The preview page with Clark, Perry, and Jimmy looked alright, but those Superman images leave a lot to be desired. And they're further proof of my belief that no one can make that new Superman costume look good.
I guess I'm curious, but I have yet to read any book with the New 52 Superman that I have actually liked so I don't hold out much hope that this will be any different. It's Superman. I always want to like Superman. But they're not making it easy for me by any means.
I had the chance to get a few really cheap subscriptions to DC books and I picked Superman as one of them. So...even though I can't stand his art I'll be getting this book..I'm morbidly curious but also optimistic that I'll be blown away by the story.
"Infantino-esque style..."!?! seriously? Infantino anything is NOT a selling point. I like JRJR, but I won't be getting his Superman book.
Haha! Now truth be told, I like classic Infantino (Flash, Star Wars, Spider-Woman), but he's not a selling point these days for sure. I'm not convinced DC knows what to do with JRJR as of yet.
"Infantino-esque style..."!?! seriously? Infantino anything is NOT a selling point. I like JRJR, but I won't be getting his Superman book.
Haha! Now truth be told, I like classic Infantino (Flash, Star Wars, Spider-Woman), but he's not a selling point these days for sure. I'm not convinced DC knows what to do with JRJR as of yet.
I've got a few ideas but most involve a rhinoceros and a cannon.
I for one have never seen the appeal of JRJR's art. I hated his first run on Uncanny x-men. His people have this blockly Lego man look to them that I don't like.
Either Romita Jr or Infantino would be a high selling point for me (although I really don't see the comparison between the two art styles that CBR seems to see); the only reason I'm not buying the book (apart from low finances) is that I just don't like the New52 Superman, regardless of who's drawing it.
...although, if Grant Morrison were to return to write it, I might change my mind...
I've been morbidly curious about this run as well. From the promo images and previews that I've seen, it does NOT look like something I want to pick up... But I enjoyed it the last time Johns did a Superman ongoing series (Action Comics several years ago), and it's just SUCH a change for JRJR that it might light a fire under him.
I'd say I'm "waiting for the reviews" before checking it out, but if CBR is any indication, all of the professional reviews will be shilling away like nobody's business (the way CBR ALWAYS seems to do for every major Big Two project...), so I'll just wait on word of mouth.
I run hot and cold on JRJR's art. I think his stuff CAN be dynamic and a lot of fun. On the other hand, in recent years it's often looked rushed and inconsistent. I listened to a Sidebar interview with him a year or two ago in which he put forth a philosophy he has about almost never erasing and always going with whatever he first puts down on the page to lay a scene out. Yeah, it shows. He didn't used to be that prone to sloppiness, though.
I for one have never seen the appeal of JRJR's art. I hated his first run on Uncanny x-men. His people have this blockly Lego man look to them that I don't like.
His FIRST Uncanny run? From the mid-'80s? His style wasn't so blocky back then. I loved his stuff in the '80s, pre- and post-blockiness. IMO it was only in the '90s that his style started to get overbearing at times. (Not that he hasn't done some post-2000 stuff that I haven't liked as well, but... radically inconsistent.)
I've been morbidly curious about this run as well. From the promo images and previews that I've seen, it does NOT look like something I want to pick up... But I enjoyed it the last time Johns did a Superman ongoing series (Action Comics several years ago), and it's just SUCH a change for JRJR that it might light a fire under him.
I'd say I'm "waiting for the reviews" before checking it out, but if CBR is any indication, all of the professional reviews will be shilling away like nobody's business (the way CBR ALWAYS seems to do for every major Big Two project...), so I'll just wait on word of mouth.
I run hot and cold on JRJR's art. I think his stuff CAN be dynamic and a lot of fun. On the other hand, in recent years it's often looked rushed and inconsistent. I listened to a Sidebar interview with him a year or two ago in which he put forth a philosophy he has about almost never erasing and always going with whatever he first puts down on the page to lay a scene out. Yeah, it shows. He didn't used to be that prone to sloppiness, though.
