PERKYPOSTS

CONVENTION COMMISSIONS

2012-01-02T09:20:00.002-05:00

Megacon is fast approaching ( www.megaconvention.com ) and I'll be taking on pre-orders for commissions at the show. Send a request directly to mike@mikeperkinsart.com.

Prices are:

Convention sketches: $60 for a head and shoulder, $150 for a full figure.

If you want something more detailed then please refer to my site:

http://www.mikeperkinsart.com/My_Homepage_Files/Page3.html

These are for commissions ONLY if you're picking up at the show! If you're waiting on a commission from me it'll be wrapped up before I start on any new ones....unless otherwise discussed.

COMING SOON

2011-12-29T06:36:00.005-05:00

There's a whole plethora of Perkins product perchance prepared for your purchasing in the next couple of weeks :

4th January: THE STAND:AMERICAN NIGHTMARES trade paperback

The second volume of The Stand adaptation collected for the first time in a paperback version.

11th January: THE STAND:NO MAN'S LAND #6, VENOM VARIANT COVERS FOR CAPTAIN AMERICA#7 AND SCARLET SPIDER #1

X-NEXT

2011-12-19T07:33:00.002-05:00

Thrilled to be moving on to Astonishing X-Men next:

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=35880
http://comics.ign.com/articles/121/1214580p1.html
http://ifanboy.com/articles/items/marvels-next-big-thing-astonishing-x-men-48-and-beyond/
http://www.newsarama.com/comics/marvel-next-big-thing-reveal-111212.html
http://marvel.com/news/story/17832/mystery_project_liveblogs

Marjorie Liu and I have been talking for a long time about collaborating on something together, and we were working on a pitch for a project that we'd still love to do at some point, then the opportunity to work on Astonishing X-Men arose which seemed like a perfect fit for us.

2012

2011-12-14T08:19:00.003-05:00

Lots of stuff to post - loads of things happening - so I'll be making more of an appearance here. At the moment I'm trying to figure out my physical appearances. Y'know...those rare times that I'm not stuck in front of my drawing board and I actually get to meet people. This is what I have for next year so far:

Megacon : http://www.megaconvention.com/

TampaBay Comiccon : http://www.tampabaycomiccon.com/

C2E2 : http://www.c2e2.com/

HeroesCon : http://www.heroesonline.com/heroescon/guests/

Any more I'll let you know.

I'LL BE BACK

2011-09-06T05:47:00.002-04:00

BLIMEY!! THAT WAS A BIG HORSE!!!

Still inundated with work and hardly a chance to even bring this site up to write something. In spite of this here's a few appearances I'll be making when I can unchain myself from my board:

FRIDAY 9TH - SUNDAY 11TH SEPTEMBER

RAPTUS COMICS FESTIVAL IN NORWAY
Appearing alongside Howard Chaykin, Klaus Janson, Mike Carey, Mike Collins and numerous others .... www.raptus.no

SATURDAY 1ST OCTOBER

TEEN TITANS:GAMES graphic novel signing with George Perez at:
COLLISEUM OF COMICS
177 Towne Center Circle
Sanford, FL 32771

NOVEMBER 5TH-6TH

NCCOMICCON - North Carolina
www.nccomiccon.com

...and that's it for appearances until the new year as I need to finish up THE STAND....only 3 more issues to go!

2011-01-25T10:26:00.001-05:00

Been away from here for a while -just too damn busy! I'll be attempting to get back on the horse.

NYCC

2010-10-02T21:09:00.002-04:00

New York comic con next weekend from the 8th-10th. I'll be attending without sitting in artist alley - I'll just be there for the convention and the schmooze....although I will have a couple of signings :

FRIDAY :

Marvel Booth from 4.30-5.30

SUNDAY

Hero Initiative booth from 10.30-12.30

DAPPER PERK

2010-09-14T11:30:00.001-04:00

I've contributed a pin-up to the wonderful whimsy that is Return of the Dapper Men by Jim McCann and Janet Lee. You can see it here; http://www.jimmccannonline.com/wordpress/?p=320

LIBRARY CHAT

2010-09-13T15:15:00.001-04:00

Library: Upper Tampa Bay Regional Public Library
Location: Community Room

Groups must register in advance. Call (813) 273-3652.

Meet Marvel Illustrator Mike Perkins

Event Type: Teens
Age Group(s): Teens
Date: 9/16/2010
Start Time: 4:30 PM
End Time: 5:30 PM

Description: Mike Perkins is the illustrator and co-creator of Marvel Comics' Spellbinders and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang from CrossGen Entertainment. His most recent work at Marvel has included Captain America, Union Jack, X-Men, Annihilation: Conquest, and House of M: Avengers. His current work involves illustrating the Marvel Comics adaptation of Stephen King's The Stand.

INSIDER GUIDE 3

2010-08-25T17:40:00.003-04:00

Adding to the pencils

Every now and again you may be approached by your editor to not only ink a project but to “finish” it. Don’t panic. He’s not asking you to hurry up as you’re fast approaching your deadline. He’s not even asking you to color, letter, edit and print the comic. What this means is that, for whatever reason – whether it be time constraints or the certain strengths of a particular penciler – you’re being asked to, essentially, strengthen up the pencils in your inks. Sometimes, you’re being asked to have a hand in the actual finished style of the job in hand.

If you’re being invited to do this you obviously have enough confidence in your own abilities that your editor has noticed that you’d be able to handle it, no matter how complete the pencils are – and sometimes you’re given very little to work from.

To illustrate this welcome predicament let’s take a look at one of the pages from Captain America #10 which I finished over Lee Weeks’ always strong pencils.

As you can see from the penciled page all of the basic information is there it just needs a little more depth and refinement. It’s up to you as in inker to determine how much refinement you feel is needed. There are some projects that are given to particular inkers so that their own style can shine through. The inks of Kevin Nowlan being a perfect example. Unless I’m specifically asked to take this approach I usually try to go in a different direction when I’m offered such an undertaking. I’ll try to take a look at the pencilers previous work – in particular something they
were pleased with or something they inked themselves. By doing this you’re probably on the fine road to less friction with the penciller – they’ll also want to work with you again in the future.

The first panel we see on this page is pretty much presented to me as shapes with a little more detail on the Magneto figure. If it was inked line for line you really wouldn’t be able to figure out what the giant figures are and the power of Magneto’s attack would be non-existent. This is where a little bit of research comes in handy. It’s now your job to go and find out what a sentinel looks like – don’t just rely on your hazy memory of a comic you read a few years ago.

Figure out where your lighting is going to originate from. In that first panel I’ve actually used the figure of Magneto as the power source, utilizing a central shadow to show the magnitude of the force emanating from within him. I’ve also accentuated the flow and ripples of his cape to lead the eye towards the focal point. This lighting is then followed outwards to the now metallic figures of the sentinels with the foreground figure capitalizing on the foreground placement by being the darkest element on the page to give the perception of depth.

Further power is underscored by the radiating lines – once again pointing to the focal point of Magneto – being cut into by the electrical affect achieved by using a white-out pen or white ink.

The next three panels consist primarily of a crowd scene in a New York street. In the pencil version shapes are indicated in order to establish figures and faces. The buildings are represented as basic boxes with rudimentary windows. Do NOT draw this! Finish it!! Look at life. Look at photos. Study the fall and texture of clothing. Put the most prominent shadows in the foreground and drop those buildings back. Add more figures if needed to give the crowd some substance (as you can observe
in panel 4). Think about where you’re adding the blacks – your page has to flow, it has to be composed, those solid blacks need to balance the page and lead the eye.

