I’d call this a “realistic” dinosaur, but how would I actually know without a time machine?
Its tail hit me in the head a few times, so that’s realistic enough for me.
It looks like Blue from Jurassic World, although its name tag says “Rocky.” Maybe Blue is his stage name.
I never did figure out why its handler was dressed as if he’d wandered out of The Matrix. Maybe it relates to the most recent Jurassic World film, which I skipped. Come to think of it, it could relate to one of the previous films. Those weren’t just terrible; they weren’t memorable.
Or maybe the guy just likes The Matrix and has a pet Velociraptor.
But, as always, I digress.
One of the best things about this encounter was how many people barely gave the dinosaur a second glance. Then again, this was a comic book convention. In New York.
You’d be surprised how little attention a dinosaur attracts.
Barry Windsor-Smith drawing Doctor Strange. I wish we’d gotten more of that.
This page is from Marvel Premiere #3, the launch of Doc’s new bronze-age solo series and the only issue of the run fully penciled by Smith. He also plotted the story, with Stan Lee handling the script.
And what a story. Doctor Strange vs. Doctor Strange. It gave Smith plenty to work with, and this terrific page is one of the results. I could explain what’s happening, but that would spoil some of the fun. It’s worth reading.
Trust me on this.
Smith helped usher in a new wave of young, “hipper” artists taking on Doc. Windsor-Smith. Starlin. Brunner. Different approaches, but all well suited to a character whose adventures could go pretty much anywhere. The stories and art got even trippier—which, considering where Ditko and Colan had already taken him, is saying something.
Marvel had been easing Doc back into circulation, first as a founding member of the Defenders and then with a major guest-starring role in Amazing Spider-Man. Now he had a series again. Well, technically, he took over Marvel Premiere for nearly two years before getting his own title back. Close enough.
One fully penciled issue. I’m glad we got it. Like I said, wish we’d gotten a few more.
It’s October, so we’re celebrating Halloween all month with some appropriately spooky selections from the collection. No costume required. (Although it helps.)
Walter Simonson with his HUGE oversized original Marvel Thor art, donated for the Hero Initiative Auction, moderated by Scott Dunbier. The Auction rased 100K for the charity, with Walter’s piece the big gun (literally) at 32K.My favorite convention of the year came and went much too quickly.
So much talent…
Andy MacDonaldAdriana MeloAnthony_MarquesArt AdamsBilly Tucci & Brian PulidoBrian StelfreezeCaitlin_YarskyBob McLeodColeen DoranCreees LeeDan ParsonsDan JurgensDean HaspielCully HamnerDave JohnsonDon SimpsonEric CaneteDrew MossJason AaronErik LarsenEric PowellJeffrey BrownJames RobinsonJerome OpenaJG JonesHoward Chaykin & Bob ChapmanFrank Cho
Darwyn Cooke drew only four “regular” issues of Catwoman.
Four.
Yes, there was also “Trail of the Catwoman” in Detective Comics, and the terrific Selina’s Big Score. But still, it wasn’t nearly enough.
Ed Brubaker and Darwyn gave us a terrific version of Selina Kyle. Smart, stylish, funny and noirish, with a costume that was both sexy — and, for a change, a bit more practical.
She finally looked like someone who could actually leap across rooftops without losing parts of her wardrobe.
This page, inked by Mike Allred, is a great example of Darwyn’s storytelling. Two small panels to set things up, followed by one big payoff.
Simple. Clear. Terrific.
And, of course, Catwoman owns the page.
I’ve featured Darwyn’s work on the blog many times: Parker, The Spirit, and those wonderful classic comic-book reinterpretations he apparently created to “relax.”
(Most of us relax differently. But I digress.)
Darwyn’s Catwoman run was much too short. Sadly, so was Darwyn’s time on planet Earth. He died in 2016 at the age of 53.
He was one of the greatest cartoonists of his generation, despite entering the field relatively late, and I was fortunate to know him and work with him. I might be biased, but his Parker graphic novels (IDW Publishing) are some of the best ever published.
The man and his talent are very much missed. Fortunately, the art and the stories are still very much with us.
I’m thrilled that DC is finally publishing Batman by Darwyn Cooke: The Absolute Edition, collecting all of his extraordinary work with the Batman family in a format it deserves.
DC asked me to provide images of several pieces of Darwyn’s original art from my collection, and I happily obliged. Which pieces did they actually use in the finished book? Excellent question.
Apparently, even with a $125 cover price, their budget didn’t quite stretch far enough for a contributor copy. As a former publisher, I definitely recognize fiscal discipline, although this might be pushing that philosophy a bit too far.
No worries. I’ll contribute to the Warner Bros. bottom line as soon as I can get a copy.
Meanwhile, this page is a pretty good reminder of just how much Darwyn could accomplish in a very small amount of space.
It is pretty obvious that I have posted a lot of Batman art over the years.
More than I realized, actually.
Neal Adams. Carmine Infantino. Jim Aparo. Gene Colan. Frank Miller. Berni Wrightson. Tim Sale. Michael Cho. Mike Parobeck. Russ Heath. Paul Smith. And plenty more.
Batman, Robin, Catwoman, Batgirl, the Joker, and assorted other Gotham residents — most of whom are not exactly having a good day.
I don’t own all of these pieces anymore, of course. But somehow, I keep finding new ones to add.
Rather than pretend I can pick a favorite, here’s one link to all of it:
