The Merciless Destroyer!

In last week's The Marvels Project #7, we saw the appearence of an old, Golden Age character called The Destroyer.

Back in the mid-80's, I had no idea this character existed when I created a character called The Merciless Destroyer. Like the Marvel hero, he had his origin set in World War II. His daughter later took up the mantle, as seen below on a page from my Directory to a Nonexistent Universe comic. (Read more about the Directory here.) Click on it to enlarge and read.

When I created this, Buffy the Vampire Slayer didn't exist. I named my character "Buffy" because the name was connected with traits of being very girly and delicate. It's probably why Josh Whedon also picked it for his movie, which later spawned the TV show. The title itself had an ironic hook. Today, I suspect many people connect the name with being tough! (Which kinda makes sense since it has the word "buff" in it.)

Anyway, I read somewhere that The Marvels Project writer Ed Brubaker wanted to bring the Destroyer back as a mainstream Marvel character existing today. I hope he does it exactly like I did.

What's Your Brotherhood Quotient?

(I almost didn't make this post. I've always been caught between "ignoring old attitudes of the past" and "never ignoring old attitudes of the past.")

I recently bought an issue of The Brave and the Bold #65, from 1966.


I enjoy old comics partly because of the ads, but I didn't expect to find anything like the following "public service" page. Click to enlarge, if you wish...


The most astounding section has got to be Section A.


Got give 'em credit for trying, I suppose. Still, something in me really wants to make fun of how random it feels...

Driving and Hand Signals

Several years ago, I was toying with the idea of doing a comic which would consist of short stories about random subjects. I drew a two-page ditty about driving, using myself as the main character. I really didn't enjoy drawing myself. I eventually decided that a comic with a more interesting character, or characters, would have more appeal. Soon, Halo and Sprocket was born. If you're a reader of H&S, you may recognize this story. I eventually redrew it with Katie as the main character. Click on images to enlarge.

Spectrum Fantastic Art

This weekend, I was honored to be one of the five judges on the Spectrum 17 jury, along with illustrators Iain McCaig, Rebecca Guay, Bill Carman , and publisher John Fleskes. It was a great group, both in the quality of judges and the content of entries. If you don't already know, Spectrum is an annual of the very best in contemporary fantastic art. We had some really tough decisions to make, but it was a joy to hang out with such fun, talented, and experienced people. I want to give a big thanks to Arnie and Cathy Fenner for inviting me to be a part of it all. This Spectrum link has more about the jury process. This link shows the winners!

It occurred to me that even though my full-time occupation is a Design Studio Manager (which involves developing concepts, art directing & evaluation, etc.), my web presence consists mostly of me just clowning around or goofing off. I thought I'd note that, just so you know my life doesn't only consist of things like noting how much Galactus's helmet looks like a frog.

A Cover With Impact

I recently ran across the cover to Lois Lane #119. It caught my eye because of the nice energy in the characters' poses.

Of course, after seeing it, I had to change Superman's dialog.

When you care enough to send the obscure.

I got some vintage DC Superhero Valentines (from 1982) for Valentine's Day. I created the above image from one of them. Below are others...

Pretty recognizable characters, huh? Can anyone out there explain Mister You-make-me-feel-like-a-hero? We don't even get a power-related pun to go with him!

Is it some type of Thanagarian lingerie perhaps?

Vintage Top Cat Toys

I own a set of Top Cat toys from the 1960's. I believe they compose a game consisting of setting up the figures and then trying to knock them over with the accompanying shoes. Usually, when I come across an old book/toy/object, I can find it on the internet. It's fun to see the original packaging, or approximate value, etc. I can't find these anywhere!

I'm hoping someone who sees this might know more about them...