Hi Chris. I think I can answer your question concerning the 14 pages of Batman Darwyn used to get work at DC. I was in San Diego and remember Mark Chiarello telling a room full of artists, hoping to get a big break, that he'd just received a submission from an artist whose published work was going to blow our minds. He was talking about Darwyn and the submission included pages of the re-worked Batman story "Night of the Stalker". If there are 14 of those pages they are the Batman pages you'd heard landed Darwyn the DC gig. As far as I know nothing from EGO was produced until much later. Darwyn re-worked the "Night of the Stalker" pages again for print in SOLO. The original version didn't have Lee Marvin or any likenesses to characters that had appeared in "Selina's Big Score". Thank you for this video. It's nice to see the old guy appreciated and understood with such glowing praise. On a personal note, the Wonder Woman/Black Canary story I drew for the New Frontier one-shot is, to me, some of my best work. It was definitely a highlight of my career so far. Thanks again. best, J.Bone
Darwyn was a rare breed of comic creators. He could do it all. Draw, write and ink to a higher level than most creators. His SPIRIT run was so much fun to read. His Parker run were all masterpieces. Tragic that as comic fans we only got 4 Parker graphic novels. He also designed the opening credits for the Batman Beyond animation series last minute over a weekend. Truly was a huge talent .
The New Frontier brings tears to my eyes every time I read it! Darwyn truly understood DC’s characters and told a beautiful action filled story. Batman: Ego is THE most underrated unread Batman story ever told!
I've worked in advertising for 30+ years and before that, I used to hang out at our family's ad agency when I was a kid in the mid-70s. It was the tail end of the era depicted in MAD MEN and the art directors and illustrators I got to know then created ads and visual images in much the same style as Darwyn Cooke. There is something about that "mid-century" look today that makes it very hip - like the graphic design used for Playboy, Esquire and other mens' mags of the 60s. As a huge pulp and golden age comics guy, I'm glad you showcased New Frontiers. I'm going to buy it now and savor it. It looks right up my alley. Thanks again, Chris, for a great show and all you do for the comics industry.
I've read New Frontier this year. It was such a great book it was indeed a love letter from the past but I like how he made it complicated by addressing Racism, politics, gender... all the things that were bubbling under the facade of Golden Age America. such a sad loss that we lost him this early. RIP.
Yep, he worked at the Madison pub in Toronto prior to his breakout as a comic creator. As a student at the University of Toronto at the time, would hang out there a lot as it was close to campus. I knew him casually and we would share a laugh later at conventions remembering those days.
The thing that always amazed me about Cooke’s simple, but gritty line work, is how he fleshes it out with marker like rendering. His use of Grey over color, and Color Highlights add dimension the way Zip A Tone once did. He also proved that gritty and dark stories don’t always have to come with murky shadows or “edginess” to be effective. Storytelling first. While I’m disheartened there won’t be more, I’m glad for what there is, and glad to learn more about it, and him, here. Thanks, Chris.
Was fortunate to meet Darwyn at a con a year before he passed, incredibly friendly with every guest in line. New Frontier is an absolute beauty of a story a must for any superhero fan.
Every-time I re-read BEFORE WATCHMEN MINUTE MEN, I cry . Partly because it really works and its a worthy, tragic prequel Moore’s book, but partly because it’s the (unintentional) final testament for Cooke, and really highlights the great talent we lost.
RIP to a legend. New Frontier gets a lot of well deserved love but him and Brubaker on Catwoman is my favorite. Cooke also gave us those amazing Parker adaptations.
Great to see some coverage on Darwyn Cooke, but I would have liked to see some mention of his work on The Spirit. I've always felt that his work on the character was the truest to Eisner in terms of both writing and visuals.
Not only the art, but his writing was great on that series. It was a joy to read and you are right he respected Eisner's original vision and added his own touch to the character. Not an easy thing to do.
My introduction to Darwyn Cooke’s work was his illustrious of Catwoman. I went through a huge phase when I was about 5 or 6 when I was obsessed with Catwoman and I remember seeing Cooke’s art of her in a character encyclopaedia. His design of Catwoman will always be the definitive version for me.
DC The New Frontier is my favorite comic book out there and I don’t think anything captures the spirit of superheroes like it does. Darwyn Cooke was a master at storytelling, just got his Parker series and can’t wait to read it!
I don’t feel his art was retro, I think it was timeless and tells a story. Something that many newer artists aren’t anywhere as accomplished both technically or creatively.
Batman Ego is one of the single best Batman stories ever made. Absolute must read. It's the most interesting one character internal struggle and it's almost entirely in the batcave and Bruce's mind. It goes so deep into the heart of the character in a conversation that feels like it must have happened at some point, it's great to actually see it. How does Bruce live with Batman and vice versa?
