An awful lot has been written about longtime inker Vince Colletta, most of it not good. These days, the man's primary claim to fame is having inked several years' worth of Jack Kirby's pencils on THOR. In doing so, Colletta would routinely simplify backgrounds and eliminate details or even whole figures in order to make … Continue reading The Unknown Vince Colletta
Tag: EC
Brand Echh – Heroes, Inc. #1
By 1969, with comic book sales beginning to fall as the 60s fad for super heroes ran its course, enterprising creators began to look for greener pastures, to get out from under the thumb of often-unscrupulous publishers and to be their own bosses and make their own way. One of these creators was Wally Wood, … Continue reading Brand Echh – Heroes, Inc. #1
THE LAST MAN
EC Comics were never the biggest sellers even during their heyday, but they were consistently the market leader in terms of the quality of the material they were routinely putting out and the manner in which they attracted a dedicated audience of somewhat-older readers. There's a reason why those five years' worth of EC Comics … Continue reading THE LAST MAN
BHOC: THE COMIC-BOOK BOOK
As I think I've spoken about in the past, I came from a family of readers. Both my father and my mother would read books regularly, and it was this love of reading that helped make it acceptable and unquestioned that I had an interest in comic books--they understood that reading was reading. And so … Continue reading BHOC: THE COMIC-BOOK BOOK
Great Covers – TWO-FISTED TALES #26
A powerful Harvey Kurtzman TWO-FISTED TALES cover, in which Kurtzman employs his expressive and bold rendering style to its utmost. The haunting eyes of this snowbound marine are the perfect focal point, and seem to follow your gaze.
Great Covers – MAD #23
It’s the final comic book format issue of MAD before its transition into one of the most popular magazines of the 20th Century, and artist and editor Harvey Kurtzman eschews any visuals in order to get MAD’s particular philosophy across.
Great Covers – CRIME SUSPENSTORIES #22
This is probably the most infamous EC cover ever produced, and it led indirectly to the end of the line. This Johnny Craig CRIME SUSPENSTORIES cover was brought out as evidence during publisher Bill Gaines’ testimony before the Senate Committee investigating the link between comic books and juvenile delinquency in the 1950s. When asked if … Continue reading Great Covers – CRIME SUSPENSTORIES #22
Great Covers – CRIME SUSPENSTORIES #20
Boom. This Johnny Craig CRIME SUSPENSTORIES cover is like a bomb going off. It’s not overtly gory, but it’s way more disturbing than covers that showed a lot more blood and guts.Great use of color as well.
Great Covers – MAD #14
So simple, but it tells you everything you need to know about the magazine. MAD cover by Harvey Kurtzman and Leonardo Da Vinci
Great Covers – CRIME SUSPENSTORIES #23
A positively brutal George Evans cover to CRIME SUSPENSTORIES from the justly-lauded EC line of comics. Everything just works about this one–the intensity, the color palate, the diagonal of the rowboat and the girl’s leg. The man’s eyes and teeth in white form the focal point of the image. Great work all around.