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The Professional “How-To” Magazine on Comics, Cartooning and Animation

#32

Summer 2016 $8.95 IN THE US

HOWARD PORTER Characters TM & © DC Comics.

IN A LEAGUE OF HIS OWN

JAMAL IGLE IN THE MOLLY DANGER ZONE

PLUS! REGULAR COLUMNIST

JERRY ORDWAY AND MIKE MANLEY AND BRET BLEVINS’

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DRAW! (edited by MIKE MANLEY) is the professional “HOW-TO” magazine on comics, cartooning, and animation. Each issue features in-depth INTERVIEWS and DEMOS from top pros on all aspects of graphic storytelling, as well as such skills as layout, penciling, inking, lettering, coloring, Photoshop techniques, plus web guides, tips, tricks, and a handy reference source—this magazine has it all! NOTE: Some issues contain nudity for figure drawing instruction. INTENDED FOR MATURE READERS.

Other issues available, & an ULTIMATE BUNDLE with all issues at HALF-PRICE!

DRAW! #23

DRAW! #24

DIEDGITIIOTANSL E

BL AVAILA

DRAW! #20

DRAW! #21

DRAW! #22

WALTER SIMONSON interview and demo, Rough Stuff’s BOB McLEOD gives a “Rough Critique” of a newcomer’s work, Write Now’s DANNY FINGEROTH spotlights writer/artist AL JAFFEE, JAMAR NICHOLAS reviews the best art supplies and tool technology, MIKE MANLEY and BRET BLEVINS offer “Comic Art Bootcamp” lessons, plus Web links, comic and book reviews, and more!

Urban Barbarian DAN PANOSIAN talks shop about his gritty, design-inspired work with editor MIKE MANLEY, DANNY FINGEROTH interviews “Billy Dogma” writer/artist DEAN HASPIEL, plus more of MIKE MANLEY and BRET BLEVINS’ “Comic Art Bootcamp”, a “Rough Critique” of a newcomer’s work by BOB McLEOD, product and art supply reviews by JAMAR NICHOLAS, and more!

Interview with inker SCOTT WILLIAMS from his days at Marvel and Image to his work with JIM LEE, and PATRICK OLIFFE demos how he produces Spider-Girl, Mighty Samson, and digital comics. Also, MIKE MANLEY and BRET BLEVINS’ “Comic Art Bootcamp”, a “Rough Critique” of a newcomer’s work by BOB McLEOD, art supply reviews by “Crusty Critic” JAMAR NICHOLAS, and more!

(84-page magazine with COLOR) $7.95 (Digital Edition) $3.95

(84-page magazine with COLOR) $7.95 (Digital edition) $3.95

(84-page magazine with COLOR) $7.95 (Digital Edition) $3.95

DRAW! #25

DRAW! #26

DRAW! #27

PATRICK OLIFFE interview and demo, career of AL WILLIAMSON examined by ANGELO TORRES, BRET BLEVINS, MARK SCHULTZ, TOM YEATES, ALEX ROSS, RICK VEITCH, and others, MIKE MANLEY and BRET BLEVINS’ “Comic Art Bootcamp”, a “Rough Critique” of a newcomer’s work by BOB McLEOD, art supply reviews by “Crusty Critic” JAMAR NICHOLAS, and more!

GLEN ORBIK demos how he creates his painted noir paperback and comic covers, ROBERT VALLEY discusses animating “The Beatles: Rock Band” music video and Tron: Uprising, plus Comic Art Bootcamp on “Dramatic Lighting” with MIKE MANLEY and BRET BLEVINS, Crusty Critic JAMAR NICHOLAS reviews art supplies, BOB McCLOUD gives a Rough Critique of a newcomer’s work, and more!

LEE WEEKS (Daredevil, Incredible Hulk) gives insight into the artform, YILDIRAY ÇINAR (Noble Causes, Fury of the Firestorms) interview and demo, inker JOE RUBINSTEIN shows how he works, “Comic Art Bootcamp” with MIKE MANLEY and BRET BLEVINS, “Rough Critique” of a newcomer by BOB McLEOD, “Crusty Critic” JAMAR NICHOLAS reviews art supplies and software!

