I've found the book has a lot of basic drawing information that , unfortunately , a lot of comic artists are lacking in. The simple stuff that people hate to talk about , like perspective , proportions , composition. Certainly a primer for what used to be the Marvel house approach , but John Buscema was an excellent artist who knew his shit. Whenever a pro artist reviews an amateur portfolio , seems to me it's always about the basic art problems John covers in this book pretty extensively. I think it's a valuable art book for anyone , not just superhero artists.

This book was written in 1978, way before the Internet. There was very little, if any, accessible info on how to actually draw a comic book, any comic. Also, the "Marvel way" was not hugely different from the "DC way". Pretty straightforward. Bombastic cover sandwiched around pages of grid panels ending with a cliffhanger. Since DC didn't publish a "how to draw comics" book (well, not until much, much later), Marvel filled that space. And since this book is aimed at kids, the idea was to show them that they could be future comic artists themselves. Obviously, once those kids grow up to the point where they would be actually becoming career artists, they would have become education with the knowledge that Marvel is not the sole pinnacle of comic art. So I do not think it fair to characterize this book "propaganda". Its purpose was to open kids up to the possibility of becoming career artists, that art itself is a valid endeavor to pursue. It allowed the dream-seed to take root making it more difficult to be brushed aside in favor of "safe" career paths.

i feel like the stan lee joke didn't age well.

Owned the book in hardcover since I was a boy. It simply saddens me further to see what my beloved comics have become today.

i've been drawing my whole life ...i'm 46...i've had this book most of my life and i still refer to it in my moments of need...this really makes the complicated things seem simple and not overwhelming...love this book

From an artistic perspective, this book is absolute gold at teaching people how to draw effectively. If someone asked me how to learn to draw as quickly as possible, I would recommend this book over most others.

The Marvel Way...back then, yes! Now, with the current "creators' in place...a resounding NO!

The intro to this video is amazing... like... spot on... I'm out of words

I dont feel like the book is nearly as pretentious and propaganda-esc as you are making it to be. i always felt it was just good clean fun. maybe it was cause i got this book young and actually have legit nostalgia to it and you didnt get it till much much older. i found this book invaluable in my artistic development and would recommend it to any young artist.

I think it's still relevant. I like the old style of comics. I looked at aome comics from Marvel and most the artist today suck

This is great information. Thank you, and I look forward to more of your tips.

Thanks for the recommendations. I didn't know about a few of these!

Great Stan Lee impression! Love this book, flick through it often! Been fortunate enough to illustrate for a UK magazine "Draw The Marvel Way". Similar title but no-one can beat JB! Great channel BTW - just subscribed :)

I want the book, it's still relevant, along with the ones you mentioned on perspective and inking. Great episode I love it. I have the Dynamic anatomy and Light and Shade by Burne Hogarth.

The Framed books are awesome. I bought one to try it out, then another in the series, now I own them all. Framed Inking 1 & 2, Framed Perspective 1 & 2, and Framed Drawing techniques. Another amazing book is, How to Draw Noir Comics.

This book was updated a few years ago. They have the newer art styles and include a section on photoshop and other digital drawing techniques.

Thanks for the awesome video, It was very helpful and really informative.

Flip through starts around 7 minutes. But don't skip ahead. Good observations.

Good quick review of the book. This is still one of my go to's for drawing. Another good book that the late great John Buscema recommended to me was the Power of Perspective. It taught me all I know about perspective.

I got my first copy I think in 1979. This book and the first Star Wars Sketchbook (which I think I got for Christmas of 1978) were the 2 books that got me started in drawing. I have owned 3 physical copies since then. The third is proudly sitting on my bookshelf. As a primer or introduction to comic book art I think it is great!

