Eleni Roussos

I’ve enjoyed almost all of Marvel’s MCU Art Of books, some were better than others. And still, the Avengers films’ books always seem to be the best. Perhaps it is because there are more characters to address and world-building on a grander scale. Infinity War takes it to a new level (and probably should have been a double volume!)

Just like all the previous installments of the “series”, the book has images printed on the boards, without dust jacket, and sleeved in a matching slipcase. The quality is the same, with excellent full color pages and high production values. And this concept art certainly deserves it. First, the book covers the major locations of the film that are new: Titan, Nidavellir, Vormir, Sanctuary II and other space craft that appear. It also covers all the characters who got a big change to their look. The guardians didn’t change, so they aren’t featured, but Thor, Iron Man and Cap (to beard, or not to beard, that is the question) all received multiple pages devoted to them. Some of the others also got a page, such as Winter Soldier and his new arm design. This part was particularly interesting as Black Panther was still in production so the look and feel of that film was not yet finalized. The most space was given to Thanos and his Black Order, and it was well spent. The film vs comic design discussion was insightful and as were the reasons behind Thanos’ “casual look”.

Overall, this is a gorgeous book for fans of the MCU. The art was stunning, and the text provided great context throughout. However, as large a scale as the film was, I wish this book had been two volumes as there was more to explore. They didn’t even have space for the little bit on marketing that is usually included at the end. I suspect some of material will be pushed to the “Road to Avengers 4” book, so 4.5 stars for that.… (más)

I have the Marvel Art of book for each of the MCU films. The first Thor book was a huge disappointment; The Dark World was a marked improvement over that but still had room for improvement. Ragnarok not only surpasses both, it actually exceeds most of the solo hero books (though Avengers remains the best of the series).

First of all, the book spends a LOT of time on the costumes of the principal cast - Thor, Loki, Hela and Valkyrie all get many pages devoted to the evolution of their costumes. What inspiration was drawn from comics, how the story would have affected them, the character's personality, are all examined. The pages on Hela's headdress alone (and even Loki's) are worth the price of admission. Grandmaster and Hulk get a little less space, for obvious reasons, but still call back to the comics and how they were adapted from them. I never would have guessed how much effort went into Surtur's design, but the book clearly spells out the challenges of making him work on screen.

Moreover, since Waitiki intentionally based much of the visuals from the film on the work of Jack Kirby, that is examined in detail. Sakaar was a gold mine of creative opportunity as a world new to the MCU and it shows here. How it was designed, and how the characters would interact within it is all looked at in depth. The concept art throughout is gorgeous, and the text provides great context for the images and evolution of the film.

Overall, Ragnarok is another outstanding entry in the series. If you're a collector of the book, this is a great addition. But, it's also a good buy for fans of Thor. Highly recommended.… (más)