Thursday, November 28, 2013

Drew Friedman's Steve Ditko


I like it!

And of course it is based on the below often-seen photo of Mr. Ditko
Well done!






Friday, November 22, 2013

Michael Netzer's Joe Kubert


I told you back here how excellent the Jack Kirby-focused first issue of Comic Book Creator was, and the second issue is every bit as much of a must-get. Not many series print a double-sized second issue but that's exactly what TwoMorrows has done to offer a fitting tribute to the great Joe Kubert.

My single most favorite item in the issue filled with favorites is the above portrait of Mr. Kubert as drawn by the fabulously talented Michael Netzer. (I like that Mr. Netzer has sent the original pencil drawing of the portrait to Mr. Kubert's son Andy for his collection.) The very warm bronze of the above image is by my own manufacture but you can see the printed version's more neutral tones over on the Michael Netzer website.

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

The Don and Maggie Thompson Collection


Heritage Auctions often has offerings of interest to collectors of comics and original art. I told you back here when I was the winning bidder on a Frank Robbins Batman page a couple of years back. I haven't received any email auction notices lately though so I decided to see what was up over on the Heritage website.

A banner at the top of their page announced the auctioning of the Don and Maggie Thompson Collection of comics. How about that! Don and Maggie were the first to print any of my artwork (like the above Nova drawing that appeared as a spot illustration in their Beautiful Balloons column in The Buyer's Guide for Comic Fandom in 1978) and I am forever grateful!

I encourage everyone to investigate the Don and Maggie Collection over here.


Saturday, November 16, 2013

More Kerschl Always Welcome


Karl Kerschl is one of many artists whose beautiful but infrequent comics work I am always grateful to see. The Grand Comics Database displays just 167 credits for the gentleman dating back to 1993 and including some Superman stories in 2005 and the stunning Teen Titans Year One miniseries in 2008. I wish I could enjoy the treat of a new comic book drawn by this fabulous artist every single month!

Then comes the cognitive dissonance when a creator I adore works on a property that I lack interest in. The above image is from an upcoming graphic novel called Assassin's Creed: Brahman which is based on a video game. I hate comic books based on video games. What remains to be seen is whether my love of Mr. Kerschl's artwork or my hatred of video game comics will win the tug of war gurgling inside of me when this book is printed.


Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Softer and Cuddlier than Wolverine


Please say hello to Buttercup the Sloth. Surely I'm not the only one to think of the adamantium claws of Wolverine when looking at this photo. Now if only I could craft the similarity into some manner of witticism so a that I could whip this all up into a blog post...

Saturday, November 09, 2013

Maruge Goes to School


For today I set my comic book hat aside and proudly put on my teacher hat.

I have just watched The First Grader and I recommend it for every adult in the world. The movie focuses on an 84-year-old Kenyan gentleman who never learned to read but wants to learn late in life for a very definite reason. The gentleman persistently overcomes many political obstacles to attend primary school to meet his goal. There are moments of intense violence and suffering in the film and I can't recommend it for children, but adults will have an uplifting experience.

Education is a powerful force. I have known this for a lifetime, from the earliest days when I sat in a classroom myself to an occasion years later when the millionaire owner of a successful family business enrolled in my arithmetic class to fill a gap in his knowledge that he regretted. I have been going to school since I was five years old many decades ago and there's no place I would rather be!

The First Grader is available on Netflix or amazon or ebay.


Friday, November 08, 2013

Camp Kirby


Last week's episode of Arrow referred to a location named Camp Kirby in the Arrow universe. This is not nearly as monumental as when the climax of an entire season of Heroes took place in the location called Kirby Plaza (as I first mentioned back here) but I do like to point out any reference to Jack Kirby, however slight.

You might be interested in taking a look at Outhousers, a website that every week points out connections between the DC universe and the Arrow universe as glimpsed through the week's episode of Arrow. (Last week the boys pointed out that Lyla Michaels, a character on Arrow, goes on to become Harbinger in the DC universe; that definitely slipped right past me.) You can see if anything slipped past you over at Outhousers.

By the way, an anonymous writer on twitter has made an interesting observation. Green Arrow certainly uses a quiver to house his arrows, and look at the name Oliver Queen. I find no annotation anywhere of the etymology of the name "Oliver Queen" but I do definitely believe that Mort Weisinger would have engaged in this type of letter rearrangement when he created the character in 1941. Bravo, twitter chap!

Thursday, November 07, 2013

Superheroes as Manatees


They say you can find just about anything on the internet. They're right.

Look over here for a dozen more superhero manatees.


Saturday, November 02, 2013

Happy Birthday Steve Ditko!





J.M. DeMatteis has a great idea and I will second it. Mr. Steve Ditko was born 86 years ago today and let's celebrate the gentleman's birthday by watching the BBC documentary In Search of Steve Ditko. Part 1 is embedded above and after that you'll be able to also continue with the other six parts. Just click and enjoy!