ASM 39 or ASM 40,..which one is the better image ?

[Sharkey]

 

"I shouldnt have used "radiating power" in this context. What I was referring to was the inherent power Spidey exudes in what is actually a relaxed pose. Cool and confident. As say James Bond radiateds power standing in a casino, get it? Casual but alert, poised and ready. Ditko could convey all that in what would be for Romita just a guy standing there looking 'pretty' and well-dressed.

 

You may be right that some of Ditkos allure is inextricably attached to Spidey nostalgia for many people. But Im pretty sure Im looking at his line work alone. Where I agree on this is your point about his later work. He was most similar and tightest on Captain Atom afterwards, but even there, not seeing the simple red and blue Spidey costume always diminished that work to me. As for his later work, to me it loosened up and deteriorated at a pace equal to Kirby's slackening of detail etc over the same period. Plus, Ditko retreated further into his patented st piece favorite imagery which was far simpler and more unattractive and stiff than watered down Kirby ever got (till the very end)

 

much of Ditkos work is, well, not his best or among the best ever done. But his BEST stuff??? Pure balletic poetry in motion. To me his greatness is undeniable, but that is not a blanket statement for every piece he ever drew....

 

Aman, excellent points.

 

Romita is a classicist and his perspective, anatomy, figures, faces, pacing was excellent.

 

Ditko's style was traditionally off-beat and therefore perfectly suited to Spider-Man and Dr. Strange (remember, Stan Lee didn't want Kirby to do Spider-Man because he made him too rugged). And when you see Ayers or Don Heck try to do Spidey in TTA and Avengers, yowch!! It's like Ditko was born to draw Spider-Man and Dr. Strange: has anybody topped Ditko in that regard? And you have to hand it to Stan Lee for understanding his style and matching it with the right titles.

 

Ditko also did great supernatural and ghost story/sci fi and prehero work. However, I'm not a huge fan of the work he did on Hulk and TTA or TOS or some of his later work. His Captain Atom work was great, as was his Blue Beetle and the Question for Charleton. In fact I prefer his run on Blue Beetle to his Captain Atom run (the early Captain Atom in Space Adventures was better than the later run). When he went to DC I thought he was spectacular in Creeper (though I found the book much more interesting visually than story-wise.). Hawk and Dove did nothing for me.

 

Those who have followed and understand Ditko's philosophy on life can understand that there were times in his career when he was more passionate and motivated and it shows in his work. And the guy was cranking out a lot of content, and worked at a number of different publishing houses over the years, and hit a lot of different genres.

 

He's one of the all-time greats for a number of reasons, and Spider-Man is just one of them. But like Aman said, not every piece he did exudes or exemplifies that greatness. His style definitely wasn't well suited to some of the jobs he got. He's got a definite style and never deviated far from it. Some people like it, others don't.

 

When he was hitting all cylinders, his stuff was amazing.

 

 

 

Now, back to the original topic. I liked the cover to 39 better. Blew my mind when I saw it the first time.

[Aman619]

I couldnt have said it bette myself, Rhino!

...and I tried, too!

[FFB]

I couldnt have said it bette myself, Rhino!

...and I tried, too!

 

It's the journalism background. He's showing off.

[Sharkey]

I couldnt have said it bette myself, Rhino!

...and I tried, too!

 

It's the journalism background. He's showing off.

 

[FFB]

I couldnt have said it bette myself, Rhino!

...and I tried, too!

 

It's the journalism background. He's showing off.

 

 

Hey, that comment implied that you were at least doing a good job of it!

[RustyStaple]

Getting back on topic....

 

Both covers show 'vulnerability' of the hero or the villian. What draws me to 39 more is that spiderman looks defenseless, almost hopeless, a very unusual situation for Spidey. While 40 shows Goblin down but is it a 'trick' to lure Spiderman in? For the Goblin we are used to his surprises.

[Sharkey]

I couldnt have said it bette myself, Rhino!

...and I tried, too!

 

It's the journalism background. He's showing off.

 

 

Hey, that comment implied that you were at least doing a good job of it!

 

oh, in that case

 

[DESTRO-migration]

I think Im the only one who like the 40 more,...I mean,..technically speaking,..there is no 'Spidey' on the 39 ?