Ed McGuinness is an incredibly well established artist and has garnered acclaim for his work on Deadpool, Superman/Batman and Incredible Hulk. He is one of those artists with his own look and feel. His art is quirky and very cartoonlike as his characters are larger than life, and incredibly expressive. When it comes to drawing the big superheroes, they look the part, muscle bound and dynamic. The following pictures demonstrate this;
His recent work on Nova has really turned some heads, especially mine. It has such a sleek and simple style and it is incredibly effective at emotional expression as well as fluid action sequences. Ed has taken on an assembly of characters who look very different, and has been allowed to experiment with his drawing. It ranges from grizzly monsters, to insects to humans to a racoon, and they interact without it looking odd or strange.
I am not sure if it’s the fact the protagonist is a teenage child or if he has purposely lost the beefcake look. The ridiculous looking legs and torsos have gone leaving a much more streamlined book. It really fits with the main character and his supporting cast look incredible, especially the gritty determination of Rocket Racoon. Sam’s face shows genuine emotion without the need for over exaggeration. Though his running action seems accentuated, his flight postures are more realistic and lifelike. The inking and colouring of his costumes lends to these affects and look beautiful.
He draws from varying perspectives but it never feels forced or far removed from the point of the page. The backgrounds are kept simple and in perspective, always showing the main character as the essential focus. This works especially well with the flying through space scenes.
As you may guess I was never a fan of the steroid induced superhero look, but I am a fan of this book. It’s a stunning comic to look at and Ed McGuinness is showing the world how varied and skilful he is. The book is definitely work buying just for his art alone.
House Of Flying Scalpels 