The final panel – although simply a hand reaching into a wardrobe must be approached with the same kind of commitment and drama as the other panels otherwise the whole page could fall apart at a glance. Add that depth with shadow and give those clothes a few more wrinkes especially where the hand is grabbing the jacket. The wrinkes on the shirt sleeves of both the arm and the arm of the jacket lead the eye to the action.

When finishing a job in the inks follow the pencilers intent. It’s similar to the relationship of a director and a director of photography or cinematographer -all of the storytelling is there, what you need to do is add the drama and depth.

INSIDER GUIDE 2

2010-08-24T19:24:00.002-04:00

We’ve outlined the basic rules of giving the pencils a slick finish but let’s look at a different approach. A lot of the comic books on the stands today are concerned with real world occurrences where the actions of their characters are just a bit more harsh. Sometimes those situations and environments just get downright mean and dirty. Often your inks are going to need to reflect that. You’re going to need to create the kind of environment you would not want to be a part of.

I’ve provided an example to illustrate this point so let’s go over it and point out what I’ve done, why I did it and what I did it with…

On this page of Captain America I really wanted to portray the grungy atmosphere of this hole in the wall bar – roughing it up was , by far, the best way to go. In no particular order here are the tools I utilized….

A: The exacto-blade. Once you have the page finished you may still feel that some extra roughing up is needed. The blade will be your best friend. All those nice smooth lines you’ve laid down with your brush can easily be obliterated with one swoosh of it’s sharp surface. Here I’ve used it to emphasize the graininess of the roof structure. Pulling the blade along the lines there already and breaking up the solid edges. The blade is also one of the best tools for throwing a rain storm down on the page – just flick the blade upwards away from the rain drop and you get that atmospheric streak. Confidence is needed in the use of this tool. You can easily obliterate the parts you didn’t particularly want to get rid of.

B: The Prismacolor pencil. Using a black coloring pencil can give you some amazingly rough textures. The Prismacolor is one of the roughest. You can see here on the walls of the bar where it’s utilized to show the effects of fifty years worth of cigarettes and alcohol. By pressing down on the pencil you can bring the depth and density of the mark you’re making forwards and backwards.

C. The small #1 brush. Not only used for getting those delicate lines in there but also abused when you want to utilize the “drybrush” technique. This is a process in the inker’s arsenal which can be invaluable when portraying a little more grittiness than usual or if you just wish to soften a line. Make sure that you dry the excess ink off your brush using a piece of paper or a paper towel and sweep the line along the page. You’ll notice a ragged edge – it takes a lot of practice to get it to a point where you can be relatively happy with it. In the example shown I’ve used it prominently on the pool table so that the ridges on the sides are not so sharp and more rounded (as they are on an actual pool table). The drybrush is also appropriated on the baseball bat the barman is brandishing – it gives it that “used to beat heads in” look that’s needed in this scene.

D: The Col-Erase pencil. This is the smoother of the two pencils I use on my pages. This gives a much softer line and a more consistent tone. Great for softening jaw lines, indicating eye shadow and portraying the texture of leather cat suits ( a staple diet in any comic book)

E: The grey wash. Back to your brush and your ink. This ones a little repetitive but you’ll get used to feeling like a caged animal stuck in your little freelancing studio. Next to your drawing board you’ll, most likely always have a small cup of water close at hand – usually for cleaning your brushes ( NOTE: Try to always look when you’re taking a sip from your coffee cup. We inkers may have ink in our blood but it doesn’t taste so great when it mistakenly slides down to your stomach – also, attempt to clean your brushes in the water provided for such use… not in your
coffee). To get the best wash effect just keep adding a brush load of ink to the water each time you take a pass at placing the greys on the page. You’ll get a great sense of depth and texture when you do this.

Of course, you don’t have to employ all of these textural techniques on every page, just one or two will usually suffice, but when adding that “grit” the best advice is to practice and get increasingly more confident in wallowing in the dirt.

INSIDER GUIDE 1

2010-08-22T16:10:00.005-04:00

A couple of years back I wrote a chapter on inking for Andy Schmidt's book - The Insider's Guide to Creating Comics and Graphic Novels - which is available to purchase here: http://www.amazon.com/Insiders-Creating-Comics-Graphic-Novels/dp/1600610226/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1282508161&sr=8-1

Over the next couple of days I'll be re-presenting some of the individual subjects here:

Seperating Planes

On the comic book page the creator is fundamentally working in a two dimensional environment – attempting to visualize a three dimensional world. Sometimes, due to the imaginations of the hardiest of writers, the artist is also called upon to work in a multi-dimensional tableau – but let’s just stick to the basic three for now.

The penciler will most likely turn in pages that lack line weight and depth. It’s the inker’s job to bring a certain amount of depth perception to the pages provided. This can be attained by utilizing various approaches, sometimes depending on the subject matter and the desires of your penciler. One of the most widely employed techniques is concerned with going from using a thick line in the foreground to a thin line in the background. The inker can also darken the figure or fixture in the
foreground leading to a shadowless background. Both techniques are viable.

For another approach let’s take a look at one of my Captain America pages and see what techniques and tools I’ve used to give a little depth.

The script required a page of Black Widow bounding , leaping and jumpingthrough a cityscape. By necessity this would be a highly detailed page and if the inker is not careful the figure and surroundings could easily mould into one mass.

Let’s go panel by panel and I’ll show you what I’ve done to make sure this doesn’t happen…

PANEL ONE : Black Widow is leaping forwards and upwards in this shot towards the reader. In order to make sure that she doesn’t look as if she’s just standing on the roof ledge I decide to make the most of the grey techniques I had been using throughout my run on the title. By using a combination of tools the depth perception became that much more pronounced. A Prismacolor black pencil gave a grey texture look to the brick work. Above this brick work is a flat plain weathered by using a grey wash. To make sure that the background plain was prominently in the background a little bit of “flecking” was introduced by scratching away at the greys with the exacto-blade exposing the white page beneath. These kind of approaches enforce the separation of planes.

PANEL TWO: Now we see the Widow jumping from the ubiquitous New York water towers. Again this depth separation is required and shown by using various techniques from the grey wash on the towers to the distant water tower in the far background – illustrated by employing the use of a lighter, smoother black pencil. There are very few solid blacks in this environment. They are used sparingly on the figure itself and also on the wall underneath the towers to balance out the panel.

PANEL THREE: To separate all of the clashing planes in this panel the penciler ( in this case myself) has used a rim-light effect on the prominent figure. By doing this Black Widow “pops” forward a little more and doesn’t bleed into the surrounding buildings, This is a method of utilizing shadow in an effective way that, most often, the penciler will provide – but sometimes not. As an inker it is your job to make sure that all the information on the page is portrayed clearly and adding shadow to certain planes and people will emphasize the prominence of the particular element.

A good knowledge of anatomy and an understanding of the structure of real world surroundings is not only the responsibility of the penciler. It is most important that you educate yourself in these essential aspects.

Again, for the background elements, I ended up using a combination of grey wash, Col-erase pencil and, in this particular scene, just an ordinary 2H pencil.

