Description:
It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a complete guide to over 50 years of superheroes on screen! This expanded and updated edition of the 2004 award-winning encyclopedia covers important developments in the popular genre; adds new shows such as Heroes and Zoom; includes the latest films featuring icons like Superman, Spiderman and Batman; and covers even more types of superheroes.
Each entry includes a detailed history, cast and credits, episode and film descriptions, critical commentaries, and data on arch-villains, gadgets, comic-book origins and super powers, while placing each production into its historical context. Appendices list common superhero conventions and cliches; incarnations; memorable ad lines; and the best, worst, and most influential productions from 1951 to 2008.
Brief description: John Kenneth Muir is an American literary critic and award-winning author of more than 35 books in the fields of film and television, with a particular focus on horror and science fiction as well as the creator of the award-winning web series Abnormal Fixation and the audio drama Enter the House Between. He is an associate professor of humanities and communication, and lives in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Review Quotes: "valuable...useful...recommended"--Choice; "coverage is extensive...a good addition to the pop-culture collection"--Booklist; "amazing"--The New York Public Library; "over-the-top, first-stop-in-pop-culture reference maven McFarland has unearthed another killer-kryptonite jewel...bounteous reference cornucopia...Muir knows the landscape like Aquaman knows Atlantis. If you can swing it, get two copies...you'll need them both. Rock on, Muir and McFarland!"--Library Journal; "a delight...recommended"--ARBA; "fascinating and fun...will appeal to both enthusiasts of the superhero genre as well as serious students of popular culture...full of interesting facts and offbeat trivia"--Against the Grain; "riveting...sheer quantity of information, much of it difficult or impossible to find elsewhere...a browser's delight"--School Library Journal; "unique...commendable...straightforward...well-researched...a good ready reference tool...valuable"--Reference Reviews; "a work of impressive dimensions and enthusiastically recommended"--Midwest Book Review; "entertaining data...must-have"--Animation Magazine; "excellent commentary on the newer breed of super heroes...detail is mind-boggling. Muir is a good researcher and writer"--Classic Images; "detailed"--Communication Booknotes Quarterly; "cool...everything you need to know...all you could possibly wish to have at your fingertips"--Music Revue Magazine; "for years I have been wanting a book on superhero movies, and this 600+ page brick goes one better by including TV shows, too...covers them all. Even the obscure...the book's introduction is a terrific history of the genre, with Muir demonstrating he knows his stuff"--Hitch; "Muir is well-grounded in the lore...well-chosen b/w photos throughout"--The Zone; "filled with great anecdotal and historical information, the entries are illustrated with a smattering of photographs and add flavor and zest to the text...unique...a good resource...buy this book"--Penguin Comics; "ultimate superheroes reference...highly detailed"--Burlington County Times; "astonishing detail, every fact, story synopsis and concept behind each project...the ultimate lowdown on the film and video appearances"--Collectors' Corner.