In the July/August 2013 issue of Maxim (in case you were wondering, I get this magazine for free), I surprisingly stumbled upon a tiny column of information regarding a statistical book about the comic book universe. Naturally, I was intrigued as I have always found statistics illuminating and my interest for comics (as well as animes) grows with each passing day. This delightful book is called Super Graphic: A Visual Guide to the Comic Book Universe, by Tim Leong. It is set to be released online July 16, which is of course the intelligent thing to do since that is right before the Comic-Con International: San Diego (fka San Diego Comic-Con International). Which, I just realized that they totally changed the name of the convention. Where was I when this change occurred? Haha.

Moving forward, I unfortunately was not privileged enough to receive an early release copy of the book since I am not yet classified as a reputable source for book reviews, but I was able to do some Google searching and found a couple blogs that posted snippets and excerpts from the book.

Blogger Meighan O’Toole, an old coworker of Tim Leong at Wired Magazine, was fortunate enough to get her hands on a copy of the book and shared her review on her blog site My Love For You. Below is a small excerpt from her blog:

Leong diagrams such topics as the obvious to the most obscure comic facts. From secret identities, to the evolution of Superman’s logo, to how to read a comic book (both in English, and the Japanese Manga). What makes the book so deligh[t]ful and unique is Leong’s quirky sense of humor and obvious deep interest in comic books. Along with the above, he creates hilarious and completely unexpected charts. You’ll see rap stars influenced by superhero[e]s, 70 years of Wonder Woman’s legs, Scrooge McDuck’s family tree, to ten years of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle pizza combos. You’ll even find Leong’s own downward trajectory of his faith in humanity mapped out when he sees a Calvin peeing on a car logo sticker of Calvin & Hobbes.

I seriously want to see this book. I may not know much about comic books and all the universes that are involved, but there is just something about the statistics of it all that I find intriguing. Meighan also posted a few pictures of the inside pages of the book that are definitely interesting. Like “Rappers who take their names from comics” graph or “The Walking Dead Kill Counter”. Oh the topics that are possibly covered! So amusing!! So much awesome statistical information I want to know!!

In addition to the concept of the book being awesome, I found an article (link here) by the New York Post which not only reviews the book but also Tim Leong. He seems like a pretty down to earth guy and I am curious to pinpoint his humor throughout the book. New York Post columnist Tim Donnelly describes the book as “…nearly 200 pages of Venn diagrams, Pantone style costume color comparisons and insanely complex family trees, the kind a crazy person stalking Stan Lee might draw on their walls.” Love it!! =)

When asked how he first got into comics, Tim Leong eventually goes on to say “…The fun part of all of this is that I’ve only read a fraction of the comics that have come out in my life, and I’ve obviously missed so much before that. That’s kind of the great thing about comics: no matter how much you’ve read, there’s always something really cool out there you haven’t read yet.” So very true, which means I have A LOT of catching up to do. Here is a picture of the genius himself below. You can follow him on Twitter @Tim Leong or you can visit his site here.

Click on any of the below links to pre-order or purchase (after July 16, 2013) his book online.
In stores August 1, 2013.
Amazon  |  Chronicle Books  |  Barnes and Noble  |  Indie Bound

Follow me on Tumblr and Twitter @Duhlissafied for more geek life stuff.

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Side Note: For anyone that knows me in real life, is it just me or does Tim Leong look strangely familiar in the picture below? Brother from another mother? Please tell me I’m not crazy! Haha. =P