Thursday, October 28, 2010

Saturday, October 16, 2010

K+H #6 and New Influences

I've found some new influences I've been looking at a lot lately like beart sears, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, Steve Scroce, Bill Reinhold - awesome inker, and more of the usual Rick Leonardi and Walt Simonson. Also been getting into mainstays like Joe/andy/adam Kubert and Jack Kirby. Out of the new guys I think Koi Pham is pretty good and I think Ivan Reis is the new Jim Lee, someone who could actually meet his drawing ability and be his stylistic sucessor (i think the inking is one of the main ways they look different) and yet his storytelling doesn't fall into the all too overused Jim Lee Sterotypes, similar to what I'm finding JRJR does as well.

As far as Kord and Harley goes - NO I didn't draw or color these, but I did ink them. That credit goes to Johnathan Rector for pencils and Chandran Ponnusamy for colors. Comes out soon from Arcana.

Kord and Harley 6 - Cover by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Kord and Harley 6 preview-pgs by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Kord and Harley 6 preview-DPS by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Mysteria - at long last

I did these about a year ago and they are still some of my most polished work. I hadn't got to show them until now. The story jumps around a lot and as mentioned on my DA page the character, and script etc are property of J.L Reid. While the colored and lettered comic used to be featured on he website it now seems to be defunct.

Mysteria Pencils - pg 1 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Inks - pg 1 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Pencils - pg 2 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Inks - pg 2 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Pencils - pg 3 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Inks - pg 3 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Pencils - pg 4 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Inks - pg 5 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Pencils - pg 5 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Inks - pg 4 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Pencils - pg 6 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Inks - pg 6 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Pencils - pg 7 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Inks - pg 7 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Pencils - pg 8 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Mysteria Inks - pg 8 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

R.I.P - a generation of greats passes on

Got to take a break and finish writing a 3-issue script I've been wanting to get finished, and the first arc of a web/newspaper comic directed at kids ive been wanting to get started, in between issues.
I just added my ashcan Amanda to my Webcomics Nation account, so everyone can read it now. I started it in college and finally finished it. The center page is a fold out.
With the recent death of Al Williamson I couldn't help but notice how many legends of the comics world have been passing recently. Dick Giordano, Frank Frazetta, Will Eisner ((who even coined the term "graphic novel") among others. If you don't know their work you should check these guys out, chances are you've seen it without knowing. It also brings up the point that if you get a chance to meet one of your heroes at a con or signing etc, like I got to meet Dick, say hi, let them how much their work meant to you - if you're working in comics chances are these guys helped pave the way and direction of where it is now and where it went for the last 30 or more years. The phrase "standing on the shoulders of giants" would not be misused to describe what we're able to do today because of these guys. They spent their life working on comics and many were still doing it when they passed. Their spirit will live on through the pages, the new readers and their influence/inspiration on the generations of both readers and their modern day protégés that follow and are now succeeding them. R.I.P. guys, and thank you for everything.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Decisions Review

Indy Hunter recently reviewed Decisions issue 1 saying my art "...has a rough style that speaks to me as an artist. It’s a bit raw, unrefined but highly energetic. It does however seem a bit rushed and too loose in some areas. Also there were some structure issues in the second story that I wonder if drawn as an afterthought. With that being said, I think there is some promise with both Martin and Zach as a regular writer/art team. I do look forward to seeing how these guys mesh and progress into one working, effective voice." Se the rest of his review here.
I also just finished inking issue 6 and the first half of issue 7 of Kord & Harley for Mortal World Entertainment. And that is being published by Arcana Comics. Should be cool.

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Comic Shop Appearance

I'll be at Cabin Fever Comics in Longmont Colorado on Sat Aug. 28th for their one year anniversary celebration doing sketches and signing copies of Decisions and so on. Hope to see you there if you're in the area.http://cabinfevercomics.com/1stAnniversaryCelebration.aspx

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Working Professional

Well I'm not sure how much I can say about each project but I have secured enough work for the next year or two to finally quit my day job and go pro.
The second best news is that it is all pencilling, and some of the inking will be handled by my good friend and soon to be neighbor James Whynot. We have also nearly completed our pitch packet for "From Blood" formerly referred to as "27." I will be doing some more work for Cosmic Times, Mortal World Entertainment and What the Flux Comics, and have also started getting a fairly healthy stream of commission and side work as well.
So other than having to move twice this month, getting struck by lightening and getting my identity stolen the only thing that makes this month any better is (st some point) getting to celebrate my anniversary.
I have also colored a 6pg short horror story that Whynot inked over Drew Zucker, who is already getting to work with one of my idols of a related industry - cartoons! And I am submitting to Soyfucker vol 2 - an all vegan comic anthology.

