Monday, December 17, 2007

Byrne Wolverine sketch


Whoa that's a sweet Byrne penciled/inked Wolverine sketch on eBay. Signed 2006. Should go for a pretty penny. Auction ends soon.

Batman in I Am Legend ?!?

I saw Will Smith's "I Am Legend" the other night and just wanted to comment on a quick scene in the movie. Early in the movie, when Will Smith is hunting in Times Square (NYC), the camera pans and shows a future Batman movie billboard with the Superman logo superimposed in the middle of the Bats logo. The date on the billboard was 6.15.2010. Think this was only a billboard prop, or an early (and subtle) preview by the folks at Warner Bros? The camera seemed to stop on the billboard for more than a quick glimpse. BTW, The sets for this movie looked great. I heard they closed down at least 6 blocks of 5th Avenue on a Monday to shoot some scenes.

Here's what they are saying about the Bats/Supes billboard "officially", er when asked about it in an interview posted on mtv.com:
http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2007/12/03/batman-vs-superman-coming-in-2009-but-will-we-live-to-see-it/

Also, the "The Dark Knight" trailer before the movie showed a lot including his cool bike. Joker looks great, and really more mean psycho as compared to the comedic Jack Nicholson version. Maggie Gyllenhaal plays Rachel Dawes. Christian Bale returns as Batman.

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Cockrum Colossus !!


Here's a detailed and large 11" by 14" sketch of Colossus by Dave Cockrum. Great piece whoever ends up as the lucky winner on this auction. This might be the best Colossus I've seen drawn by Cockrum! I think the high bidders think so too. I'm betting this one settles in close to $500.00 before it's all over.

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Jim Lee Supergirl artwork goes for $2849.00

4 pieces of Supergirl art go for $2849.00 on eBay.

JJ Kirby, Michael Lopez, Oliver Nome, and Jim Lee versions packaged together in one auction. If I could make a guess at valuation for each, I'd guess that the Lee piece alone is $2500 and the others collectively are at $349.00.

Sunday, December 2, 2007

CBLDF auctions ongoing...

The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund CBLDF was founded in 1986 as a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of First Amendment rights for members of the comics community. Their website has pointers to current issues they are facing. They always accept donations and I encourage you to become a member to support your favorite comic book artists that may require their help.

From time to time, they also auction off original artwork or hard to find comics/collectibles on eBay to raise funds. This time, they've got a full lineup of art and comics. To support this org, buy something from their website or even help by going to any of their eBay auctions and place a few bids in there to help raise funds. If you win, think that at least you are helping a great cause.

Some noteworthy pieces they have up include this cool Jeff Smith Bone sketch (he doesn't sell his art), original art from various studios, as well as lots of other cool comics and art.

The cover to Uncanny X-Men 138

Google'd more Byrne/Austin original comic book artwork and noticed that the original cover artwork to Uncanny X-Men 138 sold for $37,375.00 October 14, 2005.

Fortunately (or unfortunately), the Toy's R Us advertisement at the top of the cover really is part of my memory when I think about that cover, other than of course the image of Cyclops walking away from the X-Men with a bag slung over his shoulder. So when I see this original artwork with the banner ad at the top, it looks to me like something is missing. Regardless, this is a classic cover image. Easily one of the best and or most memorable covers in comic book history. Ok, maybe the cover to Uncanny X-Men 137 is more memorable with Phoenix and Cyclops battling on the moon. And then there is the Incredible Hulk 340 cover.. Or the cover to Daredevil 181.. Or the cover to The New Teen Titans 1... Or any number of Neal Adams Green Lantern covers... Animal Man covers stick in my head too... The Wolverine mini-series covers by Frank Miller... I also have a couple Batman covers that stick in my head too.

Uncanny X-Men 131 page 18. Colossus in action.

I don't know the seller, but here's another very nice Uncanny X-Men 131 page from ultimate X-art team of John Byrne & Terry Austin. Classic representation of Colossus (in metal form and as Peter), Cyclops, Kitty Pryde, Dazzler, and of course Nightcrawler. Don't forget Wolverine is lurking in 2 panels. The art on this page jumps out and oozes with 80s charisma. Love the third (middle) pane drawn with the cool perspective.

As you can tell, I love the art and story from this time in Uncanny X-Men. Who doesn't like this art, although I know there are a few of you that loath the art and story (Uh don't email me about it, just add your own comments eh and step out of the shadows), although I'm not talking about liking the artist or not for their personality. That could be it's own discussion. Byrne/Austin, Dave Cockrum, Neal Adams, and maybe Lee/Williams, really did some of their best work on this cornerstone Marvel title years ago.

Which brings us back to today. Don't get me started on what I don't like about today's art. I'm really not a fan of the art from current comic books where it usually seems the artist will tailor their artwork towards selling the art after the fact (ie. splashier = $), rather than telling a great story in the book using art. With the exception of a few artists, such as Ethan Van Sciver, most current comic art lacks intricate background details, even details in how the character is drawn, hair, etc. EVS seems to put his heart into each page he draws and esp when he inks his own work. This is good stuff kids. Really outstanding. It's easy to see why he is so popular and in demand. I really started to take notice when he had his run on Green Lantern Rebirth couple years ago.

Back to the auction, 7 days and 18 hours remaining and it's at $4550.00. To refresh your memory, another page from this book featuring Dark Phoenix recently sold for more than $7k. I'll update this post at the conclusion of the auction with realized price and number of bidders.

Stay tuned.

UPDATE: The auction has ended at a realized price of $8076.00 with 29 total bids. Seems like Byrne Uncanny X-Men pages are going up as not only they don't come out for sale often, but people are snatching them up when they do.