The Big 4

            By now you have guessed that Jim Lee is my favorite comic book artist and that has been all I have talked about well you would be wrong.  I have tons of favorite artists and each one has brought something new to the table.  I will talk about the other four big artists that I admire and what each one brought to the table and how they helped impact the comic books we love and cherish to this day.

            Stan Lee- You can’t hear or read Stan Lee’s name without screaming “EXCELSIOR” or one of Stan Lee’s other catch phrases and being the comic book person you are, you know you go into a Marvel movie and you are expecting Mr. Lee to show up at some point in time and say something humorous or witty.  Mr. Lee is credited as creating well known favorites that we all love today such as Captain America, Iron Man, The X-Men, Spider-Man, Thor, The Avengers, and even The Fantastic Four.  Without him and his creativity, a lot of the comics we love today, that he created and he drew would be nowhere near as good or even in-depth to what we read or view now.

            Frank Miller- Mr. Miller is a little bit different because he isn’t known as the hero type creator, but more of the gritty, film noir-ish type comics that are ultra-violent and make people cringe in some aspect or avoid all together.  This man is responsible for the art and the creations of Sin City, The Spirit, 300, The Dark Knight Returns, and some unknown others.  His art style is unique in that all of his work is devoid of bright flashy colors and uses mainly black and white, or sepia tones, and only truly highlights some darker hues when the art or the story calls upon it. 

            Jack Kirby- Another huge name in the comic book industry.  Mr. Kirby is well known for his use of “Kirby dots”, which help distinguish him from other artists during the same time period.  Normally when Kirby dots where used it showed a character shooting rays from his body or was used as a cosmic force.  He is also credited for linking the majority of the DC characters into one self-contained universe so all the heroes and villains could interact and was responsible for the creation of the DC comics “New Gods”.

            Alan Moore- Mr. Moore is another brilliant outspoken author who only makes a comic book or two every decade then goes back into hiding because he does not like the state of the comic book industry right now.  He is the one responsible for the creator of The Watchmen, and was very vocal about the movie and all the new spinoff prequels that DC reintroduced into their current lineup.  His art is very bright and colorful and he does not shy away from nudity and will embrace it when the story calls for it.

            So there you have it, four more artists and creators of some of the comics you view and admire and a little bit about each one. Once again all views posted here are mine and mine alone.  A small amount of neutral bias has been given because of their art and how I use it to give myself a baseline when I draw.