Complete Phase 1:
Messing around with shading:
Was waiting for a video to upload, so I managed to color this in about 20 minutes. You can tell I was rushed at the end, and went the lazy route of just a green background, because the video had finished. Despite the lazy ending, I do like how the coloring of Cutter and Skywise turned out.
I purposely did not color it to be exactly like the cover (mostly because I hate “white space” when I digitally color, because it feels incomplete).
Back in 2015, we were fortunate enough to be able to speak to Neal Adams for quite a long time, while he was doing book signings. Yesterday would be the anniversary of his passing, so I figured I’d dig this back up again.
Posted on February 16, 2015 by Comic Relief Podcast
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So… at long last, it finally happened! Neal Adams had done a comic book signing at Southern California Comics quite some time ago. Due to a series of mishaps, this episode kept getting put off (I wanted it for our 12th issue, anyway! Because back in the day – when comics were good – issue #12 was typically double sized in the comic world, because something special was going to happen!) Well, it seemed only fitting, since this is a comic book related podcast, that we would save this for Issue #12 of our podcast!
I won’t go into the “woes and whys” this episode took so long – but let’s just say, it gave me a very difficult time! But it’s done! It’s finally done!
As I said, the episode was recording during a comic book signing; so there is, unfortunately, a lot of background noise with people talking and what not (since it wasn’t a very controlled environment), and every time someone bumps or hits the tables we were using; the mics that were sitting on them would spike a loud noise. And then there was the jets from Mira Mar that would occasionally fly by! But all in all, it was a very fun time, and a great honor to be able to speak to Neal Adams. He has some great (and often times!) hilarious stories that he shared with us, as well as some insight about working in the comic book business, and the various different personalities you deal with (writers, fellow artists, editors, publishers, even assistants who say things they probably should not have said!)
Right click and save the file!
Now on iTunes!
00:00:00 – Neal Adams Intro!
00:00:30 – The Podcast Begins
00:01:15 – When Superman’s a Zombie, what does he eat?
00:01:30 – Is Maico trying to sell Neal Adams insurance?
00:01:45 – The Digital vs Print That’s Been Asked For The Last 10 Years
00:05:45 – Comics Have Become Very Mainstream (Hear That Europe?)
00:06:05 – How The Government Attacked Comic Books
00:08:30 – The Comic Book Code
00:11:40 – Who Is The Doctor That Should Be The Joker?
00:12:40 – Rex Asks Neal A Question About An Exodus And Quality
00:14:10 – How Is “Batman: Black And White” A Real Story?
00:16:40 – Let’s Talk Motion Comics
00:20:25 – Wait, What’s Neal Doing With Blood? Oh, The Comic…
00:21:30 – What Is Batman Odyssey? (It’s Not About Going To 7-11)…
00:29:00 – Comics In Other Media (Gotham, Agents of SHIELD, Arrow)
00:32:00 – So It Should Be Easy To Stalk Neal Adams?
00:32:30 – Superman vs Mohammad Ali (How Many People Are On The Cover?)
00:35:45 – What’s The Difference Between Marvel and DC Heroes?
00:38:45 – Guardians of the Galaxy – And Why Did Marvel Do It?
00:39:30 – Backgrounds Done In Pencil (3 for 3!)
00:40:45 – Editors And What They Do
00:44:10 – The Origin Of Neal Adams
00:48:35 – Working At Marvel And DC At The Same Time
00:51:45 – Most Difficult Character To Draw?
00:52:30 – Three Cows Shot Me Down
00:53:30 – You Should Watch What You Say
00:54:45 – The Secret Of “7-11 Coffee”
00:56:00 – Neal’s Assistant Buzz And Lotto/Scratch Cards
00:56:45 – Sex Shops And Neal’s Wife’s Luck (Sounds Dirty?)
01:00:00 – The Man Of Steel (And Hating Your Dad?)
01:01:25 – Neal’s Thoughts On The last Amazing Spider-Man Movie?
01:02:00 – Jim Aparo – Neal Adams Lite? Taste Good? Less Filling?
01:05:00 – All Good Things Must End
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Finally got around to attending WonderCon again (I think the last one I’d gone to was in 2019)… because, well 2020 was the COVID era, as were the following years, plus life got chaotic on my end.