PANEL FOUR: Lots of chimneys and rooftops in this panel - a lot of ways for this panel to look completely flat! I ducked that particular problem by making sure that the foreground bricks on the chimney were solid black with the background chimney bricks worked in with the grey wash. The other building in the top right of the panel was given that hazy quality by availing myself of the Col-erase pencil once again.

PANEL FIVE: Just a completely solid portrait shot of The Black Widow using a lot of solid black on the back and side of her face so that, even though you can not see the city she is looking out at, she’s still part of the environment. The colorist can also add depth to a page but do not concern yourself with this. It is the inkers job to differentiate the depth and seperate those planes.

A KIND OF MAGIC

2010-07-07T05:44:00.001-04:00

PROCESS - STEP BY STEP

2010-07-06T06:48:00.004-04:00

NYCC

2010-07-06T05:14:00.004-04:00

The New York Comic Con is way down the road ( October 8th-10th) but I've started to get my travel details together and will be attending. I doubt that I'll have an artists alley table (sometimes I just want to enjoy the show and do a little schmoozing) but will, no doubt, be signing at the Marvel booth at some point during the weekend. I have a few other commissions to get through before-hand but I WILL be taking on commissions before the show itself and dropping them off to people personally. So if you'd like to get on the list - and will be attending the NYCC - then drop me a line at mike@mikeperkinsart.com and I'll see what I can do. Please tell me if you're more interested in a convention sketch ( $60 for a head and shoulder, $150 for a full figure) or a more refined commission illustration (prices on my site :

http://www.mikeperkinsart.com/My_Homepage_Files/Page3.html)

Go on....challenge me!

http://www.newyorkcomiccon.com/

MS.MARVEL

2010-07-05T06:04:00.001-04:00

One of my favourites here, illustration-wise.

CROP OF CAP

2010-07-02T06:41:00.005-04:00

A bumper crop of Captain America commissions to take you over the independence weekend....

BULLET POINTS

2010-06-30T05:20:00.003-04:00

Another illustration commissioned by Jeff Corbett here - he of the "Perkins Point" fame ( a section of his home dedicated to all things Perky!). He loves the Punisher and good ol' Frank Castle is always a joy to draw. I just wouldn't want to bump into him on the street. The Punisher, that is .... not Jeff - he's one of the good guys.

ROBIN

2010-06-29T07:06:00.003-04:00

One of the best books on the stands right now is Grant Morrison's Batman and Robin and the new Robin is just simply brutally funny in a very disturbing way. Wonderful work from a writer who almost always challenges your perceptions.

FURY FILLED

2010-06-28T05:08:00.000-04:00

Nick Fury - one of the coolest one-eyed characters EVER!

THE WORLD OF LIU

2010-06-24T06:44:00.003-04:00

I sat next to Marjorie Liu for a signing at the Marvel booth in Chicago and found her to be extremely charming, attractive and intelligent. I'd previously experienced her writing in NYX, Dark Wolverine and - just released at the time - the new Black Widow series ( which comes highly recommended ) and, after chatting with her for some time, figured I would check out her novels too. She's a prolific writer and all of it is quality work. If you can get over the "Romance" packaging of the novels they're well worth tracking down and they usually deal with our very own realities, sidestepped into the super natural, heightened by intrigue, mystery, adventure and depth of character.

I was both honoured and a little bit terrified at kicking off her own sketchbook but figured I had to do something that may keep the input of sketches in there at a comparable quality - hope it works out like that ! So, above, we have a portrait of Marjorie surrounded by characters she has brought to a vividly, searing life ; l to r - X23, Daken ( Dark Wolverine), Kiden (NYX), Natalia Romanova ( Black Widow) and, her very own creation from the Hunter Kiss novels, Maxine Kiss.

More information on Marjorie's life and work can be found at her own blog at :

http://marjoriemliu.com/index.php?/blog/

or her website:

http://www.marjoriemliu.com/

FETT!

2010-06-23T06:59:00.003-04:00

By specific request ( thankyou Mr. Andy Rudd) here are a couple of Boba Fett commissions I've illustrated. Easily one of the most popular characters from the Star Wars universe this brutal bounty hunter will stop at nothing to claim the price on your head...except for when he's being digested for a thousand years by a Sarlacci!

LIKE UNTO A THING OF IRON...

2010-06-22T06:43:00.003-04:00

I'm a HUGE fan of Iron Fist and relish any chance to draw the character:

DEATH OF CAP

2010-06-21T06:30:00.003-04:00

The death of Captain America was a HUMUNGOUS success both critically and commercially and I'll always be grateful that I was a part of that - the Eagle Award we won as a team for the story arc covering issues 25-30 sits in pride of place in my studio.

Here's a commission of the actual shot that took the good Captain down - surrounded by the true villains of the tragedydrama. I liked that image of the character of Sin so much I utilized it on a later commission!

STARLORD

2010-06-19T07:40:00.003-04:00

Going to start another indeterminate run of showing off some of the commissions and con sketches I've been doing over the past few years.

Kicking things off with a recent favourite of StarLord. Sometimes it's these obscure characters you can really get your teeth into because:

a. You never get asked to illustrate them and, when you do:

b. You never now when you'll get a request to illustrate them again.

PART OF THE RACK PACK

2010-05-20T07:09:00.002-04:00

Had a great time taking part in the Rack Pack Comics Podcast on Saturday chatting about Marvel, The Stand, Wolfgang Parker's 1888 and the novels of Marjorie Liu - the first half of the programme is available now...although I'm giving fair warning for little ears, some of the language could get you fined in the State of Pennsylvania...

http://rackpackcomics.com/?p=917

RELEASES : MAY 19TH 2010

2010-05-17T09:29:00.005-04:00

Out this week is Origins of Marvel Comics #1 featuring two origin tales I've illustrated ; the all new Captain America and Moon Knight.

Also - keep an eye out for my Captain Britain variant cover for Age of Heroes #1. Here it is below shown EXCLUSIVELY without the uniform "Heroic Age" background.

C2E2

2010-04-10T07:11:00.004-04:00

The C2E2 convention in Chicago is taking place next weekend : 16th to the 18th of April - http://www.c2e2.com/

I'll be sitting in artists alley - table L4 - in between Bob Layton and constant collaborator Butch Guice. Stop by for a chat, a commission, a print or a signature! I've also got some signings lined up at the Marvel booth :

Friday, April 16th
Signing @ Marvel Booth – 2 to 3 pm

Saturday, April 17th
Signing @ Marvel Booth – 2 to 3 pm

Sunday, April 18th
Signing @ Marvel Booth – 3:30 to 4:30 pm

2010-03-30T07:19:00.002-04:00

I LOVED Preacher. Still do, in fact, as I often re-read the creativity, profanity, insanity and ingenuity provided within it's pages. Above is an illustration I produced for one of the UK Convention booklets.

R.I.P. John Hicklenton.

2010-03-23T06:32:00.004-04:00

From the 2000ad message boards:

We have just been informed by Pat Mills that John Hicklenton has sadly passed away.

Here are a few words from Pat: John Hicklenton passed away peacefully last week. His ending was an expected one and he saw it as a triumph over his illness MS. Amongst his final words to me were "MS - you have a week to live, you've met someone you shouldn't have f***** with". A great artist and a true hero.

