The Phantom

eliseu gouveia

I think The Phantom#20 hit the stands this week or so, so I figured I could show you these samples Mike Bullock sent me a couple months ago.

Story by Mike Bullock, Pencils and Inks by yours truly.
Hope you like it...

Grifter

Whoever did the colouring did a fantastic job of giving depth to your already great inks.

Brolo

Yeah, that's a really interesting palette that's going on there. I'd have no idea how to handle a character in a purple suit in blue-ish lighting conditions like that, but this take on it seems to work really well.

Some really great artwork on that third page, I love the perspective on the first panel and how well the motion reads from panel to panel. Very good work.

MagicToaster

Sweet job!

Doctor Pain

this is pretty sick... makes me wonder how long you've been doing this for.

eliseu gouveia

Thanks a lot, guys!
Yeah, I too am in awe at the color treatment, top notch there.
I gotta find out his/her name because s/he just got a new fan!

I was a bit affraid of the subject at first, you know, musketeers and stuff, but then I discovered that swordfighting has its own beauty and elegance.

It´s actualy fun to draw!

Greatnation

Its well drawn, and I agree with the ccomments on the colors, they are top notch!


But I can't hold back...

I don't really think you got down the panache of the fencing. Like those 4 panels on the second page could be in any sequence and it wouldnt make a difference. Its to condensed to feel like they were really doing some badass fencing.

The last page has the kind of flow that im talking about. Those panels all belong in that sequence and it really flows.

eliseu gouveia

Yeah, I (think I) can see what you mean.
In the beginning, I have to admit I was sorta nervous with the subject, walking in the dark with the hands outreaching.
Took me a bit to get into the flow of fencing, plus I had to take into consideration Phantom´s peculiar way of fighting and incorporating it all into the sequence while obeying to the script.
It´s really funny because when I was doing the croquis for this issue they aired a movie with swordfighting in it, which really helped me visualise the subject, body language, pose, moves and all that.

I say funny because it seems like someone in charge of tv programming seems to read my mind.
When I have to draw a II World War comic, they air a II World War movie.
Pirates... there goes a pirate movie.
One of the great parts of doing historical stories is that you have to do lots of visual research and you end up getting familiarised with historical details like fasion, architecture, boat construction...
After this book, I think I can draw a musketter by heart now. ^_^

GurtPerk

Hey, eliseu, great work! I really like the composition and the angles you've given to each scenario. Great use of hierarchical scale on the inks too. Very dynamic postures with the figures as well, I can really feel them interact. The way the bow of the ship pops out in that one panel was done fairly well too, although I will admit, it took me a couple takes to realize it.

The only other critique I would have for this lies not in figures because they're well rendered and it's obvious you have some background with the human figure, but more with the special effects. I'm not convinced by the overall feel of the what's going on in the background with the storm.

The nature of the cloud or smoke forming in the background doesn't feel nearly dynamic or varied enough where it should and overly complicated in others. The first establishing shot with the ship is a great example of this. Above the horizon, I can see some activity at the surface, but the rest of the clouds aren't helping that activity. Try balancing those complicated patterns with simple patterns on the other side. You'd be surprised how well it'll look, I suspect.

Also, the illumination made by the lightning can defintly be emphasized to your advantage if you decide to keep them. I don't think the streaks of lightning will look that thick either. Thinner more illumination effects would be the way to go.

I hope that helps in some way from what I see. Excellent work again overall.

Mykonos

very very nice. Good job at the dynamics too. the one thing that's caught my eye is the second to last panel. Either his head is a bit too big or his arm seems rather small. could just be the perspective and I'm looking at it wronge, though, not quite sure O_o

props to you on some further nice work.

DeeLock

Wow!

I love all the details, like in the rocks of the first panel, and the shading on the characters and stuff.

Really great all around.

How long did this take you?

Plus, stabbed in the butt.

Jessie Garrett

Nice looking stuff.

ph00l

I agree with everything that has been said so far. Really great colors. The only qualm I have is that the rain on the second page looks kind of messy and half-done. It would be fine if it didn't stand in such stark contrast to the rest of the page.

ManonvonSuperock

Looks great. I enjoy the Phantom, also.

I love the page turning on the first page, and the flow of the battle on the last page. You "break" the panel-border and pop-out and just the right times. I do agree with the other guy, though. The third page doesn't read well. You may have been working under heavy writing restrictions. but I'm not clearly reading what's going on in that swordfight from panel to panel.


Other than that, man. I'm loving it. Great colors from the colorist also.