RIP: Sal Buscema

"Our Pal" Sal Buscema passed away last Saturday, just 2 days shy of his 90th birthday. He was the brother of the legendary comics artist John Buscema and got his start inking his brother. He wound up toiling as a penciler and inker at Marvel Comics from 1969 up to 2011. In his time, he worked on just about every major Marvel property, everything from Rom to Spectacular Spider-Man.

While his brother has earned plenty of accolades for his work, Sal hasn't received too many honours for his work (although I note my colleagues at the Inkwell Awards gave him four awards). Sal's most warmly-received run is probably his work on Defenders in the 1970s, but fans dub it "Steve Gerber's Defenders," not "Gerber and Buscema's."

I think Sal Buscema was seen as a "house style" artist - that is, people thought he imitated other artists (like his brother and Jack Kirby) rather than developing his own style. And yet, his style - especially as seen in Spectacular Spider-Man - is undeniably unique. His collaboration with writer Walter Simonson on Thor saw him shift his style to suit Simonson's own art; his long run on Incredible Hulk included a period with moody inks by Gerry Talaoc; and his Spectacular Spider-Man run included a run of stories where he was inked by Bill Sienkiewicz - it's scarcely recognizable as his old "house style."

When Sal Buscema was chosen as the cover artist for the series of Marvel Legacy handbooks we created in 2006 (he wound up drawing the covers to the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s books) I was honoured to have his art grace our cover as at the time, he was one of the last surviving 1960s Marvel artists, a genuine link to the past, which is what our books were honouring.

Rest in peace, Mr. Buscema.

RIP: Jim Shooter

Jim Shooter passed away on June 30, aged 73.

Shooter became the editor-in-chief of Marvel the same year I was born; consequently, all of my early brushes with Marvel were based on the line the way it was when he held oversight of the company. His name was certainly one that I knew, as he would appear or be referenced in the Bullpen Bulletin pages and in letter pages. Frequently there were jokes about his 6'7" stature. And then, with zero ceremony, he was gone from that post in 1987.

I don't think I really began to grasp who Jim Shooter was when I started using the internet, and not just from the image Shooter himself cultivated in online interviews or on his personal website. I started to learn then that Shooter was an extremely controversial figure, having been responsible for driving a mulititude of great creators from Marvel during his tenure (Gerber, McGregor, Colan, Moench, Thomas, Wolfman). He also tarnished his image in fandom by taking the wrong side in prominent comics court cases in the 80s, notably taking sides against Harlan Ellison and the Comics Journal in the lawsuit Michael Fleisher took against them, and taking Marvel's side against Jack Kirby.

It's easy to paint him a villain; heck, he seemed to relish the role. In many of his online interactions he was not above taking quippy, petty potshots at former colleagues (tastelessly including Bill Mantlo, who can't exactly fight back). At the same time, he's held up by many fans as the ideal editor-in-chief (that is, fans who are roughly around my age). He's seen as the one who brought professionalism to Marvel at a time when the company needed it; if he was a jerk, well, those fans think someone had to step and be the jerk. He rebuilt the structure of Marvel editorial into a form it still more-or-less follows today. And while many famous names left the company, his tenure as editor-in-chief featured the likes of Walter Simonson's Thor, Frank Miller's Daredevil, Chris Claremont and John Byrne's X-Men, John Byrne's Fantastic Four, Doug Moench and Bill Sienkiewicz's Moon Knight, etc. He's basically a co-creator of the Transformers, who were just a bunch of toys until Shooter and others developed a backstory (and names).

It's easier to talk about Shooter the writer; he started writing at age 13, penning Legion of Super-Heroes stories for DC because, even at 13, he thought he could write better stories than the ones DC had been publishing. I'm not a big enough Legion fan to know-- I've never read his stories-- but Legion fandom agrees, Shooter was a huge breath of fresh air to that series. For me, I enjoyed him most when he was writing the Avengers, particulary his "Korvac Saga." Less so the Avengers stories with the domestic violence against the Wasp.

