Fantagraphics Studio Edition: Hal Foster's Prince Valiant

This book is absolutely wonderful ! Incredible size which allows to enjoy Hal Foster's art.

It's in good shape..... But GIGANTIC at least two feet tall

"Prince Valiant (in the Days of King Arthur)" by Harold "Hal" Foster is considered a masterpiece of comic strip adventure art, perhaps THE masterpiece of the medium. Since its debut in American newspapers in 1937, this tale of the Prince of Thule and his adventures as a knight of the fabled Round Table and the legendary kingdom of Camelot has enthralled generations of readers. Over the decades, this ongoing saga of chivalry and romanticism has been reprinted by many publishers in many varied formats. American publisher Fantagraphics has produced two separate series collecting this classic newspaper strip. The first was a 50 volume trade paperback series, published from 1984-2004, which collected Mr. Foster's entire artistic run of his strip, from 1937 through to 1971. This series' final 10 volumes contain the last work of Mr. Foster, then the work of his successors, artist John Cullen Murphy, and his son, writer Cullen Murphy. Fantagraphics' second reprint series was more ambitious and began in 2009. This collection was published in hardcover and reproduced Mr. Foster's full newspaper paged illustrations from the original proof sheets used to reprint the strip, giving this series' contents an especially high level of quality. In 2017, the 80th anniversary year of the ongoing strip, Fantagraphics has published an extraordinary special volume celebrating the artistry of "Hal" Foster, the "Prince Valiant Fantagraphics Studio Edition."Produced in the tradition of IDW Publishing's admirable "Artist Edition" series, the "Fantagraphics Studio Edition" showcases select pages of Mr. Foster's masterwork, reproducing the storyteller's huge original pages close to their full size, giving the reader the cherished opportunity to explore the nuances of the master's beautiful detailed artwork like never before in a collected "Prince Valiant" volume. At 23.2 x 17 inches, this book is vast in its dimensions, larger than Manuscript Press' laudable  Prince Valiant: An American Epic, Vol. 1, 1937 trilogy of paperback volumes from 1982, 1984 and 1990, and Dark Horse Comics' three volume hardcover collection of Mr. Foster's first comic strip work, the influential  Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan: The Sunday Comics, 1931-1933 Volume 1 (Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan Sundays) , published in 2013-2015. While not reprinting a complete story arc of the strip, this book features sections taken from throughout the nearly four decades its creator envisioned the adventures of Thule's favorite son.To be honest, enjoying this massive tome can be a bit of a challenge. Its physical size demands an effort on the reader's part to respect what it offers. But for this reviewer, turning the pages of this book was a thrilling experience. The reproduction of the original artwork is stunning in its clarity. For example, a page titled "The Tyrant," strip #81 from August 28, 1938, displays Prince Valiant's rival then friend Arn, Prince of Ord, facing the cruel King Sligon, in the former castle of Valiant's deposed father, Aguar. Reproduced at its full size, it is a wondrous work of illustrative art. Not only can one see the precision of Mr. Foster's rendering technique, the reader can also see the physical construction of a "Valiant" Sunday page. Further, this book reveals how Mr. Foster would sometimes cut individual panels from a large illustration board to better manage drawing a particular scene of action or drama to later reconstruct a full newspaper page continuity. This volume shows these amazing pages in all their glory; the paste-ups of the strip logo, the yellowing of the aging pages, but most importantly, the wonder and the majesty of "Hal" Foster's artistic genius.As an added bonus, this volume comes with a giant reproduction of an iconic original page from the strip's second year of publication; strip #71, "The Song of the Singing Sword," first published in newspapers on June 19, 1938.For this reviewer and long-time fan of the "Prince Valiant" strip, this beautiful book is something to savor and cherish for years and years to come. It is a major monetary investment, but I can sincerely say from the bottom of my heart that the "Prince Valiant Fantagraphics Studio Edition" was worth its price.This book comes with my highest recommendation. Prince Valiant: An American Epic, Vol. 1, 1937Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan: The Sunday Comics, 1931-1933 Volume 1 (Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan Sundays)

Item supplied fast and well packaged, and am very pleased. Item even better than as described. Thanks.

Of course this book deserves a lot of praise. Due to the size alone, which is magnificent and as far as I can tell the biggest book I ever had in my hands (though still far away from the actual size of the original art from Hal Foster, but 1:1 would mean you will not be able to print the book...).So mockering about faults might seem to be a waste of time (both writing and reading about it), but on the other side - this was for sure meant to be the perfect book, and unfortunately it's not.For example, it would have been helpful to write a sub-line on each page with the date of publication of each Sunday. Not only because it's giving the reader an easier access and overview about the decade of the featured page (now you have to examine the page and find the date written by Foster on it), but not all featured art is a full Sunday... And if the date is cropped, well...Second, there's a page reproduced not from the original art but from a proof, stating it's a very, very, very important page in Val's history, so therefore the exception. I think the only importance is that the following page is included - there are many pages way more significant that are not at all in the book, for example the dungeon-torture-page or the attack of the huns.Third, speaking about the attack of the huns page, this book was published in October 2017. The publishers even note a "thank you" to Heritage Auctions. There have been some pretty important and great pages in auction in fall 2016, not only at Heritage, and it's sad that they are not included.Fourth, if a page is shown in both versions, original art and colored final printed version, that's nice to see! But why choosing a page that is taking place in a snowy mountain area? White is a nice color, but...Fifth, if they were already working together with Heritage, why not include some of Foster's specialty drawings that are usually never and nowhere be seen? That would have been a very nice extra (and could have been reprinted 1:1 in size).Sixth, and final, the interview. I cringe myself in shame that Foster's time was stolen but such a guy.Well, some points here, but again, the size alone makes this a treasure, and the printing itself is great. What they did with the front cover is superb! But no five stars here...