Darwyn was such a comic book purist. His Parker stuff is awesome. I was at Walmart one day and saw they had an anniversary edition on Blu-ray for 5 bucks. I had to scoop it up. I liked how he illustrated Wonder Woman being taller than Superman. Lol. The work he did with Brubaker was phenomenal. Always felt his art was just an homage to the silver age of comics in the 60s. Thanks for this video appreciating this gentleman's legacy.
There are many YT channels that showcase opinions, reactions, theories...even propaganda. Chris, I find that your work has become the YT equivalent of a literary essay. Keep up the great work, and Happy New Year's.
I got to meet Darwyn at a Baltimore show in 2007, I think. He asked me to wait while he had a smoke break. When he came back, I got to speak with him about his work on Spirit, which I loved.
Another banger of a video! Man, DC The New Frontier is THE greatest superhero comic book of all time for me. Cooke is such a legend, I loved the way he wrote Silver Age Barry Allen, just totally made me fall in love with that character. So happy you finally covered him!
And his take on Wonder Woman remains the BEST modern take on the character, perfectly balancing between strong and compassionate. "For The Greater Good", the add-on story to New Frontier, drove that point home.
Thank you for recognizing Darwin Cooke as he weaves beautiful storytelling through visuals! I actually own BTAS artbook with his amazing storyboarding! Thank you again for recognizing his talents and art style!
Hey Chris! This is FANTASTIC!!!!! I was one of Cooke's best buds and this made my day. As was J.Bone below. I miss my brother and this was absolutely awesome. Thanks Chris!
This could have been three times longer and I'd have relished every second. Few creators are as consistently and uniquely rewarding as Darwyn Cooke. It was especially fascinating how his skills as an illustrator and designer informed his strong instincts as a writer. For what it's worth I'd say his Before Watchmen issues (Minutemen and Silk Spectre) stood far above the rest and were the most respectful to Moore.
I met him in 2013 and he was incredibly kind. He signed multiple things for me and patiently answered all my stupid questions. An amazing comics talent and also an amazing person.
I always forget how short his bibliography actually is. He just feels like one of those writers who have been around forever and have done everything. Wish it was true.
I’m very new to Cooke. Didn’t know he wasn’t with us anymore. First of his works I purchased was Parker: The Score. I’ve been loving it. Gonna go back and grab many of his works now. Thanks Chris.
@@johnathonhaney8291 You got me even more excited! I kinda started out of order. But The Score has been so good. If The Outfit is better, I’m in for a real treat! Thanks bro!
My favorite artist/creator too! Thanks Chris, for such a moving tribute to a much loved person. 😍 🤩 Your retrospective angle is the 👌 best.... keep up this great work! 😁👍👍👍
I can’t help but think how much my dad, who influenced my sequential art favorites, would have loved D. Cooke’s output. Thanks for turning me on to his work. Great stuff, always!
Wow, I've heard about Darwyn Cooke, but never really got into his work before. I've got the animated "New Frontier" movie, but never read the graphic novel. I may just have to pick it up. Another wonderful episode, Chris!
As an old school comic strip fan I can pay Darwyn Cooke no higher compliment than to say he would have been a circulation booster for the newspapers that carried his artwork. His talent shares a place at the cartoonist table alongside Milton Caniff, Roy Crane, Frank Robbins, Walt Kelly, Crockett Johnson, Gus Arriola, Kreigh Collins, among others whose work , especially in the 1950s made comic strip reading addictive and memory inducing.
Great retrospective on one of my favorite artists! But, I was kind of disappointed that there's no mention of the Spirit series written and drawn by Cooke for DC back in 2007 (I think). Those were great.
I read Parker and I loved it, its an amzing adaptation of the books that I had already read, hitting the dark and almost mean tone just perfectly. I had no idea that I'd seen his work in the animation that I watched as a kid. Awesome video.
I loved most of everything I ever came across (his comics work). I know true talent when I see it, and he manifested true talent from my first encounter to my last encounter of his work. Another of the great ones, gone, but never forgotten.
One of my favorite Cooke comics is the Spirit/Batman team-up, where the two heroes swap villains. The panel where the Joker realizes that Batman doesn't laugh is priceless, as is the method used to transport all of the bad guys back to their respective prisons.
Wolverine/Doop needs a shout out, seems like no one else read it but Cooke killed it in a short fun 2 issue story. Not as epic as New Frontier but I love his IDW, Catwoman and smaller stuff because it shows how much he can do without needing Batman or Superman on the cover of his work.
Sorry, Chris. Had to pause the video for a while just to immediately purchase New Frontier. Cooke is a freaking genius, thanks for introducing him to me and keep up the good work!