I've also been very vocal on the internet in my defense of the New Universe, a publishing initiative Shooter conceived of. Although my favourite of the titles was D.P.7 by Mark Gruenwald and Paul Ryan, I did enjoy how off-beat Shooter and John Romita Jr's Star Brand was. It featured a recurring idea in Shooter's fiction about men struggling to understand how best to wield the power they've received (as Sean Howe noted in his book Marvel Comics: the Untold Story, usually Shooter's powerful men were positioned as villains but were misunderstood, something Howe saw as autobiographical, given Shooter's status as an industry scapegoat).

Shooter's work at Valiant is seldom given it's due; his Magnus Robot Fighter comics - especially the opening "Steel Nation" arc - are some mighty good comics. I haven't sampled his later work in his companies Defiant or Broadway.

It's difficult to not form an opinion of Shooter, given how (ahem) large he loomed in the industry. I suppose deep down, I do feel like many of my fellow Gen Xers that Marvel's standard of quality was never better than during his term as editor-in-chief. Overall, I feel kindly towards him and his legacy.

Rest in peace, Mr. Shooter.

RIP: Lalo Schifrin

There aren't many composers working in film today whose credits date back to the 1960s - and now there's one fewer. Argentinian composer Lalo Schifrin passed away last week, aged 93.

Lalo Schifrin composed the scores for a number of Steve McQueen's movies - including the phenomenal music in Bullitt (1968). But the whole reason I know his name - and I'm sure the same is true for many - is that he composed the original television score for Mission: Impossible.

He composed a few other television scores like Mannix, but that supremely cool Mission: Impossible theme tune was something special and it's proven resilient thanks to the feature films, ensuring Schirfin has a legacy; he will be remembered.

Rest in peace, Mr. Schifrin.

RIP: Peter David

I'm very sad to have heard writer Peter David passed away this weekend. Although he wrote in many mediums, I knew him best for his work as a comic book writer.

Certainly he'll be best-remembered for his many years as writer on the Incredible Hulk (1987-1998). He started shortly after the Hulk had become gray but wound up writing the gray Hulk for so long that he remains the writer most-associated with that version of the character. The years he spent writing the Hulk - paired with great artists like Todd McFarlane, Dale Keown, Gary Frank - he kept finding new ideas about where to take the Hulk and what could be done with the character. Even then, he wouldn't have left in 1998 except that his editor wanted a lot of changes to the book that he had no interest in implementing.

Plenty of Hulk writers before and since have delved into the character's multiple personalities and how he's rooted in Bruce Banner's earlier psychological traumas but aside from Al Ewing, no one has made it so central what the series was about. I was especially impressed with the story in Incredible Hulk #-1 where he revealed Banner had accidentally killed his own father but repressed the memory. David's story for what became Hulk: The End (originally a prose piece) is likewise a terrific exploration of Banner's trauma, in that instance set in a distant future where the Hulk is the last being left alive on Earth; where Banner simply wants to die, the Hulk views Banner as his enemy and sees their psychological conflict as another battle to be won.

And there was so much more; his X-Factor really surprised me in the 1990s. His version of that series was a team of mutant heroes (mostly those no other writers wanted to use at the time) working for the government. I think I started buying it just because I had been swayed by the impression it was a "hot" book. Then I stayed because it was funny and well-characterized. His story "X-aminations" (X-Factor #87) in which the team were psychoanalyzed remains by far the best-remembered issue in that series; I remember even at the time it came out, I was wowed by that one. It's certainly for me the defining version of Quicksilver's character.

At times his sense of humour was very obvious and a bit too pleased with his puns. Still, overall I enjoyed his writing. Past the 1990s I followed him on books like Captain Marvel and his 2nd version of X-Factor. I'm not certain if I ever read any of his DC comics, nor have I read any of his prose (not even his Star Trek novels), but I know he had a huge fanbase in those areas of his career as well. Back in the day I regularly visited his blog-- although mostly because I was interested in his political opinions.

