Cartoons Books

I have finally gotten used to this new format that Jim Davis started using with the previous Garfield book. As usual, Jim doesn't disappoint me with Garfield's antics. Poor Jon and Odie are Garfield's usual targets, and spiders too. I love the moments in the book when Garfield is busy squishing spiders. Those have become some of the funniest moments for Garfield. And I was laughing pretty hard when Jon hits his thumb with the hammer and he yells out "mommy!" and tries to retract that statement by saying "ouch!" but Garfield replies with "too late". Another favorite moment is when Garfield and Jon tries to outdo each other by eating the hottest peppers there are. Classic Garfield. And as usual, Jon has trouble getting a date or one that can fit through the doorway of his house. I may be 27 years old but I will never outgrow Garfield. This is one cool cat that should never change.

The title says it all. This is the most hilarious book I`ve read so far! If there wasn`t a maximum of 5 stars I`d rate this comic more than that! One of my favorites is when Odie types. Then, the computer says, "Your order has been processed. Thank you." Then, Jon walks over and says, "www.dingleball.com?" This is DEFINITELY one of your better Garfield books! The sooner you get it, the sooner you`ll have the laughter of your life!

Contains all the daily and Sunday strips April 9, 2000 through November 4, 2000.

I have loved Garfield since I started reading about him, and I'm always after the next one. If I was to say my favorite comic in this book, it would probably be the one where Jon says, "YAH" and Garfield says, "Paper cut", then Jon says, "YAAH", and Garfield says, "Envelope Cut", then Jon says, "YAAAAAAAAAAAH", or something, (I can't remember how many "A"'s in that "YAH"). Then Garfield says, "And that would be the stamp cut", and smiles. However, another favorite of mine in this book is when Jon gets a paper cut on his tongue and Garfield offers a potato chip. You know what happens then, Jon says, "NYAH GAH NYAH NYAH GAAAAH GAH GAH NYAH" (or something like that) because Garfield remembers how to make "Fun with salt". This is definitely a must-own for any Garfield lover.

This book is awesome, as usual. Jim Davis has come through with another excellent collection of Garfield comics, and the new, larger, color format is much more fun to read! Garfield and Odie's antics will keep you laughing from cover to cover. This book is a must read for any Garfield fanatic.

This is, by far, the best garfield book I've ever read. It includes the best vacation sequence, the Garfield vs Air and Plumbing systems sequence and the third "Oh no! My stomach has outgrown my legs!" sequence. Very good jokes, fern pulverizations and dietry yuks. Pure Garfield down to the last panel.

What else is there to say about Garfield that I haven't already said before? Garfield is the inner cat in us. He says things that we all wish we want to say but can't. He also does things that we wish we could do but can't. Garfield is probably the one cat I wouldn't mind owning although it would probably be a costly living expense having to feed him non-stop of lasagna and pizza. I love going through all my Garfield books, especially the early books when there were no spider jokes and Lyman was still around. Like in all of the books, "Garfield Loses His Feet" is peppered with sarcasm, diets, dog kicking, and farm jokes. One of my favorite moments in the book is when Garfield imagines himself married to his girlfriend Arlene. I loved it when Garfield pretends to be Amoeba Man and walks around the house wearing hear blanket. I had to laugh out loud when Garfield attempts to lay down on a hammock but because he so fat, he ends up sinking to the ground in the hammock. The time Garfield literally eats so much that his stomach outgrows his feet was priceless. My all time favorite moment in the book has to be when Nermal comes to visit. I love seeing Garfield and Nermal match wits. There are so many hilarious moments in the book it is really hard to pick a favorite strip.

The mid 1980's was the highest point for the Garfield comic strip. The jokes were still fresh and funny and so was the artwork. One of the high points of this collection is when Garfield eats so much that he can no longer walk and spends most of the time laying on his belly. I recommend this book out of all of the books in the series.

Garfield is funnier,meaner,better than ever in this book and you would realy like this book.

Everybody out there keep buying Garfield books! They can be worth a lot of money someday and can become collector's items! I'm always going to keep all of mine so when I have kids they can read them!

