Welcome to "John Cassaday" week!

[wonderfly]

The "4th Annual Toon Zone CBC Awards" is now over, and the winners have been chosen...and now this week, we'll be having our 3rd Annual Theme Week!

For Week #3, we're dedicating this week to your pick for the "Best Artist of 2006":


John Cassaday: Artist on Astonishing X-Men and Planetary


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/1/17/Absoluteplanetary.jpg/250px-Absoluteplanetary.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/fa/Axm_13.jpg



We're started by changing the Logo at the top of the Comic Book Culture forum. You might've noticed it: it's the one that says "2006 Artist John Cassaday"! ;)


Next, with each Theme Week, we're pinning a discussion thread to the top of the CBC forum. In this case, since we're saving the "Astonishing X-men" talkback thread for the "Favorite 2006 Team", I figured we'd try out a talkback thread for Planetary, (don't believe we've ever had one of those before)!

As for this thread, you've voted him to be the "Best Artist of 2006", now drop by the thread and tell us WHY he's your favorite! But don't feel that you have to limit yourself to works that he's drawn in the last year, you can discuss Cassaday's previous work from over the years as well!


A "Fun And Games" activity will be posted soon, (and don't forget, someone will win the chance to give their own "Pick of the Week" in the "This Week In Comics" thread)! In the meantime, let's talk John Cassaday!

[rggkjg1]

hmm. i dont really have much to say. i voted for cassaday because there was only 2 choices. i felt that bagley has been doing his "thing" for too long. i never even felt his art was anything special either. i like cassaday's art better, i can't really explain it more than that. remember, there were only 2 choices. honestly i dont even know who i would pick as the best artist. i picked alex ross just to put a name down, didn't really think it over. i didnt really feel there was any "memerable" art for this year. maybe every artist has been doing their "thing" for awhile. anyway, i first came across mr. cassaday back when he did the covers for legends of the dark knight #149-153. you can't judge a book by looking at the cover, but those were some good covers. and the story was a post crisis dick grayson as robin story, WE NEED MORE OF THESE!!!!! then it was the covers for ultimate six and eventually great art to go along with great writing in astonishing x-men.

as i was doing this write up i felt that i would describe cassaday's style as "slick". maybe its because of the coloring or something..

[wonderfly]

hmm. i dont really have much to say. i voted for cassaday because there was only 2 choices. i felt that bagley has been doing his "thing" for too long. i never even felt his art was anything special either. i like cassaday's art better, i can't really explain it more than that. remember, there were only 2 choices.


Yes, there were only two choices, and I was hoping one of the MANY other runner ups would get just one more nomination and qualify for the final round of voting, but that's just the way it turned out. Still, I'm glad both Bagley and Cassaday made it to the final round.


anyway, i first came across mr. cassaday back when he did the covers for legends of the dark knight #149-153. you can't judge a book by looking at the cover, but those were some good covers. and the story was a post crisis dick grayson as robin story, WE NEED MORE OF THESE!!!!! then it was the covers for ultimate six and eventually great art to go along with great writing in astonishing x-men.

Excellent! This brings me to the activity I had planned for this week's thread:

John Cassaday's popularity truly took off with Astonishing X-Men #1, though before that, Planetary put him on the map to be noticed. But what was YOUR first Cassaday cover/interior artwork that you remember picking up and reading? Many artists have an issue or cover where they suddenly get put "in your sights" so to speak. What issue was it for you?

For me, the first time I distinctly remember John Cassaday was the first issue of the Marvel Knights "Captain America" title:


http://images.comicbookresources.com/previews/covers/captainamerica1.jpg



This was the first comic to deal with the issues of terrorism after Sept. 11th, and the first issue was a fitting memorial to those who lost their lives on that day, (I know Amazing Spider-Man vol. 2 #36 dealt with Sept. 11th before this series came out, but that was a one issue tribute, where as this MK Cap. America series sought to deal with the issues of terrorism on an ongoing storyline basis...)

Too bad subsequent issues of this series ended up being filled with left wing propoganda that I didn't care for, but I digress...the main attraction that made this series, (especially this first issue) a great experience was John Cassaday's artwork.

