Marvel Comics advertisement for retailers in 1973

 This 1973 Marvel advertisement was designed to appeal to retailers across the country. Not the direct market - that did not exist yet. This was for newsstands, grocery stores, drug stores or convenience stores such as 7-Eleven or Quik Mart. Marvel Comics at that time sold for twenty cents per comic. The retailer would make 6 cents profit per comic. So, if they managed to sell 100 comics, the retailer would make $6 of profit? Doesn't seem worth it, even with all prices being lower back then. I love the box on the side showing the titles of the Marvel black and white magazines.

Micronauts Special Edition covers by Jackson Butch Guice and Joe Rubinstein

I was touched by the sad tale of Bill Mantlo's life after his car accident, which resulted in head trauma and his life in a Queens rehabilitation center.  One of the most affecting moments was the one where his son, Adam, showed Bill the covers of various comics he wrote for Marvel: Hulk, Cloak and Dagger, ROM, and of course, the Micronauts.  One of my favorite series from the 1970s, the approach that Mantlo and Michael Golden brought to this licensed toy property really made it work.



I dug out some of my old issues and remembered this set of covers from Micronauts Special Edition (baxter reprints) from 1982-83.  The interiors featured the Golden art from the first twelve issues, but the covers were executed by Butch (aka Jackson) Guice and Joe Rubinstein.



Guice took over the series around the time these reprint covers were published.  Michael Golden was a very hard act to follow.  I remember Gil Kane drawing some issues and Pat Broderick did some nice work for a while.  When Guice took over, I remember seeing some potential in his work.  He progressed very quickly on the series and eventually went on to draw an X-Men/Micronauts crossover with Bill.



The first twelve issue Micronauts formed a nice little graphic novel, with the team going from the Microverse to Earth and back home to confront the Vader-like Baron Karza.  It was probably a job that few people at Marvel wanted and the creative team made it something special. 

I also remember Bill Mantlo taking the time to write me a postcard after I praised one of his stories in Deadly Hands of Kung Fu.  I've heard similar tales from other fans.  If you're interested in helping out his family, this article contains a donation link.  Nuff Said!

Reboots, Deaths, and Rebirths Are Getting Me Off the Monthly Comics Grind

My DCBS order deadline came and went, and for the first time in a couple of years, I ordered nothing.  I debated for a while about whether I would jump on the new DC Universe bandwagon.  DCBS had some good discounts on all those #1 issues.  In the end, I couldn’t get excited about this latest iteration of the DC Universe.  I lived through so many events and changes already: the Silver Age, Bronze Age, Crisis on Infinite Earths, Millenium, Invasion!, Zero Hour, Final Night, etc.  What is coming now just seems like taking a Lego city set, smashing it on the floor and rebuilding it.  The end result will resemble something of what you had before, just slightly askew.

I could get behind the New DC a little more if they pulled a Julius Schwartz move and just reinvented the characters for a brand new age of comics.  The problem I have is DC’s insistence that all the important events of the past 20 years still happened in a compressed five-year period.  Tom Bondurant has a column on this topic: “Batman’s history calls for the biggest suspension of disbelief, because it reaches into the histories of both the Justice League and the Teen Titans. In the current timeline, where Damian Wayne is a product of Batman: Son of the Demon’s night of passion between Bruce Wayne and Talia al Ghul, one can argue credibly for a Bat-career of at least fifteen years, and probably more.”  Not just Batman, but Barbara Gordon’s journey from Batgirl to Oracle, Dick Grayson from Robin to Nightwing, etc.  Or something like the Green Lantern saga.  Hal Jordan became GL, served for a long time, then became Parallax and Kyle Rayner took over, then Rebirth happened?  This all happened in five years?  My suspension of disbelief is broken.  Of course, I have no problem believing a guy puts on underwear and goes out to fight crime.  But there you go, it’s my fan longevity that is the real problem.