Great episode. I remember a friend showing me this book in middle school around 1990, when I was first getting into comics. I was already taking an art class but we we're learning through repetition, drawing hands, feet, heads, eyes, still life, etc. I don't even remember learning shapes. Nothing fun at all. This book opened my eyes. Still relevant today. Especially for beginners of any age. It's very basic and easy to follow. The first few chapters are helpful for any art style. After that it becomes more for comic books. I gave up drawing for many years but a few years ago I got back into it and I felt very rusty. I went back to this book and had quite a few aha moments that I needed. I think it's fair to say at one time there was this very distinct Marvel Way which was essentially, Jack Kirby's way, and John Buscema emulated it well. It's very true that before Kirby's Marvel run, comics were very basic and the shots were always from the side. More like a story board or thumbnails. Kirby at Marvel began using all kinds of dynamic angles, perspectives, etc which had not been done before. This book breaks down the basic formula for making a comic in an accessible way. There are still many people who prefer traditional methods or start out with traditional tools. This book will be extremely helpful. It's also a nice piece of history. I believe the book is based on John Buscema's curriculum when he taught at his own school.

I did the same thing when I was a kid. I had a 3 ring binder full of photocopied pages of this book from the library. Later on, someone bought me Burne's Dynamic Figure Drawing and his Dynamic Anatomy books. Really top-notch stuff. Can't recommend them enough.

So what I took away from this is... It's a great beginner's book for comics art, and something that Liefeld should have read before he ever picked up a brush. :P

that was a pretty amazing impression :D now for the video !

Reminds me that I should dig out Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art. More an overview of comic theory, communicating through the medium, and how comics relate to other mediums. Received it as a gift and been meaning to read it for a while. The point you make here about not taking any art instruction book as the whole or right way to draw is definitely an important one. They can be great for introducing some fundamentals, ways to approach creating art or specific subjects, and giving some baseline understanding for how things are structured; but they can't really provide everything you get from studying from life, from other artists, and experimenting. The philosophy doesn't do you much good if you don't give yourself anything to apply it to and aren't willing to refine it as you go.

Can't thank you enough for recommending Vanishing Point, I absolutely love that book, I've been obsessing on the Train exercise in the beginning part of the book, just totally awesome.

I teach drawing classes for youth & adults now - and after taking into account everything I've learned both high and low about drawing, setting up scenes, designing characters and even from across the way in cinematography , animation and even fine art - there is very little out there that sets up in simple terms the basics of how to get started as a narrative visual artist. Stan's "Huckster" personality bears its stamp on every Marvel product. Bullpen Bulletins appeared in Every Marvel book until their bankruptcy in the late 90's. *HOWEVER* - the undeniably great Comics Masters -John Buscema and Jack Kirby - never published their own "How To" books outside of "The Marvel Way", thus: Stan's narrative is secondary to the sheer fact that both Buscema and Kirby's high bar of achievement for comics art (and frankly, Fine Art, illustration, cartooning and Animation - as imitated by a Everyone from Jeff Koons to Bruce Timm, Bill Watterson, Alex Ross, etc.) left their trade secrets from decades of experience here in excellent, enduring form. The basics of their innate knowledge of Classical Geometry, for illustrators & visual artists are all neatly organized & understood, complete with great examples of Marvel Comics Panels, which could not have been published outside of Marvel - (due to their unique work-for-hire policies). If you read this in College - I feel badly for you. I learned EVERYTHING as a young artist in Elementary & Middle school that would set me up to later study and, for the most part, merely RE-LEARN the basics of Classical Painting (proportions, spacial geometry, dynamism, perspective & foreshortening) in an atelier-style apprenticeship, years later as an adult. But as a kid - you could learn pretty much everything from this book by looking at the pictures. NOT by getting hung up on reading Stan the Man's huckster sales pitches LOL ;)

I like how you recommend the books for further study that the Marvel book introduces.

I wish I could have taken one of John Buscema's art classes. He was a great artist beyond the realm of comics. He was a good illustator!!

