tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10463959441688192072024-03-13T09:19:52.987-04:00Cranboyz OnlineShanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.comBlogger127125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-2368424569368710642023-03-13T20:16:00.001-04:002023-03-13T20:18:00.053-04:00The Art of Alex Ross at the Canton Museum of Art<p>Looking back on 2022, I realized I completely missed out on some awesome blog posts! Even though this is way after the fact, it's still too cool not to acknowledge, so while while just over a year later, here we go! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUIN6lp3-r7UslyLtpb45YoKl_D_XPv6oK3QLk8c5xIOz6ISXBLVPLxsXushnRVn44rAG9KfPEhtoJuSvE93Z2H5dPHFIqwnfKnH6cCQlyz-r9eV61OiLDVmTxxXjS0gVmd-BzFyivEJ6cjt4bAZgnD2cUgbtAgDorEu8fKNmTVoLjlFO-WnQLZfAK1w/s1084/011.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1084" data-original-width="850" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUIN6lp3-r7UslyLtpb45YoKl_D_XPv6oK3QLk8c5xIOz6ISXBLVPLxsXushnRVn44rAG9KfPEhtoJuSvE93Z2H5dPHFIqwnfKnH6cCQlyz-r9eV61OiLDVmTxxXjS0gVmd-BzFyivEJ6cjt4bAZgnD2cUgbtAgDorEu8fKNmTVoLjlFO-WnQLZfAK1w/s320/011.jpg" width="251" /></a></div><p></p><p> In November of 2021 through March of 2022, the Canton Museum of Art hosted, Marvelocity The Art of Alex Ross! This wasn't the largest or most glamorous of events but since most of the Cranboyz started off in the Canton area, this was pretty darn exciting! The exhibit was put together by the Dunn Museum of Libertyville, Illinois and was definitely worth taking in!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUNsEOmWcl991LNcKv6SC--tB28qbX5oq6rwtOv7ZoP1LRVX1ReICKk3PN3pnlJoFV2lGQqVmw1BDUHUWiz7CwveQ1gQmWWyVO802nPKwQoIUOsH4cGEF4MDKIU1xOYdwc4glgH_Mx_uCTPMXnc-bl2CpNuPRJCzCc0v76ygzWqfRbyMXd7M7Fm6eQWQ/s1536/103.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> <img border="0" data-original-height="1357" data-original-width="1536" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUNsEOmWcl991LNcKv6SC--tB28qbX5oq6rwtOv7ZoP1LRVX1ReICKk3PN3pnlJoFV2lGQqVmw1BDUHUWiz7CwveQ1gQmWWyVO802nPKwQoIUOsH4cGEF4MDKIU1xOYdwc4glgH_Mx_uCTPMXnc-bl2CpNuPRJCzCc0v76ygzWqfRbyMXd7M7Fm6eQWQ/s320/103.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifazuUaoV8but-wozj2Y00gWLrogGDV6LrWEKWKT1b9m7Xe-MYJvRC3aLzHM0-c-9jMiBhvWGrc1AbN12PgC7X5CeZ4d-clRPKigAAeEzZtLfouI0IfVNA5cFam25p7CUuw5LGb2cgCUjxNMX8nw_H0oW_r9yVj73-znhar_anntFatElRrXdabcDXIQ/s2048/010.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifazuUaoV8but-wozj2Y00gWLrogGDV6LrWEKWKT1b9m7Xe-MYJvRC3aLzHM0-c-9jMiBhvWGrc1AbN12PgC7X5CeZ4d-clRPKigAAeEzZtLfouI0IfVNA5cFam25p7CUuw5LGb2cgCUjxNMX8nw_H0oW_r9yVj73-znhar_anntFatElRrXdabcDXIQ/s320/010.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>I've been aware of Alex Ross and his painted comic book work since 1994 when Marvels by Kurt Busiek and Alex Ross, appeared. It was a huge hit and I don't think Alex Ross ever quit being a huge deal after that! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsCWPMoDgmz8d5ysQW8CEGy1-Mlt3EhOKEzZsZXYrneKQLXLPrYrcflOFINTttv6v8N50kT3h68BBGJ6SFB5IiO2Gt7U1bItxycMotWGYz04acooKXjLnBNxvIURlgVLMc7l1XmYxcK83O40Vi2mMhaQcGakYBY7gRaTv486nOa7uiGHhrI3IHXowUig/s2048/001.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsCWPMoDgmz8d5ysQW8CEGy1-Mlt3EhOKEzZsZXYrneKQLXLPrYrcflOFINTttv6v8N50kT3h68BBGJ6SFB5IiO2Gt7U1bItxycMotWGYz04acooKXjLnBNxvIURlgVLMc7l1XmYxcK83O40Vi2mMhaQcGakYBY7gRaTv486nOa7uiGHhrI3IHXowUig/s320/001.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrppJtVQ7HVFtTfl27k7wvmmAL6n2KtvPjoqyB1Eq5Ez9Y2Rlc0BCBY6QO2-VR7ERpdok2XbxF4x1ZdBT2U6gZRyNov_wCuWOnOpZbTYV2_11xWyrn2qnNMBzDFWeL_M66L1IelodACuWg1zNwgaj9gnHrppKmiAwE2SMir7fNN5cW_omvlTDIki4uJw/s2048/005.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrppJtVQ7HVFtTfl27k7wvmmAL6n2KtvPjoqyB1Eq5Ez9Y2Rlc0BCBY6QO2-VR7ERpdok2XbxF4x1ZdBT2U6gZRyNov_wCuWOnOpZbTYV2_11xWyrn2qnNMBzDFWeL_M66L1IelodACuWg1zNwgaj9gnHrppKmiAwE2SMir7fNN5cW_omvlTDIki4uJw/s320/005.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p>The Marvelocity exhibit covered Alex Ross way before that. They had displays of his early childhood comic books and even homemade Fantastic Four "action figures" that he made from paper! <br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgscF9z_ldxeHlQoHtXN_WG6Nuzrgqd8Nn7NyjGlZCbBmV_KNXXokl5BUGJFizUbJt9IROmD2ueZhi0z1kortOyxfSwnWqbDJbtTsC615bEdS0x-Kd60i62YPfMyed_yebeLJKHC4KYdpgJhzyxc_xetkXxbdOmgwgAGx6OrX99OLqDWH9vseWDrTkVqg/s1024/102.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="792" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgscF9z_ldxeHlQoHtXN_WG6Nuzrgqd8Nn7NyjGlZCbBmV_KNXXokl5BUGJFizUbJt9IROmD2ueZhi0z1kortOyxfSwnWqbDJbtTsC615bEdS0x-Kd60i62YPfMyed_yebeLJKHC4KYdpgJhzyxc_xetkXxbdOmgwgAGx6OrX99OLqDWH9vseWDrTkVqg/s320/102.jpg" width="248" /></a></div><br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgEkEAaMJyQ6RFJ_psbeEMLGhMqUFrmQpMclk1EgMKuQsUVOAVHYCIXV-Sgbb3cMpKSEHAHT9-AB30Yqhil9VRhwhVC6yDWeN7QDiz_hx4gFW_Mr_Q0rbJFdyMIU4ZvAzXulpEz-qKneHZ5Pvkc49NhY1S3AJ16nDzugFAxoB4oxSYGYryi7uIqjPWsg/s1950/007.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1486" data-original-width="1950" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgEkEAaMJyQ6RFJ_psbeEMLGhMqUFrmQpMclk1EgMKuQsUVOAVHYCIXV-Sgbb3cMpKSEHAHT9-AB30Yqhil9VRhwhVC6yDWeN7QDiz_hx4gFW_Mr_Q0rbJFdyMIU4ZvAzXulpEz-qKneHZ5Pvkc49NhY1S3AJ16nDzugFAxoB4oxSYGYryi7uIqjPWsg/s320/007.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>From there they went on to cover his work on Marvels and Earth X, as well as many of the other paintings that he's famous for, in the world of comic books.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWa9b7u404kh9nZoo_xN6uJ4c23EMvF5nlOcQFX0X5a4gGuIQFYwrH6AabAxHCECL-zQHBn7Hs25wSfb5bAynhpIRR9ZM5v5KcKdG_xF_mSMffKjAlP1eCnInBHcsgPJQoQnoGvOcDYHnYHMZWgonaoMnV-mzsOZAHes-uhAOetbwOvQ2R4yB32x755Q/s2024/006.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1448" data-original-width="2024" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWa9b7u404kh9nZoo_xN6uJ4c23EMvF5nlOcQFX0X5a4gGuIQFYwrH6AabAxHCECL-zQHBn7Hs25wSfb5bAynhpIRR9ZM5v5KcKdG_xF_mSMffKjAlP1eCnInBHcsgPJQoQnoGvOcDYHnYHMZWgonaoMnV-mzsOZAHes-uhAOetbwOvQ2R4yB32x755Q/s320/006.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj1kCtADUfy9XihMPgSBRLPCyLNTk8f9J6gi23BUSSl5DN6gmz5KmV3rf1oJnfB7K-jCVwCH3c6ngpqxbfR51Bdbuqx0HxNlBHmhXCBUATWqcPCxzuYfF21xmj_g6lmyihqaCv8UYNjr9wLoR34TjPu_5ccgB5fLdDXIhp3YHPUrIiThhBk5cC_WRrqQ/s2048/009.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj1kCtADUfy9XihMPgSBRLPCyLNTk8f9J6gi23BUSSl5DN6gmz5KmV3rf1oJnfB7K-jCVwCH3c6ngpqxbfR51Bdbuqx0HxNlBHmhXCBUATWqcPCxzuYfF21xmj_g6lmyihqaCv8UYNjr9wLoR34TjPu_5ccgB5fLdDXIhp3YHPUrIiThhBk5cC_WRrqQ/s320/009.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>There were statues, busts and action figures, based on his work, also. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfGWeWLos9MYi26xFYWXspPUQXWcA8tK5XwWkSZeMdDzybXuS_YTQNhnEIqm5Xn6t_f3L8kTP7v9Pn7TQaLECUGQRzhteoU1xpARaTgoaKHWBrJVGwDAsD4jy1hqhH2IOZe-B1XRl06gvdNZ3elx1-CEOVZJhIEAsNU1S-rpx5ljMg6fwxRDA0NCgcQA/s2048/008.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfGWeWLos9MYi26xFYWXspPUQXWcA8tK5XwWkSZeMdDzybXuS_YTQNhnEIqm5Xn6t_f3L8kTP7v9Pn7TQaLECUGQRzhteoU1xpARaTgoaKHWBrJVGwDAsD4jy1hqhH2IOZe-B1XRl06gvdNZ3elx1-CEOVZJhIEAsNU1S-rpx5ljMg6fwxRDA0NCgcQA/s320/008.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfjzeysulAj2Ai5vcvn_WnDvg1bu2aw6xjlQOkC7pdfLHw9pwdMbMyizaeRcSoPaA7n5cZuq_x4aIBuAJ7VFkds0MNPzzfGX3BMmE1k8eFsQ7rM7meMEeAQ_OCbZqGFNZOGFta5piIbGNPV8-vsA2tf7dTnkrOASXjoCyIur60avvoyoQwsLSLGfzqWQ/s1896/003.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1896" data-original-width="1453" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfjzeysulAj2Ai5vcvn_WnDvg1bu2aw6xjlQOkC7pdfLHw9pwdMbMyizaeRcSoPaA7n5cZuq_x4aIBuAJ7VFkds0MNPzzfGX3BMmE1k8eFsQ7rM7meMEeAQ_OCbZqGFNZOGFta5piIbGNPV8-vsA2tf7dTnkrOASXjoCyIur60avvoyoQwsLSLGfzqWQ/s320/003.jpg" width="245" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTFKxb9V5xO3kI51QLIKqfxWH13ya9GvFcelyn1t1A_1RxIjjqy5h_kfnWPRYRGpksjvVsoUBgB2xeNw52gVcdFc1AqNeFd55qTlPwmq12_qTwusKoqC2NE4WJOEUYelsjeh52jr_ncl1M7Tzvo1GlDdgm3o9ui4BAoky5dZ1cyJZNJeW7SXwkLB-zvQ/s1857/002.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1857" data-original-width="1534" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTFKxb9V5xO3kI51QLIKqfxWH13ya9GvFcelyn1t1A_1RxIjjqy5h_kfnWPRYRGpksjvVsoUBgB2xeNw52gVcdFc1AqNeFd55qTlPwmq12_qTwusKoqC2NE4WJOEUYelsjeh52jr_ncl1M7Tzvo1GlDdgm3o9ui4BAoky5dZ1cyJZNJeW7SXwkLB-zvQ/s320/002.jpg" width="264" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>The gift shop had a nice selection of Alex's sketchbooks, art books and prints featuring his work. <br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqxZ1UQK77WX-RYSfK7e-BLU89OmfOKbF_DXG9T1mWT5y7F-WiivGGHGh8RTIuYGKxxC0NEXnieBlrwpylQAneTPPPPQT1KzLhBceCrO8hSOto--ZukCE_wfXic-SU0kcRW9h2pqfrYE54xv57Flz1IMSdhJvwI0Wh65GW1c_XlNnQ1fTTPLjilJBtKg/s2048/100.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1536" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqxZ1UQK77WX-RYSfK7e-BLU89OmfOKbF_DXG9T1mWT5y7F-WiivGGHGh8RTIuYGKxxC0NEXnieBlrwpylQAneTPPPPQT1KzLhBceCrO8hSOto--ZukCE_wfXic-SU0kcRW9h2pqfrYE54xv57Flz1IMSdhJvwI0Wh65GW1c_XlNnQ1fTTPLjilJBtKg/s320/100.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><br /> <p></p><p>Overall, it was an enjoyable exhibit. As a long-time comic book fan, I ate it up! Hopefully, it was just as entertaining to the rest of Stark County! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7x-Mm05Jhrtm4jJ0C4fP0WRuYEGPkU0LCVGfo1atsaHytnJbgZVyZZcCmk_Y3C7pIXV3yK-jVtk5nyDzTKvQO4RxmK7PENF9a2xjkzNhbFcRvIGerT-xvz6UqRtPwtyAoX3v9wvLtU3EjkADk3HhP7RnnS1WMLqp0L-_aHOP20Dtchc5tBDzv60iCOw/s960/104.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7x-Mm05Jhrtm4jJ0C4fP0WRuYEGPkU0LCVGfo1atsaHytnJbgZVyZZcCmk_Y3C7pIXV3yK-jVtk5nyDzTKvQO4RxmK7PENF9a2xjkzNhbFcRvIGerT-xvz6UqRtPwtyAoX3v9wvLtU3EjkADk3HhP7RnnS1WMLqp0L-_aHOP20Dtchc5tBDzv60iCOw/s320/104.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p> You can read about the Canton Museum of Art and Marvelocity the Art of Alex Ross, here: https://www.cantonart.org/exhibits/marvelocity-art-alex-ross-november-23-2021-march-6-2022</p>Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-20834334443487942222022-04-19T22:12:00.003-04:002022-04-20T09:15:49.540-04:00The Cranboyz Custom T-Shirt Gallery<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The Cranboyz have accumulated quite a collection of custom t-shirts over the past 14 years. Most of these t-shirts were designed to reflect each year's sketch theme on the convention circuit, but some were merely simple tees sporting the Cranboyz logo. Now, let's take a look back through the history of the Cranboyz custom t-shirt.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><h1 style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2009</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1-hSpShZdutiEKiz2rCAnG9bulUVUy-pm0_QjmwlaD8A90oc5dSByISuAy9kmo2sRTTwoSMERFWF4SfS3084EizXWyUtnwwBhIRBrDtH3PIF-rSj8QNH1WgYxnCNjgSs7B5A7RIdDatDj3C2A2rPwnQb0X29aXh3WH-mEf09zOk3-AnZY-QnMUnFD/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2009.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1-hSpShZdutiEKiz2rCAnG9bulUVUy-pm0_QjmwlaD8A90oc5dSByISuAy9kmo2sRTTwoSMERFWF4SfS3084EizXWyUtnwwBhIRBrDtH3PIF-rSj8QNH1WgYxnCNjgSs7B5A7RIdDatDj3C2A2rPwnQb0X29aXh3WH-mEf09zOk3-AnZY-QnMUnFD/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2009.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Year of the Serpent</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;">The year that started it all! This theme was pretty much an excuse for Shane and Popa to get sketches of their favorite members of The Serpent Society, but everyone joined in on the fun.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><h1><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2010</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiZuKVc0G02pdJyVIIuJ5aY93FP6xdWIF4VuYomvSRQpYoxMNjpcueAKE9mcmRV8EuY-Lcvh2o643xJqfAPrXIvqxiSbR4pNFAIbBKW3mkF52AFMLv1i75O20atDIAzfgJ9ToxUZGdsz51gxx66nAyE9UM1Go8wSpAykhAg0UlOGNadxFeksUKPf3Y/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2010.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiZuKVc0G02pdJyVIIuJ5aY93FP6xdWIF4VuYomvSRQpYoxMNjpcueAKE9mcmRV8EuY-Lcvh2o643xJqfAPrXIvqxiSbR4pNFAIbBKW3mkF52AFMLv1i75O20atDIAzfgJ9ToxUZGdsz51gxx66nAyE9UM1Go8wSpAykhAg0UlOGNadxFeksUKPf3Y/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2010.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Armor Wars</span></b></div><div>Tony Stark would be proud! The brainchild of our dear friend Adam, this sketch theme featured our favorite armored characters.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><h1><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2012</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV9-DoyY_JKCC13TY0ThiJuXL-bdeA7XBiWPa61ltIqxKKnQBGLBYOVjcGXNe5KNSNCWTQPQUD7k38z9RTVNerWCO-2x1V-RQejbzw9TausBy4-3ief2ClcEu3aKqeZIyXl84S4XTZ9BFh5J7RXJ-Emzt_2L7JOdTMHVnosmuF1iTmowpIci0k3XWJ/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2012.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV9-DoyY_JKCC13TY0ThiJuXL-bdeA7XBiWPa61ltIqxKKnQBGLBYOVjcGXNe5KNSNCWTQPQUD7k38z9RTVNerWCO-2x1V-RQejbzw9TausBy4-3ief2ClcEu3aKqeZIyXl84S4XTZ9BFh5J7RXJ-Emzt_2L7JOdTMHVnosmuF1iTmowpIci0k3XWJ/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2012.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Dark Cranboyz: Villains United</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span>Bring on the Bad Guys! A wretched theme of scum and villainy.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><h1><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2013</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_yt2anonp6Ob_CSNInSkmd91oq0Nel01fdGsZ2TTcoaFo1OTBQeg8Lo2AZaxSscIpIivve0eNC-igybMapooQpe4u6Hys7GVjeKn6uq7yEDlx3s75bqO93yNhxOl1oV_8MMA1aS-yUQ7wOqBhMFH12oJDwPsQoyS9grDFf-GdlRJ2H5fdEIajo4UK/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2013.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_yt2anonp6Ob_CSNInSkmd91oq0Nel01fdGsZ2TTcoaFo1OTBQeg8Lo2AZaxSscIpIivve0eNC-igybMapooQpe4u6Hys7GVjeKn6uq7yEDlx3s75bqO93yNhxOl1oV_8MMA1aS-yUQ7wOqBhMFH12oJDwPsQoyS9grDFf-GdlRJ2H5fdEIajo4UK/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2013.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Out of This World</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Outer space! Alternate universes! Parallel dimensions! The Multiverse! This sketch theme explored the characters from many realms beyond the world we call home.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><h1><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2014</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5sDrEQ7Phh41Q_BYNAifu_Er0h5fpUVkVmvrayQhFGrAGZ9B8lWA0NHNbkx2SGFhn3lVYbz6tYLny4IGPjFwiKpU92zaJSWCDsA_w4uKJSqXBpPArBeDhohGZ-cr0-sTYijMhqvn8Q_cGQTpYmNWfkH8mF-UGmPzm-kJpgUWEEfJx2KdLqfDposOV/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2014.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5sDrEQ7Phh41Q_BYNAifu_Er0h5fpUVkVmvrayQhFGrAGZ9B8lWA0NHNbkx2SGFhn3lVYbz6tYLny4IGPjFwiKpU92zaJSWCDsA_w4uKJSqXBpPArBeDhohGZ-cr0-sTYijMhqvn8Q_cGQTpYmNWfkH8mF-UGmPzm-kJpgUWEEfJx2KdLqfDposOV/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2014.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Clash of the Titans</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Collector's item! A very loose sketch theme, accompanied by a shirt that never made it to production.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><h1><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2015</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3vPcLO9xDA4IQoZEVgqP7kavD8y061baCnxnJNPs-XQqz9pV2iaTsGPYzr6R51D-3VUbueA8TNC3p5pJb04-6efZItDFUr2AdtdZeypkacxhqWvFh2GXTHl9hCr3LHdothZa5IlszTlF20AiukJf9Hm7NPaD8BBvm9ltU59ZKFPDaWyMsyCSFr9Hh/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2015.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3vPcLO9xDA4IQoZEVgqP7kavD8y061baCnxnJNPs-XQqz9pV2iaTsGPYzr6R51D-3VUbueA8TNC3p5pJb04-6efZItDFUr2AdtdZeypkacxhqWvFh2GXTHl9hCr3LHdothZa5IlszTlF20AiukJf9Hm7NPaD8BBvm9ltU59ZKFPDaWyMsyCSFr9Hh/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2015.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Armed and Dangerous</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Most Wanted! The Cranboyz tracked down sketches of comics' most notorious heroes and villains with an MO of being armed to the teeth.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><h1><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2016</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-nlZLSQIdd_7RNpkLhcsvKRkpql4hTLYvH1LNwCiTV9vQ0H8xlBd2S3S6sNVTqZA3feT_EiVw7x7ylLMGtCgRnheQ7n7Qj4FH0AW3JEwzAmsFkd9zUqfqB0b2XoEiOzkuTJY1G9nnA-cwhCpNBNsRVupeZ-YLu0Cc1tEEhTOZqvbGquXXkGsjq2pn/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2016.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-nlZLSQIdd_7RNpkLhcsvKRkpql4hTLYvH1LNwCiTV9vQ0H8xlBd2S3S6sNVTqZA3feT_EiVw7x7ylLMGtCgRnheQ7n7Qj4FH0AW3JEwzAmsFkd9zUqfqB0b2XoEiOzkuTJY1G9nnA-cwhCpNBNsRVupeZ-YLu0Cc1tEEhTOZqvbGquXXkGsjq2pn/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2016.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Animated Adventures</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span>It's Saturday morning! This sketch theme featured a fun lineup of characters from our favorite animated shows and movies.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><h1><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2017</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF2S7zNYl3eVmJWuBkvOV0JCMc80tSykYzjzTrE0whIvXQhI7EWvKIW-0DQMbYSZLkUI5LCFImaf3CEsEUuKpoE4MVGb4tHS9UkclWw73Th-g9KChafy5omMh6W8u0-gwhR5d0FbMhdgyEqv2FAVudIMl_yOUo58_M4l_vIU82mrdWVMY8eBlt32Uw/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2017.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF2S7zNYl3eVmJWuBkvOV0JCMc80tSykYzjzTrE0whIvXQhI7EWvKIW-0DQMbYSZLkUI5LCFImaf3CEsEUuKpoE4MVGb4tHS9UkclWw73Th-g9KChafy5omMh6W8u0-gwhR5d0FbMhdgyEqv2FAVudIMl_yOUo58_M4l_vIU82mrdWVMY8eBlt32Uw/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2017.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">The Silver Age</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">The 25th Anniversary of the Cranboyz! To celebrate 25 years of friendship spent collecting original artwork at conventions, this sketch theme looked back to the classic characters from the Silver Age of comics.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><h1><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2018</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWsqHf-av_0tDnRIO8DjWIIERnVLbiKgQ7dgTNWj987MsbJuA_0sw7i-8WfT3FdPRmb_HSS9WwOYKTdX-zBffvBWl7yqQKxN_4LiPOSu-6OAN-jhJQH99QGc0xP1dzV7c76JlsBXf_0eOhVmRJmGF6vZlYF8be6ow4QsYA0BrGCyPKe0JA4vP2SkLn/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2018.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWsqHf-av_0tDnRIO8DjWIIERnVLbiKgQ7dgTNWj987MsbJuA_0sw7i-8WfT3FdPRmb_HSS9WwOYKTdX-zBffvBWl7yqQKxN_4LiPOSu-6OAN-jhJQH99QGc0xP1dzV7c76JlsBXf_0eOhVmRJmGF6vZlYF8be6ow4QsYA0BrGCyPKe0JA4vP2SkLn/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2018.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Year Without a Theme: Part I</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span>Back to basics. After our big anniversary, the Cranboyz decided to take a break from themed sketches, and went back to the beginning with an updated logo shirt.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><h1><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2019</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdXYnx80mDftwGtFmeOeO0D7YS3Olz4BT9tujE1Ajuki_PufdL-6_-m87q6yRRLaVh3QrbT5WNItLAMjCAQAbAjhdUyypQj7xUzkJ0e0AvK4RlcCFpH0V-2-Pl4zoRBiGTCpZGsapmFxbqE320rlf6K94qSnk_bMYgSH2_U8RKurV7qc62x-CSg4A3/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2019.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdXYnx80mDftwGtFmeOeO0D7YS3Olz4BT9tujE1Ajuki_PufdL-6_-m87q6yRRLaVh3QrbT5WNItLAMjCAQAbAjhdUyypQj7xUzkJ0e0AvK4RlcCFpH0V-2-Pl4zoRBiGTCpZGsapmFxbqE320rlf6K94qSnk_bMYgSH2_U8RKurV7qc62x-CSg4A3/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2019.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Image United</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Image Comics' most EXTREME characters, front and center! Shane, Popa, and Andy decided to bring back the themed sketches with a heaping dose of 90's awesomeness.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><h1><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2020</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihIBhjIbd3_LhcWpuIjIn_P7UoHJQEDrmrKmnI9_bzHNtosZEqrn3WU33yzuxZkjdC5RqhIyjboLkD7ML4x0Ex8XGHrg97OJ8_2EsTuFvlJSEiXympn8mXZwKyWjr90dDFtJiaR_XjvW_DwGAA39tj3IkwAV9F7QaC4gTHiJmoL4YZlFrlp_A9IwVb/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2020.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihIBhjIbd3_LhcWpuIjIn_P7UoHJQEDrmrKmnI9_bzHNtosZEqrn3WU33yzuxZkjdC5RqhIyjboLkD7ML4x0Ex8XGHrg97OJ8_2EsTuFvlJSEiXympn8mXZwKyWjr90dDFtJiaR_XjvW_DwGAA39tj3IkwAV9F7QaC4gTHiJmoL4YZlFrlp_A9IwVb/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2020.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Year Without a Theme: Part II</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">After the craziness of Image United, the Cranboyz took another year to focus on our own individual collections. And, inspired by the Cranboyz: Not At Comic Con print from 2019 by artist Nate Lovett, we took the opportunity to add a new red Cranboyz logo shirt to the collection.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><h1><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2021</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT-cf9o-2-anFXkqGfEX-QJMKFqro0q0-TUeRfhSkDfmLP16RoE78zwfhUdzWPWyLh-vZ42eb-hV6hx55KW5CdPpMnkHzq32NcC33WD4a9n8Gpy1Z6ZkxkyvFZQU4q0DtQLCSicEgx_vkdWQxRtTe5AYhBO_dFt-QjYTNkFezDTN06wADOHworCzG7/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2021.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT-cf9o-2-anFXkqGfEX-QJMKFqro0q0-TUeRfhSkDfmLP16RoE78zwfhUdzWPWyLh-vZ42eb-hV6hx55KW5CdPpMnkHzq32NcC33WD4a9n8Gpy1Z6ZkxkyvFZQU4q0DtQLCSicEgx_vkdWQxRtTe5AYhBO_dFt-QjYTNkFezDTN06wADOHworCzG7/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2021.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><b><span style="font-size: medium;">Turtles, Bats, Apes, and Snakes</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span>For Carl... To honor the passing of our friend Carl the previous in 2020, the Cranboyz paid tribute by collecting themed artwork featuring characters inspired by some of Carl's favorites. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><h1><span style="color: #cc0000; font-size: x-large;">2022</span></h1><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpdGfk-KJBvhhCkNrtPFHl8Gk5cEFY3uiz89plqQbmEqo-B5DECC_KjrlNci2g7s83eh14yObL9PUcxMXb4ht2UE7S-18eRv_bLd2Kv_gdeW8scGtkURWJiNxqPIIbw2tL9fFsJjtqXTSATmLaVwJz2tq3T2s2GtFUP8lqUA6fiQM1raHeYxPy-r-a/s1200/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2022.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpdGfk-KJBvhhCkNrtPFHl8Gk5cEFY3uiz89plqQbmEqo-B5DECC_KjrlNci2g7s83eh14yObL9PUcxMXb4ht2UE7S-18eRv_bLd2Kv_gdeW8scGtkURWJiNxqPIIbw2tL9fFsJjtqXTSATmLaVwJz2tq3T2s2GtFUP8lqUA6fiQM1raHeYxPy-r-a/w400-h400/Cranboyz_T-Shirt_2022.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b>Year Without a Theme: Part III</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">And finally, this shirt brings us to the present, and another year without themed sketches. Despite the lack of theme, Shane requested a Cranboyz logo shirt using the Green Lantern palette... a callout to Green Lantern artist extraordinaire, AND honorary Cranboy, Darryl "Darrylax"Banks.</div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Andyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12680398834299224774noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-68869007573130068432022-01-10T19:40:00.036-05:002022-01-16T14:42:28.581-05:00Cranboyz 2021: Turtles, Bats, Apes and Snakes! <div style="text-align: center;">2021 may have seemed like the Cranboyz strangest theme yet but it was all for good reason! In July of 2020 we lost one of our closest friends, Carl. Carl was like an older brother to most of us and we were all hit hard by this loss. </div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjpJp3i3VXrbjGIJ4qfbc8iYX1K0P4MwREXpau8KuY3DgxAzi_tra1--o46Ih4RZ57FVTbSqAjfQRVsKyoq2rqELridFTLZKMxfEN4cz7ElZfbA7k-nLMoacx0THiLdFheGBYxOvLH_GL2Aau8rjiPCpvv44KN8Bry74ZY743iO4_6LkcRFyeUOvNOOng=s743" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="737" data-original-width="743" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjpJp3i3VXrbjGIJ4qfbc8iYX1K0P4MwREXpau8KuY3DgxAzi_tra1--o46Ih4RZ57FVTbSqAjfQRVsKyoq2rqELridFTLZKMxfEN4cz7ElZfbA7k-nLMoacx0THiLdFheGBYxOvLH_GL2Aau8rjiPCpvv44KN8Bry74ZY743iO4_6LkcRFyeUOvNOOng=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div><div style="text-align: center;">Carl was attending conventions, collecting art and reading independent comics while we were saving up lunch money to buy our comics. Like most of us, Carl had diverse tastes in comics and he loved the characters he loved, just because. So we did our best to make him proud by collecting sketches of Turtles, Bats, Apes and Snakes! <br /></div></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiLdywNAc_8AHa1A9JZgwupOxeb3HrB_HgK200hRdlXsDGWpEU5L-83f4-LSp_nTtN4d_tL6u7hoQW8LP7v3h04P-DTTUWuwSn2bWfHpJZv8y9E71fR5WbW_BepocV6vPWUn3eYW-CcYvX18XzgmMbAoV40snSvJHwPPBRmlvAmhIVpybdbW-GoGe0pIQ=s1056" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1056" data-original-width="816" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiLdywNAc_8AHa1A9JZgwupOxeb3HrB_HgK200hRdlXsDGWpEU5L-83f4-LSp_nTtN4d_tL6u7hoQW8LP7v3h04P-DTTUWuwSn2bWfHpJZv8y9E71fR5WbW_BepocV6vPWUn3eYW-CcYvX18XzgmMbAoV40snSvJHwPPBRmlvAmhIVpybdbW-GoGe0pIQ=s320" width="247" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">Carl was reading the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in their original black and white comic books and always continued to love them!</p><p style="text-align: center;">Andy and Carl often bonded over the Turtles and Andy got a few TMNT commissions during the year.<br /></p><div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"><i>Teenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles #1 Cover Recreation by Andy Bennett.</i>