Awesome job. Thanks for putting this together. The loss is painful but his work endures. I wish Darwyn’s vision for the Marvel Adventures all-ages line had come to pass, as my three sons would have really enjoyed them!
This is one of my favorite videos on your channel. The new opening is great. The kirby krackle background is great. And Darwyn Cooke is great! Well done.
FYI, regarding the all-ages issue, Cooke's point was made clear in an interview (which has been posted on RU-vid). He says that characters created in an all-ages comic should *remain* in all-ages stories. He had no problem with new characters being made for more adult stories. But he didn't think a kid who reads some back issues of Batman should also get the over-the-top grittiness of the recent decades. For what it's worth, I agree with him.
DUUUUUDE!!!! It's here! Thank you Chris, ending the year on such an incredible voice in comics. Hope you've had a good holiday season! This is one of of best gifts of the year man, I can't thank you enough.
Good morning Chris. Thank you for another great informative episode. I've been trying to get my hands on that New Frontier (both book and movie) for a while now. I like the fact that Darwin Cook seemed to respect the history of the characters and wrote/drew such. It seems some newer writers lean more towards "fan fiction" writing then keeping character. That kind of turned me off for a bit. Some day I'll try to find a few examples from my collection. Hope you are having a great holiday time and a safer new year to us all.
I loved Cooke and Brubaker's Catwoman. I got it physical at home. It was great how they made conversations interesting both with dialog and in terms of graphic design.
Great as always. I would love it if you would do a show on Mike Parobeck. I think his ability to tell a story through his images alone were on par with Kirby. Truly a talent that was taken from us too soon.
Another fascinating, well researched and presented profile of a prominent contributor to the wonderful artistic medium of comic books. Incredible work again Chris. Thank you.
Wonderful video! As a 'son of the post-Crisis', it was very meaningful to get to read The New Frontier, perceiving it precisely as you said, a love letter to not only DC characters, but the Silver Age specifically, something I sort of had kept in a box , in the back of my incipient, rather sporadic childhood comic reading. Cooke, even including the formerly masked social issues, and precisely for THAT, made it Magic. I 'blame' Wolfman and Pérez New Teen Titans for my becoming a true comic book fan (The "Runaways" two-part story). So the post-Crisis was perfect for me, even if I didn't experience 'Watchmen' until almost right before the movie came to be. And speaking of which, I was almost certain you would not mention Cooke's take on it, as I think his work alone carries that torch properly. In the end, it more than made up for it; Cooke's quote from the RS interview said all. And in the end, The New Frontier would always be his Magnum Opus. It moved me so much as to review it in my fb page, nothing special and only for my friends, but still as a way to express how much it meant to me. Thanks for, once again, a wonderful video...
Man was a huge inspiration with my love of crime and historically-set superhero stories and art style. His loss his tragic. It would be cool if you did an episode on his Before Watchmen: Minutemen book as I consider it one of the only good things to come out of that whole line.
I've been waiting for this episode since I first started watching Comic Tropes. Darwyn Cooke is one of my favorite comic book artists and writers. His comics always bring me a special kind of joy, the kind you get from enjoying art that feels earnest and free of any cynicism or irony. He is truly missed.
Thanks Chris, for a new video. Nice Christmas 🎁 present! I'm a fan of Darwin Cooke for ten years or so, since I found his "Parker" work. This tribute does him justice. R.I.P. Happy 2021....
Chris, you made a great point at around 20:33 with regards to multiple genres in comics. The truth is that there are, and have always been, multiple different genres in western comics. The problem is that people think that the word "comics" only means DC and Marvel and nothing else. DC and Marvel tend to focus mainly on the Superhero genre, but the industry as a whole is bigger than only those two publishers. The rest of the industry focuses on more than just Superheroes. Sci-fi and Horror are well represented. Action and Adventure are also well represented. Comedy is well represented, too. There are also genres such as Weird West, Post Apocalyptic, and Tragic Romance. True Crime and Noir are still a thing, as well. There are great comic book IP's in these other genres such as The Walking Dead, Aliens vs Predator (the comic books, not the movies), Crossed, Locke and Key, the night of the living dead comics, the HP Lovecraft comics, and too many more for me to list in a single comment. So, what Darwyn Cooke wanted, has always been there. Maybe a lot less back then because the CCA was going around and knee-capping the competition while trying to hide behind appeals to morality. However, there are multiple genres in western comics, and there have always been. People just need to realize that western comics is about more than only DC and Marvel and superheroes, and that the industry is bigger than that. I apologize for the size of the comment, but it is kind of a pet peeve when people equate the word "comics" to ONLY DC and Marvel superheroes and nothing else, as if the rest of the industry doesn't exist and isn't successful in its own right.