This year, I had gone with my friend Chuck (whom I’ve known forever) and his son Matt.
This is all GoPro footage strapped to my hat. I added music, because the actual audio is muffled (it’s an old go pro that’s waterproof so capturing sound isn’t it’s thing, mostly for water sports and such) 😀
With the start of the New Year, I posted the following on Twitter to see what folks would pick – and picked my own.
Lucky number 7. Below are some teams – rolling into the New Year, imagine if for one year, the book could only have SEVEN members (no extra side roles to boost the numbers!) Who are your 7 for each book? Feel free to add whatever details you want as well!
For my Guardians of the Galaxy I went with:
1. Nova (Rich)
2. Darkhawk (Chris)
3. Starlord
4. Major Victory (older Vance)
5. Rocket Raccoon
6. Groot
7. Beta Ray Bill
I knew I wanted Nova and Darkhawk here. Both have really been powered up in comics and putting them in a more cosmic book felt right. Naturally, Starlord would remain because he’s become a household name because of the comics. I inserted Major Victory (of the original Guardians of the Galaxy comic) – because I thought the dynamic of Rich (former New Warrior) engaging in conversation with Major Victory (which is an alternate future version of Vance, from the New Warriors) would be amazing. Rocket and Groot you keep for the dynamic duo’s comedy. And Beta Ray Bill would help round up the power house side of things.
For my Young Avengers I picked:
1. Iron Heart (Riri)
2. Starling (Tiana Toomes)
3. Thunderstrike (Kevin Masterson)
4. Power Man (Victor Alvarez)
5. Ultra Girl
6. Portal (Charles Little Sky)
7. Deathcry (back from the dead)
Iron Heart seemed like the perfect leader (as a tie to Iron Man and his time in the Avengers). The Avengers have often had “former villains” on their team – and so Starling (who isn’t a villain but the granddaughter of Vulture) seemed like a fun fit. I also happen to like her look. Thunderstrike needs more attention – so Kevin having the power that formerly belonged to his father (Eric) makes a nice fit. Power Man seemed like another good fit – more for the street level brawn and knowledge. Ultra Girl, for that Kree aspect – that would bounce off of Deathcry – the Shi’ar side (also a character I loved), with Portal (another character I enjoyed) – learning to teleport more than himself and being their transport.
My Squadron Supreme wouldn’t be too different than the twelve issue limited series that I love of them.
1. Hyperion
2. Power Princess
3. Doctor Spectrum
4. Amphibian
5. Nuke (back from the dead)
6. Whizzer
7. Skylark
Essentially Squadron Supreme would operate to prevent things from getting close to Earth. They’d have a base that orbits Earth and keep an eye for threats on Earth as well as threats headed towards Earth.
My Defenders would pretty much be the New Defenders of the original series.
1. Angel (Warren)
2. Gargoyle
3. Valkyrie (Brunhilde)
4. Manslaughter
5. Andromeda
6. Cloud
7. Aegis (Trey Rollins back from the Dead on a mission from Athena)
Aegis would be restored to life by Athena and told to gather heroes. Valkyrie sees him – and sees an odd aurora about him – talks to him and learns that the Greek Goddess Athena senses great danger. Valkyrie contacts Angel, Gargoyle and Andromeda. Cloud returns as well, sensing some form of great danger. And because he detected their thoughts, Manslaughter joins them as well. They deal with whatever thing is coming – and continue to operate as the odd ball team.
My Avengers would be similar to the version of the team when Monica Rambeau joined them.
I’ve always loved that line up – and throw Black Knight in there, and I am quite happy with that version of the Avengers!
My Uncanny X-Men would be…
1. Cyclops
2. Jean Grey
3. Gambit
4. Rogue
5. Jubilee
6. Psylocke
7. Magik
I loved the Chris Clairemont/Jim Lee era of the X-Men and would put them as the main X-Men team. Magik would be there as their source of transport. I would have put Nightcrawler in Magik’s place – but since I also had Excalibur, that’s where I placed Nightcrawler.
Pixie would be their teleporter – while I think the idea of Mimic would be fun. He’s essentially like Rogue – but just needs to be in proximity of the people with powers!
