Comic Pants Podcast #35
We’re back with part two of our “top six artists of the moment.” David Martindale (D3), Randy Lander and Nick Budd continue their discussion about favorite artists, starting with our only unanimous choice.
As always, commentary is welcomed and encouraged. Let us know what you thought of the podcast, and if you have suggestions for future podcast topics, leave us a comment or write in to the show! Listeners who write in could win cool comics with each broadcast! Please drop us a line at comicpantsfeedback@gmail.com to give us some questions or comments for the next show.
Since this is a visually-oriented podcast, below you will find a slideshow full of sample art from the artists discussed in this show. We encourage you to view the images along with the podcast! Below you’ll find our list of favorites.
Randy Lander
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Nick Budd
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D3 (David Martindale)
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Cool choices again, guys but no Stuart Immonen? It would be impossible for me to pick even a top ten but Immonen would definitely be my number 1.
I may be wrong but didn’t Brian Denham draw the Gamorra parts in the recent issues of Nova? Sean Chen is a good choice though, I’ll be checking out his new DC villain miniseries which I can’t remember the name of right now
04 Sep 2007 at 1:27 pm
QuoteI can’t get the podcast to play through any of the options. Trying to play it through the site causes it to just go into buffering limbo and trying to save the file as a download creates an unplayable html file.
04 Sep 2007 at 5:04 pm
QuoteI can’t get it to work either.
Maybe the podcast needs a re-up?
04 Sep 2007 at 6:30 pm
QuoteI really enjoyed the Podcast. I love the fact that you included a number of unsung heroes such as Leonard Kirk. By the way Kirk did do a long run on PAD’s Supergirl.
05 Sep 2007 at 11:21 am
QuoteRe: Kyle Hotz — I’ve been a fan of Kyle Hotz’s work for some time. He’s been working steadily in the industry since the mid 1990s. I think my first exposure to his art was in the Malibu Ultraverse title The Night Man.
05 Sep 2007 at 12:17 pm
QuoteOnly thing I can say is just keep trying. The server that hosts the podcast has crashed more than once this week, but our hosting company assures us that everything is fixed now. Sorry for any inconvenience.
05 Sep 2007 at 1:00 pm
QuoteAlthough I was barred from participating in the podcast because I forgot to wear my comic pants that day, if I had been there…my batch of picks would’ve been as follows:
John Romita Jr. - Not every panel from World War Hulk is a winner, but for the net effect - Kirby’s bravura by way of Fight Club’s grit - I’m really enjoying his work again.
Brandon Graham - Absolutely the freshest artistic voice on the scene. A little Moebius, a little Vaughan Bode, and a lot of stuff I don’t recognize. That’s a good thing.
David Petersen - I don’t think the new Mouse Guard had hit when y’all recorded the podcast, but it has now and Petersen definitely deserves props. It’s not often a new artist appears with a visual aesthetic so unique and defined it’s like his style sprung fully-grown, no development time needed! And he’s a double threat, with strong linear art and jaw-dropping coloring skills. That first issue of the new series about froze my nipples off, it looked so cold. (But I still wish Petersen’s characters were more expressive)
Roger Cruz - Cruz has been surprising me on X-Men: First Class. I had to warm up to him on the previous series, but now I’m really diggin’ him and he’s absolutely bringing his A-game. What I like about him is the sense of youthtful vibrance he brings to the series, the wide variety of expressions, and, of course, the well-choreographed action sequences. I think he’s still honing his craft, but I could see him being the next Adrian Alphona.
Olivier Coipel - So what if his Thor armor looks like a quilt! In all other ways he’s proving to be a perfect artist for the series, balancing the grandeur of the character with expertly drawn scenes of mundane Midwestern life. Great designs on Asgard too. You need an artist with a bit of vision on Thor, and Coipel appears to have the right stuff.
Becky Cloonan - American Virgin has been so good lately, with Cloonan particularly bringing the goods on character design, facial expressions that showcase a touch of manga influence, and a control of line weight that always makes for a slick aesthetic. Plus her work always looks sexy and innocent simultaneously - how perfect is that for this series?
05 Sep 2007 at 1:28 pm
QuoteDave, it’s not that you forgot to wear your comic pants, it’s that you refused to wear *any* pants, instead wearing only a sombrero and suspenders.
But I can’t find fault with any of your picks. Neither Coipel or Romita Jr. are on my current favorites list, but that’s mostly because I’ve seen them do better work than their current projects. They’re still both kickass artists, and World War Hulk does indeed look pretty gorgeous in general.
