Bram Stoker's Dracula Starring Bela Lugosi by Robert Place Napton

If you have any interest at all in the spate of blockbuster Marvel movies that have emerged from Hollywood during the past twelve years, then you will definitely want to read Scioli’s book in order to learn who actually dreamed up all those visionary ideas. Never forgetting that his main imperative is to produce an entertaining story, Scioli nonetheless offers his readers valuable history lessons about the perennial battle between the Artist and the Businessman while also correcting decades of lies that have consistently emerged from the Public Relations Department at Marvel Comics since the earliest days of what has become the world’s most successful comic book empire. In the back of the graphic novel are four pages of footnotes that source much of the dialogue and events depicted in the book. Scioli’s narrative is consistently anchored in diligent research and verifiable events.

Sometimes dramatic, sometimes quotidian in nature, Kirby’s achievements and failures make for an unforgettable read. In JACK KIRBY: THE EPIC LIFE OF THE KING OF COMICS, Scioli elevates his work to another level by taking an abrupt detour away from the cosmic landscapes of GODLAND and focusing instead on the real life adventures of comic book writer/artist Jack Kirby, who arguably saved the entire comic book industry from extinction several times over. The latter title, produced in collaboration with writer Joe Casey, was one of the most compelling comic book series of the past twenty years. Though his style clearly owes much to the late Jack Kirby (1917–1994), Scioli has managed to transform that influence into a style wholly his own, as evidenced by such graphically astounding projects as AMERICAN BARBARIAN (2015) and GODLAND VOL. In the back of his latest graphic novel, JACK KIRBY: THE EPIC LIFE OF THE KING OF COMICS, Tom Scioli’s bio proudly declares that he’s “one of a small number of mainstream comics creators today who writes, draws, colors, and hand-letters his work.” This is no doubt one of the primary reasons Scioli’s work is always fresh and unique, even when he’s producing media tie-in projects like last year’s GO-BOTS.

Bram Stoker's Dracula Starring Bela Lugosi by Robert Place Napton