This is a charming and humorous book. It recalls humor from another perhaps less complicated era. Worthwhile.

This is by far my favorite collection of Ward's pinup art. From the gorgeous cover art and dust jacket to the high quality, glossy pages, this tops the other books available. Those of us lucky enough to have bought this rather limited release possess one of the best collections of pinup art from an undisputed master available.

I bought this book back in 2003 when it was freshly in print and it was, h'mmmm, $28.95 list (just checked the dust jacket). The $159 I referred to is what Amazon Marketplace dealers are asking for it as of late April 2007 - and that's the _least_ expensive price. Take it from me, though; this book is well worth the cost (and if you keep it in good condition, you'll find it appreciating further!) The first part of the book is given over to a comprehensive overview of Ward's life and career, with many illustrations (mostly in color). The heart of this volume, though, is the 130-some full-page reproductions, in B&W and sepia, of Ward's best cartoons featuring his sexy and elegant beauties from what I consider to be his finest body of work in the 1950's and 1960's. The theme-oriented chapters have headings such as "Phone Girls Part 1", "The Mating Game", "Working Girls", "Husbands and Wives", and all provide a splendid overview of Ward's unique "conte" drawing style and his fascination with the accouterments of feminine dress such as high heels, seamed stockings, figure-hugging dresses and gowns, picture hats and opera-length gloves. Compare and contrast with Taschen's new _The Wonderful World of Bill Ward_, which I will also be reviewing in the near future. Highly recommended, particularly in the hardback version (if you can afford it!!)

I don't think Bill Ward sits easily with what are generally considered pin-up artists like Elvgren, Petty, Vargas and the few dozen others who created the genre over the last seventy years but his huge output from 1950 to 1975 (which is the basis of this handsome book) means his work has to be considered.

Examples of Ward's comic art, shown in several color covers (Love Diary, Love Confessions, Love Scandals, Heart Throbs, Flaming Love and Torchy) clearly show how good a draughtsman he was but the clean-up of the market in the early fifties meant he had to find another publications to work for. Abe Goodman's Humorama titles solved the problem. These were cheaply-printed digest size magazines full of bad jokes, cheesecake photos and girlie cartoons. The author Alex Chun says Ward produced thirty cartoons a month for Humorama titles and over twenty-fives years probably drew an amazing 9,000 pin-ups.

Ward's Humorama art was probably the only reason anyone bought these tacky publications. Because he had to produce so much work quickly he developed his own unique style of using Conte crayon to draw pin-ups. This had the advantage of showing tonal quality almost like an airbrush and when the originals (up to eighteen by twenty-four inches) were reduced to the digest size pages they looked impressively slick.

There are 117 whole page Ward pin-ups, all from his Humorama period, in this book. The majority are printed in four-color sepia with white highlights (the front of the book has an essay and examples of his early comic and color pin-up work) and the sexually suggestive, exaggerated females with their black stockings, filmy negligees, skin-tight dresses, coiffure hair and impossibly high stilettos leap of the page. If you are interested in this little corner of American male pop culture I doubt there will be a better book of Bill Ward's voluptuous art.

***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.

This is a great book for fans of Bill Ward's pin-up art and features numerous full-page illustrations of his distinctive beauties. Most of the pin-ups are black and white Conte crayon drawings done on a beige colored paper. There are a few color pin-ups shown as well. The beginning of the book contains a concise biography of Ward along with samples of his comic-book art. There are several nice romance covers shown here. The book is printed on quality paper and the pin-ups shown at a nice size. This is an A+ effort. The only thing you could have asked for is more art, but at around 100 pin-ups this is a great tribute to Bill Ward.

One of the best manga's of all time. Gon is loved greatly by children and many adults in Japan and has recently come to America! This is a great buy and I suggest looking into the entire series. I have been an anime/manga fan for 9years now, and I can confidently say you won't be disappointed with this buy.