I had this recreation in mind for several years, and this theme seemed a
great opportunity to make it happen. It’s a great homage to the very
first issue and appearance of the TMNT in Andy Bennett’s unique style of
artwork, and a piece I think Carl would have loved. -Andy<br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh2-aBIJbmIbAmJnKVcAitJ1IhRzCWrICA3m7J3gtW0q8XKJHbZX0pi8nyZiyACyNIv60fWlnLKEtZQDnhH5cnwcNGeM4D_eVLdfRoNkJytTvOm8eIGkG-Hs4IkYSGkfXAISqkY0UwvhLtah3tM_5_JqoOBX2HsfIKnG1NgFt2AXoQEsspRJQek6v6hng=s800" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh2-aBIJbmIbAmJnKVcAitJ1IhRzCWrICA3m7J3gtW0q8XKJHbZX0pi8nyZiyACyNIv60fWlnLKEtZQDnhH5cnwcNGeM4D_eVLdfRoNkJytTvOm8eIGkG-Hs4IkYSGkfXAISqkY0UwvhLtah3tM_5_JqoOBX2HsfIKnG1NgFt2AXoQEsspRJQek6v6hng=s320" width="240" /></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"><i>Teenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles #4 Cover Recreation by Drew Moss.</i>
Drew Moss had been posting some of his amazing TMNT commission work,
including his reinterpretation of the cover to the very first issue of
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, so I commissioned him for a recreation of
my all-time favorite cover, issue #4, originally by Peter Laird, and
then again by Michael Dooney. I love a good cover recreation, and this
felt like a great way to honor Carl! -Andy<br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEixFGVmVDPUbB3Kk1EVgk4jmnYbE7-vHEA2zqs2x30n7JYQTj0-UFy6N_MzdFppd7M0XGhK9BJ7Z8fWgT7X1slkmc9DSVw0UgEj1csecGCCQdOEpGbRgC21WRuXLxW5fIcMKPx4YIV9aBfpvfEG1RamaGvm3li7Q1hmHmeQb32xe72pNF3P8TT-sJ3shg=s1200" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="776" data-original-width="1200" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEixFGVmVDPUbB3Kk1EVgk4jmnYbE7-vHEA2zqs2x30n7JYQTj0-UFy6N_MzdFppd7M0XGhK9BJ7Z8fWgT7X1slkmc9DSVw0UgEj1csecGCCQdOEpGbRgC21WRuXLxW5fIcMKPx4YIV9aBfpvfEG1RamaGvm3li7Q1hmHmeQb32xe72pNF3P8TT-sJ3shg=s320" width="320" /></a></div></div><div><div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: arial;"> </span></i></div><div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;"><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"><i>Teenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles: Soul’s Winter by Dan Govar</i>. Carl was a huge TMNT
fan, and when we got to talking about the Turtles, he ALWAYS brought up
this story, with writing and art by Michael Zulli, from the original
Mirage Studios run. - Andy</span><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: arial;"></span><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgMSv_dYhm6smSV6B-X__F8trw_6Hx3xtkG8dWK0VgKt14bGdyxb7HOK1BJ4gm0E0bN5qN5f4aUsrxPohC4IIfZp3zFgka7IaVPoaQ4pfGJL-j4qSwamt8S1O0ty9uDs7ylNIX5lW9D7SfunaqRYDKQ135fNz1eDs-QRFCj4myH6hVcKtix55uwST3hFQ=s800" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="520" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgMSv_dYhm6smSV6B-X__F8trw_6Hx3xtkG8dWK0VgKt14bGdyxb7HOK1BJ4gm0E0bN5qN5f4aUsrxPohC4IIfZp3zFgka7IaVPoaQ4pfGJL-j4qSwamt8S1O0ty9uDs7ylNIX5lW9D7SfunaqRYDKQ135fNz1eDs-QRFCj4myH6hVcKtix55uwST3hFQ=s320" width="208" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"> <span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"><i>Casey Jones and Raphael by Ian Nichols</i>. Ian
Nichols is a fantastic TMNT artist, and when I requested a commission
to showcase the friendship between Casey Jones and Raphael, he came up
with this wonderful image of the two buddies taking a break from
patrolling the city to eat some pizza! Carl was a big fan of Casey
Jones, so this turned out to be one fortuitous request that I am happy
to add to my collection. This one's for you, Carl! -Andy</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjYxkUOiVD3C_wLo_1Y7aMMLkMOxYhZrYMHGENUS6SX0DFq3CLsaVabNVA1W7tetPRs1b4v9TbN6E1s_jGTNgve8cM6iLBfzH6FE6vxWGLoYNjibprusS4nvRjBG6bmnOAB4XbH0uCS5eAAsV9rWvMY6vuuNGzqsBBA29IDv0jsjvc-7XuSaQvoV3w0xw=s1855" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1855" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjYxkUOiVD3C_wLo_1Y7aMMLkMOxYhZrYMHGENUS6SX0DFq3CLsaVabNVA1W7tetPRs1b4v9TbN6E1s_jGTNgve8cM6iLBfzH6FE6vxWGLoYNjibprusS4nvRjBG6bmnOAB4XbH0uCS5eAAsV9rWvMY6vuuNGzqsBBA29IDv0jsjvc-7XuSaQvoV3w0xw=s320" width="207" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41">Also, a digitally colored "Pin-up" version by Ian Nichols.</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhZEyJWXg44wj9FKaeABd1Xs4vPGUiPQgm--69pcaPfOsVNAhOLDXsqqmGzYIgtmhim9nweBeB0GNsVL_-G2Tep5y-_7oHXbHmvS3iEplW7sfy-oZEc_2KrMRoZfNxYtKgntIcDgphdqTJeBrzFAaF7osEpiFSXTqq2O5D-57f-FtAyZF9oy8zdPqQ_CA=s1800" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1800" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhZEyJWXg44wj9FKaeABd1Xs4vPGUiPQgm--69pcaPfOsVNAhOLDXsqqmGzYIgtmhim9nweBeB0GNsVL_-G2Tep5y-_7oHXbHmvS3iEplW7sfy-oZEc_2KrMRoZfNxYtKgntIcDgphdqTJeBrzFAaF7osEpiFSXTqq2O5D-57f-FtAyZF9oy8zdPqQ_CA=s320" width="213" /></a></div><br /><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"></span><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"> I knew I needed to get all of the Turtle brothers for Carl. I usually have a pretty solid plan when I collect sketches but with these guys, I just went with what looked and felt right. I'm thrilled to have these sketches in my collection and I think Carl would be happy with them, too! -Shane</p><p style="text-align: center;">Leonarado is by Drew Moss and I really love the tones and muted red background. Even the pose of this feels old school while be totally modern. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Donatello by Chris Campana is a great representation of Donnie's serious attitude.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjXuNqbyaAB2DwulMdpf01XhLT9ZXpU2RLaaIHSsK4m5ommZbh356lokSbfARh2bSzi3IAZP1ZCtq1sBpQU7L0WW4vHQyvQEqE1zZiHn2uWE0kanG7kXjrFCUhUYeR2NC_wZbp2Ygb8g_i4wDZprBeYnZT5R0N9Pev33F01N4dox2_uo5I1yU-BGofyAA=s5040" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3900" data-original-width="5040" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjXuNqbyaAB2DwulMdpf01XhLT9ZXpU2RLaaIHSsK4m5ommZbh356lokSbfARh2bSzi3IAZP1ZCtq1sBpQU7L0WW4vHQyvQEqE1zZiHn2uWE0kanG7kXjrFCUhUYeR2NC_wZbp2Ygb8g_i4wDZprBeYnZT5R0N9Pev33F01N4dox2_uo5I1yU-BGofyAA=s320" width="320" /></a></p><div style="text-align: center;">Raphael by Freddie Williams II was a no brainer for me! Freddie draws some of the best Turtles and he went all in on Raph and his aggressive style! </div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;">Michelangelo by Nate Lovett is a perfect example of everything Turtles! It's black and white tones, it's in the sewers, Mikey is playing with his chucks and there's even a pizza graphic on the skateboard! <br /></div></div><div> <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjBTHwwG0EtpsGdFnljjc5Nyk9R7Wwbcl3wcyGPj5WZfa4ygyKqAMZMnWHDyKRexo0Ao3kkPC5FU9ga6JZYD-Z53QvPJniLSusbESFEOKybfXoYyXn4u5vsGZQqn0H47YeXGu6RcHISd3tjRCUf6wfBGjBxokm7EWU-2s2YXBBQz1b8rwosgds0tafseA=s1293" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1293" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjBTHwwG0EtpsGdFnljjc5Nyk9R7Wwbcl3wcyGPj5WZfa4ygyKqAMZMnWHDyKRexo0Ao3kkPC5FU9ga6JZYD-Z53QvPJniLSusbESFEOKybfXoYyXn4u5vsGZQqn0H47YeXGu6RcHISd3tjRCUf6wfBGjBxokm7EWU-2s2YXBBQz1b8rwosgds0tafseA=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">I also picked up these 2 sketches from our friend, Sean Forney. Sean had them on a live sale online and I thought they looked great and couldn't believe no one else grabbed them up! Donnie and Leo are also my favorites, so that made it easy too! -Shane<br /></div></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgDzBaZBwbTFJw8XWMI6NCM3ivCSASIxXViY691uB_KgVjEzoJBwGzmIudKTK_OVfn5UL09wBH10j9i78Bqttw8r9ux6_0Fwbw1sYDpU89NY_dhgm5hfjvj7jFUj9z968x5kUceHsPosHmqxy2_Tawcyt3XjRYIZh31KPTdZq8h_Cb9i8z40FcfVBPRBA=s3580" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2654" data-original-width="3580" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgDzBaZBwbTFJw8XWMI6NCM3ivCSASIxXViY691uB_KgVjEzoJBwGzmIudKTK_OVfn5UL09wBH10j9i78Bqttw8r9ux6_0Fwbw1sYDpU89NY_dhgm5hfjvj7jFUj9z968x5kUceHsPosHmqxy2_Tawcyt3XjRYIZh31KPTdZq8h_Cb9i8z40FcfVBPRBA=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Casey Jones by Andy Bennett. This was a huge one to me. If Carl actually was any comic book character, it was probably Casey Jones. Running around, dishing out some street justice, keeping the streets safe from evil, while laughing and hanging out with his buddies. Yeah, if Carl could have gone thru life with a hockey mask on, I'm sure he would have! -Shane<br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgtxycSf0qHCzidRbtZ62UsyV_o3urq5WfqspT9YtfYrT9dK_FOIjTzqA5ahTXwGRoWpXsekt-RDvQIUBRUMFqiZPmC_LNequ4a-5zT4Fpn2e9jvIBO2_UATr35G3VpL6HJgXL3k-n_aehwkDYEkHq_6ydaUctm_KiQU6nnKyCLwlIhHbsUE-lSBU4tYQ=s3556" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3556" data-original-width="2683" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgtxycSf0qHCzidRbtZ62UsyV_o3urq5WfqspT9YtfYrT9dK_FOIjTzqA5ahTXwGRoWpXsekt-RDvQIUBRUMFqiZPmC_LNequ4a-5zT4Fpn2e9jvIBO2_UATr35G3VpL6HJgXL3k-n_aehwkDYEkHq_6ydaUctm_KiQU6nnKyCLwlIhHbsUE-lSBU4tYQ=s320" width="241" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> Eric didn't miss out on Turtle-mania, either! Eric was able to pick up this Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cover prelim by Ian Nichols! <br /></div></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgxwtKQrltDiFdWldIPSH4IbeOqDVL7hk3Hyo0TzNH7I_iPqa9fZP4YC3pBW9bmiS9Vmbn_1KXaUrHeBlhVTKG_QnAy76xB7YfcEiCapa0Kp0K9rDR67A8OvlXLSMzr-Q23SuDN3hbV93ogjLZWlwrrGOHiC8wEIOaNucrbOg0LWijPfJNM7OGraN3RWQ=s800" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="678" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgxwtKQrltDiFdWldIPSH4IbeOqDVL7hk3Hyo0TzNH7I_iPqa9fZP4YC3pBW9bmiS9Vmbn_1KXaUrHeBlhVTKG_QnAy76xB7YfcEiCapa0Kp0K9rDR67A8OvlXLSMzr-Q23SuDN3hbV93ogjLZWlwrrGOHiC8wEIOaNucrbOg0LWijPfJNM7OGraN3RWQ=s320" width="271" /></a></div><span style="color: white;"><br /></span><div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;"><span style="color: white;">
</span><span style="color: black;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"><i>Batman
/ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles by Mike Bowden
</i>When the first crossover between Batman and the Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtles was announced, Carl didn’t miss an opportunity to tell anyone
who would listen that he had the idea for the team-up years ago. With
that in mind, I decided to commission the team-up from Mike Bowden, to
pay homage to Carl's fantastic idea.</span> </span>-Andy</span></span></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255) none repeat scroll 0% 0%;"><br /></span></span></span></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj-RGIV70-PrM6Y9V4FphS2gbEmMyANTOjtYF17nGenWW27zXbllQKqmhB73hw8g2lAXIyd3SBCISqd17rX6_r50zZSB4UjXJh93aPD_-Vt4e9XJRNxyBJpbW-S5Tdm2Zbpv4iHaAjnrMz_DUjBcZYUNqW-EFnPYvcOsZA8t2aL_JsZ3oS0Z20-A9L8hw=s800" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="567" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj-RGIV70-PrM6Y9V4FphS2gbEmMyANTOjtYF17nGenWW27zXbllQKqmhB73hw8g2lAXIyd3SBCISqd17rX6_r50zZSB4UjXJh93aPD_-Vt4e9XJRNxyBJpbW-S5Tdm2Zbpv4iHaAjnrMz_DUjBcZYUNqW-EFnPYvcOsZA8t2aL_JsZ3oS0Z20-A9L8hw=s320" width="227" /></a></div><br /></div><div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span>This is the perfect transition to the Bats portion of our theme! Popa went all in on one of the greatest versions of Batman to exist, the Animated Series! </span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"> </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41">I
knew Carl most of my life, we went to the same schools and had siblings
the same ages. Plus, he was a legend in the local comic book scene,
even when we were teenagers. But Carl was into Snake Pliskin, Planet of
the Apes and Batman - all cool things, but not things I necessarily
would buy or collect as original art. One thing we DID have a mutual
obsession with, though, was "Batman: The Animated Series." I remember
him coming home from (I think) a Chicago Comicon where the opening
sequence debuted and telling me all about it. Shot for shot, he was
pumped, and so was I! Believe me - if there was a first Harley Quinn
fan, it was Carl. With that in mind I reached out to Gene Gonzales to do
a different Animated Series character monthly for a little over a year
(through his Patreon.) It's mostly my favorite villains, with some of
the other regulars at the end. -Popa</span><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255) none repeat scroll 0% 0%;">
</span></span></span></span>
</div><div style="text-align: center;">
</div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhUwxFFqmSrS8_mFKoc176LoEBFCp-W-mIrvnCU3JKC9n9TucT8ugpmFWb3OuaDWDPkYLogCu2PlPhRvVwZ3tKO2FGB0f8H8YcDDr9S5nqTCBWxJ7UFVzjeNGMtONBQfEgpSo_u1H90Cp1WRqWFXDovJMP6EaMhnkmfsGEp4dU5Lj78JnqJV9E1_mX3hQ=s800" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="694" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhUwxFFqmSrS8_mFKoc176LoEBFCp-W-mIrvnCU3JKC9n9TucT8ugpmFWb3OuaDWDPkYLogCu2PlPhRvVwZ3tKO2FGB0f8H8YcDDr9S5nqTCBWxJ7UFVzjeNGMtONBQfEgpSo_u1H90Cp1WRqWFXDovJMP6EaMhnkmfsGEp4dU5Lj78JnqJV9E1_mX3hQ=s320" width="278" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgZ25aocRXHWFzi5ZwnH3yaIgY-tQq84SPtiSZmnWxOgoo0s5N8tdBfAt0Knd0Mzh4S0mDniLmDnYeUsK5bNXaX1FX0amR058wcJs8J6kxsPSgXJD93l2jGzkCBMsVHGaZs1-wAw7uCIGMo2KF5FEWSKRT4oS3fa0dObYit_HPypcqdShN8JHxivyZJUg=s1221" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1221" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgZ25aocRXHWFzi5ZwnH3yaIgY-tQq84SPtiSZmnWxOgoo0s5N8tdBfAt0Knd0Mzh4S0mDniLmDnYeUsK5bNXaX1FX0amR058wcJs8J6kxsPSgXJD93l2jGzkCBMsVHGaZs1-wAw7uCIGMo2KF5FEWSKRT4oS3fa0dObYit_HPypcqdShN8JHxivyZJUg=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiMSTrUh44SWIWBuQizDCq4HNMI1yz4XEr5Wmm0nSko7xSUfYUsdPECpeoSF3B-FqJMTK-1apDa8BtXKjLPxBV3XD_0xgWb5A5C4sjUNuyNfMECLwDVXgOg2uXP-98rvuVIouy5Bv_HV_mJY6BE7Y8eXKUcqE6RH-H2VSm_7N7tmhLQHkkIv-aZopRZSA=s1218" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1218" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiMSTrUh44SWIWBuQizDCq4HNMI1yz4XEr5Wmm0nSko7xSUfYUsdPECpeoSF3B-FqJMTK-1apDa8BtXKjLPxBV3XD_0xgWb5A5C4sjUNuyNfMECLwDVXgOg2uXP-98rvuVIouy5Bv_HV_mJY6BE7Y8eXKUcqE6RH-H2VSm_7N7tmhLQHkkIv-aZopRZSA=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhwmtkhIX_8TZ7cPue34PTgZqsgRr22G3gc1HNiLioL9zJI8KYF_AzbjzIawX4Rqc3RHZ053mWOI7tg4Cubqi26pGfShwf7w8fHyB63KEkZ2Coxqgxge0xJj7LEo98GkM_3AN-uqrt9hY184SvvqP8TG3Qkmf0LIge58Kq2dALWdk5EnV9MrmwGn6eljQ=s1160" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1160" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhwmtkhIX_8TZ7cPue34PTgZqsgRr22G3gc1HNiLioL9zJI8KYF_AzbjzIawX4Rqc3RHZ053mWOI7tg4Cubqi26pGfShwf7w8fHyB63KEkZ2Coxqgxge0xJj7LEo98GkM_3AN-uqrt9hY184SvvqP8TG3Qkmf0LIge58Kq2dALWdk5EnV9MrmwGn6eljQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjnO1UNOyaxssdjKZSiD46eHFCeK9gfUeycvbzM_TAHrlzhvs_pbYjV_hr5MDmeAZSrbDZKcVTWOakb9hdEQZxriyuDG2fmrfUdfPFdBS-wHiEFKEDKyIi4W1oflicig4r5RVGA0oEnfPLERwXFVYHU5U3lB8v0z4ijg41CAhQJya2Ogn52F5xAUEYiwQ=s1766" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1766" height="145" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjnO1UNOyaxssdjKZSiD46eHFCeK9gfUeycvbzM_TAHrlzhvs_pbYjV_hr5MDmeAZSrbDZKcVTWOakb9hdEQZxriyuDG2fmrfUdfPFdBS-wHiEFKEDKyIi4W1oflicig4r5RVGA0oEnfPLERwXFVYHU5U3lB8v0z4ijg41CAhQJya2Ogn52F5xAUEYiwQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjzPP7jfwoAucvJJU5vUOhN2EVJ2CmotA9AEJzmsso5FpVi8kwo2fupysQzCp0qv6ovTwrG-S-MIC-4w26Cer_0VnDHWeNnQYHBEyjPLEzKFunvqU_s1P_f8UnRCGZcd3_tVxHnHBj-LfeaWR2NBSW0v1MYLpgOiQbaQ3GOVyFHVg1HA9xkvLFbDdq-Vw=s1214" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1214" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjzPP7jfwoAucvJJU5vUOhN2EVJ2CmotA9AEJzmsso5FpVi8kwo2fupysQzCp0qv6ovTwrG-S-MIC-4w26Cer_0VnDHWeNnQYHBEyjPLEzKFunvqU_s1P_f8UnRCGZcd3_tVxHnHBj-LfeaWR2NBSW0v1MYLpgOiQbaQ3GOVyFHVg1HA9xkvLFbDdq-Vw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjbjwRkEEpeyBvaYptNeugKU2i-6ctwur-14jUlaTHjR6uxHq7foXJFLuzUnKgjy2bYhFLt6J5YIADfk866knRrpiO_0K5lDlH4Su8h1eGnchs4nab8YHEbneBPy_rvuB9pniDxhG5tq8bmVtBDxe4FliD_0jN0szQvdLyhrji7lnYllwt0TqxOyZnJRw=s1156" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1156" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjbjwRkEEpeyBvaYptNeugKU2i-6ctwur-14jUlaTHjR6uxHq7foXJFLuzUnKgjy2bYhFLt6J5YIADfk866knRrpiO_0K5lDlH4Su8h1eGnchs4nab8YHEbneBPy_rvuB9pniDxhG5tq8bmVtBDxe4FliD_0jN0szQvdLyhrji7lnYllwt0TqxOyZnJRw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhZDoeIEmxcb1EJHUq-I3cChdnIuAGG8uN4OB41hgM4UMnYJrVKxpfeZ0LnC_-jNFwkrgzAmy70FYBsVilzV6gIecZmMRpd8CQDynXfMp5q05gAdOqsuNKmRzp-oF5bby8dgmevyK9Lg_AEsSxmEvzYkmvNNvwwIbJi1UqiuqQT-U22vQZP-M8DfLUUiA=s1224" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1224" height="209" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhZDoeIEmxcb1EJHUq-I3cChdnIuAGG8uN4OB41hgM4UMnYJrVKxpfeZ0LnC_-jNFwkrgzAmy70FYBsVilzV6gIecZmMRpd8CQDynXfMp5q05gAdOqsuNKmRzp-oF5bby8dgmevyK9Lg_AEsSxmEvzYkmvNNvwwIbJi1UqiuqQT-U22vQZP-M8DfLUUiA=s320" width="320" /></a><div><span face="Lato,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41">I also grabbed this Harley by Paul Pelletier along the way. Who can resist a Pelletier Harley? -Popa</span><span face="Lato,arial,helvetica,sans-serif" style="color: black; font-size: 12px;"></span></div></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhciNw6JMnHd-UI87O2iU6j6rMOVxPrOXzmdNhYnBeZoePBi-t7JLJ4kG7Kf3tB0XkPmhBkTQ6wnBRiujvNhtMgHFN01jiNcbv2YYNOuYkTw2YmTUN16ctKuI-WkGOGxrfmyNFx5AXdmoWafYuqqkfjPS1Lc2nhm3t6UTIZnBBOHcQIJyrGAAlWgA_i-Q=s1700" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1700" data-original-width="1100" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhciNw6JMnHd-UI87O2iU6j6rMOVxPrOXzmdNhYnBeZoePBi-t7JLJ4kG7Kf3tB0XkPmhBkTQ6wnBRiujvNhtMgHFN01jiNcbv2YYNOuYkTw2YmTUN16ctKuI-WkGOGxrfmyNFx5AXdmoWafYuqqkfjPS1Lc2nhm3t6UTIZnBBOHcQIJyrGAAlWgA_i-Q=s320" width="207" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">And who doesn't love the Batman! <br /></div><p style="text-align: center;">Karen got a Batman from Marcus Grant! Eric got his Batman from Ian Nichols! <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgT37VOnXUvSyCoJWpBygfFYat8MWTxMRZtO64YHjHSHMGQacFNShFKArW0wkjYV8nBsJ_hPUSkCqLHGB9r-1VCqbrx4x14wlbKZYe7-_LJmt9raxAYjarpltmvz6I__aI-Ia_v8WyEAoSIEeZ7lWrW9HPenj7Qz0EPS8wEb5-S2AwNAFapG1vfzzitCA=s1163" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1163" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgT37VOnXUvSyCoJWpBygfFYat8MWTxMRZtO64YHjHSHMGQacFNShFKArW0wkjYV8nBsJ_hPUSkCqLHGB9r-1VCqbrx4x14wlbKZYe7-_LJmt9raxAYjarpltmvz6I__aI-Ia_v8WyEAoSIEeZ7lWrW9HPenj7Qz0EPS8wEb5-S2AwNAFapG1vfzzitCA=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">Brian and Brendon Fraim also provided Batmans to Kurt and Eric Osier! <br /></div><div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgauosDKKfFGLMqhw3wsl0MeFs1i_bLI9Mmc67HthabMKRftuptlplIYEdc48bnJt3GSSzryXl5MbFm4KOBmC2ho8RWD_IgJ0Lia1uTVDnY1Q83I-yEnVf5ZasOctXN-UdWl-WKfe61NIGCwD82HwozAqEBCL5-JqiwqG1zKJ9NWP440Zbc4OORyLuTGA=s1167" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1167" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgauosDKKfFGLMqhw3wsl0MeFs1i_bLI9Mmc67HthabMKRftuptlplIYEdc48bnJt3GSSzryXl5MbFm4KOBmC2ho8RWD_IgJ0Lia1uTVDnY1Q83I-yEnVf5ZasOctXN-UdWl-WKfe61NIGCwD82HwozAqEBCL5-JqiwqG1zKJ9NWP440Zbc4OORyLuTGA=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in;">
</p><div class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;">
<span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"><i>Batman:
Year One by Tom Reilly.</i>
Technically, this one arrived in late 2020, but we were gearing up for
the 2021 theme when this became available, so I bought it as a
pre-emptive entry for the theme. An homage to Mazzuccheli’s Batman from
the seminal Year One story seemed a no-brainer to honor Carl, one of