There is another article that I appreciated, over on Speed Force by Greg Elias, titled Saying Goodbye to the Flash Story.  The long-term readers like myself, who followed DC since the Silver Age, appreciated an arc in the Flash family where the baton was passed from Barry Allen to Wally West.  The story of the kid sidekick who made the transition to lead superhero was exciting, and Wally was a better character in many respects because he was flawed.  Just as Kyle Rayner was when he took over as Green Lantern, or Connor Hawke when he became Green Arrow.  This second generation of heroes came together in Grant Morrison’s JLA series, one of the best expressions of the DC Universe concept.  For those of us who liked these changes, the past few years have seen a reversal.  Oliver Queen as Green Arrow was reborn, then Hal Jordan as Green Lantern, and finally, bland Barry Allen was brought back to replace Wally West.  Poor Wally—DC Comics won’t even mention his name at all in the latest go-round of promotions.  Gone is the hope that Wally would star in a Speed Force spinoff series; Kyle Rayner at least gets the spotlight in one of the GL books.  Some of us were even delusional enough to dream that Wally West might return as the Flash after Flashpoint ends, but that proved to be lunacy.  As Greg Elias pointed out, if you are mourning the generational saga of DC Comics, that is finally over.  Although in truth it ended a while ago, with the Rebirth series.

Over at Marvel Comics, I can’t find anything better there.  I can’t understand why Marvel spent the past few years bringing back Bucky, unfolding the Winter Soldier saga, and promoting Bucky as the new Captain America, only to kill him off once again.  I am sure he will return at some point.  But that is another symptom of a larger problem.  The superhero characters are worn out after 50 years of publishing.  Deaths and Reboots are the only thing that keep them alive.  They are electric shocks on a dying patient.  Sales are down—kill someone off!  I am down to one Marvel comic that I am getting, which is Avengers: Childrens Crusade.  Three more issues to go, then I am done with Marvel.

There are a few DC Comics that I can see buying in collected editions.  The Flash by Francis Manapul, despite all my bitching and moaning on the Flash saga, looks to be visually appealing.  I think Manapul stands a chance of becoming a good writer.  Action Comics, from Grant Morrison, might be an interesting twist on Superman’s origin, and Rags Morales artwork is very nice.  I can’t say the same for the regular Superman title.

For non-superhero comics, The Walking Dead and Scalped are superb and I get those in collections.  The latter was announced to be ending next year with issue #60.  But the best news from San Diego this year was Brian K. Vaughan’s return to comics with SAGA from Image.  That is something to look forward to.  But for the superhero material, I think I had better stick with my longboxes.  Nuff Said!

State of the Superhero Shrine, 2011

I stopped the addiction of collecting action figures and statues long ago, but I did hang onto what I had collected during the past 20 years.  Here’s my small shrine at home.  Some of my co-workers recently gifted me with a Hallmark Thor Keepsake Ornament and a Captain America Keepsake.  On the latter, Cap is busting out of Avengers #4.  The ornament opens up to an actual comic book, mini-sized, with the Jack Kirby artwork inside.  A great gift.  Nuff Said!

Captain America: My new favorite comic book movie

My headline says it all.  Previously, my fav comic book film was Spider-Man 2.  Going into this year, I had anticipated liking Green Lantern or Thor more than Captain America.  Green Lantern fizzled for me and Thor was pretty good but I missed a lot of stuff from the comics.  The adaption of Cap’s origin by director Joe Johnston worked almost perfectly for me.  The flavor of the World War II era is reflected beautifully throughout the scenes from New York to basic training to a USO tour that Steve Rogers joins.  The casting was pitch perfect, all the way from Chris Evans as Steve Rogers to Tommy Lee Jones and Hugo Weaving.  The actors make this fantastic story come to life by establishing an emotional connection with each other.  I really believed Stanley Tucci as Doctor Erskine.  Even Weaving as the Red Skull, while going over the top, makes it believable.
Here are some of my favorite bits:

• The easter egg at the World’s Fair.  Did you see the Human Torch in the glass cage?
• The continuity tie-in with Thor’s father Odin and the World Tree Yggdrasil.
• How Captain America punched Hitler in the US Bonds tour.
• How Captain America #1 cover reflects Cap’s tour.
• Bucky is portrayed more like Brubaker’s version.
• The Howling Commandos in action.  Neal McDonough as Dum Dum Dugan!
• Every time Cap threw his mighty shield.
• Every time the Hydra oath was recited.
• The last action scene with the plane harkened back to truck scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Not only was the direction, writing, acting great, so was the cinematography and the soundtrack.  While the film is obviously fantasy, it is firmly grounded in a lot of imagery from World War II propaganda.  It was really a great touch with the closing credits, seeing all those famous images along with Alan Silvestri’s great music.  Nuff Said!

Gene Colan and Bob McLeod Team-Up on Captain America, Daredevil, Doctor Strange & Dracula

Looking back at my art scans, I found these Gene Colan commissions inked by the great Bob McLeod.  Four of Marvel’s heroes that Colan made his mark on.

Captain America.

Daredevil.

Doctor Strange.

