[REVIEW] Adventure Time: The Original Title Cards (Volume 1)

Adventure Time: The Original Cartoon Title Cards (Volume 1) is the first of two beautifully lavish books, which celebrates the distinctive designs behind the Adventure Time title cards. Combining sketches, works in progress, revisions and final title card art, the book will take readers on a visual guide of the title card development, with quotes from each episode and commentary from the artists – Pendleton Ward, Pat McHale, Nick Jennings, Phil Rynda, and Paul Linsley.

For me, Adventure Time is such an odd obsession. It’s a cartoon produced by Cartoon Network, but it goes further than that. I’m attached to Finn the Human and Jake the Dog on a weird emotional level. From episode 1 to episode 172, I’ve tuned in to see Finn grow up to the young man he is today. With this release of the Adventure Time: Original Title Cards, it gives Adventure Time fanatics an avenue to obsess over as we wait for Season 6 to continue.

The actual book is full of black and white sketches, gorgeous color cards and even better commentary from those involved in the production of the show. Whether you’re just flipping through it to pass the time, or delving deep into each title card, you’ll enjoy every minute of it. The book is laid out episode to episode, starting with the 1st episode of season 1 to the last episode of season 2.

For example, from the episode “Death In Bloom”, Finn and Jake must travel to the land of the dead to retrieve a Princess Bubblegum’s Princess Plant. With an overall feeling of death and despair, Andy Ristaino added the cup and the feelin’ fine book to lessen the blow of seeing Finn and Jake as skeletons.

Surprisingly, after reading some of the title cards, many of the inspirations come from “comics, B-movies, classic Shakespearean staging, and Technicolor romance.” This volume offers the chance to view these beautiful artworks in their full glory, along with development sketches and insightful commentary from their creators. Listed on Amazon for only $15.45, this art book is a must-have for every Adventure Time fan.

Purchase

Adventure Time: The Original Cartoon Title Cards (Volume 1): Amazon