Rank and File: A Comic Art Hall of Fame...

Redartz:  Greetings once again! We're back at it again with a fun poser for you to consider, regarding your favorite comic covers. But first, a quick update for you. 

Several of you have inquired about the circumstances of my power outage and consequent general absence from this space last week. Well, the circuit breaker box on the side of our house literally melted; it's truly miraculous we had no fire. Obviously the power had to be cut, and between awaiting repairs, local safety inspectors and utility officials, we were stuck in the 'dark ages' for about 8 days. Not an experience I'd recommend for anyone, but we made it through. Fortunately the temperatures were mild for the most part. No longer will I take air conditioning and lights for granted!

Anyway, on to our topic. The premise: you have been selected to choose the artwork for a big exhibition. More specifically, this show will showcase comic cover artists throughout the medium's history. And with such a wide possibility of artists to choose from, space allows only 1 cover per artist. So, your task is to pick the artists, and choose a great representative cover for each artist,one that highlights their talent and impact.  As I'm a framer by trade, I'll see that your picks are safely framed, of course! 

Our gallery has several wings, so we can have a section for Golden age, Silver age, Bronze and Modern if you so choose. And while you begin your careful consideration, I'll submit a few nominations to  get the show started. Feel free to improve upon my picks as you see fit. As the week goes on, I'll try to post some more nominees based upon your comments; the better to fill our gallery.  See you at the opening!

My preliminary nominations:

Jack Kirby

Neal Adams

Dave Cockrum

John  Byrne

John Romita, Sr

Barry Smith

Walter Simonson

George Perez

Carmine Infantino

Joe Kubert

More to Come...

A bit late, but here are some of the nominated covers, presented for the appreciation and illumination of one and all. Thanks everyone for each response! And as suggested by our friend HB, you can look forward to seeing 'Hall of Fame Cover' pop up periodically on a single artist basis. Salutations!

Dave Cockrum

Jim Aparo

Steve Ditko

Rich Buckler

Nick Cardy

Mike Ploog

Herb Trimpe

John Byrne

John Buscema

Frank Frazetta

Mike Kaluta

Alan Davis

 

Panel Discussion: Great Penciller / Inker Teams of the Bronze Age!

Redartz: The annals of the Bronze age are filled with comic tales illustrated by immensely talented creators. Many of those creators worked at times as solo artists, laying down pencils and then inking over their own work. Names like John Buscema, Barry Smith, Joe Kubert, John Byrne- all did notable work in this manner. But more often, a penciller was paired up with another artist, an inker; who would enhance  the pencilled art with inked lines in a blending of two individual artistic styles. Some pairings, predictably, were more successful than others. 

Today we will consider  the more effective examples. Which pencillers worked the best with which inkers?  Some teams have become iconic over the course of comics history; but that can be a subjective question. Here are four of my top teams, just to get things started.

Neal Adams / Dick Giordano

Talk about a history-making combination. Adams and Giordano were the hands behind many of DC's best stories and characters, producing truly classic tales of Batman, Deadman, Green Lantern and others. Here's a dramatic opening page from one of the Green Lantern solo back-ups in Flash comics, circa 1974...

Flash 226

John Byrne / Terry Austin

This could be, possibly, the single greatest artistic team in comic art history. In my opinion, it very well may be. Byrne and Austin made magic out of whatever they worked on together. Their art styles were flawlessly matched. Many of my top favorite comic stories came from their drawing boards, including this incredible panel with Kitty Pryde and Wolverine.  

Uncanny X-Men 131

Sal Buscema / Klaus Janson

Sorry about the black/white reproduction, the "Essential Defenders" doesn't feature color. But it does feature some fabulous stories, several of which are by Sal and Klaus. Janson's heavy shadows and detailed linework add solidity to Sal's pencils, and the results are spectacular.

Marvel Treasury Edition 12

Gene Colan / Tom  Palmer

These two have been paired many times, on many books; due doubtlessly to their absolutely perfect melding of styles. Palmer's polish beautifully enhances Gene's cinematic pencils, anytime, anywhere. And this page highlights two characters intimately associated with them...

Dr. Strange 14

Next, here's two examples of rather unusual pairings that  I found appealing...


 Carmine Infantino and Klaus Janson

Infantino seems to channel a bit of his old Silver age Flash skill here, showing off DD's aerial technique. And speaking of technique, you can't beat Janson's moody inks here. A different look, but very solid. 

Daredevil 152

Barry Smith and Frank Brunner

Two excellent artists, known for highly detailed work. One might think they wouldn't quite blend visually, but this page is excellent. You get Smith's design sense and Brunner's finesse. That last  panel close-up is incredible.

Marvel Premiere 4

Each of the above-mentioned artists also did phenomenal work with other artists, and there are dozens of others to add to the list. That's where you come in. What other great combos can you name? How would you rank them? Which pencillers do you feel looked better with their own inks?  Which inkers most effectively meshed with a variety of pencillers? What unorthodox pairings of pencil and ink found approval in your eyes? Sharpen your pencils, open that ink bottle and let's talk art!

This & That: Our Favorite Covers, Simple as That...

Redartz:  Frequently here at BitBA, we consider comic covers. In fact, Marti has bestowed us with countless striking covers under the banner of his "Quarter Bins." And what's not to like about ogling fine comic art, displayed openly on a glossy, eye-catching sheet of cover stock? Indeed, I love looking at covers so much, I have several hundred loaded as images on my tablet: just something to browse through at lunch, if I need some visual stimulation. And it was during one such session, scanning more covers, that I figured, "okay, what would my top ten covers be?". No time frame limitations, they may be old or new; Marvel, DC, or anyone else, any genre.  Just ten covers that you could easily hang on your wall and stare at for years to come. 