Pat Mills

I met John a couple of times - we had the same agent - and he was always very nice...a little weird, perhaps...but who of us isn't?!! Pat, my agent, would tell me stories of his original art...created on whatever he could find or cobble together ( deconstructed cereal boxes being most prominent in my mind). He was a true original and the spontaneity in his artwork was truly inspirational and unmatchable. Goodbye, John.

2010-03-22T06:55:00.003-04:00

Wrapping things up with the commission posts for a while due to just having loads of work on the go - but here's a Tusken Raider to tide you over until the next entry...

2010-03-19T07:05:00.002-04:00

Batman:The Dark Knight Returns blew me away when I first read it and subsequent readings don't blunt the experience. It's a seminal piece of the comic-book medium and, if you haven't had the chance or opportunity to read it then please do take the time. Don't bother with the sequel, though.

2010-03-18T06:54:00.002-04:00

I truly enjoyed working on Ruse at Crossgen . It was unlike any other book - in outlook, in execution and in the way we collaborated on it. Maybe one day I'll go into the ins-and-outs of how we all chipped in and, perhaps, what was actually going to happen in the comic disregarding it's untimely demise.

2010-03-17T07:47:00.002-04:00

Change of pace here today in order to show you the basics of advertising :

One Wolverine print - check!

One cute little kid in Wolverine costume - check!

Print sold!

This little guy at Megacon was just fantastic! He's probably all of two years old but as soon as he saw a camera he was down on one knee and posing! Brillant!!

2010-03-16T07:25:00.002-04:00

I'm a huge fan of Greg Rucka's writing - and, in particular, his Queen and Country books ; both in the comic form and his subsequent novels. Today I present to you his damaged heroine - Miss Tara Chace:

2010-03-15T09:25:00.004-04:00

A few Megacon Commissions....

2010-03-11T06:24:00.001-05:00

A bumper crop of card commissions today as I won't be updating for the next three days due to the convention. See you all on Monday - enjoy your weekends.

MEGACONMADNESS

2010-03-10T05:39:00.003-05:00

This weekend it's the Megacon in Orlando. If you're in the area do pop along - for me, it's one of the highlights of the convention season.

http://www.megaconvention.com/

I'll be signing, sketching and chatting at my table over the whole weekend. I've also got a group signing at the Hero Initiative booth:

200-300pm: 100 Wolverines: Joe Benitez, Jim Calafiore, Mike Choi, Darwyn Cooke, Joe Jusko, Andy Smith, Bill Tucci, Mark McKenna, Mike McKone, Jimmy Palmiotti, Mike Perkins, Brandon Peterson

Then later on Friday I'll be "instructing":

VISUAL STORYTELLING IN COMICS

Time: 5:30 PM - 6:20 PM
Join Nelson Decastro, Mike Perkins, Sergio Cariello, Andy Smith, and Graham Nolan as they show you what goes into a page and how it takes more than just knowing how to draw. This will be a question and answer session where you can pick the creators brains. Ask the questions no one has answered yet.

Room: 222B

And....hopefully, I'll have some new prints for sale at the show:

2010-03-10T05:32:00.003-05:00

Some fans are D.C. people - some are Marvel people. Me? I just like good comics - wherever they're published. Saying that, though, I don't get asked to illustrate a lot of D.C. Comics characters. A shame because they have a lot of visually striking protagonists. Here's a convention sketch of The Spectre:

2010-03-09T06:35:00.002-05:00

Mary Jane Watson - of Spider-Man fame - has an extremely interesting face to illustrate. It's not a visage you can just slot in "female face #1" and get away with it...and I've tried. I guess it's the dimples and the eyebrows but more importantly it's the playfulness and the light behind the eyes. Get that correct and , well, "you've hit the jackpot".

2010-03-08T06:37:00.002-05:00

I was asked to make Warpath BIG. BIG MUSCLES - RIPPED. Still think I could have made him bigger! Next time....next time.

2010-03-05T06:33:00.002-05:00

I was just wrapping up my inks over Steve Pugh on Superman vs Terminator when iI was asked if I'd like to try-out over the pencils of Rick Leonardi. I'd long been a fan of this fantastic artist and was overjoyed by, at least, inking a page or two of his. I subsequently got the job on the four issue Green Lantern vs Aliens and it still remains one of my favourite series I have worked on. Maybe it shows that I was so happy to be embellishing the flowing pencils of Mr. Leonardi.

Here's a Green Lantern illustration featuring one of the eponymous heroes who opened the first issue already "impregnated" by the Alien. He didn't last long...but obviously made enough of an impression for me to be commissioned to illustrate him once again :

2010-03-04T06:49:00.002-05:00

Marvel vs DC. An intriguing concept that hardly ever raises itself above the ordinary, unfortunately. Luckily we have commissionees who like to keep the idea vibrantly fresh. Here's one of Deathlok and O.M.A.C.

2010-03-03T06:37:00.002-05:00

There's a couple of guys - two brothers - who almost always get a commission from me at Megacon and they like to keep it challenging. Always eager for a good challenge I relished the chance to depict Black Knight and the 70's Warlock.

By the way - this years Megacon is NEXT WEEKEND - the 12-14th of March - you can buy tickets, and support a worthy cause at the same time by heading over to here : http://heroinitiative.blogspot.com/2010/03/get-your-megacon-ticketsnow.html

2010-03-02T06:34:00.002-05:00

Michael Finn commissions illustrations based upon the concept of "One Minute Later" - taking classic comic covers and leaving the artist to extrapolate what happened next. You can see a whole bunch of these up on www.comicartfans.com ( just put "one minute later" into the search option) - but beware....half your day may just disappear!!

2010-03-01T07:02:00.001-05:00

That little scamp Tony Stark - he's such a lovable drunk!...

2010-02-26T06:56:00.002-05:00

You never really know what sort of charcters are going to end up on your commission list. Sure, I'm able to anticipate a slew of Captain Americas to illustrate and respond accordingly although it's just as much fun to draw those comic heroes who've bever made the "A" list, even though they proudly hold their Avengers cards and save the universe alongside the "big" guys.

Currently, there's an aspect of Mantis that's joined forces with The Guardians of the Galaxy (find the most recent run in the collections and I guarantee a fantastic read) - this isn't that one. This is the classic version:

2010-02-25T06:56:00.002-05:00

I have yet to read any of the multiple volumes of Lone Wolf and Cub, but when big-time fan and all-around excellent guy - Jeff - commissioned this from me I knew exactly what to get down on the paper.

2010-02-24T06:46:00.002-05:00

Captain Jack Sparrow is undoubtebly one of the most endearing - and , time will tell, enduring - characters created in the entertainment medium over the last decade and he's an illustrator's dream to draw.

2010-02-23T06:53:00.001-05:00

A pencil image of the X-Men's Storm - in her mid-90's finery. Not my favourite costume. That'd be a close tie with the original Cockrum look and the mohican/leather look she sported for a while.

2010-02-22T06:06:00.002-05:00

I've grown up with Doctor Who ; alongside the programme playing on T.V. , reading the books, listening to the sudio presentations or reading the brilliant Dave Gibbons illustrated comic strips in Doctor Who Weekly - so I look forward to any chance I may get of illustrating any incarnation of the character. David Tennant made the Time Lord the most successful he's ever been and I'm looking forward to see in which direction the newly re-generated Dr goes in as he takes up the keys of the T.A.R.D.I.S.