Friday, June 25, 2010

Books I'm in that just came out


trash #1 is out and Asassin's Guild #4 are both out now- which i filled in some inks for on both, though - partially my fault for not correcting the error when i had the chance - i was miscredited as having only inked pgs 22, 24, 25 in ASG4 when i aditionally inked pgs 20 and 23, which were credited to Joe Fauvel. But no biggie, it was a last minute change and job anyway. ASG is available through ICCW and Trash will be available through the WTFC website.
I also penciled 6 pages this month, and inked 26.
James Whynot was was able to ink this pinup I had done about a year ago, which will be published in Issue 1 of the Indy Comic Magazine Network.

Sunday, June 20, 2010

The Industry (inking) 2



When asked why his style had changed over the years since Spiderman 2099, Rick Leonardi was nice enough to show me his thumbs, pencils, script and samples of different inkers over him over the last decade or two - and sited the inker's interpretation rather than his own style changing that may have lead to the change I referred to.

I also found this in the back of a Spectre issue, which was short and helped answer some of the questions I had about how far and inker's hand goes. Specific things to watch are the city in the background, the rendering on his arm and the musculature in his shoulder, among the other things the article mentions.


I also found this comparison a fun example of inking styles, since they are a similar composition and subject, but two decades apart. James Whynot did the inks and Drew Zucker did the pencils on the Aliens one. And obviously Brett Breeding and Dan Jurgens did the Doomsday one.
But I've really been back and forth about how much inker's are meant to do - if they only control the look of the lines and not the placement - or do you look at inkers as "art partners" and that pencils are basically glorified thumbnails, meant to be finished out in the interest of the story and storytelling, above all else. The article does point out the difference between "finishers" and "inkers." But I'm starting to learn there is a lot of gray in between.

Sunday, May 30, 2010

the (comics) industry


Penciller/Inker relationships
Is he a tracer, a finisher - art partner, continuity cop, embellisher? The analogy of an inker as a drummer in a band doesn’t even really fit because American comics is done in so much of an assembly-line style that they really have no say until everything else is done - almost more like the mixer or sound engineer, if we were to use the band analogy (and if so then what is the colorist or even letterer for that matter. I’ve seen pencilers leave all the black placement and shadows to the inkers, correct anatomy and perspective, finish out buildings add background and even draw in full figures like the famous jim lee and scott williams page shown here. is it their job to point out all they do to the penciler, in hopes that things will change and they wont have to do as much next time or is it too much for any one person in the process to try and tell the others how to do their job.
Does a bad penciller/inker reflect on the other’s skillset and talent in the finished work if it looks bad - or can artists only tell the difference. Are we cutthroat enough to only do “our job” or is it the nature of a team effort that each person down the line must pick up the slack the others have left? I suppose this is the job of the editor to make sure that everyone is doing their job to their full extent - or that there is an understanding between the various creative teams - supposing that every team is different. But its hard to say anything as a statement - that isn’t a question for clarification - without stepping on the other’s toes. Is it the inker’s job to silently make the penciller look as good as possible and change things or is his job only controlling the look of the lines and not their placement (the pencilelr’s job)? There are even inkers that take over the art, that you see the inker more than the penciller like Bill S. or Joe Kubert.


