The Passing of John Cassaday

This last Monday the news came out that artist John Cassaday had died at the young age of 52. 

Cassaday was a pure comic talent with a smooth artistic style that stood out on the rack. You knew a Cassaday book when you saw it. You didn't need to look for the signature, the mirror image of the J and C. 

He was lauded for The Authority (which I didn't read) and Astonishing X-Men, which I did read. I don't have a lot of X-Men in my collection. I can say it was his art that kept me on that book as long as I was. 

He was a superstar. And I was a fan.

Which brings me to why I am writing this post.

Because he was also one of the nicest creators I have met at conventions. He was a superstar. But he really was approachable, personable, and relatable to this fan.

When I met him at Terrificon, he had a huge line at his end table. People were bringing him X-Men books and the Authority and a lot of the licensed stuff he had done. Here I was bringing him the Superman books he did the covers for, from the Grounded arc of all things. It would have been easy to just sign the books and have me move on. But he paused and thanked me for bringing them to him. I had questions to ask him about this tiny little corner of his career and he was kind to answer them.

The first book I put in front of him was Superman #713, the only time that I know that he drew Supergirl. He told me he liked his time on the book. But didn't really have much to say about Supergirl other than he was glad he got to draw her.

Review: My Adventures With Superman #4

My Adventures With Superman #4 came out last week and continued to be a fun, heart-warming, and surprisingly action-packed book. This also pushed the Amazo storyline forward in an interesting way. You know I love mysteries and now we have one. 

Writer Josie Campbell continues to walk that tightrope of whimsy and serious, character moments and action moments, progressive plots mixed with nostalgic callbacks. I seriously don't know how she does it. This book opens with the Kents talking at length about family, unconditional love, parents teaching and learning, and the power of Christmas. The book ends with a brawl between Superman and Amazo, Checkmate, and Task Force X. In between that there is humor, romance, and at least two callbacks. 

Artist Pablo Collar continues to walk his own fine line between the anime style and more standard comic style. I like his take on Amazo. I love his Checkmate armor. But it is the early portion with the Kents and Lois that I think he really shines, bring warmth to everything.

Add a decent cliffhanger and you have a winner.

On to the book. 

Back Issue Box: Action Comics #597

In the current Action Comics book, Rainbow Rowell and Cian Tormey are bringing us an interesting story looking at the Clark/Superman dichotomy and journalistic integrity. Can Clark fairly write about Superman? Or is the inherent conflict of interest going to stop him from giving the public the truth? I am really enjoying it. 

That story reminded me of Action Comics #597 in which Lois again wonders about Clark's biases and abilities to be an honest journalist. This is year's before the identity was revealed. We are only 16 months into John Byrne's revision of Superman. And this issue brings into continuity one of the wonkiest aspects of Byrne's take on the character, that the Kents raised both Clark and Superman. I like Byrne's work on the character. But that, for me, is one of the weirdest and weakest additions.

This was also a time where Action Comics was a team-up book. So seeing this be a Lois and Lana issue also grabbed my attention. This is in the immediate post-Millennium DCU. Lana had just been deprogrammed from the Manhunters. Superman was still a relative newbie. This is the first time in the post-Crisis DCU that Lois and Lana have any sort of meaningful interaction. I like that part of the book as well.

As for Byrne, he loved to riff off of old Superman stories (the Lori Lemaris and Mxyzptlk re-introductions stand out) so seeing him do this Schaffenberger-esque cover of Lana and Lois fighting over the Man of Steel was a hoot for me. I especially like the cover text that this doesn't happen. We aren't in the Silver Age any more.

The art on the book is done by Byrne but also Leonard Starr and Keith Williams. It does give a softer, sort of older feel to the book which works well with the topic.

So let's dust off this back issue and dive in!

Terrificon Recap 2: Greg Larocque And More Stories

Last week I gave my first recap of 2024's Terrificon including my June Brigman commission.

Brigman was my primary target for a commission from the show. But my second was Greg Larocque.

Most people who frequent this site know that the Legion is my second favorite DC IP. In fact, I reviewed multiple runs of the Legion over on the Legion of Super-Bloggers. In fact, I think my reviews of the first 60 issues of the 5YL Legion is my high water mark as a blogger. 

Larocque was the artist on a large part of the Baxter run of LSH, so I have always been a big fan. 

But I had a particular interest in getting a sketch from him. He was the last artist to draw the pre-Crisis Supergirl in continuity. 

You see, the DCU was re-written in Crisis On Infinite Earths #12, a book which hit the stands on 12/19/1985. After that, Supergirl was a word that couldn't even be uttered in DC Comics.

But then in Legion of Super-Heroes #31 , drawn by Larocque, we saw a statue of Supergirl in Legion's hall of heroes. 

