Heeeeeere's Jonni!!

One of my favorite characters from Alan Moore's ABC line of comics was Jonni Future. The reason is simple - Art Adams. Art really pushed himself to a new level while working on the book, and I'm really pleased to have another Jonni piece in my collection. The amount of work he puts into these pinups is just incredible. (Pencils and inks by Art Adams. Click for larger image)

Killing Joke Prelim 28

UPDATE: SOLD IN 2012!

Here's another neat prelim from Alan Moore's Killing Joke, with art by Brian Bolland. I love comparing these to the printed page and seeing the differences. You can see in panel four that Bolland indicated that the Joker's face be rotated, and in the printed page, he has done just that. I also love the last panel with the Joker's reflection in the puddle. The very next panel in the book begins a flashback sequence and is nearly identical to this one - it also shows him standing over a puddle just before the "accident" that will turn him into the Joker. Moore uses this trick several times in the story when he switches from past to present and vice versa, and I'm quite fond of it.

Killing Joke Prelim 3

UPDATE: SOLD THIS PIECE IN AUGUST OF 2008!

The most recent KJ prelim I picked up featuring a nice shot of the Joker! (Interesting note: the pencil image has a slight red cast to it. That's because I took a picture of it with my digital camera behind my house while the San Diego forestfires of 2007 were raging. Lots of ash in the sky and everything tinged in red. Eerie... (Brian Bolland pencils. Click for larger image.)

Killing Joke Prelim 2

UPDATE: SOLD THIS PIECE IN 2011!!

I'd heard from a fellow collector that Brian Bolland did multiple prelims per page. I got to ask Bolland directly at San Diego Comicon 2006 about his working process, and he confirmed that he only did one version per page (as shown above), and used a projector to transfer the image to the final art board. (Click for larger image.)

Who Watches the Watchmen?

Depending on the day of the week, Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen might be my favorite comic book series of all time. It made Time Magazine's top 100 novels from 1923 to the present (2005): http://tinyurl.com/2d9zz5 That's NOVELS, not comic books. Not too shabby, eh? Some comic fans have decried the book for being "deconstructionist", and complain that it's geared strictly to an adult audience, but I'm of the mind that it's okay to have "mature" comic books. Reading them doesn't take away my enjoyment of the "fun" superhero books. By the way, Watchmen is fun too, and the artwork is amazing. I'm still discovering new things each time I re-read the series. This is a great page showing Dan's infatuation with Lauri. It also features the Owl Car - cool!! (Pencils, inks, and lettering by Dave Gibbons. Click for larger image.)

Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons - Watchmen

This was the first Watchmen page I bought. While it's probably the least expensive of the three I currently own, it is probably the best drawn page. It depicts two scenes at once; Lauri has realized that her relationship with Dr. Manhattan is over and decides to leave. Meanwhile, Janey Slater, Dr. Manhattans aged and former lover, tells a reporter about thier failed relationship and her realization that he's given her cancer. Alan Moore employs a literary trick here (common in his works, and especially Watchmen), by using the same dialoge to tell two different stories. It also features the lesbian cabdriver and Dr. Manhattan's ass. Great page. (Pencils, inks, and lettering by Dave Gibbons. Click for larger image.)

Funny story. I met Dave Gibbons at the San Diego Comicon in 2005 and had him sign this page for me. He turned it sideways and signed in the margin. When he lifted his hand, the second caption in panel two had lifted off the page completely and sat hanging from his wrist. He glanced up at me, caption still hanging, and gave me a worried look. Then we both started laughing. I said, if anyone was going to ruin my page, I hoped it would be him. He also asked me what the current market value of the page was. When I told him he replied "I don't think I got that much for doing the whole book!". Nice guy.

Jonni Future Page

I am a big fan of the Jonni Future series for one simple reason - Art Adams. The guy did some of the best work of his carreer on the books. One collector purchased all the art for the first five or so issues, making loose pages very scarce. (Pencils and inks Art Adams. Click for larger view.)

Art Adams Jonni Future

This was my first Art Adams pinup. He did this one personally for me so I guess that makes it a little extra special. I'm a HUGE fan of Jonni Future, so I was stoked when I got this piece. (Pencils and inks Art Adams. Click for larger image.)

Remember, remember the fifth of November...

SOLD!! SEPTEMBER 2011 (making way for a new acquisition...!)

I was really impressed the first time I read V for Vendetta and immediately knew I had to own a piece of art from the series. Sadly, my first choice was in the hands of another collector who wouldn't (and still won't) let it go. After scurrying without success after the few pieces that hit the market in the last few years, I was able to pry this page out of someones collection. Thank goodness I did because good pages rarely hit the market anymore. (Pencils and inks by David Lloyd. Click for larger image).

The Killing Joke

UPDATE: SOLD THIS PIECE IN APRIL OF 2008!

Well, a prelim may be as close as I get to owning a Killing Joke page, prices being what they are these days, so I'll have to contend myself with this. I'd heard from a fellow collector that Brian Bolland did multiple prelims per page. I got to ask Bolland directly at San Diego Comicon 2006 about his working process, and he confirmed that he only did one version per page (as shown above), and used a projector to transfer the image to the final art board. I also got him to sign a couple of pieces for me. (Brian Bolland pencils. Click for larger image.)

Sed quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

This page from Watchmen, featuring Rorschach, is one of the most sought after pieces in my collection. While he is certainly not my personal favorite character, he seems to be the one that made the biggest impression on comic book readers. The thing that makes this page so great (as explained to me by the seller) is that it's a page that features Rorschach being Rorschach. Lots of characterization going on here... (Dave Gibbons pencils, inks, and lettering. Click for larger image).

WHAT I WANT

Now that I've got your attention... I am an avid collector of original comic art. While I enjoy nearly all genres of the hobby, my primary focus is on books from the 1980's. My short want list:

The Dark Knight Returns
Watchmen
The Killing Joke

I'm also looking for John Byrne Fantastic Four and Alpha Flight art. If you have art from any of these books, please contact me! I also love talking to other collectors about art - so feel free to shoot me an email. I look forward to hearing from you! (click image above to email me)