So, today we present our picks: our personal top ten covers. After you check out our selections, feel free to comment; and then name your personal favorites. Doesn't matter if the interior art stunk, the story was awful, or the  book was a reprint. If you loved the cover, it's fair game. 

Redartz:  My ten covers are as follows. While making my choices, it quickly dawned upon me how daunting a task it is to select only ten, out of all the covers I've encountered. So these ten might not be my exact picks if you asked tomorrow, but they all would certainly be finalists.

Fantastic Four 45, by Jack Kirby and Joe Sinnott. A beauty by the FF's prime team.

Amazing Spider-Man 135, by John Romita, Sr.  Spidey's had countless great covers, but this one is near perfect.

Avengers 20, by Jack Kirby and Wally Wood. Wood may be the finest inker I've seen over Kirby. Wish there'd been more such covers.

Sugar and Spike 21, by Sheldon Mayer. Love the b/w cartoon background, and the face-backwards foreground.

Dr. Strange 1, by Frank Brunner. A masterwork of intricacy and mysticism.

Avengers 171, by George Perez and Terry Austin . A very full composition, but incredible in it's detail.

Archie Giant Series 25, by Dan DeCarlo. DeCarlo could have been considered Archie's "Kirby"; he defined the look.

Journey 6, by William Messner Loebs. Wonderful use of the logo, the borders, and the leaves. Poetic visuals indeed.

Adventure Comics 425, by Michael Kaluta. Stunning, magnificent image; Kaluta's simple design here is breathtaking in it's beauty.

Finally, what may be my favorite cover, period: Star Spangled War Stories 138, by Joe Kubert. That cover struck me like a slap in the face the first time I saw it, and is the only comic I ever paid twenty five dollars for JUST for the cover. An absolute masterpiece of composition, color and dramatics.

 

Martinex1: Those are all beautiful examples, and like you my selections are constantly shifting.  Many of my favorites are based not only on style and art but also around a memory as to when I acquired the book and what it meant to me.  So without further ado, here are my top ten...

Avengers 164 is the first comic I purchased (not the first I owned, but the first I bought off of a rack).  It will always have a memorable place in my heart.  Thankfully it was a George Perez masterpiece with a lot of characters and a lot of action.  It also ended up being one of my favorite stories too.  This cover I will remember until I am old and gray. 

Squadron Supreme 11 may seem like an odd choice.  But in 1986 this Paul Ryan cover jumped off the stands to me.  It still strikes me as an unusual layout with interesting and not well-known characters. In my mind, this cover always makes my top ten. I know it is not iconic, but I just admire it.

This Carmine Infantino classic - Flash 174 - was my first experience seeing an artistic interplay with a logo.  I never got over it.  

 I've always been a fan of Nick Cardy and his work at DC.  Unexpected 119 is one of my favorites featuring his pencils.  The use of lights and shadows, the shocked facial expression, and the hint of a horrendous twist just drew me in.  

John Byrne had a myriad of classic covers from his work on Marvel Team-Up, Fantastic Four, many DC books, and of course the X-Men.   So many examples of excellence to choose from, and I am sure others may have picked X-Men 141 (which is indeed a classic), but I have always been enamored with X-Men 138.   Even with a recap story inside and the annoying Toys R Us banner, I still like the simplicity of this moody and moving cover.

George Perez makes my list twice with Marvel Two-In-One 54.  Deathlok and the color scheme have much to do with this choice.  It always seemed to me that a lot of effort was put into this cover and I appreciate that.

 Amazing Spider-Man could have had a top ten list all by itself.  With covers by John Romita alone I could have filled a week of blogs.  But lately this simple cover on ASM 281 by Ron Frenz just appeals to me.  Who can resist floating heads?  Plus Spidey's humorous attitude just seems to shine through.  This is a great example of a little goes a long way.

Frank Miller sure hit the ground running on Daredevil and issue 158 was a monumental kick-off that showcased his talent.  I did not own this issue for a long time, but my desire to have it was driven by the cover.

John Buscema was just fantastic.  Recently I tweeted about his cover talent and I had time selecting which comic that I thought demonstrated his work the best.  I have to go with Silver Surfer #4.  It is just a classic.

 My final choice highlights a lot of favorites.  The first Marvel Sub-Mariner series is an underrated gem if you ask me.  Perhaps Subby's perceived belligerence may keep readers away.  At the very least, the art was top notch with the likes of John Buscema, Sal Buscema, Gene Colan, and Bill Everett involved.  But this particular cover happens to be by the great Marie Severin, and when I was very young I stared at it for hours when I first saw it as a house ad in a Marvel comic.  I love the colors and the drama.  Cheers!

Redartz:  Excellent choices, Marti! Byrne, Buscema, Infantino, Severin- what a lineup of all-stars...

Well, there's our respective 'top ten' lists. You may ask, "how could I devise a list with nothing by John Byrne, Barry Windsor-Smith or Will Eisner?" Ahhh, ask again tomorrow. At any rate, I'd be thrilled to permanently paper my walls with any of these gems. What say you, are these decent choices? And what might your ten picks be (I know, I know, trying to pick only ten is excruciating)...