Alternatively, if you can't truly remember what your first Cassaday book was, what's your FAVORITE cover of his you've ever seen? Post the image here, or at least tell us what it is!

And finally, here's another challenge: As we're now getting into the "artwork" catagory: see if you can come up with a great John Cassaday avatar for your Toon Zone profile, and post here in this thread showing it off!

[rggkjg1]

crap, i forgot about captain america. that was my first exposure to cassaday as an interior artist. i thought the art was really something back at the time. anyway, i think those legends of the dark knight covers are my favorite:

http://www.comics.org/graphics/covers/4378/200/4378_2_0149.jpg

unfortunately, i think mr. cassaday's superman covers are kind of dissapointing. i'm glad that he did superman so i could make an avatar. my avatar is "tweaked" a bit from this cover of man of steel:

http://www.comics.org/graphics/covers/4215/200/4215_2_00000125.jpg

[Spider-Man]

I think Cassaday's work on Captain America ranks as some of my favorite work he has done. I picked up the trade last year and was blown away by his presentation of the costume. He stays with the suits original designs but gives it a unique and detailed look. There are some panels that absolutely blew me away. Despite the bright colors of the costume he never made it look goofy. I don't know what he did but he managed to blend his style just flawlessly into what can be a difficult costume to draw. I think it even his great work on Astonishing X-Men can't hold a candle to the work he did on Captain America. And I keep meaning to pick up Planetary...

[Noukon]

Not a single issue of Astonishing X-Men goes by where I don't want a certain page, panel, or even the cover as a poster.

#17's cover (http://www.marvel.com/comics/onsale/covers/0906/ASTXM017_COV_CMYK.jpg) comes to mind...

[wonderfly]

I should also point out that Cassady's other regular contribution in 2007, (besides Astonishing X-Men and the occasional issue of "Planetary") was as regular cover artist for "The Lone Ranger" from Dynamite Entertainment. He also is serving as "art director" for the series, I believe, giving guidance to the regular artist on the title...if he had been the interior artist, I would definently have picked up the title, but his covers are almost tempting enough to make me pick up the issues all by themselves:

http://www.dynamiteentertainment.com/images/LoneRanger2Cover.jpg http://www.dynamiteentertainment.com/images/LoneRanger4Cover.jpg

His "Lone Ranger" covers are also serving as my contribution to Cassaday avatars, for the rest of this week...

[Jin Kazama]

...if he had been the interior artist, I would definently have picked up the title, but his covers are almost tempting enough to make me pick up the issues all by themselves

Get it. Get it, Get it, Get it.

I picked it up because my father was a Lone Ranger fan, so I had exposure to the character without having actually seen the movies or the TV show. Casual fan in the bare-minimum of the word.

The art is fantastic. The story is very well done. A very good mixture of action and story. It's like a revenge tale mixed with a western. I made it my pick for best non-superhero book in the nominations thread. It's just really good.

Easily one of the first comics I read off of my stack when I get the issue.

[wonderfly]

Sounds like the Lone Ranger may be a good one to pick up. We didn't have as much participation in our "Fun and Games" activity this last week, (I myself am enjoying this new Cassaday avatar I discovered...c'mon, gang, show your love and win your own "Pick of the Week")!!! Kudos to everyone who participated by pointing out their favorite covers, but there's one person who pointed out what's quickly becoming one of the most memorable John Cassaday covers, and thus we're making him this week winner:


Noukon!!!


This really is becoming one of the most famous "Wolverine" covers of all time:


http://www.newsarama.com/marvelnew/Oct06/OctPreviews/AXM/AXM17cvr.jpg


And now we make way for Theme Week #4, (sorry it's a little late, I meant to post it earlier in the day)...

[rggkjg1]

i just don't get it. can someone explain why this cover is so great?

[Noukon]

Thanks for picking me, guys! :D


i just don't get it. can someone explain why this cover is so great?

Have you been reading the latest Astonishing arc? That would probably help.

In a nutshell, though, it shows Logan in a light that's completely contrary to his character, and does so through a very interesting use of cliche. There's a story reason to this within the issue, but the cover does stand on its own as humorous and extremely well-designed. (Frankly, I'd kill to have a full-sized poster of that, though as I've said, that thought occurs to me frequently when it comes to Astonishing.)