Showing posts with label DC Comics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DC Comics. Show all posts
Monday, June 14, 2010
Batman and Mr. Terrific
The Michael Holt Mr. Terrific is one of my favorite versions of a legacy character at DC. I really enjoyed his introduction in the excellent Spectre series by John Ostrander and Tom Mandrake and was disappointed when the character looked to languish in comics limbo when that run ended. Fortunately Geoff Johns and James Robinson decided to use him the the newly revamped JSA and his popularity and exposure have risen since.
I always got a kick out of his predecessor, Terry Sloane, as well. I remember being truly shocked when the killed him off in an issue of Justice League of America - that was back when comic hero deaths were rare and permanent. I am glad I came up with a cover concept to use them both.
Labels:
Batman,
Brave and the Bold,
DC Comics,
JSA,
Mr. Terrific,
Neal Adams,
Team Up
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Batman and Four Famous Co-Stars! (Colossus, Superman: Red Son, Crimson Dynamo & Red Star)
I've been wanting to use the B&B #100 cover layout with 4 guest stars for a long time but I could never come up with the right concept. I was trying to think of a Batman/Colossus concept when I thought it might be fun to throw in some more Russia based characters.
Red Star was originally called Starfire, but he relinquished that name to the more popular Teen Titan.
Crimson Dynamo was always my favorite of Iron Man's armored adversaries/allies - I thought his armor had a great formidable tank quality to it.
Superman: Red Son is from the excellent Elseworlds story of the same name. Easily one of Mark Millar's best works, I highly recommend it.
Colossus is, of course, the very popular X-Men member. I used an image by his co-creator, Dave Cockrum.
Batman and Detective Chimp
One thing I like about DC is that no character or concept is too old or off of center for them to dust off and give another shot every once in a while. Detective Chimp had fallen well off the radar when he was reintroduced as a member of Shadowpact. I really enjoyed the work that Bill Willingham did with him on the title.
My favorite JLA/JSA crossover was the George Perez-penciled 3-parted featuring the Secret Society of Super Villains. It was there I was introduced to the Ultra-Humanite, in his simian form. I've been a big fan of his ever since, and was happy to finally find a cover to use him in.
Friday, June 11, 2010
Batman and Hellboy
Mike Mignola has really done a great job of exercising quality control with Hellboy, whether it be in comics, movies or animation. He has managed to get his creator-owned character out there in a variety of formats, always maintaining a high standard of quality and fidelity.
The comics speak for themselves, scary, funny, gothic action packed mysteries filled with innovative concepts and characters. While the film versions changed a few elements, they got the look perfectly and were a lot of fun. I hope that Guillermo Del Toro completes the trilogy. The two animated movies (featuring the cast of the films on vocal chores) are very well done, I highly recommend them.
Batman and Mr. Fantastic
Mr. Fantastic was always cool because his intellect and personality made him stand out against the other more humorous themed stretching super heroes. I remember liking the fact that that most artists resisted the urge to show Reed Richards stretching his neck, because that would be undignified for a man of his stature.
I am enjoying Jonathan Hickman's take on Reed in the current Fantastic Four series, full of big ideas, but not forgetting the importance of family - which is what the FF is all about to me.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Batman and Agents of Atlas
I picked up the first Agents of Atlas TPB on a whim because I liked the What If? issue it was inspired by and I had read a few positive reviews. I was surprised with how much I enjoyed it. It's a great group of eclectic characters, each with complex layers of history and personality. I liked the second TPB as well and definitely plan to keep following this team.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Batman and Dazzler
Dazzler is a character that has had a hard time finding a niche. As is often the case in comics she was created to capitalize on a fad just as it was dying out. With disco and roller skates no longer a draw, she relied guest stars to prop up her series. After its cancellation, she was given a makeover and membership in the X-Men, but that didn't seem to raise her profile very much. She does have interesting powers and a unique back story, so I think there is still potential to be mined. Perhaps the best angle would be to go back to the original look in kind of a retro chic vibe. I'm a firm believer that every minor character is just one clever writer away from the big leagues. Hey, I live in hope.
Labels:
Batman,
Brave and the Bold,
Dazzler,
DC Comics,
Marvel Comics,
Team Up
Monday, June 7, 2010
Batman and Morbius
I was first introduced to Morbius in one of my all-time favorite Spider-Man arcs, where Spidey grows two extra sets of arms. There have been other attempts to merge vampires with super-heroes or super-villains, but I think Morbius was the most successful. Like the best Spider-Man villains, he was a true threat, but also had a sense of tragedy about him.