This is the book that introduced Gon - world's last dinosaur, one foot tall midget tyrannosaur, alternately playful and cuddly or as ferocious as an enraged Hulk when need be - to North American audiences. Featuring a different artistic style (especially in the first story, "Gon Eats And Sleeps") than the later Gon volumes but no less phenomenal. In the back of the book are photorealistic drawings of the real-life species depicted in the three tales - so photorealistic, in fact, that at first I thought they were actual black-and-white photographs. That's how great the art is.

"Gon Eats And Sleeps" is possibly the most essential tale in understanding this enigmatic little dinosaur. Readers who start with a subsequent volume may well ask themselves 'why does he keep tormenting that poor bear so?' In this tale we see the beginning of the rivalry between these two titans, a rivalry it seems the Bear is always destined to come up with the short end of the stick on. Basically, Gon takes great umbrage when a large grizzly bear chases a smaller one off a catch of fish the smaller bear has caught. And thus the lifelong animosity begins, an animosity that notably doesn't extend to other bears, just this one, 'The Bear'.

It isn't always spelled out as clearly in subsequent volumes, but when Gon goes on the offensive against The bear or some other creature, it seems obvious there is some past transgression (usually directed against one of Gon's small, defenceless animal friends, it seems)that has sparked the blood feud. Ferocious but valiant, Gon marches through life enjoying the world and defending the weak with his own sense of justice, and while I don't feel the little guy is sadistic or mean he sure can be an intimdating force. As I noted in doing a writeup on "Gon Color Spectacular" Gon never kills his foes and they seldom are worse off than a few bruises and scratches; too much serious carnage would definately ruin the charm and tone of the series.

The second tale, "Gon Learns To Fly" is one of the most hilarious tales in the Gon pantheon and simply has to be seen to be believed. Words cannot do this an adequate description, but talk about refusing to admit defeat! And in "Gon Glares" - which certainly boasts some of the most, er, unique visual imagery ever captured on paper through either pen or photo, we see that even in defending his circle of friends Gon is not without compassion for his predatory adversaries. A perfect ending to a perfect book; a perfect start to a whole series of unforgettable Gon adventures!

You. Yes, you. Get this book. This is the first release from Masashi Tanaka and what a release it is ! It is simply the best artwork I have ever seen in comic books, or anywhere else for that matter. Small and fierce Gon kicks butt!

For those of you that liked jurassic park, Bambi and 101 dalmations, but hate Barney, Gon is for you. Gon is a VERY small dinosaur from a bygone age, he has no problems being the last dinosaur, and seems to enjoy the arrogance of his seeming indestructability. He is a staunch defender of the downtrodden and the helpless, as well as his lunch. The art is fantastic, the stories (no words) flow well and are completely enjoyable

Gon is, by and far, an enjoyable journey through the greatly unexplored world of nature and is introduced to us in the most unlikely of ways. Here, amidst an untamed world, we meet the most unlikely of travelers, that of a two-foot-tall unstoppable force that just happens to be one of the cutest/aggressive characters ever to grace a storyline, as he looks for fun, adventure, and something to eat. This book is where the adventures of Gon, the adorable dinosaur with a voracious appetite for exploration/competetion, begins, introduced to us in short story forums. We join Masashi Tanaka as he relays this through silent adventure after silent adventure, speaking wheels through expressions and a flurry of emotive responses instead of simple spurts of meaningless dialog.

Here, Gon first battles and then humiliates an otherwise gargantuan bear that otherwise seems to dominate the wilderness, ends up flying with the aid of a few eagles after a strange little adventure in feeding/protecting some little ones, torments a dingo looking for some easy pickings, fights alongside some wolf cubs he seems somewhat attracted to, lives amongst the penguins, and builds himself a mansion that makes even the beavers enviously agitated.

If you've never had the opportunity to check this out, I would recommend it highly. The art style, the character itself, and the fact that I've never found myself bored throughout five books filled with him, says that Gon is a force to be reckoned with.

I love this book and highly recommend it to anyone who likes chocolate even a little. I also always had a hard time melting chocolate, but the techniques for melting chocolate in the front of the book are great. The comics are funny too.

This book is as light and satisfying as milk chocolate melting in your mouth. I highly recommend it.

