Front/back: On the front is a lenticular picture of Optimus' robot/truck mode while the background is the standard black-red autobot grid. The back has "MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE" in bold white against black-purple decepticon grid. Next to the summary of the book on the back is a picture of Megatron. The cover is very eye-catching, but the title is in the font type that makes it easy to tell that it is unofficial, which it is. Table of contents: The content page is very well put-together and is quite idiot-proof. The year is put at the top, followed by series (a new series each year) , then split into autobot and decepticon, and then organized into sub-groups. ie: 1984, Series 1 autobot commander..........pg# minicars................pg# cars......................pg# decepticon leader...................pg# cassettes..............pg# communicator........pg# jets........................pg# Introduction/"how to use the book": The introduction tells about the history of Takara, Diaclone, microchange, Hasbro, etc. He is more accurate than other books have been. Then he goes into the story about them, and finally, how they attracted kids and how they influenced pop culture. The layout of each TF's part of the book includes: Name:-------- Function:--------- Motto:---------- Bio:-------------- Tech Spec Readings:-------------- Prices: MLC: MIB: MISB: Short description of toy/character:------------- Alt. mode:------------------ Accessories:------------------------ Overall, the info is very well laid out and quite thorough. Pictures: This is the only part of the book that irks me. About the first third of the book has pictures where the toys are noticeably out of focus. 98% of the time it is the legs. It gets significantly better towards the end, but the beginning just bothers me. It is...somewhat unprofessional. Accuracy/reliability: The prices are very accurate estimates; only a few loose complete samples are slightly underpriced, but it's forgivable. The book has every U.S. G1 toy, weapon (along with official weapon names!) bio and tech spec readout listed, all from his personal collection. He even mentions the series, name/model and maker of other pre-tf molds (Whirl and Roadbuster are good examples). OVERALL: 9.5 out of 10- This is my TF bible from now on when I buy G1 stuff. VERY accurate, VERY reliable. A great source of information to own.
The book had helpful info and its a great value for the price. I just wish all the pictures were consistently in focus, as you mentioned most of them were out of focus. I praise Bellomo for taking all the pics himself and doing a ton of work for the book. If he does a beast wars book with said improvements it will be a must buy.
TF Guide Again, (as I've apologized to many about this before) I'm so sorry that some of the pics are out of focus... I'll do MUHC better next time, as I was using a brand new digital camera I bought specifically for this book. It occurred to me to hire a photographer, but he would have had to live with me for oh... about three months (and hiring him would have been prohibitive). Glad you like the book, and I appreciate the kind words! -- Mark W. Bellomo
I'd love to check this out, is it available in Borders or B&N, etc? My Borders carries Mark's GI Joe book but I have yet to see this. Should I just order through Amazon?
I doubt there are any in your area but I found my copy at Hastings, I think Books A Million also carries them.
B&N has a ton of them. Check your local B&N I have a feeling they have a good stock there. I had a feeling B&N would do this since the movie is coming out soon.