the biggest Batman fans I know. -Andy<br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiVkE3dPzT-KkYCPgSwJ4wuoGMfetkzllFPga6u-eJu6_EuP00Vupb-cLliWpUclZCLSzqfGTCR7Fouel-peuAjlUrRtsuZybw3qUAcZJwwd2y5L3FtowJmGJF9hm9zfheF005VO-abUHnurNukEcBPPo7KHFjMAnCybxQwvLbEBtLQlgzFO92Qs4PzbA=s800" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="610" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiVkE3dPzT-KkYCPgSwJ4wuoGMfetkzllFPga6u-eJu6_EuP00Vupb-cLliWpUclZCLSzqfGTCR7Fouel-peuAjlUrRtsuZybw3qUAcZJwwd2y5L3FtowJmGJF9hm9zfheF005VO-abUHnurNukEcBPPo7KHFjMAnCybxQwvLbEBtLQlgzFO92Qs4PzbA=s320" width="244" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">I did a re-watch of the Batman Animated series this year and I was convinced I wanted a Batman and Robin piece, I just couldn't decide who to have do it. When I saw Scoot McMahon at the first convention of the year, he had this for Sale in his portfolio! It's not in the Animated Series style but hit all the marks of what I was looking for! -Shane<br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEilC620W7Fl8utZv-dTfCJv0Ge2J5-2VIYgobiA-TNUcOeM2Dz7ek07Q6jpsmFV59NcP7_4Dav6OvSiZsPoI73Dh1dFopww1GlftnXjfG4QpA0GhvNiW0MINFvUOMtwpcR4QQKDFvcG4RdnNU-95cA39A7Vwq73_6c7-HcI1qskgc_Ile8O9I3JXJNiZg=s3300" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3300" data-original-width="2524" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEilC620W7Fl8utZv-dTfCJv0Ge2J5-2VIYgobiA-TNUcOeM2Dz7ek07Q6jpsmFV59NcP7_4Dav6OvSiZsPoI73Dh1dFopww1GlftnXjfG4QpA0GhvNiW0MINFvUOMtwpcR4QQKDFvcG4RdnNU-95cA39A7Vwq73_6c7-HcI1qskgc_Ile8O9I3JXJNiZg=s320" width="245" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">I've always been a Dick Grayson fan and I collect Teen Titans sketches, so a Batman theme seemed like a great time to visit All of the Robin characters! To start off, the original Robin, the Boy Wonder, by Romeo Tanghal Sr! -Shane<br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhQAoMSp-HgAVfVb4jjbG5_4URTsabHSJcKN7Cjn7rU_t1LgkGVEnRkbpmNirLYS5GLEhErY5JzPgOLBnZohstNBHs9hRzqj2MHr3krV1k5q1hB-DwnZZZD2WC7_H0_VAM0w4sPkGZE9RDAcpQ3zh1volhhhJWpMWOXZiEBe6OxeekyDeaQmtGAI3wptQ=s1845" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1845" data-original-width="1236" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhQAoMSp-HgAVfVb4jjbG5_4URTsabHSJcKN7Cjn7rU_t1LgkGVEnRkbpmNirLYS5GLEhErY5JzPgOLBnZohstNBHs9hRzqj2MHr3krV1k5q1hB-DwnZZZD2WC7_H0_VAM0w4sPkGZE9RDAcpQ3zh1volhhhJWpMWOXZiEBe6OxeekyDeaQmtGAI3wptQ=s320" width="214" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;">Shane got 2 sketches of Tim Drake as Robin, by Marcus To and Marcio Fiorito! <br /></div></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhKwC0jg1MjttBAezUHP4ipNYFBtCbgLwHUiHnGfhTKV4AElpziK3x56nOFx6-QNNTJkavICiOoY4xyfj_P_lMcdebNbIngieVs2GAX3K8OueizaVG4ADI3uIfC_ZPHFh-iZgaZg7i4pYJU-hv7n86GQuQ0lThwhDb_qjWbR9RdZV26Ece7_y7a4sm2TQ=s6000" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4156" data-original-width="6000" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhKwC0jg1MjttBAezUHP4ipNYFBtCbgLwHUiHnGfhTKV4AElpziK3x56nOFx6-QNNTJkavICiOoY4xyfj_P_lMcdebNbIngieVs2GAX3K8OueizaVG4ADI3uIfC_ZPHFh-iZgaZg7i4pYJU-hv7n86GQuQ0lThwhDb_qjWbR9RdZV26Ece7_y7a4sm2TQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;">Shane also got Jason Todd as Robin by Brendon and Brian Fraim! Damian Wayne as Robin is by Brandon Franklin! <br /></div></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgch65m6O3ELMWPvJjzFJZFch_cuPwqS6JPRZO-bKRwlIs3-S-eqxVIVst1kMvgAhC42FNz5W4gxvrAr3EzzDWZaLamFFuRScBf7245s5zYOMJ9QUd3QR2b7TNd6tGK_Sy7O6YAf-QPr-N3B7YlBnwGrgN653-d_7dzFFRmDv6MwFKi-Nw6ts2mTXKa-A=s5379" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3593" data-original-width="5379" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgch65m6O3ELMWPvJjzFJZFch_cuPwqS6JPRZO-bKRwlIs3-S-eqxVIVst1kMvgAhC42FNz5W4gxvrAr3EzzDWZaLamFFuRScBf7245s5zYOMJ9QUd3QR2b7TNd6tGK_Sy7O6YAf-QPr-N3B7YlBnwGrgN653-d_7dzFFRmDv6MwFKi-Nw6ts2mTXKa-A=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;">Shane moved onto Nightwing with a commission of the beloved George Perez designed costume by Pat Quinn! Travis Mercer provided Shane with the 90's version of Nightwing, complete with Starfire and Titans Tower! <br /></div></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiVPrYukqPRgpbHhCXJBjIKCqybLxDFdsfkrYPJf_JfBnqRFNYDWK3QRIHm7Q1cqQHIeXJHgpk_UonOYAp_ggmlxevSxFrjNw5Ct-gHzL15NfR7HeWGM4Nteqwbkd-vvpLgOwXGQC6j7_1Elyb8aJnOW79PTaQBwTrxVKLulVaTZsdQSetxsXPWS2yDcQ=s6856" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5100" data-original-width="6856" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiVPrYukqPRgpbHhCXJBjIKCqybLxDFdsfkrYPJf_JfBnqRFNYDWK3QRIHm7Q1cqQHIeXJHgpk_UonOYAp_ggmlxevSxFrjNw5Ct-gHzL15NfR7HeWGM4Nteqwbkd-vvpLgOwXGQC6j7_1Elyb8aJnOW79PTaQBwTrxVKLulVaTZsdQSetxsXPWS2yDcQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Carl was a little different in his art collecting than most of our group, in that once he got a piece from an artist, he didn't normally go back. There were exceptions to this and the biggest one had to be Scott McDaniel! Carl loved Scott's work on Batman and Nightwing and had multiple sketches and a few pages from Scott! Shane and Andy both being fans as well, picked up a couple of commissions from Scott, in honor of Carl! </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql lr9zc1uh a8c37x1j fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 d3f4x2em iv3no6db jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" dir="auto">Deadshot
is my favorite Batman villain, even though he isn't considered one of
his main rogues. Deadshot was introduced in this costume, in Detective
Comics drawn by Marshall Rogers (Who Carl also loved on Batman!)! I came up with this idea after the last commission I got from Scott but wasn't sure when I would get around to getting it. After losing Carl, I knew I had to get it! <br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql lr9zc1uh a8c37x1j fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 d3f4x2em iv3no6db jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" dir="auto">Carl would have loved this and I'm bummed about
missing the long debates we would have had about who's winning this
fight! (Sure, it's probably Batman but don't tell Carl I said that!) -Shane</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql lr9zc1uh a8c37x1j fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 d3f4x2em iv3no6db jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" dir="auto"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql lr9zc1uh a8c37x1j fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 d3f4x2em iv3no6db jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" dir="auto"> </span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj7llYyNcti2WSx4Y8Kx5e6_IHAQXDNz1pWTVFXI1s5ivK3ERk5nB3rdTU5H0M5i-hlql-BBqzbIIWqYeQNZ9F5OGZdMt3mlGqYn5bmlMZguMpQxtZXelLDCdLawqurIVmhOjJ1YLToU0Gw9n0KRPOFrUDfSwTO-4XJ2Q3CqF_N41C40qte9TfjYKOAeg=s800" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="518" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj7llYyNcti2WSx4Y8Kx5e6_IHAQXDNz1pWTVFXI1s5ivK3ERk5nB3rdTU5H0M5i-hlql-BBqzbIIWqYeQNZ9F5OGZdMt3mlGqYn5bmlMZguMpQxtZXelLDCdLawqurIVmhOjJ1YLToU0Gw9n0KRPOFrUDfSwTO-4XJ2Q3CqF_N41C40qte9TfjYKOAeg=s320" width="207" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;">As much as I enjoy his Batman, I could look at new Nightwing drawings by Scott McDaniel, every day! A Nightwing versus Deathstroke seemed like a great companion to Batman versus Deadshot, especially since Carl was such a Deathstroke fan! -Shane<br /></div></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEibKmcUFk1Nx8Ovv8MewYdOHF08ujkMab4mS4yfGyH2TaZzVPDyZFJoqHFoVRYrdOWGn-MvmWwh1YTjGAOcnleUhWCgoWv6a1gwJR85nfQ9_Fr_k6uGtCxjCtvUIlwwCtRGBLV1oxg15AuVDjsahZsyPU8tP7s1StRT_Oa4cmZrD7uLRmOKSjEt1jBf6w=s2000" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="1319" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEibKmcUFk1Nx8Ovv8MewYdOHF08ujkMab4mS4yfGyH2TaZzVPDyZFJoqHFoVRYrdOWGn-MvmWwh1YTjGAOcnleUhWCgoWv6a1gwJR85nfQ9_Fr_k6uGtCxjCtvUIlwwCtRGBLV1oxg15AuVDjsahZsyPU8tP7s1StRT_Oa4cmZrD7uLRmOKSjEt1jBf6w=s320" width="211" /></a></div></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"><i>Nightwing
& Robin by Scott McDaniel. </i>
The 25th issue of Chuck Dixon and Scott McDaniel’s run on Nightwing,
featuring Nightwing and Robin running a gauntlet through Bludhaven while
catching up, is a favorite of mine. Carl loved Scott McDaniel’s take on
the Bat-Family, so I decided to commission McDaniel for this Bat-Family
piece as a nod to Carl. -Andy</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgd6i_BTSDpKrZbTEiFoqnSjnB-UYFXZagf0QkkknNbDZ1JXOE3YD2n7VFSqxo1W4Zj9qri0uCOBygN15DviCao99-Y2VrJHJSn12Bk5IxNzfpcgXcVmVIJQtbb1C9VkmbN75lpgrarWjC3zNEUQRRbs4_rRTW09CM_jMGkVObOq1BpNyesjEqqXEXGqA=s800" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="518" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgd6i_BTSDpKrZbTEiFoqnSjnB-UYFXZagf0QkkknNbDZ1JXOE3YD2n7VFSqxo1W4Zj9qri0uCOBygN15DviCao99-Y2VrJHJSn12Bk5IxNzfpcgXcVmVIJQtbb1C9VkmbN75lpgrarWjC3zNEUQRRbs4_rRTW09CM_jMGkVObOq1BpNyesjEqqXEXGqA=s320" width="207" /></a></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;">I'm not sure how much of a Batgirl fan Carl was, past Yvonne Craig from the 1960s Batman TV Series, but she is one of my favorites! Batgirl prelim by Ron Frenz! Batgirl commission by Tom Grummett! Batgirl commission by Joe Pekar! -Shane <br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi2qir-9tUyHXLamllKb6mzphUaBnexIaFc-oqhuD3zMBUml8xDGazvh-ENJe8-k96j69eiB5ImIQSiVZ8ZGAQlozU9CHwa24HRxatmI379idsU8ZjGCwTc6f4oMFtSpP3QWaPdwjM11VF5j9j8zoaYZznhjco-rogNEfz0bSJEaZLcCaK6_gtAvIVZFw=s9605" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="5064" data-original-width="9605" height="169" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi2qir-9tUyHXLamllKb6mzphUaBnexIaFc-oqhuD3zMBUml8xDGazvh-ENJe8-k96j69eiB5ImIQSiVZ8ZGAQlozU9CHwa24HRxatmI379idsU8ZjGCwTc6f4oMFtSpP3QWaPdwjM11VF5j9j8zoaYZznhjco-rogNEfz0bSJEaZLcCaK6_gtAvIVZFw=s320" width="320" /></a></div> </div><div style="text-align: center;"> <span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"><i>Batgirl
by Landon Franklin</i> Not much story to this one, other than I love
Cassandra Cain as Batgirl from the No Man’s Land era, and I thought it a
fine addition to the theme. -Andy <br /></span></div><div><p class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;"><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh7YdaWFdGD-AHJRms_9WXZc5x4VFKgsVppYyGjX6Dt8b0_q3hpaFr7y1byVaoQc5oAjXu5aUECCX_7RwBOjyKa2cJ_5Wvs5G5-25MuUFi1J6YgXU1h3li7RFQhCLY-lF6mNs3jnINl29eAyWk9PQrPVdSqsnlj7vB6gxfaocfDn5VqddDi9Y08Lu_PzA=s800" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh7YdaWFdGD-AHJRms_9WXZc5x4VFKgsVppYyGjX6Dt8b0_q3hpaFr7y1byVaoQc5oAjXu5aUECCX_7RwBOjyKa2cJ_5Wvs5G5-25MuUFi1J6YgXU1h3li7RFQhCLY-lF6mNs3jnINl29eAyWk9PQrPVdSqsnlj7vB6gxfaocfDn5VqddDi9Y08Lu_PzA=s320" width="240" /></a></span></div><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41"> </span><p></p><p class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"></span></span></span></p><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255) none repeat scroll 0% 0%;"></span></span></span></span><p></p><p class="western" style="line-height: 100%; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: center;"><span class="tojvnm2t a6sixzi8 abs2jz4q a8s20v7p t1p8iaqh k5wvi7nf q3lfd5jv pk4s997a bipmatt0 cebpdrjk qowsmv63 owwhemhu dp1hu0rb dhp61c6y iyyx5f41">I
immediately knew I needed to get a Commissioner Gordon this year. Carl
was definitley a Gordon fan and he liked the interaction between Gordon,
the Gotham City PD and Batman. That plus with me being in law enforcement, I
had to get the Commissioner for Carl! Gavin Smith did this as part of Inktober/Batober and it's everything I could have wanted in a Commissioner Gordon piece! -Shane</span></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh4rRsSPHfUnFo3uSYQicaH20xbWYcSsqQ6b-YviKTtIgaDmCu7ovjiCUca4hu-sD6jQ49Ga7EJnb8LtYTDlX52crg47JhTdrhHS80thf9vZghktGfLUnw6P5x60_3g_VN1LG7ujM9Hz7D7K8ci4Gh4mKJ0JXE5-mpTDeCZ25EJVrSLes7AWXQdiIkbqw=s800" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="602" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh4rRsSPHfUnFo3uSYQicaH20xbWYcSsqQ6b-YviKTtIgaDmCu7ovjiCUca4hu-sD6jQ49Ga7EJnb8LtYTDlX52crg47JhTdrhHS80thf9vZghktGfLUnw6P5x60_3g_VN1LG7ujM9Hz7D7K8ci4Gh4mKJ0JXE5-mpTDeCZ25EJVrSLes7AWXQdiIkbqw=s320" width="241" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div style="text-align: center;">The Cranboyz are going Ape! We didn't get any Planet of the Apes art but we still collected our share of Apes! </div><div style="text-align: center;">Eric had Brendon and Brian Fraim draw the Blood Brothers for him! Kurt went all out with the Red Ghost AND his Super Apes! <br /></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgcOGquNnSs0C6ekol3gITSN2wNhfJNJxvFHy49OLbb5PJHjb9iXYgGND8vcs01tRbmOd_-G-E6rPKqLhoAXMzyKwF1w6Ch10T_uwOkBiEkUjmeobG9G2MyynK7IRbamHQPx4pD7ggHcZxcqluin7dsxI_WNAcdox5zdkrZl-0IDWM9JXy7iZfx_85Mqg=s1200" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1200" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgcOGquNnSs0C6ekol3gITSN2wNhfJNJxvFHy49OLbb5PJHjb9iXYgGND8vcs01tRbmOd_-G-E6rPKqLhoAXMzyKwF1w6Ch10T_uwOkBiEkUjmeobG9G2MyynK7IRbamHQPx4pD7ggHcZxcqluin7dsxI_WNAcdox5zdkrZl-0IDWM9JXy7iZfx_85Mqg=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;">Shane had Ian Nichols draw a savage Gorilla Grodd! Shane also got the Flash, making a monkey out of Gorilla Grodd, by Scoot McMahon! <br /></div></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEghWuixGnebOqXJlNrGD4AtZXvB7fxoqpO4aGck9UUaDfNjy2WX24jOYWbf9fJDynD6u7pe53BVNXfPoubYgv3_AD9t0a1mAk_2wkPestIR9N7xb5Oq_AT6QA5JKXjYuyojULHZ1Qbk1qYHHYWOxgN-DEtMNFboexS8WGL85p86zLiI8SQrSIXCsdO9Yg=s5280" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3581" data-original-width="5280" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEghWuixGnebOqXJlNrGD4AtZXvB7fxoqpO4aGck9UUaDfNjy2WX24jOYWbf9fJDynD6u7pe53BVNXfPoubYgv3_AD9t0a1mAk_2wkPestIR9N7xb5Oq_AT6QA5JKXjYuyojULHZ1Qbk1qYHHYWOxgN-DEtMNFboexS8WGL85p86zLiI8SQrSIXCsdO9Yg=s320" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> </div><div style="text-align: center;">And finally, why did it have to be Snakes! </div></div><div style="text-align: center;">Kurt got a Master of the Universe, Snake Face, by Brendon and Brian Fraim!<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhMUObXABVq9oahTnyyBLlOYPiP5w8lneH60IcA27-maVEmykQIvCzcp6Y_nCXBR5g514xbuMAPy1P_tq9ytZ31C6rvx3ydf6IGotuO4SzDKBbSRvGPy8ZrWwRNdHunWLEYH06Fcob1pZZ7yv2aN7aLnIzSJCnVy_v-Eqm4qW6hQ9264F_dUXPocaalcg=s800" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhMUObXABVq9oahTnyyBLlOYPiP5w8lneH60IcA27-maVEmykQIvCzcp6Y_nCXBR5g514xbuMAPy1P_tq9ytZ31C6rvx3ydf6IGotuO4SzDKBbSRvGPy8ZrWwRNdHunWLEYH06Fcob1pZZ7yv2aN7aLnIzSJCnVy_v-Eqm4qW6hQ9264F_dUXPocaalcg=s320" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Jason wasted no time in getting the Cobra Water Moccasin driver, Copperhead, from Brendon and Brian Fraim! This is perfect because Carl loved trash-talking the GI Joe team to Shane! <br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhnIWmfWp8vwFrNR_yht0WEMJYxWu1UqoOZbWgyC7dUcchXQlUh7vL_m34_uW0azyoB3qgW0jvWWc6Tknh-v9K04ZlCIRDWwwWgCbe_4dAytryMSv10RudGjrUjhefl_nhajuHh_asbb3llcI1o4orWXEj8ZctxQ9eSg5seZymH3kkYyTArwz7sb54aUg=s1200" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="900" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhnIWmfWp8vwFrNR_yht0WEMJYxWu1UqoOZbWgyC7dUcchXQlUh7vL_m34_uW0azyoB3qgW0jvWWc6Tknh-v9K04ZlCIRDWwwWgCbe_4dAytryMSv10RudGjrUjhefl_nhajuHh_asbb3llcI1o4orWXEj8ZctxQ9eSg5seZymH3kkYyTArwz7sb54aUg=s320" width="240" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">And finally, the main man himself, Snake Plissken! </p><p style="text-align: center;">I'm not sure if Snake Plissken had a bigger fan than Carl! Carl has to have the world's greatest collection of Snake Plissken art. And he had this little "test" he like to give artists. Being a smoker, Carl would say they "passed his test" if they drew Snake with a cigarette! I always wanted Carl to get a Snake from Brian Level so when the time came, I went for it! Brian not only delivered an epic looking Snake, he passed Carl's test! Who could ask for more? -Shane<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhvErPlU7MLKbrKGy6dVzAfMKIxmNGTssEfS8I5b7dmWFUn9z-FzsA9k438923LB0N55j_OpcnPxZ3uAHWOZh1qQkMUwVqHF5v5rmNLrz_6N90PjWQ8ubsnY3qsFfhQVPdBR4B0vbu2t8FbVoM5b0csrvUjbZ_A96VAGH7siptIKM8sK-_4WE4oDZza2w=s3568" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3568" data-original-width="2671" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhvErPlU7MLKbrKGy6dVzAfMKIxmNGTssEfS8I5b7dmWFUn9z-FzsA9k438923LB0N55j_OpcnPxZ3uAHWOZh1qQkMUwVqHF5v5rmNLrz_6N90PjWQ8ubsnY3qsFfhQVPdBR4B0vbu2t8FbVoM5b0csrvUjbZ_A96VAGH7siptIKM8sK-_4WE4oDZza2w=s320" width="240" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;">Hopefully this little post leaves no doubt how much we not only cared about Carl but what a huge part of our lives he was and how much he means to us. This little collection was a nice way for us to honor and remember our friend through the hobby we enjoyed together. There's no doubt that any time we get together, fun-filled stories of Carl will be shared while we remember some of the important life lessons Carl taught us.</p><p style="text-align: center;">Leave the water on in your hotel room, it's free. If the room floods, it's a free water park!</p><p style="text-align: center;">They want you to throw your tray away, it's how they get new ones. </p><p style="text-align: center;">Eat someplace nice, like Wendy's. <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhkd08tLS3fJuCmmOQn_ERKXKlvPH7i98_7mUb4ZYW4aJQ798kgzT9Z_v6d3DdQS-OJwOlK55iK00oDfocRMHzTxDGsKr-vM841ujwP36YzR6Uvl7AdVDELkpXb83P20BZakRgwvywYyaZBDSCo_TTRRIC0Twp3s8Zkef90VmcwKe8ZONsZzdySRrFf2A=s490" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="490" data-original-width="307" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhkd08tLS3fJuCmmOQn_ERKXKlvPH7i98_7mUb4ZYW4aJQ798kgzT9Z_v6d3DdQS-OJwOlK55iK00oDfocRMHzTxDGsKr-vM841ujwP36YzR6Uvl7AdVDELkpXb83P20BZakRgwvywYyaZBDSCo_TTRRIC0Twp3s8Zkef90VmcwKe8ZONsZzdySRrFf2A=s320" width="200" /></a></div><br /><p></p></div>Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-1568146321331351172021-12-30T19:52:00.001-05:002021-12-30T19:55:35.252-05:00Cleveland, the Birthplace of Superman! <div><p style="text-align: center;">While looking through photos from 2021 I realized 2 things, we made zero
blog posts this year (We'll be playing catch-up in 2022)! And I enjoyed a
really fun trip that I'd like to share with everyone! <br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"></p><p style="text-align: center;">So for the first and last blog post of 2021, I bring you My Trip to the Birthplace of Superman! </p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgYhdPMD_5LZ0wpvYozRiDTIu1-gWJVXTBVCsN51x8KI9fA7fM6DEjukyQUKlmBqZbeJ4ynyu-mQbwscx3Ie6xfMsiaSk9Tze0kHRafvBuIEDGXlWE8Vx8SV8-r2aFULeMqISo-yA5eQB9liEjferx3EZsbw6Etejpkiv6TFagcy29z16RvgS8HBKPXWw=s724" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="510" data-original-width="724" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgYhdPMD_5LZ0wpvYozRiDTIu1-gWJVXTBVCsN51x8KI9fA7fM6DEjukyQUKlmBqZbeJ4ynyu-mQbwscx3Ie6xfMsiaSk9Tze0kHRafvBuIEDGXlWE8Vx8SV8-r2aFULeMqISo-yA5eQB9liEjferx3EZsbw6Etejpkiv6TFagcy29z16RvgS8HBKPXWw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"> No, I didn't travel to the planet Krypton. I did travel someplace much
closer and slightly less exotic, Cleveland, Ohio! That's right,
Cleveland, the Birthplace of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, the Creators
of Superman!</div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">Having grown up as a young kid in the greater Cleveland area, not to mention being a huge comic book fan, I was a little disappointed with myself that I'd never visited these historic landmarks before. There's no big museum or anything like that but it's still pretty touching to see Cleveland acknowledgee the creation of this iconic hero! </p><p style="text-align: center;">First stop, the Ohio Historical Marker declaring Cleveland the "Home of Superman!"</p><p style="text-align: center;">This 2-sided marker is located on the corner of St. Clair Ave and E 105th St, next to 10505 St. Clair Ave, Cleveland, Ohio. The Marker stands in a little park-like area right on the street corner. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgceJJVasuGfB-NfG309OHucs0_zvyAjziBEk5AyNDdJPwc3maBnEsiM_Xj_nHnseqhgwQzkt4tBuNHoyF2Bc3wCgy_5NqjJmmO_ERJ5SEgPQcHGDT2NggXR-WUsiUe-dJx0gCHVyaH3BT_E1T6Q0iH9Cnw_ygGuGQY8iHl3sjyN9SCRiKLKQqocMVwbA=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="416" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgceJJVasuGfB-NfG309OHucs0_zvyAjziBEk5AyNDdJPwc3maBnEsiM_Xj_nHnseqhgwQzkt4tBuNHoyF2Bc3wCgy_5NqjJmmO_ERJ5SEgPQcHGDT2NggXR-WUsiUe-dJx0gCHVyaH3BT_E1T6Q0iH9Cnw_ygGuGQY8iHl3sjyN9SCRiKLKQqocMVwbA=s320" width="177" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;">The Marker briefly explains Siegel and Shuster's creation and the impact he's had on the world! <br /></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgXTythYJSXEOx7WkkQ8s2uW2PSq61n8vir7uQrWSf5J_WGLrZ5cZkWZyNTiUwd5KzePTc-jPPvqsd3Yd0vgAJnrg_aJ4W3yiLDkTaKOp5gmA-kUdUMwdV2vGmaWd51wd6HXryPCcU9VUKBejy2xuiy44ehSbHA-o4Zm8RIuYY1Nmuo5DjIY6Z1oouhkw=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgXTythYJSXEOx7WkkQ8s2uW2PSq61n8vir7uQrWSf5J_WGLrZ5cZkWZyNTiUwd5KzePTc-jPPvqsd3Yd0vgAJnrg_aJ4W3yiLDkTaKOp5gmA-kUdUMwdV2vGmaWd51wd6HXryPCcU9VUKBejy2xuiy44ehSbHA-o4Zm8RIuYY1Nmuo5DjIY6Z1oouhkw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"> </p><p style="text-align: center;">The next stop, just down the road, is the childhood home of Jerry Siegel!</p><p style="text-align: center;"> The home is located at <span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql lr9zc1uh a8c37x1j keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb d3f4x2em iv3no6db jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" dir="auto" lang="en">10622 Kimberley Ave, Cleveland Ohio and as you can see, even the street signs have been upgraded to show the importance of this location! <br /></span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh9pJl9LwUh9ega8mKaG17_YFEjv87qMH7XZU75xB--Q9HLckIXWVeHo6UBzbmvcZZoFWXYsRjeG_kNHAIAfKjWIx15yVwYD73HifHUpP_1l_2X2F7J1wG7JYWljEHj6ZiqaimOa0ODpD3cDlwbng7sb1xXqF-CT1gLVQaWw8Tc6HaIppNosa9Ut2-GeA=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh9pJl9LwUh9ega8mKaG17_YFEjv87qMH7XZU75xB--Q9HLckIXWVeHo6UBzbmvcZZoFWXYsRjeG_kNHAIAfKjWIx15yVwYD73HifHUpP_1l_2X2F7J1wG7JYWljEHj6ZiqaimOa0ODpD3cDlwbng7sb1xXqF-CT1gLVQaWw8Tc6HaIppNosa9Ut2-GeA=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">This is a private home but the residents have covered the porch and windows with Superman items and the fence out front proudly displays the Superman S! <br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjOvPAMbsRiYg3jmqN_xg9y3CJmsa8nl7Lv4-U8nnMxAMsyUEHLLCbupTLllHOM9GqCDWtIrdz6mGqWmPJM2VnUhsnIhJ4HMLXTIicoT_KBIHWAtL60Tl4UUAEKSZiUaX0O-Y9fID506Zk7cq19Tz98z5KuqDJlso_aIkVIZ9hZ_zT_YZMbNln4b8t4bw=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjOvPAMbsRiYg3jmqN_xg9y3CJmsa8nl7Lv4-U8nnMxAMsyUEHLLCbupTLllHOM9GqCDWtIrdz6mGqWmPJM2VnUhsnIhJ4HMLXTIicoT_KBIHWAtL60Tl4UUAEKSZiUaX0O-Y9fID506Zk7cq19Tz98z5KuqDJlso_aIkVIZ9hZ_zT_YZMbNln4b8t4bw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj7n-CwUOu8h8cczYAYJ4a6a3IpxrbamDqC4xGdDaAyvroEWyjTmYfBWSQb9u_oxR2opJQWlRhfGiVLoRd5tdMRdMbqggcdT1AdpN1KMNeAtmie7uukF6nBuFDFRV49bKc45pQAs6_g2874eS-mGbnL9LnWrLHXJdMZsC7XGI7aAaZL5fXSxlqzLfH_6Q=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj7n-CwUOu8h8cczYAYJ4a6a3IpxrbamDqC4xGdDaAyvroEWyjTmYfBWSQb9u_oxR2opJQWlRhfGiVLoRd5tdMRdMbqggcdT1AdpN1KMNeAtmie7uukF6nBuFDFRV49bKc45pQAs6_g2874eS-mGbnL9LnWrLHXJdMZsC7XGI7aAaZL5fXSxlqzLfH_6Q=s320" width="320" /></a></div> <br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhcn894TRvLcjXQf_5o9_aLbDVpFmOxwBrvJpfjNBYSBRC5x86gzaSw4Qr6HgF8sUCsiMuBst5BIRQvSJpnpErlsLP2MqRkmUDIyqWOxkxOSzIiWeWgkmgc6kEsIEeaMNTm2AirbaXcm2bFlOhVvTQiEp6NW6E2EcuOaRCF5ar9RYaDp_lfTUPKJv0D0w=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhcn894TRvLcjXQf_5o9_aLbDVpFmOxwBrvJpfjNBYSBRC5x86gzaSw4Qr6HgF8sUCsiMuBst5BIRQvSJpnpErlsLP2MqRkmUDIyqWOxkxOSzIiWeWgkmgc6kEsIEeaMNTm2AirbaXcm2bFlOhVvTQiEp6NW6E2EcuOaRCF5ar9RYaDp_lfTUPKJv0D0w=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiKgm23Zu9sYq4AiQDkKn5K6ZgFoyHRsBqxmMMcu76J0WDrRkNjOV8nFJhsQBBYWExzTgH6Muj2Za8vNCSrUjhyaREXE9YakYYEDhC4-M9oa8D4_a5-05M1AW5B38bXs16SAPX4SmXB6yJ7izBmPN3Vou8WuCJbYvfS1-vu56vS_oz3z4I1avnb-1irmw=s749" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="749" data-original-width="504" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiKgm23Zu9sYq4AiQDkKn5K6ZgFoyHRsBqxmMMcu76J0WDrRkNjOV8nFJhsQBBYWExzTgH6Muj2Za8vNCSrUjhyaREXE9YakYYEDhC4-M9oa8D4_a5-05M1AW5B38bXs16SAPX4SmXB6yJ7izBmPN3Vou8WuCJbYvfS1-vu56vS_oz3z4I1avnb-1irmw=s320" width="215" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"> </p><p style="text-align: center;">Just minutes from there is the location of where Joe Shuster was born!
