I have the great pleasure of working on a Green Lantern story with characters John Stewart and HawkGirl in an 8 page story that a part of a 100 page comic that will celebrate 80 years of the Green Lantern due out June 23Rd! My birthday! And what’s even cooler is that I’m working with Writer Charlotte Fullerton McDuffie, widowed Wife of the legend Dwayne McDuffie ONE of the creators of Milestone media, writer and producer of the animated series StaticShock and Ben 10…. and of the cartoon series JUSTICE LEAGUE. And Charlotte and I did an interview about it at https://www.denofgeek.com/comics/green-lantern-and-hawkgirl-team-up-in-tribute-to-beloved-dc-writer/?amp&__twitter_impression=true

By all means, check it out as we both use our collaboration to celebrate the talent and the life of Dwayne McDuffie.

It’s a really odd pairing, I know… having to draw a “realistic superhero ” paired with a known Hanna-Barbera cartoon character, but when I got an email from DC editor Jim Chadwick to do a cover with BLACK LIGHTNING and HONG KONG PHOOEY…. I would be crazy to turn that down! I was in the middle of doing my second book of KINO with Lion Forge , when I got the email, and at the end of the schedule, I took to getting it done. Only they didn’t tell me that I had to morph the cartoon so that in visual concept, HONG KONG PHOOEY looked like he was in the same physical universe as BL. What DC got was THIS…..

…. which caused all manner of confusion, because I was never told to make HONG KONG PHOOEY look “real”. It was supposed to be THIS:

…. admittedly, Jim Chadwick and I chuckled about this cover. I mean, how ridiculous does it look? How can HKP look like he’s going to kick butt looking like one of the Laff-O-lympics? How can BL be taken seriously?

LUCKILY, he gave me another go at it. And you have the second one in the books. And Gabe Eltaeb did a great job with the color work.

Can you imagine if they let the first One PASS?

HOKY MOLEY! 😉

    There is a full discussion brewing.  And has been for a long time but is now picking up steam.  

CREDIT 

Not the card, not a future opportunity with your lovemuffin because you took out the garbage, …

It’s about the work you do and getting honor for it.  If you put your all into a project that involves MANY people and you have to vie for recognition, Is it worth your time?

This is the first of a series of videos by host Snakebite Cortez that many freelance artists and myself in various fields of entertainment give you a refresher course and great advice about why you DESERVE CREDIT for what you do.  

Here’s the next video timelapsed into 30 or so seconds featuring a really great looking character, named GIN-GR ….. One of many characters that push the concept of X-O along 

Enjoy.

Three weeks ago, Joshua Johns , editor at Valiant Entertainment, emailed that he wanted to have me do some sketch cards to celebrate X-O MANOWAR 50.   I did TEN SKETCHCARDS ….. Four of which I did a time-lapsed video of four of those images.  I had fun doing it and the video should give everyone who views it a touch of what it looks like to have artists drawing for fun.  

I hope you enjoy the next couple of posts. 

    I was asked by Action Lab, which is an up and coming indie comics publisher who has an ever growing league of titles, to do an alternate cover for Midnight Tiger, which has been a mainstay for Action Lab for years now. The characters Molly Danger, Fracture, Midnight Tiger , The Stray,and others are forming the ACTIONVERSE , which  is a shared universe from multiple creators like Vito Delsante, Jamal Igle, Ray Anthony Height, Shawn Gabborin, Chad Cicconi, (and my apologies this I missed….)

     I want the guys to succeed so I showed my support by drawing their characters on a Midnight Tiger’s cover which I had a great time doing.   Here’s the cover with and without the logo and the header. I’ll show the colored version as soon as I get that image. 

It was great drawing Molly Danger, The Stray, Fracture, and Midnight Tiger… And it reminded me just getting into the business drawing costumed heroes.  There’s an exuberance there and innocence that’s gone from the industry now. 

But now represented here. 

Enjoy.    
 

     Sometime ago, I was contacted through Shawn Martinbrough ( artist for Thief of Theives, a Robert Kirkman joint) and Eric Battle (of Aquaman fame) that a cool PuertoRiciño named Edgat Miranda RODRIGUEZ was looking for artist to help him with a cause through his Somos Artè Creative Studio (www.somosarte.com) using comic styled illustrations to bring attention to an art showing he had approved by Marvel.   Even got Joe Quesada (EIC) into the game and it went off without a hitch. Got media attention that crossed from comic art into hip hop music with MTV used as a vehicle to get the word out.  It was a crowning success for him, and it showed me the perseverance of a man.  
I donated the 90’s version of Storm from the X-Men in her vintage Mohawk.   It was a cool iconic shot.  I’ll post that soon.  
From time to time when time permits, Edgardo and I keep in touch and you can see if you ever talk to him, he wants to be in comics.  So I guess after he managed to get within airspace of the legendary rap artist and pioneer DMC, HE THOUGHT…..” Wouldn’t it be cool to get Darryl to be a superhero and he ACTUALLY love that idea?”  