JOE JUSKO shows how he creates his amazing fantasy art, JAMAR NICHOLAS interviews artist JIMM RUGG (Street Angel, Afrodisiac, The P.L.A.I.N. Janes and Janes in Love, One Model Nation, and The Guild), new regular contributor JERRY ORDWAY on his behind-the-scenes working process, Comic Art Bootcamp with MIKE MANLEY and BRET BLEVINS, reviews of artist materials, and more!

Top comics cover artist DAVE JOHNSON demos his creative process, STEPHEN SILVER shows how he designs characters for top animated series, plus new columnist JERRY ORDWAY presents “The Right Way, the Wrong Way, and the ORDWAY!”, “Crusty Critic” JAMAR NICHOLAS reviews art supplies, and hit “Comic Art Bootcamp” with Draw editor MIKE MANLEY and BRET BLEVINS!

(84-page magazine with COLOR) $7.95 (Digital Edition) $3.95

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $3.95

TwoMorrows. The Future of Comics History. DRAW! #28

DRAW! #29

DRAW! #30

DRAW! #31

FAREL DALRYMPLE shows how he produces Meathaus and Pop Gun War, director and storyboard/comics artist DAVE BULLOCK dissects his own work, columnist JERRY ORDWAY draws on his years of experience to show readers the Ord-way of creating comics, JAMAR NICHOLAS reviews the latest art supplies, plus more Comic Art Bootcamp by BRET BLEVINS and editor MIKE MANLEY! Mature readers only.

DAVE DORMAN demonstrates his painting techniques for sci-fi, fantasy, and comic book cover, LeSEAN THOMAS (character designer and co-director of The Boondocks and Black Dynamite: The Animated Series) gives advice on today’s animation industry, new columnist JERRY ORDWAY shows his working process, plus more Comic Art Bootcamp by BRET BLEVINS and Draw! editor MIKE MANLEY! Mature readers only.

We focus the radar on Daredevil artist CHRIS SAMNEE (Agents of Atlas, Batman, Avengers, Captain America) with a how-to interview, comics veteran JACKSON GUICE (Captain America, Superman, Ruse, Thor) talks about his creative process and his new series Winter World, columnist JERRY ORDWAY shows his working process, plus more Comic Art Bootcamp by BRET BLEVINS and editor MIKE MANLEY! Mature readers only.

How-to demos & interviews with Philadelphia artists JG JONES (52, Final Crisis, Wanted, Batman and Robin) and KHOI PHAM (The Mighty Avengers, The Astonishing SpiderMan, The Mighty World of Marvel), JAMAR NICHOLAS reviews of art supplies, JERRY ORDWAY demos the “ORD-way” or drawing, and Comic Art Bootcamp by MIKE MANLEY and BRET BLEVINS! JG Jones cover! Mature readers only.

(84-page FULL-COLOR magazine) $8.95 (Digital Edition) $3.95

TwoMorrows Publishing 10407 Bedfordtown Drive Raleigh, NC 27614 USA 919-449-0344 E-mail:

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THE PROFESSIONAL “HOW-TO” MAGAZINE ON COMICS & CARTOONING WWW.DRAW-MAGAZINE.BLOGSPOT.COM SUMMER 2016, VOL. 1, #32 Editor-in-Chief • Michael Manley Managing Editor and Designer • Eric Nolen-Weathington Publisher • John Morrow Logo Design • John Costanza Front Cover • Howard Porter DRAW! Summer 2016, Vol. 1, No. 32 was produced by Action Planet, Inc. and published by TwoMorrows Publishing. Michael Manley, Editor. John Morrow, Publisher. Editorial address: DRAW! Magazine, c/o Michael Manley, 430 Spruce Ave., Upper Darby, PA 19082. Subscription Address: TwoMorrows Publishing, 10407 Bedfordtown Dr., Raleigh, NC 27614. DRAW! and its logo are trademarks of Action Planet, Inc. All contributions herein are copyright 2015 by their respective contributors. Views expressed here by contributors and interviewees are not necessarily those of Action Planet, Inc., TwoMorrows Publishing, or its editors. Action Planet, Inc. and TwoMorrows Publishing accept no responsibility for unsolicited submissions. All artwork herein is copyright the year of production, its creator (if work-for-hire, the entity which contracted said artwork); the characters featured in said artwork are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners; and said artwork or other trademarked material is printed in these pages with the consent of the copyright holder and/or for journalistic, educational, or historical purposes with no infringement intended or implied. This entire issue is ©2016 Action Planet, Inc. and TwoMorrows Publishing and may not be reprinted or retransmitted without written permission of the copyright holders. ISSN 1932-6882. Printed in China. FIRST PRINTING.