2010-02-20T10:17:00.003-05:00

There I was, thinking I wouldn't be posting anything over the weekend but then I found I had a few minutes to rub together and decided to put something up:

2010-02-19T06:46:00.002-05:00

This one's another sketchbook commission - this time of Cloak and Dagger - a dynamic duo whose earlier adventures are now available in a collected hardback edition featuring gorgeous artwork by Mr. Rick Leonardi.

2010-02-18T06:43:00.002-05:00

A change of pace for today. Tony Bedard, master writer of The Great Ten and the just announced Green Lantern Corps, is a huge Aquaman fan and has a sketchbook he takes to conventions in order to coax an illustration of the fishy fella out of his fellow professionals :

2010-02-17T07:29:00.002-05:00

I love The Inhumans - their other-worldliness, their heirarchy, their family squabbles, their mirrored reflection of our reality and, of course, their wonderful costumes. Black Bolt has to have one of the best costumes in comics - fit for a king, in fact.

2010-02-16T06:47:00.002-05:00

Not exactly a commission - more of an illustration for someone's birthday - but I thought I'd share it anyway. I've long been a massive fan of Brian Bolland's work and loved Camelot 3000, so it was a joy to re-visit and illustrate some of the ladies of that work:

2010-02-15T07:53:00.002-05:00

The red, white and blues... two of my favourite characters who, I hope, one day to return to:

2010-02-14T08:32:00.001-05:00

Here's one for Valentine's day. A Winter Soldier and Black Widow sketch:

COMMISSIONS

2010-02-13T15:50:00.003-05:00

Over the next month or so I'm going to put up a few of the commissions I've completed. It's always a little breath of fresh air to work on a commission - but, in a way, it's nicer to be so busy that it's difficult to squeeze in the time ... and before anyone asks - I don't, currently, have the time to take on any new commissions.

Here's a Black Widow piece :

A QUESTION OF TASTE

2010-02-04T10:14:00.003-05:00

Yes, I'm an artist, but I don't usually buy a comic based on the artwork alone. I follow writers more so than pencillers, and even then I don't pick up everything a certain writer may produce. I'm more inclined to wait for the trade collection on certain titles - and, again, this comes down to the writing. Saying that, though, there has to be a marriage between the writing and the illustration. Poor artwork can seriously drag great writing down.

Anyway..as I was saying... I don't usually buy a comic based on the artwork alone but, as I was flicking through a few new comics yesterday, I came across the Blackest Night tie-in issue of The Question and was simply blown away by Bill Sienkiewicz's inking on the title. I haven't been following the Blackest Night storyline and, although I'm well aware of all the players involved and have the highest respect for all of them, Mr. S's scratchy line-work just made that title sing.

A beautiful book.

GOOD GRAVY!!!!

2010-01-20T10:46:00.001-05:00

I am a New York Times Bestselling artist!!!

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/24/books/bestseller/bestgraphicbooks.html?ref=bestseller

COLLECTIONS REVIEW

2010-01-07T11:07:00.000-05:00

http://www.bookgasm.com/reviews/comics/the-stand/#more-12084

YEAR END REVIEW

2010-01-04T14:53:00.001-05:00

http://pwbeat.publishersweekly.com/blog/2010/01/04/the-beats-annual-year-end-survey-2010-edition-part-one/#more-9283

HITTING THE STANDS

2009-11-09T17:07:00.001-05:00

Out there at your comic shop this week is the second volume in Marvel's adaptation of Stephen King's The Stand :

http://talesofwonder.com/product-exec/product_id/58774/category_id/154/sc/1,21,154

DEATHLOK

2009-11-06T18:58:00.005-05:00

I've been a massive fan of the concept and character of Deathlok for an eon and am glad to say that a new series - featuring the "Demolisher" version of the character rather than the "Pacifist" version - hit the stands last week. Written by the truly talented Charlie Huston and illustrated by Lan Medina this is The Deathlok I've wanted to see for a long, long time ; set in the future with harsh warfare and biting satire of both the corporation culture and reality television. I've been lucky enough that I've read the entire series in script form and I am loathe to say that THIS is the Deathlok I would have LOVED to have illustrated...and I was almost there... but then The Stand reared it's lovely head and set it's sights in my direction...who could resist?!! Anyway - here's a look at one of the interior pages and character studys I produced while the book was under consideration. Enjoy:

And just to prove my lifelong love of the character - here's a Deathlok illustration from wehn I was 7 or 8 years old!! Hopefully, I've improved a little.

LILJA'S REVIEW

2009-10-21T19:39:00.003-04:00

Out this week is the first issue of a new arc for The Stand - Soul Survivors and Lilja's Library has a review up here:

http://www.liljas-library.com/showreview.php?id=219

SPREAD EAGLE

2009-08-30T19:05:00.003-04:00

For this month's Wizard Magazine (#216) I've illustrated a double page Captain America spread highlighting the monumental moments in the highly acclaimed and lauded current run.

If you wish to own this wondrous piece of artwork scoot on over to http://www.comicbookartgallery.com/ and it should be up there soon.

VARIANTPALOOZA!!

2009-08-24T08:48:00.004-04:00

A couple of variant covers from me hitting the Stands this week - Guardians of the Galaxy and Nova. The Guardians book is one of my favourites out there at the moment and I've been a Nova fan since his first comic came out. I'm glad I got to tackle these two covers.

NOVEMBER SOLICITATIONS

2009-08-18T15:09:00.002-04:00

Marvel solicitations for November. Including The Stand: Soul Survivors #2, House of M:Masters of Evil #4 and The Stand:American Nightmares hardback collection:

http://comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=22580

HITTING THE STANDS

2009-08-16T10:04:00.004-04:00

Out this week - The Stand:American Nightmares#5

For a preview of the first few pages on Comic Book Resources :

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=preview&id=3203&disp=table

ORBITAL SIGNING

2009-08-13T09:35:00.002-04:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5g7wkLb4uo

Here's a brief video of the beginning of my signing at Orbital comics in London. You'll notice that Mike Carey is diligently sitting down and working already. It was a fantastic day, starting with a booze up with some well respected colleagues and ending with a booze up, and balti, with more well respected colleagues. Thanks to all who came along and if you're featured in the video give me a shout out.

If any of you other creators happen to be in the area of Leicester Square Tube Station I'd highly recommend getting in touch with them to do a signing.

Additionaly, here's a short write up on Joel Meadow's TripWire site - complete with photos just to prove I was there!! :
http://www.tripwire-magazine.com/?p=410

MIKE CAREY INTERVIEW

2009-08-11T07:53:00.002-04:00

A fascinating interview with my frequent collaborator and signing-mate, Mr Mike Carey up at GeekPlanetOnline :

http://www.geekplanetonline.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=583:mike-carey-interview&catid=61:interviews&Itemid=6

MIKETASTIC SIGNING

2009-07-23T08:32:00.003-04:00

ORBITAL COMICS SIGNING WITH MIKE CAREY - AUGUST 1ST, 2009

http://www.myspace.com/orbitalcomics

ONION RINGS

2009-07-22T09:11:00.001-04:00

Interesting article up at The Onion:

http://www.avclub.com/articles/reinventing-the-pencil-21-artists-who-changed-main,30528/

DEATHRAY PERKINS

2009-07-21T09:50:00.002-04:00

People of Earth!

