Overview

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.

Full Product Details

Author:   John Kenneth Muir
Publisher:   McFarland & Co Inc
Imprint:   McFarland & Co Inc
Dimensions:   Width: 17.80cm , Height: 3.60cm , Length: 25.40cm
Weight:   1.225kg
ISBN:  

9781476692913

ISBN 10:   1476692912
Pages:   704
Publication Date:   19 December 2022
Recommended Age:   From 18 years
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In stock  
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Table of Contents

Table of Contents Acknowledgments      Superheroes Re-Booted: A Preface to the Second Edition      “Thank God You’re Here!” An Introduction      PART I: A HISTORY OF FILM AND TELEVISION SUPERHEROES      PART II: THE ENCYCLOPEDIA      The Amazing Spider-Man      The Ambiguously Gay Duo      Angel      Aquaman      Automan      Batman      Bibleman      The Bionic Woman      Birdman and the Galaxy Trio      Birds of Prey      Black Scorpion      Blade      Blankman      Bluntman and Chronic      Buffy the Vampire Slayer      Captain America      Captain Nice      Captain Planet and the Planeteers      Catwoman      Condorman      The Crow      Daredevil      Dark Angel      Darkman      Doctor Strange      ElectraWoman and DynaGirl      Elektra      The Fantastic Four      The Flash      The Gemini Man      Generation X      Ghost Rider      The Greatest American Hero      The Green Hornet      Green Lantern      Hellboy      Hero High      Heroes      The Incredible Hulk      The Incredibles      The Invincible Iron Man      Isis      The Justice League of America      The League Extraordinary Gentlemen      The Man from Atlantis      Manimal      M.A.N.T.I.S.      Martian Manhunter      The Mask      The Meteor Man      The Mighty Thor      Misfits of Science      Mr. Terrific      Mutant X      My Secret Identity      My Super Ex-Girlfriend      Mystery Men      Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.      Nightman      Now and Again      Once a Hero      Painkiller Jane      The Phantom      Plastic Man      The Pumaman      The Return of Captain Invincible      RoboCop      The Rocketeer      The Shadow      Shazam!      Sheena      Silver Surfer      The Six Million Dollar Man      Sky High      Spawn      Steel      Superboy      Supergirl      Superman      Swamp Thing      Teen Titans      The Tick      Unbreakable      Who Wants to Be a Superhero?      Witchblade      Wonder Woman      X-Men      Zoom: Academy for Superheroes      PART III: CONCLUSION      THE APPENDICES      Appendix A: Conventions and Clichés      Appendix B: Incarnations      Appendix C: Memorable Ad-Lines      Appendix D: The Best, Worst and Most Influential      Notes      Bibliography      Index     

Reviews

“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.

"""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."

Author Information

John Kenneth Muir is an American literary critic and award-winning author. As of 2022, he has written 30 reference books in the fields of film and television, with a particular focus on the horror and science fiction genres.

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