The original apartment building no longer stands but you can't miss the
fence on the corner of Parkwood Dr and Amor Ave! </p><p style="text-align: center;"> <span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql lr9zc1uh a8c37x1j keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb d3f4x2em iv3no6db jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" dir="auto" lang="en">This is located in front of a private residence at 998 Parkwood Dr, Cleveland, Ohio.</span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql lr9zc1uh a8c37x1j keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb d3f4x2em iv3no6db jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" dir="auto" lang="en"></span></p><div style="text-align: left;"></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi0NwcP5xcD09jQmTicG2_sw275SS2IlY7PTQbTr8e08e2qsABKJ7OaRH0HS3NgNRh8Iqd3aOIAlEonY_rDibwR6D7CpivnAt9sEbfrPbw8WJJOhhA8qNYAAvXi82qLGtvr6aeRNR6S2pArvalzHsljsdH6k0lmXFuXl8m8trBMInlcwDvKgZV8szHNEQ=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi0NwcP5xcD09jQmTicG2_sw275SS2IlY7PTQbTr8e08e2qsABKJ7OaRH0HS3NgNRh8Iqd3aOIAlEonY_rDibwR6D7CpivnAt9sEbfrPbw8WJJOhhA8qNYAAvXi82qLGtvr6aeRNR6S2pArvalzHsljsdH6k0lmXFuXl8m8trBMInlcwDvKgZV8szHNEQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql lr9zc1uh a8c37x1j keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb d3f4x2em iv3no6db jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" dir="auto" lang="en">Signs
on this house clearly read, No Trespassing. But the Fence is adorned
with information on Superman's creators and reproductions of the pages
to Action Comics #1!</span><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql lr9zc1uh a8c37x1j keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb d3f4x2em iv3no6db jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" dir="auto" lang="en"></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql lr9zc1uh a8c37x1j keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb d3f4x2em iv3no6db jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" dir="auto" lang="en"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi5CRONiZmNzhUDLrNN2i0-yb3_OvxXxIisArFYhP7F0Gm9dJRD5mjYA8qN8k7dMA-Z1BIdFT72S2ECj1omesAKghU4JFn4H4L-OygOXOHAIDcJ05ztSbXPplXlM0zRx3RRxvPxZMOs-qBmEh1RLVm4LqKGG8PaKY7NVcV7zK5BMcPXdoC74jyKNAeOwg=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi5CRONiZmNzhUDLrNN2i0-yb3_OvxXxIisArFYhP7F0Gm9dJRD5mjYA8qN8k7dMA-Z1BIdFT72S2ECj1omesAKghU4JFn4H4L-OygOXOHAIDcJ05ztSbXPplXlM0zRx3RRxvPxZMOs-qBmEh1RLVm4LqKGG8PaKY7NVcV7zK5BMcPXdoC74jyKNAeOwg=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span class="d2edcug0 hpfvmrgz qv66sw1b c1et5uql lr9zc1uh a8c37x1j keod5gw0 nxhoafnm aigsh9s9 fe6kdd0r mau55g9w c8b282yb d3f4x2em iv3no6db jq4qci2q a3bd9o3v b1v8xokw oo9gr5id" dir="auto" lang="en"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjO1xSqh_G9y4SdSjThYJch87IcCxWrNGxfpbqyO2B9Z7bOjvEyji3D0uSzeez5Fpe0MSbzmb0hkzZc6O4wM9zKD2bQfxiQ31XOJstY0S0FiuKshLVnDxY1vWKb0tlQ2TJ3sOMoMWt5Ie5xR7OFKeNxbiMTwZ6KMdioxlDyty6K-KE3ZGXmvUxPLuDAow=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="416" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjO1xSqh_G9y4SdSjThYJch87IcCxWrNGxfpbqyO2B9Z7bOjvEyji3D0uSzeez5Fpe0MSbzmb0hkzZc6O4wM9zKD2bQfxiQ31XOJstY0S0FiuKshLVnDxY1vWKb0tlQ2TJ3sOMoMWt5Ie5xR7OFKeNxbiMTwZ6KMdioxlDyty6K-KE3ZGXmvUxPLuDAow=s320" width="177" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgGcd3RGNpdUFvegAzVY4N5Cq_imIbro1ibRQ1bTbb1C88Sjs-Tif4GLk3195dmMgSow9mEN20as9lBPziSazupK9Iy13-zNncN4n0cdEU909eHwJvUh4xBO6iqHJiAsQkRLIwLMnV_2m0JGtYHl3Vl8LlHpk_uLEkhdIzCQsxl1Sd6AW0Q3e9bTvQojg=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="750" data-original-width="416" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgGcd3RGNpdUFvegAzVY4N5Cq_imIbro1ibRQ1bTbb1C88Sjs-Tif4GLk3195dmMgSow9mEN20as9lBPziSazupK9Iy13-zNncN4n0cdEU909eHwJvUh4xBO6iqHJiAsQkRLIwLMnV_2m0JGtYHl3Vl8LlHpk_uLEkhdIzCQsxl1Sd6AW0Q3e9bTvQojg=s320" width="177" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhvS8Urk4GqjMzgt21v8nwET0vU_77T-6LsyuJI_dgpJunxXrnNDTQwUlG1Z76oPq7-nViPlQujdQRbODvMAt0wwf5D--aowXWRNZu4IBRKMe6xLfaC91xbPdrFTz9eueVVcQUHSMgFBc3psjSgMx3nFj9UB2pCDv2scyWynf30AOUNMwENaaS5iZLKIw=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhvS8Urk4GqjMzgt21v8nwET0vU_77T-6LsyuJI_dgpJunxXrnNDTQwUlG1Z76oPq7-nViPlQujdQRbODvMAt0wwf5D--aowXWRNZu4IBRKMe6xLfaC91xbPdrFTz9eueVVcQUHSMgFBc3psjSgMx3nFj9UB2pCDv2scyWynf30AOUNMwENaaS5iZLKIw=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjvRlhgZmfJseDobojrseNtM71H9msXfTC5j9kczRTvVWl-JonPlrVpslK4CNQq5GewlbT6X3TiVAMPKMuTcpur9FBC30Z9E_diufo_44F0TaUDNfufHVkNka89zra6KP7wQS3cs9A-ZOic2dRtcw6xAA2Lrldo6HV0iOtpNpWnlk1IdeZ2c-_fZvD5hQ=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjvRlhgZmfJseDobojrseNtM71H9msXfTC5j9kczRTvVWl-JonPlrVpslK4CNQq5GewlbT6X3TiVAMPKMuTcpur9FBC30Z9E_diufo_44F0TaUDNfufHVkNka89zra6KP7wQS3cs9A-ZOic2dRtcw6xAA2Lrldo6HV0iOtpNpWnlk1IdeZ2c-_fZvD5hQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgDuT-F5GupGPJw_j_kpzP-TCLeH25FjBCEMINsTVi3w5tKvsrw_nGgcMsViYQMiDvJ5wICHIBTW_DnXI9leaabgN8RjmkeQGS6bZJHGPhKYL2Sv-o3s7-ouK3EltWEOSZXBIKuWEChhKM67Z5CBK_-0KhOSSTPP96oD0liSPnQaOEtV8O2qzAOwg3wIg=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgDuT-F5GupGPJw_j_kpzP-TCLeH25FjBCEMINsTVi3w5tKvsrw_nGgcMsViYQMiDvJ5wICHIBTW_DnXI9leaabgN8RjmkeQGS6bZJHGPhKYL2Sv-o3s7-ouK3EltWEOSZXBIKuWEChhKM67Z5CBK_-0KhOSSTPP96oD0liSPnQaOEtV8O2qzAOwg3wIg=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEinwBgUaoRZnUuF4mZ0kS0rWDV5u6B-dYkFyqivXQwpcq1cxWg22tdVSGb6pW3jRkF_oc0R6l3mYCpBm6L0t8JusEVkIAYsAKG1TuAiVMxAx04nuHrKTwRNKMgUNlGHZZxpSwxRyLeaveubldsEMpcUpdMY6Xz3DTVNFTBqxEkjBh7ClxUaAr8ec-H3Mg=s750" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="750" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEinwBgUaoRZnUuF4mZ0kS0rWDV5u6B-dYkFyqivXQwpcq1cxWg22tdVSGb6pW3jRkF_oc0R6l3mYCpBm6L0t8JusEVkIAYsAKG1TuAiVMxAx04nuHrKTwRNKMgUNlGHZZxpSwxRyLeaveubldsEMpcUpdMY6Xz3DTVNFTBqxEkjBh7ClxUaAr8ec-H3Mg=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">It should be noted that the signs and restoration at both properties were done through fundraising and donations from the Siegel and Shuster Society! They were formed to preserve and promote not only Superman but his Creators and his home of Cleveland! </p><p style="text-align: center;">Another project of the Siegel and Shuster Society was to create a Superman display at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjsi1VCXSVrQ-ucwRNE0yc15dL4IV6RPKVh5UZ0jH528v4BTfqZaizZeuruAKlalcAyHW4Mop_EInVe1JD-02srz3prx2FA6swkufhybU1jICQZzdMlgSpRifB8W5CJtnvhEcx87dR_xQzdUNLFRgfQRFw80BmKdqZV1F9Dle1DycW2vGon69MvobvRiQ=s733" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="733" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjsi1VCXSVrQ-ucwRNE0yc15dL4IV6RPKVh5UZ0jH528v4BTfqZaizZeuruAKlalcAyHW4Mop_EInVe1JD-02srz3prx2FA6swkufhybU1jICQZzdMlgSpRifB8W5CJtnvhEcx87dR_xQzdUNLFRgfQRFw80BmKdqZV1F9Dle1DycW2vGon69MvobvRiQ=s320" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">I have to say, there's something that really gets to you while riding down the escalator at the airport and seeing this impressive vision! <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj2cSDtmweqoA2AImtTmD3mav3Yb1v-kyWjSBl3jCLSQtO_1sbF97mmmPIqzhte4nTYGUoGtwmPDzf39qr9QY5Nd2hBxgNKVJ41EXihFxSuEAttEzHW83geZCLU1CR5GuIVcP_nYIeeqAKelffDCe74MyKfwN3KdUxw_jzaPBGXTMzBkeBPrqr2iyL5Xg=s762" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="762" data-original-width="422" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj2cSDtmweqoA2AImtTmD3mav3Yb1v-kyWjSBl3jCLSQtO_1sbF97mmmPIqzhte4nTYGUoGtwmPDzf39qr9QY5Nd2hBxgNKVJ41EXihFxSuEAttEzHW83geZCLU1CR5GuIVcP_nYIeeqAKelffDCe74MyKfwN3KdUxw_jzaPBGXTMzBkeBPrqr2iyL5Xg=s320" width="177" /></a></div><p></p><p style="text-align: center;">I'm thrilled that I finally made a point to visit and take in this little bit of comic book history, so close to home. As exciting as these historical locations are, I would love to see the City of Cleveland itself create a statue downtown or in some other way embrace that the Man of Steel came from Cleveland! <br /></p><p><br /></p>Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-42705833464314840992020-12-01T10:55:00.002-05:002020-12-01T11:10:46.831-05:00Popa's 2020 Sketch Challenge<P> When 2020 began - oh, it was such an innocent time. I was trying to figure out what sketches to get in my respective collections and got the idea to let the other Cranboyz choose one of my sketches. </P>
<P> Let me explain how this all works: I have three main collections right now - The THORTFOLIO, collecting Marvel's Asgardian characters (like Thor,) The Marvel Cosmic Collection, collecting characters from Marvel's cosmic adventures - Inhumans, Infinity Gauntlet, Guardians of the Galaxy, Captain Marvel, etc ... and my monster sketchbook, where I get sketches of characters from horror movies. </P>
<P> All the Cranboyz have similar themes and often as my friends are getting characters related to their specific themes, I often wonder why they don't get the characters I want them to get - so for years while Shane collected GI Joe sketches, I politely requested he get Wild Weasel, nearly every day. Why did it take him nearly 20 years to get the Blob in his X-Men sketchbook when I'd been requesting it since day 1? Why did Andy want to get characters HE wanted in his Spider-Man sketchbook when I'd clearly stated how much I wanted him to get Cardiac? And now that he's gotten Cardiac, WHY HASN'T HE GOTTEN CARRION yet? </P>
<P> It was this mindset that inspired my 2020 sketch challenge: I let each Cranboy select a character for me to get in my respective collections. If they'd been secretly wishing I'd get a certain character in any of my collections, now was their chance to force my hand. The only caveat was it had to be a real request (no 'hilarious' ones) and it had to be a character I had some interest in - I mean, sketches and commissions aren't cheap! </P>
<P> Without further rambling from me, here's what the crew came up with... </P>
<p> Shane's Pick: DARK PHOENIX in the Cosmic Collection. </p>
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<p> I went to Khoi Pham for Shane's request. I've only met Khoi once and don't have any other pieces from him. The fun I had here was I told Shane I'd set it up, but didn't tell him who with, leading to a couple days of me sending him clues and him sending me guesses, all of which were incorrect. </p>
<p> Khoi seemed pretty excited about the request and we went back and forth about how great Paul Smith's run on "X-Men" was. What I love about this sketch is that Dark Phoenix is definitely evil here - love those smokey eyes. Oftentimes, Dark Phoenix sketches look like just another hot girl in a Dark Phoenix costume. I mean, I'm fine with that, but I like that this piece has some more character to it. </p>
<p> Kurt's Pick: Starfox in the Cosmic Collection. </p>
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<p> This is one of the picks I really appreciated because Starfox was a character on the list for the Cosmic Collection but was way down in priorities. He was
destined to get bumped over and over! I reached out to our friend and up and coming artist Landon Franklin for this one. </P>
<p> I guess there's a character called Starfox in something the young'ins like these days and at first that's who Landon thought I wanted. Nope, I'm an old geek, give me a relatviely obscure 80's Marvel character, please. </P>
<p> Andy's Pick: The Destroyer in The THORTFOLIO. </P>
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<p> I went to Jim Calafiore for Andy's request. I have one previous piece by Jim, a Kurse sketch in my villain sketchbook. Jim's known for drawing great armor/shiny
metal so I was thrilled he took on my commission. After Andy's man crush on my Ultron sketch in my villain book I was worried about him wanting another shiny metal character but so far he's restrained himself. </P>
<p> I tried the same game of 'guess the artist' with Andy but apparently my clues were too strong because he guessed Calafiore in like two guesses. </P>
<p> Dave's Pick: Karnilla in The THORTFOLIO. </p>
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<p> When our pal Craig Rousseau announced he was taking some at home commissions early in the year, I leapt at the chance to get his take on Karnilla. Craig's got a great Walt Simonson vibe to his work which is always a great fit for Asgardians. Turns out, he'd never drawn Karnilla before. </p>
<p> Similar to Kurt's pick, Karnilla was another character on the THORTFOLIO wish list, but Dave picking her kept me from bumping her over and over, which was possible. </p>
<p> Karen's Pick: Thor as Herald of Galactus in The THORTFOLIO. </p>
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<p> The Cranboyz had a get together in August and Landon Franklin popped in as a special guest and did both my Starfox piece and this new look Thor for me. One
cool part about The THORTFOLIO is getting all the different versions of The God of Thunder, including this current version where he's a Herald of Galactus.
<p> The only hiccup that came up was that since every convention was cancelled in 2020, I couldn't get my monster book in anyone's hands, so Bez's request for The Crypt
Keeper will have to wait until 2021. </p>
<p> Thanks guys for these great ideas and additions to my collections this year! Seriously, though, Andy, CARRION. NOW. </p>
JohnPopahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07795856163401824947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-79282431542632181272020-11-15T19:03:00.001-05:002020-11-15T19:03:23.094-05:00Shane's completed CAPTAIN AMERICA Sketchbook!<p style="text-align: center;">In 2008 I decided I needed another sketchbook! I've always been a fan of Captain America, Nick Fury, SHIELD and all of their assorted friends, enemies and frenemies but in 2008 I decided to fill a sketchbook with them! And I can tell you exactly why!</p><p style="text-align: center;">Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting's run on Captain America! <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H3nlUrnAD_U/X5Czf6lWpyI/AAAAAAAAq6U/3xUyjPif9OEy6cuuANbOkh3Tm13JxrT9ACLcBGAsYHQ/s1789/Cap.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1789" data-original-width="1209" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H3nlUrnAD_U/X5Czf6lWpyI/AAAAAAAAq6U/3xUyjPif9OEy6cuuANbOkh3Tm13JxrT9ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Cap.png" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;">I have also been a fan of Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting's work for many years so when they took on one of my favorite heroes, I was on board! And then Nick Fury was all over it! And then The Winter Soldier! And then they Killed Captain America (It all worked out, ,I mostly forgive them for that)!</p><p style="text-align: center;">So the book started with Captain America on the inside front cover and Nick Fury on page 1! Both by Steve Epting! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bOeY38chM14/X5C8-goCa6I/AAAAAAAAq7A/RtSwdrF-dzsgS8OMz6KymN-4njHsLRydACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Captain%2BAmerica%2BEpting.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1519" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bOeY38chM14/X5C8-goCa6I/AAAAAAAAq7A/RtSwdrF-dzsgS8OMz6KymN-4njHsLRydACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Captain%2BAmerica%2BEpting.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oR7VXtAnO3Y/X5C8-NcoRHI/AAAAAAAAq68/qWK-pI8HYpYCvEPOZR0udYM7-xqAlo4HQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Nick%2BFury%2BEpting%2Bblog.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1538" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oR7VXtAnO3Y/X5C8-NcoRHI/AAAAAAAAq68/qWK-pI8HYpYCvEPOZR0udYM7-xqAlo4HQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Nick%2BFury%2BEpting%2Bblog.jpg" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;">From there I got several Captain America Sketches by wonderful artists like Marvel Legend, Bob Layton! Comic Book Great, Arvell Jones! Comics Superstar, Darryl Banks! And Fan Favorite Artist, Robert Atkins!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ij_9O_rQ_uw/X5C9WgB7_8I/AAAAAAAAq7c/LuYWpExyVaYbCR-2NmTfnlVtupmpTCl7gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Captain%2BAmerica%2Barvell%2Bjones.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ij_9O_rQ_uw/X5C9WgB7_8I/AAAAAAAAq7c/LuYWpExyVaYbCR-2NmTfnlVtupmpTCl7gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Captain%2BAmerica%2Barvell%2Bjones.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0Y6cybV6S2c/X5C9WHG4nXI/AAAAAAAAq7Y/rP2BBPJcXrk_q2QZKUQ_FA6L_-p2QkIXQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Captain%2BAmerica%2BLayton.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1663" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0Y6cybV6S2c/X5C9WHG4nXI/AAAAAAAAq7Y/rP2BBPJcXrk_q2QZKUQ_FA6L_-p2QkIXQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Captain%2BAmerica%2BLayton.jpg" /></a></div><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1596" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ij_9O_rQ_uw/X5C9WgB7_8I/AAAAAAAAq7c/LuYWpExyVaYbCR-2NmTfnlVtupmpTCl7gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Captain%2BAmerica%2Barvell%2Bjones.jpg" /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7wsJwc8IJso/X5C9WOFZAUI/AAAAAAAAq7U/wfk0T9Cq9iM4FG-y9z3JCsoPblKM8NDIwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Captain%2BAmerica%2BWWII%2Bdarrylax.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1683" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-7wsJwc8IJso/X5C9WOFZAUI/AAAAAAAAq7U/wfk0T9Cq9iM4FG-y9z3JCsoPblKM8NDIwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Captain%2BAmerica%2BWWII%2Bdarrylax.jpg" /></a></div><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vd3YuLUqXuk/X5C9V83XcqI/AAAAAAAAq7Q/-TBligWcRyQzPqTZlbBbn1jUL5mHnFrGQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Captain%2BAmerica%2BBucky%2Batkins%2Bmarker.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1600" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vd3YuLUqXuk/X5C9V83XcqI/AAAAAAAAq7Q/-TBligWcRyQzPqTZlbBbn1jUL5mHnFrGQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Captain%2BAmerica%2BBucky%2Batkins%2Bmarker.jpg" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;"></p><p style="text-align: center;">And I got some Nick Fury sketches from talented artists like the Legendary Dave Johnson! Captain America artist, Mike Perkins! Nick Fury Versus SHIELD artist, Bob Hall! And Marvel Comics MVP, Ron Frenz! </p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zuVbYTvYNVU/X5C9mdQDauI/AAAAAAAAq7k/Eza9HZ6maWYQEwKLwVBMpieQV3hTc7XIwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Nick%2BFury%2BJohnson.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1634" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zuVbYTvYNVU/X5C9mdQDauI/AAAAAAAAq7k/Eza9HZ6maWYQEwKLwVBMpieQV3hTc7XIwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Nick%2BFury%2BJohnson.jpg" /></a></div></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KMDrpphLCLQ/X5C96BQcDZI/AAAAAAAAq8I/P-j6rB0OAfs5RADmy2iJ5Fd0lrLa_4ERQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Nick%2BFury%2B%2BPerkins.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1547" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KMDrpphLCLQ/X5C96BQcDZI/AAAAAAAAq8I/P-j6rB0OAfs5RADmy2iJ5Fd0lrLa_4ERQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Nick%2BFury%2B%2BPerkins.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5Q4gmElmybY/X5C99-7MqiI/AAAAAAAAq8M/JXe9YsnMaY0oF11u4esFbGvJ6qtFTNpHQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Nick%2BFury%2Bhall.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1601" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5Q4gmElmybY/X5C99-7MqiI/AAAAAAAAq8M/JXe9YsnMaY0oF11u4esFbGvJ6qtFTNpHQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Nick%2BFury%2Bhall.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wKUxU1S0BDg/X5C-B5Z1ZcI/AAAAAAAAq8Q/JLAeXtjWVqEO0eHQb2kHVv6KeD7DpGGxwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Nick%2BFury%2Bfrenz.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1577" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wKUxU1S0BDg/X5C-B5Z1ZcI/AAAAAAAAq8Q/JLAeXtjWVqEO0eHQb2kHVv6KeD7DpGGxwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Nick%2BFury%2Bfrenz.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"></p><p style="text-align: center;">Did I mention that the Brubaker and Epting run introduced the Winter Soldier? Because they created him! I got the Winter Soldier in my sketchbook from the infamous Brian Hurtt and from the mighty, Lee Weeks!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-84oc628-lu0/X5C-HV8tNCI/AAAAAAAAq8U/AnY-wZjWzngB-Ky8oMYpc3tYLGVhXdiGwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Winter%2BSoldier%2Bhurtt.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1647" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-84oc628-lu0/X5C-HV8tNCI/AAAAAAAAq8U/AnY-wZjWzngB-Ky8oMYpc3tYLGVhXdiGwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Winter%2BSoldier%2Bhurtt.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-szbZFpl6irE/X5C-HocIA_I/AAAAAAAAq8Y/amGodZ-8Lts1bq4ksHAHFU7Mas1pCs2uQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Winter%2BSoldier%2Bweeks.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1598" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-szbZFpl6irE/X5C-HocIA_I/AAAAAAAAq8Y/amGodZ-8Lts1bq4ksHAHFU7Mas1pCs2uQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Winter%2BSoldier%2Bweeks.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"></p><p style="text-align: center;">The sketchbook had more than it's share of fearsome villains, too!</p><p style="text-align: center;">How about the Red Skull by Chris Samnee and by Tom Raney!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P3UfEQRDs64/X5C-OYyrv7I/AAAAAAAAq8g/sOf1nWjlEhk0dmVNG2TbahW4CH9vfM_sQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Red%2BSkull%2Bsamnee.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1596" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P3UfEQRDs64/X5C-OYyrv7I/AAAAAAAAq8g/sOf1nWjlEhk0dmVNG2TbahW4CH9vfM_sQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Red%2BSkull%2Bsamnee.jpg" /></a></div><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ksYvCsYpVJg/X5C-OK8myTI/AAAAAAAAq8c/A6Q6qf24hb4Jqumv53oCab1PD61MHaPGgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Red%2BSkull%2Braney.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1633" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ksYvCsYpVJg/X5C-OK8myTI/AAAAAAAAq8c/A6Q6qf24hb4Jqumv53oCab1PD61MHaPGgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Red%2BSkull%2Braney.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"></p><p style="text-align: center;">Crossbones is by Ron Frenz!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tGqSwk9AF60/X5C-UiTd4MI/AAAAAAAAq8o/zA63gW4zbo8LzL8V0AkU9xQDBybdYis9QCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Crossbones%2BrFrenz.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1611" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tGqSwk9AF60/X5C-UiTd4MI/AAAAAAAAq8o/zA63gW4zbo8LzL8V0AkU9xQDBybdYis9QCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Crossbones%2BrFrenz.jpg" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;"></p><p style="text-align: center;">Arnim Zola by Mitch Byrd! Baron Zemo by <span class="art-desc">Francesco Fracavilla</span>! </p><p style="text-align: center;">The Yellow Claw by Andy Bennett! Madame Hydra by Keith Pollard!<br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QH9mpNTVwOw/X5C-lMiFuuI/AAAAAAAAq9A/OgDzz4W5VAse995tdRNh_ePAdIq2P7PZwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Arnim%2BZola%2Bbyrd.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1672" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QH9mpNTVwOw/X5C-lMiFuuI/AAAAAAAAq9A/OgDzz4W5VAse995tdRNh_ePAdIq2P7PZwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Arnim%2BZola%2Bbyrd.jpg" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RM6wCq3vpAk/X5DA4zG8lXI/AAAAAAAAq_o/GMoVBLHeLVkfwHucpN-3YbG1Z5dNh4yegCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Baron%2BHeinrich%2BZemo%2Bfracavilla.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1568" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RM6wCq3vpAk/X5DA4zG8lXI/AAAAAAAAq_o/GMoVBLHeLVkfwHucpN-3YbG1Z5dNh4yegCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Baron%2BHeinrich%2BZemo%2Bfracavilla.jpg" /></a></div><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6GtQ3oemCjg/X5C-llHxnEI/AAAAAAAAq9I/8y8iZwqAw-ESFt23omlNcJPpQEY8lTJogCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Yellow%2BClaw%2Bbennett.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1633" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6GtQ3oemCjg/X5C-llHxnEI/AAAAAAAAq9I/8y8iZwqAw-ESFt23omlNcJPpQEY8lTJogCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Yellow%2BClaw%2Bbennett.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g-Mmqk35i6o/X7G7pWum5iI/AAAAAAAArDY/eDJowwoxRnk9c11Uso88UZ7wDJ92MCS_wCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Madame%2BHydra%2Bk%2Bpollard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1611" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g-Mmqk35i6o/X7G7pWum5iI/AAAAAAAArDY/eDJowwoxRnk9c11Uso88UZ7wDJ92MCS_wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Madame%2BHydra%2Bk%2Bpollard.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"> And what are villainous masterminds without their armies?</p><p style="text-align: center;">AIM by Andy Bennett! Hydra by Landon and Brandon Franklin! </p><p style="text-align: center;">Ultimatum by Sean Forney! Watchdog by Nate Lovett! <br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hffDWvwvMi4/X5C-1Q5Xs7I/AAAAAAAAq9Y/deuImdbxP4cFrmJuiRpU-YyuAo4NS8QFwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/AIM%2Bbennett.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1614" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hffDWvwvMi4/X5C-1Q5Xs7I/AAAAAAAAq9Y/deuImdbxP4cFrmJuiRpU-YyuAo4NS8QFwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/AIM%2Bbennett.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k-WTD_KnDls/X5C-1ppiwxI/AAAAAAAAq9g/jhsVrMAjrXstRvK93qMSgnNT2j9u7Tn-gCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Hydra%2Bfranklins.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1598" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k-WTD_KnDls/X5C-1ppiwxI/AAAAAAAAq9g/jhsVrMAjrXstRvK93qMSgnNT2j9u7Tn-gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Hydra%2Bfranklins.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CAW_HcsWzlo/X5C-1o0EJ7I/AAAAAAAAq9c/B1OdtRZ5J948GdAovqOVygTkR-RU20xSQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Ultimatum%2Bforney.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1606" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CAW_HcsWzlo/X5C-1o0EJ7I/AAAAAAAAq9c/B1OdtRZ5J948GdAovqOVygTkR-RU20xSQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Ultimatum%2Bforney.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XQ8mkAKPhno/X5C-14SBOJI/AAAAAAAAq9k/xoBqT9aO2608IiO_Aggf4D9LcV_4EQ0RwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Watchdog%2Blovett.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1640" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XQ8mkAKPhno/X5C-14SBOJI/AAAAAAAAq9k/xoBqT9aO2608IiO_Aggf4D9LcV_4EQ0RwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Watchdog%2Blovett.jpg" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;">Captain America and Nick Fury are never far from back-up! My sketchbook also collects a ton of cool heroes! Black Widow by Mike Grell! Battlestar by Jeremy Dale! Dum Dum Dugan by Ron Frenz! Falcon by Darryl Banks! Diamondback by Jim Towe!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t2XcKpPKUd4/X5C_FCQjUcI/AAAAAAAAq90/B0nu_VaJnvgSBjlPRaMpesZjDnmQW9IegCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Black%2BWidow%2Bgrell.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1589" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t2XcKpPKUd4/X5C_FCQjUcI/AAAAAAAAq90/B0nu_VaJnvgSBjlPRaMpesZjDnmQW9IegCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Black%2BWidow%2Bgrell.jpg" /></a></div><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k50vMzFfRxQ/X5C_E5wKAqI/AAAAAAAAq9w/vBO1OezcK6A0QnjbKymFRsn1terziAhuwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Battlestar%2Bdale.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1592" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k50vMzFfRxQ/X5C_E5wKAqI/AAAAAAAAq9w/vBO1OezcK6A0QnjbKymFRsn1terziAhuwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Battlestar%2Bdale.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Knob3ZcQhPo/X5C_SZq39UI/AAAAAAAAq-I/LfUYK3IUrRwSyNwg-EIFvD-Pp9aiX2QfwCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Dugan%2Bfrenz.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1597" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Knob3ZcQhPo/X5C_SZq39UI/AAAAAAAAq-I/LfUYK3IUrRwSyNwg-EIFvD-Pp9aiX2QfwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Dugan%2Bfrenz.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IGJjP8wXluM/X5C_Fxq5bAI/AAAAAAAAq98/trkl3zZbtxA62dR8tdLXEIphJ6OVmO-qQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Falcon%2Bdarrylax.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1634" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IGJjP8wXluM/X5C_Fxq5bAI/AAAAAAAAq98/trkl3zZbtxA62dR8tdLXEIphJ6OVmO-qQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Falcon%2Bdarrylax.jpg" /></a></div><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VEa72NN594M/X5C_EigGCHI/AAAAAAAAq9o/8oqltc4hmzE7oa7HNe9M6Ng_iaxjY_f9ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Diamondback%2Bj%2Btowe.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1635" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VEa72NN594M/X5C_EigGCHI/AAAAAAAAq9o/8oqltc4hmzE7oa7HNe9M6Ng_iaxjY_f9ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Diamondback%2Bj%2Btowe.jpg" /></a></div><p style="text-align: center;">Not every character makes the A-list! But my friends and I love some quality back-up characters! </p><p style="text-align: center;">Batroc the Leaper by Craig Rousseau! Demolition "D-Man" Dunphy by Pat Quinn! Death Adder by Josh Medors! And how about Steve Rogers as Nomad by Ron Wilson! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ib4AVdQy1TY/X5C_cEco2wI/AAAAAAAAq-Y/RbiWz9CpF1YbMdW-3VQX1vSXEViahql7ACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Batroc%2Brousseau.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1610" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ib4AVdQy1TY/X5C_cEco2wI/AAAAAAAAq-Y/RbiWz9CpF1YbMdW-3VQX1vSXEViahql7ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Batroc%2Brousseau.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v295mNrk3Sk/X5C_mVk602I/AAAAAAAAq-s/4Ucj0sPvYyg-gbRWTPpeDQ_Ja_U6l-nWACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/DMan%2Bquinn.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1605" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v295mNrk3Sk/X5C_mVk602I/AAAAAAAAq-s/4Ucj0sPvYyg-gbRWTPpeDQ_Ja_U6l-nWACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/DMan%2Bquinn.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5wJC2XKnTiM/X5C_ctqV34I/AAAAAAAAq-g/cp5oBzxDKpENBdQxRluZzJNoBAaI6kSIQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Death%2BAdder%2Bmedors.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1596" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5wJC2XKnTiM/X5C_ctqV34I/AAAAAAAAq-g/cp5oBzxDKpENBdQxRluZzJNoBAaI6kSIQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Death%2BAdder%2Bmedors.jpg" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FvMFi0XlcAo/X5DBqSe6aXI/AAAAAAAAq_8/_BnZWye6prksYjJmxk1-vjwQ1HOID-yAgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Nomad%2Bwilson.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1614" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FvMFi0XlcAo/X5DBqSe6aXI/AAAAAAAAq_8/_BnZWye6prksYjJmxk1-vjwQ1HOID-yAgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Nomad%2Bwilson.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"></p><p style="text-align: center;">For the last several pages of the collection I decided to get some team-up pieces of Captain America and some of his best partners! A few of those include, Captain America and Bucky by Chris Sprouse! Captain America and Nomad (Jack Monroe) by Tressa Bowling! Captain America and the USAgent by Paul Pelletier! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hJmNeVdmq_0/X5C_tZgYWFI/AAAAAAAAq-8/Gk7qXCPCulIGZ_Ch4k0uBVia5Sc4t7z3QCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Cap%2Band%2BBucky%2Bsprouse.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1666" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hJmNeVdmq_0/X5C_tZgYWFI/AAAAAAAAq-8/Gk7qXCPCulIGZ_Ch4k0uBVia5Sc4t7z3QCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Cap%2Band%2BBucky%2Bsprouse.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cii6N8h5HYs/X5C_ti-zdKI/AAAAAAAAq_E/47NDcLGjVBwUhnEZfYuFnqBHyjOuvBrpACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Cap%2Band%2BNomad%2Bbowling.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1605" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-cii6N8h5HYs/X5C_ti-zdKI/AAAAAAAAq_E/47NDcLGjVBwUhnEZfYuFnqBHyjOuvBrpACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Cap%2Band%2BNomad%2Bbowling.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ot9Cs9iZzJc/X5C_tjcesCI/AAAAAAAAq_A/TYEGVnmrDj8F2y3epsNUX4FnNGkEgP3oACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Cap%2BUSAgent%2Bpelletier.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1606" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ot9Cs9iZzJc/X5C_tjcesCI/AAAAAAAAq_A/TYEGVnmrDj8F2y3epsNUX4FnNGkEgP3oACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Cap%2BUSAgent%2Bpelletier.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">And of course I had to get some more Nick Fury added to the collection so here's Cap and Nick by Ron Frenz and by Tom Morgan! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vbG95kXJ59Q/X5C_zCh_olI/AAAAAAAAq_I/xrUIpg0ABII_ZBnRpbDKc4R8TBZYKklsQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Cap%2Band%2BNick%2BFury%2Bfrenz.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1530" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vbG95kXJ59Q/X5C_zCh_olI/AAAAAAAAq_I/xrUIpg0ABII_ZBnRpbDKc4R8TBZYKklsQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Cap%2Band%2BNick%2BFury%2Bfrenz.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mTyBU3TSoU4/X5C_zQyZixI/AAAAAAAAq_M/y8wcJNoj7SoxijEFM4nx_fRxe08L410RACLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/Cap%2Band%2BNick%2BFury%2Bmorgan.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1601" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mTyBU3TSoU4/X5C_zQyZixI/AAAAAAAAq_M/y8wcJNoj7SoxijEFM4nx_fRxe08L410RACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Cap%2Band%2BNick%2BFury%2Bmorgan.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">For the final page, I decided to revisit the Days of Future Part concept from Uncanny X-Men 141! Pat Quinn delivered this beauty of Captain America and Bucky, together til the end of the line! </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z8ONV9IuawQ/X5C_7YxNkhI/AAAAAAAAq_Q/S9caAXA9AOYgcCiPjy4YaSzVKiJyPg7ZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2048/DoFP%2Bquinn%2Bprint.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2048" data-original-width="1487" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z8ONV9IuawQ/X5C_7YxNkhI/AAAAAAAAq_Q/S9caAXA9AOYgcCiPjy4YaSzVKiJyPg7ZgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/DoFP%2Bquinn%2Bprint.jpg" /></a></div><br /><p style="text-align: center;"></p><p style="text-align: center;">I collected 96 pieces in this sketchbook and finally cut the book down and transplanted the pages to a portfolio to better preserve them. But there are so many more then what I shared here. Every one of them has a story and memory to go along with it that you can read about over on Comic Art Fans! </p><p style="text-align: center;">https://www.comicartfans.com/galleryroom.asp?gsub=62444<br /><br /></p>Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-5796121523791681042020-01-22T19:25:00.000-05:002020-01-23T16:44:55.688-05:002019 IMAGE UNITED!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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For the Cranboyz 2019 theme we went back and celebrated the early days of Image Comics! Not the Walking Dead, Saga, Invincible days we live in now, the original, crazy, turning comics on it's head days of Spawn, Cyber Force and Youngblood! </div>
