The New York Journal of Books said that the first volume of LOAC Essentials, Baron Bean 1916, "sets the standard for archival and reprint quality." The Washington Times wrote that it's "beautiful. It showcases Mr. Herriman's developing style and his move toward a combination of absurdity, surrealism, and art deco." Now, with Volume 6, Baron Bean 1917, the Essentials series returns for the next installment in the adventures of the much-maligned English ex-pat.

LOAC Essentials reprints, one year at a time, the daily newspaper strips that are essential to comics history, in a format that preserves as closely as possible the original reader experience. By reproducing the strips one per page in an oblong format, it allows us to have the experience of reading the comics one day at a time. Each volume contains seminal strips that are unique creations in their right and also contributed to the advancement of the medium, along with panel-by-panel annotations.