If you’re viewing a Digital Edition of this publication,

TABLE OF CONTENTS

HOWARD PORTER

Mike Manley talks with the Justice League 3000 artist about his digital process and the future of comics

RIGHT WAY, WRONG WAY—ORDWAY!

JAMAL IGLE

comic art bootcamp

The crusty Critic

Jerry discusses the art of the sketch cover

Mike Manley enters the Molly Danger zone for a chat on guiding your own destiny

This issue's installment: Plusing your ideas

PLEASE READ THIS: This is copyrighted material, NOT intended for downloading anywhere except our website or Apps. If you downloaded it from another website or torrent, go ahead and read it, and if you decide to keep it, DO THE RIGHT THING and buy a legal download, or a printed copy. Otherwise, DELETE IT FROM YOUR DEVICE and DO NOT SHARE IT WITH FRIENDS OR POST IT ANYWHERE. If you enjoy our publications enough to download them, please pay for them so we can keep producing ones like this. Our digital editions should ONLY be downloaded within our Apps and at

Jamar Nicholas reviews the tools of the trade. This issue: Chameleon Color Tones pens

www.twomorrows.com

DRAW! SUMMER 2016

-ING AHEAD

t’s Crunch Time! Much like the battle call of the Fantastic Four’s Thing, I am calling on you DRAW! faithful to get out the call to your local comic shop to carry the magazine. It’s no secret that publishing in general, but especially newspapers and magazines, have been hit hard with the digital wave that has washed over the globe, and DRAW! is not immune to the effects of this. We have an app and digital editions, but we need copies of the magazine on the shelves for the new readers, the casual readers, and the future aspiring artists to grab. Most retailers unfortunately don’t order any copies of DRAW!, and that is making the future of this mag a bit more cloudy with each issue. Every issue sold counts to us, as it means we have a new loyal reader. So any support you can give us by getting your local retailer to get even two or three copies on their shelves will greatly help us here to keep the magazine going long into the future.

As usual big thanks go out to my main men, Eric, John, and regular columnists Bret, Jerry, and my Philly brother-in-arms, Jamar. It was great getting to talk with both Jamal and Howard about their processes and how the digital age has really affected the way they both work, and how there are great new pathways to connect with readers that circumvent the traditional direct market. New lessons for the next generation as well as the older ones! As always I look forward to your feedback, comments, and requests. Go DRAW! something! Best,

NEXT ISSUE IN NOVEMBER! Draw! #33 (80 FULL-COLOR pages, $8.95) gets down to the nitty-gritty of superstar artist (and Eisner & Emmy Award winner) Bill Sienkiewicz! From Electra: Assassin and the groundbreaking Stray Toasters, to movie work on The Unforgiven, The Dark Knight, and the Jimi Hendrix tribute book Voodoo Child, Bill pulls back the curtain to show his amazing creative process. Next, Draw! takes you to the The Watts Atelier Of The Arts! In today's highly competitive world of illustration and concept design—and skyrocketing school tuitions—founder Jeffery Watts has been running one of the best ateliers for training, where students gain the skills they need to get the jobs they want. Plus regular columnists Jerry Ordway and Jamar Nicholas, and Comic Art Bootcamp by Bret Blevins and Draw! editor Mike Manley, round out this comprehensive issue. NOTE: May contain nudity for figure-drawing instruction; suggested for Mature Readers Only. PRE-ORDER Now at:

www.twomorrows.com 2

DRAW! SUMMER 2016

HOWARD PORTER

in a LEAGUE of his own Interview conducted by Mike Manley and transcribed by Sean Dulaney DRAW!: Are you working this weekend? HOWARD PORTER: Every weekend. Unless, of course, things aren’t going badly. How about you? DRAW!: Yeah. The weekends are pretty rough right now because I just picked up The Phantom. HP: I saw that. Congratulations. DRAW!: Thank you. On top of that, I’m also doing the Judge Parker strip, so I’m a busy boy. HP: That’s a good thing for sure.