Rest in peace, Mr. David.

RIP: Jackson "Butch" Guice

Last Thursday, comic book artist Jackson "Butch" Guice passed away at age 63.

Guice's art first made a strong impression on me during his brief time as penciler on Iron Man, starting with issue #231 - the finale of the famed "Armor Wars" storyline and the introduction of the new red and gold Iron Man armor (dubbed "big boots" by fans).

Guice later turned in beautiful artwork on Crossgen's detective comic Ruse. Like everyone who worked at Crossgen, he seemed to come away from the experience a better artist than ever; with fellow ex-Crossgen artists Steve Epting and Mike Perkins, he contributed terrific art during Ed Brubaker's lengthy run on Captain America.

I never had any dealings with Guice while I was at Marvel but I always enjoyed his art - especially his post-Crossgen art. I'm sad to hear he's gone; rest in peace, Mr. Guice.

RIP: Val Kilmer

Actor Val Kilmer passed away this week, aged only 65.

I'm sure every film buff out there has a favourite Val Kilmer movie, but mine is his first film - Top Secret! (1984), the ridiculous comedy film in which he portrayed the Elvis-like singing sensation Nick Rivers, who journeys behind the Iron Curtain and gets involved in a spy plot that is very much like the 1944 movie the Conspirators. As Kilmer himself noted, being that he was a young actor, it was a huge challenge to take on such a wacky comedy role; Kilmer succeeded because he portrayed Nick earnestly, a straight man in a very, very wacky movie.

But I'm sure most film buffs are going to point to Tombstone (1993). And yes, even I - a man who does not especially like westerns - point to Kilmer's performance as Doc Holliday as a terrific piece of acting. Perhaps Tombstone is the western movie for people who don't like westerns? Anyway, go watch Tombstone if you haven't already.

Obviously, there's much more I could mention; I have one friend who loves the Ghost and the Darkness (1996); my sister loved Willow (1988); my wife really likes the Saint (1997).

Rest in peace, Mr. Kilmer.

RIP: Peter B. Gillis

Yesterday the death of my friend Peter B. Gillis was announced.

Peter B. Gillis was a comic book writer who worked primarily from 1978-1990. He might be best-remembered as the creator of Strikeforce: Morituri. He was also the writer of the Defenders for many years with artist Don Perlin, who likewise passed away just the other month.

He became one of my favourite writers after I became enthralled by the Eternals. I loved the story he began in the 12-issue Eternals mini-series he started in 1985 with Sal Buscema and it was an enormous shame that he wasn't able to finish the story, leaving after the 8th issue.

But the earliest comic of his that made an impression upon me was What If #46: "What If Spider-Man's Uncle Ben Had Lived?" He was paired there with artist Ron Frenz, who did his best to ape and even recreate moments from Steve Ditko's earliest Amazing Spider-Man stories. In Gillis' story, Uncle Ben lives and Aunt May dies; Ben quickly surmisees Peter is Spider-Man and refuses to see his nephew meekly submit as his reputation is smeared in the newspapers. Gillis imagined that Ben had a real personality and I think it was the first time any Spider-Man story attempted to give Uncle Ben some depth.

Through Facebook I became friends with him and had a few private conversations with him. I'm happy I was able to tell him how much I loved his work. I found him very humble and sensitive. I fear that as he was embroiled in legal battles with Marvel over Strikeforce: Morituri that his legacy might not loom large compared to his contemporaries. But to me, at least, he was one of the greats.

Rest in peace, Mr. Gillis.

RIP: Tom Luth

Comic book colorist Tom Luth was found dead at home last Thursday following a heart attack; he was 70 years old.