I had a hard time finding an image for this cover, and finally located one in an unlikely place - a set of Marvel stickers that came out in the 70's. Boy did that bring back memories. Each sticker featured a character with a speech balloon containing a one liner or a bad pun (For instance Medusa said, "Only my hairdresser knows for sure!") Ah, those were the days.
Labels:
Batman,
Brave and the Bold,
DC Comics,
Jim Aparo,
Marvel Comics,
Morbius,
Team Up
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Batman and Moondragon
I have to admit, the main reason I used to kind of like Moondragon was that she reminded me of Persis Khambatta, the beautiful actress who appeared in Star Trek: The Motion Picture. I'd have to check publication dates to see if there is a chance that she was inspired by the actress. Usually she was written with a less than inviting personality, but at least that created conflict and made for some interesting story lines. I'm not sure what her status is these days, the last I remember reading of her was in Peter David's Captain Marvel series some years back.
The Marvel Two-In-One cover I used here is by the incomparable George Perez. I had the pleasure of meeting him briefly this past year, and he could not have been more gracious. His love of comics is infectious and clearly shows through in his artwork.
Labels:
Batman,
Brave and the Bold,
DC Comics,
George Perez,
Marvel Comics,
Moondragon,
Team Up
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Batman and Moon Knight
Since Moon Knight is the closest character Marvel has to Batman, I always felt that this would be a natural and interesting team-up. I love the character's look and the multiple secret identity angle is a cool one. Unfortunately too often he is played as borderline (or over the border) crazy and seems to fight the same couple of villains over and over, which has turned me off to his more recent titles. I still think he has great potential, and always check in when a new creative team takes a crack at his adventures. Hopefully someone will find the right balance and recapture some of the excitement of his original series.
Labels:
Batman,
Brave and the Bold,
DC Comics,
Marvel Comics,
Moon Knight,
Team Up
Friday, June 4, 2010
Batman and Invincible
Invincible is a character I will have to read more of. I picked up his crossover with Spider-Man in Marvel Team-Up and got a kick out of it. Robert Kirkman is a pretty dependable writer and the relationship with his father, Omni-Man seems interesting to me. Once I finish my unread stack of Essentials and Showcases, I might just go out and pick up some of the Invincible collections.
Labels:
Batman,
Brave and the Bold,
DC Comics,
Image Comics,
Invincible,
Team Up
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Batman and Mogo
Here was a case where a good friend of mine tried to stump me with a request. However, the planet sized Green Lantern member was always a favorite concept for me (ever since the great Alan Moore tale, Mogo Doesn't Socialize), so I was happy to take up the challenge. One thing I am proud of on this cover is that it is one of the few ones where I had to create a logo for the guest star, and I think it came out well.
The Green Lantern Corps is a great concept in that they fully embrace the weirdness of sentient forms in the universe and have members of every shape and size. I am eagerly awaiting the Martin Campbell directed Green Lantern movie not only to see the main character in live action, but the more alien side characters such as Kilowog, Tomar Re, Abin Sur, and so forth. It should be great fun and hopefully turn a lot more people onto this cool property.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Batman and Mera
With so few female characters in comics that aren't simply feminine versions of pre-existing male characters, it has been a shame how under-utilized Mera has been, especially with her cool hard water powers. Fortunately, it seems that Geoff Johns agrees with that, because he gave Mera her biggest spotlight in decades in the Blackest Night mini-series. She is continuing to stay in focus with the current bi-weekly Brightest Day series as well. Hopefully a new Aquaman series will follow and she will be able to continue to shine.
Once again, I am glad to be able to provide a cover that is 100% Aparo artwork. His run on Aquaman is the best that character has ever looked, in my opinion.
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Batman and Blade
I never paid much attention to Blade until the first Wesley Snipes film, which I quite liked. It's a great example of how a minor character can really break out if given the right script, director and actor. The Sequel was fun too, although I felt the third one lost a step. The success in films hasn't translated to more popularity in comics, however - perhaps this is a character that is better suited to live action, or maybe it is a matter of just not finding the creative team that clicks yet.
The B&B cover I used as a template here is by Nick Cardy, who for my money was the best DC cover artist in the Silver/Bronze Age (Gil Kane holds that honor for Marvel). Cardy, along with John Romita Sr. also drew some of the most beautiful women in comics.
