John Romita Jr.'s legacy

[MIL0S]

Wow, a lot of harsh comments about JRJR... To say his career is based solely on the fact that he is John Romita's son is absurd. That may have helped him get his foot in the door but it would NOT lead to a decades long career working on every top Marvel character. I happen to really like his 'blocky' style, though I can see how some people may not care for it. I'll also agree his style definitely works better for certain characters but his late 80's and early 90's work on Daredevil and Punisher War Zone is top notch. Klaus Janson and Al Williamson are great inkers over JRJR's pencils.

[Silver Surfer]

I'm not a fan of the current verison of JrJr but you have to admit that he draws action scene's as good as anyone, very dramatic and gripping. The X-Men stuff I thought was awesome but after that is art started to slide and get blockier.

[jjonahjameson1]

Wow, a lot of harsh comments about JRJR... To say his career is based solely on the fact that he is John Romita's son is absurd. That may have helped him get his foot in the door but it would NOT lead to a decades long career working on every top Marvel character. I happen to really like his 'blocky' style, though I can see how some people may not care for it. I'll also agree his style definitely works better for certain characters but his late 80's and early 90's work on Daredevil and Punisher War Zone is top notch. Klaus Janson and Al Williamson are great inkers over JRJR's pencils.

 

I do like a lot of John's work, but in all honesty, his recent style, especially the last 5 years or so, has been hurt by the amount of work he's been producing under tight deadlines. Often working on two titles or one title + hundreds of illos for Kick @SS and Kick @ss 2 has resulted in the recent blockiness and absence of details in his work.

 

However, Romita Jr has shined on recent commissions, especially those in collaboration with his dad, a strong, experienced, penciller and inker.

 

I would say John's art really shines when he is joined by a strong embellisher, and I agree with the other folks who have chimed in by mentioning Layton and Williamson.

 

Having said all this, I can also understand the reaction from those who don't like his work. After all, there's a lot of artists named on this message board daily who's work I will never understand or appreciate, try as I might.

[MIL0S]

I do like a lot of John's work, but in all honesty, his recent style, especially the last 5 years or so, has been hurt by the amount of work he's been producing under tight deadlines. Often working on two titles or one title + hundreds of illos for Kick @SS and Kick @ss 2 has resulted in the recent blockiness and absence of details in his work.

 

I'm not sure how many other people fall into this category, although I actively collect art I no longer actively read any current books (or very few) so to be honest I haven't seen much of JRJR's new work from the past ten years. I'll have to check it out, regardless I'll always be a big fan of his stuff from 20 yrs ago.

[comix4fun]

JRJR's work on Iron Man is one of the top Penciler/Inker collaborations in Marvel Comics history.

 

His work on X-men (1st Run) was influential and some very well rendered storytelling.

 

 

 

His collaboration with Al WIlliamson on Daredevil, in both the ongoing series and "Man Without Fear" is some of the best DD work since the Copper Age.

 

 

Too many people that are fans of comic books don't actually judge artists on how well they tell the story. These weren't meant to be static images, they are supposed to forward the narrative and JRJR has always been able to do that.

 

There are TONS of artists who can draw a pretty looking picture but can't tell a story. When I look at comic art, the sequential art storytelling aspect is just as important as any other.

 

And I agree that his work on commissions is stellar...especially when you seem him with his father's inks to complete the image.

 

[Greedo]

Well said Sir!

 

He doesn't draw the prettiest picture (his style works well for certain characters though), but he is a really good storyteller.

[Silver Surfer]

[buyatari]

JR/JRs newer stuff is clearly a different style and feels adapted perhaps in an attempt to sell splashier pages to comic art buyers.

[comix4fun]

 

 

 

 

 

[Kevin76]

Well you have guys at the top like Miller, Byrne and Neal Adams, then you have guys at the bottom like Mark Bagley and Erik Larsen, then there is 60 feet of garbage, then there is John Romita Jr.

 

:roflmao: Oh, wait. You're serious?

 

Yes I am!

[J.Sid]

I've liked his collaborations with Klaus Janson. They seem to be a great fit.