Tom Luth will be best-remembered among comics fans as being part of the Groo the Wanderer creative team, coloring most Groo stories through that book's history (Groo writer Mark Evanier eulogiezes Luth here and Groo artist Sergio Aragones eulogized him as well). But though I've never cared much for Groo, I am a huge Usagi Yojimbo fan. Stan Sakai's Usagi Yojimbo was usually presented in black and white stories, with the covers supplying the only colour. Luth coloured the cover of Critters #1 in 1986, when the series was just starting out, and continued to colour Sakai's covers from the Fantagraphics era, to Mirage, to Dark Horse and then to IDW. Along the way there were occasional Usagi Yojimbo Color Specials in which the character appeared in full-colour comics. Luth was the interior colorist on every Color Special both at Fantagraphcis and Dark Horse.

The move to publishing at IDW in 2019 resulted in Usagi Yojimbo switching to a full-colour format. From then on, Luth was tapped not only for the covers but the interiors as well. That seemed to be too much for him; in 2020 he announced his retirement from comics. Although Usagi Yojimbo has continued on as a full-colour comic (usually coloured by the studio Hi-Fi Design), 2020's Usagi Yojimbo #14 was Luth's farewell to the series. Luth did terrific work on Usagi Yojimbo for 35 years and left behind an excellent body of work.

Rest in peace, Mr. Luth.

RIP: Don Perlin

Comic book artist Don Perlin passed away last week, aged 94. Perlin was one of the few remaining comic book artists who worked for Marvel during the days it was known as Atlas Comics. His career reached all the way back to 1951.

Back in 2011 when I featured a series of "I Love Atlas Comics" stories I featured a horror story drawn by Perlin - "The Dinner Guest." Check out that post here!

Perlin had a lengthy run on the Defenders at Marvel, but he's best-remembered for collaborating with writer Doug Moench on Werewolf by Night, where in 1975 they created the super hero Moon Knight - initially as an adversary for the Werewolf, but quickly established that Moon Knight was a good man and spun him off into his first solo adventure in Marvel Spotlight #28-29 (1976). Moench and Perlin's Moon Knight stories are a bit different from what Moench would later do with artist Bill Sienkiewicz - I get the sense that Moench wrote the character to suit his artist. The Moench/Perlin interpretation of Moon Knight had a bit more whimsy than what Moench/Sienkiewicz would establish together. I feel the early issues of the Moench/Sienkiewicz demonstrated Moench trying to feel about for what the new partnership would be - perhaps some of the early stories were first envisioned with Perlin in mind.

Perlin was one of the few Marvel talents who not only liked editor in chief Jim Shooter, but would say so in public, too. Perlin left Marvel to work on Valiant comics under Shooter's oversight and his big contribution there was the series Bloodshot. When Shooter left Valiant, Perlin followed suit.

Rest in peace, Mr. Perlin.

RIP: Trina Robbins

Comic book writer and artist Trina Robbins died yesterday, aged 85. She was the partner of comic book artist Steve Leialoha.

I didn't begin to take notice of Robbins until after I became a Sax Rohmer fan and went hunting for an adaptation of his novel Dope that was serialized in Eclipse magazine and Eclipse Monthly. Robbins was the artist and adaptor of Rohmer's story and I found her art very appealing - intended for a mature audience, but drawn with simple lines evocative of Dan DeCarlo or Herge.

In time, I learned Robbins was a major historian in the comics community, especially in highlighting the history of female protagonists and female comic book creators. When Marvel began offering a number of anthologies with all-female creative teams (such as Girl Comics), Robbins was involved in those works which I felt lent them credence and continuity.

Rest in peace, Ms. Robbins.

RIP: Vernor Vinge

Science fiction author Vernor Vinge passed away yesterday, aged 79.

I'm far from being an expert on contemporary science fiction literature; heck, I'm not that well versed even in the classics of science fiction. Around 2002 or 2003, I was in a group of friends who met regularly to play board games, watch science fiction television shows and chat about comic books. It was from that group that I first learned about Vernor Vinge when they strongly promoted his books to me. It's the only time the group really converged to vouch for a particular author. My friends loaned me his Hugo Award-winning novels A Fire Upon the Deep (1992) and A Deepness in the Sky (1999).