Labels:
Batman,
Blade,
Brave and the Bold,
DC Comics,
Marvel Comics,
Nick Cardy,
Team Up,
Wonder Girl
Monday, May 31, 2010
Batman and Mephisto
One thing I like about Marvel's stable of villains is that they have a lot that are considered line-wide villains. At DC, once you get past Darkseid, there aren't too many villains that can make that claim. Dr. Doom started with the FF, but he has had major story lines with many other big guns (and not so big guns) of the Marvel Universe. Thanos, Kingpin and the Wrecking Crew will pop up in a wide variety of titles. Mephisto is in this group as well. I have read cool stories pitting him against the Silver Surfer, Dr. Strange, The Fantastic Four, even Daredevil. And of course one very notorious story with Spider-Man that is still quite controversial. So it was only a matter of time before he vexed Batman...
The Mephisto on this cover is by Marvel legend John Buscema - probably the artist I most relate to the company because of the How To Draw Comics The Marvel Way! book that I spent many many hours of my youth studying.
Labels:
Batman,
Brave and the Bold,
DC Comics,
Jim Aparo,
John Buscema,
Marvel Comics,
Mephisto,
Team Up
Sunday, May 30, 2010
Batman and Lost
This one is truly a Lost issue! It was another request that I didn't think I could fulfill, but then inspiration hit. One of my more complicated covers as there are 19 separate images that went into it.
I know some people were disappointed with the finale of Lost but I found it to be very satisfying. I was more into the character arcs in the show than the scientific reasons for everything so the fact that every question was not answered did not bother me. It was enough for me to know that the island was the source for good and evil in the world, I did not need to know exactly why or how it was created. Kind of the way The Force was used in Star Wars, where I knew basically what it was and what it can do without knowing its origins - and once they tried to explain it with "midichlorians" in the prequels, almost nobody was satisfied anyway.
I look forward to future work by most of the cast of Lost, they have proven themselves to be talented and engaging actors. I am sure it will be some time before we see a series quite as engrossing.
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Batman and Marvel Zombies
When I first heard of the Marvel Zombies mini-series, it sounded like a silly concept and I didn't bother to pick up the issues. I then read a bunch of positive reviews as well as some of Robert Kirkman's other comics work and decided to give it a shot. I am glad I did because I really got a kick out of it, as well as the sequel. It has a nice gallows humor to it and Sean Phillips knows how to draw gore without it having too much of a gross out factor. I haven't tried the later series with different creative teams, hopefully Marvel isn't stretching the concept too thin.
Batman and G.I. Joe
I did not follow the G.I. Joe comics or the cartoon, but I have a fond memory of the action figures from my childhood. The real ones from the 70's, not those tiny ones that came out later on. I liked all the cool accessories like scuba gear and of course was a fan of the kung-fu grip!
Not having followed the newer version I don't know how faithful the movie last summer was. It kind of surprised me. I guess I went in with low expectations because even though the acting was pretty weak and the plot preposterous, I found the film to be big dumb fun. I think I could go along with is because it didn't seem to take itself very seriously. Sometimes its OK to just turn your brain off and watch things go splodey.
Labels:
Batman,
Brave and the Bold,
DC Comics,
G.I. Joe,
Norm Breyfogle,
Team Up
Friday, May 28, 2010
Batman and Mary Marvel
A pretty simple one this time out, but I love both of the images so much that I didn't want to mess with this cover too much. I believe they are both originally from covers to Amazing Heroes, one of the earlier comic-themed magazines.
Mary Marvel, along with the rest of the Marvel Family has seen better days. For some reason DC seems intent on corrupting her and frankly that is a plot element that I am quite tired of. Currently, Shazam has taken away Mary and Billy's powers and the characters are getting a bit of a rest. When they do return, I hope it will be in their more traditional appearances and personalities.
Mary in this cover was illustrated by the late, great Don Newton - a stellar artist taken far too young. I loved his work on the Shazam characters in World's Finest. He was also known for his rendition of Batman.
Labels:
Batman,
Brave and the Bold,
DC Comics,
Don Newton,
Jim Aparo,
Mary Marvel,
Team Up
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Batman and Mar-Vell
Captain Marvel was a character that I discovered in a somewhat backwards manner. The first story of his that I read was The Death of Captain Marvel Graphic Novel. I then sought out his solo series as well as his guest appearances. I always liked his look, he has one of those simple silver age style costumes that really appeal to me.
Marvel recently brought the character back, only to later reveal that it was a Skrull impostor, which is just as well since the stories he was given were less than memorable. Mar-Vell had one of the great send-offs in comics, and a full return would probably dilute that. Still, it would be nice to see him return in some "untold stories".
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)



















