MichikoS
06-09-2006, 09:09 PM
I just got this book (2005, TwoMorrows) from Amazon and read through it last night. It's quite good.
I was rather expecting a breathless fanboy hagiography.
Instead, it's thoughtful, balanced, and accurate in its portrayal of a remarkable and complex man and artist.
Author Tom Field provides an enthusiastically partisan, but extremely fair, in-depth discussion of Colan's contributions to graphic storytelling. The interview questions are probing rather than adversarial, and the whole undertaking has a respectful tone that still pulls no punches when it comes to exploring the more painful episodes in Colan's career, especially his split with Marvel after 15 years of superstardom there, his feud with Jim Shooter, and the less than stellar work he subsequently did for DC.
One surprise for me was Colan's rather brutal treatment at the hands of Dick Giordano. There are always two sides to a story, but Colan does seem to have been given the bum's rush at DC.
Ah, the magnificent art! Field and other contributors suggest that until you study Colan's original pencils, you can't truly appreciate the full glory of his work. I agree. Even Tom Palmer's consistently sympathetic inking doesn't do full justice to Colan's subtle chiaroscuro and liquid panel layouts. The hundreds of examples of Colan's pencil work in this book are a feast for the eyes. There are plenty of original commissions as well as published panels.
Colan makes no bones about his deep affection for Daredevil, and the book provides ample evidence of his incredible affinity for the character. Nobody can choreograph an acrobatic swing over the cityscape like Colan.
Colan discusses his habitual preference of NOT laying out a complete plot out in thumbnails or storyboards. In fact, he makes it quite clear that he doesn't like to read a story in its entirety before beginning to draw! This odd technique often results in a squished, nine-panel final page or an unsatisfying visual fizzle to what ought to be a big finish.
It's a bizarre quirk that's resulted in some unusually-paced stories, that's for sure. Colan defends this practice by pointing out that he is discovering the story in the same way the reader is. Interesting.
Colan is an original, whatever else you think of him or his art. His style is instantly identifiable, and his contribution to comics is inestimable.
I appreciated getting to know the man behind the art a little better in this book. I think it's one of the best comic artist bios out there. A+
Michi
I was rather expecting a breathless fanboy hagiography.
Instead, it's thoughtful, balanced, and accurate in its portrayal of a remarkable and complex man and artist.
Author Tom Field provides an enthusiastically partisan, but extremely fair, in-depth discussion of Colan's contributions to graphic storytelling. The interview questions are probing rather than adversarial, and the whole undertaking has a respectful tone that still pulls no punches when it comes to exploring the more painful episodes in Colan's career, especially his split with Marvel after 15 years of superstardom there, his feud with Jim Shooter, and the less than stellar work he subsequently did for DC.
One surprise for me was Colan's rather brutal treatment at the hands of Dick Giordano. There are always two sides to a story, but Colan does seem to have been given the bum's rush at DC.
Ah, the magnificent art! Field and other contributors suggest that until you study Colan's original pencils, you can't truly appreciate the full glory of his work. I agree. Even Tom Palmer's consistently sympathetic inking doesn't do full justice to Colan's subtle chiaroscuro and liquid panel layouts. The hundreds of examples of Colan's pencil work in this book are a feast for the eyes. There are plenty of original commissions as well as published panels.
Colan makes no bones about his deep affection for Daredevil, and the book provides ample evidence of his incredible affinity for the character. Nobody can choreograph an acrobatic swing over the cityscape like Colan.
Colan discusses his habitual preference of NOT laying out a complete plot out in thumbnails or storyboards. In fact, he makes it quite clear that he doesn't like to read a story in its entirety before beginning to draw! This odd technique often results in a squished, nine-panel final page or an unsatisfying visual fizzle to what ought to be a big finish.
It's a bizarre quirk that's resulted in some unusually-paced stories, that's for sure. Colan defends this practice by pointing out that he is discovering the story in the same way the reader is. Interesting.
Colan is an original, whatever else you think of him or his art. His style is instantly identifiable, and his contribution to comics is inestimable.
I appreciated getting to know the man behind the art a little better in this book. I think it's one of the best comic artist bios out there. A+
Michi