I was hooked; I learned there was a reason why my friends liked to use "Vinge" as a verb (as a replacement for "binge"). His works were dense and highly literate, yet very approachable; not just plot-driven but also very character-driven; heady science fiction concepts (particularly in ideas of relativity).

Those two novels were part of what were called Vinge's "Zones of Thought" books - set in the same universe but with barely any recurring characters. After I enjoyed reading their copies, my friends hooked me up with his short fiction anthology (the Collected Stories of Vernor Vinge) but for some reason they didn't talk up the rest of his works. I did eventually pursue his earlier novels the Peace War (1984) and Marooned in Realtime (1986). I was also pleased to pick up his new novels as they were published - Rainbows End (2006) and Children of the Sky (2011).

I'm disappointed that there won't be any additional works from such a fine author. He's certainly left behind a short but fascinating bibliography. Hopefully he'll be remembered by science fiction fans at large; he'll certainly be remembered by me. Rest in peace, Mr. Vinge.

RIP: Paul Neary

I've been very busy in recent weeks, but I wanted to note the passing of comic book creator Paul Neary a little more than 2 weeks ago.

Neary was best-known as an artist; he also worked as an editor and he wrote a few stories. Most of his work was published in the UK, but he made a major inroad into US comics when he became the artist of Captain America during writer J. M. DeMatteis' last year on the title (#291-300). In fact, the 1st issue of Captain America I ever owned was Neary's 2nd issue on the series, #292. He drew the series during DeMatteis' big Red Skull story that led up to #300.

Captain America editor Mark Gruenwald assumed the writing duties after DeMatteis and Neary remained on board as artist until issue #331. During that time, Neary helped Gruenwald revitalize the title as they worked especially hard to expand Cap's rogue's gallery, the most significant additions being the Serpent Society and Flag-Smasher. The issue after Neary's departure - #332 - was a major turning point for the series, starting the storyarc in which John Walker became Captain America; Neary's exit helped mark the change in direction.

In time, I think Neary became better-known as an inker than he had been as a penciler. He became Alan Davis' inker for many years and helped make Davis' work on Excalibur so appealing. After Davis, he became Bryan Hitch's inker. I've never been too fond of Hitch's photorealistic approach to comic art, but I credit Neary for making Hitch's work more fluid and rounded (more like Alan Davis, frankly).

Neary will be remembered for his decades of work; Rest in peace, Mr. Neary.

RIP: Carl Weathers

Carl Weathers passed away last week at age 76. Most of the reporting online talks him up as a performer in the Rocky franchise and for his role in the original Predator. I like those movies quite a bit; Predator is one of the most ridiculously macho movies ever made, and kind of funny because of how over-the-top macho it is. Rocky, despite its reputation, was a heartfelt story that connects to me on an entirely different level.

Having that background with Weathers, I was very pleased when he turned up in the television series the Mandalorian; his appearance in the first episode surprised me and was the first signal I received that the casting work on that series was top-notch. I enjoyed seeing reappear on that series (even direct an episode) even though the series itself just kept running in circles.

But if I'm honest, my favourite role Carl Weathers ever played in was when he portrayed... Carl Weathers on television's Arrested Development.

I laughed a lot at him satirizing himself. Based on his willingness to make fun of himself, he must have been a pretty great guy. Rest in peace, Mr. Weathers.

RIP: Norman Jewison

Canadian film director Norman Jewison died earlier this week. He had a lengthy career in film going back to the 1960s. Most of his eulogies rightly talk about his film In the Heat of the Night. I know that there are many who loved his movie Jesus Christ Superstar. In my family, we grew up watching his Fiddler on the Roof. I'm also personally fond of his movies the Cincinnati Kid and ...And Justice for All.

But if I can be permitted to indulge in recommending only one film from his library, then it has to be A Soldier's Story, which he filmed in 1984. It was an adaptation of Charles Fuller's 1981 play A Soldier's Play and featured three key performers from the original cast - Adolph Caesar as a sergeant who is murdered near his camp during World War II, prompting an investigation; Larry Riley as a soldier whom the sergeant especially disliked; and a young Denzel Washington as one of the soldiers who stood up to the sergeant.