DRAW!: Exactly. I’ll still have to dig up somebody to do my backgrounds. [laughter] So what are you working on right now? I guess DC has sort of relaunched everything? HP: Yes. I was doing Superman, and then Rebirth happened, so everything got switched around. They asked me to do a couple of different things, but I chose to do Scooby Apocalypse with Keith Giffen and J.M. DeMatteis. DRAW!: That’s part of the Hanna-Barbera relaunch? HP: Yeah, I’m not sure what they are calling it. You’re right, it’s Hanna-Barbera. There’s a name for the line I think but it but I don’t remember what it’s called.

DRAW!: Yeah, it’s good. Good for the bank. HP: Absolutely. And someday you won’t have to be such a busy boy.

DRAW!: Is this just a limited thing? HP: Isn’t everything limited? [chuckles] Everything’s temporary in this business. It’s an ongoing title, but there’s no telling how long it will go, so you have to enjoy it while you can.

DRAW!: [chuckles] Because I’ll be dead! HP: [laughter] And then you’ll cut your hours in half.

DRAW!: This is a re-imagining of the characters. They’re doing Johnny Quest and bringing back the Herculoids….

DRAW! SUMMER 2016

This two-page spread from Justice League 3001 #1 started with a loose thumbnail (not shown), which Howard then tightened in a rough (above). Howard printed the rough out and, using a light box, penciled the drawing on paper (top right). After scanning the finished pencils, Howard added gray tones as a sort of color guide (see previous page), over which Hi-Fi then put the final touches (right). Justice League 3001 © DC Comics.

They’re bringing back Dick Dastardly and Muttley and Penelope Pitstop. HP: That’d be a tough one to re-imagine and have it not be... silly. [laughter] DRAW!: Really? You can’t have, like, Fast and Furious/ Wacky Races? Get Jock to do it or something? HP: [laughter] Right, right. Well, the Scooby-Doo thing is basically the same, but they have me drawing it more realistically, which messes with my mind. I was trying to draw Scooby as a realistic, anatomically correct Great Dane, but it doesn’t work so well. You can’t really have him emote properly, and he loses the charm that way. DRAW!: No. Their eyes are too far apart, whereas ScoobyDoo’s eyes are together like a cartoon character. HP: Yeah, kind of like my eyes. DRAW!: So, what did you do? How did you go about doing that? I mean, I’m sure the people are the easiest. HP: They are. They’re just realistic versions of the characters.

DRAW! SUMMER 2016

DRAW!: You just draw Bob Denver for Shaggy, right? HP: [laughs] Well, actually I didn’t design them. Jim Lee did, and I think he did a fantastic job. Shaggy looks more like a modern hipster—almost a handlebar mustache-and-beard type of thing. DRAW!: I forget the comedian’s name who’s on Silicon Valley. HP: Yeah! He would be a good one. I like him, he was in Deadpool also. DRAW!: So you’re not basing them on the original inspiration, which is the old Dobie Gillis characters? HP: They have similar elements to those original designs but with more modern day fashions, sort of. DRAW!: Does Fred still have his ascot?

HP: [laughter] Yep. Keith sort of updated the characters themselves. Fred and Daphne have a ghost-hunter type show that’s failing, and they are wearing their TV show uniforms which have the ascots. They’re all separated, and the first issue is how they all get together, an origin story. DRAW!: Is Daphne all hot now? Is she the “Ginger” to the “Mary Ann”? HP: Yes, she is attractive, but not in a pin-up girl kind of way. Velma is, like, five feet tall and kind of looks like Natalie Portman in The Professional. She’s a petite lady but with large funky glasses and a turtle neck. DRAW!: So Jim did the initial designs and you’re trying to work from his designs? Did you make yourself a model sheet? HP: Exactly, Jim did the initial cover, and then I did turnarounds for them from that. It was a great way to go, as I was almost immediately comfortable drawing them on the actual pages. Otherwise, it usually takes me a few issues to get to the point where I don’t have to keep referring to design references. DRAW!: Is the Mystery Machine still the Mystery Machine? HP: [chuckles] No. Well, it is, but no, it’s not. It’s a liberated military vehicle instead of the VW van. The van wouldn’t have gotten them out of the situation they have landed in. DRAW!: When you get the script and you’re drawing it, I imagine that the initial thing to pop into your mind is the cartoon, because that’s what you’re used to. HP: Yes, exactly right. Which is why I think people don’t really know what to expect from the book right now. It’s hard not to think of them as the kids who pulled masks off of old evil dudes.

