Redartz: Good day to you, and welcome! Today we present a challenge for you. I was recently looking over some favorite comics featuring some exemplary artwork, and the question occured to me: What is the crowning achievement in artwork for your favorite comic artists? In other words, if you could only pick one single comic to showcase the talents of a given artist, what book would that be and why?
It's a double bonus topic, because it gives us the chance to both discuss the artistic merit of some fine comics and also to leaf through some books just looking for examples! And though there are so many artists to work with, no limits will be set today- all companies, all genres, all eras.. Aaaaand, as this could get rather lengthy as a post (I could talk about artists all day), I'll limit my selections to three. Here they are...
John Byrne: Marvel Team-Up 79
I'll preface this with a salute to the obvious influence of inker Terry Austin. Our focus today is on the pencillers, who basically design the page and determine the flow of the story. But in all cases, the inker has huge influence over the finished quality of the work.
As for John Byrne, he offers countless candidates for a 'best work'. So picking just one is nigh impossible; but I went with a personal favorite, MTU 79. Starting with this incredible opening splash page, the whole book is a showpiece of spectacular composition, gorgeous detail and dramatically portrayed action. Everything he draws just looks...right. From the close-ups of Mary Jane's eye to the stunning full page of Sonja leaping into action, literally every panel is a visual feast for any comic art aficionado.
Ross Andru: Amazing Spider-man 136
Like Byrne, Ross has quite a few fine artistic 'performances'. But in his case, my choice was easier. ASM 136 is a classic, giving us Andru's first go at the Goblin. And he aces it. The facial close up in the third page shown below is excellent. And that spectacular double page spread is fantastic; Gobby almost literally flies off the page.
Equally important, this issue shows Andru's talent for architectural drawing. His rendering of the church below is truly striking, and shows his attention to accurate detail. T
Then there's that great page with the explosion in Peter Parker's aparment. The characters' expressions on this page are perfect, and the dramatic impact of the explosion is palpable. In short, this particular comic really displays Andru's strongest traits, and came immediately to my mind upon considering today's question.
Marshall Rogers: Detective Comics 475
Marshall, in this case, is the beneficiary of the talents of inker Terry Austin; as integral is those talents were for Byrne in the above example. But Marshall Rogers was a master storyteller too, as seen in the pages below. The sequence illustrating Silver St. Cloud takes a challenging subject- basically a monologue- and plays it out into a varied series of panels, with varying viewpoints, which serves to maintain the reader's interest.
It's effective, as is the panel progression showing the grisly effect of the Joker's gas upon his victim. And that iconic page depicting the Joker's entrance- absolutely perfect. The Joker is portrayed perfectly, both physically and by personality.
And like Andru, Rogers showed his bountiful skills at cityscapes. This splash page intro is stunningly detailed. What a poster this page would make...
So, those three books are the ones I'd pick to represent Byrne, Andru and Rogers in a Comic Art Hall of Fame. But somehow I just can't leave it at that, so here's a few other 'quick picks':
Carl Barks: "A Christmas for Shacktown" (Walt Disney's Christmas Parade 2)
Keith Giffen: "Within the Darkness" (Legion of Superheroes 293)
Joe Staton: "There Shall Come a Gathering" (Showcase 100)
Walter Simonson: X-Men and Teen Titans
All right, it's time you all had a turn. What do you think of these selections? What other artists (and there are COUNTLESS) come to your mind, and what comics best exemplify their talents? Have at it, friends...
