This essential collection of interviews and information gives strong insight into the Marvel brand.
Alas it was not appropiate for our audience, being a more academic text than expected.

So I picked this book up because I was interested in learning more about Jim Shooter's time Valiant in the early 90s. Turns out there isn't a lot in here about that period, but it covers Shooter's career in comics pretty in depth. Now, this book is comprised of a series of interviews and there is some repetition as the book goes on. Each interview adds more to the overall picture though.

I recommend this book for anyone that is interested in the history of the comics industry. Sure it's nice to learn more about Shooter specifically and there is a lot in here that I didn't know about him. His insights into the comic industry are fantastic though. These interviews give a nice impression of how comics changed from when Shooter started writing, through his time as editor-in-chief at Marvel, and into his own attempts at creating a comics company with its own cohesive universe.

A must for all comic fans, I felt a thrill revisiting the territory this book covers in the outstanding career of Jim Shooter, and I promise you that even if you don' t recognize his name, you will recognize his vast expanse of work. Does DC, Marvel, Valiant or Defiant mean anything to you? It is amazing the work he has done and the influence he was, and still is. A mighty good year, excelsior !