Rejoice! A new Death Ray awaits you and your visual organs in your nearest news outlet, and it is a mighty one indeed.

Firstly, Death Ray #20 is so packed with magical teens it risks thaumaturgical disassociation as takes you behind the scenes of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, where we treat you to interviews with Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, new wizard tutor Jim Broadbent and director David Yates! Then we board the Death Ray lunar express for a trip to the Moon, or at least Shepperton, where we take an in-depth look at how Earth's satellite was remade by cunning effects men for Duncan Jones' retro SF feature, Moon, and speak to the director himself. Also on the space front, Stephen Baxter, bard of grand cosmic operatics, reveals his influences in the Death Ray interview.

Magic and the final frontier, two flavours of awesomeness for you, but there is a third, slightly more rancid, strand – horror! Death Ray suffers a major zombie outbreak this issue, with minor infestations in the features and book sections. Who other could we turn to to aid us in our hour of need than George A. Romero, wellspring of the entire zombie apocalypse genre? With zombies and a look behind the scenes at scary effects from Reaper and Supernatural, we've got all three points of the fantastical genre triangle covered this month.

Get an insight into comics with DC's creative head honcho, Dan Didio, and a look at the work of up-and-coming comics artist Mike Perkins. Sneak into the minds of Dan Akroyd, Anton Yelchin and Andy Serkis in New Gods, read in reverent silence as SF luminaries (and the Death Ray team) climb upon the giant soapbox of Deep Thought, uncover the secrets of our lunar neighbour in The Ten Minute Guide… It's all too much! Remember too that we are the only multi-media SF magazine to publish short stories, and this issue we have two original tales from Alastair Reynolds and Eric Brown!

This impressive list is but the barest spectrographic survey of the galaxy of entertainment that awaits you. To truly sample its multifarious delights, you will have to make a lengthy trip within yourself. £4.99 is but a low fare for such a voyage!

Death Ray #20 is out in all good newsagents now.

SOLICITATIONS FOR OCTOBER

2009-07-20T13:09:00.004-04:00

A sexy Madam Masque heats up the cover of HouseofM:Masters of Evil #3.

...and a sneaky peek look at next month's variant for The Stand #5

IN MEMORIUM

2009-07-18T10:37:00.005-04:00

IDA GAMBLE

MAY 26TH 1916 - JULY 13TH 2009

My dear Nan lived life to the full until she reached the spectacular age of 93.

Just think about that - the number of changes this world has endured and evolved through for almost a century. Born halfway through a World War and growing up during an enormous world-wide recession and yet still finding the spirit to fall in love, get married and have three daughters - the second of which, my Mom, being born just before the onset of the Second World War. Since then there have been economic, technological and philosophical advancements - although sometimes this would be a veritable rollercoaster ride. She was born into a world of hardly any equality for women and walked through the growing pains of a world ready to embrace equality for all, holding down various jobs along the way but succeeding with great eminence in her creation of pastries, cakes and all forms of baking. She took advantage of the growing ease of travelling, seeing parts of the world that must have been unthinkable to her as a child - and, as such, became a great inspiration for me personally.

She inspired all of us. Through her resilience and independence of spirit. Through her strength and kindness and tenderness - having equal time for everyone, at anytime. She inspired us through her love - distributed evenly throughout her three children, six grandchildren, thirteen great grandchildren and one great, great grandchild as well as all their attendant families and friends.

Truly, she has left an astounding legacy. She was, without a doubt, one of the greatest people I have ever had the benefit of knowing and the privilege of loving.

She will always be remembered.

ART PICK

2009-07-07T11:28:00.002-04:00

Over at Comic Book Resources Brian Cronin has been asking artists to name a fellow professional who is deserving of more praise. here's my pick:

http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2009/07/05/month-of-art-stars-artists-choice-steve-yeowell/

INTERVIEW REVIEW

2009-06-08T09:23:00.002-04:00

An interview, quick-fire question style, conducted a few years back alongside Mike Maddox - writer of Radio 4's MayFlies, Doctor Who's Circular Time and Lion's The Graphic Bible :

If you could be a superhero, who would you be?

MADDOX:-
I always wanted to be Blade the Vampire Hunter, but I’m really a dreadful coward and scare easily. I’ve always had a soft spot for Captain America, and was very excited when Captain Britain came along., hoping Marvel would bring us Captain Cameroon, Captain Saudi Arabia, Captain Dominican Republic and so on. But they didn’t.

PERKINS:-
It would have to be a superhero with the abiltity to fly or become invisible. Bearing in mind that if I could fly I can be any number of amount of superheroes, yet with invisibility I would have to be the Invisible Girl. Mmmm... having breasts seems like a definate advantage so I'd opt for the invisibility option.

Your favourite six stories/eras/titles/issues, whatever.

PERKINS:-
V For Vendetta
"Gaze into the face of fear!"......"Gaze into the fist of Dredd!!"
Who is Donna Troy? ( New Teen Titans #38) - totally redefining comics for me
Harry Twenty on the High Rock
Smith and Weston's Killing Time.
Miller and Mazzucelli's Daredevil

MADDOX:-
Grant Morrison’s Animal Man.
Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing.
Brian Bolland doing the Dark Judges stories in 2000 AD.
Frank Miller’s Daredevil.
The Numbskulls.
Steve Parkhouse and John Ridgeway’s run on Doctor Who magazine.

What comics did you read as a kid?

PERKINS:-
I was introduced to comics not through the Beano and Dandy but through the hard hitting "Titans" reprints that Marvel brought out - printed in that really long format with two comic pages per page. Followed by "The Mighty World of Marvel" which really got me hooked on to Captain Britain with the silhouette teaser ads it ran. Then came Star Wars weekly and Dr Who weekly - especially when it contained the Gibbons fourth Doctor stories and Steve Dillon's Absalom Daak-Dalek Killer. I discovered 2000ad round about the time of The Apocalypse War - although I do remember buying the second issue and fooling everyone with the bionic stickers.

MADDOX:-
Mainly TV tie-in stuff. TV21, Countdown, the Daleks, that kind of thing. I mean, you had artists like Frank Bellamy reinventing Gerry Anderson, and it doesn’t get much better than that really. What else… The Trigan Empire in Look and Learn. But all that went out the window when “The Mighty World of Marvel” UK reprint titles were launched in the early seventies. The first few issues had Lee and Kirby’s FF and Hulk, and Ditko’s Spiderman. I have never really recovered. Johnny Storm shouts “Flame on!” and bursts into flames, Spidey grapples with guilt and the Thing and the Hulk throw office blocks at each other while fighting. And then there was Warlord. “Cop this, sausage noshers!” shouted D-Day Dawson as he brought the Bren gun to bear on the Nazi brutes.
But long before all this, I really loved Twinkle.

Are comics actually any good?

MADDOX:-
It’s like saying “Are films any good?”, or “Are paintings any good?”. Bit of a nonsense really. Saying that, just like any other artform/media, 95% of them are probably a pile of pooh. It’s like Telly. Every now and then something beautiful and astonishing and challenging comes along that takes your breath away, but the majority of it’s rubbish. That doesn’t mean I don’t like it- I’m very fond of rubbish.

PERKINS:
Of course they are.

What do you like best about comics?

MADDOX:
Pretty much everything, when they’re done well. In a good comic, each page is a joy to read, each picture tells a thousand words.

