If you ever wished you knew the ropes of comics inside and out, you might be the perfect candidate to read How to Read Comics the Marvel Way. The four-issue series by Christopher Hastings and Scott Koblish is getting a collected edition this week in comic shops, which aims to teach readers how comics are made while also sending Spider-Man on an adventure as you’ve never seen. We’re talking meta, fourth wall breaking, and a historically accurate adventure involving you, the reader, on an adventure with the Cosmic Comic leading the charge. No pressure.
The premise of this book is rock solid and clever. It opens with the narrator detailing how to read a comic at its basic level. We’re talking from left to right reading, how what’s between the panels creates action, and how a page turn can dramatically shift the story. Throughout the four issues, we learn how captions work, how inking and color art is as important as everything else, and even how the lettering is done. Spider-Man slowly becomes aware of the Cosmic Comic, the entity teaching the reader how comics are made, and even gets zapped into comics history. It’s neat to think Spider-Man has been in the Marvel offices, even if it might break contuity!
While the story proceeds, it’s quite something to not only see Scott Koblish render a solidly made comic at a basic level, but then to see Nolan Woodard come in to color and Travis Lanham to letter. At one point, Hastings comes up with the idea to show Mysterio–the main villain in this story–drawing his own comic without the Cosmic Comic helping him out. It’s not only funny to see how bad he is at making comics, but it helps distinguish what makes good comics so good.
Going in, I expected this comic to be dry or too instructional, but instead, the story unfolding is quite fun. Instead, learning about gutters or how inks improve upon pencils as Spider-Man tries to defeat Mysterio makes for a dramatic and entertaining read.
All that, and Koblish pays tribute to Spider-Man in several ways. Not only do we get to see a cool rendering of Amazing Fantasy #15, but Koblish even draws a new Spider-Man costume. Koblish is known for his comedic comics, and it works splendidly throughout the four issues.
Also collected here are four first issues likely to kickstart a younger readers’ library but also maybe to pad out this shorter main story for collection purposes. All of these first issues are great and well worth a read. They include Ms. Marvel #1, Ultimate Spider-Man #1, Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur #1, and Spidey #1. They’re some of the best modern Marvel comics you’ll ever read.
How to Read Comics the Marvel Way isn’t just for those looking to learn about comics, but for anyone interested in learning how to read a comic better. How to Read Comics the Marvel Way not only tells a fun story within its teachings but helps you appreciate the creative process of making comics.
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