BBC Update 6/19/11

Hey there sports fans, Al here with the latest:

TALE OF TWO JO(H)NNYS:



The work continues on phase 2.  A few Minor set backs have held the book in check as the cross over enters its third week of June.   
   This in of itself is a major thing.  With the. layout and tight pencils and the lettering complete, now comes the fun time with editor.  Refinement.
  But the work is looking good and coming together.  The aim is have this book ready for the Second Jet City show this September.
  Jason and I are both looking to seeing this book completed.


JOHNNY VEGA NEWS:



Well as Vega begins his tour of Alternate Universes (I.E. Crossovers with Darkslinger Comics , NEOtrash. Comix), Johnny swings back into his own Universe with that little known thing called an ORIGIN!
  Yep you heard it here first!  In the ol' Condo of Concepts (Mr. Green take a bow) Johnny's origin can be told as it should.  After working on this character for over a little ten years.    It is about time for this character to get origin he deserves.  Like so much of the old black and white Johnny work he kinda started off in the middle of career.  But in keeping with the campiness of stories I loved as a kid I kept that feeling alive with "Humble Beginnings" as well as with the immediate follow up "All Tomorrows Parties". 
  It should also be fun.

BBC blog Update 6/12/11

Images of the crossover pages 23 and 24


Hey there sports fans, Al here with the latest:

TALE OF TWO JO(H)NNY'S
Phase 2 now in it's last couple Pages the book begins to move into Phase 3 - editing.  LIke so many projects the questions always remain-where can we trim the fat to make the book accessible for readers.
As a creative individual I write and draw for myself and what I would like to see out there since it isn't being done.  FEAR Agent is about as close as it gets to what I'm doing with Vega with Green Lantern Corps.  Mixed with Flash Gordon.
  But back to the story-  with the editing.  Sometimes before a work is complete I like to know how much art I'm going to have to produce as opposed to how much art will be covered up by text & word balloons.  Time is valuable when it comes to this.  In talking to another artist buddy of mine Dan DePaulo from NEOtrash Comix confirmed this thought.  To a guy like me when you're working a regular 9-5 kinda job and then working on the side- art can become daunting.
  But if you want that stuff out there you got to put in the time.
   With that being said -


Image Rough Pencil with Computer Color Underlays from Johnny Vega "All Tomorrow's Parties"

JOHNNY VEGA NEWS.
  The rough script has been translated into several pages of layouts for both Vega's Origin story "Humble Beginnings" and the immediate follow up "All Tomorrow's Parties".  Of course editing must take place and I think that as the help from Kat Meyers of Darkslinger Comics (trademarked Adam Watson 2011. ) she might be over inundated with tons of Vega material.
   But this character has a future I feel otherwise I wouldn't have been working on him for over a decade.
  Weird to think it's been that long.  Anyway lots of new exciting things for the Man of the Future. 


Images from Johnny Vega "Humble Beginnings" Part 1. Layout pages 1-8

And so June Begins

Hey there sports fans, Al here with the latest:

TALE OF TWO JO(H)NNY'S


Let the pages COMMENCE!
You heard it here phase 1 one of the cross over is now complete and onto phase 2.  Its time for setting up the lettering and word balloons in place to see if artwork needs to be expanded upon for the  story to flow evenly between the script and the art.
   Then it will be onto Phase 3.
   Of course in the case of Phase 2 there is the issue of expanding pages.  Jason has written a brilliant action oriented story involving one space ranger Johnny Vega and Jason's gun toting hit man,  Jonny Morbid.  In such a crossover there is going to be a lot of revelations made by both parties.






This leads to the expanse of the book.  Especially in such a jam packed book.
   Jason has definitely taught me something that I had forgotten about and I believe it is a problem that all comic illustrators run into when they write their own stories - action and fun. 
  Unfortunately we artists/ creators have a tendency to be "up in our collective heads".  The stories are clear to us but not those around us.   
A page of the crossover


  When working with Adam Watson on the crossover with David, The Ghost Assassin, I learned quiet a bit.  Pacing and lack of dialogue can keep a mood and keep a story flowing just as well. 
For more check out this crossover for purchase at myebook.
  Vega had been suffering from a couple of things when I first started him about 12 years ago.
  But at the time he was simply an homage to the movie serials of the '30s.   But as the stories grew in their complexity the character had to grow and change he couldn't just be a carbon copy of space heroes of the past.  So I began to change him from the inside out while trying to keep the flavor of those stories.  That's when the crossovers began to exert a particular kind of influence on the over all story arc of Vega.
  Anyway,  I'm getting off topic here.
  I didn’t want to trim any of what Jason had written down so I took the previous drawn figures and moved them into bigger panels.  This meant more pages. 
  So there you go.  A kinda long winded explanation but gives the story the room it needs to breathe. 

IN OTHER NEWS


Scratchboard is rocking hard with the  latest piece for Ben Perkins "Perkins' Essence". And now a updated larger "Brain Cage".  The original 5"X7" was sold up in Olympia but the image was such a impression on me and those around me I thought I would reproduce the image.  It is in line with the 8"X8" format that I used for the Big 100 art show last year.

In this week...