I've never seen a performance of the play so I can't say how well A Soldier's Story functions as an adaptation, but it made a strong impression on me when I first saw it. It was around 2002 that I saw the movie broadcast on History Television. It was introduced by host Ann Medina, who singled it out as one of Jewison's finest films. Although a historical drama, it wasn't based on a true story - but it sure didn't hurt History Television to be able to put on a Jewison film and claim credit for Canadian content.

The film is a bit of a murder mystery, as the killer of the sergeant is found through a lengthy series of scenes in which a black officer interviews the men who served under the deceased sergeant. A series of flashbacks reveal how intensely the sergeant despised his own men and the reciprocal hatred it inspired in them. Throughout, Adolph Caesar's performance is mesmerizing; there's a particular flashback in which his character engages in a lengthy monologue about an incident from World War I. The calm, matter-of-fact way the sergeant admits to lynching a fellow soldier for embarrassing him. The scene conjured up is so stark, it's horrifying - and it's all through Caesar's delivery.

A Soldier's Story is not (you will have guessed) a very happy movie... but also not a very angry movie. It's a very sad film, a tragedy. It will leave you feeling a little bit haunted by what you've scene - and for that reason, it's my pick as Jewison's best movie.

So, check out A Soldier's Story when you're able - and rest in peace, Mr. Jewison.

RIP: Keith Giffen

Another brief digression from Quiet, Please month.

Just over a week ago, comic book writer/artist Keith Giffen passed away.

I was exposed to Giffen's work very early in my comic book hobby but it took me quite some time to really take notice of his name. My first exposure to Giffen's artwork was almost certainly a copy of All-Star Comics #62 that my family picked up at a church bazaar (it took a very long time to pick up All-Star Comics #63). Not too long after I encountered Giffen's writing via Justice League International #11 but I didn't like it very much - the Giffen/DeMatteis Justice League comics really didn't appeal to me as a child.

I became a Giffen fan thanks to his work as artist/co-writer of Ambush Bug (with co-writer Robert Loren Fleming). The original mini-series, 2nd mini-series (Son of Ambush Bug) and Christmas special were all available at low discount prices in comic shops and I took to them immediately. I didn't understand all of the references in the comics - Giffen loved to invoke obscure DC Silver Age stuff - but they made me laugh and I was always happy to return to them. I drifted away from DC in my teens and therefore missed the launch of his 1992 Ambush Bug: Nothing Special but when I did find that comic I was obsessed with it. The only Ambush Bug comic I've ever reviewed on my blog was Secret Origins #48. There was also the 2008 mini-series Ambush Bug: Year None but it had a weird passive-aggressive tone that seemed to be Giffen and Fleming talking down to comics fandom - that was off-putting.

I really came to love Giffen's work when I discovered he wasn't all funny stuff but also a deft hand at space opera. His 2004 Thanos comics with Ron Lim were probably the best Thanos stories not written by Jim Starlin himself. That led to his good Drax the Destroyer mini-series with artist Mitch Breitweiser which in turn led directly to Annihilation, which he wrote the largest part of. Annihilation was Marvel's first big cosmic event series since the 1990s and its follow-up event Annihilation: Conquest led directly to the revival of the Guardians of the Galaxy, which owed a tremendous amount to Giffen's Annihilation: Conquest - Star-Lord mini-series with artist Timothy Green. (I wrote Annihilation-adjacent books back then but never so much as exchanged an email with Giffen, more's the pity)

Giffen's own art style was quirky but he was also a great mimic of Jack Kirby, especially early in his career. His time on Defenders (especially under the inks of Kirby's inker Mike Royer) are possibly the best Kirby comics not drawn by Jack Kirby (and certainly the Zodiac arc written by David Kraft in Defenders #48-50 is a series highlight).