DRAW!: Is that what you were saying? It’s a bit more of a difficulty because you think, “Oh, wait a minute. I’m not doing that....” HP: Yeah. My instinct is to do that, and I’m afraid people initially might be put off that it’s not the cartoony, fun feeling thing, but it’s more like The Walking Dead or something. [laughter] I mean, it’s fun and goofy too. DRAW!: Well, even when they did those movies with the CGI, it was kind of creepy in a way. HP: CGI is creepy. They still haven’t gotten it down perfectly. No matter how realistic it looks, it just looks like an animated corpse to me. I think that phenomena is called “uncanny valley.” However in the Scooby-Doo movies, yeah, he was was the one animated character, a mix between cartoony and real, and it’s a bit unnerving. DRAW!: Right, right. Because if he’s supposed to be kind of realistic, but then they design him kind of like the cartoon, then he really doesn’t look like a real Great Dane. HP: Exactly. Which is the way I have settled on depicting him, sort of. He’s a bit more realistic, or less cartoony anyway. DRAW!: When you were doing Justice League 3000, were you still doing traditional pencils or were you doing digital pencils? HP: On that—and I still almost do it this way—I would do thumbnails on the computer in a page template, and then go over them and do a tight rough still in the computer—just flesh it all out. And then I would print it out on a full-size board, and then light box that, tightly pencil it, and ink parts of it. Finally, scan it in and finish it in the computer. Now I’m skipping the part where I print it out and do it on paper. I just do it all in the computer.

One of Howard’s turnaround boards (right) based on Jim Lee’s initial cover image for Scooby Apocalypse #1 (above). Scooby-Doo and all related characters © Hanna-Barbera.

DRAW! SUMMER 2016

The Right Way, The Wrong Way, and The

OrdWay ! The art of thebySketch Cover Jerry Ordway

Caricature by Rachel Ordway

somewhat new niche has developed in the past few years, where publishers offer a blank “sketch cover,” a special variant for certain comic book titles. The first few sketch covers published did not have a great drawing surface, even though they were intended to be drawn on. The best tool you could use on them was a Sharpie brand marker. Lately though, publishers have seemed to standardize them with a heavierweight drawing paper that wraps the regular published version of the comic book. These are pretty decent to work on with a pencil, quill pen, marker, or even a brush and India ink. If you want to draw only on the front cover side, it’s not too difficult to fold the comic interior out of the way so you could use a light box to trace a preliminary drawing onto the surface. If you wish to draw on both the front and back cover, as I will show in my sample here, then it is much easier to carefully open and remove the staples on the comic, in order to separate the sketch cover paper. Save the staples and the rest of the comic for reassembly later. I approach a sketch cover blank differently in my studio than I would at a comic book convention. At a comic con, I will lightly sketch directly on the cover with pencil, and finish with Pitt brand marker pen and brush. In the comfort of my studio, I like to do a separate layout, or prelim, first. I will start by composing the scene on layout paper to lock down an image, which I then transfer to the actual comic cover paper via tracing through my light box. This eliminates a lot of sketch lines and erasing that can degrade the final drawing surface, which is especially important when using color and markers later on.

DRAW! SUMMER 2016

I used this older Jerry Robinson Joker cover from Detective Comics (left) as my inspiration for the new piece. I am a huge fan of Robinson’s Batman work, and many of his covers were iconic images. (above and top of next page) On my layout paper, I sketched a horizontal composition, which would fill both the front and back cover on the comic. I took pains to balance where the Joker’s head would fall, as I didn’t want the face bisected by the crease on the cover. I roughed in the drawing in pencil, and then refined the drawing with a fine point marker. Marker is easier to see through the lightbox than a pencil line, and makes for easier tracing.

Batman, Robin, Joker © DC Comics.

This stage went smoothly, though I needed to find reference for the Joker’s weapons. I could have faked the guns, but I like the extra detail found in a prop or photo.