 

Black Panther issues they did were sweet. (Solid coloring helped as well)

Kick was a blast.

 

Note: I don't think I'd buy a comic just because JrJR was doing the art.

[Kevin76]

Every time something cool comes out, JRJR is there to draw it..

 

Who drew Miller's return to DD? JRJR

Who drew Kick ? JRJR

Who drew the Hulk when Bruce Jones was writing? JRJR

 

He has the worst line work I've ever seen that looks like an amateur!

 

He has dynamic light and dark, I'll give him that but his style is just plain ugly!!

 

I hate his art with passion!!

 

But he seems like a great guy...

[comix4fun]

Every time something cool comes out, JRJR is there to draw it..

 

Who drew Miller's return to DD? JRJR

Who drew Kick ? JRJR

Who drew the Hulk when Bruce Jones was writing? JRJR

 

He has the worst line work I've ever seen that looks like an amateur!

 

He has dynamic light and dark, I'll give him that but his style is just plain ugly!!

 

I hate his art with passion!!

 

But he seems like a great guy...

 

Every artist is capable of less than perfect or even bad line work.

That's especially true if they are producing multiple titles every month.

 

I don't think anyone can claim that Romita Jr. has the "worst line work" on every single piece of art he's created. You can choose dogs from every artist's portfolio, that doesn't mean they are representative of his overall talents.

 

 

I'd challenge anyone to look at the examples I posted and point out the amateur nature of the line work.

[buyatari]

Every time something cool comes out, JRJR is there to draw it..

 

Who drew Miller's return to DD? JRJR

Who drew Kick ? JRJR

Who drew the Hulk when Bruce Jones was writing? JRJR

 

He has the worst line work I've ever seen that looks like an amateur!

 

He has dynamic light and dark, I'll give him that but his style is just plain ugly!!

 

I hate his art with passion!!

 

But he seems like a great guy...

 

Every artist is capable of less than perfect or even bad line work.

That's especially true if they are producing multiple titles every month.

 

I don't think anyone can claim that Romita Jr. has the "worst line work" on every single piece of art he's created. You can choose dogs from every artist's portfolio, that doesn't mean they are representative of his overall talents.

 

 

I'd challenge anyone to look at the examples I posted and point out the amateur nature of the line work.

 

I like the examples you posted.

 

Do you have any examples like that of his recent work?

[comix4fun]

Every time something cool comes out, JRJR is there to draw it..

 

Who drew Miller's return to DD? JRJR

Who drew Kick ? JRJR

Who drew the Hulk when Bruce Jones was writing? JRJR

 

He has the worst line work I've ever seen that looks like an amateur!

 

He has dynamic light and dark, I'll give him that but his style is just plain ugly!!

 

I hate his art with passion!!

 

But he seems like a great guy...

 

Every artist is capable of less than perfect or even bad line work.

That's especially true if they are producing multiple titles every month.

 

I don't think anyone can claim that Romita Jr. has the "worst line work" on every single piece of art he's created. You can choose dogs from every artist's portfolio, that doesn't mean they are representative of his overall talents.

 

 

I'd challenge anyone to look at the examples I posted and point out the amateur nature of the line work.

 

I like the examples you posted.

 

Do you have any examples like that of his recent work?

 

 

Only that commission piece I posted which was in the last couple of years.

 

I've seen some of the Wolverine stories he did as OA, but I haven't seen the actual OA of any more recent stuff.

[delekkerste]

Do you have any examples like that of his recent work?

 

More recent work:

[comix4fun]

Who's Randy Elliott?

[TheGeneral]

[Kevin76]

You know, much like a good receiver can make any QB look good, a good inker can make JRJR look good too.

[jjonahjameson1]

You know, much like a good receiver can make any QB look good, a good inker can make JRJR look good too.

 

Al Williamson was among the best. He could make anyone look good, and John has expressed his gratitude to Al on several occassions in interviews. I think Al's inks over John on DD, DD Man w/o Fear and on his brief stint of Spider-Man are tops.