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All e-mails sent to Bob may be published on this Letters Page unless withholding is specifically requested.
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'LETTERS' OF THE MONTH
My January 2006 review of Iron Man: The Inevitable #1 sparked a lot of controversy here and on some of the Iron Man message boards. Although I only received one response (which was positive) last month, March's 'Letters of the Month' support an opinion that differs greatly from the ones I expressed in my review., as well as some fairly personal comments about me and my work. As I recall, the review was about the artist's work--not Mr. Irving as a human being. However, that didn't seem to stop a few of the responders from crossing the line.
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I
don't want say your opinion of Irving's artwork is wrong. Everyone has
their right to one. But I think you're being a little hard on him. |
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Hi
Mr. Layton, |
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Well I'm sorry that you don't like this artist. No offence, mate, but after looking at your gallery, I know why so much British talent is being poached by the US. Your work is static, conservative, and the sort of thing that we evolved out of back in the 80s. I know that American culture is pretty conservative overall, but don't worry, I'm sure you'll all get over it eventually - you just have to catch up, and you just have to stop being so bitter. I'm seriously sorry that you can't see talent when it's in front of you, but hey, you couldn't see that car either. It's called drama, sophistication, and it's not all about spoon-feeding your audience - challenge conventions instead of bending over to accommodate them. Jake Turner |
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Dear
Bob, |
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Dear Bad, As I stated at the beginning of this letters column, the e-mail I published last month was the ONLY letter I received on the subject. I'm at a loss to figure out how I suppressed anyone's opposing point of view. If that was my intention, I'd certainly have no motivation to publish the opinions of you or your fellow detractors on this page this month, would I? As I rule, I rarely review comics, since I find that reading them has become more of a chore than a pleasing diversion. But, being somewhat associated with the character, I'm bombarded with questions from fans about my thoughts when a new Iron Man project is released. I went into the process of reviewing Iron Man: The Inevitable #1 with a totally-open mind. I should have stated is that the biggest problem I saw was that his style was totally wrong for a high-tech series like Iron Man. Unfortunately, my amazement over what I know to be poor storytelling gave birth to my comments concerning the book. However--I stand by my analysis. In an open society, you are free to anonymously hurl insults over the internet all you want. However, since you choose to hide behind a screen name, there can't be an honest debate over the esthetics of good storytelling. How could I possibly know if you are qualified to judge the work of Frazer Irving...or me? I have thirty-plus years of experience as a comic writer and artist. Will calling me 'bitter' erase my body of quality work or my qualifications to judge the work of others? Nowhere in the review did I call Mr. Irving a lout, wife-beater or any other term that might besmirch his character as a human being. I'm sure Frazer is a terrific fellow. But, if he is a comics professional, then he's subject to public criticism. That's the way the job plays out. We, in the artistic community, get our jobs solely based on the opinion of others. It always has--and it always will be the case. Your opinion of me and my work is your right as a consumer. There's not much I can do about that. And--you're probably not alone. But, I would venture to guess that you are in the minority.
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Mr.
Layton, |
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Dear Chris, Please don't apologize for asking about the creation of X-O Manowar for Valiant. He's one of my all-time favorites. The actual creation of the character came about through the direct collaboration of Jim Shooter, Marketing V.P. Jon Hartz and myself--prior to any involvement by Barry Windsor-Smith or Steve Englehart. Jon Hartz is the one that coined the name "X-O" and the catch phrase of "Conan in a Can". Jon, being the sneaky marketeer that he was, wanted the character to have an "X" in its name--primarily to cash in on the mutant craze that was sweeping the industry at the time. It was the company's intention, from the beginning, to capitalize on my popularity on Marvel's Iron Man and translate that 'good will' to a Valiant character with similar themes. And--once Barry joined Valiant, things started really looking up for X-O. Unfortunately, Shooter and I had a major disagreement (the first of many to come) that led to him relieving me of the writing duties on the series and giving MY character to Englehart. This move pissed off a lot of creators in the office. Poor Steve Englehart--he had no idea what he had gotten himself into the middle of at Valiant. To make a long story short, constant pressure from Barry, Jon and others in the company finally got Shooter to reverse that decision and I was reinstated as the writer of X-O Manowar. After that, I was able to introduce the various ideas that I had originally envisioned for the series, which included the armor's name and back story. And the rest, as they say--is history.