Well, he didn’t say ” no”.  😉

I get an email from Edgardo telling me his plans to really do this thing right and he hatches a plan with DMC to create a graphic novel company that will house hip hop with the comic art culture and wants me to do an homage cover for him.  He has this cariño for iconic covers from the 90’s.  He wants me to mimic Frank Miller’s Dark Knight.  

I got no problem with THAT.  

SO HEARS THE THING….. In replicating Frank Miller’s art, you get to get in his spirit.  He’s ultra-interpretive. And in order to draw the way Frank does, you know he had to understand the process of drawing correctly in order to go full technique to “cannibalize” that process. And STILL make it look awesome.  Like King Kirby.  

I had great fun with this piece.  And it was great to work with DMC (Darryl Makes Comics) as a company.  I’m sure DMC was laughing in joy seeing a dream like this fulfilled with artists that are serious about the craft.  

There are at least 34 different covers done by many artists from various places on this planet, from various homages to iconic covers.  If you’d like to check them out, hit his website in which Edgardo is the Editor-in-Chief….. http://www.dmc-comics.com/.
Here’s my contribution.   
   

A couple of weeks ago, my wife learned that an ex co-worker of hers passed away from many physical complications due to some health issues and some surgeries.  Not a good combination. And he was fairly young.  

His name was Christopher Pecoraro.  

He left behind a son with the same name and some great artistic talents of his own.  

My wife told me his son was a big fan of mine and she thought it would be great to hire me for a commission.   

You know my wife wasn’t paying me.  Lol.  

But she told me those that were close to him that Chris enjoyed many things, but one of his obsessions was DRAGONS.  They wanted something with him and dragons.  So, I thought how coo it would be to surf a dragon to Heaven and Chris’ Father in pure ecstasy enjoying the ride.  Make it happy.  Make it glorious.  It should heal as much as bring closure.   

Which I’m truly all about.   Let the work do the hugging. 

So I went to work on it.  And when I finished, what my wife saw in disjointed layers became the virtual hug I was looking for.  

I don’t get to draw dragons much.  It’s ashame.  Because I dug it.  And so did Christopher, Papa Chris’ son.  

I got reports of holding back tears, and laughing, to the surprise of how much I captured not just the look of Chris, but his spirit.  

That is the prime compliment to any artist.  It just makes us want to draw more.  

In comics, many artists have to be constantly annoyed over people who don get it critiquing your work.  In the real world, the people who SEE it, get it.  And when you’ve affected their lives with but an image, it’s the food that fills our stomachs.  It rejuvenates us as much as it brings joy to those who are the recipients of our alms to their personal pain or craving of imagination. 

The DEFINITION of being a DREAMWEAVER.  

SO, to son Christopher, through my wife Jennifer, I’m glad I was a conduit of joy in any confusion and grief you’re going through.  Be the man your father was.  Make him proud. 

Wrench the planet with your talent. 

And ride the Heavenly Dragon. 

These are comments that just makes you keep drawing. Especially from Chris William Pecoraro, Christopher’s son. 

And here’s the commission.  

Enjoy.  

Christopher in detail

I got a call from Eric Moran… Also known as The Smoke from his wrestling days…

COSPLAYER SUPREME.  So SUPREME, it seems he got Dan DiDio, executive Editor of DC Comics to make an actual character of him named Freighttrain.   This real life superhero does cosplay for the people of DoDECA Con every year since they’ve started.  But couldn’t do it this year because he was overbooked with his engagements,  and asked Myself, Joseph Illidge ( writer and editor of many DC comics books like The Batman and long time bestie) and Larry Stroman, who helped to create a comic called Tribe in the ’90’s and also worked on a slew of X-books for Marvel including Alien Legion….

…To step into his shoes at this bazaar, help some people get set on the right track by showing them all the ropes of breaking in into the comics biz.

And it was a touch odd at first after we got there.  Less on the comic front more on the COSPLAYER Circuit. But some great things came out of it,….. Joe, Larry and I got to know the people of the area.  And they were eager to meet us and eager to learn about the process of not just comics, but of finding out their own futures.

One of them being a really cute fifteen year old young woman who just may be taking her sophmore classes from her high school at M.I.T.   That young woman impressed me the most.  And blame me for going all “DADDY” on her and arming her with some knowledge on not being pressured by young men in a way that would make her lose her forward steam.

The treatment we got from there was awesome. And there’s media coverage with an article written about the occasion by a columnist named ALICIA STICE.

CONGRATS to TONI WESTBROOKS-TAYLOR and Husband for a successful launch.  They raised over 1100.00 to feed hungry families.  It still needs tweaking, but if they did a bit more and it’s cohesive too,  they’ll have a comparable con that could take on everyone.

http://www.columbiatribune.com/news/local/local-convention-gives-students-a-taste-of-geek-culture/article_03e944f5-c210-57e5-a85b-62c3ec4a931d.html

Check out the article!  And then some of the pics of me, Joe, Larry, and CosPlayers Dave Turner, husband to the Amazing Ivy Doomkitty and the beautiful Samantha Wolfe below!