75 Years of DC Comics. The Art of Modern Mythmaking Hardcover – April 3, 2017

There were two things that held me back from preordering this book. First was the price and the second larger reason was the unbelievable size. Perhaps the most stunning statistic is the colossal weight that checks in at an astounding SIXTEEN pounds. I read somewhere that the average weight of a comic book is 2 ounces which would mean this book is the weight of 128 comics (well over a decade of Action Comics) and trust me I don't doubt it. The storage for this monstrosity is not inconsequential and definitely factored into my thinking. Someone once said this isn't a coffee table book it's a coffee table. The largest comic related material I ever bought was the recent Wednesday Comics but that one pales in comparison to this leviathan. I suppose you could just lay it on the floor and read it on your stomach or seated Indian style but I fear for the spine of this very expensive book (although I suspect the book would handle it fine). I ended up sitting it next to me on the couch with the front cover resting on my right leg and the back cover propped up with pillows. With no intent towards exaggeration you will serious need a certain level of strength to read this book and I wouldn't recommend giving this as a gift to a small child.What changed my mind about getting this book was this thought. How often can you own the best of anything? I can't afford the best watch ever made or the best car or the best pair of shoes but I can afford arguably the best book ever devoted to the history of DC Comics. The Art of Modern Mythmaking is 720 pages of glossy, heavy stock paper (hence the unbelievable weight) featuring thousands of images of comics from slightly prior to the existence of National Publications (DC Comics) up until today. The book generally features one full page spread of a comic cover or inside page and then a series of three or four smaller images on the opposite page. Each image will have a small paragraph of associated text listing the artist and some tidbits of related comic information. Interspersed throughout the book is the history of comics (with focus on DC) written by Paul Levitz. The book includes all DC history not just superheroes and even includes any publishers bought up by DC including Charlton, Fawcett and EC. Don't expect to see much at all on Marvel Comics.So let me talk about the elephant in the room, the final worry I had about this book. Comic books are, by there very nature, printed to be disposable. The philosophy has generally been quantity over quality. Through much of its history comic books were printed on cheap quality paper with all sorts of errors in color separation with a paper stock so thin you could often see the image on the opposite side of the page bleed through. The goal was to keep the cost low so children could afford it and they could sell hundreds of thousands. Reproducing these images on high quality paper with the latest printing and photo technology is not going to magically turn them into high quality images. That's just a fact. The images from the 1940's with Action Comic covers from legends like Wayne Boring are awesome. The artists used a very clean bold style that holds up well but a lot of the art from the late 60's, 70's and 80's are pretty messy and lacking in charm. The 70's and 80's were when I was collecting but I actually don't hold much nostalgia for that era (up until the mid 80's when DC produced some of the best comics of all time) leading into the disastrous 90's. The clean, simplistic art of Curt Swan and CC. Beck lent themselves well to the printing limitations of their era and current artists like J.H. Williams III or Frank Quitely benefit from modern technology and higher grade paper but when I look at art from say Neil Adams on Green Lantern or George Perez when he worked on the Teen Titans it looks very messy and it all comes down to the printing not being up to the task of presenting the more complex art. There is nothing Taschen can do but reproduce the art as is and often times blowing it up only magnifies the printing limitations. That is not to diminish what Taschen has done which is produce the most accurate, most stunning book of comic book images ever. You really do feel like you are holding the physical embodiment of DC Comics and I loved some of the black and white images from newsstands in the 40's stocked with More Fun Comics and All-Star Comics and Action Comics. For me the earlier images in the book really sold it for me.The book comes in a protective cardboard case from Taschen which unfortunately came with more than a few dents (thanks Amazon) and it even appears someone used it to write something on. I was disappointed because I consider this an awesome collectable but at least the book itself was protected. I wouldn't be surprised if years from now this book is looked back on as the de facto book on DC Comics history and perhaps THE premium comic history book (I'm also sure that a book with a mint condition cardboard case will be worth considerably more). Despite the massive weight and sometimes less than gorgeous source material I would consider this a must have for comic book fans if you have the cash to spend. This is one I will probably treasure for years to come although pulling this behemoth off a bookshelf for some casual reading might take a few minutes of limbering up lest I throw my back out. More often than not when I buy a high ticket item I tend to have at least a twinge of buyers remorse but in this case after more than a week I haven't for even a second regretted my purchase.