writer/artist relationships - and their effect on the reader
I’ve also been talking to my friend about the difference between “rockstar artists” that grab you from a distance because of their own intrinsic power from their style (jim lee, kelley jones etc) - and “story artists” who really go unnoticed until you read the work, and find it served the storytelling the best and played second fiddle or even in tandem with the writer rather than over his head (steve dillon, john cassaday, etc). There are some that are both or have become that.
For a long time, I guess growing up in the 90’s - the age of rock star artists - I began buying and reading comics purely visually, and it wasn’t until recently that I would buy a book because of the writer, disliking the art at first because it didn’t “grab” me and then find the artists to be a perfect fit - and I couldn’t imagine it any other way.
How does this affect marketing that is either based on a name by name basis, or splash page art? Of course there have been artists in this transition that I used to like visually but can’t stand to read, or found confusing. I’ve known writers who hate artists who render or take time for themselves such as drawing full splash pages etc, that the reader slows down to look at - because it messes with their pacing. Then there have been artists that even play with that idea, and actually simplify during action sequences so you read faster- you have less to look at, like Mignolla.
I might never pick up a book if I don’t respond well to the marketing or I have to go through the work to read synopsizes or listen/read peer reviews. Neither of which are bad, and are probably by far more accurate than splash-page art, but it is almost totally the opposite in terms of how we process that type of marketing and the types of people that respond to it - or would go through the work, its not as immediate as it used to be.
Then there is also the difference between cover artists and interior artists like Brian Stillfreeze, and Dave Dorman who could sell sand to Egyptians, or bottle water to Americans - lol. I suppose in certain instances they have become recognized and gone on to an easier and higher paying career where they are a house-hold name in the comics world but by and large it is a totally difference industry from a buyers perspective and no one really told anyone else to change the way you look for new books. You just kind of get jaded after spending a couple hundred on beautiful cover art that delivers nothing inside - not saying that Dorman or Stillfreeze have done that , just that they easily could.
Many have even said that this is the age of “rock-star artists,” who people will sit through bad art they don’t like just to read a good story. I suppose it is such a subjective subject that a perfect match and balance will only be found in the eye of the beholder, and is still changing. But its interesting for a guy who fell out of reading for a few years to come back and see it almost flip flopped of where it was 20, 15 or even 10 years ago. Ideally we are looking to take in all aspects equally well, but it rarely happens as such.

Many of these conversations/arguments were inspired/introduced to me, by things I heard inker John Holdridge, and writer Mike Baron say years ago at a class they taught, rather dualistically - for these very reasons, in Denver’s RMCAD about 10 years ago, now. But they are things I am only now beginning to experience and question for myself.

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Busy Bee

I’ve been a busy bee, and a very ADD one this month. I’ve helped ink 2 pages of Jeremay’s Trash #2 for What the Flux, and 2 pages of Randy’s Assassins Guild #4 for Knightshift Studios. I’ve all but finished the last script in a 6-issue superhero series I’ve wanted to do and have been plotting since my first year of college. I’ve also Penciled an 8pg story for The ICCW Psychic Kids Anthology in about 3-4 days, which you can see here and set up to go to both Heroes con and Florida Supercon - both 3 day cons - in June. You can see me eitehr at the Cosmic Times booth where they will be selling copies of Decisions that I worked on, or at the What the Flux booth - at supercon. On top of that I’ve landed some ongoing work with Mortal World Entertainment which should keep me busy for the good part of this next year - you can see some of my character designs on Matt’s facebook page, here. Not to mention some other secret work I can’t talk about with WTFC. I also finally acquired a Waccom Tablet and an 11x17 scanner - my essential gear for this kind of work load.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Con Schedule and the Lowdown


Concrete Dove Poster by ~xaqBazit on deviantART
Finally here is the poster from megacon, and here are Larry's pencils. I inked and colored.



Airforce Colorado Grads Gift by ~xaqBazit on deviantART
And here is a painting I recently finished.
I'm rather busy at the moment, multitasking - but that is all a lot better than not having anything to work on - like what happened for about 2 months surrounding megacon.
I Will be at Heroes Con, on the floor - looking for even more projects and Florida Supercon - that time, behind the booth at the WTFC table. Hope to see you guys there.

you can see my pencils here
also wanted to add this in, it is Robin's inks over my pencils - very interesting. We may work as a team here in a while.

Friday, April 23, 2010

Free Comic Book Day Mini-Con?

Hey guys I'll be hanging out at Past Present Future Comics in West Palm Beach Fl. for free comic book day, where you can get a poster I inked and colored over Larry's pencils from What the Flux Comics and where you can get your own copy of Descisions Issue 1, from Cosmic Times - which just recently premiered at Megacon, just over one month ago. It will be like a mini-convention with many local creators and publishers - Check out this article on the store and event, here.
Other than that I've gotten started on some new secret projects and have also been comissioned to do two paintings, one as large as 6ftx2ft. I'll post pictures here in the next month as they get finished.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Post Megacon 2010


As a guest of What the Flux Comics, my Megacon table looked like this. With my prints on the lower left, portfolio to the right and shirts in the background. I was able to sell at least one of everything I had at the table. I also had the Concrete Dove posters, I inked and colored, as well as my shirts and Bellydancer posters, and actually had quite a diverse audience for them. I later started hanging the following sketches, that I did, live, at the con, on the front of the table to get people interested in Commissions, which you can see below, of Daredevil, Emma Frost, Batman and Batgirl.

