# Is "Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art" by Scott McCloud a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art by Scott McCloud (Tundra Publishing, 1993) is identified by: True first edition published by Tundra Publishing in 1993, softcover, 216 pages, black and white, ISBN 1-56862-019-5. US true first is the Tundra Publishing 1993 softcover, not Kitchen Sink.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- True first edition published by Tundra Publishing in 1993, softcover, 216 pages, black and white, ISBN 1-56862-019-5
- The Tundra imprint on the title and copyright pages is the key point
- Kitchen Sink Press printings followed after Kitchen Sink absorbed Tundra in 1993, and the HarperPerennial paperback editions (from 1994) are later still
- Correct publisher/imprint: Tundra Publishing

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Scott McCloud |
| Publisher | Tundra Publishing |
| Year | 1993 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Comic / graphic novel |
| Key point | True first edition published by Tundra Publishing in 1993, softcover, 216 pages, black and white, ISBN 1-56862-019-5 |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
True first edition published by Tundra Publishing in 1993, softcover, 216 pages, black and white, ISBN 1-56862-019-5. The Tundra imprint on the title and copyright pages is the key point. Kitchen Sink Press printings followed after Kitchen Sink absorbed Tundra in 1993, and the HarperPerennial paperback editions (from 1994) are later still.

## Is this the true first?
US true first is the Tundra Publishing 1993 softcover, not Kitchen Sink. Kitchen Sink, later DC Paradox and Vertigo, and HarperPerennial editions are all later printings or reissues (first thus). Identify the original by the Tundra imprint.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition. The trap is that Kitchen Sink and HarperPerennial printings are far more common and are later; verify the Tundra Publishing imprint and the 1993 first printing.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art* by Scott McCloud a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/understanding-comics-the-invisible-art
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.