Tyler Kirkham - DC's newest hotshot

[SlipperyLilSuckers]

I can't say I like the 'roid look much at all...

[ctc]

Hmmmm....

Kinda reminds me of Freddie Williams II.

Don C.

[madmarva]

Honestly, I don't believe artists are more talented today than they were in the 60s or 70s, however, the conditions they work under are certainly different.

Artists in the 1960s and 70s regularly worked on two or more titles and generally met their deadlines. Some worked on three.

Today artists generally work on a monthly and when deadlines aren't met instead of the company running a fill-in or replacing the artists, they just suck it up and put out a late book.

Inkers today generally honor the penciler more than in the past. Better paper and better color allow for details to mean more to the art than they did when all books were printed on the cheapest paper possible. In other words, there is more incentive for pencilers to put more detail in their work and more incentive for inkers to retain it.

If artists today needed to work on two books a month to make a living, more of them would and in turn their work would be less detailed. If the companies demanded deadlines be met, then they would be. Some folks might have gotten fired, the art wouldn't look as good, and a lot of the more popular guys might not be working.

So while companies desire or demand more in terms of the actual art than in the past working conditions are more favorable for the artists. Plus, artists are able to sell their art today and some no doubt make much more on their sale than on what they are paid to produce it. Others can at least supplement their pay with the art sales.

But it's a different day.

Also guys like Kirby and Adams and Byrne generally were in on a lot of the plotting of the books or actually plotted many of the books themselves in the Marvel style with the scripter/writer filling in the dialog. It's seems to me it would be easier to draw one's own plots than someone else's full scripts.

Having said all that, drawing a comic book is labor-intensive work and that's counting the imagination and intelligence it takes to complete the job.

[ctc]

>If artists today needed to work on two books a month to make a living, more of them would and in turn their work would be less detailed.

True; but I think some of 'em could meet the deadlines. Look at the insane schedule the old 2000 AD guys had to work under, and how great their stuff was. Although I've heard Carlos Esquezera was something of a freak who could produce prodigious amounts of art. 'Course if you want to go back to the 40's and 50's the schedule was even MORE intense....

Don C.

[Surfsup]

That guys artwork is downright awful, it reminds me of Rob Leifield's rubbish work. Why oh why do companies employ these guys? I really don't get it.

In answer to the second to last post, I do think that artists these days are as good as what comics had in the 60s and 70s. You have amazing talents like J.H.Williams III, Mike Deodato Jr, David Aja, Michael Lark, Ivan Reis, Alex Maleev, Steve Epting, Frank Cho and Sean Phillips. We've never had it so good!