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Post by thwhtguardian on Feb 24, 2021 18:45:03 GMT -5
Usagi Yojimbo: Wanderer's Road #4 Story and Art by Stan Sakai Colored by Rhonda Pattison Cover by Peach Momoko Summary: Collecting ":Blade of the Gods" from Usagi Yojimbo v.1 #10 we see Usagi and Jei meet for the first time...in color! Plot/Art: Although these new colored editions are no doubt a great way for new readers to get in on classic Usagi stories, I dropped this series earlier as although the coloring was neat I already had these stories(sometimes even in three different versions!) but when I saw this new cover by Peach Momoko I just had to stop and check it out. For one, although I do adore Stan's usual I style I find that I love seeing other people take on his world, I think it's down to the fact that Stan has always been on the art through all these years that it's just special when someone else takes a whack at it and Momoko's fluid anime style is wonderful to look at. What I really love is that it's similar enough to Stan's own look that it isn't jarring, but it has a greater sense of fluidity to it that it has its own unique feel. On top of that the story inside is a great issue to revisit as Jei has always been one of my favorite antagonists for Usagi. The only negative that I can come up with is that although Pattison's color pallet is true to the way the world of Usagi has looked in the past under Tom Luth's brush the bright, primary color forward pallet just didn't fit well with the tone of this story. As Dave Stewart has shown over the years, you can tell a horror story and still have a pallet of bright primary colors; the trick is balancing them with enough inky blacks, and while I wouldn't want to alter Stan's original art to incorporate more shadows I do think a greater balance was needed to create that darker mood of the story. Grade:7/10 |
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Post by usagigoya on Feb 25, 2021 1:56:41 GMT -5
If you like the alternate look of a differant artist doing the covers of these reprint issues, there is a rumor that the next batch of issues collecting the Dragon Bellow Conspiracy issues will feature cover art by Mouse Guard creator David Petersen....
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Post by thwhtguardian on Feb 25, 2021 15:14:16 GMT -5
If you like the alternate look of a differant artist doing the covers of these reprint issues, there is a rumor that the next batch of issues collecting the Dragon Bellow Conspiracy issues will feature cover art by Mouse Guard creator David Petersen.... As much as I'd rather see Petersen working on more Mouse Guard, I'll take him on covers as he draws a fantastic Usagi. He did a pin up in the art book Stan put out a few years back that I adore. |
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Feb 25, 2021 15:50:17 GMT -5
I find it interesting that guest artists and tribute artists almost never attempt to draw Usagi in the same style as Stan. Jim Aparo and Don Newton can both draw Batman's cowl with more or less the same structure and still have astonishingly different styles; why does everyone need to reinvent Usagi's appearance just because he's anthropomorphic? Don't get me wrong -- I love Peterson's approach (and so many others too), but I'd love to see more artists offer a more subtle twist on the traditional Usagi look.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Feb 25, 2021 16:46:56 GMT -5
I find it interesting that guest artists and tribute artists almost never attempt to draw Usagi in the same style as Stan. Jim Aparo and Don Newton can both draw Batman's cowl with more or less the same structure and still have astonishingly different styles; why does everyone need to reinvent Usagi's appearance just because he's anthropomorphic? Don't get me wrong -- I love Peterson's approach (and so many others too), but I'd love to see more artists offer a more subtle twist on the traditional Usagi look. I think it comes down to Usagi feeling more personal because he's always belonged to Stan, so it almost feels wrong to ape him while Batman has always been in a sort of house style so you feel the need to conform. |
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shaxper
CCF Site Custodian
Posts: 22,860
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Post by shaxper on Feb 25, 2021 17:45:42 GMT -5
I find it interesting that guest artists and tribute artists almost never attempt to draw Usagi in the same style as Stan. Jim Aparo and Don Newton can both draw Batman's cowl with more or less the same structure and still have astonishingly different styles; why does everyone need to reinvent Usagi's appearance just because he's anthropomorphic? Don't get me wrong -- I love Peterson's approach (and so many others too), but I'd love to see more artists offer a more subtle twist on the traditional Usagi look. I think it comes down to Usagi feeling more personal because he's always belonged to Stan, so it almost feels wrong to ape him while Batman has always been in a sort of house style so you feel the need to conform. Interesting. In my mind, Stan created a style and a world, and other artists attempting to play in both would be flattering, much as when Stan drew a Galactus piece in the style of Jack Kirby. But perhaps I'm reading the scenario differently than professional artists would. |
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Post by usagiguy on Mar 8, 2021 12:22:17 GMT -5
Hi Stan Sakai here.
I really enjoy seeing other creators' interpretations of Usagi. Just as I cannot draw in their style, I do not expect them to draw in mine. Even if they followed my character designs to the letter their styles would show through. Besides, I always learn something when I see another person's drawings of Usagi.
One of the reasons we have other artists do the covers of the Classics series is to differentiate the Classic series from the ongoing one.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Mar 17, 2021 16:57:27 GMT -5
Hi Stan Sakai here. I really enjoy seeing other creators' interpretations of Usagi. Just as I cannot draw in their style, I do not expect them to draw in mine. Even if they followed my character designs to the letter their styles would show through. Besides, I always learn something when I see another person's drawings of Usagi. One of the reasons we have other artists do the covers of the Classics series is to differentiate the Classic series from the ongoing one. I've been enjoying the guest artists on these covers so I'm glad to hear that will continue! |
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