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Steranko: The Greatest Comic Book Artist of the Late Silver Age?

Started by bronze johnny,

200 posts in this topic

jimjum12

jimjum12

Posted
Posted

Those late 60's Avengers were some of the most entertaining comics that I ever read.I picked up many of them off the stands and I looked forward to them just as much as I did the FF's and ASM's.It always seemed that Buscema and Thomas were a match made in heaven.There was always such a raw emotionalism in their collaberations.You could definitely say that they were"on the same page" 27_laughing.gif.GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) thumbsup2.gif

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Marc Spector-migration

Marc Spector-migration

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I just picked up Essential Captain America #2, with art by Kirby, Steranko, Romita, Buscema and Colan, so we'll see how they all stack up. wink.gif

 

Read most of this last night, quick read.

 

Kirby is my favorite here, great action and enthusiasm, fighting Nazis, yeah!! thumbsup2.gif

 

Buscema is next, good action, nice layouts and figure drawing, great cover. Cap 115.

 

I'd put Steranko next. Inventive layouts, reminds me of various artists before and after... Eisner, Barry Smith, Mike Zeck on Master of Kung Fu, Perez, Kirby...I'm sure people here could spot many more influences/descendents of Steranko.

He seems inconsistent next to the other artists here, but also surprising in a good way. I can see if you had a steady diet of 60's artists that Steranko would be a refreshing change. Some of the pages are tough to read, the sequence of events don't flow as well as they should. The first page of Cap 111 is more like a confusing collage.

Madame Hydra is a hottie, I like the way Steranko uses her dark silhouette shape to good effect in places.

Was Steranko's Captain America at the start/middle/ end of Steranko's comic career? He looks talented to me, but like he still has to develop things more.

 

Cap 112 must be a quick Kirby fill-in, while Steranko was working on the third part of this story?

 

Next I'd put Gene Colan. I like what he does here, and I never knew the origin of the Falcon, but...I think Colan's more suited to a character like Dracula. Horror or humour.

 

Romita for me falls in last place. I found his art in 114 dull. Not tough enough to be Kirby, not well drawn enough to be Buscema, not innovative/quirky like Steranko...it doesn't help that the pointy-armed robot Cap fights is dull too. tongue.gif

 

Well it was interesting to see all these artists on one character. Even continuing one story, from Romita to Buscema to Colan. smile.gif

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blowout

blowout

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I'd put Steranko next. Inventive layouts, reminds me of various artists before and after... Eisner, Barry Smith, Mike Zeck on Master of Kung Fu

 

Close, but you are thinking of Paul Gulacy. 893scratchchin-thumb.gif

 

His art on MOKF was very Sterankoesque, and Mike Zeck tried latter to ape his style with limited success.

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bronze johnny

bronze johnny

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Hey Mark, good observations. I agree with you about Steranko being a change. Just look at the Nick Fury issues and you can see what he was doing. The Art of Steranko went beyond many of the traditonal notions of comic book art in the late 1960s.

 

# # #

 

As for my respected forumite who brought Toth into this thread - I say that he is one of the greatest ever! Just look at his work in Frontline Combat -Just Incredible.

 

But we're discussing the late Silver Age, and Toth's best years were behind him by that time.

 

Steranko's peak is the late Silver Age. Period.

 

The Age of Steranko!

 

bronzejohnny

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mar-vell

mar-vell

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Buscema was a "get along" guy who wanted to have a career in comics to provide for his family. He should be honored for the high degree of artistry and professionalism he exhibited over his entire career.

 

Adams and Steranko were both determined to shake up the comics medium and encourage new methods and techniques for visual story-telling. It's easy to confuse "artistry" as in drawing pretty pictures that Buscema excelled at with "story telling artistry" that Steranko and Adams were all about.

 

Actually, you can put Adams in both categories.

 

Adams and Steranko were both innovators, and deserve to be remembered amoung the greats of the medium with the likes of Eisner, Ditko and Kirby.

Buscema didn't contribute anything new to the comic book industry but was a fine artsist, just not a great one.

 

Don't know if i would say Buscema was not great....His Surfer run is among the finest comic art ever produced hail.gif...(and some nice Thor stuff as well)....and his work on other titles was above and beyond what other companies like DC put out (for the most part with the obvious exception of Neal Adams etc.)...and look at the body of work...who out there was ability to put out so much quality work?

 

some of Buscema's work on the early silver surfers was great stuff but I thought the later issues in the run just had average artwork. I thought the run as a whole really went downhill after issue #5!

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*paull*

*paull*

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Marc Spector... Steranko used storytelling techniques in NF and Cap that hadn't been used in comics before. He didn't work in the traditional comic-book storytelling sense like Kirby and Buscema. Instead of traditional close-up / establishing shot / close-up sequences, Steranko used montage, silent sequences, and played with frame sizes and placement in order to move your eye more quickly or slowly across the page. If you're not "getting" Steranko, give the stories another read to see if you notice all the unusual techniques that he used.

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bumpjay

bumpjay

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Marc Spector... Steranko used storytelling techniques in NF and Cap that hadn't been used in comics before. He didn't work in the traditional comic-book storytelling sense like Kirby and Buscema. Instead of traditional close-up / establishing shot / close-up sequences, Steranko used montage, silent sequences, and played with frame sizes and placement in order to move your eye more quickly or slowly across the page. If you're not "getting" Steranko, give the stories another read to see if you notice all the unusual techniques that he used.

Will not find better verbiage on the subject... Perfectly stated !! thumbsup2.gif

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Marc Spector-migration

Marc Spector-migration

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Marc Spector... Steranko used storytelling techniques in NF and Cap that hadn't been used in comics before. He didn't work in the traditional comic-book storytelling sense like Kirby and Buscema. Instead of traditional close-up / establishing shot / close-up sequences, Steranko used montage, silent sequences, and played with frame sizes and placement in order to move your eye more quickly or slowly across the page. If you're not "getting" Steranko, give the stories another read to see if you notice all the unusual techniques that he used.

 

Yes I realize this. I see what he's doing, but I prefer the Kirby and Buscema versions of Cap. Have you read the issues that are in Cap Essentials #2 (103-126)? How would you rate those artists on Cap? For me: Kirby, Buscema, Steranko, Colan, Romita.

 

I will read more of Steranko's stuff though. As I said, I'm not against his work, he's just not my favorite. Yet! laugh.gif

 

My question about the artists on Cap goes out to everyone here.

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mar-vell

mar-vell

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If someone has a copy of Strange Adventures 216, could you please post the panel that has the dedication Adams makes to Steranko?

 

Thanks,

 

bronzejohnny

 

it says-"hey a jim steranko effect"

 

sterankoeffect.jpg[/img]

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