This book is funny and has great recipes. I've tried about half of them so far and can hardly wait to eat my way through the second half!

This is a great book. When you first look at it, you think it is just recipes, but when you actually read it there are lots of little "heavenly humors" and interesting facts about chocolate scattered throughout the book making it even more intriguing to continue reading. After reading only the first few pages I was craving chocolate! It's very creative and anyone who likes chocolate at the least bit needs to read this book! All my sorority sisters in TEXAS at UT love chocolate. Im going to give one to our cook and tell her to try everyone!!!

After reading this book i find there are so many more options to incorporate chocolate into my daily diet. This is not only fun but is informative with great ideas for recipes.... can't wait for the second edition.... !!!

I LIKED THIS BOOK - I ORDERED IT FOR MY SEVEN YEAR OLD AND READ IT TO HIM. THE CARTOON FORMAT IS FUN AND THE TEXT IS TRUE TO THE ORIGINAL MYTHS. SOME OF THE HUMOUR WAS OVER HIS HEAD, BUT IF YOU STICK TO THE TEXT AND LEAVE OUT THE DIALOGUE "BUBBLES" THE STORIES ARE WELL TOLD.

My daughter is 10, and loves this book. Her Grandmother gave it to her when she was about 5. She reads it with her Grandmother whenever possible. I notice it has helped with her reading a great deal. She will "act" out the characters while they read and gets very into the stories. Her favorite is Pandora's Box. The stories are a great educational tool, she is learning lessons and doesn't even realize it. She will ask questions and want to know more about different subjects brought up in the stories.
I recommend this book highly!

Does your child look at you blankly when you mention "Pandora's Box"? Do they think that "Hercules" is a Disney-originated character? Even the most stubborn young reader will get a kick out of this comic book version of some of the Greek myths, and you will too when you read the hilarious little speech boxes of the cartoon drawings.

This book introduces the following myths in a very basic bare-bones format, but without sparing the gory bits:

Pandora's Box - starring Prometheus, Zeus, Epimetheus and Pandora

Arion and the Dolphins - starring Periander and Arion, with a cast of a couple dozen extras and some dolphins

Orpheus and Eurydice - otherwise known as "Don't Look Back", featuring Orpheus and Eurydice of course, plus Charon, Cerberus, Pluto and Persephone

The Twelve tasks of Heracles (also known as Hercules) - this story also has Hera, Eurystheus, some Amazons, and a lot of beasts and monsters. Some animals were reportedly injured during the making of this story.

Daedalus and Icarus - also with Athene and King Minos

Perseus and the Gorgon's Head - Acrisius, Danae, Perseus, Dictys, Polydectes, Athene, Hermes, plus the all-girl groups of Gorgons, Grey Ones and Ocean Nymphs.

Theseus and the Minotaur - King Minos, Theseus, Aegeus, Ariadne, and a Minotaur in a labyrinth

Arachne versus Athene - A weave-off to end all weave-offs

Illustrated in vivid color and injected with humor, this book may not have all the myths, but will be enough to develop your child's interest in mythology. You can also make a note to try the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series (young adult fiction), which also introduces Greek mythology.



Amanda Richards, July 2, 2006

This book was very funny. I liked the comic strips. My favorite story was the one about Perseus and the Gorgon head. My five year old sister loved this book too. Her favorite story was the one about Arachne.

When I first saw this book, before giving it to my son, I didn't think he would care for the format of it. Boy, was I wrong. I guess 5 year old boys have different tastes than their moms. We had to read this every night for months! Some of the comic strips are kind of gross, but of course, he loved that too. If your child is interested in Hercules, he or she will probably LOVE learning about all the other heroes (and villains) in Greek mythology. I highly recommend this book.

The Golden Age of American Illustration ran from the 1880's to the years immediately following the First World War. It was a highly creative period that produced such notable artists as N.C. Wyeth, Howard Pyle and Frank Schnoover. This was the skilled artistic millieu in which Hal Foster began his career as a commercial illustrator.