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If you weren't around in the early 1990s for the first releases of Image Comics, you missed out! The founding members, 7 artists who were selling more books for Marvel than anyone had dreamed of, all walked away from the #1 Comic Book Publisher. What did the top artists of X-Men and Spider-Man do without a publisher, they created their own! </div>
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Starting a publishing company where they owned the rights to their
creations and even knocking<br />
DC Comics out of the #2 publishing spot,
the formation of Image Comics was a crazy time! And the books we got out
of it were every bit as exciting!</div>
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Rob Liefeld's Youngblood, Todd McFarlane's Spawn, Jim Valentino's Shadow
Hawk,<br />
Jim Lee's WildC.A.T.s, Erik Larsen's Save Dragon, Marc
Silvestri's Cyber Force and<br />
While Portacio's Wetworks were just the
beginning of what Image Comics would become!<br />
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We were around for those "classic" Image days and this year's collection became a nostalgic reminder of the 1990's and the energy and excitement we enjoyed from Image! </div>
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Starting off our 2019 collection is Image Comic's longest published comic book, Spawn! </div>
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Popa commissioned this Spawn art by Ron Wagner!</div>
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Image Comics Second longest published comic book is Eric Larsen's Savage Dragon! </div>
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Shane got a Savage Dragon sketch by Trav Hart!</div>
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Eric got his Savage Dragon sketch by Tressa Bowling!</div>
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Andy couldn't pass up the chance to get a Shadow Hawk sketch and had<br />
Brandon Franklin draw it for him!</div>
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Shane wanted a Youngblood sketch and had Brandon Franklin draw Shaft!</div>
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Being a Wetworks fan Shane got a Pilgrim sketch from Landon Franklin!</div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f224de8a721f6dc"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">"I remember being really blown away by Image, because up until that point, I had only known Marvel and DC, anything else was low quality/weird independent crap. I read Team 7/Gen 13, Pitt, WildCats and Spawn. I got the Fairchild sketch because I always liked the way she was portrayed as a natural leader."</span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f224de8a721f6dc"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">- Jason Beswick</span></span></div>
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Beswick got his sketch of Dale Keown's Pitt by Andy Bennett!<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gNBwxpal3W0/XiOIcCIoN8I/AAAAAAAAflc/cGZyw9VKq7E1ycmvMDLbR-IIrLLaNOzHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Pitt%2Bbennett.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1231" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gNBwxpal3W0/XiOIcCIoN8I/AAAAAAAAflc/cGZyw9VKq7E1ycmvMDLbR-IIrLLaNOzHgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Pitt%2Bbennett.jpg" width="246" /></a></div>
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Gen 13 might have been one of Wildstorm's and J. Scott Campbell's biggest successes!<br />
And Caitlin Fairchild was definitely the star of Gen 13! </div>
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Beswick got his Fairchild sketch (sporting a Cranboyz t-shirt!) from Tressa Bowling! </div>
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Shane got his Fairchild from Comfort Love! </div>
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Popa got his Fairchild sketch from Jeff Moy! </div>
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Shane also got a sketch of Gen 13's Rainmaker from Tressa Bowling! </div>
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Shane had the chance to pick up an original Joe Chiodo color guide from Gen 13! This one features Rainmaker, John Lynch and Deathblow!</div>
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Danger Girl was a creator owned book from J. Scott Campbell, published through<br />
Wildstorm Comic's Cliffhanger Imprint! </div>
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Popa got sketches of Abbey Chase from Tressa Bowling and Sydney Savage by Nate Lovett!</div>
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Straight out of Erik Larsen's Savage Dragon comics comes Super Patriot! </div>
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Shane got his Super Patriot sketch from Chris Campana!</div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f3e4a319889ea44"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">"Groo - The image year </span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f3e4a319889ea44"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">So when Marvel hit some troubling financial times (way to recover, by the way; Thanks MCU!), some of the titles were apparently auctioned off to other publishers. In this process, it appears that Image comics lost, because they ended up with the publishing rights to Groo.
After a 120 issue run at Marvel (Epic), the switch to Image was the beginning of the end for a monthly Groo title. It ran for one year, but then Sergio and Mark decided they needed a hiatus. Shortly after that, the rights were sold to Dark Horse, and there have been several mini-series since then, but no more monthly mags. </span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f3e4a319889ea44"><span class="_3oh- _58nk"> The Image year was both interesting, and status quo all at the same time. There was no 'reboot'; There is an intro on the inside cover (which was regular for a pretty much all of the Marvel publication) in which Sergio thinks Mark is joking when he's told that this is a new Issue #1. There were no new character introductions, and they just kept writing similar schtick with Groo and Rufferto. I do remmeber that the quality of the book itself seemed to take a leap. Better paper, clearer artwork. </span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f3e4a319889ea44"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">So, as I was not very much into other Image books, my main participation in Image United was a sketch of Groo and Rufferto. As Sergio was not on my con schedule this year, I went with Scoot McMahon, who did a great job (as always)."</span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f3e4a319889ea44"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">- Kurt Osier</span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f1949d508ca7098"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">"Years ago, before the digital age and before I discovered comic book stores, there were two ways I could get comics. The comic rack at the grocery store and mail order. Back in 1982 my school had a magazine drive and I ordered a comic book about space heroes called The Micronauts. My first issue was issue #41 and I was immediately hooked. </span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f1949d508ca7098"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">Unfortunately the first series ended after 59 issues. It was followed by a 20 issue disaster subtitled The New Voyages. In the past 10 years IDW, Devils Due and Image have all rebooted the </span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f1949d508ca7098"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">Micronauts. The Image run lasted only 11 issues and was just getting interesting when it ended. </span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f1949d508ca7098"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">The Image United theme gave me an opportunity to revisit this run but also continue to expand my sketch focus into this realm."</span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f1949d508ca7098"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">-Eric Osier </span></span></div>
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Eric got his Acroyear sketch from Tim Switalski! His Baron Karza is from Robert Walland!</div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f14a48dc12f59ba"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">"Of all the Image guys, Marc Silvestri was MY guy. Marc was the first artist I ever travelled to a con to meet! He was my first favorite artist back when he took over "Uncanny X-Men." He took them from being a little clunky into being stylish and fresh. And, man, he made the girls look just like a then 16 year-old me hoped they'd look! Even then, though, I kind of knew he was holding back at Marvel, that he didn't get to cut loose with his art as much as he probably could. "Cyberforce' finally gave him that ability to cut loose with his art! The character designs were sleek and cool - love all that silver mixed in with the dark blues. Everyone was sexy, everyone was stylish, even the baddies like Killjoy. The images filled the page - even overflowed into the next page. </span></span><br />
<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f14a48dc12f59ba"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">"Cyberforce" was never great comics, it was splashy and over the top and the stories were, well, a bit of an afterthought. But damn they looked incredible. It was a master class in kinetics and dynamic action and Silvestri proved he was one of the top guys in the business, as I always knew he was. And, oh yeah, his girls looked just like what a then 20 year-old me hoped they'd look! </span></span><br />
<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f14a48dc12f59ba"><span class="_3oh- _58nk"> "Codename: Stryke Force" would spin out of the main book and go even further into big time action. It wasn't quite as cool as the main book, but it had its moments (and cool Brandon Peterson art to boot.) </span></span><br />
<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f14a48dc12f59ba"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">I didn't read "Cyberforce" to show off my street cred, I read "Cyberforce' because I wanted big action comics to be completely over the top. And I wanted to see my favorite artist - Marc Silvestri - get to show off what he could do! </span></span><br />
<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_f14a48dc12f59ba"><span class="_3oh- _58nk"> Collecting these characters took me way back, for sure, to the glory days of early Image, when everything was happening so fast, no one bothered to look ahead. Image is where it started to be cool to read comics, a trend that's been building for years and years now, especially with the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
We can only hold our breath for an Image Cinematic Universe to come next - right??"</span></span><br />
-John Popa<br />
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Popa got a sketch of Cyber Force and Codename Stryke Force leader, Stryker,<br />
by Top Cow alumni, Brandon Peterson! </div>
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Popa collected a sketch of Cyber Force bad girl, Ballistic by Uko Smith!<br />
His Ripclaw sketch is from Brian Level! </div>
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Popa's Cyblade sketch is from Richard Cox! </div>
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His Heatwave sketch is from Brandon Franklin! </div>
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Nate Lovett drew Popa's Velocity sketch!</div>
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Impact is by Wilfredo Torres!</div>
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Cyberforce did have a few villains to fight! </div>
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Popa got his Mother May I sketch from Alex Konat!</div>
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Killjoy was drawn by Drew Moss! </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nPMUP2AnrQQ/Xgj798efFFI/AAAAAAAAfck/mOyHXINyhSYkNeJEFGM3FcB71ihSZO5_gCEwYBhgL/s1600/CF%2B005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1091" data-original-width="1600" height="218" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-nPMUP2AnrQQ/Xgj798efFFI/AAAAAAAAfck/mOyHXINyhSYkNeJEFGM3FcB71ihSZO5_gCEwYBhgL/s320/CF%2B005.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Popa was also able to add an Original Color Guide by Joe Chiodo from Cyber Force 4, </div>
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featuring Stryker and Ballistic!</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yfUUPrUiwJQ/XgklEuifEcI/AAAAAAAAfd0/EcvXb6V78SEy-UzzGe0VgW_ocoMnfFqMwCEwYBhgL/s1600/Cyber%2BForce%2B4%2Bp20%2Bcolor%2Bguide.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1247" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yfUUPrUiwJQ/XgklEuifEcI/AAAAAAAAfd0/EcvXb6V78SEy-UzzGe0VgW_ocoMnfFqMwCEwYBhgL/s320/Cyber%2BForce%2B4%2Bp20%2Bcolor%2Bguide.jpg" width="249" /></a></div>
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Let's not forget the Cyber Force spin-off title, Codename Stryke Force!</div>
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Popa got a sketch of Black Anvil by Trav Hart!</div>
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Popa's Tempest sketch is from Landon Franklin! </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RPpT3BPTY7E/Xg0GqM8MWLI/AAAAAAAAffU/8jWDkhf0kHYZURCd96fSEPqAIAnti8KVQCEwYBhgL/s1600/CF%2Bstryke%2Bforce.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1098" data-original-width="1600" height="219" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RPpT3BPTY7E/Xg0GqM8MWLI/AAAAAAAAffU/8jWDkhf0kHYZURCd96fSEPqAIAnti8KVQCEwYBhgL/s320/CF%2Bstryke%2Bforce.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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While Popa's our biggest Cyber Force fan, he's not the only one! </div>
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Landon Franklin drew Velocity for Andy and Styker for Shane!</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t86St7z045A/Xgj7-CqD30I/AAAAAAAAfco/p0WTq4Jx7m8EBGKpccSfuxt0VXvKlmmjwCEwYBhgL/s1600/CF%2Bfranklin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1158" height="221" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-t86St7z045A/Xgj7-CqD30I/AAAAAAAAfco/p0WTq4Jx7m8EBGKpccSfuxt0VXvKlmmjwCEwYBhgL/s320/CF%2Bfranklin.jpg" width="320" /> </a></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_fa5e213e23e9cc"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">"Stormwatch started out for me as another exciting Image release with a great Jim Lee cover. What kept me coming back to this book was the concept of a U.N.-sanctioned team of international super-powered beings running missions with stakes of global proportions. Eventually, I wandered away from the book because it started to feel a little monotonous and boring. Several years later however, Warren Ellis introduced some fascinating new characters, breathed new life into some of the great existing characters, and wrote fresh new stories with the concept I loved."</span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_fa5e213e23e9cc"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">-Andy Varcho</span></span></div>
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You can't have Stormwatch without Weatherman One! </div>
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Andy got the Original Weatherman, Henry Bendix (and Skywatch) and the last Weatherman,<br />
Jackson King from Drew Moss!</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-knCyImTQBnc/XiODgiKh7PI/AAAAAAAAflA/WxJ817VIlWoVALB-HvJaGmc9tRIvMWUGACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/SW%2Bweatherman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1131" height="226" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-knCyImTQBnc/XiODgiKh7PI/AAAAAAAAflA/WxJ817VIlWoVALB-HvJaGmc9tRIvMWUGACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/SW%2Bweatherman.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Andy commissioned Backlash from Wildstorm alumni, Carlos D'Anda!<br />
Synergy is from Gene Gonzales! </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HjIbZKUBOpI/XiODgqYyzPI/AAAAAAAAflE/cw31EcvbbdkG3OvBG26xnW7WYqO0rAEYwCEwYBhgL/s1600/SW%2Bcommand.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1134" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HjIbZKUBOpI/XiODgqYyzPI/AAAAAAAAflE/cw31EcvbbdkG3OvBG26xnW7WYqO0rAEYwCEwYBhgL/s320/SW%2Bcommand.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Stormwatch Prime! </div>
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Andy got team leader Battalion from Brian Level!<br />
Nautika was drawn by Andy Bennett!</div>
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Flashpoint was drawn by Wildstorm alumni Jason Johnson!</div>
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Stormwatch One!</div>
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Stormwatch artist Tom Raney drew Andy's Winter sketch!<br />
Hellstrike is by Jim Towe! Fuji was created by Uko Smith!<br />
Diva was drawn by Tressa Bowling! </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aH4NlzG8AFI/Xgj8HHwsKsI/AAAAAAAAfcc/Pg-nxYVHsV0ppB_2YetmC9-kxvPnFTtJwCEwYBhgL/s1600/SW%2Bone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="544" data-original-width="1600" height="108" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aH4NlzG8AFI/Xgj8HHwsKsI/AAAAAAAAfcc/Pg-nxYVHsV0ppB_2YetmC9-kxvPnFTtJwCEwYBhgL/s320/SW%2Bone.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Stormwatch Two! </div>
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Ion and Lancer didn't last long in the book but Andy had them drawn by </div>
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Brandon and Landon Frnaklin! </div>
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Fahrenheit is by Adam Withers! And Cannon was drawn by Jose Jaro!</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nz7qBWAzufs/Xgj8H486vSI/AAAAAAAAfcM/Qv3Y_hNo5N8Dn2vBj0p2Th4GnSH3kJADwCEwYBhgL/s1600/SW%2Btwo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="532" data-original-width="1600" height="106" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nz7qBWAzufs/Xgj8H486vSI/AAAAAAAAfcM/Qv3Y_hNo5N8Dn2vBj0p2Th4GnSH3kJADwCEwYBhgL/s320/SW%2Btwo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Stormwatch Red!</div>
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Travis Mercer drew Tattoo Rose for Andy!<br />
Flint was drawn by Renae De Liz!</div>
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Stormwatch Black (later the Authority)! </div>
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Team leader Jenny Sparks was drawn by Tressa Bowling! </div>
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Apollo and Midnighter were created by Darryl Banks! </div>
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Jack Hawksmoor leaps into action by Wildstorm alumni Pete Woods! </div>
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And Swift was drawn by Craig Rousseau! </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K5t0Fgqor3c/Xgj8GWyS9GI/AAAAAAAAfck/FnKcb3pmU1c2vscs0I5632LIlXOlhXTKACEwYBhgL/s1600/SW%2Bblack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="544" data-original-width="1600" height="108" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K5t0Fgqor3c/Xgj8GWyS9GI/AAAAAAAAfck/FnKcb3pmU1c2vscs0I5632LIlXOlhXTKACEwYBhgL/s320/SW%2Bblack.jpg" width="320" /> </a></div>
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I'm not sure they both qualify as bad guys so lets just call them antagonists!</div>
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Andy got Despot from Trav Hart! </div>
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Pat Quinn drew the High!</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OGdnrTVs9nM/Xgj8IOvTUQI/AAAAAAAAfcs/WHcWEKjpnjwqOnFQgA7eg45oayV7Pfw2wCEwYBhgL/s1600/SW%2Bvillains.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1184" height="216" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-OGdnrTVs9nM/Xgj8IOvTUQI/AAAAAAAAfcs/WHcWEKjpnjwqOnFQgA7eg45oayV7Pfw2wCEwYBhgL/s320/SW%2Bvillains.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Being a Storm Watch super fan, Andy also got a commission of </div>
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the main team from Landon Franklin!</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xo7kU_Rmj4s/Xgj8Gf2fZZI/AAAAAAAAfcs/ZrZD9h9ixk4FMgXQ05PEhoek0vAKEL2dgCEwYBhgL/s1600/SW%2BStormwatch%2Bl%2Bfranklin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1036" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xo7kU_Rmj4s/Xgj8Gf2fZZI/AAAAAAAAfcs/ZrZD9h9ixk4FMgXQ05PEhoek0vAKEL2dgCEwYBhgL/s320/SW%2BStormwatch%2Bl%2Bfranklin.jpg" width="207" /></a></div>
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Andy collected an original Joe Chiodo color guide from Stormwatch issue 3, featuring Synergy, Weatherman, Battalion and Fuji! </div>
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Shane also got a Stormwatch sketch of Fuji by Sean Forney! </div>
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Pat Quinn drew Jack Hawksmoor jumping across different cities, for Shane! </div>
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Kaizen Gamorra created headaches for most of the Wildstorm Universe and a few corners of the early Image Universe! He was also one of our friend Adam's favorite villains! </div>
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Shane got his Kaizen Gamorra sketch from Darryl Banks!</div>
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Andy got his sketch from Andy Bennett!</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Bhd95KQaVS8/XiOQ7Xj3R7I/AAAAAAAAfl0/3UdFWYyOf0YW1xeiJaEXwGPghekSOiJxwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Kaizen%2BGamorra.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1240" data-original-width="1600" height="247" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Bhd95KQaVS8/XiOQ7Xj3R7I/AAAAAAAAfl0/3UdFWYyOf0YW1xeiJaEXwGPghekSOiJxwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Kaizen%2BGamorra.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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"<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_fa5e213e23e9cc"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">I had followed Jim Lee since his time on Punisher and Alpha Flight at Marvel, and then on his runs on Uncanny X-Men and X-Men, so when he left to found Image where he started his new team book, WildCATs, I followed! Sure, they weren't the X-Men but they looked kind of like them and it was Jim Lee! The book was Cool, Exciting, Dynamic and it's a good thing it was so pretty because it wasn't the best comic book ever written. But the characters were interesting and did I mention it was drawn by Jim Lee!? </span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_fa5e213e23e9cc"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">The art was bold and dynamic with lots of detail and the best coloring in the industry! The characters had modern designs and they looked awesome fighting bad guys and evil aliens! The book went through it's changes and added new members and lots of guest stars, not to mention the cross overs! </span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_fa5e213e23e9cc"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">Grifter was the stand out member to me, which was even cooler when his back story tied him to some of the other tough guys in the Wildstorm Universe from Team 7! </span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_fa5e213e23e9cc"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">Grifter from WildCATs, Deathblow, Backlash from Stormwatch, Lynch from Gen 13, Jackson Dane from Wetworks! It was a who's who of gun toting, super powered bad asses! I was all in for Team 7! Especially, since they got some of the best artists with Aaron Wiesenfeld, Chris Warner and Scott Williams, Jason Johnson and Tom McWeeney and even Steve Epting and Klaus Janson! Team 7 only got a few mini series and one shots but I ate it all up! </span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_fa5e213e23e9cc"><span class="_3oh- _58nk"> Speaking of mini series, there was the Kindred, teaming up Grifter and Backlash on a mission to save Lynch, all drawn by Wildstorm's own superstar, Brett Booth! More of Team 7 joining forces in the modern day by one of the hottest artists around? Yeah, make mine Wildstorm!"</span></span></div>
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<span class="_mh6 _wsc" id="cch_fa5e213e23e9cc"><span class="_3oh- _58nk">-Shane Simek </span></span></div>
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Shane started the year collecting these WildCAT sketches at a Free Comic Book Day event! </div>
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Helspont by Chod! Maul by Robert Walland! Voodoo by Shawny Waltham! Voodoo by Tim Switalski!</div>
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Arguably the two stand out characters of WildCATs, Shane got a sketch of </div>
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Zealot and Grifter by Wildstorm Comics alumni, Brett Booth!</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g2pILHJOJ4g/Xgj8V78nrvI/AAAAAAAAfcc/ceshYelOxp4S8aISZLRJ8WI5JpBMSKmxQCEwYBhgL/s1600/WC%2B001.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="527" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g2pILHJOJ4g/Xgj8V78nrvI/AAAAAAAAfcc/ceshYelOxp4S8aISZLRJ8WI5JpBMSKmxQCEwYBhgL/s320/WC%2B001.jpg" width="210" /></a></div>
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Shane went to Jeff Moy for his Voodoo sketch!<br />
Uko Smith Drew Zealot for Shane!</div>
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Shane got team leader Emp and Void by Brendon and Brian Fraim!<br />
Warblade was drawn by Travis Mercer!</div>
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As a nod to the WildCATs Aliens crossover, Shane had Aaron Archer draw<br />
Warblade versus an Alien! </div>
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WildCATs went through a few different memberships. From WildCATs 2.0 Shane got<br />
Mr. Majestic from Gene Gonzales! Ladytron was drawn by Tressa Bowling!<br />
Savant is by Alex Konat! Tao is from Andy Bennett! </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K1Rbwdkii9I/Xgj8XDZQwII/AAAAAAAAfco/iMeZdbvlnsU4cv2NZT9GZHZ3NWc5n7oAQCEwYBhgL/s1600/WC%2B2.0%2Bteam.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="530" data-original-width="1400" height="121" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-K1Rbwdkii9I/Xgj8XDZQwII/AAAAAAAAfco/iMeZdbvlnsU4cv2NZT9GZHZ3NWc5n7oAQCEwYBhgL/s320/WC%2B2.0%2Bteam.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Shane picked up the original art to Condition Red's entry in the<br />
Wildstorm Universe Sourcebook by Sean Shaw and Mark McKenna!</div>
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If you know Shane, you know Team 7 is his favorite team from Image Comics! </div>
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Grifter! </div>
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You can't celebrate Image without some Grifter sketches! </div>
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Shane commissioned Grifter from John Royle!<br />
The Grifter head sketch is from Nate Lovett!</div>
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Shane picked up a Grifter sketch from Brian Level!<br />
Jeremy Haun was also commissioned for Grifter!</div>
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Deathblow! </div>
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Shane picked up Deathblow sketches from Image alumni Dan Panosian! </div>
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Also from Drew Moss and Nate Lovett!</div>
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Steve Epting was the artist on the Team X/Team 7 crossover and Shane got 2 Deathblow sketches from him!</div>
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The first commission Shane picked up for Image United was a of<br />
Jackson Dane from Wetworks with Deathblow<br />
by Wildstorm and Wetworks alumni, Jason Johnson!</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aGOC5P6vn9g/XgpgQOL34_I/AAAAAAAAffA/xApJmumW55k2griq9j97TyrteXJH08OzACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/T7%2BDane%2Band%2BDetahblow%2Bjohnson.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="722" data-original-width="467" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-aGOC5P6vn9g/XgpgQOL34_I/AAAAAAAAffA/xApJmumW55k2griq9j97TyrteXJH08OzACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/T7%2BDane%2Band%2BDetahblow%2Bjohnson.jpg" width="206" /></a></div>
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Aaron Archer drew sketch cards of Jackson Dane and Deathblow for Shane!</div>
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Backlash! </div>
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Tressa Bowling drew Backlash leaping into action for Shane!</div>
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John Lynch!</div>
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Sure he was the mentor of Gen 13 but he was also the Director of<br />
International Operations and the team leader of Team 7!</div>
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Shane picked up sketches of Lynch by Drew Moss and Jason Johnson!</div>
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Not wanting to leave any team members out, Shane got a commission of all of Team 7 from their glory days by Landon Franklin! </div>
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If working on issues of Stormwatch and WildCATs didn't get people's attention, Brett Booth's Kindred mini series certainly did! </div>
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Shane commissioned Backlash and Grifter by Comfort Love!</div>
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Wildstomr alumni, Tom Raney drew former Team 7 member Cyber Jack!</div>
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And the villain (and former Team 7 member), Blood Moon, was drawn by Alex Konat!</div>
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Shane had the chance to get a commission directly from Brett Booth and opted for an classic style shot of Backlash and Grifter!</div>
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2019 was the 25th Anniversary of the Kindred mini series so Brett Booth did a pin -up to celebrate, which Shane also purchased from him! </div>
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(You can read more about it and see the artwork inked and colored, here:</div>
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http://cranboyz.blogspot.com/2019/12/shane-cant-believe-he-bought-art-from_23.html)</div>
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Shane also picked up some original Joe Chiodo color guides from the Kindred series, from Wildstorm alumni, Joe Mendoza! </div>
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While Eric isn't the biggest Image Comics fan, he does love Iron Man! He was able to add this original Joe Chiodo color guide to his collection from the period when Wildstom produced some comics for Marvel!</div>
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What a trip down memory lane 2019 was! Pretty cool that so many of the craetors we picked up artwork from enjoyed the same nostalgia as us! </div>
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As always, if you want to know more about any of the art we picked up, look us up over at Comic Art Fans! </div>
<br />Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-26175924078829278322019-12-29T10:16:00.001-05:002019-12-29T10:16:09.049-05:00Popa's Favorite THOR ArtistsMy guess is comic book artists love drawing The God of Thunder. It's not like you can go too far - Thor is all about power and energy and bad ass energy.<br />
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Created by Stan and Jack, Thor has spent as much time in The Avengers as he has on his own. In making a Top 10 list, it wasn't so much about defining runs on the main title, there are a couple stand-out runs, to be sure, but, really, it was about finding art that captured that primal energy of Thor.<br />
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I quickly realized I was creating a real who's who of super hero artists with this list. Part of that is nostalgia, sure, but part of that is modern comics being a little more static than their predecessors. With Thor, bigger is better and the artists on this list got that.<br />
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Without further rambling from me ...<br />
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10. SAL BUSCEMA:<br />
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Sal Buscema may not have the notoriety of his brother but his Thor blends that Buscema gristle with Walt Simonson's splash. He also drew the terrific Balder the Brave mini-series in the 80's, adding to his street cred on the Rainbow Bridge.<br />
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9. BOB HALL:<br />
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Hall drew Thor's main book and also The Avengers. It always felt like his Thor was willing to get his hands dirty along the way. I wouldn't mess with a Bob Hall Thor.<br />
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8. GEORGE PEREZ:<br />
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George drew a sleek and handsome Thor. His Thor was an Avenger through and through - truly iconic.<br />
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7. JOHN BYRNE:<br />
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There isn't much John Byrne can't do with super heroes. His Thor is typically on point - what I like about Byrne's characters is they look like they're thinking. No matter how bad ass his Thor is - and it is bad ass - he's always a character solving issues, even if it's just with his hammer.<br />
