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Paul's Reviews > B.Krigstein, Vol. 1
B.Krigstein, Vol. 1
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First off, I know this book is volume one and covers the artistic life of Krigstein from the early years to the end of his work in comics---BUT---the ending was far too abrupt. I was reading along, enjoying myself, amazed at Krigstein's prowess at pissing off editors, and then, with 50 pages still to go in the book, came a sentence of, "His days in comics were numbered."
And that was it. Finito. The rest of the book being only art reproductions and indexes. Left me high and dry.
Beyond that, my only frustrations with the book were not the author's fault. It was Krigstein and his constantly unbending desire to piss people off. Look, I work in the comics industry, and I too yearn to do glorious work that will shatter the foundations of literature, but I know when to back off. I currently work in the "Marvel Adventures" line, and my comics have to be done-in-one plots. Fine, I work within those boundaries. No matter how much I would like to have them give me five issues to tell a story, or have my one single issue balloon to three times normal size, there are very solid reasons that can't happen. And NONE of those reasons are that my editors are being unreasonable assholes (which they aren't---they're very nice people). It's just the way page counts work. Yet, Krigstein, again and again, would transform 5 pages of solicited artwork into 7 pages or more, all the while demanding he get even more pages, then getting frustrated and/or angry with the editors for their obstinate refusals. Damn Bernie, they CAN'T give it to you. They'd like to, but they CAN'T.
Ahh, but he's a genius, so I'll forgive him, just as his editors did, as long as they were able.
The book left me chomping not only for more Krigstein, but also for his paintings. I've long known of his talent in the field of comic art (an original page of his, from his "Marco Polo" story, hangs on my wall) but I was unaware of how haunting his paintings could be. I'm very much looking forward to the 2nd volume, due out in August, which delves more into the painterly side of Krigstein.
And that was it. Finito. The rest of the book being only art reproductions and indexes. Left me high and dry.
Beyond that, my only frustrations with the book were not the author's fault. It was Krigstein and his constantly unbending desire to piss people off. Look, I work in the comics industry, and I too yearn to do glorious work that will shatter the foundations of literature, but I know when to back off. I currently work in the "Marvel Adventures" line, and my comics have to be done-in-one plots. Fine, I work within those boundaries. No matter how much I would like to have them give me five issues to tell a story, or have my one single issue balloon to three times normal size, there are very solid reasons that can't happen. And NONE of those reasons are that my editors are being unreasonable assholes (which they aren't---they're very nice people). It's just the way page counts work. Yet, Krigstein, again and again, would transform 5 pages of solicited artwork into 7 pages or more, all the while demanding he get even more pages, then getting frustrated and/or angry with the editors for their obstinate refusals. Damn Bernie, they CAN'T give it to you. They'd like to, but they CAN'T.
Ahh, but he's a genius, so I'll forgive him, just as his editors did, as long as they were able.
The book left me chomping not only for more Krigstein, but also for his paintings. I've long known of his talent in the field of comic art (an original page of his, from his "Marco Polo" story, hangs on my wall) but I was unaware of how haunting his paintings could be. I'm very much looking forward to the 2nd volume, due out in August, which delves more into the painterly side of Krigstein.
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