As a comic book artist, I need to draw guns a lot, so I am always on the lookout for decent toy cap gun replicas to use for reference. As opposed to a single reference photo, a replica prop can be drawn from any angle, which is pretty handy. The “gun” I’m using here was purchased many years ago at a toy store in a simpler time, when replicas looked real, down to color. It has come in handy many times, though it’s important to realize it is not scaled for an adult hand size. You’ll need to draw it bigger so it doesn’t look like a toy! I hold it in position and draw it with the other hand. No need to take a picture.

DRAW! SUMMER 2016

My daughter introduced me to this Signo Uni-ball white ink pen, which is just great for adding speed lines, stars, or key lighting on a tonal drawing. They are similar to a paint pen, but with the small tip of a roller ball type pen. I love them! They’re great for corrections as well, because the line is thin and easy to control.

From start to finish, this one took approximately three hours. For me, these are a fun excuse to work in color, without having to haul out my watercolors and paints! Markers are also a great layering media, as you can overlay colors on top of each other, much like you’d do working in Photoshop.

My drawing is finished at this stage, so I’ll need to reassemble the cover onto the rest of the comic, carefully replacing the staples at the centerfold. Before I re-bind it, I make a full-sized scan for my files while it is flat.

Jerry Ordway is a penciler, inker, writer, and painter of comic books and graphic novels, primarily for DC Comics and Marvel Comics. He is best known for his work on Superman, Power of Shazam!, Crisis on Infinite Earths, Fantastic Four, and The Avengers.

DRAW! SUMMER 2016

jAMAL IGLE

into the MOLLY DANGER ZONE Interview conducted by Mike Manley and transcribed by Sean Dulaney DRAW!: You bumped into my buddy Jamar recently at a show. Was it in Brooklyn or something? Jamal Igle: It was in Harlem at the Black Comic Book Festival. DRAW!: How was that as an event? JI: It was insane. I went last year, and it was nowhere near as crowded as it was this year, and they actually had twice the amount of space. They are quickly outgrowing the Schomburg Library, so they are going to have to figure out something for next year. DRAW!: This is happening at every convention: they’re growing and growing and outgrowing their spaces. JI: Absolutely. The idea of comic books in the public sphere has sort of been re-energized. I think it’s not really so much we’re bringing new people in. We’re bringing back the lapsed Catholics of the comic book world. [laughter] But I also think you have to give Marvel a lot of credit for this. The Marvel movies have really done a lot to put the idea of superheroes back into kids’ heads. My daughter is almost eight, and the boys in her class are all about the Marvel superheroes. DRAW!: I teach a high school illustration class, and now you get kids who just know the characters from the movies. It’s a different fan. JI: I would agree with that. I used to teach at the Art Students League, and a lot of the students I had in my class were people who were either just getting into the Marvel stuff because of

the movies, or they were heavy into manga and anime. And I could definitely see that anime was… not really waning…. DRAW!: It’s “normal” now. JI: Yeah. More mainstream. DRAW!: I was having a talk with my students, giving them a little history of manga and anime, and saying, “Japanese artists were influenced by the Americans like Disney and the old comic strip artists. So you’re being influenced by [American artists], but as seen through their cultural lens.” JI: Right, exactly. When I was in high school, the big thing was stuff like Appleseed and Macross—Akira especially. Katsuhiro Otomo was huge with the guys I went to art school with. That started to seep its way into what a lot of the guys were doing back in the ’90s. I went to the High School of Art and Design. You’ve met [comic book artist] Buzz, right? DRAW!: Yes. JI: Buzz was the guy running our [school] comic book club, and he had a hook-up. It was a place in Manhattan that used to import videotapes from Japan and rent them out to people. So we got to see Akira, Macross, Project A-Ko. We got to see Bubblegum Crisis before most people had even heard of this stuff. DRAW!: Would you say that was a big influence on you at the time? JI: I don’t know that it was. I think from everything I was exposed to at the time, the two Japanese artists that had the biggest influence on me were [Katsuhiro] Otomo with Akira and Masamune Shrirow with Appleseed, because there was