Other than Aurora and Dazzler it’s the same team we saw Peter David put together. I added Aurora here because in the pages of X-Factor there was a connection between her and Wildchild (apparently). So the first story would be her coming to X-Factor to help track him down as he seems to have disappeared. During their search they come across Dazzler who joins in the hunt (having heard other mutants have gone missing as well).
I would have put Random on the team, as I really liked him, but…
This is pretty much you’re “go get’em” team. Cannonball has grown to be a leader – and he’s got a bunch of fighters out there. They’re out there doing what X-Force does best – taking down villains – hard. Ariel (from Fallen Angels) would be their teleporter.
My New Mutants wouldn’t be because they’re New Mutants – but they’re out there finding New Mutants and helping them. Moonstar takes leadership in helping this team stay on target – and Caliban is used to help track down mutants, with X-23 using her heightened senses once they get close.
When Generation X came out, I had high hopes this was going to be a huge success and these characters would go on to live long lives – but many of them were killed (Sync, Skin) – and they were characters I enjoyed. In my Generation X, Penance is separated from Monet and the two are individual people. Sunspot helps finance this team through a school he’s opened up to help new mutants that the New Mutants team often brings to them – with Husk, Skin, Sync, etc., all being teachers at the DaCosta Academy for Gifted Children.
Nightcrawler would lead this team, along side Captain Britain and Shadowcat. Khaos would return to the fold as would Cerise. One of the stories I’d do is finally laying to rest this damn “Phoenix Force” that keeps coming back. I’d shove it in Rachel and keep it away from Jean Grey so that Jean doesn’t keep dying and coming back needlessly.
Having taken away Northstar and Aurora to other teams, I’d add Witchfire who would be under the care of Shaman. Talisman (Elizabeth) is off in college, trying to put that whole super hero life behind her. Shaman would feel a little guilty because they’ve lost touch, but she’s proud of what she’s become – so he would turn that fatherly attention towards Witchfire who has deep connections with one of my favorite X-Men villains – Belasco. In this series, I’d also confirm through Shaman, that Marinna is free of mutating to her native species’ default form, to prevent that story from ever unleashing again.
It would essentially be the Thunderbolts that Busiek and Fabian created. Because that team was ridiculously perfect and every rendition of the Thunderbolts after Fabian’s run (including that odd wrestling run) – don’t even hold a flame to the this version of the Thunderbolts.
Similar to the Thunderbolts, sometimes you don’t need to mess with the perfect team roster that’s already been established. They’d return to their street level ways, from time to time, teaming up with other teams.
With Hawkeye over at the Thunderbolts, it’s Mockingbird who answers the call for a West Coast Avengers team to be resurfaced. She essentially pulls together some of the old roster (Tigra, Wonder Man, Hank Pym) – as well as others they got to know (Firebird and Living Lightning) – and being next to an ocean, bring in Stingray.
I freaking loved this series so much. It’s such a power house book. I loved the introduction of Ikon, who was a female Space Knight (similar to ROM). I would add Genis-Vell to this team (since I put Beta Ray Bill in Guardians of the Galaxy) because he’s a powerhouse and cosmic – and would fit perfect here. And because I loved him in the Nova Corps, I’d bring Morrow (the Mephitisoid – same race as Hepzibah from the Starjammers) and put him on this team representing the Nova force here. There could be a lot of headbutting between Gladiator, Genis-Vell, and Morrow to add some fun tension.
Although it’s the classic Champions logo, the team would be that same team currently calling themselves the Champions. I liked the idea that they were all “secondary” versions of an original name – which is why, Falcon would quickly change her name to Red Falcon out of protest. I originally had Dust in New Mutants and realized I put her in Champions too – so I’d swap out Dust on New Mutants for Cypher, which seems a better fit over there, considering the theme I had in mind.
So I was cleaning off one of my USB drives – and came across the chart Maico and I used for one of the podcasts where we judged X-Men by various things…
Click the images to see larger versions (then click the image again and it should go even larger!)
Tawmis’ high scores…
Maico high scores…
Back in 2014 (where has the time gone?) – on our second podcast, we talked about Batkid (who is a real person who loved Batman) and his battle with Leukemia and the great Make A Wish Foundation that helped make one of his dreams come true…
Well, this update just got posted 9 hours ago…
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