Foster would have probably remained a talented but obscure illustrator if the Great Depression had not begun. In need of work, Foster began as illustrator for the Tarzan adventure strip. The comic strip became very successful but Foster did not receive the monetary compensation that he believed he deserved. In 1937, Hal Foster launched his own adventure strip, "Prince Valiant in the Days of King Arthur". Within a few years of the birth of Prince Valiant, Superman, Batman, and Flash Gordon were all created and the Golden Age of Comics books moved into full swing.

Although Prince Valiant never became as iconic as Batman or Superman, there can be little doubt that Hal Foster was the greatest technical artist of that period. For the nearly forty years that he produced Prince Valiant, Hal Foster was the master of composition, perspective and figurative detail.

Brian Kane's biography is filled with many unpublished sketches and color paintings. Having received the full cooperation of the Foster family, Kane also received access to unpublished letters which give many insights into Foster's character and creative process. I hesitate in giving this work five stars because this book is more of fan appreciation than it is a serious biography. Nevertheless, if you are a fan of Prince Valiant or the Golden Age of Comics, this book is a must purchase.

Brian Kane has a lot going for him to begin with; the cooperation of Hal Fosters grandchildren and extraordinary access to the Foster family and private papers; but without a sensible recognition of the importance of the sequence of events which lead to the assignment of Hal Foster onto the TARZAN strip, and the eventual culmination of Fosters aspiration to produce his own strip, the storytelling and illustration masterwork PRINCE VALIANT, this pedigree could have been lost or mislaid.
However the pedigree is not lost; this books remains a standard for anyone attempting to pay due homage to a historic artist, a master of his media, and a disciplined Professional who won awards within and outside of his field as a matter of course.
And one doesn't necessarily need to be a firm fan of Popular Culture to see, on the page, the initial artworks provided through family archives, but watch the commercial illustrator become the accomplished storyteller cartoonist/illustrator to the craftsman who transcends his adopted field.
A power read, yet eyefuls of narrative,illustrative, and evocative draughtsmanship which will allow anyone owning it to want to revisit this book as anyone reading the Sunday Funnies has revisited the two classics which Foster brought to pinnacles of powerful evocation : TARZAN and PRINCE VALIANT.
An affectionate and heartful reccommendation by a long time and familiar fan of Hal Foster; impossible to imagine anyone could have completed the task with more vigor and commitment and completedness.

I hope today's fans of comics and sequential art familiarize themselves with Foster's work. He is quite simply the greatest illustrator of the second half of the 20th century. Some fans of Frank Frazetta may disagree, and I love Frazetta's work too. But Foster's innate storytelling sense and incredible draftsmanship leaves the reader in awe. And what a body of work.......it's truly amazing he could maintain such a high level of craft on Prince Valiant decade after decade. Do not miss this book!

This is an excellent book. Best known for Prince Valiant, Hal Foster brought his creativity to many other areas. He not only developed his illustrative skills but understood story flow and had a great command of writing. The work he produced only confirms the mastery and artistry he wielded . His paintings, cover work, personal sketches, and Tarzan work will bring you pleasure even if you aren't a Prince Valiant reader. The writing is informative and clean, providing a very enjoyable read. Remembrances by other artists are a nice bonus. I highly recommend this retrospective of one of the classics.

Hal Foster is the Master of Cartoon Art, without peer, without equal, he is simply extraordinary. Little is known of his life--until now. Thanks so much for bringing us this book! Many terrific anecdotes, in depth stories of his life and influences and work habits. I have never seen many of the illustrations included here. A truly terrific book! Very handsome in every respect. I was delighted by this purchase.

This is a great collection! I have a big pile of Hot Stuff comics, but had never seen many of these stories. We need a lot more than just one volume for each Harvey character though--these stories deserve the kind of extensive treatment that other classic comics have been receiving.
At the same time, a complete reprinting of Harvey comics would be problematic. Harvey churned out heaps of comics in the 50's-70's, and it was a VERY mixed bag in terms of quality. Some of the work was at least as good as any other children's comics, including those by Carl Barks; some of it was boring, badly-drawn filler. They also constantly reprinted stories throughout their titles without notation, making it difficult to determine when they originally appeared. Additionally, during their last five years or so, there was a general decline in quality even in work from their best artists.
Some determined editor with good judgment would have to sift through a tremendous amount of work and separate the good stuff... a big project, but worthwhile.

