Mastering Manga with Mark Crilley by Mark Crilley

9/10

As one of the most subscribed to gurus on YouTube, Mark Crilley takes readers on a different how-to journey than most. Once he sets the short chapter in basics out of the way, he tells us there is more to manga than drawing characters with large eyes and exaggerated hair.

There is a lot more, in fact and Mark is there to guide us through the essentials of creating expression, attitude and action. There are simple tricks for getting proportions just right, and faces looking like they have been drawn by a seasoned pro.

One thing you will notice with this how-to manga book is that there aren't just how-to ways of doing in here, but valuable drawing lessons such as;

• 20 Female Hairstyles
• 20 Male Hairstyles
• 101 Manga Eyes
• 12 Common Manga Facial Expressions
• 20 Chibi Emotions
• 50 Ways to Draw Hands
• 50 Ways to Draw Feet
• 30 Classic Poses

What Mark tries to get across to budding artists and amateurs is that many people view manga art as drawing a character with a round face and huge eyes, thinking it will be right when it looks nothing like real manga at all. Real manga is an exact art, where even with the face you have to consider the right proportions of eyes, nose and mouth, and not all faces are rounded in manga either, there are other variations.

Mark has illustrated and written many graphic novels and fiction books even including the famed Akiko, Billy Clikk, Miki Falls and Brody's Ghost. He has fast become YouTube's top 25 Most Subscribed Gurus, creating drawing demonstration videos for budding artists that has been viewed more than 60 million times. Mark's work has been featured in USA Today, The New York Daily News and Disney Magazine among others.

Drawing isn't the easiest art out there, but with his step-by-step approach to drawing manga, Mark makes it seem easier than if you were trying to get there on your own. He creates a series of templates that are easy to build on, define and develop your own style from, and that is a valuable way to get drawing and potentially create your own portfolio.