Tyler Kirkham - DC's newest hotshot

[boynightwing]

Although Joshua Middleton does just covers...he does really awesome covers! Look at the expressions on the girls faces!! All of his covers are this good.



Another favorite of mine is Scott McDaniel. I pretty much follow him around from title to title. I love how everything he draws seems to be in motion.

[samurainoir]

It really does amuse me to see Doug Mahnke referred to as a newbie.

I've loved his style since he and writer John Arcudi reinvented Dark Horse's Masque as The Mask. Here's an example of an artist that seems to have his own style right out of the starting gate.

It's a darn shame that they did not see a cent of the success of Jim Carey's movie version given how much of it was taken from their work.

And it feels like I'm proabaly the lone fan of Major Bummer.


He's got a real flair for action comedy.

I'd love to see Giffen teamed up with Mahnke on something.

[samurainoir]

Gary Frank draws Superman right. And he looks like Chris Reeve!

Chris

Here is another example of a former Alan Davis impersonator who's really found his own distinct style. It seemed like most of the nineties Marvel UK guys were doing Alan Davis style artwork on their pages back then.

[Earth 2 Chris]

^Yep, he did some straight swipes from Davis on the early Birds of Prey stuff he did.

Greg Land swiped from Davis too at times...of course he swipes from EVERYONE! He's the modern Rich Buckler!

Chris

[BlackKnight]

It really does amuse me to see Doug Mahnke referred to as a newbie.

I wrote that ...
And if you also read the rest of my post , That's in Reference to people who Claim " Comics are not as good as when, and yada" . There isn't Nobody , That writes something like that,... That I believe Know Who he is.

[samurainoir]

I wrote that ...
And if you also read the rest of my post , That's in Reference to people who Claim " Comics are not as good as when, and yada" . There isn't Nobody , That writes something like that,... That I believe Know Who he is.

Ah! Sorry, my bad. I guess two decades would make him a newbie if you only like stuff from the seventies and eighties! 8)

[Sandman9580]

I know who Doug Mahnke is, thanks. (It was a bad day for me when Major Bummer got canceled.)

It's not so much an issue of "nostalgia" as it is artistic preference, and lately mine has been going more for the classic stuff -- to the extent that I pick up a comic at all anymore. I think most modern-day comic book art looks trashy, garish and obnoxious. A lot of people disagree with me, and that's fine.

[Random Axe]

It's all just simple evolution of talent, style and taste.

Comic artists are responding to publisher demands based on what sells. Hyper detailed and often exaggerated physiques put cash into the tills almost every time. Whether you are a fan of contemporary art or not, you have to be able to see the talent level has increased exponentially. Panel-to-panel story telling has not been the same since McFarlane, and the entire industry has shifted it's direction to accomodate the readers desires.

Now, the artists aren't the only major change. BK and I were discussing this last night. writers are constantly coming up with outlandish demands of their artists with huge storylines and concepts that require a certain type of art style to complete. As much as I love Adams and Lopez, a storyline like Blackest Night would have been unrederable to those guys. Founding artists and legends as Buscema, Ditko, Starlin would be in over their heads despite the talent level they possess(ed). Bottom line, the writers are as much to blame for the artistic changes as the artist themselves.

Scott

[samurainoir]

Although wouldn't it be kind of an awesome kick to see how someone like Kirby might interpret Blackest Night in an Elseworlds/What If kind of way? (as long as Vince Colletta wasn't sitting there erasing stuff at the ink stage )

Atrocitus would have a page-boy haircut, I'd imagine his Sinestro would kind of look like Desaad. His rendition of the Cyborg Superman would be terrific.

Who would you guys get to draw the different parts of Blackest Night in "retro" style?

I'm thinking I'd choose Ditko at the height of his trippy Doctor Strange phase to draw Larfleeze/Orange Lantern.

George Perez circa his near burnout on Infinity War to do the Star Sapphire issues... scantily clad space amazons 'nuff said.

John Byrne for the Sinestro War. He seemed to have a flair for the character in an otherwise uneven run on Wonder Woman.


and no question I'd have the Swamp Thing triumverate of Bissette/Totleben/Vietch doing Black Lantern stuff.

[kingdom warrior]

As much as I love Adams and Lopez, a storyline like Blackest Night would have been unrederable to those guys. Founding artists and legends as Buscema, Ditko, Starlin would be in over their heads despite the talent level they possess(ed). Bottom line, the writers are as much to blame for the artistic changes as the artist themselves.

Scott

Kirby could. The King could draw virtually anything with no reference in front of him and knock out three pages in one day that would have today's artist spinning. Kirby's out put is mind boggling. He came up with things that no one in their right mind could come up with.

You can't really say that about the old masters because they could draw and understood storytelling far better than many of today's Hotshots.

They were just in a different time.

[Earth 2 Chris]

The old guys had the chops to draw this type of stuff to. Just look at their stuff outside the code, at EC, at Warren. Just as horrific as Blackest Night. You didn't see it in Super Hero books back then because there were limits of good taste back in the day.

Chris

[jds1911a1]

I particulary dislike the "roids" veins for superman that show through the costume. It's one thing to be way too cut the way he was drawn in the 80's but really what can a modern superman with his nearly limitless power do to grow his muscles like that short of crushing asteroids

[torgospizza]

...Bryan Hitch was the biggest Alan Davis clone ever back in the day...

The first time I'd ever seen Hitch's work was a fill-in on WildCATS for Travis Charest, and Wildstorm had obviously told him to ape TC's style. It was okay and passable, but not as good as Charest. Now, however, I prefer Hitch. Not only does he have genius chops, but he actually turns out work.

[samurainoir]

The first time I'd ever seen Hitch's work was a fill-in on WildCATS for Travis Charest, and Wildstorm had obviously told him to ape TC's style. It was okay and passable, but not as good as Charest. Now, however, I prefer Hitch. Not only does he have genius chops, but he actually turns out work.

Although let's not forget how Charest's work on Wildcats evolved as well! Starting with that Jim Lee clone-style in the annual and even on James Robinson's arc around the teens of that title. (if you are a Charest fan, they are FINALLY going to be releasing his Metabarons Graphic Novel in English)

Anyone notice how Alan Davis' stuff in Avengers Prime is starting to look a bit more like Hitch's? Or is that down to the inker? Either way, it's a bit oddly full circle.

[torgospizza]

...(if you are a Charest fan, they are FINALLY going to be releasing his Metabarons Graphic Novel in English)...

Nice. I remember when he started that, years ago. I never knew he actually finished it. I just assumed he kind of dropped off into obscurity.

A lot of guys that started about the time he did just got wrapped up in playing video games and stuff and never completed their work and fell by the wayside. Some of those guys still have a fanbase, though--I'm not sure why, because a lot of the Image/Wildstorm stuff was of questionable quality, to begin with. In those days, anyone that could heft a pencil could get their own book, it seemed.

I'm not dissing Charest here, by the way. His talent is amazing--possibly the most talented person to come out of Wildstorm--but it seemed he just lacked focus and might have had a case of performance anxiety.