Batgirl Con Sketch by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Batgirl con sketch - inked by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

I did end up getting four Commissions, including: Death, a character the man apparently got various con sketches of and seemed to list mine among his favourites, and mentioned it getting very positive comments from several other artist’s he approached to do one. A fellow artist’s personal character, for whom I regret to say I don’t remember the name (please email if you find this and let me know so I can link you). Batgirl sitting atop the Hulk’s shoulder. And a character from Patrick Sessom’s comic S.O.A.R.

Megacon Commissions 2010 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART
Jeramy Hobbs, a fellow WTFC artist seemed to like my work quite a bit and I was asked to ink one of his pieces. This one of the main characters from God of War and Assassin’s Creed fighting one another, I was told this piece sold, later that same day.

God of War vs Assassins Creed by ~xaqBazit on deviantART
I got to sit next to Larry Watts and his wife Sarah, who along with Patrick Sessoms and Randy Taylor, along with a few others were running the ICCW table right next to us. We were all kind of in the corner, and business was hard. There were many artists but very few companies – so networking was about the only option and for that reason ICCW flourished, with around 25 new members after the first day. The ICCW rampage Vol. 1, featured my story “Friend$hip” and Patrick’s story that I inked, “3:33am” will premiere in Vol. 2.
I got to meet new artists, such as Banky Farando, Patrick Larcada, Matt Buck, and Lamar Mathurin as well as catch up with some past acquaintances from the Mini-Megacon, and old friends like Ryan Miller. I also bought a book from Botobit, Epidemic vol. 1 – which, like the ICCW rampage vol. 1, was an anthology of different artists from around the globe, though more fine arts related and less sequential focused. I also stopped and grabbed a flyer for the Orange County Regional History Center, who have several comic themed exhibits, both currently and upcoming.

I got a few artists’ to critique my portfolio and recent work in Decision’s, such as Rick Tucker and various companies I talked to. And I was even asked to review up and coming artist’s portfolio’s, which was great, such as Jeanette Pabon, who is working on putting a website together. I got to meet and talk art with one of my recent influences, Erick Jones, one of my all time favourite artist’s Dave Dorman, and others as I examined their wealth of original artwork they all had on hand.

I was also able to spend some time at the Cosmic Times booth with Robin on Sunday, where we signed the first available copies of Decisions for customers, which premiered this weekend, and got to talk with two of the nicest people working in Indy Comics. Here’s a pic of the three of us, the creative team for the 1st issue, excluding only the cover artist Dan Mann, who was also available for autographs at the con though I didn’t get a chance to meet, and the editor Connie Voss. (From left to right: Martin –writer-, Robin –letterer- and me, Zach –interior artist).


I did want to mention, to those of you who bought the book, and there is a note towards the end of the book that Cosmic Times is depending on readers like you writing in and letting them know what you think about the series, to decide weather of not to continue Decisions into a series. So send in those reviews! Speaking of which, we should hear back soon after from a few different blogs and websites who will be giving their opinion. Arthur: The Legend Continues, the Legend Continues (their flagship book) was received very well and even featured on the popular podcast Comic Book Geek Speak (CBGS) so I can’t wait to hear back about this one.

I was able to pick up some trades I was looking for at ½ cover price such as The Return of Superman, New X-men: Vol. 2, Fables Vol. 1 and Vertigo’s: First Cut. And while not everyone who stopped and looked bought something, most did take the time to grab a business card and that exposure alone is enough to help. All in all it was a great first Convention to officially be on the other side of the table at.

I was also informed I am slated to ink their next coming first issue – Outlaws, as the banner displayed on their website shows.

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Megacon Preview

I'll more than likely be at the What the Flux booth durring most of Megacon which is located in the Orange Section of Artist's Alley, booths 21-23.

I'll also have a 11x17 pinup poster I inked and colored at the What the Flux booth for Concrete Dove for sale.

Possibly a few t-shirts featuring some the Elephant and the Angel Warrior from my DA pages.

ill have prints of the belly dancer available for sale.

Belly Dancer Commission by ~xaqBazit on deviantART
as well as the iccw anthology in which these two stories are published.

Friend$hip - pg 1 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

Friend$hip - pg 2 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

"3:33am" I inked and "Friend$hip" i did all on my own. You can read the first few pages of each on my DA page by clicking either one of the pictures.