Dracula.

Nuff Said!

Link: Bob McLeod website.

Gene Colan Commissions: Flash, Wonder Woman, Silver Surfer, Shazam vs Dracula, Howard the Duck

I have been hoarding these scans of various Gene Colan commissions—most of them were done in 2000 or 2001.  I’d like to share them now to celebrate his life and memory.

Shazam! Captain Marvel versus Dracula, the most unlikely battle of all, inked by Jerry Ordway.

The Flash!  After seeing this piece, I think Gene Colan had a very unique method of drawing speed—not only does the character look great, but the background blurs and warps around him.

Wonder Woman. 

Silver Surfer.

X-Men.  I love how he put romantic touch here with Jean Grey and Scott Summers in the center of all the chaos.

Howard the Duck on a skateboard! 2001.

There you go, I thought all of these commissions by Gene Colan were remarkable.  Nuff Said!

Farewell, Gene Colan

Sad to hear of Gene Colan’s passing yesterday.  As many fans like myself are already well aware, Colan was one of the giants of the comic book industry.  To my taste, there are a number of artists which belong to an elite group for true originality in style and substance: Jack Kirby, Neal Adams, Jim Steranko, Gil Kane, John Romita, Berni Wrightson, etc.  Gene Colan was certainly in that list as well. 



Everyone who loved Colan’s artwork knows what I mean.  He approached comics like a film director, drawing a comic book panel as if he were looking through the lens of a movie camera.  Tilting the camera a bit for the best angle, sometimes tilting the entire panel (from a time when all panels were strictly rectangular) to get the best image.  Colan did tons of research as well, in a time there was no internet or Google, compiling photographic references.  Check out the panel above for Daredevil #87 in 1972, the first issue where DD moved to San Francisco.  Coit Tower, Lombard Street, the Bay Bridge, etc., all the famous landmarks appeared in Daredevil and gave the series a fresh look.



Three Marvel Comics series are forever locked with my memory of Gene Colan.  The first one was Daredevil, as I noted above.  Another was Doctor Strange, where he drew this iconic 1968 cover of Doc adopting his new “superhero” masked costume: Hail the Master!  When I wrote about my love for this cover on Giant-Size Marvel, a few people said I was totally nuts and this was the worst thing that ever happened to Doc.  But Gene Colan made this costume work in my mind—it was such a great cover that it was sold as a poster.  Even so, when Colan returned to Doctor Strange in the early 70s (sans mask), he did a superlative job as well.



Tomb of Dracula, of course, is the other series.  I still have the entire run of comics plus the Omnibus edition.  While Colan did a great job with superheroes, in some ways he was better suited to different genres like romance, mystery, and horror.  Marv Wolfman gave Colan all types of scenes to draw in the Dracula series. 

I mourn the passing of this great legend.  Farewell, Gene, you will be missed.  Nuff Said.

X-Men First Class Movie Review: Inglorious Mutants!

Just dug the far-out new groovy mutant movie, X-Men First Class!  On one hand, I loved it, mainly because of the 1960s era setting.  The sets (inspired by many classic films) and time period were very cool and it had some of the best actions scenes out of all the X-Men movies to date.  James McAvoy as young Professor Xavier and Michael Fassbender as young Magneto brought extra dimension to each character.  It was wonderful to see some of the mythology that Chris Claremont had developed in this movie.  I loved the cameos, especially the one in the middle with the curse word that helped attain the PG-13 rating.  Seeing Alex Summers was great and his costume with the circles on the chest was a throwback to Neal Adams’ early design.  No idea who Azazel was until this movie, but I see that he was created by Chuck Austen to be Nightcrawler’s father.  The Banshee was a riot and I got a kick out of seeing how his screaming power enables him to fly.

The one big casting downer was January Jones as the White Queen.  Dammit, the White Queen needs to be played by a woman from the UK, there’s no way around it!  Rosamund Pike would have been perfect, but I guess she must have been busy?  I also didn’t like how the White Queen is subservient to Sebastian Shaw.  Getting him ice for his drink?  No effing way.

A lot of people are talking about Jennifer Lawrence like she’s the next big actress, but I found her to be wooden in a number of scenes.

SPOILERS from here on out.

