Robert Atkins's Blog, page 50

Dynamic Duo...

well...not THAT dynamic duo, I mean these two guys. My first introduction to these guys was actually in the Death of Superman story line when Doomsday lays waste to the Justice League. Booster and Blue Beetle were a big part of that team.

I did these sketches back in January during my JLA month. I combined them into one image, and Simon Gough threw some awesome colors down on it!  This REALLY came to life with his colors.

Check out Simon's Gallery Here!
www.spidermanfan2099.deviantart.com
Here were the original line art sketches.


For Questions and Comments email me atRobert@RobertAtkinsArt.com

Darkhawk colors...

Very cool colors done by Simon Gough, I also have an amazing version done by Mark Roberts. I thought I'd spotlight them both.

DarkHawk Colors and Sketch 

Colors by Simon Goughwww.spidermanfan2099.deviantart.com



For Questions or Comments email me atRobert@RobertAtkinsArt.com

Venom 20....Out today!

While I was working on Snake Eyes I also did some fill in work on Venom #20 for Marvel. It was a cool project to work on and fun to do superhero stuff. At the same time the current venom is very "commando combat" right now. It seemed like a nice fit. After seeing the issue I think Tom Brennan (my editor) did a good job matching up the styles of my work and the other artist.

I wanted to show some of my pages in the penciled stages for the book that's out.

Venom 20 Pencils pages - 367





The one thing about this title, and maybe in this issue in particular, is the fighting is pretty violent. Even most superhero books there's a decent fight throughout, but it consists of power blasts and punching. I would say that this issue isn't for little kids, so please keep that in mind. The second scene that I drew is even a little more disturbing. It's nothing horrific, but it pushes the boundaries of stuff that I like to work on. Another interesting point, is that the work I do in black and white always seems less graphic when I'm drawing it. However, as soon as someone gets cut with a ninja sword or shot and you see any blood, the colors immediately make a scene more graphic. It still surprises me even though I've been doing this for 6 years.
Because I strive to keep this blog a family friendly place, please keep that in mind if you suggest this issue to anyone. It's still considered an all ages Marvel book, and it really isn't anything too outrageous. I just tend to keep to pretty tame projects and this was more intense than that. 

GI JOE Cover Run...

I started drawing GI Joe for IDW in 2008. I had worked on it previously with another publisher, and only a couple covers for them. However, I started a run on the book that I hardly expected to be so continually involved with at the time. 4 years later I've done over 50 covers for the property. I have a few completed that I can't show quite yet.

While I look back on the body of work, I can see it as a timeline of my growth as an artist. I'm always doing my best to challenge my work and draftsmanship. I know I have quite a bit to still learn and that opportunity excites me still. I've just wrapped up my latest arc on a GI JOE book with Snake Eyes #16 and it's made me want to look back on my work with the property.

GI JOE COVER RUN! - 366 51 IDW GI JOE covers, 1 Joe Con cover, 1 Roll Out Roll Call Con CoverI have 3 covers currently done or in production that have not been shown yet.


GI Joe has really been a dream project for me. It has always been fun because of the nostalgic aspect to the property. I grew up on the cartoon, toys, and then later reading the comics. To have been able to be associated with it professionally has really been a treat and something I've never taken for granted.

I've also been blessed to work with Chuck Dixon every step of the way. Chuck and my fantastic editors, Andy Schmidt, John Barber and Carlos Guzman, were the reasons I've stayed on for so long. I have done comic work for Marvel, NBC, Dark Horse and DC comics while I've been working on GI JOE. However, every time I came back on to GI JOE, it was a breath of fresh air to get such exciting scripts so clearly written and have an editorial staff that was always encouraging and supportive.

With this last run on Snake Eyes, I can't say enough about how great it's been to work with Juan Castro (Inker) and Simon Gough (Colorist). Both are fairly new to the industry, and in fact this book was Simon's first published work in the comics industry! I've never worked with such a tight creative group. We were copied on every single email that was turned in related to the project and that helped us keep everyone on track and limit any possible mistakes throughout the run. It's truly been a pleasure to work with both artists in such a fun collaboration.

I'm not done with the property, I'll still be on covers for the foreseeable future and there are still projects I'd love to be a part of related to GI JOE. This is simply a retrospective of the work I've done and a chance to look back and appreciate the amazing people I've had a chance to work with.

What's next...

So today's post wont be a character sketch. I'll have plenty more of those this month since I will be catching up on all my commissions and con sketches.

Instead I wanted to give just a quick preview of the two projects I will be working on after Snake Eyes. I've just wrapped up my interior work on the GI Joe books. I have a larger graphic novel for a property created by Ryan Schifrin, that I'm drawing and Larry Hama is writing. That should be done this fall and I'll post updates on where to find that as soon as it's published. I've posted some character design art on the blog before, but here are a few pages as well.


Current Projects - 365 The symbols on their arms burn and it's a call sign to meet with the "Collector"
A mysterious alien employer called the Collector gives Basil and Moebius their new assignment
With supernatural powers to decay or reanimate a person, the Collector enforces our main character's indentured servitude.
Quick meeting with their tech designer before the mission. 

