Making of Books

Marvel Worldwide recently released The Art of Captain America: First Avenger by Matthew K. Manning, and it can be ordered from the usual online dealers. The book includes a very brief introduction to the character of Captain America and his history and the remainder of the book presents a detailed look at making of the film with commentary by cast and crew. The book is well illustrated by pictures of costumes, weapons, and various concept art, though, as with Manning's The Art of Thor (2011), these do get somewhat boring after a while. In addition. unlike similar tomes, one never gets the sense here that either the filmmakers or stars had any connection with the character or his legacy; there are also few comments by comics creators, aside from some quotes by Joe Simon, Cap's creator, to connect the film to its origins. Instead, the filmmakers have become the spokesmen for the character and his legacy.

In contrast, Paul Ruditis's The Walking Dead Chronicles: The Official Companion Book (Abrams, 2011) is a well-illustrated and loving tribute to the television series and its comic book source. Forewords by show-runner Frank Darabont and series creator Robert Kirkman detail their involvement in the franchise, while the book itself, which features copious commentary by the cast and crew--all proponents of the comic and its TV adaptation--covers the history of The Walking Dead phenomenon from its initial proposal to hints for season two of the TV series, set to premiere on 16 October.


Other sections include detailed discussions on the makeup, visual effects and filming of the series, and, in addition to his narrative history Ruditis provides synopses of the first six issues of the comic, which parallel, events of the first season of the show and, later, synopses of each of the six television episodes.