I for one have never seen the appeal of JRJR's art. I hated his first run on Uncanny x-men. His people have this blockly Lego man look to them that I don't like.
His FIRST Uncanny run? From the mid-'80s? His style wasn't so blocky back then. I loved his stuff in the '80s, pre- and post-blockiness. IMO it was only in the '90s that his style started to get overbearing at times. (Not that he hasn't done some post-2000 stuff that I haven't liked as well, but... radically inconsistent.)
I would have to say that his 80's stuff from X-Men(which followed Iron Man and Amazing Spiderman ) was his best stuff, so very different from this stuff. I'd say this style was first seen in the late 80's early 90's in things like Daredevil and Punisher. I've been turned off his work since then but still have a fondness for his earlier work. I'd have to agree with the bulk of this thread and say this Superman stuff seems awful.
I for one have never seen the appeal of JRJR's art. I hated his first run on Uncanny x-men. His people have this blockly Lego man look to them that I don't like.
There were many things about 80's X-Men that drove me from the book. For me, JR Jr. art was the straw that broke the camel's back.
I could not get past the CBR review which had this line "Romita's sharp, almost Infantino-esque style..."
I don't really see the similarity.
Neither do I. While the reviewer meant it as a compliment, i think comparing this terrible looking superman to Infantino art is an insult.
The only similarity I see is that they both draw highly stylized figures, and they both focus more on design (in Carmine's case) and storytelling (in both cases) than they do on the actual figurework (this became more and more the case for Carmine from the late ’50s on). Their senses of design and storytelling are quite different, and their drawing styles are even more different, but they do share that much in common.
I'm sure the reviewer was referring only to Carmine’s ’80s DC work, when his figures got a bit beefier and a little stiffer. Had Klaus Janson inked Carmine then, his figures probably would not have looked dramatically different from JR’s present figure work, at least on the surface. But even then Carmine was much more angular and fluid in his drawing, and their storytelling would still be quite different.
You don't like JRJR, fine—I get it. But how could not like this?:
Actually I DO like JRJR, although his recent work hasn't really been my thing (Captain America). His work on Iron Man is some of my favourite. Fin Fang Foom has never looked better!
Carmine Infantino? His work makes my skin crawl. I can't nail down what it is, but I find his style instantaneously recognizable, and an instantaneous turn-off. I think it was his issues during the original run of Nova where I realized I didn't appreciate his efforts. I can see the comparison between JRJR and Infantino... lots of scratchy linework, although I find JRJR's lines more deliberate. I'm not getting the new Superman relaunch, but not because of the JRJR artwork, I'm just not interested in NuSupes... so I'm not shelling out my hard earned cash for a version of the character that doesn't speak to me.
You don't like JRJR, fine—I get it. But how could not like this?:
Actually I DO like JRJR, although his recent work hasn't really been my thing (Captain America). His work on Iron Man is some of my favourite. Fin Fang Foom has never looked better!
Carmine Infantino? His work makes my skin crawl. I can't nail down what it is, but I find his style instantaneously recognizable, and an instantaneous turn-off. I think it was his issues during the original run of Nova where I realized I didn't appreciate his efforts. I can see the comparison between JRJR and Infantino... lots of scratchy linework, although I find JRJR's lines more deliberate. I'm not getting the new Superman relaunch, but not because of the JRJR artwork, I'm just not interested in NuSupes... so I'm not shelling out my hard earned cash for a version of the character that doesn't speak to me.
When I said “you,” I was speaking to everyone in this thread who doesn't like JR’s art. Likewise, I was also speaking to everyone who doesn’t like Carmine’s work, you included. Sorry, I should have made that more clear.
I can understand not liking Carmine’s late ’70s and ’80s work. After being kicked out of DC, his heart wasn't really in drawing comics again. I think that stuff is still solid, professional work, but it wasn't at the same level of his earlier work.
