A couple people asked me about the original art for my G.I.Joe Special Missions #3 cover. So I thought I’d post some process pics.

The Untold Tales series of covers I’ve done for G.I.Joe Special Missions have been inspired by popular comics genres of the past. Issue one was romance:

Issue two was crime (note the Charles Biro-style signature): 

For the third issue, I wanted to try something sci-fi/horror related. I’m a big fan of Ogden Whitney (learn more about him on ComicsComics). He did a lot of work for American Comics Group in the 50s and 60s. His mature style was very clean and a little stiff and generic. It’s reminiscent of clip art. This style worked great in a variety of genre stories. Besides Herbie and a bunch of great romance stories, he did a lot of work on ACG’s sci-fi/horror titles like Forbidden Worlds and Journey Into the Unknown. These comics, combined with Whitney’s clean, restrained style were much different in tone than horror comics like EC-published or even the monster stories of pre-superhero Marvel. They were a little more like twilight zone.

I thought combining G.I.Joe figures with G.I.Joe cartoon characters could create an uncanny sensation. I wasn’t aware of any previous G.I.Joe comics that incorporated the toys in a literal way so that aspect of the idea also appealed to me. 

After pitching the concept, I did a couple of sketches:

I’ve become more interested in comic book grids in the last few years. I drew this cover around the same time as the Vanilla Ice pinup I made for Ed Piskor’s Hip Hop Family Tree. And I like the idea of the 9 panel grid as a design element.

After some editorial feedback, I add titles and crop the chosen sketch to fit the cover trim:

I can’t find any pencils for this cover…I guess I went from sketch approval to line art/black-and-white. One of the challenges of this step was choosing which figures to use. This was part of creating the color composition and also trying to pick iconic figures. My friend has a bunch of G.I.Joe figures, so I went through them and laid out different combinations. I was disappointed not to use Wild Bill in the final version. That figure looks nuts.  

So here is the original art scan. One of the best parts of working on these covers was that the editor, John Barber, allowed me to hand-letter them.

After approval of the line art, I added color, which I think has become a more important part of comics illustration than it used to be - in the sense that it’s what people see first (especially if its viewed as a thumbnail online) and it can absolutely ruin a good drawing or make average artwork look much better. The blue header block is a nod to Ace Double Sci-Fi paperback design.

If you’re into original art, my first G.I.Joe Special Missions cover is currently on auction on comiclink. There’s a large scan of it here (if you’re not into original comic art, but your friend is, please pass along this link). 

ryallsfiles:

G.I. Joe: Special Missions #3 “Untold Tales of Terror” cover by Jim Rugg

On a related note, the original artwork from G.I.Joe: Special Missions #1 is now on sale at comiclink.

Here is a bit of the process behind the creation of this cover.

ginchiest:

Madman & the Atomics by Jim Rugg

Early ballpoint pen and notebook in this pinup of Mike Allred’s Madman and Atomics. Here is the scan of the original art. 

(via byrontobofur)

Madman lineart on Flickr.

Black Panther on Flickr.

Supermag rhino on Flickr.

I’ll be in Toronto this weekend - TCAF. Adhouse Books is table 117 and I’m at table 262. We’ll have copies of Supermag: http://adhousebooks.com/books/supermag.html

If you’re traveling to TCAF, you’ll want to download some episodes of Tell Me Something I Don’t Know to listen to en route: http://jimrugg.tumblr.com/tagged/TMSIDKS

007: Jeff Smith

This is episode 7 of Boing Boing’s, Tell Me Something I Don’t Know. It’s an interview podcast featuring artists, writers, filmmakers, and other creative people discussing their work, ideas, and the reality/business side of how they do what they do.

Jeff Smith began writing, drawing, and publishing Bone in 1991, through his company, Cartoon Books. He championed self-publishing in the 1990s with other independent cartoonists known as the Spirits of Independents and continues to self-publish through Cartoon Book. Since 1991, Bone has become a world-wide phenomenon, published in nearly 30 languages. In 2005, Scholastic reissued Bone in color through their Graphix imprint, inspiring an entire generation of young cartoonists who found his work through traditional book stores, comic book shops, schools, and libraries. He followed the Tolkien-esque, Bone, withShazam! The Monster Society of Evil (DC Comics) and RASL (Cartoon Books) - a sci-fi noir about a dimension-hopping art thief. Smith recently announced his next project, Tüki Save the Humans, about the first human to leave Africa during the Ice Age.

After recording this episode, we visited the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum (which is discussed a bit in this episode). Here is a brief documentary about that experience.

Tell Me Something I Don’t Know is produced and hosted by three talented cartoonists and illustrators:

Jim Rugg is a Pittsburgh-based comic book artist, graphic designer, zinemaker, and writer best known for Afrodisiac, The Plain Janes, and Street Angel. His latest print project is Supermag (AdHouse Books).

Jasen Lex is a designer and illustrator from Pittsburgh. He is currently working on a graphic novel called Washington Unbound. All of his art and comics can be found at jasenlex.com.

Ed Piskor is the cartoonist who drew the comic, Wizzywig, and draws the Brain Rot/ Hip Hop Family Tree comic strip on Boing Boing, soon to be collected by Fantagraphics Books.

Follow TMSIDK on Twitter

Subscribe to the Tell Me Something I Don’t Know podcast | iTunes

Listen to Previous Episodes

Episodes from Tell Me Something I Don’t Know: Season 1 can be found here

Hip Hop Family Tree is now available for pre-order on Amazon for 38% off cover. 

Library

Supermag is now available for pre-order on Amazon.

Henry & Glenn Forever & Ever original art on Flickr.