PERKINS:
Drawing a rollicking good story when I'm pencilling. When I'm inking I don't normally get to see the script, so sometimes the pages I receive end on a cliffhanger - even halfway through the book. There's always the hope that the reader will get as much excitement from the finished product as you have from creating it. That and the conventions.

What do you like least?

MADDOX:
This sounds like the anorak from Hell, but I don’t like the paper a lot of them get printed on, and the computer colour process. I really do think that publishers went overboard when the technology became available in the early/mid nineties, and now colourists swamp artwork with a million trillion zillion shades of colour when they really don’t need to. I actually prefer the soft, muted tones of some comics made with older technology. Also, I hate it when continuity gets in the way of stories.

PERKINS:
The price hike in the last ten years or so which discourages kids today from buying them, I could also break into a long and tiring discussion on distribution - which causes a lot of problems when one distributor controls 95% of the market - but I won't because its,..erm.. a long and tiring discussion. But in general I love comics!

UPCOMING SIGNINGS

2009-06-01T08:08:00.002-04:00

Spread the word -

Got a signing coming up on Saturday August 1st at 2.00pm in London's Orbital Comics : http://www.orbitalcomics.com/ . As far as I know I'll be joined by the magnificent Mr. Mike Carey and , well, who knows which other comic luminaries might wander along!

This is followed by a smaller Megacon in Orlando over the weekend of August 22nd-23rd : http://www.megaconvention.com/mini.asp

ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK

2009-05-26T09:19:00.009-04:00

The Lincoln Tunnel scene and the walk through Manhattan beforehand are two of the most visceral scenes in the novel of The Stand. I knew I had to get these scenes spot-on with no guessing and assuming of settings ; this sequence had to be as realistic as possible and there was only ONE way to do that:

When I was in Manhattan for the New York ComicCon last year I made a point of re-tracing Larry’s journey from Central Park, down Fifth Avenue, right on 39th Street and continuing on to the Lincoln Tunnel – making sure I took plenty of photographs along the way that I could use for exact reference. What made it even more poignant was when Bill Rosemann excitedly pointed out to me that Larry took his turn from Fifth Avenue right around the corner from the Marvel offices. I believe his words were “ You see… it’s destiny that Marvel are doing the adaptation to The Stand!!”

I believe this extra effort at authenticity has paid off – especially when you get the sense that this sequence is taking place in a real environment through the illustrations. Below are a few of the photographs alongside the resulting panel illustrations:

IMAGE 1: Here we find our unfortunate Looter swinging from a lamp-post on Fifth Avenue. I knew, at some point, I would need a “worms eye view” of things and snapped away accordingly.

IMAGE 2: The point where Larry and Rita turn into 39th Street HAD to be exact – and yet I’ve attempted to set moments throughout the adaptation in the time frame of the unabridged version of the novel – at the beginning of the 90’s ( Thus, the disappearance of that eerie shiny canister thing by the crossing!). Admittedly, some of the shops and building work may not have been there at the time but I guess I utilized the well worn artistic license. Here I’ve combined two separate elements form the photos ; the street scene itself, and the ubiquitous New York hot dog stand.

IMAGE 3 and 4:

New York street scenes can be notoriously hard to illustrate from memory. There are too many elements in the real street environment for you to take in visually – this is where the photo reference invariably helps ( and simultaneously giving you more work in the long run!)

IMAGES 5 AND 6

I took many, many photos of The Lincoln Tunnel entrance (adding a lot more decay, grit and damge along the way). A lot of these images I used to portray the panorama of the variant covers for the first volume of The Stand – Captain Trips. I can’t emphasize enough the need for me to get these settings exactly right and present the reader with a true vision of the events. I hope you feel it’s worked out.

THE STAND:AMERICAN NIGHTMARES #3 OUT THIS WEEK

2009-05-26T09:13:00.004-04:00

A review here :

http://www.comicsbulletin.com/reviews/124335018586886.htm

and here:

http://www.liljas-library.com/showreview.php?id=203

Solicitations for August

2009-05-20T08:18:00.004-04:00

HOUSE OF M: MASTERS OF EVIL #1 (of 5)

Written by CHRISTOS N. GAGE

Penciled by MANUEL GARCIA

Cover by MIKE PERKINS

Hot on the heels of the last two acclaimed minis, House of M returns! You've seen how the mutants and the heroes were changed in the world ruled by Magneto...but what about the villains? Their story stands revealed at last as The Hood assembles a gang of the deadliest Sapien super-criminals: Madame Masque, The Absorbing Man, Titania, The Wrecking Crew, Nitro,Constrictor, The Sandman, Crossbones and more! At first, their goal is simple: get rich and get away with it. But their very first job may lead somewhere none of them expected...and incur the wrath of the House of M itself!

32 PGS./Rated T+ ...$3.99

THE STAND: AMERICAN NIGHTMARES #5 (of 5)

Written by ROBERTO AGUIRRE-SACASA

Penciled by MIKE PERKINS

Cover by LEE BERMEJO

Variant Cover by MIKE PERKINS

Sketch Variant Cover by LEE BERMEJO

It's the Fourth of July, the first holiday post-plague, but none of the survivors are celebrating. While Nick Andros hovers between life and death--and between the influence of Randall Flagg and Mother Abigail--Larry Underwood makes a shocking discovery in his tent... And Stu Redmond's path intersects with Harold and Frannie's, but immediately a conflict (that will have enormous ramifications for all our players) immediately erupts among the three. The second mini-series adapting Stephen King's horror epic ends here, True Believers, setting stage for Volume Three: "SOUL SURVIVORS."

32 PGS./Cardstock Cover/Parental Advisory...$3.99

Published by arrangement with The Doubleday Broadway Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc.

This graphic novel is produced under license from The Doubleday Broadway Publishing Group and Stephen King.

EBAY

2009-05-11T11:50:00.001-04:00

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&item=290316556884

FREE COMIC BOOK DAY

2009-05-04T19:32:00.005-04:00

Saturday was "Free Comic Book Day" and I spent the time signing at Yancy Street Comics in New Port Richey, Florida. It was really quite busy with a constant flow of sketches being knocked out between 11.00 and 3.30.

Sitting next to me was the magnificent Mike Deodato Jr. and his wonderful wife - having been flown in from Brazil for the signing . It's the first time I've met him and , hopefully, not the last. We got on extremely well and even managed to jam on a few pieces.

I also got to meet up with a few friends and colleagues and had a great time all round - even when I was choked by Darth Vader himself. He really must get that asthma seen to.

TGIF

2009-04-24T17:45:00.004-04:00

He's the best there is at what he does, and what he does—is wear lots of neat outfits.

The Secret Cabal already revealed their favorites of Wolverine's many costumes, so this week we asked various Marvel creators and editors to share their picks.It's Friday, so kick back, relax and enjoy.

http://www.marvel.com/news/comicstories.7766.TGIF%7Ecolon%7E_Wolverine%7Eapos%7Es_Costumes

LINCOLN MEMORIAL

2009-04-24T07:08:00.003-04:00

There's an interview up on the Marvel site whereupon I chat about the upcoming Lincoln Tunnel scene in The Stand: American Nightmares #3 :

http://www.marvel.com/news/comicstories.7757.The_Stand~colon~_Tunnel_Visions

TGIF

2009-04-10T17:51:00.004-04:00

Wolverine's the best he is at what he does and he'll be back in movie theaters on Friday, May 1 in "X-Men Origins: Wolverine"!

