Wow! Dark Horse really did it right this time and has produced a book worthy of the great Jesse Marsh art it contains. Their first (and, sadly, only) Tarzan Omnibus is a joy to behold. Collecting just shy of 700 pages of spectacular full color comics by the great Jesse Marsh and employing pitch perfect production throughout, this book is an instant Certified Copacetic Classic™.  

These stories were all originally published in the Dell comic book series, Tarzan beginning in 1948 and running – for 206 issues (with the second half of the run published under the Gold Key imprint) – through to 1972, whereupon the license went to DC (and then, later, to Marvel).  As to the stories themselves.  They start out strong in the tradition of adventure comics in the early stories by Robert Thompson, but later, after the introduction – out of the blue, with zero explanation – of Jane, his wife, and Boy, his son, (an editorial edict, apparently; but, hey they were probably right, given that Tarzan ended up being one of Dell's longest running titles) the stories were penned by Gaylord DuBois and gradually morphed into coded domestic dramas in which the character of Tarzan becomes a paternalist/patriarchal figure who occasionally veers perilously close to that of an odious colonialist overlord, but, on other occasions, there are engaging and worthwhile philosophical ponderings.  Most of all, there are a lot of beautifully illustrated and fun to read jungle adventures – some of which veer off into the completely fantastic – ancient Roman settlements come back to life, massive mythical birds take flight, dinosaurs roam the earth, and much, much more, all of which are spectacularly rendered by Jesse Marsh, with, once again, we must emphasize, the most saturated colors and best reproduction that one could possibly hope for, all together making for a truly amazing, one-of-a-kind volume.  

Bonus Information:  Marsh's art was a major infulence on Gilbert Hernandez, particularly noticeable in his landscape renderings.

Now, out of print :(...  We have a small handful of copies remaining.