“Bombshell, ” Spirt Vol. 2, #18 (Unpublished) DC Comics, December 2011
The Third and final part of our “Will Eisner Week” Spirit series features the noirish ending to this unpublished Spirit story “Bombshell” by Chip Kidd and Dave Bullock.
80 years of the Spirit, from his first newspaper appearance to the 80th celebration by Clover Press.
The Spirt, Register and Tribune Syndicate, September 12, 1948
2020 marks the 80th Anniversary of the Will Eisner’s Spirit, a comic series that ultimately became a game changer in the medium. This week is also celebrated annually as “Will Eisner Week,” dedicated top one of comics’ most influential legacies. So let’s dive in…
This cool page is from “Cache McStash”, and is from Eisner’s peak period on the Spirit. In fact, it is published just one week after his own personal favorite story, “The Story of Gerhard Shnobble,” perhaps the most perfect film noir ever created for the comics.
And don’t let the misleading credits on the otherwise great Grand Comics Database fool you. This story is all Eisner — script, pencils, inks, and letters — as confirmed by Denis Kitchen.
I was fortunate enough to be asked write the intro for the Spirit story “Sound” featured in the hot-off-the-presses Spirit 80th celebration from Clover Press. No spoilers, but, I love the way Eisner integrated sound effects into his storytelling, and, on this page the simple ticking of the clock enhances tension and movement.
Like everything else he did, he found a way to make his two
dimensional comics cinematic in scope.
“I grew up
on the movies, that’s what I lived with. The movies always influenced me… Doing
the Spirit strip was like making movies. It gave me a chance to be an actor,
producer, author and cameraman all at once.”
Clover Press has just published an 80th Anniversary celebration of Will Eisner’s Spirit, available directly from the publisher or in comic book stores and other traditional outlets.
Color me alive — three different color takes of the Spirit’s origin from 1966: The original, possibly colored by Jules Feiffer; The 1975 Warren magazine reprint, possibly colored by Richard Corben; and the brand new Clover Press version, definitely colored by Jeremy Cox.