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6. STEVE EPTING:<br />
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Epting's the newest artist on the list (although he's been drawing comics for 30 years now.) His Thor is a splash of John Buscema and a bigger splash of Steve Epting. He looks ready to fight, as Thor should.<br />
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5. RON FRENZ:<br />
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Frenz took Kirby's and Sal Buscema's Thor and blended them together into something that was both nostalgic and modern. This is classic super hero imagery.<br />
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4. JOHN ROMIMTA JR.:<br />
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Romita Jr. did the first relaunch of Thor. His Thor was thick - MIGHTY for sure. Romita's Thor felt like a god among men.<br />
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3. JACK KIRBY:<br />
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The King, baby.<br />
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2. WALT SIMONSON:<br />
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Walk redefined Thor after the character hit a bit of a lull over the years. His Thor wasn't quite as beefy as others make him but there was power and energy coming off him at all times. He really felt like the God of THUNDER under Simonson's ink. Plus Walt wrote some simply amazing Thor stories too.<br />
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1. JOHN BUSCEMA:<br />
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If Romita Jr.'s Thor is a god among men, Buscema's is a man among boys. There's so much presence in his Thor, he fills the room every time he appears.<br />
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HONORABLE MENTION: BRYAN HITCH:<br />
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The Ultimates may not be the exact God of Thunder we all know, but, man, Hitch's version is much more a force of nature than some other versions, fitting to the Ultimates over the top style.<br />
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<br />JohnPopahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07795856163401824947noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-9297545335349894992019-12-23T16:13:00.000-05:002019-12-23T16:13:04.403-05:00"Shane can't believe he bought art from..." Part 4: Brett Booth<div style="text-align: center;">
This year I was able to add some
artwork to my collection from some of my favorite artists, artists I
didn't think I'd ever have the chance to own original art from!<br />
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Part 4: BRETT BOOTH!<br />
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Shortly after Image Comics launched, Jim Lee recruited a bunch of brand new talent which introduced us all to Brett Booth! His artwork was super detailed and always dynamic! <br />
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The Kindred mini-series pushed Brett Booth further into the spotlight where he got to draw 2 of my favorite characters, Grifter and Backlash! <br />
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Booth was an instant fan-favorite and comics legend! Being a West Coast guy, I've never had the chance to meet him, get a book signed or shake his hand. </div>
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Around the end of 2018 I learned that Brett Booth would draw a few weekly sketches and sell them on Twitter! Whatever he was in the mood to draw was up for grabs.<br />
This year I was able to get this insanely detailed "Sketch Saturday" art from Brett of Zealot and Grifter, of the WildC.A.T.s! No scan can do this artwork justice, you have to see it to believe it!</div>
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A few months later Brett Booth started a Patreon page and took a handful of commissions. I was lucky enough to get on the list and went back to the nostalgia of Kindred, with Backlash and Grifter, pencilled and inked by Brett! It looks like an unused cover! </div>
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I loved the artwork so much that I commissioned Ross Hughes to add digital colors and he really brought this beauty to life! </div>
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A short time later, Brett Booth penciled up this Kindred tribute in celebration of the series 25th Anniversary! The amount of detail in this artwork borders on overwhelming! I am happy to say I was able to get this from Brett to add to my collection, too! </div>
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Being an Anniversary piece, Brett had his original inker on Kindred, Sal Regla, ink a scan of the artwork! This is a great example of how an inker adds depth with their brush. </div>
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Finally, Brett had Andrew Dalhouse color the scanned inks and made a print out of it! This artwork is stunning! It's a shame that DC Comics let the anniversary of such a fan favorite series, pass by. </div>
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I may have gotten a little carried away but I have no regrets adding 3 unbelievable Brett Booth pieces to my collection this year! </div>
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Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-78154680016771928712019-12-15T21:40:00.000-05:002019-12-15T21:40:16.311-05:00"Shane can't believe he bought art from..." Part 3: Mike Zeck<div style="text-align: center;">
This year I was able to add some
artwork to my collection from some of my favorite artists, artists I
didn't think I'd ever have the chance to own original art from!</div>
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Part 3: MIKE ZECK!<br />
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Secret Wars came out just as I was starting to collect comic books and was the first series that I actively searched out the next issue! And come on, that cover to Issue 1 alone would make any kid a Mike Zeck Fan!<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p1PzUlYThqI/Xdh6FsADf9I/AAAAAAAAe4E/0V1jmpkcn-Y-hZCoo77GMBCbmPKG1dpjwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/secret.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1074" data-original-width="700" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p1PzUlYThqI/Xdh6FsADf9I/AAAAAAAAe4E/0V1jmpkcn-Y-hZCoo77GMBCbmPKG1dpjwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/secret.jpg" width="208" /></a></div>
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Over the years, Mike Zeck drew so many characters and stories that I enjoyed, The Punisher, Spider-Man, Batman, Deathstroke and G.I. Joe, just to name a few!<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3gflTyIzhJ4/Xdh6FKLxzKI/AAAAAAAAe34/3DK_koU1Ai0HwxzcCIJ5eywp7XNcT0z_ACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Cap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="978" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3gflTyIzhJ4/Xdh6FKLxzKI/AAAAAAAAe34/3DK_koU1Ai0HwxzcCIJ5eywp7XNcT0z_ACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Cap.jpg" width="208" /></a></div>
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Mike Zeck on Captain America has always stood out! The stories seemed more real when Mike drew them and the art always grabbed your attention! <br />
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I've had the chance to get some books signed by Mike Zeck over the years but he wasn't always drawing at conventions and it seemed like when he was, I couldn't make it happen.<br />
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Over the summer, right before I saw Mike Zeck at Heroes Con, I happened to check out his online store and he had 1 Captain America head sketch! I didn't hesitate! It was such a great take on Cap looking somber and intimidating! When I did see Mike at Heroes and told him I was bale to snag that sketch, he told me how lucky I was because a lot of people contacted him upset that it was gone!<br />
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I am proud that the one Mike Zeck piece of art is this Captain America! Even though Cap looks like he might be a little disappointed in me!<br />
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Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-33161754336079202072019-12-08T15:46:00.001-05:002019-12-08T15:46:16.835-05:00"Shane can't believe he bought art from..." Part 2: Paul Smith<div style="text-align: center;">
This
year I was able to add some artwork to my collection from some of my
favorite artists, artists I didn't think I'd ever have the chance to own
original art from! </div>
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Part 2: PAUL SMITH<br />
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I started collecting comic books with Uncanny X-Men issue 172! I probably know this issue better than any comic book I've ever read! Written of course, by Chris Claremont and drawn by Paul Smith and inked by Bob Wiacek. Paul Smith was my introduction to how the X-Men looked and moved and I loved every panel! <br />
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Every Member of the team, everyone who appeared in the book, looked perfect to me, exactly as they were supposed to! These are some of my most favorite issues, ever!<br />
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My favorite stories, characters and creators, life as a young kid reading comics couldn't get much better! <br />
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Paul Smith was at one of the first conventions I went to as a collector of sketches. And he agreed to draw Colossus for me. I didn't realize Paul Smith was as big a deal to everyone else as he was to me and unfortunately Paul smith was extremely busy and my sketch was only a layout. I was excited to have something from Paul but it wasn't much of a sketch. <br />
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Last year I was able to meet Bob Wiacek at a convention and he agreed to ink the sketch for me. I know many people get copies inked but after so many years, I wanted this framework to come to life! Bob did a wonderful job of finishing Paul's art and I was excited to have a sketch by the 2 artists who I started reading X-Men with!<br />
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The Colossus sketch was now complete but I still felt like I still didn't have a true Paul Smith piece of art. As luck would have it, Paul sells artwork online from time to time, if you're quick enough! And I was quick enough to add a Paul Smith Rogue to my collection! And no one draws a better classic Rogue than Paul!<br />
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While I lucked into that Colossus years ago and was able to complete him last year, this Rogue is the artwork I'd always hoped to have from Paul Smith!<br />
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11 year-old me would flip out if he could see these! </div>
Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-53162018321158551552019-11-22T18:10:00.002-05:002019-11-22T19:03:15.446-05:00"Shane can't believe he bought art from..." Part 1: Fred Hembeck<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This year I was able to add some artwork to my collection from some of my favorite artists, artists I didn't think I'd ever have the chance to own original art from! </div>
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Part 1: FRED HEMBECK!</div>
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Growing up reading comic books in the 1980's, Fred Hembeck was always popping up! And even if you were a fan who didn't follow artists, you couldn't miss Hembeck's cartoony style!</div>
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I think I first got to know Hembeck's work in Marvel Age Magazine! A "news magazine" put out by Marvel comics with all the latest news on their characters and books! If you were lucky, Hembeck's Page would fill the centerfold with a good natured comic strip by Hembeck, often featuring Hembeck and some Marvel characters in a zany story! </div>
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Every now and then, like during Assistant Editor's Month, Hembeck would go wild and work on a title like Spectacular Spider-Man! You never knew where or when you would spot his iconic cartoons with the squiggly knees but you knew it would be silly!</div>
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Fred Hembeck still does some art for Comic Shop News but it's just not as like it used to be. </div>
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That was until I realized that Hembeck sells sketch cards online! </div>
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I watched what he had for a few weeks and while the assortment of characters was wide, none of them interested me.</div>
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Then, I spotted Jeffrey Mace, the Patriot! One of my favorite WWII characters as I was getting into comics as a kid! And I made him mine! My very own, Fred Hembeck sketch card, </div>
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from Fred Hembeck! </div>
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Patriot was cool, I didn't own any artwork of Patriot but then I came across the Flash! Now my childhood memories of Fred Hembeck were all based around Marvel Comics, so Flash was a little different but I'm such a Flash fan I couldn't pass him up! </div>
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And after owning the Flash, I couldn't pass up Kid Flash! </div>
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And then I came across X-Men! My first monthly comic book I collected! </div>
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And Cyclops! I had to have him! </div>
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And Angel, in his X-Factor unifom? How cool! </div>
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So, I got a little carried away but if you're familiar with Fred Hembeck, it makes perfect sense! </div>
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I really love having these in my collection! It feels like the artwork I didn't know I was missing, I finally own! </div>
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Thanks again, Fred! </div>
Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-3234120530797834192019-03-31T22:07:00.004-04:002019-03-31T22:07:34.209-04:00Shane's 10 Favorite Wildstorm Covers!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I have been challenged by my very good friend, John Popa, to share my 10 Favorite Covers from Wildstorm Comics! Normally these challenges aren't much of a challenge, they're more of a fun excuse to look through old comics! But the Wildstorm challenge is a little different since Wildstorm was a company. I got to look through the companies entire range of comics to come up with my favorites! Still fun but a bit more work!</div>
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Wildstorm was Jim Lee's corner of the Image Comics company! Rob Liefeld had Extreme Studios, Marc Silvestri had Top Cow and so on. Jim Lee started with WildC.A.T.s and quickly expanded to Stormwatch, Deathblow and more! </div>
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I tried not to focus on Jim Lee but being his playground, he drew a ton of the covers! So only half my list is Jim Lee! I also tried to stay away from First Issues as much as I could. They're easy to love since they are extra dynamic and created to generate interest in a brand new title. </div>
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Speaking of avoiding covers created to generate interest, I'm going to point out that I didn't choose any of While Portacio's variant covers that were created to form one giant pin-up! These were largely first issues and a few others that happned to be coming out at the time. Team 7, WildC.A.T.s, Stormwatch, Gen 13, Kindred, Deathblow, Union and Wetworks! This was the original backbone of the Wildstorm Universe and I honestly believe some of Whilce's best work! But there is just no way to pick one of these covers and exclude the others. </div>
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#10! Deathblow issue 11 by Jim Lee! This bad boy is a wrap around cover that showcases Deathblow with his Team 7 buddies, Grifter, Dane and Backlash (each stars of their own series!)! So, Deathblow and 4 other superstars standing around looking tough and loaded for bear. Drawn by Jim Lee. Yeah, that about covers it. </div>
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#9! WildC.A.T.s issue 5 by Jim Lee! This cover features Zealot and Grifter on the cover with the other team members standing around behind them. Very dramatic and cool! This was actually the first issue of the ongoing series after the original, 4 issue mini-series. Instead of another issue 1, Jim Lee decided to keep the momentum going with issue 5! </div>
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#8! Gen 13 issue 8 by J. Scott Campbell! Gen 13 and J. Scott Campbell were bound to make the list, there's no way around that! This might not be the overly dynamic cover Campbell is known for but maybe that's why I like it! The purple background is vivid but also highlights Caitlyn Fairchild who adds a little more color to it all. </div>
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#7! Wetworks issue 5 by Whilce Portacio! Another cover with exciting colors, which is good since Wildstorm was known for (and eventually bought by DC Comics for) their exceptional color work! Whilce can draw as dramatic a cover as anyone but this one really showcases Dane's shiny, gold symbiote with the reflection of Grifter in it! </div>
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#6! Backlash issue 18 by Brett Booth! Colors again! This time in addition to the super dynamic artwork of Battalion attacking Backlash! On his own cover! Seriously, I'm not sure that 2 figures fighting could be more ready to jump off the cover and the colors make it explosive! </div>
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#5! Stormwatch issue 22 by Barry Windsor-Smith! Helspont is a crazy, creepy looking villain and Barry Windsor-Smith couldn't have made that any more obvious here! The, ahem!, colors definitley bring this one to life, too! </div>
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#4! Deathblow issue 0 by Jim Lee! It might not seem as obvious but color plays a big part on this one. This image of Deathblow, standing with a dead hand grasping onto him has always been a favorite of mine! Come on, this cover is tough! </div>
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#3! Stormwatch issue 1 by Jim Lee! Honestly, as far as Wildstorm first issues, this one always stands out in my mind. There is a certain roughness to it that just reminds me that this was early Image comics and they were figuring it out as they went. They still did it and got a lot right but they didn't let not having all the answers stop them! </div>
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#2! Team 7 issue 1 by Aaron Wiesenfeld! It's no secret that I love Team 7 but I dare anyone who knows the book not to picture this cover when they think of the series! The detail and intensity are off the charts, not to mention the ferocity! And those colors aren't bad either! </div>
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#1! Deathblow issue 2 by Jim Lee! This is one of my favorite covers of all time and took no thinking or planning! The colors! The American Flag! The intense figure pointing a gun at you! Jim Lee! This one has it all! </div>
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And that brings us to, Honorable Mention. Both of these covers were Marvel/Wildstorm crossovers, so I guess they're only half Wildstorm. They're also both really orange and I'm not sure why! </div>
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Team X / Team 7 is by Steve Epting and just a great looking movie poster of a cover! </div>
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Deathblow and Wolverine is by Aaron Wiesenfeld and another cover that I can never get enough of! It's technically the collected edition of issues 1 and 2. </div>
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<br />Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-62210499164297822332019-03-23T22:13:00.002-04:002019-03-23T22:17:41.759-04:00Popa's 10 Favorite THOR CoversAs I've become the Cranboyz resident THOR GUY, I dug through the classic series and picked my 10 favorite covers.<br />
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Obviously, The King himself - Jack Kirby - makes up the majority of the list but Walt Simonson and Ron Frenz are present and accounted for too.<br />
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What makes a great Thor cover? SHEER AWESOMENESS. Thor stories don't have to be subtle or nuanced. There's a massive threat and Thor is going to pummel it. He's not especially angst-ridden, after all, he's the God of Damn Thunder!<br />
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This is all from the initial series, I know Thor's been relaunched a few times but I didn't keep up with all that. I HAVE read the tremendous run where Jane Foster becomes Thor but, well, that's all part of a post for another day!<br />
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As usual, this is my favorite stuff, which may not always be the most common or historic stuff.<br />
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Without further adieu....<br />
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10. JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #83 - Jack Kirby<br />
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It all began right here, my friends!!<br />
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9. THOR 148 - Jack Kirby<br />
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Bad ass bad guy The Wrecker got his start giving Thor a hard time - just like he does here. The God of Thunder trembles beneath the fury of the Wrecker and his crowbar!<br />
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8. THOR 429 - Ron Frenz</div>
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Whenever Thor and Juggernaut tussle the world should freakin' SHAKE. Oh, and Ghost Rider was in this issue too. It's all a boy could hope for, assuming that boy was me. </div>
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7. THOR 126 - Jack Kirby</div>
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There's barely room for Thor and Hercules on this cover either!! Fights with Thor take up the entire cover!! Why are Thor and Herc at each other's throats? I HAVE NO IDEA.</div>
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6. THOR 363 - Walt Simonson</div>
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KURSE, baby. The best thing to come out of Secret Wars II that wasn't The Beyonder's fashion was KURSE. Unstoppable and probably the coolest looking costume in comics, Kruse was immediately a threat to Thor's dominance. There's a new Kurse that's a lady person and her first appearance was drawn by Steve Epting, which automatically makes her awesome. (Honestly, that story was pretty great too.) </div>
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5. THOR 409 - Ron Frenz</div>
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You know what makes any comic cover better? DR. DOOM. He's been a thorn in everyone's side for as long as the Marvel Universe has been around. </div>
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4. THOR 171 - Jack Kirby</div>
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The Wrecker's back and Thor's in big trouble again!! </div>
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3. THOR 150 - Jack Kirby</div>
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Hela makes her first appearance and it's a doozy. Did she kill Thor? I hope not! Otherwise, who's going to be in the next issue? </div>
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2. THOR 359</div>
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A cover so cool I had Craig Rousseau do a recreation of it for my collection. It's got it all - Thor defeated, Loki triumphant, the always bewitching Lorelei. Pure comics heaven, right here my friends! </div>
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1. THOR 157 - Jack Kirby</div>
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I mean, come on, this is just freakin' awesome. Even the colors are awesome. And RAGNAROK! Any Thor comic that talks about Ragnarok kicks ass.</div>
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HONORABLE MENTIONS.<br />
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I know this was stuff from the original series but the aforementioned Steve Epting did some really cool covers for the more recent Thor comics a couple years ago.<br />
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And getting away from the Thor title entirely - this classic Silver Surfer cover has been making fans' collective heads' spin with excitement for like 40 years. That's what happens when John Buscema draws you.</div>
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<br />JohnPopahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07795856163401824947noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-20345915449815211752019-01-11T21:02:00.000-05:002019-01-11T21:02:17.198-05:002018 Club JLI<div style="text-align: center;">
The Cranboyz have covered a lot of themes the last few years and we thought we were pretty much done. Then one day Eric and Shane were talking about the "glory days" of the Keith Giffen, J.M. DeMatteis, Kevin Maguire Justice League! When the League was in her glory with Blue Beetle, Booster Gold and Guy Gardner leading the charge! When "Bwahahaha!" was in every story and the Martian Manhunter was sneaking off to eat Oreos! </div>
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Ok, maybe there are a few versions of the League more popular out there but at a time when "Dark and Gritty" was all the rage in comics, a little "Bwahaha!" really hit the spot! </div>
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So why "Club JLI?" Well, there's a story arc where Blue Beetle and Booster Gold decided to start a casino, on a living island, open a resort there and call it, CLUB JLI! Hijinks and hysteria were out of control! The story has always been considered an instant classic, at least by us! </div>
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Now you might think there aren't that many characters in this stellar era of the Justice League and you'd be wrong! There were guest appearances, cross overs and membership drives! They even expanded to a second team! </div>
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Since Eric and Shane were spearheading this thing they decided to try something different. They got together and had a character draft! They made a list of some of the more likely characters to get sketches of and took turns picking! The rest of the group was free to get anyone they liked and Eric and Shane agreed that the draft was flexible, just for fun.</div>
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As soon as the draft was completed they got online and started looking for artwork! The convention season was months away and these boys wanted some sketches! This took them to the Fraimworks, online home of Brian and Brendon Fraim! There they found a couple of sketches that worked for both of them, Shane got a Wally West Flash and Eric got Wonder Woman, both founding members of Justice League Europe! Not how they expected to start off but that's how the JLI works!</div>
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Moving on to the self proclaimed stars of the Justice League, Eric had Blue Beetle and Booster Gold drawn by Phil and Jeff Moy!</div>
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Shane picked up some Blue Beelte and Booster sketches that Chris Kasmar had available at his table!</div>
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Shane then collected sketches of the the League's leading ladies! Fire by Tressa Bowling and Ice by Nate Lovett!</div>
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Eric then commissioned this unbelievable Mister Miracle by Tressa Bowling and Shane added Big Barda by James Giar to the collection!</div>
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You can't have any Justice League team without the Martian Manhunter! Eric had the Mahnunter drawn by the legendary Arvell Jones! Shane got the Mahnhunter by superstar Darryl Banks!</div>
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If the Justice League had a black eye (was that a "One Punch" Joke??) it was Guy Gardner! The JL's resident Green Lantern and pain in the ass! Being a Guy Gardner fan Shane got sketches of him from Martin Egeland and Ron Frenz!</div>
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Kurt didn't mess around with his Justice League sketch! He got founding member Doctor Fate by Arvell Jones! Shane got his Doctor Fate by Aaron Archer!</div>
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"The Big Red Cheese" "Captain Whitebread" "Shazam" "Captain Marvel" His innocent nature played well against Guy Gardner and the others but made the JL a tough fit for Captain Marvel. Eric got his sketch by Tim Switalski at Free Comic Book Day! Shane picked up a Captain Marvel sketch that Nate Lovett had for sale!</div>
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Two more founding members of this team, Eric got Black Canary by the Fraim brothers and Shane picked up this Batman from Martin Egeland at Free Comic Book Day!</div>
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When the Justice League upgraded to Justice League International, the first two members they added were Captain Atom and Rocket Red! Shane got his Captain Atom sketch from Craig Rousseau and Eric got his Rocket Red from Andy Bennett!</div>
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Justice League International led the way to Justice League Europe (which later became Justice League International but that's another story!), which featured these two guys! Shane got another sketch of Wally West as Flash (this time in his shiny costume) and Eric had Scoot McMahon draw Elongated Man! </div>
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Brandon Franklin drew JLE member Animal Man for Eric and Lobo for Shane! Lobo wasn't really a member of the League but they let him join because they thought he was a friend of Big Barda's. He was actually hired to kill her but that's how things worked with the league! </div>
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Kilowog was a long time friend and member of the team! Eric got his Kilowog sketch from Darryl Banks! Shane also picked up a Kilowog from Nate Lovett!</div>
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Hawkman and Hawkwoman teamed up with the team before briefly joining their ranks. Hawkwoman fit right in! Hawkman spent all of his time complaining about the teams antics while reminding them they would never find Hal Jordan or Barry Allen acting like that! Shane got his Hawkman sketch from Landon Franklin and his Hawkman sketch is from Chuck Patton! Chuck Patton drew some JLA comics but he worked on JL Detroit, which is a whole nother story! </div>
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The final Justice League art comes again from Chris Kasmar. When Shane met him at a con, he had these little colored sketches already done. they were fun and of some key JL characters so Shane couldn't pass them up! Martian Manhunter, Captain Atom, Kilowog and G'Nort all by Chris Kasmar! </div>
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And if you don't know who G'Nort is, that's reason enough to check out these stories.</div>
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But if you're looking for G'Nort, he's probably in the can!</div>
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Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-33339556454454701562018-12-29T14:24:00.000-05:002018-12-29T20:06:05.222-05:00Popa's Favorite Comics of 2018 (In No Particular Order)I decided to get back into the regular comics buying habit this year. I'm not sure what inspired it exactly, other than missing the fix. Plus there's so much good stuff coming out that I was tired of feeling behind the curve on everything.<br />
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What follows is my favorite comics from 2018. It's not in any order, it's just the books that stuck out to me and that I look forward to the most.<br />
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I even tried getting back into Marvel Comics with a couple of their relaunches from earlier in the year but, well, those books just aren't my cup of tea anymore. I'm not sure why and I don't say that from the usual fanboy pit of despair ("HOW DARE THEY NOT MAKE A WOLVERINE STORY I LOVE! THEY HATE AMERICA!!) It is what it is. There's way too much cool stuff out there for me to worry about not liking super hero comics I liked more 25 years ago. There's always Essential editions to relive the classic stuff.<br />
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Again, in no particular order ...<br />
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ARCHIE 1941 and VAMPRIONICA<br />
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Archie's done a pretty great job of reimagining their line for the modern world. ARCHIE 1941 puts Archie on the cusp of enlisting into WW 2. Mark Waid's a master comics writer and the story so far is clipping along at a perfect pace. The real star, though, is Peter Krause's art that harkens back to classic art of that era, creating a world that's perfect for the sincerity of the period. Great stuff.<br />
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The Archie reinvention really seemed to begin with the AFTERLIFE WITH ARCHIE zombie book from a few years back and as that book's struggled to come out, they fleshed out the line (heh) with a small group of other horror books, the best of which is VAMPIRONICA which sees Veronica turned into a vampire. Fun stuff that's serious horror without forgetting that it's based on long-standing characters. The art by Greg Smallwood is terrific too (to the point that I think he's been snapped up by Marvel.)<br />
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(Unfortunately, the shipping bug hit "Vampironica" too and it took an awful long time to put out 5 issues and has now gone on hiatus. Still, track down the trade.)<br />
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SARA<br />
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Speaking of World War 2 - Garth Ennis has long been one of the top war comics writers out there. I don't love war comics, to be honest, but when a new publisher partnered Ennis with Steve Epting, I had to give it a look. I'm glad I did. SARA is the story of a team of Russian snipers in the second world war, taking out Nazis. It's based on a real story. This is a deeply affecting story with a heavy and complicated protagonist, defending a Russia that was hardly the heroes of history.<br />
