The Greatest Penciler of the Bronze Age of Comics -- the Championship

Doug:  Here's the latest bracket, below.  Polls are on the sidebar, live since last night.  I've included a 3rd place match-up, as well as consolation polls for the other members of the final eight, just for fun.  Thanks to all for their comments throughout our little "tournament" -- it's been fun.

Discuss: The Police

Doug:  Below is the updated bracket for the Best Penciler of the Bronze Age voting.  While some heavy-hitters have gone by the wayside, I don't think anyone can argue with the talent left on the board.  This should be interesting!

Discuss: X-Spinoffs

Doug:  Below is the updated bracket.  As we've moved to the "Elite 8", which artists left behind certainly would have been worthy of being in this round of honor?  From my perspective, Jim Aparo stands out, as does Rich Buckler.  I wouldn't place Buckler in the category of "technical master" as I would, say, the Buscemas, Adams, or Byrne, but for sheer output and his oft-mentioned morphing style (which I actually like -- on the one hand it sort of dates the art for the viewer, and I do think aping Kirby and then Adams, and then developing a style all his own, is no small feat), he truly is a Bronze Age treasure.  So we'll have two discussions today -- the one at hand, and a continuing conversation on artists.

True of False: The Silver Surfer Works Best as Stan Lee's Messiah-like Figure (+ Bracketology)

Doug:  It's a 2-for-1 post today, kiddie-winkies!  Feel free to make comments on both topics -- no holds barred for readers of the BAB...  New polls for our best penciler extravaganza were posted late yesterday, and will remain active through Friday evening (USA, Central Time).  The updated bracket, showing the results of the first half of the first round, is below:

Bracketology: The Best Penciler of the Bronze Age Starts Here!

Doug:  Here it is, kids -- the complete Best Penciler of the Bronze Age bracket!  I tried to fill it out as randomly as possible.  I recorded the nominees in the order that our readers suggested them, and then worked them onto the bracket in groups of four.  With each group of four, I put one artist in each quadrant, on the corresponding line.  Then I got the next four, and placed them.  I took just a few liberties:

• I pulled the four artists that you see with a 1st-round bye and put them in those places of honor.  As the bracket adminstrator, I felt that I had the right to do that, so I hope you'll support that.
• I looked at the four quadrants and then tried to balance them out -- at times, this meant exchanging artists across quadrants to create interesting match-ups in certain places and in others avoid big-timers going up against each other in the 1st round.  Obviously I did not always do the latter, as the Frank Miller-Jack Kirby opening round match-up attests.
• No seeding per se took place; the quality of the nominees necessitates that overall some very good artists will exit early.

Doug:  So again, here is how you should vote:

• We are only considering work that was new in the Bronze Age (1970-85); reprinted material should not be considered, nor should output done in prior or succeeding years.
• Please vote only once, unless you are going to change a vote -- I'm sure there is some way to corrupt the system.  Hey, we're just here to have fun, not push any agendas.
• We are looking for "best", not necessarily "favorite" artists, and all aspects of drawing should be considered -- storytelling, anatomy, backgrounds, animals, cars and buildings, etc.  Whatever your favorite book is/was should have no bearing.  In your own mind, try to be as objective as possible.
• That being said, an artist's stature in the field, or perceived impact on the field, really shouldn't be considered.

Doug:  So here it is -- check it out, and vote on the sidebar!  We'll do the second half of the 1st round beginning on Wednesday.

Bracketology: The Best Penciler of the Bronze Age

 

Doug:  The masses have spoken (well, Garett spoke) and we have listened!  After quite some time, against the clamoring of Humanbelly and others, we have decided to take another plunge into the depths of Bracketology.  Some of you who've been around for awhile may recall the logo pictured below -- Karen and I used it for examinations of different pencilers' influence on characters such as the Thing, Spider-Man, Batman, and the Vision.  We're dusting it off to serve as your thought-provoker to begin this tournament's nomination process.

 

Doug:  As you see from the title of today's post, our voting over the next several weeks will determine (through no scientific method whatsoever) the "best" penciler of the Bronze Age of Comics.  Of course, as we've haggled over in the past, "best" is about as subjective a word as one can find in the English language.  You treat it as you see fit -- if you think you're going to use "master of anatomy" as your measuring stick, by all means...  If storytelling is more important to you, go for it.  Or, if you're like many of us -- when this gets down to the nitty gritty in a few weeks -- you'll probably have the word "favorite" troubling your conscience.