I was waiting for you to open the book. But once you did I like the fact that you thumbed through it page by page. I agree with your assessment. The book is an introduction. I didn't realize as a young person that I need it too read other books. I'm glad you had some of the Hogarth books available. It really is not a book for beginners. It's a book for somebody who has been drawing for a few years.

I have this bhook and like any book of it's type it's a good spring board for how to draw dynamic figures. The Marvel "Style" is kind of funny because if you look at a Marvel book from the 70s to now you'll see a really HUGE change in the art style and composition. Like I said it's a good start but it's really here just for you to develop your own dynamic style. It's worth a look .

What I don't understand as a complete begginer is how do I use a book like this. Read it cover to cover? Just copy every picture on each page in a sketch book until you can do it by heart? How do I go about aquiring skills from this?

He opens the book at 6:25 if this was helpful leave a like

I have that book, it was my very first book on the subject of comics and yes, that video is still here on youtube in 2 parts, I watched it

I found you five years late! I hope you're well! I just got this book...it is marvelous! I also purchased Bridgman's complete guide to drawing from life. It's a great book but "dry." But i you hang in there bridgman has great advice that comic book artist and illustrators use

Do you have any experience with "Perspective for Comic Book Artists" by David Chelsea?

You said in one video that you recommended a book of illustrations by DK or Dover. But I forgot which video? Do you remember the book you recommended. It was a book of tons of pictures for drawing anything pretty much, like a pictorial encyclopedia

I could get it till year 2000, prior to that year you couldn´t get anything about drawing techniques speacilly here in my country(México)the only one I got was Drawing the human head and body by Jack Hamm(very good indeed), and lots of xerox copies of "crash course" section of Wizard Magazine. Nowadays I ´m buying books that I found interesting and essential to master the skill of drawing and inking. Nice video.

My friend lent me this back in the early 90’s- we were in our early teens. He said it was a good introduction although we both thought John’s art style looked dated compared to the new and modern style of Bagley (haha- yeh we old now!). Anyway- my friend went on to head the animation team that did all of the cgi for Spider-Man in Civil War. He said it was really exciting/challenging as Marvel were very particular about what they wanted- to the extent that they even analysed real spider’s webs under microscopes! Who can blame them though- it was their most popular character’s debut in the MCU.

i think the best thing i got from this book is the idea of the 'action line'. it improved my drawings by a huge leap.

Just ordered this yesterday... Miss you, Stan...

Most modern comics artist need to study this book

It really is a good book! I had it as a kid and I learned a lot from it. I do kind of wish I took the time however to really practice what was in that book more at that time. It was fun watching you go through it! It's funny though I actually like the propaganda in it. The whole part where Stan is talking about finding more Dynamic poses because that's the Marvel way always stuck with me. Also the Marvel method of writing Comics always stuck with me and encourage me that I don't have to basically be a novelist to write comics! Even though my method of writing has become kind of a variation of the Marvel method. Fun video man!

It's a brilliant perspective . It is more of the insights of the art standard practiced by artists of a bygone era than of how to draw in "a Marvel way. " Though that company that now uses the name, Marvel (1962-1986 R.I.P) certainly could use that books help.

