Rating: 
Summary: Stan and John Create Surface Tension
Review: When this d.v.d. first caught my eye, expectations were high and the price was low. However, when I finished viewing, the price was too much. Stan Lee and John Buscema are two of the greatest comic book creators that have ever lived, but this d.v.d. just isn't good enough to meet their standards. It offers much in the way of comic book jargon, but displays each element of the business very poorly. The main focus of this 'visual' video is a verbal instruction. There is a very limited amount of important hands-on drawing, barely even enough to teach a learning artist anything. I think that "How to Draw Comics the Marvel Way" could have been done a lot better and should offer a great deal more. Unless you are an avid comic book fan, I do not recommend purchasing this d.v.d. And, even if you are, I would give it some serious thought.
Rating: 
Summary: Marvel-ous information, underwhelming presentation.
Review: You too can learn to draw THE MARVEL WAY �.Stan Lee (comic emperor and creator of Spider Man, X-Men, Fantastic Four, Incredible Hulk etc etc) is an extremely condescending and fairly annoying host who insists on explaining how Zeus and the Gods blessed him and Marvel comic book Artists with the unique ability to draw better than anyone else in the universe. So pull up a chair and learn some of the secrets. That's what this DVD is about. If you already know how to draw, but want to learn how to make your drawings more action packed and powerful, this 58 minute DVD tutorial will tell you. It is based on one of the best How To Draw books on the market: How To Draw the Marvel Way and features Stan Lee and artist John Buscema. It was produced in 1988, but it's info-mercial style is very familiar. For the DVD Buscema plays straight man to Stan Lee's incessant bragging and bad pun spouting ways. He is the demonstrator and artist and obviously a very talented guy. Lee seems like a whole lot of hot air but injects all kinds of energy into the program.
We're in a huge room with Stan and John. John sits and draws, Stan can't sit still and is often on his feet over explaining how The Marvel Way does this and blah, blah, blah. There's lots of very helpful close-ups of John drawing, and some very good explanations of various aspects of perspective, composition and design and other aspects of comic book/graphic novel illustrating. There's very little about color or coloring however. I suppose if you stop the DVD and practice the various secrets, tips and techniques you are shown for hours and hours, you might become a much better artist from watching the tape. If you for some reason believe you can watch the DVD once or twice and suddenly become a superb comic book illustrator� well you're dreaming. If you enjoy learning a few 'secrets' of the trade, this DVD has several of those. It's informative, it's entertaining, it's educational, it's annoying. What more do you want? IMAGE AND SOUND The program looks as if it was transferred from a video master that had a few flaws in it. These flaws are minor. It's a very simple low budget production and has the look and sound of a cheap info-mercial. Images are a little bit fuzzy, colors are a bit washed out, the entire image looks flat and over-lit.
The graphics aren't always completely stable, but they are clear and easy to see. The audio on occasion is slightly distorted and hollow, but it's easy to hear. It's in Dolby Mono. Extra Features: This is a bare bones DVD. The 14 Chapter stops are a big help.. there could have been more. Although Stan Lee tries much too hard to be energetic, charming and funny, this DVD is useful to anyone who wants to learn how to make their drawings more dynamic and exciting. There are some useful and interesting drawing techniques discussed and shown in the DVD. To draw like these folks do.. you'll need to do a lot of practice, practice and more practice. Watching this DVD once or twice will not transform you into an artist. Christopher J. Jarmick, is the author of The Glass Cocoon with Serena F. Holder a critically acclaimed, steamy suspense thriller.
Rating:
Summary: Marvel-ous information, underwhelming presentation.
Review: You too can learn to draw THE MARVEL WAY '.Stan Lee (comic emperor and creator of Spider Man, X-Men, Fantastic Four, Incredible Hulk etc etc) is an extremely condescending and fairly annoying host who insists on explaining how Zeus and the Gods blessed him and Marvel comic book Artists with the unique ability to draw better than anyone else in the universe. So pull up a chair and learn some of the secrets. That's what this DVD is about. If you already know how to draw, but want to learn how to make your drawings more action packed and powerful, this 58 minute DVD tutorial will tell you. It is based on one of the best How To Draw books on the market: How To Draw the Marvel Way and features Stan Lee and artist John Buscema. It was produced in 1988, but it's info-mercial style is very familiar. For the DVD Buscema plays straight man to Stan Lee's incessant bragging and bad pun spouting ways. He is the demonstrator and artist and obviously a very talented guy. Lee seems like a whole lot of hot air but injects all kinds of energy into the program.
We're in a huge room with Stan and John. John sits and draws, Stan can't sit still and is often on his feet over explaining how The Marvel Way does this and blah, blah, blah. There's lots of very helpful close-ups of John drawing, and some very good explanations of various aspects of perspective, composition and design and other aspects of comic book/graphic novel illustrating. There's very little about color or coloring however. I suppose if you stop the DVD and practice the various secrets, tips and techniques you are shown for hours and hours, you might become a much better artist from watching the tape. If you for some reason believe you can watch the DVD once or twice and suddenly become a superb comic book illustrator' well you're dreaming. If you enjoy learning a few 'secrets' of the trade, this DVD has several of those. It's informative, it's entertaining, it's educational, it's annoying. What more do you want? IMAGE AND SOUND The program looks as if it was transferred from a video master that had a few flaws in it. These flaws are minor. It's a very simple low budget production and has the look and sound of a cheap info-mercial. Images are a little bit fuzzy, colors are a bit washed out, the entire image looks flat and over-lit.
The graphics aren't always completely stable, but they are clear and easy to see. The audio on occasion is slightly distorted and hollow, but it's easy to hear. It's in Dolby Mono. Extra Features: This is a bare bones DVD. The 14 Chapter stops are a big help.. there could have been more. Although Stan Lee tries much too hard to be energetic, charming and funny, this DVD is useful to anyone who wants to learn how to make their drawings more dynamic and exciting. There are some useful and interesting drawing techniques discussed and shown in the DVD. To draw like these folks do.. you'll need to do a lot of practice, practice and more practice. Watching this DVD once or twice will not transform you into an artist. Christopher J. Jarmick, is the author of The Glass Cocoon with Serena F. Holder a critically acclaimed, steamy suspense thriller.
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