I love Hot Stuff because the character designs are so appealing, and the stories are so goofy, like a child's daydreams. The printing is superb-- the black-and-white (about 75% of the book) is taken either from original artwork or excellent, clear stats and the color stories are photographed directly from the printed comics page rather than re-colored from B&W line art-- technology must have improved since the blurry-looking work of past re-prints like "L'il Abner-- the Frazetta Years" or the garish, imbalanced tonality of most Marvel titles.

Hot Stuff is my favorite Harvey character because he's kind of scrappy, like an ornery little kid. I found him sexy when I was small, walking around in a diaper and taking no guff from anyone.

Mark,..you are NOT biased! This is great stuff! Hot Stuff to be exact!!!
I loved the Casper and Richie Rich book too!!! The old Harvey comics were so under-valued and under-appreciated and THAT was a crime! The BEAUTIFUL artwork, line work and storytelling is so compelling and charming that it's easy to get enveloped into the world of Harveytoons as you read each panel!!!!

I only wish more was written about the artists, their thoughts, their notes and the stories behind the stories within the walls of the Harvey studio!!!
Great series here!!!!

Todd

As a kid, Hot Stuff was my favorite Harvey comic (my sister's was Wendy, although we both also read Casper). So when Amazon announced the Ultimate Hot Stuff collection as a companion to the Ultimate Casper, I quickly advance ordered it. Unlike the Casper comics, however, the Little Devil never made the cut. Imagine my joy when Dark Horse, which seems to be saving everything classic, slipped out this mammoth volume. Dark Horse, you'll recall, also has been reprinting the Little Lulu comics in black and white collections, the exception being a dazzling full color edition called Color Special. Lulu fans will recall that when Gladstone/ Another Rainbow created the Little Lulu Library of oversize, slip-cased hardbacks, that beautifully done series was also black and white line drawings in the interior, with color covers of the various comics.

I'd ideally like to see Dark Horse reprint all the Hot Stuff comics in color, but reprint is a misleading word here, as is explained in the extensive lead ins by three comics and cartoons conoisseurs, Leslie Cabarga, editor, Jerry Beck, who wrote the intro, and Mark Arnold, who wrote the Foreword. Cabarga is a long time animation expert, who authored The Fleischer Story, among other volumes. I first read Jerry Beck as the co- author of a guide to Loony Tunes, but he's also behind the recent books on both Hanna- Barbera and Nicktoons, and is now nearly as omnipresent as Leonard Maltin. Mark Arnold edited the Harveyville Fun Times newsletter of all things Harvey[...].

What they explain is that the 110 stories in this volume are reproduced from prisitine line art, and the around sixty colored pages (out of 480) had to be recolored for this book. They also give a fascinating look at how comics were originally colored, and why some of the pages would be off register, leave out a bit of color somewhere, and other printer's errors. This is all good for collectors and historians, but frankly, general readers would rather read the comics as they once were, in color. This is why I give this volume a four. Were all the stories in color, it would be a five star production, hands down.

I object to viewing comics and cartoons from the so-called classic era as museum pieces, fit to be enshrined for nostalgic Baby Boomers. Instead of worshipping those comics and their creators, how about some good comics now? And how about some good collections of those comics now, as if they were real comics? That goes for the cartoons also. Rhino and Classic Media (now Entertainment Rights), can, for all I care, stop putting out cartoons if they can't do it right. There's certainly enough trash on TV right now (yes, I'm using the T word), that there's no excuse not to get creative, decent, humorous, uplifting, slapstick, side-splitting cartoons and comics out to readers and viewers. And to Matt Harrigan (sp.), who has ruined the once funny and innocent cartoons on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim: you have no business being involved in animation if you can't make innocent cartoons.

At last is Volume 3 in the Harvey Comics Classics series, with Harvey Classics Library Volume 4: Baby Huey (Harvey Classics Library) coming up next.

