Greg Goldstein's Comic Art Gallery
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Incredible Hulk #416, April 1994
Day 5 of “12 Days of Hulk.”
Some days, you smash.
Some days, you get smashed.
Like here, for instance, on this great splash page by the talented Gray Frank from Peter David’s epic run as writer on the main Hulk title.
Nice clear art from Frank (and inker Cam Smith), plus balloons and sound effects on the board. Merry Christmas, indeed.
Hulk #30, April 2011
Or, maybe I could have titled this post… “That’s gotta hurt!”
Welcome to Day 4 of “12 days of Hulk.” It’s a bad day for Xemnu the Living Titan (Marvel’s “Original Hulk”), who just got clobbered.
Ed McGuinness continues to remain one of my favorite contemporary artists. Plus, as they say, he’s a swell guy too.
When conventions come back in full force, make sure you visit with him at any show he happens to attend. It will definitely be a pleasant and fun experience.
Tell him the blog sent you.
Savage Hulk #6, January 2015
Here’s another terrific Hulk splash by Gabe Hardman. I have yet to see a page of art from this issue that I don’t like.
Happy day 3 of 12 Days of Hulk.
Nuff Said. (See you next week.)
Hulk Gray #4, February 2004
Welcome to the day two of “12 Days of Hulk.”
Tim Sale (with writer Jeph Loeb) creates a cool and dynamic page from an early clash between Gray Hulk and “Gold” Iron Man in the classic Hulk Gray mini-series.
The Hulk surprisingly didn’t battle with IM in the early years of the original Silver age, with the very notable exception of the first few issues of Avengers — which was the first team book that seemed to have more fighting within the group than without.
Of course, Loki helps manipulate their clash in issue #1, and the Space Phantom does the same in issue #2. By issue #3, Tony has switched into the first version of his now famous sleeker red and yellow model. (They duke it out there, too.) And by the end of issue #3, Hulk will disappear altogether from the book for quite a while.
As a side note, I miss hand-drawn sound effects even more than I miss traditional lettering. Thoom indeed.
Ultimate End #2, August 2015 and Hulk #15, June 2015
Welcome to the official day one of “12 Days of Hulk.”
Mark Bagley —- with the help of inker Andrew Hennessy — tackles two different Hulk battles in a few short months; Green Hulk vs. Red Hulk and Gray Hulk vs. Green Hulk. Both pages feature Bagley’s dynamic and imaginative storytelling skills.
I’ve seen a ton of Bagley originals during the last 15 years (One reason: he’s definitely prolific) and I have to say Hennessey’s inks are among my favorites, especially on Hulk. His bold strokes and use of blacks definitely add fierceness to the festivities.
And every time I see a page with both Green Hulk and Red Hulk on it, I always want to hum: “Red Hulk, Green Hulk, one, two, three.”
But, I digress.
Back here with day two of our ongoing Hulk tribute on Thursday.
Rampaging Hulk Magazine #3, June 1977 and Avengers #28, September 2012
If December makes you think of red and green, then, wow do we have a month for you. (Well, to be fair, mostly green, some red, and a little gray thrown in for good measure.)
It’s “12 days of Hulk” this month — 12 all new art posts devoted to everyone’s favorite rampaging hero, who turns 60 in early 2022.
But first a flashback to the ghost of Christmas past (two years ago, to be exact) with two great Hulk pages by the legendary Walter Simonson. (With help from Alfredo Alcala on the first and Scott Hanna on the second.)
See you back here on Tuesday with a double feature courtesy of Mark Bagley.
November 26-28, 2021
The San Diego Comic Con “Special Edition” concluded yesterday, capping a three-day return of the first SDCC since July 2019.
For me personally, it was the exact* 50th anniversary (!) of attending comic-related conventions. In 1971, a loving Aunt took me to the very first Creation convention at NYC’s New Yorker Hotel in 1971.**
I was only at that show for a few hours, wide-eyed with probably less than $5-$6 in my pocket, but I managed to score my first “key” back issue — an intact, but otherwise beat reading copy of Avengers #1 from 1963.
I nearly sold that comic book earlier this year. Once my sanity returned, I instead decided to let Captain America (and “Sylvie” Loki) keep an eye on it while I took some pictures.
That was a much better idea.
And say, where did those 50 years go?
Photos are available at the convention links here and here.
*When I say exact, I’m not kidding — 1971 has an identical calendar to 2021.
(**We had only accidentally found out about the convention the day prior while browsing through the musty and dusty stacks of assorted periodicals at the once mighty warehouse of Jay Bee Magazines.)
Fallen Son: The Death of Captain America #3, July 2007
“Classic” Hawkeye (Clint Barton) — briefly takes on the guise of Captain America, while Kate Bishop’s Hawkeye looks on disapprovingly in this terrifically moody page by John Romita Jr. (With the Patriot — Eli Bradley — in the mix for good measure.)
Confused? You might have to catch up to a few storylines to get this point including the first Young Avengers series, as well as the Civil War and Death of Captain America stories and follow-ups. Ultimately, the resolution of this story leads to some additional key plot points in Hawkeye’s modern career.
Given Kate’s star billing in the new Hawkeye series, along with the other character intros we’ve already seen in the MCU, I have a feeling we will be hearing from the entire “Young Avengers” team in the near future.
Trust me on this.
Avengers # 33, October 1966
Hawkeye has his Television debut today, and if the show lives up to its trailer, it should be good fun.
Here we have a terrific Hawkeye page from the Silver Age Avengers, illustrated by his co-creator, Don Heck. (This is from the period of Avengers where the majority of the team, including Hawkeye, was comprised of reformed villains. I always loved that.) The page is fun combo of action and snarky dialogue, and it completely (and unexpectedly) breaks the fourth wall in the first two panels.
As a bonus, this might be the only page I own where the sound effect is actually then classic word “Pow.” I wonder how many newspaper headlines during the years have used that sound effect as part of a headline discussing any sort of comics-related story. (“Bam! Pow! Comics are not for kids anymore!” Here’s my personal sound effect for those: Ugh.)
Archie’s Girls Betty and Veronica #58, October 1960, “Happy Hallucination”
Our final Dan DeCarlo entry this week is a story filled with irony, pathos and self-sacrifice… and infused with trademark humor.
Wait — that sounds like I’m in English literature class again. And even 40 years later, I’m pretty sure I’m not ready for that.
So let’s simplify: Here’s a complete DeCarlo story that’s an absolute classic. Don’t take my word for it: The full story here is included below — in original art form, and published version too.
As Rod Serling would have would have intoned in his own hallucinogenic tales on Twilight Zone at at about the same time, this complete tale is officially “submitted for your approval.”
Happy 80th, Archie. You occasionally look very different, but definitely not much older.
