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Eric Sofer
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Posted: 07 April 2021 at 1:42pm | IP Logged | 1 post reply

A little tidbit where we can all support and congratulate Mr. Byrne on his art and writing.

What about John Byre do you like best? I mean, we ALL like him, or we'd not be here. So what is it you like? List three or four things that make you come back again and again.

I love his story telling. He paces his dramatic writing to be thrilling for every character he handles - even the non-significant heroes.

I so enjoyed his run on Fantastic Four. He continued to plumb and expand those characters and made them his own. And yet... he made them ours as well.

What do you love about Mr. Byrne's work? Again, keep it to three to four items.
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Rebecca Jansen
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Posted: 07 April 2021 at 1:51pm | IP Logged | 2 post reply

I like the imaginative angles that put the viewer right in with the events often. I was just looking at an Iron Man cover, #253, and thinking how this was a real grabber to make you want to read the story, and it was mainly people falling from a roller coaster. Others might've made Iron Man the largest figure and been less compelling for it. I can see this even in old Doomsday +1 comics.

Edited by Rebecca Jansen on 07 April 2021 at 1:52pm
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Mark Haslett
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Posted: 07 April 2021 at 2:44pm | IP Logged | 3 post reply

The Storytelling.

Every image John draws propels the imagination into a story, even if it's a single character with no background.

Combine this with his power to make all things look cool and there is the reason I perk up over every comic book he works on (and why I continue to pay the crushing annual dues here at the JBF)!
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Marc Baptiste
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Posted: 07 April 2021 at 3:17pm | IP Logged | 4 post reply

Writing - Without a doubt my favorite part of JB's writing is his gift for twists and turns!  These aren't gratuitous, "I am gonna come up with something - ANYTHING - to shock you" type twists and turns.  JB's occur organically and seamlessly with the main story being told.  Sometimes you even discover the "shocking twist ending" you realize it couldn't have ended any other way!

I also LOVE the way he develops characters.  They are always fully fleshed-out characters, with gifts and graces, flaws and foibles.  You have a sense that they all have a comprehensive "cradle to grave" backstory, even if we are unfortunate enough to never find out what it is (e.g., Alpha Flight's Nemesis)! LOL

Artwork: Oh my, where to begin and how to start.  So much of this is simply aesthetic preference, it's kind of hard to quantify, so instead I will pick some of what I call my favorite Byrne-ism's and leave it at that:

JB's characters are always meticulously formed, so much so, that when standing, sitting, crouching, flexing, etc. they seem to have real weight and heft to them.  

For years, I absolutely LOVED that little white oval on the bottom lip of most of his female characters - denoting a bit of a shine.

His panel layouts are easy to follow, and even when he gets a little extra creative with them, he is careful not to do so at the expense of the flow of the story.

Though hardly all there is, I will wrap up with the thing I think I love MOST about his art: the attention to detail.  Unless otherwise called for, each panel is chock full of highly detailed artwork.  As with George Perez's work, I can often spend hours just looking at the wonderment that is contained in each panel.

Marc


Edited by Marc Baptiste on 07 April 2021 at 3:39pm
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Steve Coates
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Posted: 07 April 2021 at 4:38pm | IP Logged | 5 post reply

I'll keep it to two.

I respect John Byrne because he respects those who came before him. 

I respect John Byrne because he respects the characters, he may play with them and twist them about to serve the story, but always leaves them whole.
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Rebecca Jansen
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Posted: 07 April 2021 at 4:43pm | IP Logged | 6 post reply

I remember telling a very different artist his characters felt inhabited, lived-in, like he had completely worn them in drawing them. I think I can say that applies to John Byrne drawings as well!
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Joe Zhang
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Posted: 07 April 2021 at 5:33pm | IP Logged | 7 post reply

Only four? OK. Art, story, imagination, and everything! 
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Matt Hawes
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Posted: 07 April 2021 at 7:03pm | IP Logged | 8 post reply

His distinct style.

The details in his art.

His handling of characters.

His work is fun!



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Brian Hughes
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Posted: 07 April 2021 at 7:50pm | IP Logged | 9 post reply

I love that JB can pretty much explain comic book science where it makes sense.  His explanation of Superman's powers is rock solid perfect.

I love that JB's characters have the perfect "voice".  His Reed Richards is the gold standard on how to write him.

I love the passion and ethic that JB puts in his work.  I only wish other creators had his work ethic or passion for the characters and history.  
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Scott Sackett
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Posted: 07 April 2021 at 9:18pm | IP Logged | 10 post reply

I'm an artist, JB is my favorite comic artist and so I've thought a lot about why John's work appeals to me so much. So here's a partial list in no particular order:

Figure Drawing: I love how John 'builds' the figure. To my eye, It looks like he may have studied the Bridgman books, but however he developed his understanding of how to draw the figure, it seems perfect for comics.

Rendering: Be it dirt or metal, I love how John renders textures.

Stylistic Consistency: Obviously we can all recognize John's style, but I love how everything John draws in a story looks like it's all drawn by the same artist. This may sound odd, but often in a 'modern' comic I'm taken out of the story by a well draw figure in front of a car that looks like it was drawn by a completely different artist.

Characters on model: John's take on the characters always look 'right'.

There are more, but this is a start of some of the things I love about John's art.

Scott
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Mal Gardiner
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Posted: 08 April 2021 at 12:27am | IP Logged | 11 post reply

His use of hand acting and body language in characters to tell the story.
Perspective, perspective, perspective! His works effortlessly.
He can draw everything and it looks real-world, not comics spandex stylised.
His utterly professional attitude to deadline, end product, and the enjoyment of us, the readers.

All four of these things are object lessons to anyone who wants to do this even semi-professionally. JB is the first artist who made me go “whoa, I want to learn to do that!” in high school.
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Jim Petersman
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Posted: 08 April 2021 at 5:35am | IP Logged | 12 post reply

The work ethic. Honing his craft by just putting in the work. On top of that, he's always trying to improve as well. I just wish he could see his work through our eyes sometimes. There are so many images in ELSEWHEN that are just breathtakingly beautiful.
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