Here there sports fans, Al here with the latest:

  As the month begins to wind down the dead line looms in the future for the rough pencils to be completed for the crossover.  But every single panel will look AWESOME!   
  Working on Jason's script has been a lot of fun and I do wish that this kind of story could be made into a film but pipe dreams for that idea.
  Anyway it will be nice to have the illustrative parts done and focus on the transfers and  inks for the book.
  IN OTHER NEWS: 
  Soon coming to a shop near you - "Perkins' Essence". You to can share a small piece of the Man, the myth in the making.  T-shirts coming to a shop and sale table near you! 
  Seriously as an artist you. Have to take a step back from the drawing table and do something completely different from what you are working on so you come back with a fresh perspective on your project.  This was one of those times.
  If you know Ben then you know this captures him at his best.   
  And that is it for the kid till next week.

OLYMPIA COMICS FESTIVAL 2011

Well Sports fans, Al here with the latest:


THE OLYMPIA COMICS FESTIVAL 2011











  So much for the kid not going to shows this was a fun event.  Olympia show that I first attended three years ago was a fantastic eye opening experience.  With one major sale and four copies of Pandora's Garage Volume Five and Vega Number 2 being sold pulled me out of a funk thinking that my art work would never sell. 
  All creative artists that manage to get their stuff out there validation is measured in  sales.  At the time I thought about throwing in the towel but that all changed that day.
  Anyway, enough of reminiscing about the past this years show was held at the Senior Center as it was last year.  Hitching a ride with NEOtrash again (always a fun time) I helped set up and took candid shots between eatting, talking to guests and working on the cross over script.  Oh and the occasional sell of more scratchboard.  "Brain Cage" and "Brain in a Jar" both sold. 

THE TALE OF TWO JO(H)NNYS CONTINUES:

  The rough pencils are still being laid down but with much satisfaction from myself and Jason of NEOtrash Comix.  He watched as the process of how I work (to some degree).  I think my friends understand why I'm the hardest working man in comics right now.  Its looking really good!

And that is it for the kid.

Wonder Northwest 2011

Well sports fans, Al here with the latest:

WONDER NORTHWEST 2011




In a strange twist of fate when I thought I would he just pounding coffee next to my drafting table cranking out image after image for the crossover I got a call from an old friend of mine to help out at this show.  I had promised myself that I wasn't going to be doing anymore shows till I was done with the crossover but when I got the call to arms (strong arms carrying in comic book long boxes) I went.
  Royce Myers has been a long time of mine and has helped me out many times, here was a chance to pay back a little.
  Small venue it was but fun today I do plan going to help if I can and hopefully not spend a ton of cash on things that I want but should  not  buy.  With money being freaking tight and printing a high priority  I can't.
  
THE CROSSOVER CONTINUES:

  The rough pencils are nearly done.  Within roughly a weeks time I belive that all the rough pencils will be completed and the transfers can commence.   This will be a great opportunity to place the script into the frame and see how much background I really have to come up wIth.  Then inking should begin.

JOHNNY VEGA NEWS
  And though I had said that I was going to be focusing on scratchboard Pieces for shows later in the year the thumbnailing bug bit me and I have been in brief moments working on sketching the origin story for Vega.  The ACTUAL origin.  Thanks to Kat for prodding me to explane his beginnings I sat down and Texted myself the story outline. 
  And with the infusion of Jason's script on the crossover, I realized that I needed to add a lot more action to the existing story arc of Vega. 
  I think I have done that. And I'm very happy with the results of the work.

And that it for the kid as I head to the show for a time.

April is month of Change

Hey there sports fans Al here with the latest:

NEWS FLASH!  IT's Mother's Day you geeks.  Call your moms!  For some I already know the stories.  Even if you have bad blood appreciate those who are close to you and say thank you for a gift of life. 

NOW BACK TO OUR REGULAR SCHEDULED PROGRAMING:

TALE OF TWO JO(H)NNY'S



Kicks into gear this month As a third of the rough pencils are completed for the crossover.  This means by the end of this month I should be able to start finished pencils and begin inking as well.  Cool stuff for a smack down action book.
  I can't wait to start in on that process. 

AND SPEAKING OF VEGA....

While cleaning the studio I came back across the ORIGIN of Johnny Vega - Humble Beginnings.      As so much of Vega is a homage to the Sci-Fi I love so much (with just a hint of parody added) I plan on turning out a definitive Johnny Vega collection that tells of his actual origin up through the updated first four books of the Man of the Future.  All of this was at the urging of my latest editors from Darkslinger Comics, Kathryn Meyers and publisher Adam Watson. 
  They have been helpful with the sell out of the Scratchboard Corpse Cop in Seattle at the Emerald City ComiCon 2011 and the latest Stumptown here in Portland.     
The jpeg is a copy of the script with several notations off to the side to denote how many panels per page (pages 11 and 12) and which direction each page is facing. I love post its!

APRIL IS THE MONTH OF CHANGE!
  As I have said before once the once the Crossover of the Take of Two Johnny's was completed I would focus on the scratchboard galley pieces to work on.  One of the biggest issues with all art work is Presentation.  It's not just enough to have great talent and being humble of your work but it's also the ability to see beyond that creative process to let it go out into the World and be appreciated by others.
  Not always the easiest thing to do.

So there you have it.  A update for the box.  Keep watching as there may be more in the works as Black Box looks to redefine itself on the web with it's website presence.