Over the past several decades, my bookshelf has filled up with publications that cover the long history of the Comic Book and the big two publishers. This newest tribute to the history of DC Comics, '75 Years of DC Comics: The Art of Modern Mythmaking', quite literally, crushes them all. It will also crush your lap and test your strength if you try to hold it up to read it! This tomb is MASSIVE! Nearly sixteen inches tall, 12 inches wide, 3 inches thick and weighs a metric ton! Well, perhaps not quite that much but it will feel like it after holding it for a short period of time!The hardcover comes shrink-wrapped in a sturdy cardboard slipcase, matching the artwork on the wraparound cover. The box even conveniently comes with a side handle. Although you will need both hands to carry this monster around.Yes, this is a very pricey book. As one who has a collection of like publications, I can assure you this book is worth every penny. Inside, the rarity of images and artwork along with the high production values, the quality of the print and page stock is well above the norm. For example, for each era of comic history (The Golden Age, Silver Age, Bronze Age, etc), that chapter begins with a two page spread highlighting the name of the era with thick, high gloss, corresponding color foil pages. Each era also includes a four page, pull-open timeline highlighting key events in both the fictional DC Comic universe and the real world of the comic book industry.The author, Paul Levitz, a man who has spent his entire adult life working for the company, first as a young freelance writer in the 1970s, then later as publisher until 2010, was the right choice to chronicle this retrospective. If he had not seen it all, he certainly heard it all. I really enjoy how the text, the ongoing historical telling throughout the book is laid out for the reader...a grand intro for each era then as one or two paragraph antidotes accompanying the images or photos. For example, here's a cover of a very significant Green Lantern issue in the 1970s and why it is so considered, while next to it will be a short bio and tribute to a particular creator who worked on said issue. In fact, the creator tributes in this book are part of the true joys of reading through DC's history. That list is long and deep and for once a book of this kind goes to great lengths to credit more than just the typical top 20 or so names from the company's storied past. Beyond the names most adult fans of the genre already know about (The Bob Kanes, Jack Kirbys and Carmine Infantinoes) we find tributes to writers and artists less well known but just as important to the success of DC Comics and the Comic Book industry in general over the decades (Will Eisner, Sheldon Mayer, Jack Cole, Mort Weisinger, Curt Swan, Wally Wood, Gil Kane, Bernie Wrightson, Alex Toth), including many of the modern era's top talent (Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman, Marv Wolfman, George Perez, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, Mike Grell, Frank Miller, Bruce Timm, Alex Ross, Darwyn Cooke, Jim Lee, Geoff Johns) . The list of reference is long!Running the business of DC Comics over the decades covers territory far beyond the comic book itself. Inside you will also find just as many rare images and stories about DC characters in TV, film, animation, toys and games, parades, commercials, stage productions and many other forms of marketing in the past 75 years.This hardcover clearly cost a pretty penny to produce and import. As a tip for any fan on the fence about pulling the trigger on this big purchase...I would not bet this edition will be available for a any significant amount of time. Once it is sold out, it is very likely to become a collectible prize and rise in value. Amazon's introductory price is a bargain. In fact I would say Amazon is losing money on the shipping cost of this book alone.Yep, highly recommended, but you will need to get creative on finding shelf space for this thing! I will add personal photos of the book to help give a better look at its inner awesomeness.

Produto excelente, entregue em tempo previamente agendado!

En cuanto al producto he de decir que es una edición de coleccionista imprescindible para todos los amantes del cómic. Sobre el envío del distribuidor añado en que me llegó en mal estado desde almacén a pesar de lo bien protegido que venia, al tratarse de un regalo decidí sustituirlo por otro... que también me llegó mal, aunque no tanto como el primero. Tened en cuenta el distribuidor antes de realizar la compra, pues este tipo de libros es para que estén en perfecto estado.