A number of problems with this movie:

• Xavier lived with Mystique for 20 years and never had any attraction for her?  Not even when she morphed into Angie Dickinson?  Come on.
• Rose Byrne (as Moira MacTaggert) sees a Hellfire Club meeting in Vegas and decides to strip down to her underwear and infiltrate?  Pretty nice lingerie she happened to be wearing too, with garter belts and everything. 
• Why is Rose Byrne’s character even called Moira MacTaggert if she’s not a scientist?  They tried to play off a romance between her and Charles but either it didn’t work or was left on the cutting room floor.
• Darwin’s death—they chose the wrong X-Man.  Darwin can survive the naked vacuum of outer space for crying out loud, he could have digested that energy cocktail!  Cool effect on his skin surface though.
• The Beast isn’t attracted to Mystique?  Come on.  She beats the heck out of Vera any day.
• The Beast’s transformation: how come they didn’t show it all?  Less is more sometimes but this would have been great to see.
• How did the Beast get to the airplane hanger?  You mean he can drive a car with those giant furry paws?
• When you finally see The Beast he looks pretty dorky in the airplane hangar, wearing those horn rimmed glasses.
• The X-Men were in a real terrible situation on the island at the end.  Magneto very intelligently found a way out of there.  But what about Xavier’s crew?  They needed to hightail it out of there fast, but it was never explained how.  Professor X has to keep his students safely hidden, but he would have needed urgent medical attention and I can’t see any way but for the military to pick them up.  Did Xavier mind wipe every military person who picked them up?
• The lowest blow comes from Professor Xavier mind-wiping Moira at the end.  That is really destroys whatever they were trying to create between humans and mutants, let alone the trust developed between the two characters.  Moira did a lot to help out Charles and she gets rewarded by losing months of her memory?
• It’s not exactly the feel-good ending of the year is it?  A downer ending and yet Magneto picks up your spirits a bit in the very last scene.

Despite all this, still a good popcorn flick and I love it for the 60s references alone.  While it doesn’t really tie directly into any early 60s X-Men stories, it was neat to see a comic book film set in the time period the characters originated.  Michael Fassbender as Magento really makes it worthwhile, especially the first third of the movie where he hunts down retired Nazis.  Now here is a film I wish could be made: take Michael Fassbender and put him in a Magneto movie written by Quentin Tarentino where he assembles a team of mutants to take out evil humans around the globe.  A mutant version of Inglorious Basterds.   Nuff Said!

Neal Adams Marvel Variant Covers: Captain America, Daredevil and Ghost Rider

Neal Adams is really gearing up for a lot of new Marvel work.  I’ve totally lost track of Batman: Odyssey after reading the first two issues.  This article from Comics Alliance sums up the madness behind that series quite nicely.  But these new Marvel covers have a lot to offer…

Captain America #1 variant, a straightforward shot of Cap hurling his mighty shield at the reader.  Very nice.

Daredevil #1 variant.  I was blown away by this cover, love the perspective on Daredevil and the classic use of old Hornhead’s radar sense.

Ghost Rider #1 variant.  Always wanted to see Neal’s take on this character and here it is, after 40 years!

Good luck on actually buying any of these variants.  The prices at DCBS were already in the $40-50 range.  Nuff Said!

Thor Movie Posters in San Francisco

Kenneth Branagh’s Thor movie premieres next week, but the Thor marketing push began several weeks earlier.  I started noticing all kinds of Thor stuff all over San Francisco and took a few snaps with my phone.  The above one-sheet, featuring Chris Hemsworth as the Thunder God, was taken at the BART station in Castro Valley.



BART is plastered with Thor posters and banners, like this one featuring the logo and Mjolnir.  It is displayed over the wall facing the escalators going down at the Embarcadero station in San Francisco.



The MUNI buses in San Francisco are always good vehicles for promoting Marvel movies.  Lately the buses seem to be promoting everything geek: Thor, Portal 2, etc.



There are two banner ads on the buses, this alternate version features the faces of Hemsworth, Anthony Hopkins, Natalie Portman, and Idris Elba.

Despite whatever changes the filmmakers made to the Thor mythos, I’m still excited to see the movie next week.  I just love the fact that the movie has brought Thor and the Norse Gods into public consciousness. A couple of years ago at work I created an intranet site that I named Thor.  At the time no one knew what it referred to--and today everyone knows.  I think that is awesome. Nuff Said!

X-Men Poster by Eric Tan with the Original and New Teams

Here is a nifty poster created by artist Eric Tan in 2007.  I love the way he designed this poster, a throwback to old movie posters.  The Sentinels lurk in the shadowy background, the original X-Men are in the old costumes, while Storm and Wolverine are in their classic outfits.  Brilliant.  Nuff Said.

Source: Eric Tan Art.