05 Sep 2007 at 2:00 pm
QuoteI love the Comic Pants podcast. BTW, Travel Foreman was doing Cla$$wars for Com.X before he came over to Marvel, where he did the Dr. Spectrum limited series.
My personal picks would be:
Adrian Alphona
John Cassaday
Eduardo Risso
Frank Quitely
Stuart Immonen-after seeing his first full issue of Ultimate Spidey
outside pick: Yoji Shinkawa
05 Sep 2007 at 4:34 pm
QuoteI just looked up Kyle Hotz after this podcast piqued my curiosity, and I’m impressed. I can see the Kelley Jones influence Randy mentioned, but the name that really pops out at me when I see his work is “Sam Kieth” - except less exaggerated, and in a way maybe even better for me. Love to get my hands on some of his horror comics.
05 Sep 2007 at 6:41 pm
QuoteYeah, I can totally see that. Hotz does have a fair amount in common with the Kieth stuff, although as you say, it’s a bit more restrained stylistically.
Definitely recommend Annihilation Conquest: Wraith and The Hood from Marvel, for Hotz stuff. And I know he’s done some other stuff I’ve liked, maybe at Dark Horse?
05 Sep 2007 at 9:36 pm
QuoteMike Deodato’s artwork on Thunderbolts is damn good, and I agree that it is the visually dark tone of the book that makes it work so well. That tone wasn’t there on his Amazing Spiderman run or New Avengers ‘The Collective’ arc. Or it was there and didn’t fit because I personally didn’t care for it anywhere near as much. His work on the Incredible Hulk, starting around #50, was full of shadow and dark realistic tones and, once again; great stuff.
My top six:
1. Deodato on T-bolts
2. Takeshi Miyazawa, solely for the Heroes for Hire #12 cover, I love that
3. Alex Maleev, for CW Confession, and Scarlet Witch issue of New Avengers
4. Amanda Conner, for the way Power Girl flies when she is downbeat
5. Jordi Bernet on Jonah Hex. It’s like Joe Kubert crossed with Asterix (to me)
6. Ryan Kelly, because Local is amazing every time it comes out
Just outside/in: Steve Epting
06 Sep 2007 at 7:17 am
QuoteHe did a cool Goon short story which is in the 2nd Goon trade. That was my first introduction to his work. I’ve since read The Hood & Wraith, and i have to agree with everybody, the guy is a damn fine artist.
And seeing as everyone else is doing it, here’s my (current) list:
1. Stuart Immonen
2. Darwyn Cooke
3. Olivier Coipel
4. JH Williams III
5. Ducan Fegredo
6. Mike Perkins
06 Sep 2007 at 10:22 am
QuoteKyle Hotz’ recent work on the Agency was great, and I believe he also drew the latest Cal McDonald opus with Steve Niles.
06 Sep 2007 at 4:43 pm
QuoteMike Hotz donated one of his kidneys to me. He also taught me how to walk again after a car accident. I also heard that he paid all the artists that the Dabel brothers owed money to out of his own pocket.
07 Sep 2007 at 3:06 pm
QuoteThat’s pretty awesome of him. Does he know Kyle Hotz?
07 Sep 2007 at 4:21 pm
QuoteDan, you haven’t listened to the podcast yet, have you?
Kyle Hotz is merely a great artist. Mike Hotz is a man among men, who has brought peace and love like Prometheus once brought fire. He travels the highways and byways of life, helping those in need and serving up helpings of sweet, sweet lovin’ and homemade biscuits.
07 Sep 2007 at 5:47 pm
QuoteI only partook of the biscuits.
07 Sep 2007 at 6:41 pm
QuoteAre you kidding me? I don’t listen to podcasts that don’t have me in them. That would be silly.
08 Sep 2007 at 12:28 am
Quotemine are, in no particular order:
David Petersen
John Cassaday
Frank Quiteley
Darwyn Cooke
John Romita Jr
Stuart Imonnen
Petersen and Cooke are writer artists and personally i don’t think there is anything cooler thah that in the whole of comics. Cassaday kicks major A, Quitely is possibly the finest comics artist around Romita Jr is a LEGEND and Immonen brought us nextwave and is surprisingly refreshing on UltSpidey. I’d be very interested to har critiques of any of these guys.
RIP Mike Wieringo
09 Sep 2007 at 11:04 am
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