If you've purchased the previous two volumes Harvey Comics Classics Volume 1: Casper (Harvey Comic Classics) and Harvey Comics Classics Volume 2: Richie Rich (Harvey Comic Classics), you should know what to expect: a high gloss expose of choice comic book reprints from the Harvey vaults dating from the 1950s and 60s.

Some still may quibble over the black and white, but by now anyone reading this series should realize that these books are an appreciation of the intricate pen and ink lines in which the Harvey artists excelled. In this volume, there are many examples of that fine art by Warren Kremer and Howard Post (who contributes a quote on the book's back cover). There are also some fine color pages.

I may be biased because I also wrote the Foreword and made some visual contributions, but this is one great book and one great series.

For those wanting to know more about the history of Harvey, should check out my book The Best of The Harveyville Fun Times!

The publisher here has given us a pretty good overview of this work in their synopsis and our one reviewer has given us a wonderful history of this great good. I will refrain from doing a book report here. I will say though, that this is one of the most delightful works I have had the pleasure of reading over the years. I first encountered this work in the early 1960s and have off and on over the years read it again and again. As the author so well puts it "The Great American Novel Told Without Words." Ths illustrations are of course pure Gross and there is humor in every frame, from the first to the last. This is certainly a work that proves that a picture is worth a thousand word, although in this case, the pictures cover many more words than the saying goes. I am delighted to see that this one is in print again and hopefully some of the author's other work will be also reprinted soon. We will be much richer for it. I highly recommend this one.

This is one of the greatest books ever written! Milt Gross is right up there with George Herriman and Bill Watterson. He's truly one of the best cartoonists of all time, and this is his "wordless novel", not unlike the comic strip in the Nickelodeon magazine: "Scene But Not Heard/ by Sam Henderson". Why aren't they coming out with a book of Gross' comic strips? (Nize Baby, Banana Oil, That's My Pop, Count Screwloose etc.) Well, this is a great book, nonetheless.

Everything the publisher says about "He done her wrong" is true, though it omits Goss's own description: "The Great American Novel. And not a word in it--no music, too."

All I can hope is that someone will start reprinting Gross's words, too. He was as adept at dialect humor as he was at cartooning and was a famous man in his day--my father still recalls the opening of "Hiawatta wit no odder pomes". Search the used book shelves for the non-adventures of his Lower East Side narrators in books like "Nize baby" and "Dunt Esk!"--they're guaranteed to make you like the Keeng in "Nize Baby's" version of Romplesealskin: "extrimmingly jubilious, wot he robbed gliffully de hends."

Gross was one of the geniuses of American cartooning. This satire of the then popular novel-in-wood-cuts is a masterpiece of inspired silliness, one of the first graphic novels. Under the title "Hearts of Gold" it was reprinted in an expurgated paperback version. Presumably this Dover edition restores the censored sequence in a Harlem night club

I'm not sure what Milt Gross would have made of contemporary critics - and their claim that he was the father of the modern graphic novel. I'm guessing his reaction would have been akin to A HARD DAY'S NIGHT director Richard Lester's famous reply to MTV. (When the music network hailed him as the 'Father of Music Videos', Lester responded by insisting on a blood test!)

One of the great American humorists of the 20th Century, Gross was a brilliant New York-based newspaper cartoonist whose creations include DAVE'S DELICATESSEN, BANANA OIL, THAT'S MY POP, PETE THE POOCH, OTTO AND BLOTTO, COUNT SCREWLOOSE FROM TOOLOOSE, and GROSS EXAGGERATIONS - classics, all. His original, wildly cartoony drawing style and hilarious "Yinglish" dialogue, still funny after three quarters of a century, held not a hint of modern-day pretentiousness. Comparing him to Frank Miller and Art Spiegelman can only demean him. (Sorry, fanboys.)

HE DONE HER WRONG is a bona fide classic, like all Gross' books - and one that seems impervious to time, since it was deliberately anachronistic from the git-go. Originally a burlesque of Lynd Ward's wordless woodcut novels of the 1920's, that point of reference is lost on modern readers because, like Lewis Carroll's song parodies, the spoof has become more famous than the original! A felicitous turn of events.

