Category: Comics

MARSHALL ROGERS WEEK at the ZONE concludes, as it had to, with Marshall’s take on Batman. Over the years there have been a hundreds of artists who’ve worked on the Dark Knight.  Few have had the lasting impact that Marshall Rogers did as a young buck breaking in to the business. While credit must also be given to the stories that Steve Englehart wrote and the inks that Terry Austin provided, no one can argue that Marshall Rogers work on the character was pure joy.

Sadly, Marshall Rogers passed away in 2007. He was only 57 and should have had many more years to amaze us with his talents. But instead of mourning over what could have been, we should celebrate what was. To that end, I hope you’ve enjoyed MARSHALL ROGERS WEEK @ the ZONE.

Marshall Rogers Week: Day 6 and we have for your viewing pleasure the cover to Mr. Miracle #24. It was the last of a six issue run that Marshall had starting in September 1977 and concluding in June 1978.

I’d been a fan of Jack Kirby’s Mr. Miracle comic when I was a kid and so it was very cool to discover that the series had been re-started with the same numbering and this new artist named Marshall Rogers.  It wouldn’t be long before Marshall would shoot to fame with his groundbreaking work [along with Steve Englehart and Terry Austin] on Batman.

You can probably guess the character that will bring to a close Marshall Rogers Week at the ZONE.  Tune in tomorrow and find out if you’re right!

Marshall Rogers Week: Day 5.  Today we have the cover to Marshall’s Strange portfolio which featured his orginal characters.  It was published in a limited edition of 1200 copies [I have #220] by Schanes & Schanes in 1979.   The cool thing about the portfolio was that it was all Marshall’s work.  He created the characters, he pencilled, inked and added the wash tones.

Tomorrow we’ll take a look at Marshall Rogers’ take on a classic Jack Kirby character.  It’d be a miracle if you couldn’t figure out which one.

Marshall Rogers Week: Day 4. Today we have one of my all-time favorite Marshall Rogers pieces. It was published as the front cover of The 1978 Atlanta Comics and Fantasy Fair program book and features Marshall re-design of DC Comics Blackhawk character. Although I’ve never been a Blackhawk fan, I would have loved to see what Marshall could have done with his version of the character.

Tomorrow, we’ll take a look a some characters that Marshall created. Hope you can swing back by!

It’s Marshall Rogers Week: Day 3 and we have a pinup that Marshall pencilled and inked for Marvel’s Savage Sword of Conan #44 [September 1979].  I’ve always really liked this pin-up.  Marshall didn’t draw Conan as the traditional musclebound brute.  I also liked the all black winged creatures.  It would have been interesting to see Marshall draw a Conan story — the younger Conan when he was a thief.   

Tomorrow we’ll take a look at a redesign on a classic DC character that Marshall did for a con cover.  It is one of my favorite Marshall Rogers pieces ever.

It’s Marshall Rogers Week: Day 2 and we have a pinup that Marshall penciled and inked. The piece appeared in Rampaging Hulk #2 cover dated April 1977.   Although Bloodstone is a pretty cool looking character, he’s never been a major player in the comics world.

Tomorrow we’ll take a look at a character that has been a major player in the comics world, not to mention novels and movies — well, I guess I did mention it, but you know what I mean — at least you will if you come back tomorrow!

Marshall Rogers seemed to just burst on the scene with his work [along with Steve Englhart and Terry Austin] on DC’s Detective comic series featuring Batman.  Marshall, at about the same time,  did a couple of really well done issues of Mr. Miracle.   From there he went on to do Detectives, Inc., a graphic novel that he pencilled and inked [written by Don McGregor, his co-creator].  Other favorite favorite Marshall Rogers projects included the Demon with a Glass Hand graphic novel [with Harlan Ellison], his run on Doctor Strange for Marvel, his Strange portfolio, his Batman portfolio, and Coyote for Eclipse Comics.

The Batman pinup above appeared in Visions #2 which was a fanzine published in 1980.

Sadly, Marshall Rogers passed away in 2007 at the age of 57.   Luckily for fans, his work lives on.  Join us here tomorrow for Day 2 of Marshall Rogers Week at the ZONE.

We come to the close of John Beatty Week with Day 7 and a piece that John did for a series he toyed with doing back in the early 80’s.  It was going to be a creator-owned series about a former soldier traveling through an apopalyptic future.  I really loved this piece and John allowed me to print it as the cover of a letter-zine [called ZONE] that I mailed out to friends back in 1985.

Click here to see a bigger version of the piece.

John Beatty Week: Day 6. Brings us the third and final portfolio piece that John created in 1978. Mike Zeck was a major influence on John’s growth as an artist, and Mike had recently done a really nice Sub-Mariner story, so…

Tomorrow, we’ll finish up John Beatty Week with a piece that John pencilled, inked and toned back in the early 80’s.

John Beatty Week: Day 5. Today with have the second of three portfolio pieces that John created in 1978.   Gotta love John’s use of zip-a-tone! Again, if you look closely you should be able to spot John’s name and year the piece was done hidden in the rocks.

Tomorrow, for Day Six of John Beatty Week, we’ll have the third and final piece of John’s 1978 portfolio.

John Beatty Week: Day 3 and Thor dropped in to help celebrate. 

This piece pencilled by Mitch O’Connell and inked by Big John was published as a full page splash in a magazine sized fanzine… [Comics Scene?] back in 1980.   

Tomorrow we go back in time to 1978 and will check out John’s pencils and inks on the first of three pieces that we take us through days 4, 5 and 6 of JOHN BEATTY WEEK at the ZONE! [Said in the voice used by announcers talking about truck shows at the fairgrounds]

John Beatty Week: Day Two brings us John’s inks over Mitch O’Connell’s Batman.  Mitch’s art was turning up in fanzines [Comic Buyers Guide, The Comic Reader, Amazing Heroes, and many others], and in fact, Mitch published several issues of a pretty cool fanzine of his own.

Mitch and I exchanged a couple of letters [this was in the dinosaur days before the internet].  One thing led to another and soon Mitch and John agreed to team up on a couple of pieces.  I’m pretty sure that this is the first.

Tomorrow we’ll see the result of another of Mitch and John’s team ups. This piece was done in 1980.