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Hello, Bob.... I don't know if you remember me...my name is Brian Postman. I penciled Spider-Woman for Marvel 22 years ago. I like your gallery a lot. Recently I started doing recreations at comicartfans.com. I just did a recreation of a Frank Cho New Avengers cover and I'm getting these real nasty comments, such as "I'm stealing money out of Cho's pocket" ..."how dare I do this"...etc...etc. I was wondering if you have had any problems with people and comments like these as far as recreating other artists work? Thanks, Brian Postman |
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Brian, I do remember you from the old days at Marvel. Good to hear from you after all this time. I've never had a problem with fan hostility in doing recreations--but I would attribute that to the fact that 99% of my recreations are based on my run on Iron Man or from other silver age comics. Also, most of the artists that I base recreations on are no longer available for the fans to seek out a commission from (i.e. Gil Kane). The problem may arise for you because the New Avengers is a very current book. Did you credit the original artist on the recreation? If the work is based on another artist's composition, it is an ethical imperative that the creator is credited on the piece. My advice is, if you suspect that there might be an issue with recreating a certain piece, contact that artist directly and ask permission. I've done that a few times and most guys in the biz are very gracious about allowing it. Thanks for contacting me about this problem. Please feel free to follow up with me on this issue. Best wishes,
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Bob, It's good to see that you'll be at the Megacon. I've missed you there the last couple years! For your website, I had a idea that your fans might want your opinion on. Namely--Superman Returns! The new Superman costume. All in all, I have to say I'm excited and troubled by the redesign. First off, the signature "S" insignia has been shrunk into a small size and is now some sort of breastplate attached to the suit. The Kryptonian house symbol is no longer an integral part of the suit itself. It's been boldly duplicated into the belt buckle, which I always thought it would be a good design addition if it doesn't take away from its larger counterparts impact. The trunks are now very low-cut, which are much too Speedo-like. While I like the new blue, with the mesh type material. I really don't like the blood-red color. The red should be a vibrant, bright red. And now-- the hair: Clark Kent changed his hair style to the opposite of Superman, parted from one side (right to left). This goes along with the secret identity, designed to hide in plain sight along with his eye glasses. Superman's part goes from left to right so that the curly Q is a letter S. Christopher Reeve portrayal of the Man of Steel was done perfectly. This little detail is surprisingly missed by Bryan Singer. The worst part of the redesign, (not that I can't live with it, but I will scream bloody murder if this makes it into the comics.) is the new, circular collar, which has been severely altered from the correct design. The cape now meekly pokes out of the sides, rather than flowing out from across the broad collar bones. Joe Bernardo |
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Dear Joe, I was truly impressed with the work you did in Photoshop to illustrate your arguments concerning the new Superman costume. And, I believe that you have some very valid points. However, I also know that many things look different on film than they do in production stills. So--I'm going to reserve final judgment until the film debuts. In the meantime, let's throw the debate out to our readers and see what comments they have for you in next month's letters page. And thanks for sending us the retouch job and your comments, Joe.
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Mr. Layton, I
just found your website and thoroughly enjoyed it. I am a comics fan
in my early 40's who has read thousands of comics. I just wanted to
say that your run on Iron Man and Avengers were two of my favorite runs in
comics. I am reading and purchasing the current Avengers and
multiple Iron Man books and I believe they are mediocre at best.
What I dislike the most is the way previous characters attitudes and
motivations are ignored. 2) Many readers consider your run on Iron Man as the best run of that series. People recognized the high quality of that run during publication as well and your work was promoted in several instances. Why did you leave Marvel and specifically why did you stop writing Iron Man? 3) Have you ever tried the game Heroclix? You might enjoy some of the figures in the Armor Wars set! Sincerely, |
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Mark, (1)
Altogether, I did Iron Man from #116-#153 (first series), #216-253
plus assorted annuals and specials. We're publishing an extensive
checklist of all of my work on my website this month. Mike Kalibabky
and I have been putting the finishing touches on it now for the last few
months and its finally ready to go. (2)
I left the company (Marvel) to go to work as Creative Director
for Valiant. Although
I was on top of my game and Iron Man was selling like crazy at the time, I
gave it up because I felt I had a real chance to do something more
significant at Valiant (which turned out to be true).
I don’t regret making the decision.
It was the right one for me at the time and I wound-up as one
of the owners of the company. (3)
I haven't tried Heroclix--but I recently had my Armor Wars art used for an
article about the game in the latest Inquest Magazine. Thanks
for the letter of comment.
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Mr. Layton, If there is a subscription rate that you will be charging to follow "Colony" on the web vs. having it be supported by on-line ads, please email me when you decide what that rate is. I'm assuming you'll be charging $10/mo or less for subscribers. Count me in. Michael Greczek |
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Michael, I've got some really good news for you. When COLONY premieres in May, it will be absolutely free to everyone logs onto BobLayton.com! This project is a labor of love that I've been working on for the last ten years and I'm trying to create an audience for the property by presenting it here on my site. The best way to do that is to give it to the readers at no cost. Tentative plans are to eventually have the entire story published in the Colony trade paperback once the art is complete. But-- we'll worry about that once we get to that point. There will be 100 pages or better before we get there, my friend.
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IF YOU WISH TO CONTRIBUTE A LETTER OF COMMENT TO THIS PAGE, PLEASE SEND YOUR E-MAILS TO: BOB.LAYTON@BOBLAYTON.COM
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