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(((Attention all style savy comic book nerds)))

post #1 of 19
10/22/09 at 1:10am
Thread Starter 
I give you a comic book with so much style that it's practically dripping with... style! But seriously, the art and paneling are amazing. I've read the source material and didn't care for it much, but Darwyn's presentation is so amazing it gives it a sort of weight that allows me to appreciate it. And whats wrong with there being more to like in this world? Eh?

http://www.idwpublishing.com/pdf/parker/Parker_ch01.pdf
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post #2 of 19
10/22/09 at 1:46am
Darwyn does some great stuff. His take on Catwoman was probably the most stylish ever done. Much superior to the tarted up, big-boobed version other artists draw.

I also liked his New Frontier (though not as much as some folks) and enjoyed his take on the Spirit.

Thanks for the link. I like Cooke and I like Parker, so I will check this out.
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post #3 of 19
10/22/09 at 2:07am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by DocHolliday View Post
Darwyn does some great stuff. His take on Catwoman was probably the most stylish ever done. Much superior to the tarted up, big-boobed version other artists draw.

I also liked his New Frontier (though not as much as some folks) and enjoyed his take on the Spirit.

Thanks for the link. I like Cooke and I like Parker, so I will check this out.

Yeah, I back tracked and discovered Selina's Big Score. I'm reading it now. Prior to the Parker thing he did a run on this collection DC issued called Solo that had some great stuff in it. If you don't mind me asking, what didn't you like about New Frontier? I remember skimming through it and thinking it could be pure comics along the lines of Batman Year One or that Dare Devil origin story Frank Miller did with John Romita Jr. Just a great technical and cultural example of the form. Also, I'll have to check out the Spirit. Both his writing style and his art would work wonders, I would think. Thanks for mentioning that.
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post #4 of 19
10/22/09 at 2:16am
I dunno, it just didn't thrill me. Seemed a bit overstuffed. I enjoyed bits and pieces, and loved the art, but found the whole less than the sum of its parts.

Maybe my expectations were too high. Darwyn Cooke + mid-century America + Silver Age ... the concept hits all my buttons, but the story itself didn't do it for me the way, say, the original League of Extraordinary Gentlemen did.

I probably ought to read it again before I pass judgment on it.
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post #5 of 19
10/22/09 at 2:21am
Cooke's work on The Spirit was excellent. I never caught his Catwoman series but New Frontier kind of blew.
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post #6 of 19
10/22/09 at 2:30am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by DocHolliday View Post
I dunno, it just didn't thrill me. Seemed a bit overstuffed. I enjoyed bits and pieces, and loved the art, but found the whole less than the sum of its parts.

Maybe my expectations were too high. Darwyn Cooke + mid-century America + Silver Age ... the concept hits all my buttons, but the story itself didn't do it for me the way, say, the original League of Extraordinary Gentlemen did.

I probably ought to read it again before I pass judgment on it.

Ah, I getcha. I think I've experienced the same thing. I remember hearing how great The Long Halloween was and I got it and really wanted to be pulled in by the noir-ish art and the mystery novel aspects of it. I start reading it and I'm like "Oh no, Batman Villains: Greatest Hits". The episodic appearance of the villains just seemed to make the whole thing overtly contrived and well, comic-y (should be no surprise, right?) I can see how The New Frontier could be guilty of the same. hifalutin' ensemble pieces and all. I should have my hands on the NF in a few, I'll drop a line here.
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post #7 of 19
10/22/09 at 2:32am
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Rambo View Post
Cooke's work on The Spirit was excellent. I never caught his Catwoman series but New Frontier kind of blew.

Ah man, you guys are bringing me down. How about you? What about NF didn't mix well with you?
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post #8 of 19
10/22/09 at 2:51am
Now that I've puzzled it over a bit more, I think for me the issue was that the massive scope of the project, and the sheer number of characters used, left me wanting more from certain parts of the story and rushing through other segments I didn't really care about. A "big" story still needs to connect at an intimate level, and quite a bit of NF didn't, at least for me. I admired it more than I liked it, if that makes sense.

