Thursday, September 20, 2007

Newsarama Shazam Pics and Interview




finalllly i can talk more about the series and show more artwork!
:)
here's a link to a brand new NEWSARAMA interview.

i'll try and sneak more images here on the blog toooo.

enjoy!!

:)
m . . .

21 comments:

Tom Bancroft said...

Hey Mike! Congrats again on Shazam! I read the Newsarama interview and it sounds like you have a great, fleshed-out story going! Love your thoughts on the characters too! Glad you are doing this, good for Jann!

mdtk said...

I love the artwork Mike. I am so very excited about this ongoing series about my favorite hero.

John Gallagher said...

Mike-- great, great, GREAT! I am a huge fan of both you and the Big red Cheese, and like a Reese's Peanut Butter cup... okay, I have no idea where I am going with this...

let's just say-- Shazam!

Adrián Medina said...

I have just discovered your blog; i just knew your work at "Bearhero...", but i got hooked to your designs at "Billy Batson..." I really would like to have some images of your sketches... do you have a gallery or deviantart? I need them becausw i want to post an article about your work... hope you drop-by my blog http://alphacomics.blogspot.com (it's in spanish so... maybe you can practice)

Unknown said...

hi mike!
really looking forward to your BB&MoS. i would like to know where i can purchase original art from the book. would appreciate it if you can email me at patman01 at gmail.com

thanks!

Richard Gaines said...

Mike, great character designs as always!

Ryan said...

Awesome! I'm so pumped to see the new Shazam! series. Great art work!

Comic Adventurer said...

Congrats! Good to hear that you are picking up where Jeff Smith's "Monster Society of Evil" left off. I'm excited about your character designs and my kids 8, 11, 14 are excited to see some fresh Captain Marvel stories.

Bob Rivard said...

Please oh please remember kindly old Otto Binder and tell stories of wit, innocence, and wonder. Please don't go slapstick, or anime, or tell poo-poo jokes just to appeal to today's "sophisticated" kids. Please don't do boring new-age mystic crap told at a glacial pace, like Smith's series. But mostly - PLEASE, PLEASE lose that stupid jacket flap on his tunic. It lasted ONE ISSUE in 1940 and was deleted for a reason. It's CURSED I tells ya.

Mukpuddy said...

Holy crap dude, this is an awesome pic!! Can't wait to see more!!!

WagnerCG said...

How long till it becomes an animated series?

Looking forward to that, already!

Atomic Mouse 1950 said...

I'm looking forward to B.B.a.t.M.o.S.
I like the designs, very much. From the Newsarama interview, It seems you "get" the Marvel Family completely. May your issue run, be long and prosperous.

Lon Madnight said...

Hello Mike.

I'm a Cap fan since around 1967. (When I saw a photo of Tom Tyler from "The Adventures of Captain Marvel") and until recently, I've followed everything DC has done with the character.

I was ready to (with deep regret) abandon hope for Captain Marvel until first, Jeff Smith's MONSTER SOCIETY, and now your new book.

I confess to being unfamiliar with your previous projects, but the sample art and your comments in interviews give me great confidence that you are on the right track.

I would be remiss if didn't mention two things: While I would never ask you to alter your personal style as regards the art, I do have a small reservation about it. Not all of it, just the rendering of Captain Marvel himself.

Your style has a brilliantly energetic and animated feel which will be a key factor in grabbing an audience. I do think, and it's just my personal taste, that Cap is coming accross as a bit too much of a big, dumb, lug.

Just a slight tweaking of the proportions would fix things for me. Just a tiny bit closer to a traditional feel. Then I'd be %100 on board as opposed to %99.44 as I am now.

You also discussed villans in the Newsarama interview. I'm glad to know you hope to work in some of the old Fawcett villans and I know you have ideas for new ones, but I do hope you'll consider:

Dreamdancer, Who appeared in the WORLD'S FINEST run of SHAZAM stories and has a great hook, that of using her magical dancing to control others through dreams.

And The Scorpion, the menace from the movie serial.

Either or both of these characters have enormous story potential.

I am very enthusiastic about the book, and have faith in your commitment to Captain Marvel. (And to the most important factor in his stories-FUN!)

ohmyalikins said...

i love how you interview, you're a natural public speaker ;)

lookin' great! can't wait! :)

Daniel said...

Awesome interview. I am stoked for this!

David Thiel said...

I've been a fan of the Marvel Family since "Shazam!" #1, and over the past several decades, it's bothered me greatly that DC demonstrates so little understanding of what makes them tick.

I don't believe that the Marvels work at all within the mainstream DCU, aside from the occasional multiversal team-up. What's so special about Billy Batson becoming "The World's Mightiest Mortal" if he's jostling elbows with literally thousands of supers? This new series seems to have a huge advantage over previous Shazam! relaunches if only because it's allowed to exist on its own.

I know that this is a minority view, but Jeff Smith's "Monster Society" didn't wow me. While it was something of a back-to-basics Cap, it veered off in its own strange directions, and the Mr. Mind/Monster Society plot never gelled.

Furthermore, I disliked Mary being so young, and I'm disappointed that this idea is being carried over. The character sketch resembles Dee Dee from "Dexter's Laboratory," and I hope that Mary won't fall into a similar role as Billy's annoyingly spastic sidekick.

And I do wish that we could let Black Adam settle back into obscurity. He appeared in one freakin' Golden Age story, yet he's somehow become a central figure of the franchise. His current status as a mass-murdering anti-hero disturbs me, not least of which because it seems to be so popular.

I'll admit that what I really want out of Captain Marvel is just to carry on with the Golden Age characters and their unique style, and I realize that's unlikely to happen. What little I've seen of this latest relaunch looks to be a a further step in the right direction than Smith's book.

If nothing else, I adore the new Sivana, and I hope we'll see his various offspring reappear as well. Mr. Mind seems like a given, and I think King Kull is due for a comeback. (And if you could find a way to get Bulletman and Bulletgirl into the book, that would be great!)

dad said...

Hi Mike,

It's great to see that you are interested in our view points, although (I'm sure you have plenty of your own).

Nevertheless, I wonder if you would consider ~ in one or more of your flash backs ~ having Mary Batson be a witness to Billy's transformation???

I realize that when Captain Marvel was introduced in 1940, the editors and writers did not feel there was any need for Billy Batson to have a sister. But times have changed. We now know he has a sister. And it would be perfectly natural for both Billy and Mary to be running away from their evil guardian on the night they spot the Man in Black.

It would be interesting to see the fearful expression on Mary's face when Billy transformed into Captain Marvel for the first time. “Who is this big football player, and... where is Billy????

Mary might wish later that she too could have super powers. Of course, Billy might attempt to convince her that girls are not supposed to have powers. But, as you know, circumstances would prove him wrong.

This would make Mary a part of the story from the beginning, where she really belongs.

mdtk said...

DC's January comics will be posted today. I certainly hope The Magic of Shazam is there.

Gannon said...

Mike,

I just found out about this today.

I must say the fit is perfect. I always thought Captain Marvel should be about childhood. I thought that someone that had been influenced by Bill Waterson would be able to pull off the art.

So, I must say thay your being on this is perfect. I love a cartoony Captain Marvel. I even did of him that way back in January 2006. http://gannonbeck.com/2007/08/01/hero-names

I think you being on Shazam has the potential to do to kids comics what Darkknight Returns did for adult comics.

Congratulations!

Gannon

mdtk said...

Hi Mike,

would you please tell us when the first issue will appear. Soome of us are straining at the bit.

mdtk said...

Happy New Year Mike. May you keep Captain Marvel flying for a long, long time.