Hey Scott, havent spoke to you in a while, but I was on KZfaq strangely enough watching the video of how to draw Comics the Marvel way. I've had the book sense summer of 1983 I think and I saw the video when I picked it up at a Comic-Con in the late 80s. I think I've drawn almost every drawing in the book 20 or 30 times weather was in notebooks at school on the backs of comic book backing boards you name it. This is the book that I discovered light boxes and how to use them although I don't think the book really tells you how to use it per say. I really love the book and I really love that classic comic book style. I agree there a lot of talented artists nowadays and a lot of great books, however, Classics up until the big crash in the 90s which even some of that stuff isn't that great either, is the best comic book art of all time. I'm still constantly trying to look at every little minut detail whether it's the Feathering lines coming off of a shoulder or a knee cap to those sort of straight line that meet up around the instep which denote a little bit of shading and for shortening. I also agree when you were talking about breaking the panels and as people describe Jack Kirby's art of Leaping off the page which you can't really do when you're trying to draw comic with that cinematic look. Another thing that I think nobody does anymore which I try to do some times are those really exaggerated poses where it looks like somebody's spleen just gave out their hunched over with their torso twisted. Or you push standing where there knees are hyper-extended and it looks like their legs are about to snap off and they're so stiff and rigid get really Dynamic and Powerful looking. I guess I could go on and on but I just wanted to say I really enjoyed your video and that this book is on my collection and probably the single most important book I've ever had that in not just taught me but inspired me to do comics. I read a few comments from other people talking about how to use this book and where do I go what should I do I'm just a beginner, my personal advice to those people is it doesn't matter how you get there just have a project, something that you want to create. And then just use creative thinking tricks and whatever you classically can do to get to that point. If you have to trace a photograph, you have to look at other examples and sort of mimic those, or take photographs, watch films, basically do it all. The biggest thing you can't do is quit or give up., is the best comic book hurt of all time. And still constantly trying to look at every little my new detail weather it's the feather in Lyons coming off of a shoulder or a knee cap to those shirt of straight line that meet up around the in step which Dino a little bit of shading and for shortening. I also agree when you are talking about breaking the panels and as people describe Jack Kirby's art of sleeping off the page which you can't really do when your trying, is the best comic book hurt of all time. And still constantly trying to look at every little my new detail weather it's the feather in Lyons coming off of a shoulder or a knee cap to those shirt of straight line that meet up around the in step which Dino a little bit of shading and for shortening. I also agree when you are talking about breaking the panels and as people describe Jack Kirby's art of sleeping off the page which you can't really do when your trying to draw comic with it Cinemagic look. Another thing that I think nobody does anymore which I tried to do sometimes are those really exaggerated poses were it looks like somebody's splean just gave out and they're hunched over with their torso twisted. Or equal standing weather knees are hyper extended and it looks like they're legs are but the snap off and they're so stiff and Ridgid get really dynamic and powerful looking. I guess I could go on and on and on and on, what just wanted to say I hate really enjoyed your video but I just wanted to say really enjoyed your video and that is book is on my collection and probably them single most important book I've ever had that in that just thought me but inspired me to do comics. I write a few comments from other people talking about how to use this book and where do I go what should I do I'm just a beginner, my personal advice to those people is it doesn't matter how you get there just have a project, something that you want to create. And then just use creative thinking tricks and whatever you possibly can do to get to that point. If you have to trace photograph, you have to look at other examples answered of mimic those, or take photographs, watch films, basically do it all. The biggest thing you can't do is quit or give up. Just keep at it.

I agree that while the Marvel Book is a good book for beginners but beyond that, you need other resources to help you out like inking. I was disappointed that the Marvel Book did not cover the parts I wanted to know, especially inking folds and shadow. I'm glad you brought out the Art of Comic Book Inking book because that's exactly the one I got and it helped me immensely.

The only place that I've found where "How to Draw Comics The Marvel Way" is flat-out wrong is where it says the normal human figure is six and a half heads high. It isn't - it's SEVEN and a half heads high, but usually gets rounded up to eight. Eight can be halved three times, which makes blocking out a figure easy. The 1970s art looks retro now, but any book like this is going to look a bit dated after a few decades. Andrew Loomis's books are highly recommended, even with the 1940s-1950s style. At least it's not the anime/manga style, which is stiff, insect-like and hasn't changed all that much since the 1970s, at least. But, yeah, excellent foundation book but nothing beats drawing from life. Add anything by Andrew Loomis, Burne Hogarth, or George Bridgman.

Hello I want to get into the comic writing. Is book named Comics and Squential Art useful for me??

