Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Daredevil, Wonder Woman, the Avengers, Iron Man, Guardians of the Galaxy, Doctor Strange …
Seriously, somebody pinch me!
As a life-long comic book geek, I could not be more stoked about the age in which we live. Every character I followed as a little kid (and then a man-sized kid, after) is coming to life one-at-a-time on either the big or small screen. It’s like seeing your dreams projected before your eyes. Fantastic!
The latest, “Iron Fist”, is out now on Netflix. Considering that “Power Man and Iron Fist: Heroes for Hire” was one of my all-time favourites, and the first season of “Luke Cage” has been really solid, I’m looking forward to the new show. The critics be damned.
See, back in the ’90s, I really wanted to be a comic book artist. A friend of mine and I created a crazy pile of full-size illustration boards telling our own stories of our fave characters, all earmarked for submission to both Marvel and DC. Some we submitted, some we didn’t. In the end, it wasn’t meant to be for us, but the experience was well worth it. Half of everything I’ve learned about light and shadow, toning, line weight, perspective and story I learned from drawing those comics.
Listening to FM96 this morning – a great discussion on geekdom and the new comic-book-based theatrical releases – I was reminded again about those old story boards and illustrations. Specifically, those intended submission pieces that never really went anywhere.
Or did they?
Over the next few weeks and months, I’ll have a slew of new characters flying, fighting and posing furiously in the studio. Poison Ivy, Supergirl and Superman, Negan, Scarlet Witch, Emma Frost, Phoenix – and that’s just the beginning. Adding to the roster I shot last year, my favourite comic book characters are coming to life in a whole new way. Given that my focus is story-based photography, it looks like all of those hours spent illustrating years ago was just prep for what was to come.
So, here’s to the geeks and comic book nerds! Our time has never been more ‘now’.
Cheers!