Here on Marvel.com, we're celebrating the Canucklehead's return to the silver screen all month long with COMPLETE Wolverine stories in Marvel Digital Comics Unlimited, ever-present updates on the upcoming movie with all the latest photos, videos and more!

So sharpen your claws and dig in, True Believers—Marvel.com's the place to be!

http://www.marvel.com/news/comicstories.7589.TGIF%7Ecolon%7E_Wolverine%7Eapos%7Es_Teams

and from last week :

http://www.marvel.com/news/comicstories.7495.TGIF%7Ecolon%7E_WrestleMania

FX FACTS

2009-04-02T11:23:00.002-04:00

A quick reminder that in a couple of weeks I'll be attending the FX Show. Also in attendance will be my co-conspirators Christos Gage and Laura Martin, so bring along your comics and collections to get signed and defaced. There'll be a whole plethora of film and TV guests there too, including:

Leonard Nimoy (Star Trek), James Marsters (Buffy) , Jonathan Frakes (Star Trek : TNG) , Lindsay Wagner (The Bionic Woman), Morena Baccarin and Jewel Staite (Firefly) etc etc. Check out the whole list at :

http://www.fxshow.com/index.htm

FUTURE STAR

2009-03-27T14:26:00.002-04:00

Last Saturday I spent an hour or so at my local library ( Austin Davis Public Library ) talking about what I do, showing artwork and taking questions from a varied group of about thirty people - just the right amount to chat to on a Saturday afternoon, I feel! One of the best parts about doing these talks is meeting the children who read the books - especially if they're doing that alongside their parents.

While I was yakking on and on one of the chidren - Joey - drew a Captain America picture for me and...well...it was really fantastic and I reckon more people should be exposed to this young talent - so here you go:

TAKING OUT THE TRASH

2009-03-19T14:39:00.003-04:00

There's an interview with Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, The Stand:American Nigtmares, writer up on the Marvel web site :

http://www.marvel.com/news/comicstories.7294.The_Stand~colon~_Firestarter

He's interviewed about one of the most original and distinct charcters in the novel - The Trashcan Man himself.

A QUICK REMINDER

2009-03-12T21:21:00.001-04:00

Mike Maddox's Mayflies.

Friday 2.15 GMT http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/

MARVEL MOVIES

2009-03-12T08:55:00.001-04:00

Sony Pictures’ and Marvel Studios’ SPIDER-MAN 4 is slated for May 6, 2011.

To date, all three motion pictures in the phenomenally successful SPIDER-MAN franchise have generated nearly $2.5 billion worldwide theatrically.

Below is Marvel Studios’ 2010-2012 updated release schedule for its slate of self-produced and financed feature films:

Marvel Studios Feature Film Pipeline

Film/Character - Prior Release Date - Current Release Date

IRON MAN 2 - May 7, 2010 - May 7, 2010

THOR - July 16, 2010 - June 17, 2011

THE FIRST AVENGER: CAPTAIN AMERICA - May 6, 2011 - July 22, 2011

THE AVENGERS - July 15, 2011 - May 4, 2012

VARIANT VARIETY

2009-03-11T07:07:00.003-04:00

Thought you'd apprecaiate a small look - and I do mean "small", you can see bigger versions up at Marvel.com ( http://www.marvel.com/news/comicstories.7160.The_Stand%7Ecolon%7E_American_Nightmares_Begins )- of the covers for the first issue of The Stand:American Nightmares OUT TODAY!!

I'll bet you can also scoot over to http://www.comicbookartgallery.com/ and actually purchase the cover itself as well as the interior pages.

THE LINE UP AT LILJA'S LIBRARY

2009-03-09T19:41:00.003-04:00

It's The Stand week at Lilja's library and you can find Stephen King's biggest Swedish fan interviewing the entire creative team throughout the week - and running a competition where five sets of the first arc ( with variant covers) are up for grabs. Well worth checking out!

http://www.liljas-library.com/

IT'S ALL GOING ON!

2009-03-08T17:47:00.009-04:00

Loads of stuff happening this week...

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Wednesday 11th sees the eagerly awaited release of the first hardback volume of Marvel's adaptation of Stephen King's The Stand. You can pick this up at your local comic shop and get the Lee Bermejo cover or a widescreen cover by myself:

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On that same day - in fact while you're at the shop picking up your copy of the hardback - you can also purchase the first chapter in volume two : The Stand: American Nightmares.

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In fact, if youre in the vacinity of 14743 North Dale Mabry Hwy, Tampa, FL on the Wednesday evening you can stop by for Beer and Comics at Heroes Haven ( the comic shop formerly known as WonderWater) and get your copies signed by me!

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Alternatively, Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, will be signing copies at the New York branch of Forbidden Planet.

http://www.marvel.com/news/comicstories.7141.Aguirre-Sacasa_Signs_The_Stand_HC

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In other news... one of the coolest guys I know, Mr Mike Maddox, has not only written a drama for BBC Radio's Science Fiction season he's also managed to attract a stellar cast to perform his play. It's entitled Mayflies and features, Sir, Derek Jacobi ( Cadfael, Dr Who ), Jason Isaacs ( Lucius Malfoy, The State Within), Catherine McCormack ( Braveheart, 28 Weeks Later) and Danny Webb ( Numerous TV dramas including Doctor Who).

In the photo that's Mike and his wonderful wife, Phillipa, posing with his cast

You can listen to it at 2.15pm GMT , Friday 13th March, on Radio 4 . It's usually available to listen to for the following 7 days on the Radio 4 website.

TGIF

2009-03-06T17:06:00.002-05:00

http://www.marvel.com/news/comicstories.7149.TGIF%7Ecolon%7E_Reunions

With the release of NEW AVENGERS: THE REUNION #1 this week and the "will they or won't they" reconciliation of Ronin and Mockingbird taking center stage in that series, folks all around the House of Ideas have been thinking about couples, duos and teams they'd like to see get back together.

MEGACON SCHEDULE

2009-02-24T13:26:00.006-05:00

EPTING, CAP AND PERKINS AT MEGACON A COUPLE OF YEARS BACK!

Don't know how much sketching I'll be able to do over the weekend as my chest, back and shoulder are still playing up but I'll be around to sign and chat, sell pages and prints and answer any suitable questions!

My schedule is looking something like this:

FRIDAY
2.30-3.15

Signing at the HERO INITIATIVE booth

3.40-4.30

Art of Visual Storytelling - Room 222B

SATURDAY

4.10 - 5.00

Marvel Panel - 222B

For the rest of the time I'll be at Booth 319 - unless there's a sign at my table saying I'm not!

TGIF

2009-02-23T08:42:00.002-05:00

To commemorate Black History Month, we've asked Marvel writers, artist, and editors to reflect on their favorite black character in the Marvel Universe and tell us what made these heroes so great.

http://www.marvel.com/news/comicstories.6990.TGIF%7Ecolon%7E_Black_History_Month

LOOKING AHEAD

2009-02-20T06:57:00.002-05:00

There's a look at what's coming up in the next Stand storyarc at:

http://www.marvel.com/news/comicstories.6971.The_Stand%7Ecolon%7E_Nightmares_to_Come