As for his scratchy line, at least from the mid-’50s on, Carmine never drew very tight pencils, and some inkers had a tough time deciphering what he was going for. So a lot of the finished look of his art was down to the inker. I much prefer the occasions where he inked himself, such as “Detective Chimp,” some of the “Elongated Man” stories, etc.
So... Has anyone read Superman #32 yet? I'm curious about the actual book (not quite enough to buy it myself, but that's true of all DC comics). I think at this point we can all agree that no matter what you think of JRJR, his work is reliably divisive.
I for one have never seen the appeal of JRJR's art. I hated his first run on Uncanny x-men. His people have this blockly Lego man look to them that I don't like.
His FIRST Uncanny run? From the mid-'80s? His style wasn't so blocky back then. I loved his stuff in the '80s, pre- and post-blockiness. IMO it was only in the '90s that his style started to get overbearing at times. (Not that he hasn't done some post-2000 stuff that I haven't liked as well, but... radically inconsistent.)
Boy, you guys are both running in the opposite stream from me! I always thought his early work, especially some of his first run on the X-Men, was pretty pedestrian. Passable, but not especially noteworthy. (In fact, I've always thought his first X-Men story, an annual where they are dropped into Dante's Inferno, was awfully blah.) His later work shows more confidence in his ability and (as noted by @nweathington) stronger design elements. That makes his work far more dynamic and much more interesting visually to me -- a standout among the crowd. I'd pick up the new Superman book in a minute based on his work, if it wasn't for the fact that it was the New52 Superman.
I can see his early Iron Man and Spidey stuff being called 'pedestrian' in that it was basically Marvel house style at the time, and he's admitted as much himself, with the inkers often covering for him and making his work look more generic. I still think it's nice enough work, though.
With his mid-'80s X-Men stuff I think he got much more stylistic and for whatever reason the run really resonated with me. I can see the criticism that he didn't seem very 'confident', though. It all seemed very idiosyncratic... but that's part of why I liked it. As far as I know, he really only had this particular style during the first X-Men run. When he went over to Daredevil, he entered the general 'blocky' period that he remains in to this day...
...But on Daredevil the blockiness wasn't overdone, and he was inked by Al Williamson, so I'd say I'm still a wholehearted fan of everything he did up through 1990 or so.
...And, once again, that's not to say that there isn't some JRJR stuff from the last two decades that I enjoy. There is. Quite a lot of it. But it always seems hit and miss. Even within the same issue nowadays, there will be pages and panels that I love... right next to pages and panels that I just think look so sloppy.
He's always a name that gets my attention, though.
I've been morbidly curious about this run as well. From the promo images and previews that I've seen, it does NOT look like something I want to pick up... But I enjoyed it the last time Johns did a Superman ongoing series (Action Comics several years ago), and it's just SUCH a change for JRJR that it might light a fire under him.
I'd say I'm "waiting for the reviews" before checking it out, but if CBR is any indication, all of the professional reviews will be shilling away like nobody's business (the way CBR ALWAYS seems to do for every major Big Two project...), so I'll just wait on word of mouth.
I run hot and cold on JRJR's art. I think his stuff CAN be dynamic and a lot of fun. On the other hand, in recent years it's often looked rushed and inconsistent. I listened to a Sidebar interview with him a year or two ago in which he put forth a philosophy he has about almost never erasing and always going with whatever he first puts down on the page to lay a scene out. Yeah, it shows. He didn't used to be that prone to sloppiness, though.
I for one have never seen the appeal of JRJR's art. I hated his first run on Uncanny x-men. His people have this blockly Lego man look to them that I don't like.
His FIRST Uncanny run? From the mid-'80s? His style wasn't so blocky back then. I loved his stuff in the '80s, pre- and post-blockiness. IMO it was only in the '90s that his style started to get overbearing at times. (Not that he hasn't done some post-2000 stuff that I haven't liked as well, but... radically inconsistent.)