Doug:  Here are some parameters for nomination:

• The artist must be considered as a penciler.  So a guy like Joe Sinnott is probably out, but a guy like Bob Layton could be in.  Klaus Janson...?
• The artist must have been active during the period 1970-85 (hey, we had this discussion just the other day).
• Only original work done by the artist within the boundaries of the Bronze Age should be considered -- Steve Ditko's Spider-Man and Dr. Strange are out, for example.
• Other merits of your nominee, such as inking or writing, should not be considered.

Doug:  For reference, you can feel free to use the links to the Comic Book Database and the Grand Comics Database found at the top of our main page.  We'll close nominations sometime on Tuesday and I'll try to get a bracket pulled together for next Sunday, when polls will also go up on the sidebar.  As in the past, we'll let the polls run for around three days, and then I can get the next round set up.  During our voting, that's when we'd like you to use the weekly Bracketology post to make comments lobbying for "your guy (or gal -- Ramona Fradon?  Wendy Pini?)" and your favorite work.

Doug:  Above all, have fun with this and treat it like that -- fun!

Bracketology: Dressed for Success -- Wrap-up

Doug:  In the immortal words of former Arizona Cardinals football coach Dennis Green, in reference to a Chicago Bears team that had just come from behind in incredible fashion to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat...

Well, Spidey and Batman are who we thought they were, too!  So we crowned Spidey!

All kidding aside, this was a fun "tournament" with lots of great suggestions to start it off (and thank goodness I got HB to back off, or I would have been trying to find a 200-line bracket!).  The completed brackets are below, and I guess today I'll throw it open to all-things-costume.  I'd personally like to hear more love tossed the way of Ditko, Kirby, and that Cockrum fellow, and I'd also like to know where you feel characters who weren't on the bracket (Galactus, for example) would have finished.  Were there key match-ups along the way that, if the draw had been different, you feel certain characters would have advanced further?  Who was that monster that destroyed all comers, no matter who they were?

Thanks for your past participation -- still don't know why when we have over 500 visitors a day we can only muster 70 votes in a 3-day poll -- and thanks in advance for today's comments.  You all are swell!

Doug:  Periodically when I'm just chillin' on a Friday night, watching the baseball play-offs or whatever, I like to look ahead and see what sort of Bronze Age love could be coming my way via amazon.com.  Well, kiddies, do I have news for you (unless you beat me to it...)!  How about this?

Guardians of the Galaxy: Tomorrow's Avengers, Volume 1 and Volume 2

Nova Classic, Volume 1

Avengers vs. Thanos

Bracketology: Dressed for Success -- 7th Round (the Championship)

Doug:  I'm out of town for the weekend, at Homecoming at my sons' college.  Sorry no updated brackets, but you'll notice I left the last polls up.  I'll post the final brackets later in the week.

No question for you today -- to be honest, I'm still a little upset that for the second time, in what used to be a genuinely fun activity, it's not ended in the same spirit it started.  This is not to run anyone off or chastise anyone; around here we certainly treasure the freedom of speech/opinion.  But, I only wish all of our readers would come with the intent of playing nice -- with no personal or political agendas, just a good cup-of-coffee-and-conversation sort of place to hang out.  It's a challenge sometimes to moderate the blog, when comments stray from the intended conversation of the day.  The last thing we want to have to consider is censoring comments...  Sadly, with the way the last polls ended (with the hijacking of the vote totals) and the lack of respect for mine and Karen's wishes in last Wednesday's Bracketology post, I wonder if we won't be doing this again for quite some time.  Again, the Osmonds sang it...  and that's really too bad.

All that being said, the past two weeks have been very lively comment-wise, and we certainly want to encourage all of our readers to exercise the right to express their opinions on our topics du jour.  This is a community, after all.

In cheerier news, if vampires are cheery -- a couple of Dracula posts are coming your way at the beginning of the week, and Red Sonja under the influence of Frank Thorne will finish your work week.  And in between, a query from our pal david_b prompts a fun conversation opportunity on Wednesday.  Looking forward to it!

Enjoy your Sunday, and to those of you who will enjoy tomorrow's federal holiday (as my wife and I will), a tip of the cap, a hearty handshake, and a slap on the back!  Those days are little treasures in life, aren't they?  Be well.

Bracketology: Dressed for Success -- 6th Round (the Final Four)

Doug:  A potentially-lively discussion was brewing in the comments section of last Sunday's Bracektology post, so I'll move it over here for today's topic.  Thanks to Inkstained Wretch and Garett for the immediate impetus.  You can see a reprint of the exchange below -- let's use these comments as a take-off point for today's interaction; and thanks for playing along!