3:33am Pg 1 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

3:33am Pg 3 by ~xaqBazit on deviantART

And don't forget a whole issue of interior b+w artwork in "Decisions" for Cosmic Times Publishing at their booth. With beautiful cover art by Dan Mann and letters by Robin. Check out the page for more a plot synopsis and credits on their website.


Decisions, issue 1- preview by ~xaqBazit on deviantART
And of course I'll have plenty of original art on hand for all to see in my portfolio.

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Pre-megacon work


Belly Dancer Commission by ~xaqBazit on deviantART
Just finished this a week or so ago. You can read details on DA. I did mention I will most likely have prints of this to sell at the con as well as some other original artwork of popular characters. I've also been working on a Concrete Dove Pin up for What the Flux that I'm inking and coloring. This month I'm working on a tattoo commission and for a chest piece, and designs for MMA fighter's t-shirts. So far I've done one and more are on the way. They have been seriously fun, like the tattoo design because it has been general directions and has basically been left up to me to make look cool. Which I think I did quite well.

Waring Angels by ~xaqBazit on deviantART
I also recently finished this tattoo commission, you can find out more on my DA page by clicking the image.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

One heck of a Month

This month alone:
-I have drawn and inked the 9pg story for Cosmic Times, “Saving Father” in “Decisions, Issue 1.”
-I have written/penciled/inked/lettered a 5pg story entitled “Friend$hip” and inked (with my wife’s help filling some spot blacks) a 5pg story entitled “3:33am,” written by Patrick Sessoms for the ICCWW Anthology Showcase.
-I have done 2 pgs of inking samples and a pg of pencil samples for ECV press.
-And lastly I have penciled the first 5pgs for James’ Graphic Novel “27.”

Megacon
The two stories I worked on for the ICCWW Anthology “Showcase,” will be sold at Megacon, as well as my first published whole issue of art, “Decisions Issue 1 (which will be available at the Cosmic Times Booth). I believe Issue 2 of “Concrete Dove” will also be available but it may be saved as a web comic, for What the Flux Media that I did the cover for.
I’ve also started a Con Calendar on my profile if anyone is interested. Right now Megacon is the only one up, but I’ll be adding more soon. I will be jumping between the “What the Flux Media” booth and the “Cosmic Times” booth and will have issues of the ICCWW Anthology for sale as well (which can also be bought through the ICCWW booth).
I will have my portfolio as well as plenty of original art on hand either to see or buy, and will be doing Con Sketches for $15-20, depending on if you want it inked etc.

Experimenting/Influences
All this work forced me to ink everything but “Friend$hip” and the ECV inking samples here in the last week. I wish I could taken more time on but I am extremely proud of the work none the less. I do believe the work I’ve been doing is my best, which is always the goal and have even snuck in a good amount of experimenting.

-For example, Friend$hip is done in a cartoonier style as an homage to Humberto Ramos, an artist who my wife loves and I’ve been watching for some time. We just finished collecting the complete “Crimson” series he did a while back. The story is dedicated to her, and is autobiographical.

-For this second story “Saving Father” in Decisions Issue 1, I was told to try a darker style and so every time the characters get angry the style changes to a grittier rougher inking style. This was highly influenced by the work of the late, great Jorge Zaffino and this page specifically - available on his website. It was also the first time I have used Google “Sketch Up” for my art, a fact which many artist would hide but I wanted to state, because it was my first time and I have been on the fence about using 3D for comics after being shunned away by professors in college. But the truth is I ran into so many professionals at Mini-Mega Con who used it and made it work, and know of so many more, that I figured I better see what everyone was talking about. I found it decently easy to work with (after being a 3D major for a year in college) but still clumsy. I also noticed several details I would have needed to add to the model had I shot it from the other side, and the use of photo reference for textures and details like that must (I believe) go hand-in-hand. I also believe what someone said at the con, that “they might be laying it out digitally, but are Inking it by hand” And I think that goes a long way to making it mesh with your artwork.

-I tried Strathamore’s line of “smooth” comic Bristol board, because of its economy (around .50 cents a sheet) and Higgins Black Magic ink, for its availability (the only brand of waterproof ink that Michael’s carries). I don’t know if it is the combination of both together but I could Not use a quill without it bleeding horribly. In which case Faber Castell’s “M”and “B” size tech and brush pens came in extremely handy. I was able to pull it in a way that feathered the line and imitated the Quill, even with the “M” pen. Using the ink in a brush to fill spot blacks I also found the ink to be incredibly watery and gray.