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Steve Epting can draw anything. This book only continues to prove that truth.<br />
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(SARA is from a new publisher called TKO Studios, who are trying to change the way comics are produced and distributed. You can read the first issue for free online - and then you can either buy the entire series as singles at one time, or buy the trade. Everything is available at once, so whether you want to binge or buy it in pieces is up to you. I hope this new model works, for the sake of comics!<br />
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DARK ARK<br />
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Cullen Bunn took one of those million dollar ideas that was right under all our noses and ran with it. What if alongside Noah's ark there was another ark full of MONSTERS? What an idea! The book's as good as the idea as the monsters and a few trapped humans try to navigate the end times and come out on the other side. Juan Doe's art brings each of the critters to life in style too. It's a real end of the world epic.<br />
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CROWDED<br />
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Christopher Sebela and artist Ro Stein have also taken a sort of solid gold modern idea and turned into comics magic. In "Crowded" you can crowdfund an assassination and, in this story, a seemingly random irritatingly perky dingbat of a young woman, is targeted with a million dollar plus bounty - but we're not sure why, and she's not exactly coming clean. She's protected by an angry bounty hunter who's basic claim is being the cheapest protection money can buy.<br />
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If I were going to list a book as my favorite from this year, CROWDED would be it. The book is fast- the dialogue is blazing banter, the art has a sort of curvy jazz to it, it feels like a mix of classic animation with a splash of Al Hirschfeld. The two protagonists are a perfect odd couple, one random and motor-mouthed, the other cold and serious. It puts a lot of fun conflict underneath the bigger conflict - namely trying to stay alive as all sorts of misfits try and collect the ever-increasing bounty on our main girl.<br />
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Comics are always trying to be cutting edge and modern. CROWDED pulls it off. It's sassy and bright, with a story that's constant motion and action. It takes the modern world and amplifies it a thousand times.<br />
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GIDEON FALLS<br />
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Sort of the opposite of CROWDED is GIDEON FALLS by Jeff Lemiere and Andrea Sorrentino, which is more of a David Lynch sort of horror story - abstract, sad, it takes a handful of damaged people and drills down into their pain, all with the looming specter of a myserious Black Barn that somehow is going to tie everyone and everything together, but probably not in a good way.<br />
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More than most other books, GIDEON FALLS feels like episodic television, but uses the advantages of the comics medium to carve out its own path.<br />
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A COUPLE ONE-SHOTS<br />
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These are two books that were one-shots, not series, but were worth their weight in comics gold.<br />
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DR HORRIBLE: BEST FRIENDS FOREVER<br />
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Dr. Horrible came back in 2018 in a one-shot comic written by Joss Whedon himself! Jose Maria Beroy's art brought all the characters back and in fine form. A new character called Hourglass made her first appearance as did Moist's henchwomen, The Towelettes. At the center, of course, was Dr. Horrible and Captain Hammer being unusually friendly. It was a fun one-shot that felt like the original movie, all it needed was songs.<br />
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The world NEEDS DR. HORRIBLE. Now more than ever.<br />
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WYTCHES: BAD EGGS<br />
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Whatever year the original WYTCHES mini-series came out, it was the best comic from that year. WYTCHES is a tremendous horror comic and the only frustration has been waiting for more (Scott Snyder and Jock have been doing Batman instead, but that's a rant for another day.) Finally we got a taste this year with the BAD EGG Halloween Special that had all the depth, drama and horror of the original series.<br />
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Snyder has promised the next big WYTCHES story in 2019. In the meantime, BAD EGG showed us that he and Jock can take control of this world whenever they want, which is pretty damn exciting for comics fans.<br />
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MY FRIENDS ARE MORE TALENTED THAN YOUR FRIENDS<br />
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THE BEAUTY and THE REALM<br />
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My friend Jeremy Haun has been putting out two great books for a year or two now. One is THE BEAUTY, science fiction police drama set in a world where beauty is passed around as an STD. The other is THE REALM, an apocalyptic adventure set in a world where the creatures of Dungeons & Dragons invaded our reality and made a big mess of everything. Both books deliver their action in very different ways from one another. Jeremy's collaborates with Jason Hurley writing THE BEAUTY (with art by Thomas Nachlik) and Seth Peck co-writing THE REALM.<br />
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THEY'RE NEW TO ME<br />
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These are books that have been out longer than 2018, but I just discovered them.<br />
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PAPER GIRLS<br />
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I mean, it's probably not surprising that Brian K. Vaughn and Cliff Chiang created a top notch comic but, still, PAPER GIRLS is as good as it gets. It's a crazy time-travelling science fiction story set in the '80s that keeps piling mystery on top of mystery as the characters get closer to the truth, but further away from where they started.<br />
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It's a book I liked so much I made Andy read it :)<br />
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The only sad part about PAPER GIRLS is that apparently the next arc is the final one. It's one of those books that even though it clearly set out to have an ending, I hoped it would take as long as possible to get there.<br />
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Also, Cliff Chiang is one of the best artists in the business.<br />
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THE BLACK MONDAY MURDERS<br />
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Dude, this book is in its own world. Jeff Lemiere and Tomm Coker have created a story that makes all of the world market crashes into an insidious plot by nefarious forces. What seems like a simple murder mystery, turns into a lot more and goes deeper and deeper.<br />
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What makes the book SO special though, is the style. I read it in trades but the individual issues are 40-50 pages long and are a mix of traditional storytelling, newspaper articles and abstract images. It's a book that rewards re-reading and lingering on the pages for as long as possible to see what's in the background.<br />
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The third arc comes out in 2019 - I can hardly wait!<br />
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Hopefully 2019 will deliver more great comics for me to read. 2018 certainly did its job.<br />
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Try new things, folks. There are too many good comics to just read the same old crap you read 30 years ago that you've stopped enjoying.<br />
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<br />JohnPopahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07795856163401824947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-964015547893217762018-11-28T21:11:00.002-05:002018-11-28T21:13:16.736-05:0010 Years of Titans Sketches!In November of 2008 I had a rather serious surgery (things obviously worked out fine) and my friends Adam Hauenstein, John Popa and Andy Varcho, surprised me afterwards with a brand new sketchbook! Andy airbrushed the Titans logo on the cover, which as you can see is incredibly sharp!<br />
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In case that wasn't cool enough, they had our pal Darryl Banks start off the book with a sketch of my favorite Titan, Wally West as Kid Flash!<br />
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Kid Flash actually ended up on page 2 though. Darryl Banks is not only a superstar comic book penciller but a friend we've known for many years, so he made his own contribution on the first page with a sketch of ME with Donna Troy and Starfire! I was blown away! What an amazing gift! The problem was that now the pressure was on! I had an entire sketchbook to fill with Titans sketches that lived up to the awe-inspiring start!<br />
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I decided to start I would continue on with the original, Fab Five Titans! I added Robin by Bob McLeod, Aqualad by Kelly Yates, Speedy by Gene Gonzales and Wonder Girl by Cliff Chiang! As you can see, the bar remained set very high!<br />
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I went onto collect sketches from Titans creators such as Nightwing and Kid Flash by George Perez and Troia by Phil Jimenez!<br />
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The book is filled with one phenomenal sketch after another! Through my travels to conventions I was lucky enough to become friends with Jeremy and Kelly Dale, two of the most fun people anyone could know! Sadly, Jeremy is no longer with us but I'm quite fortunate that Jeremy and Kelly drew possibly the greatest sketch ever of Impulse, in my book! It's perfect!<br />
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The book ranges through a wide collection of heroes and villains and I tried to incorporate characters from around the Titans universe including the Young Justice comics and animated series, Doom Patrol, Kingdom Come, Titans of Tomorrow, the Teen Titans cartoon and even the Protector from the Keebler Drug Abuse issues!<br />
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Characters I love like Wally West, Donna Troy and Roy Harper obviously show up a lot! It's my book! Meanwhile, characters like Starfire, Bumblebee and Jericho only show up once.<br />
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As time went on the book filled up and somehow it started to run out of blank pages. I wanted to end the book with some kind of theme, go out on a high note but nothing was really coming to me. The next thing I knew, there were only 5 pages left and I decided to end it how it started,with the original Titans in some of their adult costumes.<br />
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Here are the final sketches in my Titans sketchbook! Troia by Paul Pelletier (his run on Titans was far too short!), Arsenal and Nightwing, each by Tom Grummett (Tom may be my favorite Titans penciller of all time!), Tempest by Martin Egeland (Martin's work put Aquaman on the map in the 90's and he's a Cleveland boy!) and finally, the last page of the book, Wally West as The Flash by Darryl Banks!<br />
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This book ran from November 2008 until November 2018 and every page is a memory, every page is a story. It's far too sad that Adam can't be here to see the completed book but I think Andy and Popa will agree that while Adam would find plenty of reasons to harass me about some of my character choices, this book was a massive success!<br />
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I can't thank my friends enough for starting this book for me! That alone will always mean the world to me! So many friends also drew in the book and brought these characters to life, without all of you , this book not only wouldn't have happened but it wouldn't mean as much!<br />
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You can check out all of the art from my Teen Titans sketchbook and the stories behind them, over at Comic Art Fans: https://www.comicartfans.com/galleryroom.asp?gsub=72582Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-87812669081491929812018-07-14T17:19:00.001-04:002018-07-14T17:19:49.971-04:00Popa's Favorite Warren Ellis ComicsFew writers in modern comics have pushed for new ideas in the medium like Warren Ellis. For years he swore off company-owned work in favor of only doing new, creator-owned things. He hoped the industry as a whole would follow. Maybe they did. So many top creators these days are doing their own thing instead of just being content to work for Marvel and/or DC. Of course, it wasn't ALL Warren but he played a part for sure. He called out his friends.<br />
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In the late 90's, when comics were still recovering from the atrophy of the early 90's boom, Ellis was there trying to blow things wide open. He challenged his fellow creators, he tried to do comics differently. He experimented with formats, structures - he worried about how comics looked and felt. He wanted them to last longer. He stayed ahead of things. When comics were wordy and shrinking, he created 'widescreen' comics in "The Authority," big stories told in splash pages and daggers of dialogue. He stripped away needless description and captions, threw out anything excess to make his comics lean and mean. As with any innovation, most of his peers lost the point and just saw the flash, but not the substance.<br />
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In "Planetary" he reconsidered the individual issue, taking a long twenty-some part story and breaking it into unique issues that were tied together but still stood alone as individual stories. He jumped genres from issue to issue, from story to story. When he finally convinced other creators to work long form and look at bookshelves instead of spinner racks, he jumped back and did a book like "Fell," that was a sleek and nasty little book aimed squarely at comic shops. He sold it at a lower price, put the extras in the individual issues instead of the trades.<br />
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Ellis has written a lot of stuff, that's for sure. So much of it is some of my favorite stuff in comics, I decided to throw together a list of my favorites.<br />
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The one book that will be noticeable by its absence is probably "Stormwatch." Frankly, I've only read it in bits and pieces and don't have it on hand to even re-read.<br />
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Otherwise, I've read (and RE-READ) most of Ellis's comics. At this point he's also written novels, screenplays and most anything else.<br />
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A lot of people react to the sort of over-the-top violence and sarcasm in Ellis's books. They see the Spider Jerusalem-types everywhere and he certainly plays to the tropes of the biting British character a lot. But, for me, there's always a deep emotional pull in Ellis's work. There's sadness, which is something I always react to. There's tragedy that isn't just 'oh, the noblest hero sacrificed himself to save the universe.' His protagonists fight and they lose and they accept a fate that isn't always meant to involve riding off into a sunset. More than anything, Ellis's protagonists keep going, even when their mission or role brings them nothing but misery and isolation.<br />
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10. FRANKENSTEIN'S WOMB<br />
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Again, when comics were getting longer and everything was becoming six-part sagas that were easily blocked into TPBs, Ellis went off and did a small handful of independent one shots that were about 48 pages. Thin books with a real spine that would be an inexpensive alternative on the bookshelf. </div>
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In "Frankenstein's Womb," Mary Shelley visits Castle Frankenstein (before she's written the "Frankenstein" story) and encounters a monster. They have a long dialogue about life, electricity and creation. There's no action whatsoever. </div>
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ART BY: Marek Oleksicki</div>
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9. MINISTRY OF SPACE</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j7KZuvwshN4/W0pfPPkGjTI/AAAAAAAACWs/O5yp71WKyosKcwuYLcvVQqVy8V0AQViTQCLcBGAs/s1600/ministryofspace.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="421" data-original-width="580" height="232" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-j7KZuvwshN4/W0pfPPkGjTI/AAAAAAAACWs/O5yp71WKyosKcwuYLcvVQqVy8V0AQViTQCLcBGAs/s320/ministryofspace.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Ellis has a love for space travel, both in science fiction and as it relates to world history. It's the 60's quest by nations to be the first and best nation in space that drives "Ministry of Space." Again, not an action story so much, but one gorgeously visual, especially as drawn by Chris Weston. "Ministry" is about the seedy side of World War II and post-war politics</div>
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ART BY: Chris Weston</div>
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8. GLOBAL FREQUENCY</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PB6URlcF0k8/W0pf6VtzRPI/AAAAAAAACW0/5kGotGVGh2ct2FOnb21hNnO1nYpZXnapQCLcBGAs/s1600/globalfrequency.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="264" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-PB6URlcF0k8/W0pf6VtzRPI/AAAAAAAACW0/5kGotGVGh2ct2FOnb21hNnO1nYpZXnapQCLcBGAs/s320/globalfrequency.jpg" width="211" /></a></div>
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"Global Frequency" was a high concept book that would have allowed Ellis to tell one-off stories forever. There was no real cast or specific plot, it was built around an invisible organization that when needed would rise up and handle situations that needed them. The stories were Ellis's mix of end of the century paranoia, shady government organizations and wild science fiction comics. It was grounded, though. The threats were immediate to us, not to some fictitious world of science and fantasy.</div>
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Each issue was illustrated by a different top comics talent, written specifically by Ellis to highlight their skills.</div>
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7. NO HERO</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DZWo7yIYFAc/W0pgVrpTnaI/AAAAAAAACW8/KPfaoxlDczci9YB-9RmDllylNZGQsX3NgCLcBGAs/s1600/nohero.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="925" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DZWo7yIYFAc/W0pgVrpTnaI/AAAAAAAACW8/KPfaoxlDczci9YB-9RmDllylNZGQsX3NgCLcBGAs/s320/nohero.jpg" width="207" /></a></div>
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Ellis has long said he doesn't love super heroes and tries to write stories about them that interest him. "No Hero" is one such story. In it, the world is monitored (and controlled) by a small group of super-powered individuals. They're not necessarily nice about it. They're also an elite organization that find you and then decide you're worthy of getting powers, assuming you can handle the physical demands of converting your body into one capable of moving mountains. While there are certainly sexy super heroes in the world of "No Hero," their souls are corrupt, overrun by power and ego. When our protagonist becomes a hero and his body crumbles into something horrifying, a power struggle ensues with the safety of the world at its core. "No Hero" is a story about power and whether or not heroism is even needed in a world with so much power.</div>
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ART BY: Juan Jose Ryp</div>
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6. NEXTWAVE</div>
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NEXTWAVE! NEXTWAVE! </div>
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As modern Marvel and DC Comics have become earnest to the point of atrophy, Ellis came out with "Nextwave," a book that laps up the sheer ridiculousness of the Marvel super hero universe. Who wins and loses is completely irrelevant to the foolishness of the characters trying to save the world. That they succeed is entertainment enough. Ellis took a bunch of mostly forgotten Marvel heroes and villains and made them into modern vapid pop heroes. It couldn't have been more irreverent or more entertaining. </div>
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ART BY: Stuart Immonen</div>
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5. DESOLATION JONES</div>
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Comics history has all sorts of unfinished projects. None break my heart like "Desolation Jones." What was supposed to be a 36 issue story, ended up only being 8 issues. But what an 8 issues! Counter to the notion that Ellis's protagonists were always bad ass, Desolation Jones is a broken ex-agent who keeps busy taking side jobs in the seediest sides of Los Angeles culture. It's a story about porn stars and cult victims and people who fight because they don't know how to do anything else. Of all Ellis' work, Jones is, to me, his most sensitive. The characters are broken and hurt and emotionally drained. And all they have is each other. Powerful stuff, for sure.</div>
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ART BY: JH Williams and Danijel Zezelj</div>
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4. BLACK SUMMER</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2T2IPZ0qaEE/W0pizDle46I/AAAAAAAACXY/du_bntarbRYqDYmyGf8tcF3N5XfpTIZOwCLcBGAs/s1600/Blacksummer.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="389" data-original-width="250" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2T2IPZ0qaEE/W0pizDle46I/AAAAAAAACXY/du_bntarbRYqDYmyGf8tcF3N5XfpTIZOwCLcBGAs/s320/Blacksummer.jpg" width="205" /></a></div>
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At the peak of George W. Bush's America, Ellis wrote a story where a super hero kills the President in the name of the greater good. It was designed to piss people off without reading it. Really, as was a common theme in the super hero stories Ellis was doing at this time for Avatar Press, this was a story about the limits of power and where super heroes might fall in that if presented more aggressively than they normally are. Again, the powers are technological, the powers aren't gifted from some fluke of magic or karma. Instead of power falling to the right people at the right time, the characters in "Black Summer" know they have more power than one person should.</div>
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In "Black Summer" a super hero puts himself above the law to the level that he assassinates the President. Most of the book, though, is the fall-out. John Horus, the assassin, is not presented as a hero, he's an outcast who's own team turns against his extremism. In the end, the remaining heroes have to redefine themselves and accept the consequences of their power and what prices they paid to get and maintain that power. </div>
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ART BY: Juan Jose Ryp</div>
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3. THE AUTHORITY</div>
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In "The Authority" Ellis and Bryan Hitch redefined the action hero comic for the new century. Instead of dealing in small panels and excessive exposition, Ellis opened comics wider than they'd ever been opened and told all out action stories with massive splashy images and daggers of dialogue. As is often custom, though, people missed the point. In the wake of "The Authority" Marvel and DC Comics became dumber and less complex, ignoring that "The Authority" was a complicated social and political story, told with a great deal of nuance and character. The Authority fought a man, a race of men and then a God of men. They had no problem fighting power with power. They weren't worried about collateral damage. They understood that winning was the only option. And sometimes they won by being willing to just annihilate their enemies. The Authority ignored the dim witted morality of mainstream super hero comics in favor of a modern, explosive story of the end justifying the means.</div>
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ART BY: Bryan Hitch</div>
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2. PLANETARY</div>
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Sort of the opposite of "The Authority," "Planetary" is a quiet meditation on the heroic fiction of the 20th century. There's action, sure, but that's not the point of it. In fact, the action sequences are sometimes almost an afterthought to the analysis of the tropes. In "Planetary," Ellis showed off what he knew about pulp fiction, science fiction, horror, b-movies, all of it. And he took it all and weaved it into a story that was a celebration of the past but also the closing of the book of the 20th century that opened up comics to the future. It was a love letter and a eulogy all at once. </div>
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ART BY: John Cassaday</div>
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1. TRANSMETROPOLITAN</div>
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Those of us who love Spider Jerusalem are a brotherhood. Spider was the pissed off hero we all needed in the late 90's. He cussed, kicked and fought anyone and anything that got in his way, all in the name of seeking the truth. He looked out for his allies and spat in the face of his enemies, and there was no in between. You were either with him or against him. </div>
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Gloriously illustrated by Darick Robertson, "Transmet" took place in a breathing, thriving city of the future that was as hopeful as it was tragic and filthy. As with reality, the winners were huge in "Transmet" but the losers were brushed aside and fighting amongst themselves in the much. Spider Jerusalem stayed in the muck, looking for his answers. </div>
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And, man, he was funny. For five years, Spider stomped through The City. Over the course of his story his body and brain gave out on him but he kept pushing until the job was done. That's why Spider Jerusalem was a hero. </div>
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ART BY: Darick Roberson</div>
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Anyway, those are my 10 favorite Ellis comics. All are worth a read and hold up to MULTIPLE re-reads! </div>
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<br />JohnPopahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07795856163401824947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-18134195490901766572018-06-10T12:55:00.003-04:002018-06-10T12:55:30.964-04:00Popa's Villain Sketch Book 1995-2018Earlier this year I finished my sketchbook of female characters and now, a few months later, my oldest sketchbook, my villain sketchbook is also wrapped up.<br />
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When I started collecting sketches, Shane was getting his X-Men sketchbook up and running and I'm sure Iron Osier was getting Iron Man sketches from anyone he could find who had a pencil. Also, our friend and sketch collecitng mentor, Wayne, was filling a book with Legion of Super Heroes characters so I knew I needed a theme, I just didn't know what theme to go with. I was a huge X-Men fan but Shane was already doing that. Nothing else was really sticking until I got the idea of villains. It gave me room to get all sorts of characters but it was still a strong theme. And it allowed me to be the villain of our group, which I always am :)<br />
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Once I started my second sketchbook getting only female characters I also decided there wouldn't be any female villains in the book. It would be all dudes. Well, mostly. I'd eventually add Drusilla from "Buffy" but she's with Spike, at least. <br />
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I also decided as time went on that I wanted to try and get all the major heroes represented by their villains. Some were easy - Batman, Flash and Spider-Man have enough cool villains to fill their own books! Some were tougher: Even Superman's rogues' gallery is pretty weak. (But Andy Smith did an awesome armored Lex Luthor for me.) As I'm more of a Marvel guy, it was easy to find cool, obscure Marvel villains but it was tougher with DC. Keeping the balance of power was a challenge sometimes. <br />
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Getting every hero represented by their villain became an adventure unto itself. While it started with obvious stuff, Batman, Spider-Man, X-Men and the like, by the end I had Transformers villains, Masters of the Universe, Buffy, there's even a Scooby Doo Phantom Shadow in there! Every hero has his villains and they're usually pretty cool. <br />
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One thing about this book is that artists tended to have fun with it. When they got the villain book, they usually got to draw something they didn't have to draw all the time. My fascination with second tier villains only added to that! I mean, I got most of the Serpent Society in there!<br />
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Some anecdotes and what not ...<br />
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The first sketch is Two Face by Cully Hamner. I got that sketch at a con in Akron and wasn't entirely sure who I wanted to kick off the book. Cully suggested The Joker but I'm more of a Two Face guy. Two Face it was.<br />
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Years later I ran into Cully and showed him the sketch and he said he loved the joke but hated the sketch. I'm a big fan of both! (Artists rarely like their older work, even when it's awesome, like this sketch.)<br />
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At Heroes Con 2004, the Cranboyz were cleaning up with sketches across the board. I still say, sketch for sketch, it's the best haul we've ever pulled in at a show. One sketch I got there was from Howard Porter, who drew Ultron for me. When he got my book and flipped through the sketches, seeing what other artists had done already he said 'aw crap, now I have to do a good one.' And did he ever. I won't talk about Andy's man crush on this sketch! It was all I heard about all weekend. <br />
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Porter slid the book down to Ron Garney who did Captain Cold on the next page, and it's just as awesome as Howard's sketch! </div>
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I also got to reignite some childhood memories when I got a sketch of The Hobgoblin from Ron Frenz. The Hobgoblin story in "Amazing Spider-Man" is certainly my golden age of reading Spider-Man and Ron was the artist on all that. Hobgoblin's a favorite of mine and Ron delivered what looks like a panel from the book brought to life.</div>
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When Erik Larsen came to Heroes Con in 2006, the show was a zoo. I really didn't expect him to be doing sketches. Still, that Saturday morning I wandered over to his line and waited to see if I could talk him into one. At the time he was EIC of Image Comics and was set up at the company booth. There were a couple guys in front of me who were DIE HARD "Savage Dragon" fans, which is Larsen's creator-owned book. Man, they were all having fun talking to Erik's book and I didn't even really read it. I almost got out of line. I didn't though and when I got up to the front, I asked Erik "how many Image trades to I have to buy for you to do a sketch of Doc Ock" for me?" He looked at me a little puzzled and said 'do you have a sketchbook.' I said, yes, it was all villains. He grabbed the book and went to work, churning out a smart-assed Doc Ock for me. He wouldn't take any money ... but I did buy a couple Image trades anyway, because it was cool of him to do it for me. This sketch always brings a smile to my face.</div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9mtRsb-_xuQ/Wx1X9NVlH0I/AAAAAAAACVo/QQ_8LZtH5EIp4oN2DWI8G0gYspUlPUG_ACLcBGAs/s1600/larsendocock.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="599" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-9mtRsb-_xuQ/Wx1X9NVlH0I/AAAAAAAACVo/QQ_8LZtH5EIp4oN2DWI8G0gYspUlPUG_ACLcBGAs/s320/larsendocock.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>
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Sometimes you get a sketch from an artist's artist - a guy that other artists are in awe of. These sketches automatically up the street cred of your book, my friends! Take, for example, this sketch of Kingpin by John Paul Leon. It got to the point that when I gave people the book to work on, I just assumed we'd have to talk about John Paul's sketch when I got it back. Once I came to get my book from Casey Jones and he was sitting with the book open to Kingpin and said 'we need to talk about this.'</div>
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This sketch also features what Bob Ross might call a 'happy little accident.' If you see all the white and gray in the background, what happened was John Paul was working on Kingpin's shoulder and his black ink kind of exploded. So in order to fix it he added that entire background! (You can still see the black blob if you look closely at the back of the sketch.)</div>
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I also want to call out our friend Andy Bennett, who not only does awesome sketches for us all the time, he's been given some extremely obscure characters to draw for us, and he always delivers. There just aren't a lot of Master Pandemonium, Black Flash or Orb sketches out there, but Andy knocked them out of the park, generally shaking his head at whatever oddball character I had for him this time. (Hm, maybe should have gotten an Oddball sketch from him!)</div>
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Thanks, Andy!! </div>
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Speaking of obscure villains, when I was collecting sketches of Flash's Rogues' Gallery, I definitely wanted a sketch of Rainbow Raider but, well, most people like to make fun of the Raider. I went to my friend Adam Withers and said I wanted a Rainbow Raider sketch ... but I didn't want a lame sketch of Rainbow Raider. Adam took on the challenge and gave me a Rainbow Raider who's fed up with being called lame!</div>