And there's so much more; I found the Heckler almost impenetrable but what I did follow I enjoyed a lot; his March Hare one-shot with Fleming was right in the spirit of Ambush Bug and it's a shame it wasn't an ongoing. I found the character of Lobo uninteresting but his first 1990 Lobo mini-series with co-writer Alan Grant and artist Simon Bisley was good fun; he drew the layouts for DC's 52 weekly series; and he drew a ton of Legion of Super-Heroes comics with writer Paul Levitz that I really ought to read one of these days (I liked the dozen or so that I have read).

Giffen's art and writing were idiosyncratic yet he made a solid career for himself in comics for about 50 years; he was unique and given most of his work appeared at the major publishers - Marvel and DC - his presence in comics was certainly felt by the vast majority of people who read comics. Comics are poorer for want of Giffen. Rest in peace, sir.

RIP: Joshua Quagmire

Word has come through that comic book artist Joshua Quagmire passed away in May of this year. He's best-remembered as the creator of Cutey Bunny.

Quagmire was always a bit of an oddball and I suppose the scarce information about his passing or details of his personal life are appropriate from a man whose stories mocked the ideas of plot or continuity.

Cutey Bunny was a delight; for a time it was one of the most visible independent humour comics of the 1980s, to the point that the character helped launch Fantagraphics' book Critters alongside Stan Sakai's Usagi Yojimbo. While Usagi went on to greatness and continues to this day, Quagmire's work unfortunately became more obscure.

I previously posted a retrospective on Cutey Bunny on this blog. Perhaps some day all of Quagmire's Cutey Bunny tales can be bundled together into a nice trade to help preserve this odd, funny and fascinating series.

Rest in peace, Mr. Quagmire (If that was your real name).

RIP: John Romita

Comic book artist John Romita - frequently called "John Romita Sr." because his son is likewise a famous comic book artist - passed away this week on June 12, aged 93.

Romita worked at various comic book companies throughout his career but he's certainly best-remembered as a Marvel Comics artist and especially for his work on the Amazing Spider-Man. Romita spent most of the 1970s and 80s as Marvel's art director, shaping the visual look of the entire Marvel Comics line; even after he stepped down from that role he had influenced so many artists that his presence continued to be felt throughout Marvel's line. When people talk about the "Marvel look" or "Marvel style" they are almost certainly referring to Romita's designs.

As a fan of Marvel's 1950s output (particularly the era where the company was known as Atlas) Romita was one of only a handful of remaining Atlas Age artists. He worked in almost every type of story from crime, horror and western to super hero; recurring features of his included Jungle Boy, Western Kid and Captain America -- unfortunately, his Captain America stories were the arch anti-communist stories that made Cap seem so deranged that they were later excised from Cap's continuity. But his 1950s output is best-remembered for all his work in romance comics.

Romita succeeded Steve Ditko on the Amazing Spider-Man; he's been noted (and criticized) for making the cast more conventionally good-looking, swerving away from the more awkward and gangly characters Ditko had drawn. Suddenly, Peter Parker went from looking like an average guy to a teen magazine cover model! I'm certainly one who prefers Ditko's visuals but I think we spider-fans are mostly in agreement that Romita did fine work on Amazing Spider-Man as he was the first to depict Mary Jane Watson, among other landmarks (Ditko had drawn cameos of Mary Jane but hadn't revealed her face). His additions to Spider-Man's antagonists weren't all up to the standards Ditko set, but the Rhino and the Kingpin definitely proved to be durable super-villains; he also gave us the Shocker, Silvermane, Man-Mountain Marko, Hammerhead... and, admittedly, the Kangaroo and the Gibbbon. They weren't all winners.

Still, there's no doubt he was one of the best super hero comic book artists and his legacy is assured; certainly his son has likewise become one of comicdom's greatest artists. Rest in peace, Mr. Romita.

Rest in Peace: Kevin Conroy

Batman is dead. To be more accurate, Kevin Conroy is dead, at age 66; he passed away yesterday from cancer.