DRAW! SUMMER 2016

Layouts for pages 7 and 8 of Molly Danger Book 1. After sketching and scanning, Jamal digitally places his photo reference directly into the panels of the layout. Molly Danger © Jamal Igle

such an illustrative quality to their work that I was immediately attracted to. I was already a huge fan of guys like Steve Rude, Jerry Ordway, José Luis García-López, and Dave Stevens. I was always more drawn to the illustrative side of comics, so those two artists in particular just sort of fell into my wheelhouse, because of the level of detail, and how lush their work was. DRAW!: I like all different kinds of cartooning styles, but Otomo is probably the guy that, his work—except for the faces—is the most naturalistic in a way. JI: I would agree. There’s much more of a cartoony quality to his faces, but the amount of actual raw emotion that he’s able to pull out of that cartooniness just works so well with the rest of his style. DRAW!: I’ve always thought he was akin to Moebius from that standpoint. Because Moebius did stuff that was a lot more cartoony, and then he could do stuff that was more straight. But his straightest stuff had a bit of cartooniness to it. JI: That’s true. There are parts of Blueberry that definitely have a comedic bent to it. I don’t know if that was intentional, or if it was just something that came out, but it was definitely there.

DRAW! SUMMER 2016

DRAW!: So you were more influenced by the manga artists than the cartoons, per se? JI: Yeah. And even now there’s sort of a disconnect for me with the cartoons as opposed to the actual manga. I think that that’s just my prejudice when it comes to illustration in general. I learned to respect more cartoony styles as I got older, but when I was in my formative years, I sort of eschewed the Disney, super-cartoony looking styles in almost a snobbish way. DRAW!: Like it wasn’t serious enough? JI: Yeah. I definitely thought it wasn’t serious. I had a very purist point of view when it came to illustration and figure work. I’ll give you the perfect example. I hated Jack Kirby’s work for decades. DRAW!: There was no access point for you? JI: No. My access point actually wasn’t any of the Marvel work. It was Fighting American. I got a copy of the Fighting American hardcover collection, and I was just like, “This can’t possibly be the same guy.” But then it forced me to look at Kirby’s later Marvel work, and it was like a light bulb went off in my head. Because I realized the Kirby that everybody loved was the guy who was already 20 years into his career and had figured out the formula.

Pencils for page 7 of Molly Danger. Molly’s facial expressiong in panel 1 has been changed to be more dramatic. And the rotation of the helicopter blades has been been changed to make for a better composition. Molly Danger © Jamal Igle

DRAW! SUMMER 2016

by Bret Blevins & Mike Manley

Plus+ing

Your Ideas

eeting and mentoring many artists between my teaching, guest speaking, lecturing, and conventions, one of the questions that I am asked the most by younger artists—some just starting out or already gaining footholds and involved in all sections of the entertainment business (comics, animation, illustration)—is, “How do I make my work better?” Quickly followed by: “How do I make my work cooler?” and, “Is there a shortcut of some kind to making my work stand out, or have a style? The truth is there are no short cuts in art, as much as we all would like there to be, but nope—honest, consistent practice is the only way. You will end up with a style no matter what as a natural part or growing and expressing yourself. There are no tricks like the click-bait ads that promise to burn away unwanted belly fat in ten days. In art there are no quick patches, but knowledge gained can have a fast effect on your process. Building skills takes practice and devotion, which should bring with it the growing skillset we all want. Like the smith in his forge working his steel, where each plunge in the furnace and folding makes the metal stronger, or the martial artist who builds up her skills and gains each belt based on skills she mastered with the previous one. Developing your art is an organic process, thus one artist’s abilities and advantages (perceived or not) may be another artist’s weaknesses, and one artist’s natural way of solving problems doesn’t always work for another artist. We are not all equal or start equal distances from the goal.