Marvel Bullpen photos from the 1970s: Roy Thomas, John Romita, Herb Trimpe, George Perez, John Byrne and more!

As a kid, my biggest fantasy was to grow up and work in the Marvel Bullpen.  Probably my imagination made the Marvel offices even bigger and better that it actually was—most people say it was quite small and cramped.  However, here’s a look at some of our favorite creators from that mid 1970s!  The above photo of John Byrne, George Perez, and Ralph Macchio was taken at a 1978 convention.  Macchio, who most readers know as a long time editor, was a famous Marvel letter column writer.  I was so envious that he got more letters published than anyone, except for perhaps T.M. Maple.  Macchio realized the dream that so many of us had, rising from fan to writer to editor.  And he’s stayed at Marvel longer than almost anyone!

The next set of Bullpen photos come from this 1975 Mighty Marvel Convention booklet.  I believe this was the first ever convention designed especially for the Marvel fans.  I have a really snazzy poster that John Buscema did for the con over on Giant-Size Marvel.

Scott Edelman interviews Steve Gerber in 1975, dreams about the Marvel Bullpen

Scott Edelman, a science fiction/fantasy editor and writer that I follow on Twitter, has released an interview that he conducted with Steve Gerber in 1975.  Long time Marvel readers may recall that Edelman edited FOOM and wrote a number of comics, such as Scarecrow, Captain Marvel, and the Defenders.  Quite a bit more as well, you can see a list of comics here on his site.

Edelman uploaded this 22 minute interview after YouTube lifted the restrictions on video length.  There is no real video, just a picture of Gerber.  But for fans of Gerber’s 70s work, this is pure gold.  Edelman asked the right questions about Man-Thing, Defenders, Crazy magazine, and more.  I knew Gerber wasn’t crazy about using Doctor Strange in the Defenders, but it is fascinating to hear him explain why.  He had problems with the Hulk, too.  Ironic, as I thought Gerber wrote them well and featured them in many comedic moments.  Edelman also posted this short audio interview with Archie Goodwin.

I do encourage everyone with an interest in SF/Fantasy or Bronze Age comics to follow Scott Edelman on Twitter.  He regularly dishes up news, memories of Marvel, but most of all, reveals the dreams he had the night before.  Sometimes these dreams even involve Stan Lee or the Marvel Bullpen.

Feb. 3rd: I dreamt I was handed a promotional satin jacket for Stark Industries at Walmart by Tony Stark himself. Or Robert Downey, Jr. AS Tony Stark.

Feb. 4th: I dreamt that while I was visiting a friend, Randy Newman showed up, remembered me from last time, and handed out Omega the Unknown comics.

Feb. 6th: I dreamt that when I went down to the docks at night to pick up my car (which I'd parked there for some reason), I bumped into Don McGregor.

Feb. 21st: I dream I sat alone with Stan Lee while he told stories of the old days, including anecdotes about Harry. But he wouldn't say _which_ Harry.

Feb. 24th: I dream I was back in my teen Canarsie apartment, but now, and Stan Lee was there for a party. I impressed him with my original MMMS button.

I thought I had too much Marvel in my brain!  I am impressed that he can recall his dreams so vividly.  In addition, Edelman has been scanning a bunch of Marvel memos from the 1970s, such as this one from Bill Mantlo asking if Stan Lee could guest star in Marvel Two-In-One.  A treasure trove of Marvel history awaits you on Scott Edelman’s blog.  Nuff Said!

Dark Phoenix meets the Black Queen by John Byrne

Here is a great little pinup I found on Scott Williams Deviant Art page, a John Byrne pinup that he inked, featuring Jean Grey in two evil (and kinky) alter egos: Dark Phoenix and Black Queen.  I never thought of these two personalities having so much in common before but it’s obvious.  Of course, the Queen has much better fashion sense.

Byrne did another pinup featuring the Black Queen in the 1980s, for a Pretty Girls Portfolio.  Tim Townsend had a great scan of this on on ComicArtFans.

If you need more Black Queen on this St. Patrick’s Day, check out Mike Mayhew’s Black Queen on Giant-Size Marvel.  Nuff Said!

Jim Cheung Cover Gallery: Avengers The Children’s Crusade

A fellow F.O.O.M.er (Friend Of Old Marvel) and friend of this blog, Toby Hopper, found these delicious scans of Jim Cheung’s artwork from the current mini-series, Avengers The Children’s Crusade.  One of the few modern Marvel Comics that I am very excited to buy!  I love seeing these illustrations un-maligned by any text.  The above image belonged to issue #2, featuring a dynamic shot of Wolverine getting ready to open up a can of kick-ass.



