Two machinas for every deus.

Hello all!

Thank you for the submission Rob. An interesting pick and a creative take on this week's challenge. Windsor Smith's renderings are always distinguishable and his knowledge on anatomy makes most of his images unique. I haven't read this series yet, but I imagine you'll put me on that track soon enough!

Here's my pick. I have to thank Lynn for this one as my appreciation for what Ditko's contributions to this series has grown exponentially with every conversation we share. This classic cover showcases Spidey at his lowest in these early issues. Our hero doubts himself on top of being crushed alive and about to drown. What more for a Deus Ex Machina situation than this piece. Ditko's unique stylization of water flows like molasses and Peter's demeanor, his head's position, elude to a troubled psyche above all in this mess. This is a great read. Even the text seals Pete's doom with the word "Final".

Some days feel like this. Calvin has days like this. Today, fortunately, I don't, but art and stories like this remind me they can. It's how we deal with these situations that people will judge our character.

This is my submission for the Deus Ex Machina competition.

Enjoy!

Machina ex Deus?

A deus ex machina (lat. IPA: [ˈdeːus eks ˈmaːkʰina], literally "god from a/the machine") is an improbable contrivance in a story characterized by a sudden unexpected solution to a seemingly intractable problem.

Considering that 95% of Comic books are primary examples of the "deus ex machina" principle. I have chosen to narrow my field down considerably by taking a more literal translation... "from the god, the machine". With that in mind I submit a excellent example of classic Barry Windsor Smith with the Marvel Limited Series- Machine Man, issue 2. As soon as Ian mentioned this weeks submission this series immediately sprung to mind. I have always enjoyed this series, with it's many plot contrivances, and classic Windsor Smith artwork. I think it illustrates the point beautifully.

Enjoy,

Rob

Deus Ex Machina?

Hello all!

Great suggestions and posts for the last week! This week is in itself possibly it's own Deus Ex Machina, and you guessed it, we've got to find or post our favorite covers that feature this timeless ideal.

Best representation of Deus Ex Machina, pre-solved, done well, and solved in the book!

Enjoy and good luck!

This little villain didn't last that long. . .

Great submissions you guys!

Although I agree that by today's standards of realism, McFarlane's characters do feel a little inflated, but still are strong enough to make you believe in them. The McFarlane Spidey will always hold a place in my heart because it was the first time I realized you don't have to draw everything the same way it's always been drawn. You can draw it your own way. Todd taught me that lesson with my first McFarlane Spidey in Amazing Spider-Man 318 vs. the Scorpion. The flight to Mexico was never shorter!

Great Skrull cover too Mr. Dirt. I need to get caught up on my comic current events sooner than later, but in the history of Skrull covers, from Kirby to Keown, they always seem to get the upper hand when on a cover.

My submission is a little less contemporary. I dug into the memory banks for this one because there was a villain that never went anywhere, but most creative artists have contemplated the possibilities. It wasn't until issue 49 they tried it out and history has spoken for itself. Also being the first appearance of Giant Man adds a little weight to this story.

Remember "Dimension Z"? Remember how the were referred to as "pixies"?
Yeah, neither do most comic readers. . . for a reason too. However, this cover, by its own merit gets my vote for a great rendering of the villain getting the upper hand. I bring you "The Eraser"! Yeah, we all thought of it, but Looney Tunes made it plausible.


Enjoy!

I'm going to have to go pretty recent on this one. Recreating the cover for Avengers: The Initiative #1, issue #15 (in the thick of the Secret Invasion) now has all the heroes as skrulls. The villains haven't just won, they've completely taken over. Sweet mama's sassafrass!

Rob's Post of Choice - Villain getting upper hand

Ok, here it is in a nutshell...

When I read about this weeks post the first hero that jumped to my mind was Spidey. Has any other hero (in the history of superhero comics) ever been shown getting the crap kicked out of him more than our dear friend Peter Parker... on the cover of his own comic books no less. As a child I was never a big fan of Amazing Spider-Man because I liked my heroes a bit more, well, heroic. It just seemed that Peter Parker was never going to come out on top... EVER. Everyone beat him up, and even when he would prevail as Spider-Man, then something tragic would happen to his Peter Parker alter ego. This guy could never catch a break. Those sadistic writers could be extremely Machiavellian in their plots to take down our beloved web-slinger. Which is probably the reason why he is one of the most popular characters in comics today.

While I have to give a nod to Amazing Spider-Man #293 (what I believe to be the greatest "Villain Triumphant" storyline of all time... "Fearful Symmetry") I honestly have to pick a classic Spider-Man/Venom confrontation as my favorite cover. Venom has to be one the greatest Spider-Man villains ever conceived, and no one exemplified this classic Spidey/Anti-Spidey confrontation better than Todd McFarlane.

So here it is... Amazing Spider-Man# 316.

Until a later date,

Rob

Life Happens. . . 9/11/08 - 9/20/08

Hello everyone,

Sorry all for the long delay. It has been almost a killer couple of weeks that have hindered any progress on the site. I hope you're all still interested because I have some treats coming up with interviews among working professionals in the comic industry discussing their comic memories, what comic covers they favor, as well as pieces of their work and where it can be seen.

Summation of delay: Anniversary, hit and run (victim), baby 1st birthday, quit job, got new job. Any questions? Let's get this week's cover challenge underway!

This week's challenge is:

Post your favorite cover featuring a villain getting the upper hand!

There are a myriad of choices and genres this bleeds into. If the villain actually gets the upper hand in the book, that would be great too!

I can be contacted at merbou77@yahoo.com if you need to get a hold of me.

Enjoy!