Sketches

here's some random sketches i've done in the past week.

we got a sketch book page, featuring an unfinished Thor, a Wolverine profile head shot w/cool looking hair, a tiny Villain Moriarty ( Marcus Ninja's nemesis), & a quick, pissed off Foul Fowl ( another Marcus Ninja enemy)




















next up, this is a quick subway sketch. i couldn't resist, this guy was too cartoony looking. he is a heavy dude on his laptop in a very uncomfortable looking leather jacket AND he was taking up most of the seat next to him.















this next one is also a subway sketch. unlike the first guy, i didn't find this guy amusing to look at, i found him disgusting. this dude had a very dirty Q-tip and he was cleaning his one ear for, i swear, like, 10 minutes & then onto the other ear for another 10. AND the whole time, he was looking around, kind of embarrassed but not enough to stop doing it.
i wanted to vomit........on him.













here is an over-rendered sketch card i did of the Swamp Thing.
i always enjoyed drawing Swampy because he can be any shape you feel, distorted, twisted, whatever.
i had never read any Swamp thing though, but under Digital Kontents Iby's advice i picked up the Alan Moore Swamp Thing trade, volume 1. now, i am not a huge Alan Moore fan, but this was incredible. Moore's take on the character was genius and i could've never come up with it. this was the best Alan Moore book i've ever read. not to mention, the artwork by the team of Steve Bissette and John Totleben was incredible. The panel layouts were very noticeable and original. this book has influenced me for sure, & i recommend it to everyone. i will pick up volume 2 fo' sho'. i'm getting that fo' sho'

the FRUIT FLY

drawn with only a Faber-Castell Brush pen.

Sketches and shit

i drew this on the bus today. it's pretty sketchy. the anatomy isn't perfect but it is a pretty fun image. i'll probably use this in the future for something. it could easily be a Dr. Strange, Magneto, or a Dr. Light. something like that.

so, i got a stack of trades, novels, and comics in my 'to read' pile, but i found myself re-reading Scott Pilgrim 4. Scott pilgrim is sooooo good. i love it. i own 2 copies of 1-4 so that i can always lend it to people and still have it on hand to read when i want. Everyone who reads it loves it. #4 is my favourite and i find that each one is better than the previous volume. on Bryan Lee O'Malley's site he says that he isn't currently selling original Scott pilgrim art at this time, check back in early Feb. 2008. Well, O'malley? what's up? there is a lot of O'Malley art available @ the Beguiling art store, but not much Pilgrim stuff. I'm not even a huge original art collector, but i really want some pages from #4. actually, from any volume, i like so many.

on another note, like a lot of other people, i got an email from Around Comics saying that the show is going on an unexpected hiatus. this was a bit of a shock to me, cuz Around has been one of my favourite podcasts. i gotta be honest, i wasn't a huge fan of the monday show format change. i prefer the roundtable, and especially the way Tom Caters & Skottie Young play off of the more professional Chris & Sal. but it is all good, i heard that Skottie & Tom are gonna be doing their own podcasts. AND Skotties is gonna be called 'the Devil & Me'. this pleases me greatly. i think Skottie is fuckin' hilarious and we're both huge fans of the band 'Clutch'. 'the Devil & Me ' is the name of a badass Clutch song and most likely where Skottie took the name from. good stuff Young-boy.

while i'm talking Clutch, i gotta say that they are my favourite band, and i can't wait until their show @ the Phoenix Concert theatre (FEB. 24 2008). last year we saw them at the Opera House and i got too drunk, and i wasn't able to enjoy a good chunk towards the end. if you haven't heard Clutch, check out anything from their last three albums, 'Blast Tyrant', 'Robot Hive/Exodus', or 'From Beale St. to Oblivion'. do it. you won't hear them on the radio (especially in Toronto), but you'll be happy you discovered their 'moustache/camaro' hard rock.

SNOW STORM

So , this is like, the third snowstorm in the past 2 weeks?

holy shit. i can't remember this much snow in Toronto. here's some pics of yesterday. 2 weeks ago, my BAD-ASS Cavalier got stuck in the snow on 2 consecutive days, so when i headed to work yesterday (Tues. , about noon) i decided to walk down the road to the bus stop. i took these pics, there & back, later that night. it didn't fuckin' stop for over 12 hours. but you gotta admit, it looks fuckin' awesome. now everything is plowed and it cost the city over 4 million $$ to do it, AND everywhere you look there is snowbanks taller than me, AND everyone i know is either coming back from down-south or headed down in the next few weeks, BUT i really don't wanna be anywhere else in the world right now. Toronto kicks ass.

i didn't get to the comicshop today & i'm missing a few great things

Fantastic Four #554 - first Millar/Hitch issue. gonna give the Comic Room a call in the a.m. & see if i can grab one. or two. guaranteed fuckin' goodness.

X-Force #1 - it looks kinda cool. i'll grab that.

Walking Dead #46 - i missed the last issue & i figure i'll wait for the trade (vol.8) , but after reading what J.Troung had to say about it, i may not be able to hold out.

let's talk cons.

it's looking like Digital Kontent & i will most likely be sharing a table, or 2, at Hobbystar's Fan Appreciation Event, this April 12-13 2008. the line up looks wicked-awesome. i'm most excited about Alex Maleev & Ryan Ottley. these are 2 amazing artists. i cannot wait. tee hee hee.

i'm also looking into doing The Paradise Toronto Comicon again. i like how they're releasing the guest list, one guest every day until the show. cool beans.

if you haven't check out my comicstrip, Awesome Marcus Ninja, please do. Joel & i are posting every Monday & i am really trying hard to make it look as good as possible.

just give it a look, wouldja? jeez.

i hope everyone has a good Valentines Day AND i hope everyone (in the whole world) gets laid.

