Science Fiction Comics: The Illustrated History (Taylor History of Comics)
Benton ( The Illustrated History of Horror Comics , LJ 4/15/91; Superhero Comics of the Silver Age: The Illustrated History , LJ 11/15/91) continues his ongoing history of comic book and strip subgenres. Here he turns his attention to science fiction comics, an area that has been around as long as there have been comic books, yet which receives surprisingly little attention. Like horror comics, and unlike Silver Age superhero comics, there is enough material here to sustain a book, albeit a thin and heavily illustrated one. This series is more for the fan than the scholar--those looking for anything beyond a mention of the formula of the Buck Rogers strip, or the Yellow Peril aspects of Ming of Mongo from Flash Gordon , or the arbitrary restraints placed on the creators of the Star Trek comic book, will have to look elsewhere. However, the series overall is an excellent choice for popular culture collections, and this title is recommended for sf collections as well.- Keith R.A. DeCandido, "Library Journal"Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.