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This is a personality issue in my experience, not always a technical one. An artist’s personality type has a lot to do with their progress in so far as their ability to work hard and sacrifice, and to get over disappointments or frustrations and go at it again. That said, having done as much work as I have in my career in such a wide variety of styles and subject matter, I have come up with some strategies that seem to work for me, and which I can employ across the board in any job that requires composition as the key element. Composition affects drawing: the complexity, the shapes, clarity, mood, and the perspective. Theses are the most important factors to start with and are the most important to me. The composition must work beyond the prejudices of any personal style or school of drawing. It’s more “thinking” about what works pictorially for the whole image than about the anatomy of an arm or style of crosshatching. The young artist often trumps these fundamentals with worrying about style first. It all starts right as you begin to put something down on paper—the “conversion stage” as I like to call it. This is where you take an idea—a script page, a description of an event, a cover image, etc.—and turn it into a drawing and storytelling composition. A script or a description, no matter how well it is written or expressed, is still a very abstract thing until it’s put down on paper, whether in a comic, a storyboard, or an illustration. It’s very open to interpretation, and that interpretation starts with the roughest of scribbles or thumbnails which give it flesh,

as it were, on paper. That interpretation is based on the mind, personality, skills, and imagination of each individual artist. With a cover, you have to take several factors into account, like the logo and other cover dressing (any copy, banners, UPC codes, etc.), and eye flow or direction. In general, if there is action on the cover it should lead the eye from left to right, as this is the direction way we read. In essence, this also visually leads the reader to open the book.

My first three cover thumbs for Darkhawk #5 (see top of previous page) had Darkhawk facing off against Evilhawk, who we introduced in that issue as a new main adversary. The fight took place in the Museum of Natural History in New York City, and this allowed me to play with the idea of having the T. rex skeleton on the cover. I should mention, at the time I did these thumbnails, the way Marvel was structured, I would suggest a cover for a book by doing three cover concepts I would draw up and fax to the editor so we could talk them over. The covers were also run by John Romita, who was still the art director at the time, for final approval as well. But before I submitted any designs to Marvel, I would go through a self-editing/design process on the covers, starting with a series of thumbnails, then doing up the final sketch. This is what I call the “Plusing Stage” of a concept, idea, drawing, or design. You might ask what this “plusing” means

exactly. In short it is the stage in your design process where you look at your design or sketch and ask yourself, “How can I possibly make this idea better?” Here are some questions to ask yourself: • Is the image too average looking? • Are the poses clear but boring? • Is the composition too even or equal? • Do the figures and other elements overlap well? • Is the image confusing? • Is it too obvious? • Will the image entertain and/or grab the reader? • Does the image “sell” the idea? To answer any or all of these questions requires more sketching to prove whether the first sketch was sound or not. I will often take the camera for a spin through the drawing. I’ll try reversing the shot, lowering or raising the POV, and pushing the perspective, which changes the shapes in the composition. I’m always conscious of not simply accepting an idea, but exploring it to see if it works or if I can improve it—“plus it”—in any way. Sometimes you get stuck and just spin your wheels, and sometimes you decide the newer sketch is better. Sometimes after many sketches, you may decide you like your first idea best. But the worst is when you like one version and the editor likes another of the sketches submitted. That is always tough, but part of being a commercial artist is accepting that the client is always right. Luckily that hasn’t happened to me more than once or twice. Above are the two final cover ideas I submitted to the editor, taking even one more pass here. At left is the final cover to the issue. My core idea was as simple as two arrows clashing together. I still like the one with the T. rex and think it works, but the editor chose the other design, which shows off the character more—which considering this was a new book I am sure was his thinking.

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At right are two cover roughs I did for Deathlok #14. They both work, but upon consideration I felt that the first one, while clear, was also a bit even, which made it look less like Deathlok was in danger. The second was good as well, but I think the chosen sketch was better, as we get a full shot of ’Lok, and the monster seems much more of a threat, thus “plusing” the idea (which many a good comic cover uses to sell a book) that the character might die or be critically hurt or defeated. Below is the final cover for the book, based on the chosen sketch. Now the monster looms over Deathlok, making him dominate compositionally.

There were a lot of possibilities for the cover of Darkhawk #4 with a storyline that had Darkhawk in a jail, which you can see in the first sketch (next page, bottom left). But after talking over the idea more, I did a series of cover sketches (next page, bottom right) which resulted in the finished cover shown below.

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l Characters, Inc.

In this sketch for Darkhawk #1 (left), I initially went for more of a Will Eisner feel, with the figure of Darkhawk looming over the city. But maybe the idea was confused by having two figures of Darkhawk here on the first issue’s cove, so instead we went with Darkhawk right in the middle of the action fighting the bad guys. Simpler, clearer, and more dynamic.

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Draw #32