WinterCON report & some Comics I read

so Feb 3rd 2008 , Digital Kontent (- JohnBoy) and I got a table at the WinterCon, held by Hobbystar. thanks to James Armstrong for scoring us a table last minute.

after getting some coffee for my mild-hangover it was time to draw. i did sketches of Thor, Dr. Strange, Spiderman, Spawn, Firelord, Magneto & Sabretooth (no DC characters, huh). i'm pretty sure i did more, i just can't remember. if i did do a sketch for you , it'd be cool if you scanned it and sent it to me. prettygoodcomics@gmail.com , thanks .

Milo fucked off for almost the whole show.

'Oh my gawd, it's Andy B. ! Do me Andy! Do me!'.

Digital Kontents raffle was pretty cool though. good job Milo.

Iby was pimpin' his BAD ASS sketch book and sketchin' right along side of me. Iby and i decided that we wanna do this for a livin'. that would be super-awesome.

the best thing about the WinterCon, aside from seeing con-regulars Jason & Danny Troung, was that i was so busy drawing i didn't get to spend money on comics that i don't really need. i still have a stack from Boxing day sales that i haven't read yet. i just sat backwith Mr. Iby and made a little money selling my books and art.

Also, i met up with a dude by the name of Russell. he is a fellow artist and we seem to agree on a lot of things art and comic related. i sketched a Spawn for Russell and he sat down and sketched me this Liefeld-esque character. i am always looking for other people and artists to talk comics. Russell shows a lot of potential and seems very eager to learn and improve.

the only comics i came away with was a gift wrapped stack from Milo and i snagged a Flaming Carrot Comics #1 from the raffle prizes. score! Flaming Carrot kicks major ass!

here's some comic reviews

Ultimates 2 #2 - art is still incredible. the story is fuckin' LAME. there seems to be no overall plot, just a bunch of random scenes thrown together to show how awesome Joe Mad's art is. This book is beautiful, i may just stop reading it, but you all know i'm gonna keep buying. fuck!

Amazing Spiderman #'s 546-548 - this was the first story arc of the Brand New Day. this story was by Dan Slott and art by Steve McNiven. i gotta be honest, it wasn't the greatest Spiderman story ever, but it did feel very fresh and vibrant. At first, i was a little put off by the unmarriage of Peter & Mary Jane, but Joe Quesada ( my hero) was on to something. this is how a Spiderman book should feel. from head to toe, McNivens art is gorgeous. this book: PRETTYGOOD

Amazing Spiderman #549 - the second creative team of Marc Guggenheim (not sure if that is spelled right & i'm too lazy to check) & Sal Larroca. This book , again, feels very vibrant and fresh. i was blown away by how great Larocca has become. I've always been a fan of his but he was always working with Chris Claremont and i tried but i couldn't get through 'em. sometimes i wish Larocca had kept his more cartoony faces but his storytelling is incredible. after i read this comic i went back and just stared at the panels. wow. this book: GREAT

Daredevil #104 - continues to be GREAT

Captain America #34 - i bought this book hoping it would be worth something like #25 but it probably won't. i wasn't too impressed with the story. everyone keeps saying how good Brubakers Cap is, but i won't be buying anymore. this book: PRETTYGOOD

Astonishing X-Men #24- BRILLIANT

Super Powers #0 - this Alex Ross directed book is nothing special. i would like to read an Alex Ross story that doesn't always try to be so epic. it's like he's constantly trying to do another Marvels or Kingdom Come. how about you just pencil & paint us a goddamn mini-series that is just a good story? this book: LAME

Ex Machina volume 5 - BRILLIANT. i love this book. gets better and better.

Metamorphasis by Peter Kuper - this is an adaptation of the Franz Kafka novel. the art is mind boggling and eerie. this book really makes you feel what it is to be different from what we consider 'normal'. well done. this book: GREAT

Escapo by Paul Pope - i love this book. You can never guess what a Paul Pope is gonna be about just from looking at the cover. there is nothing like a Paul Pope experiance. the thought that goes into his storytelling and ink work is astounding. $15 well spent. this book: BRILLIANT

Flaming Carrot Comics #1 - i already have issue #2 but it doesn't matter if you read these in order. Bob Burden's Flaming Carrot is funny as hell. i love it. Flaming Carrot takes a girl on a date to his other girlfriends house. AND he wears flippers all the time , in case he has to swim. AND he has a Boloney Gun. AND he wears a cologne that smells like pie. if you don't like this book, FUCK YOU! this book: BRILLIANT

Scud: the Disposable Assassin #21 - 'Mr. Sarah Silverman Show' Rob Schrab is back to doing what he started, making comics. sometimes i can't follow the story but it is wierd, crazy and kind of awesome, so i give this book : GREAT . the best part i found in Scud#21 was inside the cover in the POOP column, Rob Schrab gives some inspirational advice that really hit home,

‘Learn from the pain of an old nerd. And take this bit of wisdom: if there’s something that you are procrastinating on, writing a book, making a movie or asking a girl out. Do it. Today. Be scared, be stupid but there is one thing you are not allowed to do : give up.

Empty your head. Empty it of all the ideas, stories, jokes, philosophies and inventions. Put it down on paper and share it. We are on this planet for such a short time; don’t hog the magic by dying with it all inside your head. Make your life extraordinary.’

- Rob Schrab 10/24/07

fuckin' A , Mr. Schrab

now here's some subway/bus sketches i've done in the past few weeks