So, while waiting for editorial feedback on my non-fiction anthology strip for SAW, I decided to work on a concept/notion/idea that I have been kicking around and playing with in various ways for some time, and that is a variant version of the Justice League of America - specifically, the "Satellite Era" team from the seventies (my JLA). I have been messing with character designs and names and whatnot, not necessarily for any specific outcome, but just to feed my inner comics-nerd. So, in a confluence of my decades-long fan status and my burgeoning cartooning practice, here's the dealio.
I started with this image, from JLA #200 - this is the team I think of whenever someone says Justice League.
I did a bit of swiping as I replaced the superheroes with my own characters, and simplified the background (since I am not nearly as detail-obsessed as George Perez):
To jazz it up, I tried coloring with pencils:
And again with markers ill-suited to the task:
Then, just for fun, I tried that bold, super-simple style I have been playing with:
Thoughts:
- using Perez as a style guide is maybe not the best idea for someone with a style like mine, but who knows how it will develop
- I actually like that first inked version in a lot of ways
- color is complicated - I can see why so many folks who work in color are going digital
- I can see a use for the really over-simplified style, even
And finally, for anyone who really wants to geek out, here's the correspondence of original characters and my analogs:
Superman ➜ Hella Man
Batman ➜ Black Buzzard
Wonder Woman ➜ Sister Splendid
Aquaman ➜ Aquaphibian
Flash ➜ Fleetfoot
Green Lantern ➜ Runestone
Martian Manhunter ➜ Mercurian Messenger
Green Arrow ➜ Silver Sling
Atom ➜ Nanonaut
Hawkman ➜ Pteroman
Black Canary ➜ Blue Flamingo
Elongated Man ➜ Putty-Man
Red Tornado ➜ White Squall
Zatanna ➜ Pythagora