I have this book and I highly recommend it. It helped me to draw action poses a lot better without references.

you look like Happy Hogan..sure you don't need the badge? love the tutorial:d

btw, if anyone wants either of the Marvel drawing comics books I think you can get them cheaper on Edward R. Hamilton than you can even on Amazon. Its like 7 and 8 USD respectively. Just passing it along. Also in the "art of illustration" and artist manuals section they have some books that may or may not be useful.

It's like that everywhere if you spent enough time with it.

Good book, Buscema did a great job of simplifying and summarizing everything to make it easy to understand.

This is a great book in my opinion! it's not supposed to be an anatomy book or,light and shade, or perspective ! But what I get from it it emphasizes form and scribbles,(think Boris Vallejo pencils) and then it gives references to further your studies , one of the best books to give you a foundation at becoming a draftsman!

loved this book when i was a teen :) almost forgot it existed!

Awesome! And Great Books List.

Love the impression 😂😂😂

The video is still available on KZfaq I watched it the other day. I found it by looking up how to make comics. Just thought I’d let you know that it’s not dead.

The Impact book on perspective is awesome.

There was a VHS of it on pretty sure. It's free on youtube today, and it's in my liked videos.

im 14 and i just got this book today and im really scared to start, how should i use it?

I have the hardcopy of this book and VHS tape and DVD.

18 years old. I just started drawing. Can you recommend this book to me

I’m ordering it from Amazon in a few minutes. When I was younger I loved to draw. Hoping I can get back into it again, but it does look a bit hard.

Marvel NEVER knocks DC in this book. The "wrong way" doesn't mean DC. The only propaganda here is yours!

I finally got my copy like 25- 30 years ago and still have it. It’s actually very entertaining and light and formulaic ... like marvel movies. Will Eisner’s books take it to another level,

Right now I’ve brought 4 George Bridgeman books I’ve been drawing every day and I’ve been doing the 1min, 2min, 5min and 10min times poses everyday right now I’m focusing on just getting good at drawing the figure from memory I really want to draw comics and I don’t care how long it takes me to get to a level where I can draw my own comics

As far as recommending other really outstanding comic art books, I have found that How to draw great looking comic book women by Christopher hart is also an excellent reference how to draw comic art figures, costumes, poses etc.

I love this book. I even got my copy signed by Stan himself a couple of years ago!

Another great book to check is Drawing Crime Noir: For Comics and Graphic Novels. A lot of it has to do with creating a mood, and effective use of shadows and light, which we all know, when a comic lacks shadows and light where there should be some, (as in A History Of Violence, where a panel shows 2 men with shadows on their forms while a character in the middle with absolutely NO shadows on him. Kind of jarring and distracting to the reader).

I have that book and have had it for a very long time and it's really discouraged me a good amount of times, so much so that I locked it away lol.

Really good video, wow!

This book was more an education than my four years of collage. It was my main information that led me to a 27 year career in storyboarding.

Yes other comics use the same technique but the best explanation came from this book with very enjoyable dialogue. I read other books which are good but they are a sort of imitation. This book was the first and best.

How to draw comics the marvel way is one of the best books that i have ever bought. My drawing aptitude improved to incredible proportions within a week. More than that I applied the principles to all forms of art portraits included. A great great book.

"This classic work is one of, if not the best intro's into the craft of being an ACTION..sequential artist!. It is a great starting point with a general overview of the craft, its production mechanics and unique visual language created by JACK KIRBY!. " "The only thing that the book did not focus on, which is key to this craft is the value of analytically studying cinema, and the use of reference!.

Its on dvd I own it.

I had the book as a kid a 30 years later bought it again.

Amazing advice.