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I do want to call out this Scarecrow piece by Tommy Castillo. Tommy passed away a little while ago and I was always a fan of his work and his company. He is missed. When I asked him for a Scarecrow sketch, I said I had character reference and he smiled and said 'don't need it!' Love the scalpel in his hand - this is one terrifying Scarecrow! </div>
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The last page of the book came from Dave Aikins, who had some friend with our Animated Adventures theme and added Pinky & the Brain, off on another plot that probably won't work out as planned. Thanks, Dave! </div>
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Pinky & the Brain are on the last page but the page before that is the last sketch I got in the book, and I picked that up today. I wasn't sure what to do for a last sketch - we always try to do something special when we wrap up a sketchbook. I had a couple ideas but they weren't feeling right. The right sketch hit me in phases. First I decided to get a sketch of The Key because he was JLAdam's favorite villain. As I got to the last page, though, I also remembered that BOTH The Key and Prometheus were Adam's favorite villains, all because of Grant Morrison and Howard Porter's run on "JLA." That was it! Believe me, if you knew Adam, you heard him prattle on about those two characters - AT LENGTH. "The League needs more thinkers," indeed. </div>
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We've been blessed with friendship from artist Darryl Banks for a long time and Adam loved his stuff as much as any of us. When I reached out to Darryl to see if he wanted to do the last page with Adam's favorite villains, he, of course obliged. It really was the perfect ending to the book.</div>
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I know, a rather sentimental ending to a book filled with so many bad guys. Thanks, Darryl, again.</div>
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Thanks again to ALL the artists who have graced my sketchbook with their art. I hope you enjoyed drawing something a bit out of the ordinary. Or, in some case, something WAAAY out of the ordinary.</div>
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If you want to see the entire collection, it's here:</div>
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http://www.comicartfans.com/galleryroom.asp?gsub=37952</div>
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<br />JohnPopahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07795856163401824947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-43188875013408523782018-03-03T14:20:00.002-05:002018-03-03T22:41:44.958-05:00G.I. JOE The Movie!<div style="text-align: center;">
2017 marked the 30th Anniversary of GI Joe the Movie! This animated feature followed on the heels of Transformers the Movie and featured the all-star talent of Don Johnson (as Lt. Falcon), Burgess Meredith (Golobulus) and Sgt. Slaughter! Being a pretty big Joe fan, I remember it well and enjoyed parts of it (The opening credits sequence) more than others (Cobra-La)!</div>
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Being the 30th Anniversary, I decided to focus any GI Joe sketches I collected in 2017, on the movie! There are a few I didn't get to but a few others that I lucked out on!</div>
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Cobra Commander's look has always stood out in the cartoon and there's a scene at the beginning of the movie, in Serpentor's throne room, where the Commander's wearing a cape. That look was great and that went to the top of my want list! I was able to get Brian Sheerer (of the IDW GI Joe run) to do this one for me and it came out great! </div>
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Next, I went to Sean Forney, who I've been lucky to get some killer art from, and gave him a challenge! I wanted a Trouble Bubble! basically a seat with engines, a canopy and weapons! Sean not only stepped up, he knocked it out of the park!</div>
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It dawned on me while I was working on this that I've never gotten a sketch of anyone in a GI Joe jet pack (or JUMP from the toy line)! Well, pretty much the entire team wore them in the opening credits of the movie, so I talked with Brian and Brendon Fraim who delivered Duke looking like a Real American Hero! </div>
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Next up was my excuse to get a real kick ass looking Beachhead! I wanted this one to really stand out because Beachhead is a favorite of mine and an A-list Joe! Although artist Joe Pekar is known for his good-girl style art, I've chatted with him enough to know that he doesn't mind drawing a little macho and since he's a fan of 1st person shooter video games, I knew he'd deck him out in cool gear! Joe Pekar did me one better and gave me a battle damaged Beachhead, ready to stay in the fight!</div>
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Moving on to Beachhead's "Rawhides" gave me great excuses to pick up some art of characters that I like but wouldn't normally go crazy over. Jinx was a free sketch by James Giar at a Free Comic Book Day event! They were supposed to be head sketches but he wasn't busy and wanted to know if I cared if he used some water colors! As you can see, he had a great time working on her!</div>
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My longest surviving friend, Eric, was excited about a sketch he was getting from local artist Lee Xopher so I thought I'd give him a try! As you can see I ended up with a cocky looking Chuckles, which fits the character perfectly! </div>
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When I was working on ideas for this little theme I tried to come up with ideas of who to have draw some of these characters. I've gotten a few pieces from Nate Lovett, who's a super guy and a heck of an artist! His style is somewhat animated and very colorful so I really wanted to include him but I wasn't happy with any of my ideas for him. Then I remembered that Nate has done a bunch of work for Paw Patrol and I couldn't pass up the chance to have him do Law and Order! He did them in his own style and the two couldn't look more ready to jump into battle! </div>
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In all honesty, in my years of collecting GI Joe art, I've never planned to get a sketch of Big Lob! He was great in the movie but never appeared again and never showed up in the comics, which I was more into. I got kind of excited about adding him to this collection and wanted his sketch to be dynamic and in color. It just so happens that Scoot McMahon fits those criteria and drew me Big Lob in the midst of battle! </div>
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I've had the chance to meet and chat some with Pat Quinn, who's done some work on GI Joe comics for IDW, any art I've gotten from him has always been dead on! I thought he might have fun working on Tunnel Rat but I had no idea! The detail on this piece is unreal! You'd think he went into some wet, creepy tunnel to reference it! Fun note, the Tunnel Rat action figure came with a huge M60 machine gun, which has always drove me nuts because he could never carry such a massive weapon into the small spaces he's known for crawling around. So after I contacted Pat Quinn about this sketch I asked him NOT to draw him with the M60, which he was already referencing for my sketch! The tactical shotgun he switched to makes me much happier! </div>
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Sgt Slaughter and his Renegades! I have always enjoyed these characters and wished they would have been used more often! This Sgt Slaughter I picked up at Free Comic Book Day from Robert Walland! Taurus is from FCBD by Rick Lozano! Red Dog is from a different FCBD event by Martin Egeland! I'm so glad I picked these up and added these characters to my ranks!</div>
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My favorite Renegade has always been ex-Cobra Viper, Mercer! I wanted to do something more for my Mercer sketch and hit up my long-time friends, Comfort Love and Adam Withers. Adam jumped on it and then ran even further with it! He turned Mercer into an Arnold Schwarzenegger stand in on Arnold's Commando movie poster! It's perfect in every way! Mercer was basically a bad 80's action hero and the job Adam did makes me wonder why he never got his own movie! The best! </div>
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This brings us to Cobra-La! As a kid I was never a fan of the fantasy based, bug themed group of Cobras. As an adult I never saw a reason to change my mind and was always quick to say I would never own any artwork of Cobra-La! I was wrong. I couldn't honestly think of getting sketches spotlighting characters from GI Joe the Movie and not include Cobra-La! It was actually fun to think outside of the box on this one!</div>
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Pythona is definitely my favorite part of Cobra-La. She was tough and cool and broke into a Terror Drome in like 10 seconds flat! This sketch I happened upon online by artist Matthew Campbell who was drawing cartoon characters for Ink-tober! Pythona hadn't been sold so I picked her up for my collection!</div>
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Golobulus was only cool because he was voiced by Burgess Meredith. My good friend, Popa pointed out artist Travis Hart's artwork and it was clear he had a thing for monsters! I asked him about drawing Golobulus and he knew him as soon as he saw my reference. Obviously, it was meant to be!</div>
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Nemesis Enforcer was kind of cool, big bat wings, blades on his arms and no one could stop him but he just grunted and killed people. When I asked local artists Landon and Brandon Franklin if they'd draw him for me they got excited! Then I got excited when I got this sketch of Nemesis Enforcer, complete with a dead soldier in his hand! </div>
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So, I went from wanting no Cobra-La art to owing this gem! I've known former Kenner/Hasbro toy designer, Aaron Archer, since way before he worked in the toy industry. I've gotten some art from him but he always complains that he wants to do something more for me than a "con sketch." When I was putting together these ideas, I asked Aaron if he would draw a Cobra-La character for me because I know he has a talent for drawing monsters and fantasy characters. I told him he could draw whoever, it was up to him. Aaron took this as his opportunity to draw me that "something more" piece we'd always discussed and I don't have the words to describe it! First of all, it's giant! Aaron claims it got away from him a little! It's ALL of Cobra-La, about to invade, and they're not friendly about it! The detail and depth are insane! The designs of the characters are fantastic! You really have to see it to believe it! Oh! And Aaron made prints of it! So, if you see him at a show or signing, you can grab a copy for yourself! But this one's mine! </div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V3hB7fYzWy4/WprhjDtWCmI/AAAAAAAAEVI/Ur21fetGSq0tfDAK7AIm57oylqo4slObACEwYBhgL/s1600/Cobra%2BLa%2Barcher.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="920" data-original-width="723" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V3hB7fYzWy4/WprhjDtWCmI/AAAAAAAAEVI/Ur21fetGSq0tfDAK7AIm57oylqo4slObACEwYBhgL/s320/Cobra%2BLa%2Barcher.jpg" width="251" /></a></div>
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YO JOE! Here's to the next 30 years of GI Joe! </div>
Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-3150589076114275072018-01-27T15:58:00.002-05:002018-03-03T22:42:43.313-05:002017 The SILVER AGE!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The Cranboyz have been around, collecting sketches and going to cons for 25 years!!! We decided to celebrate our 25th Anniversary with Silver, Silver Age characters! The Silver Age of comics is considered to be from 1956-1970, which is the true era of Super Hero comics! So we had no trouble finding Silver Age characters to collect! </div>
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There's no doubt that Batgirl became a household name due to her appearances on the 1960's Batman television series but we all know and love her from the Batman comics! </div>
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Kurt got his Batgirl sketch from comics legend, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez and Popa got his from comics legend Trevor Von Eden! </div>
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Supergirl, the maiden of might! Karen got her Supergirl sketch from Karl Moline! Shane got his Supergirl sketch from Tressina Bowling!</div>
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The Justice League of America makes a strong appearance in our collection! Beswick got his Hawkman sketch from Darryl Banks! Eric got his Green Arrow sketch from Brendon and Brian Fraim! Kurt got his Wonder Woman sketch from Gene Gonzales! </div>
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Andy collected an entire JLA of his own! Martian Manhunter and Aquaman are by Brendon and Brian Fraim, Green Lantern and Flash are from Darryl Banks and Black Canary and Green Arrow are from Pat Quinn! </div>
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The Duo of Shane and Andy got sketches of Hawk and Dove (of Hawk and Dove)! Andy got Hawk and Dove by Nate Lovett! Shane got Hawk and Dove by Ron Frenz!</div>
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Shane commissioned this sketch cover from Scoot McMahon of Flash and Kid Flash and got a bonus Gorilla Grodd!</div>
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The Cranboyz collected plenty of villain sketches, too! Popa got this intimidating Darkseid from Dave Aikins and Eric got his Joker sketch from Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez! </div>
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Just like in the comics, you never know when Lex Luthor will show up or what he'll be up to! Kurt had Martin Egeland draw Lex Luthor and got this bonus Lex vs Superman sketch cover! He also got Lex Luthor from Scoot McMahon! </div>
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The Osier brothers got a few sketches from Marvel's first family! Darryl Banks drew the Silver Surfer for Eric! Martin Egeland drew the Thing and the Invisible Woman and Ron Frenz drew the Watcher for Kurt! </div>
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Popa collected sketches of the Mole Man from Ron Frenz and Annihilus from Craig Rousseau! Eric got this Silver Surfer and Galactus from Martin Egeland!</div>
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Doctor Doom demands sketches! Beswick got Doom from Andy Bennett! Shawn got Doom from Darryl Banks! Andy got Doom from Brendan Cahill!</div>
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Popa collected 2 sketches of his favorite Inhuman! Crystal and Lockjaw are from Barry Kitson! Crystal is from Gene Gonzales! </div>
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Avengers Assemble! Eric picked up Hawkeye by Bob Hall! Kurt picked up Wonder Man by Arvell Jones! </div>
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Shane collected several Avengers from Darryl Banks, Iron Man, Giant Man, Thor and the Hulk! <br />
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Popa bought Shane this Barry Kitson page from Avengers issue 4.1, featuring Captain America, Hawkeye, Scarlett Witch and Quicksilver (not to mention Jarvis and the Frightful Four)!</div>
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Shane added some Silver Age characters to his Captain America collection! Sharon Carter by Darryl Banks! The Falcon and Captain America by Craig Rousseau! Gabe Jones by Brendan Cahill!</div>
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Representing the villains of the Marvel Universe, Popa got Tiger Shark from Brian Level! Eric got The Grey Gargoyle from Sean Forney, the Fixer from James Giar and the Gladiator from Andy Bennett!</div>
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A couple of Marvel big bosses! Andy Bennett drew Mephisto for Kurt! And Andy drew the Yellow Claw for Shane!</div>
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Sketches from Asgard! Kurt picked up the Enchantress from Joe Pekar and Loki from Pat Olliffe! Shane got Loki from Darryl Banks!</div>
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The Master of Magnetism! Shawn got a Magneto sketch from Pat Quinn! Kurt got his Magneto sketch from Robert Walland!</div>
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The Man Without Fear! Andy had Brian Level draw Dare Devil! Popa had Lee Weeks draw Black Widow! </div>
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The Amazing Spider-Man! Andy had Matt Wieringo draw Spider-Man! And Thom Zahler drew Aunt May and Uncle Ben (and some wheatcackes!)! </div>
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Spider-Man has his share of villains and we collected sketches of many of his rogues! Kurt had Darryl Banks draw Doctor Octopus! Andy had Darryl Banks draw the Enforcers, Ron Frenz draw the Kingpin of Crime and Travis Hart draw Morbius! Travis Hart drew the Rhino for Popa! </div>
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Spider-Woman! She didn't appear until 4 years after the Silver Age ended but Andy didn't realize that when he commissioned Tressina Bowling to draw her. He knows that now but wanted her included since he got the sketch "in the spirit" of the Silver Age. </div>
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The Invincible Iron Man! Eric loves some Iron Man art so the Silver Age was perfect for him! Eric's sketches of the Mark 1 armor are from Steve King and Andy Bennett!</div>
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Eric got some Iron Man Mark 2 armors from Abdul Rashid! Gregg Schigiel! And Ron Frenz!</div>
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The Iron Man armory continues with Mark 3 armors! These are by Scoot McMahon, 2 by Brendon and Brian Fraim and Ron Wilson! </div>
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Iron Man isn't the only guy to upgrade his armors! Eric got a Crimson Dynamo Mark 1 by Scoot McMahon and Crimson Dynamo Mark 2 from Arvell Jones! </div>
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A few more classic villains for Iron Man! Eric got the Mandarin by Pat Quinn! The Freak is by Travis Hart! </div>
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And our final Silver Age artwork for 2017! Eric commissioned this painting of Iron Man versus Titanium Man from Kelly Williams! </div>
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The Silver Age! 25 years of collecting art with the best group of friends this side of the Negative Zone! Our sketches are great but what we can't express here is all the great times and laughs we shared along the way! </div>
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Here's to the next 25 years!</div>
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<br />Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-61429279901956962522017-11-06T19:48:00.000-05:002017-11-06T19:48:11.012-05:00Popa's All-Girl Sketchbook 2000-2017While I started collecting sketches at cons as early as 1993, and started my all villain sketchbook in 1995, it was really the year 2000 that I became a full-time convention sketch tracker. That was the year Shane and I first went to Heroes Con and the year I started my then second sketchbook, to be filled with my favorite female characters in all of comics.<br />
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Starting a female-centric book was mostly because, as much as I loved collecting villain sketches in my first book, I also wanted to get some versions of my favorite female characters, but a lot of them were heroes. The solution was simple: start a second sketchbook.<br />
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Starting it at Heroes was easy enough as they always have a ton of artists. The first sketch (and I promise I'm not going to post all 79 of them) was by W.C. Carani, who was inking the Legion books at DC at the time. He did the armored version of Psylocke for me. As much as I enjoy that sketch, it was the next sketch that really set the bar for the book.<br />
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I'd always been a fan of "Legionnaires" artist Jeff Moy and was dying to get something from him. At Heroes I got my chance and asked for Jesse Quick from the "Flash" titles. Jeff nailed it, as he always does. It's still one of my favorite sketches.<br />
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The book was off and running. The first couple years I did a lot of Mid Ohio Cons so Jeff Moy was all over the book as he always did that show and I could never resist getting something from him. Plus he draws everything perfectly - from Legion girls to Supergirl and anything else in between, Jeff's always been The Man in my book!<br />
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Quickly, though, a handful of 'dream' sketches popped into my head - those perfect combinations of character and artist that I hoped to one day grace the pages of my book. Over the last 17 years I can honestly say I've gotten most of those dream sketches, and a few more that cropped up along the way.<br />
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The first dream sketch in there is a Buffy sketch by Randy Green. Randy's a super artist and a great guy and the next time we went to Heroes he was my main get. If I remember right, he wasn't there Friday night so I had to wait for him Saturday morning but he got there and delivered my sketch in spades!<br />
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Another dream sketch would prove to be more elusive. From the moment I started the book, I wanted to get a sketch of Mystique from the X-Men by one of my favorite artists, Steve Epting. At the time I started the book we saw Steve with some frequency so I figured getting the sketch was all but inevitable.<br />
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Well, a lot of things happened along the way - at one point Steve went to work for a company called Crossgen Comics and they tied up his convention appearances and when he was there he mostly drew Crossgen characters. After Crossgen folded, he went back to Marvel and drew the relaunched Captain America title that's the basis for the Cap movies and everything else. This meant Steve became the superstar artist he always should have been, but it also meant getting sketches from him became more and more difficult.<br />
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Did I ever get the sketch, you ask? YES. In 2010. It captures the beautiful bad assery of Mystique perfectly, as I knew it would!<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZVFhurIlt7Y/WgD6HI-n8YI/AAAAAAAACK4/TMCWGBPGMbEObqf7RuAKKKZGy74i9DluACLcBGAs/s1600/mystique.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="568" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZVFhurIlt7Y/WgD6HI-n8YI/AAAAAAAACK4/TMCWGBPGMbEObqf7RuAKKKZGy74i9DluACLcBGAs/s320/mystique.jpg" width="227" /></a></div>
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One artist we all 'discovered' along the way was Cliff Chiang. When we first met him, Cliff had done some cool stuff but he wasn't the high profile artist he is now. I first got a sketch from him in my villain book (The Riddler) but once he delivered for both me and Shane, he became an artist in heavy demand from the Cranboyz. When he did the Liberty Belle sketch below, he became a real Hall of Famer. Of all the great sketches in my book, this is one I always come back to and love. Sometimes, I can't believe it's mine.</div>
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I funny story about this sketch is the character wears jodhpur pants (the ones with the baggy pockets on the sides that aviators wear.) I spent a ton of time looking for good reference of the pants for the sketch, only to have Cliff draw this waist up shot (which is superb.)</div>
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One title I always loved, although it's a bit off the mainstream, is ABC Comics' Top Ten book, drawn by Gene Ha and Zander Cannon. My favorite character was always Peregrine and I hoped one day to see Gene and get a sketch of her. We'd met Gene years before, when he was just starting out, so it was great to see him become a huge star. Gene finally came to Mid Ohio Con in 2006 and, thanks to a VIP pass, I was able to get my sketch from him. Another classic.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xWDRTyDnw8A/WgD9_JwfL1I/AAAAAAAACLQ/-IaTc3Wh478CjjncenHv_VZYzY5JF7nbQCLcBGAs/s1600/Peregrine.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="545" data-original-width="767" height="227" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xWDRTyDnw8A/WgD9_JwfL1I/AAAAAAAACLQ/-IaTc3Wh478CjjncenHv_VZYzY5JF7nbQCLcBGAs/s320/Peregrine.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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One memorable show for me and Shane was C2E2, the inaugural show in Chicago. We decided to go and, thanks to some moderately confused staff, were able to basically be the first people on the con floor for the big show. My plan at that show was to try and get a Voodoo sketch from the elusive Terry Dodson. Terry doesn't do a lot of shows we get to, as he's based on the west coast. Getting in the show around 9 am, I bee-lined for Terry's table, knowing then that he wouldn't be there for about 5 more hours. Still, this was a one time chance. Terry arrived and was met by my smiling face. Despite that, he decided to stay at the show and he delivered this perfect sketch to me.</div>
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The last sketch I want to highlight is by the late Mike Wieringo. Long before he passed, Mike did this sketch of Shadowcat for me. It's easily one of my favorites and, more notably, is a favorite of most artists who flip through the book. Even when Mike was alive, artists would flip back to it when they had my book and talk about how much they liked the piece he did for me. I remember telling Mike that and he just kind of laughed. I never knew Mike well, I'm sure he had no idea who I was, but to have such a special piece of art from an artist we lost far too soon, and to have so many people appreciate it too, is a pretty great reminder of what this hobby can mean. </div>
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I remember the hour or so glowingly celebrating the greatness of The Hellions with Phil Jimenez while he sketched Roulette for me, I remember Comfort Love adding Jubilee to my M sketch, even though I hate Jubilee but it really makes the sketch even more awesome that she's there. I remember Mike Grell telling some off color stories about Legion fandom while doing my Phantom Girl sketch, I remember George Perez basing my Liberty Belle sketch on Veronica Lake. I guess I could go on forever about all the sketches, but I won't.</div>
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So to every artist who graced the pages of this sketchbook with their art, THANK YOU!! Every piece means something to me and is attached to a great memory of time with friends and time growing up with these characters. 79 pages later, that's a lot of memories.</div>
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Thanks to Trevor Von Eeden who ended up doing the last piece, this cute Batgirl making a heart.</div>
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By the numbers, Jeff Moy is in the book the most with 5 pieces. Todd Nauck, Darryl Banks and Chris Sprouse are next with 4 each and then Paul Pelletier has 3. A slew of artists are in there twice but I do have to call out Lee Weeks and Barry Kitson who not only did some of my favorite sketches, but are two of my favorite people in the business.</div>
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If you want to peruse the entire collection, the link is here: http://www.comicartfans.com/galleryroom.asp?gsub=37951&page=4&order=Date </div>
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I hope you enjoy it!</div>
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Thanks again to everyone who's done artwork for me over the years. Believe me, I'm not done yet!! </div>
<br />JohnPopahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07795856163401824947noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-66795415422253103862017-10-29T22:41:00.001-04:002018-06-03T20:37:43.673-04:00Popa's Favorite Ghost Rider CoversIn the spirit of the season (the season being Halloween, of course) I thought I'd post my favorite Ghost Rider covers. These will all come from the first two series, which isn't inherently intentional, other than I haven't read a lot of the more recent Ghost Rider books.<br />
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In the 70's Ghost Rider was Johnny Blaze and was a bit of an Evel Keneval homage as he was a stunt rider who was turned into the Spirt of Vengeance and his adventures generally took place across the American Southwest. There were times when the book felt a bit like a dusty 70's exploitation movie but, generally, it felt like a pretty standard super hero comic. Some of it was good, some of it looks a little silly in hindsight. You know what doesn't look silly? Ghost Rider. The flaming skull on a motorcycle is always awesome.<br />
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Somewhere in here Ghost Rider joined a team called The Champions. I can't tell you anything about them. Ask Dave about them, I'm sure he's read every comic they ever appeared in.<br />
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The first series died after 80 issues or so. There's a story that the comic sold well on newsstands, better than expected and no one knows why. I know why: Because it had a badass dude with a flaming skull riding a fiery motorcycle on every cover. Did Superman have that? No. Because Superman is lame.<br />
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In the 90's Ghost Rider was reborn as Danny Ketch and moved to Brooklyn. His look was a bit more heavy metal (leather and chains) and the stories had a little more supernatural action involved. In fact, as the series got popular it spun off a whole line of mediocre super hero action books under the banner of 'Spirits of Vengeance.' Johnny Blaze showed up too but he was angry and had long hair. He wasn't happy that Ghost Rider was back. Eventually they teamed up, though, that's how comics worked in those days.<br />
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The Ghost Rider never had the best rogues' gallery, I mean, other than SATAN. But he did have The Orb who was another bike rider who had a helmet that was a giant eyeball. I think he's horribly disfigured under his helmet. They don't make super villains like they used to, my friends. I have an Orb t-shirt, mostly to impress the ladies.<br />
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The second Ghost Rider series died off too, as did all the Spirits of Vengeance books. Lots of things got cancelled in the 90's. Marvel relaunches Ghost Rider from time to time but he doesn't always catch on. Deep down, it's probably Nicholas Cage's fault. Ghost Rider did appear on "Agents of SHIELD" but it wasn't Johnny Blaze or Danny Ketch so I have trouble giving a shit.<br />
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Without further rambling, here is my list of my 10 favorite Ghost Rider covers ...<br />
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The older ones are mostly by Don Perlin or Bob Budiansky, the second series ones are mostly by Mark Texeira. I could be wrong on a couple, but those two did most of the Ghost Rider heavy lifting.<br />
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10. GHOST RIDER #46 When your alter ego calls you a loser, it's time to rethink your superhero adventures.<br />
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9. GHOST RIDER 16: YES. Ghost Rider is fighting a SHARK. And his head is still on fire even under water. Why? Because it takes more than salt water to put out the flames of Satan.<br />
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8. GHOST RIDER #6 (Series 2): Remember how HOT this book was in the 90's? People were dropping $20-$30 to see Ghost Rider crossover with the Punisher. Do you know how many Ghost Rider comics you can buy today with $30? All of them.<br />
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7. GHOST RIDER #15: This cover has it all: Ghost Rider. The Orb. A hot chick.<br />
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6. GHOST RIDER #51: Do my eyes detect an evil truck? And aren't I always a sucker for evil vehicles? YES and YES.<br />
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5. GHOST RIDER #15 (Series 2): The best part about this cover is it GLOWED IN THE DARK. That was a thing in the 90's, that people complained about. The 90's were stupid because people complained about comic book covers that glowed in the dark. There was a Spectre series and like every cover glowed in the dark. That should have been the best-selling comic of them all.<br />
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4. GHOST RIDER #34: I love these melodramatic covers. "THE DEMON WITHIN." I have no idea what this comic is about. I haven't read it in like 30 years.<br />
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3. GHOST RIDER #54: The second appearance on our list of The Orb. I thought I knew evil before I met The Orb but this cover informed me that I was incorrect.<br />
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2. GHOST RIDER #1 (Series 2): The iconic cover that started the second Ghost Rider series.<br />
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1. GHOST RIDER #38: Now this cover REALLY has it all: Ghost Rider, a satanic leader, a hot damsel in distress. This is how comics were sold in the 70's, my friends. Or, in my case, as back issues in the late 80's. Crass exploitation is what sells comic books, my friends. Never forget.<br />
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<br />JohnPopahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07795856163401824947noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-74181873518824418002017-10-29T16:41:00.002-04:002017-10-29T16:41:38.722-04:00CRANBOYZ SECRET FILES! Day 15, DARRYL!Day 15 and it's still Cran-tober!<br />
BONUS Secret File!<br />
BONUS Cranboy!<br />
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CRANBOYZ Secret Files: DARRYL!<br />
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<br />Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1046395944168819207.post-73445855309097861222017-10-27T17:17:00.000-04:002017-10-27T18:16:44.449-04:00CRANBOYZ SECRET FILES! Day 14, TRAVIS!More Cran-tober!<br />
Day 14!<br />
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CRANBOYZ Secret Files: TRAVIS!<br />
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<br />Shanehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02960894831001113794noreply@blogger.com0