multiple other sources of research and media that someone picking up this book would be interested in learning more about. This book is for comic book fans of all races and ages. Yes, it's definitely an academic book but it's also a book for very serious fans of popular media. I also highly recommend it to mothers and fathers of young children.

The history of the black superheroes in the 90s. An amazing book to understand africanamerican heroes' role in the modern comics.

I had high hopes for this book, but was let down. The book is an academic work and is a boring read. It does not provide any real insight into the forming of Milestone Media. The author relies on other sources instead of actual interviews with the founders of the company. The author draws many conclusions based on his visits to comic conventions, stores, and interviews with fans.