Meh. If you read a book on how to do Manga it teaches you to draw the Manga way. So does that make it propaganda? Yeah, its full of Stan Lee's bombast, but, that's part of its charm I guess. *shrugs* I have a newer version of Stan Lee's How To Draw Comics, and it mentions Sketchup which I recommend to people who struggle with perspective. All the current Marvel comics use Sketchup and they have a full model of their New York City. Complete with the Baxter Building etc. They have free older versions on oldversion.com Another piece of software that I sometimes find useful and is free called MakeHuman which is a free app for making human meshes for 3D, with built in poses and clothes, and you can change the age and body types with simple sliders. Its kind of like Poser only more basic.

If only Marvel could go back to this

I've been a professional artist and illustrator for over 30 years and have given this book away too many times to remember over the years. It is a simple but fantastic constructive drawing book. That said the best books by far , in my opinion, are the ones by Andrew Loomis.

Pretty good impression

It was Fundamentals ... Before the Age of Digital Coloring

*watches beginning of video*"HOW DARE YOU STAND WHERE HE STOOD!?"-Harry potter. Nice video btw

I learnt how to draw from that book. When I went to art school my ability to draw in perspective was head and shoulders above the other students largely because I learnt how to draw from that book. Is it propoganda? Sure. Is it a college level textbook? No Is it a great book for a 7th grader to learn how to draw dynamically from the ground up. Absolutely. It's a spectacular book!!

You can buy another copy of our tape, we won't mind a bit 😉

There is one main reason I still like non-electronic medium. You don't need electricity to create your work. It's only a matter of time when electricity is rationed because of American energy policies. All I need is sunshine, a table, paper (printer paper in a pinch), and a pencil. With that I can still draw and create art.

Speaking as someone who once illustrated for the likes of Len Wein and a top Vertigo author, the book is absolutely still relevant and useful to the learning of real/proper comics-storytelling, but an aspiring comics-artist should have real life-drawing classes/experience to go along with it*. However, for Cal Arts cartoony sausage people which any 2nd-grader could draw - e.g. Cal Arts - it is unnecessary. * - which, like movie-going, won't be possible anywhere until a certain "global crisis" has settled down, sadly .

I must have copied each drawing ten times. It's dated but a very good course in drawing comics. It's a good foundation to build on. Especially if you can't afford art school and you have to teach yourself.

I was in tears to see Stan Lee

John Buscema was probably the best artist working in comics during his day. In fact, most professional artists would say that if he were still alive, he would still be the best draftsmen in comics. He used to run a school, and that is what gave Stan Lee the idea to cash in on his instruction. John Buscema makes the book an indispensable book in any aspiring comic book artist's library.

This was a great book when I was a kid

Awesome

I believe John Buscema (in the DVD) "wasn't having it" because he wasn't a professional speaker. Also, there's a moment when Stan leaps into the camera with a "Make Mine Marvel" type exclamation, and Buscema's frown looks like it's meant in good fun.

Look, the propaganda is there, but that’s just part of selling the brand. Otherwise the advice is pretty solid. I’ve watched the video and it’s really helped me with my drawing. Just try to substitute “Marvel” for “professional” and the sense of propaganda loosens up. I also think it’s meta as in they’re aware that they’re being too self promotion, especially how Stan does a cheesy grin when he cheekily exclaims “Marvel!”, or even John’s clearly emphasised eye rolling expressions, haha! Ps. If you watch the video then I’d recommend taking a shot of vodka every time Stan says “Marvel!”, you’ll be drunk before the first segment is over.

Propaganda or not, it's still one of my favorite books on comics creation. Aleways been more of a fan of "The Marvel Look" than DC. You may say there are similarities, but there are also a lot of BIG differences.

In short is it worth or nah???

believe or not , i used to go to marvel comics in NY along time ago , to leave my porfolio , and i met a editor that actually told me that , that book wasnt really good if you want to draw , for the comic book field , he did told me that the best way is to , studie from life and take some art classes and he did recomend me , and old school teacher , Andrew Loomise and to read his book , loomise was a good way to draw people , so that book is not that good , 🤔🤔🤔

. . . Have you watched any movies that came out after the 70s?