Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
Sly Stallone as Jack Carter and Keanu Reeves as John Wick is one of the commissions I got from Dean Beattie when he opened up a commission list. I jumped on board, got this beauty, a Rocky piece, a Rambo head sketch and two of his sketchbooks. If you’d like to see more of Dean’s art you can at his webpage or his Instagram.
I met Kyle Baker at HeroesCon 2007. I was (and still am) a huge fan of Kyle Baker’s art and comics. You can imagine how happy I was to get Kyle’s take on Sly Stallone as Rocky Balboa.
Tom Armstrong is the creator/writer/artist of the long-running Marvin cartoon strip. I met Mr. Armstrong way back in 2004 at the Cavalcade of Comics 2nd Annual Benefit to fight Tourette’s Syndrome. Comic’s legend Don Perlin and his wife spearheaded the event.
Tom Armstrong was one of the artists sketching and he did his take on Sly Stallone for me. As Tom was signing it, he added a little Marvin peeking over Sly. How cool is that?
Every now and again with need something from 100 Bullets by Eduardo Risso.
I absolutely love this sketch of Rambo – Stick Fighter by Jason Shawn Alexander. I got it way back in 2003. You could tell Jason was destined for great things.
I came across this awesome painting of Brad Pitt from Seven by Zinsky on Instagram. What a talented artist.
Jarrod Alberich aka The Yard Sale Artist created the Jack Carter piece above for me after I won a contest he was running.
Jarrod calls himself The Yard Sale Artist because he uses only materials that he finds at yard sales, thrift stores, dumpsters and so on. Jarrod is a great guy and his prices are reasonable. This was my second piece by Jarrod that he did way back in 2017. Jarrod’s art has improved since then as you’ll see in future posts.
Tony Moore has an interesting take on Frankenstein and the Wolfman… and I like it!
Source: Longbox of Darkness.
The Jack Carter & John Wick piece above was created as a commission for me at HeroesCon 2017 by Karl Slominski. It was my first piece by Slominski. It wasn’t my last.
My second piece by Karl was Jack Carter and Marv from Frank Miller’s Sin City.
My third piece from Karl was Carter and Raylan Givens from Justified.
I wonder what my fourth piece will be.
Marv from Frank Miller’s Sin City is one of my all-time favorite characters. I love seeing artists do their “take” on the big lug. Today we have Marv by Dave Johnson.
Source: Lou Valenti.
Ben Caldwell is a freelance artist who has worked in toy design, animation, children’s book illustration, and comic book illustration. I was able to get on Caldwell’s commission list at HeroesCon 2018. I usually request a specific character, but was interested to see what Ben Caldwell would come up with on his own.
Rich Hennemann is a freelance artist. A few years ago I picked up his sketchbook and a sketch and I was hooked. Since then I’ve gotten several sketches from Rich. This Sly as Rambo is one from my collection. I already have another commission from Rich in the works.
BITTER ROOT: THE NEXT MOVEMENT #1 created by David F. Walker, Chuck Brown, Sanford Greene
Coloring: Matt Herms
Lettering: Hasson Otsmane-Elhaou
Publisher: Image Comics
Going back as far as can be told the Sangeryes have been Jinoo hunters. Jinoo were once human. They became so poisoned by greed, hate, racism and other evils that the Jinoo became monsters. Some could be cured. Others had to be killed. But the cost to the Sangerye family was heavy.
Now, in the year 1964, the United States government say the Jinoo have been eliminated. The Sangerye family knows differently.
When a bus load of young civil rights activists are brutally murdered in Mississippi, government agents are sent down. The agents discover the destroyed bus. The corpses, at least those that they can find, were butchered. Recent attacks in Tennessee, Alabama and Louisiana were increasingly brutal. This is even worse.
The lead agent is unwilling to say Jinoo have returned. Meriah Manigo, a member of the Sangerye family knows differently. And she’s now on site.
The original BITTER ROOT series received my highest recommendation. I love that the original creative team of writers David F. Walker and Chuck Brown along with artist Sanford Greene have returned. They haven’t missed a beat as they continue the BITTER ROOT story. Kudos also to colorist Matt Herms and letterer Hasson Otsmane-Elhaou.
Don’t be discouraged if you haven’t read the original series. You don’t need it to enjoy BITTER ROOT: THE NEXT MOVEMENT. (But I do encourage you to seek out the original series as well!)
BITTER ROOT: THE NEXT MOVEMENT #1 gets my highest recommendation.
Rating:
FULLY LOADED #1: THERE GOES THE FUTURE Part 1 created, written, illustrated and lettered by Jimmy Broxton
Publisher: Verity/Scratch Comics
The year is 2065. Ten years ago Carson Blake betrayed the only “family” he ever knew. And the only woman he ever loved. So he left the city. No reason to go back.
Then Blake gets a call.
It’s from Austin Roper. The one man who knew how to get in touch. Austin Roper. The bravest and most loyal soldier Blake knew. Austin Roper. The man who saved Blake’s life.
Roper tells Blake, “Atticus and his crew have kidnapped my wife and kids. If I can’t get you to come back –” Roper doesn’t even finish the sentence. Blake is on his way.
Now Blake has a reason to return. Better buckle up.
Jimmy Broxton’s Fully Loaded checks all the right boxes. It has a vibe that feels like Broxton took the best parts of Blade Runner, Frank Miller’s Sin City, The Road Warrior, classic gangster movies and filtered them all through his sensibilities.
Broxton introduces us to the Fully Loaded world while moving the story forward. There’s a mystery to exactly what Blake did that put him at odds with the family and cost him the love of his life. Broxton has created a story with all the makings of a fun ride. Honor, betrayal, loyalty, are all coming into play.
Broxton’s art is amazing. Printed in beautiful black and white. Jaw-dropping double-page spreads. Atmosphere oozes off every page. And let’s not forget Broxton’s use of lettering as sound effects.
Jimmy Broxton’s Fully Loaded was offered as a trade edition on Zoop. I supported the campaign, but couldn’t pass on issue one when I saw it was available. In addition to the story, Broxton gives us four pages that appear as ads from 2065 plus one page hinting at next issue. I cannot wait!
FULLY LOADED #1 gets my highest recommendation.
Rating:
Marv from Frank Miller’s Sin City is one of my all-time favorite characters. I love seeing artists do their “take” on the big lug. Today we have Marv by Chris Visions.
Source: Rezwanul Mahmood.