Wasn't his first run from a bit after Uncanny 200? If so that is the era I am talking about.
Since I can't say anything nice, let me say that I really like John Romita Sr.'s work
I'm not the first to notice it, but in this continuity, according to that press sheet hanging on the Daily Planet wall, it appears Superman wore red shorts. Was that pre-nu52?
Comments
I guess I'm curious, but I have yet to read any book with the New 52 Superman that I have actually liked so I don't hold out much hope that this will be any different. It's Superman. I always want to like Superman. But they're not making it easy for me by any means.
If so, how was it?
On a side note, I recently picked up my first DC book in probably over two years...
INFINITY MAN AND THE FOREVER PEOPLE #1
whatever Nu-Superman.
...although, if Grant Morrison were to return to write it, I might change my mind...
I'd say I'm "waiting for the reviews" before checking it out, but if CBR is any indication, all of the professional reviews will be shilling away like nobody's business (the way CBR ALWAYS seems to do for every major Big Two project...), so I'll just wait on word of mouth.
I run hot and cold on JRJR's art. I think his stuff CAN be dynamic and a lot of fun. On the other hand, in recent years it's often looked rushed and inconsistent. I listened to a Sidebar interview with him a year or two ago in which he put forth a philosophy he has about almost never erasing and always going with whatever he first puts down on the page to lay a scene out. Yeah, it shows. He didn't used to be that prone to sloppiness, though. His FIRST Uncanny run? From the mid-'80s? His style wasn't so blocky back then. I loved his stuff in the '80s, pre- and post-blockiness. IMO it was only in the '90s that his style started to get overbearing at times. (Not that he hasn't done some post-2000 stuff that I haven't liked as well, but... radically inconsistent.)
I'm sure the reviewer was referring only to Carmine’s ’80s DC work, when his figures got a bit beefier and a little stiffer. Had Klaus Janson inked Carmine then, his figures probably would not have looked dramatically different from JR’s present figure work, at least on the surface. But even then Carmine was much more angular and fluid in his drawing, and their storytelling would still be quite different.
Carmine Infantino? His work makes my skin crawl. I can't nail down what it is, but I find his style instantaneously recognizable, and an instantaneous turn-off. I think it was his issues during the original run of Nova where I realized I didn't appreciate his efforts. I can see the comparison between JRJR and Infantino... lots of scratchy linework, although I find JRJR's lines more deliberate. I'm not getting the new Superman relaunch, but not because of the JRJR artwork, I'm just not interested in NuSupes... so I'm not shelling out my hard earned cash for a version of the character that doesn't speak to me.
I can understand not liking Carmine’s late ’70s and ’80s work. After being kicked out of DC, his heart wasn't really in drawing comics again. I think that stuff is still solid, professional work, but it wasn't at the same level of his earlier work.
As for his scratchy line, at least from the mid-’50s on, Carmine never drew very tight pencils, and some inkers had a tough time deciphering what he was going for. So a lot of the finished look of his art was down to the inker. I much prefer the occasions where he inked himself, such as “Detective Chimp,” some of the “Elongated Man” stories, etc.
With his mid-'80s X-Men stuff I think he got much more stylistic and for whatever reason the run really resonated with me. I can see the criticism that he didn't seem very 'confident', though. It all seemed very idiosyncratic... but that's part of why I liked it. As far as I know, he really only had this particular style during the first X-Men run. When he went over to Daredevil, he entered the general 'blocky' period that he remains in to this day...
...But on Daredevil the blockiness wasn't overdone, and he was inked by Al Williamson, so I'd say I'm still a wholehearted fan of everything he did up through 1990 or so.
...And, once again, that's not to say that there isn't some JRJR stuff from the last two decades that I enjoy. There is. Quite a lot of it. But it always seems hit and miss. Even within the same issue nowadays, there will be pages and panels that I love... right next to pages and panels that I just think look so sloppy.
He's always a name that gets my attention, though.
Who cares?