How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way

Stan Lee, the Mighty Man from Marvel, and John Buscema, active and adventuresome artist behind the Silver Surfer, Conan the Barbarian, the Mighty Thor and Spider-Man, have collaborated on this comics compendium: an encyclopedia of information for creating your own superhero comic strips. Using artwork from Marvel comics as primary examples, Buscema graphically illustrates the hitherto mysterious methods of comic art. Stan Lee's pithy prose gives able assistance and advice to the apprentice artist. Bursting with Buscema's magnificent illustrations and Lee's laudable word-magic, How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way belongs in the library of every kid who has ever wanted to illustrate his or her own comic strip.

First, I looked through it myself. I was impressed with the way they started you off with the basics, and got progressively harder. One could say "Duh!" to this, but the good point about it is that it gets you into actually drawing the famous Marvel characters relatively early. Like with the second lesson. It also takes you into the world of the things to look out for if you were involved in putting an actual comic book together. So not only do they cover how to do the action figures, it shows how to draw backgrounds to provide prospective, covers the topic of inking, and even has a chapter on drawing covers! So it does cover the entire spectrum.

Second was how the boy took to it. While he has a busy schedule, and while no, he doesn't spend every waking hour with it, when he does he has been known to spend a couple hours per sitting practicing the drawing. Once I got him past the idea that the first one had to be perfect, and that practicing over and over again was what made you a good illustrator, he took to it very well.


Great book for any "wanna-be" comic artist!!!   February 28, 2003
Sauerkid (Texas)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful

Have you ever wanted to learn to draw comics? If you have, this book is the place to start. How to Draw Comics: the Marvel Way teaches A-Z on comic-book drawing, using the Marvel comics style.
The book is written by one of the founders of Marvel comics, Stan Lee, and is illustrated by veteran Marvel artist John Bucema. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who wants to draw comics.
The writer uses many pictures with excellent analysis of each. He writes as if he's talking to you, using a humorous tone. This book would be comprehensible for teens through adults.
The book includes many excellent pictures which make it very comprehensible, and fun to read.
How to Draw Comics: the Marvel Way is an great starting point for any "wanna-be" comic-book artist.


Absolutely Super   July 4, 2005
W. Gullige (Orlando, FL)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful

I'll start off by admitting that this book is a bit on the begginers level. However, the first time I picked up this book was when I was seven. Over the years I kept checking it out of the library over and over just to draw the pictures in the book. I didn't even read it until I bought the book at the age of 16. Any time since then that a person has asked me how they can learn to draw super heroes, I always reference this book. I tell them to skip the reading, draw everything, and then go back to read it, then draw everything after they do that.

It's an easy read and was truely inspirational to me in developing my own style of comic art. One of my top favorite books ever.

-Matt