RIP Gene Colan

When I started reading comic books back in the early '70s, I quickly became aware of the names of the artists who penciled and inked the adventures of the popular super heroes of the day and quickly was drawn (pun very intended) to certain favorites, for different reasons.

I liked the smooth, almost shiny lines of John Romita Sr. on The Amazing Spider-Man, the muscular dynamism of John Buscema on the Fantastic Four, the rough realism of Neal Adams and Dick Giordano on Green Lantern/Green Arrow, the epic scope of Jack Kirby's Fourth World titles, the visual energy of Gil Kane on pretty much everything he did.

Some of the artists were pushing the boundaries of graphic storytelling, while others were, in their own ways, maintaining the house styles of the Big Two cmic book companies, Marvel and DC.

One artist who never really fit anyone's house style, though, was Gene Colan.

"Mood" isn't a word generally associated with super-hero comics, but Colan's art was drenched in mood, which extreme angles and heavy shadows (which must have driven his inkers crazy). His Daredevil was a melancholy fellow--sure, he was a super hero with athletic prowess and amazing fighting skills, but he was also a blind man, denied the simplest visual pleasures the sighted take for granted. His Batman carried the emotional burden of his parents' deaths and all the criminal insanity he'd witnessed over the years more heavily than most artists' interpretations. His Iron Man didn't merely wear a suit of armor, but a seemingly living extension of the man inside the armor, bringing a humanity to the character that most artists couldn't reach.

Colan is probably best known today for his lengthy run on Marvel's mid-'70s horror comic, Tomb of Dracula--he was the only penciler for all 71 issues--and his style was perfectly suited to the material, with heavy shadows barely concealing the most terrible of things that did a lot more than go "bump" in the night.

One hero you wouldn't think suited Colan's style particularly well was Captain America, but he had a lengthy association with the good Captain (coming soon to a multiplex near you)--his first cover was for an issue of Captain America back in the 1940s,he had a lengthy run with the character in the '70s, and his last comic book work was on an issue of Captain America a couple of years ago. Even Colan's Howard the Duck--a character so ridiculous and cartoony that he was difficult to take seriously, even within the context of comic books--carried more weight and depth than most interpretations, strangely heightening the comedy in his run on the title.

Gene Colan passed away last night after lengthy bouts with a multitude of illnesses. He was 84 years old.