Seven months later, in the classic Legion of Super-Heroes #38 we once again saw the Supergirl statue. Once again it was Larocque on art. Legion #38 was released on 6/9/1987, a full 18 months after the Crisis ended! A year and a half after Supergirl was 'erased' from continuity.

With all that history, I thought Larocque doing a commission sketch of the Supergirl statue for my book was a pretty cool idea. And I think he nailed it. For a Supergirl fan and a Legion fan, this was a winner.

Review: Zero Hour 30th Anniversary Special

When you get to be as old a comic fan as I am, major comic events from the past become history and begin to celebrate pretty big anniversaries. 

I was already in my 20s when Zero Hour first hit the stands, DC's valiant effort to tidy up some of the timeline conundrums that spun out of the Crisis On Infinite Earths. So trust me, I felt pretty old when I saw the Zero Hour 30th Anniversary issue hit the stands. 

I wasn't sure how the story would play out. Would this be some side adventure within Zero Hour? Some untold tale? Or something Zero Hour adjacent, adding to the story.

Turns out it is the latter. Writer Ron Marz and Dan Jurgens bring us a Kyle Rayner story, set in an offshoot universe which is both familiar to the DC world of the 90s but also quite different. Do you want a world where Superman stayed dead, Batman stayed paralyzed, and Wonder Woman is missing? A world where Matrix, Donna Troy, and Barbara Gordon are the Trinity? Then this book is for you! Do you want to see Hal as Parallax? Jack Knight as Starman? A classic Fatal Five and Legion? Waverider? Then this book is for you. 

And I suppose for someone like me, this book is for me. It brought me back to that time, let me enjoy seeing these characters (in a way) again, and have some fun.

Add to that the incredible bevy of veteran artists on the book. Dan Jurgens, Jerry Ordway, Paul Pelletier, Kelley Jones, Darryl Banks, Howard Porter, and Tom Grummett all are here. I got to see Grummett's Matrix Supergirl again. Ordway on Infinity Inc characters. Kelley Jones haunting Gotham, and Jurgens drawing a version of the JLA again. 

On to the book! Get ready for some Parallax-ction!

Terrificon Recap Part 1: June Brigman And Some Signatures

Earlier this month I had the luck of attending all three days of Terrificon , my main convention of the season and simply one of the best comic shows around. For the last 8 years, Terrificon has been a consistently fantastic show, focusing on comics with a massive array of comic creators present. 

The show has grown since I first went and now has a celebrity section as well. But it is clear the emphasis is on comics. And what I love about the show is how it respects the medium, bringing in comic legends as well as up and coming stars. From legends like Simonson, Chaykin, Claremont and Starlin to newcomers like Mahde Khene, to folks in their stride like Mark Waid, David Mack, and Steve Epting, the show sizzles. I am always impressed with the the con that show runner Mitch Hallock puts together.

I was also lucky enough to again be granted a press pass for the show. I set aside a budget for the show each year and the press pass allows me to get in a little early to talk to creators as well as shunt a little more money into the hands of vendors and creators. I think the traffic this site gets is a big reason why I get that pass, so thank you all.

As for this year, you'll be hearing all about my creator interactions over three recaps! But I'll start with my primary commission goal for this year, June Brigman.

I knew as soon as I saw Brigman announced that I would want a Supergirl sketch from her. While best known for her Marvel work on Power Pack, Brigman drew the Matrix Supergirl solo mini-series from the late 90s. It is that costume that is my favorite.

So when the doors opened, I went immediately to her table and got on her list.

I am really thrilled with this commission. Brigman and inker Roy Richardson put together this great piece. I love the body language, the scene in the clouds, the confident smile. Truly an amazing piece and a wonderful addition to the book. 

Review: Superman #17

Superman #17 came out this week, a tie-in to Absolute Power and the continuation of Superman and Zatanna's search for the Map of Mordru.

I am not getting the Absolute Power main series so much of what has led to this point is a bit lost to me. I have learned through panels in this book, podcasts, and other reviews that the Fortress is destroyed, Kandor is destroyed, and Jon is brainwashed and working for Waller. 

As for this issue, it is a Superman on the run, looking for anything to save his son and his world. Writer Joshua Williamson puts Superman through some paces here. He is powerless and walking through the chaotic magical world. It makes him a little bit of a fish out of water. But what I really love is that Superman remains proactive and heroic. He even puts a bit of an edge on our hero, perhaps showing how worried he is. This isn't our cool, collected, 'lead by example' Superman. He yells and hits and insults. Hey, his son is in danger. Anyone would be twitchy.

Jamal Campbell continues to give us polished art. It is incredibly rendered, giving it an almost CGI feel. The energy is there for sure. And between city scenes, forest scenes, and bar scenes, Campbell shows he has solid chops for all sorts of environs.

Add to this an cliffhanger involving a villain I haven't really thought about in over 25 years and you get an entertaining issue. On to some particulars.