I may have mentioned in passing that, historically, I didn't care very much for Batman. I think, in fact, that the 1989 Batman movie was the product that, more than anything, made me dislike the character. And yet, that film paved the way for Batman: The Animated Series. I was reluctant to watch the show when it debuted - I think it had been on television for about 3 years by the time I finally gave it a real attempt. And I was stunned; I really enjoyed the show and through it I gained an appreciation for Batman in the comics and later, films; it became the definitive interpretation of Batman for me, the barometer by which I judged other Batman media.

I only followed Kevin Conroy's performance as Batman from Batman: The Animated Series to Justice League Unlimited (with Superman and Batman Beyond in-between). I know he portrayed Batman in other products but I haven't experienced them; I'm glad he was given those opportunities because he was truly the voice of Batman. The levels in his voice - from light-hearted Bruce to grim Batman and all the variances along the way - made him a dynamic lead character and it was always pleasant to hear him reprise the roles of Bruce Wayne and Batman.

I didn't know much about Kevin Conroy's life and career outside of his animated work. It was only in his obituary yesterday that I learned he was gay. I read his story "Finding Batman" from this year's DC Pride 2022 book - it's a short but moving autobiography of his life prior to becoming Batman and how he channeled his broken family, the AIDS epidemic and the hostility he encountered in the performing arts into his role as Batman. I'm not ashamed to say it made me cry.

Rest in peace, Kevin Conroy.

RIP: Queen Elizabeth

I think I might be part of the last generation of Canadians who sang "God Save the Queen" in school. I can't be sure - the time in which the song was phased out seems to vary depending on province and community. Through my primary and elementary school years, we opened the school day singing along to "O, Canada" and "God Save the Queen" as they played over the P.A. system.

I don't think I have a good grasp of the English mindset; we Canadians are simply too far away and too different from them and I've never spent more than a day at a time visiting England. But for some reason I've always respected the Queen. My family weren't particularly Royalist, but I appreciated her portrait on the back of our coins (and took notice during my childhood when subtle changes to the portrait appeared). She frequently appeared on our stamps and, being that I'm Anglican, she frequently appeared in our prayers.

So while I'm not particularly adept in understanding the English I did enjoy having Queen Elizabeth as my monarch all the years of my life. She enjoyed a very long reign through a time of abrupt and swift changes. She was meant to be a symbol and symbols endure beyond the individual's life. Rest in peace, your highness.

RIP: Tom Palmer

Tom Palmer died on August 18th.

Palmer is going to be best-remembered as an inker and he was absolutely one of the best - a legend, one who kept working up to the end, covering more than 50 years of quality output. He was also an occasional painter and colorist. I think I first saw his work on Marvel's Star Wars where he inked Ron Frenz (and painted some beautiful covers). I also found his work on Tomb of Dracula, inking Gene Colan, which was like night and day; Colan was extremely stylish compared to Frenz's realism but Palmer made both men look good; he's frequently been called Colan's best inker for their work together on Tomb of Dracula and Doctor Strange.

But I'll remember Palmer best for the Avengers. He was for me the definitive Avengers inker, covering everyone from John Buscema to Neal Adams, Paul Ryan to Steve Epting. It didn't always pan out - he inked Mike Deodato on Avengers but Deodato penciled in a wild, loose style that Palmer couldn't seem to tame (I'm not sure if he ever inked Deodato in later years when Deodato adopted an ultra-realistic style).

Palmer was said to be an overpowering inker but that's why I liked him on the Avengers - he brought consistency to the book through some tumultuous times. I saw Epting's work for the first time when Palmer was inking him on Avengers and it made me a lifelong fan of Epting's style - basically because I thought Palmer made him look like John Buscema.

The Buscema/Palmer issues of Avengers are particularly special to me, including the notable "Mansion Siege" storyline (Avengers #273-277).

Palmer was one of the best-known inkers in the business; he leaves behind a terrific legacy of quality work. Rest in peace, Mr. Palmer.