New Dragonlance series' cover art

 Hmm, three characters standing, an expression of dull surprise on at least one of them, and a dragon that nobody's reacting to in a scene that probably doesn't actually happen in the book.

Looks pretty standard to me.

Quote from 7thlevelspecialist >>

This thread isn't about what it depicts. But how badly. Are you saying you believe it's a good piece of art?

I don't think any Dragonlance covers were good pieces of art.

Quote from 7thlevelspecialist >>

Anyone who has studied at art college can tell you Elmore—like or dislike his style—can paint and do so well.

I'm sorry, he may be technically competent but they're still bad art.

Quote from 7thlevelspecialist >>

"Recent decades refers to the period of time within the last 30 to 40 years ..."

So, one of them doesn't qualify at all (published 1984), and the other two only squeak in at the bare margins (published 1985).

Quote from 7thlevelspecialist >>

No work of fiction related to D&D has ever done so well.

That is not a hard bar to meet, most D&D related fiction is both terrible and irrelevant. Also, bear in mind that Weis and Hickmann have been publishing books since then, they're in the category of "sell well enough to keep publishing, but not well enough for a lot of people to care", and the publisher is entirely aware of that, so they're getting the level of support that would be expected from their recent results, not from what they did forty years ago.

Why does the cover art matter when it's a novel... Shouldnt the contents of the book be what matters rather then the cover art?? Hence why the phrase "don't judge a book by its cover" comes to mind.

You are not getting the book to hang on the wall like a piece of art, you are getting the book to read...

Are you not judging a book by the cover..... 

Since I'm a little confused as to the point of debating whether the art is good or bad when it is but a fraction of the product which doesn't appear to be a picture book but instead a novel where the writing is the important part. Ultimately how long is someone going to look at the cover art compared to the contents... 

The publisher's made a decision to use that artist and that cover, they are unlikely to change the cover art, so whats the goal of debating it after voicing your initial dislikes for the art.... 

Quote from PoodlePiriate >>

If a person is not going to read the book and only display it the the only way to judge a book purchased for that purpose is by the cover. 

 WHAT?!

I feel sorry for any novel only displayed for it cover while it's story is left unread... Feels like a waste

Each to their own I guess

Quote from PoodlePiriate >>

I buy the standard covers to use, and the alt covers to display, I have alt covers that I don't have standard covers of simply to display as I would never use them in a game. This also carries over to non ttrpg books I own. Some books I own are just for looking at not reading or using 🫣😱🙃

 "An unread book is a book that has been denied its purpose."

- Literally me

I also have books on display, both read and unread. They are my triumphs and my future aspirations put out for viewing, or convenient gifts earmarked to gift to others, but all are intended for reading by someone's hand. Some people buy shoes just to put them in a climate controlled glass box though, so... I guess I understand in an abstract way. It seems almost criminal to do that to a book though. My soul hurts.

Quote from 7thlevelspecialist >>

Quote from 6thLyranGuard >>

 Hmm, three characters standing, an expression of dull surprise on at least one of them, and a dragon that nobody's reacting to in a scene that probably doesn't actually happen in the book.

Looks pretty standard to me.

 

This thread isn't about what it depicts. But how badly. Are you saying you believe it's a good piece of art? That there is nothing wrong with the faces on the figures depicted in it? That the artist is a skilled draftsperson? [Redacted]

 No, I'm saying that for mass market fantasy novels, bad cover art is as common as dirt and I don't see a reason to raise a fuss about it unless it's something particularly egregious, like excessive fanservice or depicting a character as an ethnic stereotype.

Quote from Erik_Soong >>

 intended for reading by someone's hand

 So ... they're in braille? ôO

Incidentally, why are we talking about a series of books published 2022-2024? It's not like the art will change unless they do a reprinting. What the covers tell me is that Random House didn't have particularly high expectations of it, and given its Amazon sales rank and that I never even noticed its existence, they were probably right.

Quote from PoodlePiriate >>

Discussing the dicision of choosing crappy art for the cover gives feedback, even if it is indirectly.

Buying (or not buying) the book says a lot more. If the books had sold bestseller numbers, good chance there'd be a reprint at collector's edition quality with an alternate cover.