Although its easy to cite Perez's landmark, industry-changing work on
The New Teen Titans, Crisis on Infinite Earths, History of the DC Universe and another library's worth of great art/titles, I always have very fond memories of his adaptation of the 1976 sci-fi film,
Logan's Run, published by Marvel between January and May, 1977 --
Cover credits: All by Perez (inking himself on #3), with
Al Milgrom inks on #1 & 2, and
Klaus Janson's on 4 & 5.
The 1970s was a period when movie adaptations were not consistently treated as special projects in need of the best talent (including Marvel's
Star Wars adaptation, with its completely unsuitable Chaykin / Leialoha art), with artists usually adding styles in contrast to the strong, distinctive visuals of the film source.
Perhaps you would get a great cover here, an interesting splash or a solid interior there, but most were lacking and failed to capture the heart and spirit of films they were adapting.
Along comes Perez, who was one of the few comic artists to successfully use the so-called "superhero style" on film subjects that had no connection or foundation in the superhero genre of visuals, yet Perez (and Janson) applied an often explosive style to the energetic script (tightly committed to a monthly by David Kraft), but tempered that with a firm grasp on the very picturesque, technical and in some cases solemn settings/emotions, preventing the comic from losing the meaning of the story in a swarm of "FOOM-ing" fists....
Still, when the plot reached it points of conflict, Perez was masterful in depicting growing menace--
...and brutal action as seen in the film--
--adding a genuine feeling of motion to the strange Carousel scene fairly close to its source--
...to making a more impactful interrogation scene than the holography used in the movie--
...similar to his introduction of the android Box--
Below, a bonus: Perez created this penciled collage of with the intent to have it appear in one of the issues of the LR adaptation, but it remained unpublished until the release of
Pérez: Accent On the First "E" (Omnibus, 1977) and reprinted in the softcover
Focus on George Perez (Fantagraphics - August, 1985)--
Overall, Perez and Company created a short, but incredibly faithful treat to the senses of both fans of the film and evolving comic art, and it should be considered one of the hallmarks of his storied career, as well one of the greater movie adaptations. As noted in my first post in this thread, I was aware of and followed GP's work since his early Marvel days, but the
Logan's Run adaptation was where I truly fell head-over-heels in love with his limitless talent.
And to me those images were so inspiring. Reed stilt-walking over Manhattan. The corridors of the Baxter Building, making me want to enter the picture and explore. The way that Perez drew The Brute (sorry Buscema, Perez won that round). But objectively, taking everything else into account, I am sure you are right.
