Superman Gallery 1993 Wraparound Cover by Walt Simonson

I have a lot of comics covers that I have saved on my hard drive over the years, not knowing what I would do with them—until I had a blog!  This cover by Walt Simonson, for The Superman Gallery in 1993, had such a nifty design that I fell in love with it.  It’s taken at an angle, just slightly askew, like a camera shot, of Superman flying over Metropolis.  The floodlights on the Daily Planet are shooting off in the night sky, with Luthor’s building looming ominously in the background.

I had forgotten about this cover until Simonson released his own scan of the original pen and ink version on The Official Walter Simonson Facebook Page.  I think it looks even more impressive without the color.  I have to wonder how long it took him to ink all the buildings in black?

I wish Simonson had a crack at writing and drawing Superman.  Do you suppose he ever came close to doing this in his career?  Nuff Said!

Walter Simonson Batman and Manhunter Last Stand Commissions

Walt Simonson has done many things over his career, but I'll always have an excitement around Manhunter, the classic revamp that he did with Archie Goodwin in the 1970s.  This is one of those rare characters that DC has left untouched since Goodwin and Simonson killed off the character in Detective Comics #443.  Simonson did finish off a silent story epilogue in the Manhunter Special Edition 1999 (where the above pinup comes from), but he's also done some commissions and covers.

Simonson didn't draw the cover to Detective Comics 443, Jim Aparo did.  Here's Simonson's take on that cover, featuring Batman and Manhunter fighting together.  It was done for Jim Warden on ComicArtFans.

David Mandel bought this one of a kind illustration.  Robert Shaw made a comment about it:

A 14" x 17" epic Manhunter illustration donated by Walter Simonson to the Help Dave Simons drive I am helping with. According to Walter this is the first time he has drawn Manhunter since the series he worked on with Archie Goodwin and the only Manuhunter piece of this quality in the world.

And here is a cover from the 1984 Baxter reprint of the Manhunter saga.  Nuff Said!

Link: Jim Warden's Gallery at ComicArtFans.

Link: David Mandel's Gallery at ComicArtFans.

Link: Robert Shaw Manhunter piece and comments.

Neal Adams and Simonson in DC Calendar 1978

I recently ran across this DC Comics calendar: 1978 Calendar of Super-Spectacular Disasters!  LMAO, sounds exactly like we are undergoing the same ordeal 30 years later with Final Crisis and Batman RIP!  The cover to the calendar by Neal Adams is spectacular, with Superman and Supergirl hauling the moon to a safer position.  But on the other hand, why does Batman need to supervise like that?  Checkout Aquaman, Hawkman, Green Arrow, and Black Canary watching the whole thing in the lower right corner from a spaceship.  They surely cannot help much, either, unless a school of space dolphins gets in the way.

This Metal Men piece is pretty sweet though, another rare occasion where Simonson drew the team.  Joe Staton inked him on this piece.  Could someone at DC just give Simonson a truckload of cash to do a Metal Men mini-series?  Nuff said.