Shadow Gambit is a great mix of an Indiana Jones archeological adventure with the modern flare of James Bond missions. This has been a very cool project to work on and I'm excited to wrap it up soon so everyone can get a look at the finished product.  For more info you can check out the site
www.whoisthecollector.com

The other project I'm currently working on is the co-created book Elders of the RuneStone. Written adn created by Quinn Johnson, I've been working on this book on and off for years with him. We are hard at work wrapping up the first issue for an August digital release for all of our Kickstarter supporters! We were  able to successfully fun a Kickstarter campaign this last spring thanks to all the fantastic support and generosity of those that pledged.  In August the first 36 Page issue will be emailed as a pdf. Then in January we will have the remaining 4 issue story arc done. The book will be released first in a digital format while we work out our publishing for the collected graphic novel. 
Here are a few pages and a first glimpse at the major enemy for our main characters. 





You can check out more about Elders of the Runestone here
www.RuneStoneComic.com
Also at the site, and with the links to the left of my blog you can listen to the podcast that Quinn and I record each month promoting RuneStone and reviewing various Comics, Movies, Video Games and other Entertainment. It's also a healthy resource for Chuck Norris proverbs.


So for the remaining summer months and into the fall I'll be working on these two projects. Currently you can find my work on the Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow comics 13-16 from IDW Publishing and Venom #20 coming out later this summer for Marvel Comics. I will continue doing covers for GI JOE and Snake Eyes for the foreseeable future.

Could I fly if I screamed really loud?

If that was the case my son would never be earth bound. I dont know what changed, about 3 months ago my son loves to play and run around and SCREAM....just because, for the heck of it. Its fun and playful, he's not hurt or anything. He just likes to scream when he plays. Its a good thing he's not a mutant, I'd never keep him on the ground.

At any rate, today is our Irish pal Sean Cassidy a.k.a. the Banshee! Another member of that new international X-Men team. I put him slightly above Thunderbird and Sunfire on that team, and when those two died or left the team no one really noticed. So that's not saying much for Banshee. I never really understood the purpose of this character, and I dont know that Chris Claremont did that much either. He kind of fell by the wayside for quite a while.

Plus think of it practically, would you want someone on your team that just screams....ALL THE TIME your fighting. How could they concentrate, I wouldn't bring him along on missions either. Still he's one of the classics, and I can't help but have a soft spot for the character.

X-Men Month: Banshee - 062

Coloring update...

Over the last year I've had the chance to collaborate with some great colorists on my blog pieces. Simon Gough, Mark Roberts and Kyle Ritter have all contributed to these sketches. I've stockpiled quite a few that I haven't had a chance to show off yet. So here are a few of the more recently colored sketches.

Blog Sketch Collaborations - 


Etrigan the Demon from JLA month



Moon Knight from Avengers Month



Warpath from X-Men month

These three were done by Simon Gough. You can find his awesome gallery of work here
www.spidermanfan2099.deviantart.com

For Questions or Comments email me atRobert@RobertAtkinsArt.com

Joe Con Destro and Oktober Guard Cover Inks...

Here are the inks. Just the next step of the process. I'm having a hard time finding a decent size file of the colors. As soon as I do I'll post that up. I really like how the colorist added the Russian graphic design elements in the background.


GI JOE vs COBRA #5 Inks - 350

Actually my favorite part of this cover are the Iron Grenadiers peaking over Destro's shoulder. I don't think this is the best version of the colors, but you can see the design elements I was talking about. I also dig Destro's eyes.

For Questions or Comments email me at Robert@RobertAtkinsArt.com

Joe Con Destro and Oktober Guard Cover...

I did this cover for the GI JOE Vs. Cobra #5 comic. It was shown just this weekend at Joe Con in New Orleans. I wish I could have made it down for the con, but I've just got back from a 2 week long trip that included Heroes Con. I know my deadline work simply couldn't allow for it.

In fact I'm finishing up my Snake Eyes run in the next couple of days.

This cover was a lot of work, but loads of fun. I actually stayed up all night inking this thing. It had to get done that night  because I was leaving the next day to chaperone a kindergarten field trip for my son's class. Then immediately leave for Summit City Comic Con after we got back from the field trip.

It was a fun weekend, but I was seriously exhausted. I'm not as young as I used to be and pulling all nighters works me over now. I can function on 4-5 hours sleep most nights, and that's typical for me. But all nighters are pretty much out of the question anymore. Well.... except for conventions, I can seem to not sleep for almost the whole weekend because I'm so excited to be there and the energy of the show keeps me going. I usually pay for it when I get back though.

Here's the process of the cover.

GI Joe VS. Cobra #5 Cover Pencils - 349

Since I was inking it myself this is as finished as my pencils got. Most of the detail is there, but you will see that I really finished the Iron Grenadier soldiers and Destro's reflections with the inks. 
For Questions and Comments email me atRobert@RobertAtkinsArt.com
Or leave a comment below.

Karate Kid LOSH...

LOSH stands for Legion of Super Heroes, in case you were wondering. Karate Kid is one of the futuristic members of Superheroes inspired by Superman in the 31st Century. I honestly haven't read much LOSH comics, even though I worked on an issue based on the cartoon for DC a couple of years ago.

I find the concept very interesting,  and collected a few arcs in recent years. This is the second time I've drawn this character. I always enjoy the martial arts characters so whether I'm that familiar or not it's still loads of fun!

Karate Kid - LOSH - 348

I'd like some suggestions for decent arcs of LOSH someone could jump on with. I know the new DC reboot can be confusing, and without following LOSH since the reboot, I can't say if the current books are easy to jump onto.

For Questions and Comments email me atRobert@RobertAtkinsArt.com