This isn't really a review of the book per se, which we all know it excellent, colourful, wonderfully over the top; etc. But this is some good advice for folks who want to own a copy without having to sell their first born; please read on...I was pretty devastated when I basically realized that I had missed the boat on this book and that the only way I was going to own it was to shell out double the cover price to pick up a copy... or was I? I was searching for a deal on Amazon (both the .ca and .com domains) when I stumbled on a French edition that was still at the original cover price (or perhaps just slightly less if you were to figure the Canadian exchange rate...). Pity it's not in English, I said to myself. Then I began to wonder, however, whether Taschen would really print such a massive tome in three languages (English, French and German... perhaps Italian as well?).The simple explanation is that the foreign editions were merely the full English book with a small, separate translation supplement in German or French. I was able to pick up a German copy for less than half what the English copies were going for... there is NO DIFFERENCE in the massive 750 primary book; there is simply a smaller German translation of the text included inside the box... there is NO other difference whatsoever. By the time you read this, it may be that the foreign editions have also been pumped up far past double list price, but rest assured if you were to order one, you will be getting exactly what the hucksters are selling for $400-600+.

Ich bin total begeistert von diesem Buch. Das Äußere beeindruckt. Das Format des Buches, aber auch die Qualität der Bindung und des Papiers überzeugen.Inhaltlich ist das Buch ebenfalls top. Es ist kein trockener Abriss der Geschichte eines Comicverlages, sondern ein fundierter kulturwissenschaftlicher Rückblick auf ein Genre, das über Jahrzehnte Höhen und Tiefen durchlebt hat. Dabei steht nie der Text, sondern immer die Kunst im Mittelpunkt. Ganzseitige Covers und Seiten aus dem Innenleben von Comicraritäten werden dem Leser geboten.Das Buch ist in "Ages", also in grobe Zeitepochen gegliedert. Innerhalb der Epochen wird dann thematisch vorgegangen. Da gibt es eine Doppelseite zu Comicverbrennungen in den 40er-Jahren, zu Moulton-Marston und seiner Intention hinter der Erfindung von Wonder Woman, aber auch Doppelseiten, die unbekanntere Comicserien vorstellen: Funnies oder Romantic Comics.Obwohl ich mich für Comics interessiere, habe ich viel Neues erfahren, denn der Autor, Levitz, ist ein Insider. Auch wenn also die zahlreichen Bilder in "75 years of DC Comics" verzaubern und einem zu schnellem Umblättern verleiten mögen, empfehle ich wärmstens, sich die Zeit zu nehmen, um die Texte zu lesen.Uneingeschränkte Empfehlung!

ecco una breve recensione del libro(ne) "75 years of dc comics: the art of the modern mythmaking"Confezione:Scatola esterna di cartone di pregevole fattura e bellezza. Sul fronte troviamo l'immagine di Superman che viene dipinto su un muro da due persone.sui fianchi i personaggi più conosciuti dell'universo DC come Batman, Flash, Green Lantern, ecc...Sul retro un'immmagine "vintage" raffigurante Batman, presa da Detective Comics n°31.Libro:Sul libro in se c'è ben poco da dire... è assolutamente magnifico !!!Più di 700 pagine, a colori, di una qualità superba. Ogni "era" (come la golden age,silver,ecc...) è rappresentata da un disegno che occupa due facciate ed ha un effetto lucido !Immagini:Di qualità superlativa ! Per darvi un idea di quanto grandi siano, dovreste usare almeno 4 custodie per dvd circa (2 sopra e 2 sotto) per occupare una facciata !Delle chicche vere e proprie le immagini di detective comics n°27 e di action comics n°1 !!!Commento finale:Questo librone è un must-have per ogni appassionato di fumetti !!!Un pezzo da collezione unico, per contenuti e qualità, che farà la gioia di noi collezionisti.Compratelo subito !!!Voto finale: 10 su 10Attendiamo il centenario,cara DC Comics, nella speranza di trovare altrettanti contenuti assolutamente fantastici :DMi hai accompagnato nella mia infanzia, e lo stai facendo tutt'ora !Grazie di tutto !