Writer Allan Heinberg has concocted a pretty good yarn so far, including all the Avengers, Magneto (Wanda’s father), Quicksilver (her brother), and Wanda’s sons, Speed (Thomas) and Wiccan (William), part of the Young Avengers.  The above splash page was also featured in the second issue.  It was nice to see Magneto acting like a bad-ass again, holding off the entire lineup of Avengers single-handedly, even though he was just trying to have a little talk with his grandsons.  Wolverine never gets tired of taking on Magneto, even though his body is lined with adamantium!



The cover to issue #3 highlights all the reasons why I was looking forward to this series.  The crusade by the Young Avengers is a quest to find the Scarlet Witch (Wanda Maximoff), a former Avenger who had a nervous breakdown years ago (Avengers Disassembled and House of M) and wreaked havoc in the Marvel Universe.  But even before that—Wanda was married to my favorite Avenger of all time, The Vision.  While there has been a character around for the past few years called the Vision, that android really isn’t the same as the classic Silver Age character.  I am crossing my fingers that Heinberg finally restores the one and true classic Vision, as well as the Scarlet Witch, to the Marvel Universe.

Cover Progression: Amazing Spider-Man #150 by Gil Kane

From time to time I like to display cover progressions, from sketch to final cover, and it’s always great when I find stuff from the Silver Age of Comics.  Here is a nice one, from Amazing Spider-Man #150 in 1975.



The cover was by Gil Kane, who drew the interior story penned by Archie Goodwin.  The above image was the cover prelim.  I am not sure if this was actually used at Marvel back in 1975, or was the cover sketch below just placed under the cover copy by a fan?



I believe this image was the actual cover sketch idea by Kane.  The pose that Kane frames Spider-Man in is a classic one for the artist, showing the hero in “mental agony” as he is besieged by the members of his rogues gallery.  They are all just demons in his own mind.




The final cover in full color.  This wondrous 150th issue was a real landmark, though we wouldn’t realize it until 250 issues in the future when the Clone Saga began.  After fighting his own clone in the previous issue, Peter Parker asked the question, am I the original or carbon copy?  He tore up the results of the analysis and took the answer on faith, which came back to bite him in the end.  Lesson learned: don’t accept faith, always get it in writing!

Check out the Gil Kane Unchained page on Facebook for more sketches!  Nuff Said.

Shootout in the Old West with the Rawhide Kid, courtesy of Gil Kane

I just saw a scan for this cover to Rawhide Kid #140, circa 1977, a really great Western style shootout with the Kid scrambling for cover at the corner store.  Great design and execution on this cover by Kane!  Wish he drew the interior story, but alas, it was a reprint.

Jeremy over at ComicArtFans owns the original art to this page.  Stunning in black and white, what a lucky geek!

Take a look at a few other Kane western covers: Duck! Gil Kane's Cover for Kid Colt 200! as well as Marvels of Gil Kane: Mighty Marvel Western covers.  Nuff Said!

Marvel Comics Wallpapers for the Sony Reader and Amazon Kindle

I’m always a nut whenever I get a new device with a nice display that has a screensaver function.  I bought the Sony Reader 650 last summer, and after I loaded it up with books, the second thing I did was to get some cool wallpapers on it.  The first thing I thought of, for some strange reason, was that Barry Smith’s black and white artwork from Red Nails in Savage Tales #2 would look perfect on the pearl e-ink screen.  And it does!  It looks much better than my screenshot above.

  

I started looking for other high quality pen and ink illustrations that would work well on the Sony Reader.  I found quite a few from my collection of scans on Giant-Size Marvel.  The Doctor Strange portfolio cover by Michael Golden was a natural.  Perhaps the best one out of all is Berni Wrightson’s Starlord illustration.  Gabriel Hardman’s Man-Thing also looks frighteningly good.

  

Then I started wishing I could have some classic comic book covers on the device.  I took these covers and used a program called Paint.NET to drain the color out.  I think they look pretty good.

If you are interested in non-comics wallpapers, you can look at this set on Photobucket tagged Kindle, and this thread on Kindle Boards.  I mix and match these images with comics related themes.  You just cannot have too many images of the Fall season, dead leaves just look superb in greyscale.

I have many more comic related wallpapers.  Please visit my Flickr set titled Wallpapers for Sony Reader & Amazon Kindle.  Happy reading!  Nuff Said.