This book was notoriously censored (and re-titled HEARTS OF GOLD) when it was re-issued in 1983, further indication - as if we needed any more - of America's contempt for its own cultural legacy.
The wise folks at Fantagraphics, however, have promised to present the restored, uncut version - rather than dignify all the self-appointed p.c. Thought Police out there. (You KNOW who you are!)

Hopefully - although it's a facsimile of the first edition from 1930 - they'll find a way to include Al Capp's affectionate tribute to Gross from his introduction to the 1963 edition.
Also, hopefully, it'll pave the way for the wholesale republication of other Gross classics - like NIZE BABY, DUN'T ESK, FAMOUS FIMMALES, I SHOULDA ATE THE ECLAIR, HIAWATTA WITT NO ODDER POEMS, DEAR DOLLINK and DE NIGHT IN DE FRONT FROM CHREESMAS - all of which have been too long out-of-print.

A definitive, coffee table art book on Gross and his contributions to American comic strips and animated cartoons is long, long overdue. For more on Milt Gross, visit Shane Glines' excellent website: Cartoon Retro, and the ASIFA Animation Archive.

Release Control Art Restriction to Level "0" and 2nd coming of card shark and rip van.

Number seven in this fantastic series is a continuation on a point. We're at war now, and the vampires are tearing people apart left and right. Blood, guts and gore flow thickly across the pages. While all this is fantastic, for those looking for plot, this volume has less of a delivery. Its mostly blood this time around, but if youre collecting the series and want to keep up, you can't miss it! There is one major plotpoint stuck right in the middle bookended by carnage so pick it up and read it you Hellsing fan!

The plot is really good!Graphics are great and I almost cried becuase Seras looses her love, Captain Vernadead.It's really sad but so good!

If you've made it this far, you know that the graphics are superior, the story is awesome (you can't beat Nazi vampires and the Vatican trying to take out a Protestant vampire killing organization, Hellsing). The best part about this book is that it focuses just on the fight at the Hellsing Headquarters and goes in-depth just about Seras and the other people there. I can not wait for #8 because Alucard arrives in London at the end of this book.

If this is this end then perhaps my rating is a bit too high, but still, Hellsing, from volume 1 though 7 was one of the most solid manga I've had the chance to read. It doesn't veer at all from its base storyline, it's bloody and violent and lets you know this early, and the characters are lovable, even if they are monstrous creatures who enjoy gore. And in volume seven, though the story definitely isn't finished, the action is non-stop and quick-paced. I blasted through this manga in less than an hour.

Of course, the story in this volume follows the continuing struggle against the undead Nazi invaders who have targeted England as the focal point for their "var". The battle focuses mainly on Seras and the Captain's efforts to keep the Hellsing Organization headquarters intact as an undead invading force led by a tattooed, sorcery-wielding vampire. Let's just say that things don't go so well for the Hellsing members and the Captain's mercenaries, but their is one big surprise that had me sitting up straight as I read. I won't spoil it, but it's a spurring moment indeed that appears as things seem to be at their grimmest. And Alucard, the hero of the story, doesn't have much of a role in this, so don't expect him...

Then comes the super ambiguous ending. It's a kind of face off that shows that things definitely aren't finished yet, but by all indications this is the last manga in the line, at least in the States, and a new volume isn't planned as of yet as far as I know. The soon-to-come anime, though, is planned, one that actually follows the storyline of the manga and doesn't go off on it's own course. Maybe the story will be finished there, or maybe it will be as ambiguous as it was in the manga. If it is, I'll be one disappointed Hellsing fan, that's for sure.

Either way, I still highly recommend this manga to anyone who loves darker manga such as Berserk. It's easily the goriest manga I've read, with a story that promotes action over plot, which will appeal to fans of quick-paced manga. Hellsing is a great manga, all around, and should it continue from this volume, I'm considering making it my personal favorite (which is now held by Berserk).