-Dave Gibbons and seeing the Watchmen Motion Comic has had huge effect on how I draw, the close up zooms of his art really let me study and see what he was doing and so the way I shade walls and even draw some faces closely resembled his style while illustrating Watchmen. The way I illustrated the father character in “Saving Father” closely resembles the way he drew the character Moloch, mixed with a pseudo self-portrait of me while working on the pages. I also got to do some cool things with a toothbrush, reminiscent of John Cassaday’s run on Captain America, after 9/11.

-I tried some reflection techniques similar to the Jurgens/Breeding style run around the time of the Death of Superman. As well as picked up on a few things other superman artists did to quickly depict buildings during those issues. I posted a small picture a few posts back relating to what I’m talking about.

-I experimented with mark-making using the brush to imitate leaves though I still need to work on that more.

-And lastly I’ve found that printing Blue Lined Art at Fed-Ex/Kinkos stinks and is expensive. It printed way too dark and lead me to have to use the “Replace color” tool in photoshop to replace left over Blue (even after tweaking the “levels”) with White - which thinned much of my inking out in the story “3:33am.” Which will also be my first published story just as an inker over another artist.


A short word about the 90's
-It’s been a weird experience growing up and loving what is now considered a dark and nearly was “the final period” in Comic’s history - the collecting bubble of the early 90's. On the popular podcast Comic Book Geek Speak (CBGS), which I have been listing to almost non-stop for the last week, the first question they ask their guests burring interviews is “what was your first comic” or even what was your “gateway” comic, that lead you into wanting to do this as a profession. And the comics I grew up on are now something to shy away from, stylistically and otherwise. So re-learning what “good comics” are, has largely been a very troubled road for my generation I think. And for more reasons than this, but - it may be why it is so hard to break in right now, is because the people that are young grew up learning with the wrong idea of what comics are and should be (in the eyes of the people who would hire you now). We are the ultimate fanboy generation, who bought multiple issues, foil, variant and fold-out poster covers and anything that had an “X” in the title or that resembled either mutants or Jim Lee’s art. Don’t get me wrong, I still like Jim Lee but it was that whole generation of artists and writers who either by choice or were told to imitate him that lead to such a derivative and similar in the name of money - and maybe that generation was even more so a “fanboy generation of creators” than the one’s who grew up reading their work, but never the less - now here we are, the kids who grew up with that being our definition for comics and now we are in a world where that type of thing gives some people shivers. So it is up to us to redefine it for ourselves, but it is also a burden, I guess of every generation of artists to not look outdated and move past your influences, to look more modern and to get work that way - who knows, perhaps that’s all they were doing as well.

Comics and Pop Culture
-I good point was brought up the other day on CBGS, that “comic characters are more popular in movies/games than they are in the comic books, anymore.” And even comic-related shows like “Heroes” are capitalizing on what comics brought to the world and while the companies are seeing the money at some point it is passing through more hands, forcing specialty shops to widen their product base to everything related to comics just to keep people comic in. My point is, it is sad that comic characters are so popular right now and yet they are making the least amount of money through their original medium. How would they have ever gotten where they are with out it? Or are they like movies in the theater or Disney world, they make very little off of your ticket but everything off of the snacks and t-shirts. Has it always been that way? Or does a spike in the actual market cause the 90's collector bubble I previously commented on? I, myself saw/read “one of the most celebrated comics of all time,” Watchmen, for the first time as a “motion-comic.” But at least they were nice enough to add at the end of the credits something like “be sure to enjoy Watchmen in it’s original form” - but did I? No. What does that say about the industry?

One last note:
- I recently acquired a reprint edition of the Star Wars Dark Empire II trade (I’m still trying to get I) which includes Empire’s End and it’s the only time I’ve been compelled to buy a different edition of a book because of the print quality. All the colors are light and washed out, the blacks are every shade of gray and rarely dark enough to keep a consistent tone and all the colors look fuzzy and grainy, similar to what saving a picture as a low quality .jpg will do. I love Cam Kenedy’s work and I love being able to get it in reprints but the quality of this most recent reprint just ruined the experience for me - of what I remember the original Trade having - vibrant saturated colors and stark blacks - amazing clarity and the classic iconic Dave Dorman covers - which they also changed and moved his art to the back cover.