For more than 80 years Marvel, one of the most important comic book companies in the world, provided countless fans with adventure, mystery and tales of superheroes in spectacular arrangements. And over time, also a unique style of communication through layout was created through typesetting, lettering and altogether unparalleled design. The easily recognizable graphic […]
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Category: B. R. PopCulture
Marvel Comics Library. Fantastic Four. Vol. 1. 1961–1963 by Mark Waid, Mike Massimino … (2022)
With Fantastic Four. Vol. 1. 1961–1963, Taschen celebrates another idea of Marvel’s mastermind Stan Lee. Following the most welcome publication of recent volumes of the Taschen Marvel Comic Library, the superhero family of four is introduced here in a short text by former NASA astronaut Mike Massimino. Followed by a long essay from acclaimed Marvel […]
The History and Politics of Star Wars. Death Stars and Democracy by Chris Kempshall (2022)
As the most successful movie franchise in history, Star Wars has generated millions of fans worldwide, not to mention the billions of dollar revenue it created already. Soon after the first movie release, critics and academics began their study of the background, intentions and inspirations of the saga. This project until today remains mostly incomplete, […]
Italian Giallo in Film and Television: A Critical History by Roberto Curti (2022)
There is one particular modern genre that is strongly connected with the history of Italian filmmaking: the genre of “the yellow ones,” in Italian: “gialli”. The countless movies, dime novels, detective stories and murder mysteries in Italy are subsumed under that titles, similar to “pulp” novels, and crime fiction that got its name from the […]
21st Century Retro: “Mad Men” and 1960s America in Film and Television by Debarchana Baruah (2021)
Revivals of cultural and retrospectively oriented tendencies in music, fashion and design have been around for a long time. Many contemporary American and European TV productions successfully revisit the 1940s, 1950s and very often the 1960s. The shows differ greatly in their amount of historical correctness and the many important events that influence the protagonists […]
Space Exploration on Film by Paul Meehan (2022)
With science-fiction movies as part of everyday film culture as stream, DVD or in theaters today, we may forget the humble beginnings of the genre, and with respect to countless technical obstacles of space missions could wonder how films, some almost a century ago, confronted these problems in their times. Paul Meehan’s title stresses “science […]
Suzuki Seijun and Postwar Japanese Cinema by William Carroll (2022)
When in 1968 Japanese low-budget director Seijun Suzuki was fired by the Nikkatsu production company, it seemed to be the end of a so far fantastic career in the movies. Between 1956 and 1967 Suzuki made forty films there; some of these were quite successful. While for Nikkatsu Studios, it obviously was just another personnel […]
The Self and Community in Star Trek: Voyager by Susan M. Bernardo (2022)
The three chapters that author Bernardo has created for the book at hand all have their focal point on varying ideas of identity formation, on being either rooted to the past, a memory, in a sense of location, narrative or strong emotional ties – be they human or even Borg in origin. In this Star […]
Soft Electronics: Iconic Retro Designs from the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s by Jaro Gielens (2022)
With revolutionary design that met usability, the long sixties left their mark on product design, especially for home appliances and products for everyday use. The many items collected here in Soft Electronics, more than 100, their shape and functionality, notably if considered by their use of bright signal colors such as green, beaming orange, and […]