Morrison can take lesser-known characters and make them engaging. New Frontier, on the other hand, requires a certain affection from the start.
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post #9 of 19
10/22/09 at 3:01am
Quote:
Originally Posted by DocHolliday View Post
Now that I've puzzled it over a bit more, I think for me the issue was that the massive scope of the project, and the sheer number of characters used, left me wanting more from certain parts of the story and rushing through other segments I didn't really care about. A "big" story still needs to connect at an intimate level, and quite a bit of NF didn't, at least for me. I admired it more than I liked it, if that makes sense. Morrison can take lesser-known characters and make them engaging. New Frontier, on the other hand, requires a certain affection from the start.
This. Plus, I really just didn't think the story was all that great. The art was cool in a retro sort of way.
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post #10 of 19
10/22/09 at 3:20pm
I had some trouble with the download, but the art style reminded me of Howard Chaykin.
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post #11 of 19
10/22/09 at 6:51pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by countdemoney View Post
I had some trouble with the download, but the art style reminded me of Howard Chaykin.

Hmmmmm... in what way? I think they have similar concepts of masculinity and femininity when it comes to physicality and various throwback stylings. They also utilize character branding quite a bit via dress and features. Chaykin seems like he's in a middle ground between cartoonist and "realist" whereas I think Darwyn could be argued to be in the almost pure cartoon camp. In the Hunter, Parker's dynamism is expressed by a sort of stretching physicality from time to time. That is sort of a cartoonist liberty. For example, Parker has no real face. He's (relatively) simply drawn and this allows him to be complimentarily (sp?) portrayed for dramatic effect. At times, he seems to resemble Jack Palance, James Dean, and Paul Newman and it never causes you to question the artistic liberties being used. In short, Darwyn's stylings allow him to be a bit more mercurial. I think Chaykin can have this sort of realism gone garishly absurd sort of thing when he wants to, for instance, American Flagg's main character. Damn, what a face. You can't confuse that very (a)Merica' presentation. It damn near immediately grounds him in satire. It's incredibly effective. That said, even when Chaykin is at his most absurd his art always bears some sort of resemblance to realism.
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post #12 of 19
10/22/09 at 7:02pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by boogaboogabooga View Post
I give you a comic book with so much style that it's practically dripping with... style! But seriously, the art and paneling are amazing. I've read the source material and didn't care for it much, but Darwyn's presentation is so amazing it gives it a sort of weight that allows me to appreciate it. And whats wrong with there being more to like in this world? Eh?

http://www.idwpublishing.com/pdf/parker/Parker_ch01.pdf

I can appreciate the style of the illustration, but for some reason I just don't have any patience for the medium of comic books. I can't explain why.
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post #13 of 19
10/22/09 at 7:20pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tagutcow View Post
I can appreciate the style of the illustration, but for some reason I just don't have any patience for the medium of comic books. I can't explain why.

It's cool. I got a room mate who's the same way. If it ain't on a visceral level, it ain't on a visceral level.
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post #14 of 19
10/26/09 at 2:07am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by DocHolliday View Post
Now that I've puzzled it over a bit more, I think for me the issue was that the massive scope of the project, and the sheer number of characters used, left me wanting more from certain parts of the story and rushing through other segments I didn't really care about. A "big" story still needs to connect at an intimate level, and quite a bit of NF didn't, at least for me. I admired it more than I liked it, if that makes sense.

Morrison can take lesser-known characters and make them engaging. New Frontier, on the other hand, requires a certain affection from the start.

Hey Doc, I'm about 2 issues into New Frontier. So far I'm really digging it. It's sort of scary though, I'm really digging the Martian and wondering why it is that I empathize so much with characters probably based on people with Asperger's. Also, it feels as though my 2 shots of gin have finally kicked in. Ah, nice. If only I had some tonic.
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post #15 of 19
10/26/09 at 4:53pm
I can't say I'm familiar with the series you've mentioned but when I was into comics I was always (and still am) floored by the detail and quality of Tim Vigil's work in the original Faust series.

http://img524.imageshack.us/img524/5...mned092xa6.jpg
http://strangereaction.com/wp-conten...9/08/faust.jpg
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