Doug:  Question -- which company had better art in the Bronze Age, Marvel or DC?

Inkstained Wretch said...
The Marvel bias in the final round is pretty striking. I wonder how much of that is based just on Marvel's strength relative to DC in the Bronze Age? I mean, Marvel just sold better back then so does that give it a stronger nostalgia factor? Or did Marvel's sell better in the first place in part because they had better costume designs?o

Doug said...
If I counted correctly, we began this series of polls with 33 DC costumes, 2 independents, and 61 Marvel costumes.

I think we all just read more Marvels as kids... And let's face it -- the comics were better due in large part to plots aimed at college-aged kids, better art (overall), and a pushing of the envelope that made Marvel's Bronze Age overall more exciting than DC's. Of course this is my opinion only.

Garett said...
Did Marvel have better art during the Bronze age? DC had Kirby, Adams, Aparo, Wrightson, Kubert, Grell, Garcia Lopez, Kaluta... and Byrne and Miller switched to DC later on, as did Perez and Kane.

Might be a good topic for a day! 

 

 

 

 

 

Doug:  Consider this a 2-for-1 today, kids.  I saw the pic below on a site yesterday and thought I'd pass it along.  It was taken on the set of Iron Man 3, filming in Florida.  Feel free to add these comments to the art discussion above.

 

 

Bracketology: Dressed for Success -- 5th Round (the Elite 8)

Doug:  I think the fact that we had to have a special run-off between Havok and the Man of Steel speaks to the thought and loyalty that people are putting into these votes.  This has been fun over the past few weeks, but now it's getting down to the nitty gritty.  As we've remarked in the past, there are some real icons left, as well as a couple of upstarts, in my opinion, in Dr. Doom and Phoenix.  I wished that Yellowjacket and Daredevil had had better showings, but I guess it was not to be.

Doug:  Man, I'm running out of costume related questions for us.  How about this one -- of the eight supersuits left, what is the most eye-catching feature of each one?  Is it the color scheme?  A chest logo?  A belt or the boots?

Bracketology: Dressed for Succes -- 4th Round (the Sweet Sixteen)

Doug:  Whoo!  After weeks of 16-match-up polls, we're down to just eight head-to-heads.  I'm a little surprised/disappointed in some of the costumes that have gone by the wayside, and can't imagine what keeps the good Doctor Doom rolling along.  I think I've voted against him all three times -- and that's not to say that he doesn't have a good look; he does!  But there have also been some nifty costumes up against him.

Doug:  Discussion point for today -- what's the best costume still on the brackets, and what's the best one to go out in the previous round?

 

Bracketology: Dressed for Success -- 3rd Round

Doug:  On, then, to the 3rd round of voting in our quest to choose the best costume of the Bronze Age.  Remember, it's the threads, not the character in them or storylines in which they were featured.  We're all about sartorial splendor around here.  My apologies for the seeming error in numbering on the 14th and 15th bracket spots; apparently an over-zealous reader/voter began casting before I could get everything proofread and in place.  Once someone votes, the polls cannot be edited.  Rest assured that in spite of my typographical boo-boo, the polls are listed in order.

Doug:  So we may as well have something to talk about today (in addition to the brackets themselves -- some interesting match-ups in this round!), because that's what we do around here.  How about this one?  Can you name a favorite Bronze Age story or cover that featured one of the characters on the list?  Not just any story or cover, but one that is especially memorable or significant to you as a link to your younger years.  As an example, I'd offer up the cover to Champions #11, featuring a very cool Gil Kane offering of a quite large Bill Foster about to go splat after a pummeling from the Champs' flying car!  That should get us going.  And as always, thanks in advance for playing!

EDIT:  Hey, all --

It just occurred to me that I set the end date wrong for this round.  To stay on schedule, I'm going to cut this off early Tuesday evening -- the polls have been ending at 5:00 pm CT in the States.  So I'll be filling out the brackets for the purpose of advancement around that time, and then posting the next round late Tuesday evening.  Sorry for the confusion (which was all mine!).

Doug

Bracketology: Dressed for Success -- 2nd Round, part 2

Doug:  Welcome back -- you know the drill!  But if you don't, we're voting on the best costume of the Bronze Age -- all of the polls for this go-round are on the left.

Doug:  For discussion today, I'd ask you to survey the full bracket below and choose a character or two.  In your mind,who drew the definitive version of that character and maybe also toss out a few pencilers who got it wrong.  That should (hopefully) liven things up in the comments section!  And have a great day!