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started this project in the late '90's and labored on it around my paying gigs
and lost interest until recently. It's very hard to squirrel away what little
free time I have from full-time inking gigs to work on a vanity project for no
money. My concept for Hotwire has changed considerably since conception, not the
least is the exclusion of the mask. My intent is to pass this story off as an
"Unaired Pilot episode". If the name Roxanne Starr sounds familiar,
she was the letterer for Alan Moore's 1963 series for Image Comics and actually
spent time at his scary house at the time! | |
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writing on this page really shows off my love for the Silver Age, with my attempt
to combine Stan Lee with Bob Haney. Heck, when I started this story, word balloons
were still the norm! In the late '90's I was trying to revive that Peter Parker
vibe, because Spider-Man appeared to be mired in a mess with the clone saga, a
false death of Aunt May and "LifeDeath", where Pete's parents return
only to die. Misery upon misery was heaped on poor Spidey at the time, so I wanted
to my character to capture that Silver Age sense of innocence.
Why
Austin, Texas as the setting? I have a friend who had moved back to Austin, and
informed me that there was a great burgeoning music scene going on. No deeper
reason than that! | | | | Before
anyone corrects me, I know that GPS stands for Global Positioning Satellite, not
System. At the time I wrote this, GPS was just starting to become part of our
everyday lexicon. Check out the old-school hand-applied zip-a-tone dots! Last
time I remember using zip was when I inked Greg Land on Nightwing. I miss footnotes,
as you can tell. The "Boff" gag was a tribute to a pal from New York
who really pronounced "Boss" that way! | | With
this page, it becomes more evident that this short story was always intended to
be printed in black & white. Lots of high-contrast shadows and indulgent linework.
Jason did an awesome layout for this page, starting with a large panel of merryment,
then the panels become more confined as the action builds to the bottom. On Panel
5, I stepped in and did a lot of the drawing in the details of the panicky mob,
which Jason had only indicated figure placement. Roxanne really shines here as
well doing not only the lettering but the balloon placement, which is a much-overlooked
part of storytelling. Usually, balloons are placed by the writer or editor, but
I asked if she minded doing it, since she had much more experience than I. | | Jason
asked me what this story's armored dude looked like, and I generously (okay, lazily)
suggested he come up with a design he felt comfortable with, since he'd have to
redraw it from several angles. The armor turned out spectacular, with the exhaust
pipes and recurring circular motif! If I use this style armor in the future, I'll
have to make the character (C) Jason Armstrong.
Notice
the mad scientist-type is always eating something different. I wanted him to be
seen as a high-energy isomniac who's always putting away the calories, yet remain
thin as a rail. I must admit I'm kinda proud of the scientist's rant on this page.
My only regret is the ink splatter I put on the hunks of debris. If there was
more debris surrounding the panel, it would work, but as it's shown here, it detracts
a bit too much from the main action. | | | The
first two panels were only loosely laid out, so I took more liberties with the
shadows, particularly Panel One. Jason continues to amaze with his storytelling
complimenting the script perfectly. Loud, zany action panels, with an ultra-cool
payoff at the bottom of the page! Jason shows off his dynamic flair for utilizing
negative space. Lots of "drop-offs" where you don't know exactly where
one element ends and another begins, perfect for an energy-cracklin' superhero! |
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