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Mitch Denoyer
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 21 September 2006
Posts: 141
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| Posted: 01 March 2024 at 4:42am | IP Logged | 1
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Here’s a question for the group. Was the DC Style Guide a good use of Garcia-Lopez’s talents or a waste of his talents?
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Rodrigo castellanos
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 03 July 2012
Location: Uruguay
Posts: 1527
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| Posted: 01 March 2024 at 7:30am | IP Logged | 2
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Was the DC Style Guide a good use of Garcia Lopez's talents or a waste of his talents?
Greatest use, IMHO.
I'm biased of course because I was born in the '80s but my first exposure to comic art was through his licensed art on everything (sticker albums, posters, t-shirts, watches, Super Powers figures box art, large etc.) of every DC character in every form and product.
There's nothing more influential than that. And I don't think I've seen such a thing since, or that lasted that long. Those were the definitive versions of the DC characters for "the real world", for a long time.
And will always be for those of us who were kids at the time. They couldn't have picked a better artist for the task.
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Brian Miller
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Joined: 28 July 2004
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| Posted: 01 March 2024 at 1:18pm | IP Logged | 3
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Why would it be considered a waste of his talent? This question baffles me.
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Fred J Chamberlain
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Joined: 30 August 2006
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Posts: 4046
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| Posted: 01 March 2024 at 1:21pm | IP Logged | 4
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The style guide was used for 3 generations of artists. Editors used to hand
the binders to artists and inform them that this was the “look” that
character depictions should be based off of. The influence that this has had
on artists can never be fully measured.
It was great for DC, great for the craft and great for Jose, since it allowed
him to work without the pressure of deadlines.
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Doug Centers
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Joined: 17 February 2014
Location: United States
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| Posted: 01 March 2024 at 1:46pm | IP Logged | 5
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Yes, all of that Fred!
Of course, on a purely selfish note ,probably because of that we didn't get a nice long run on a title. At least not during my initial tenure of reading between '75-'80.
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Peter Martin
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Joined: 17 March 2008
Location: Canada
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| Posted: 01 March 2024 at 3:43pm | IP Logged | 6
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I love the style guide, from what I've seen of it. Not a waste of his talents. DC could and should have actually sold it to fans though.
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Mitch Denoyer
Byrne Robotics Member
Joined: 21 September 2006
Posts: 141
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| Posted: 01 March 2024 at 4:13pm | IP Logged | 7
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My question was asked because the style guide didn’t tell any stories. It also didn’t require the subtleties we see in the pages shown on this thread. The counter argument has been made by all of you.
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Mark Haslett
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Joined: 19 April 2004
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| Posted: 01 March 2024 at 5:33pm | IP Logged | 8
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It's almost a mind-bending idea to think of any drawing as a "waste".
I guess if a great talent can only find work on a series that doesn't suit their talent or let them shine, that would be the kind of opportunity-loss that shows this industry at its worst.
But the style-guide certainly isn't that.
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John Byrne
Grumpy Old Guy
Joined: 11 May 2005
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| Posted: 01 March 2024 at 6:29pm | IP Logged | 9
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I’d argue the Style Guide was a waste mostly due to timing. JLGL’s wonderful drawings were used mostly for advertisers. The artists working on the books were already spreading into the MY WAY!! approach. They didn’t want to be told how to draw the characters properly.
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Peter Martin
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| Posted: 01 March 2024 at 11:04pm | IP Logged | 10
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I think what you say in totally true in terms of the details, JB. It's a real shame that the Style Guide didn't come out a few years earlier and that the editorial powers didn't lay it down as law for the creators working on the various characters.... But the sheer reach via the advertisers makes it hard for me to see it as a waste. In a way, those images kept the flame alive for decades and decades of the true versions of those characters for the broad public (and to this day).
I find it hard not to view it as a monumental work.
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Rodrigo castellanos
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Joined: 03 July 2012
Location: Uruguay
Posts: 1527
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| Posted: 01 March 2024 at 11:09pm | IP Logged | 11
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I don't know if its 100% but this was the most complete version I've seen online:
(Facebook link, but you don't need an account to check it out)
Truly a thing of beauty, such an impeccable work of art. I'm sure I'm not the only one here willing to pay top dollar for an official printed version if DC ever decided to publish it commercially.
Not really likely, but one can hope.
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Fred J Chamberlain
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Joined: 30 August 2006
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| Posted: 01 March 2024 at 11:32pm | IP Logged | 12
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Rodrigo, most of us didn’t ever expect to see reprints of the company
crossovers, but we are getting them. Also possible to see an artist edition of
that material.
Don’t be surprised if DC makes an announcement of a published style
guide, in the near future.
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