'76 #4

Cover by Ed "The Edict" Tadem:

Comic Book Resources interview with BCM

"Moore Gives Good Karma":

http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=12555

Ain't It Cool News calls '76 a "great comic"

But we knew that, right?

Here's the review:

’76 #1
Image Comics

Remember the seventies? Well, to be honest, I don’t. I was born in the mid-seventies, so I wasn’t really cognizant of such things, but now I can appreciate the cult following it has. Having done my Tarantino film and TV Land research, I have to say that I have a firm handle on some of the coolness that came from that wonderful decade and so does the talent behind this book. In the tradition of POWER MAN & IRON FIST comes ’76, an anthology (is it an anthology book if it has two ongoing stories? Not sure.) featuring the age old Black Guy/White Guy team up theme with a generous amount of ass-kicking and silky smooth styles throughout. Writer B. Clay Moore and artist Ed Tadem bring us “Jackie Karma” which features a pair of action toughs forced out of retirement when an old criminal returns to the streets. It’s the type of story that will most definitely warrant the line “I’m getting’ too old for this shit.” The art in this story is moody and harkens back to those gritty action movies of old. It’s kung-fu and street fighting mayhem you won’t forget. The second feature is called “Cool” and it definitely is that. From the fun way of introducing the main characters to the total embrace of seventies styles and clichés, writer Seth Peck and artist Ty Walker have made a great tribute to seventies stories and a helluva read too. The art is especially nice bringing enough cartoony aspects to make it fun, but maintaining a realism that doesn’t make the story too light and fluffy. All in all, this is a great comic honoring an age of cinema that is refreshing to see revived in graphic storytelling format. It debuts in January, so it looks like we all have a fun trip back in time in store for us in 2008. – Bug

http://www.aintitcool.com/node/34973

Jackie and Marcus's pad

In '76 #4, Marcus and Jackie return to their old HQ, and Marcus is surprised to find that Jackie's maintained the pad (click on it, baby. It won't bite!):

Cool on Newsarama

Check it out HERE

Updates soon!

I just realized we've been a little slow updating the blog over the past month.

There should be some tasty '76 publicity appearing here and there shortly, and we'll be sure to pass links along when it pops up.

For now, have this Ed Tadem page, from the fourth chapter of JACKIE KARMA!:

Damn, this Tadem kid is good. Hell, he's still working on the page....

SOLICITED!

'76 #1 (of 8 )
story B. CLAY MOORE & SETH PECK
art ED TADEM & TIGH WALKER
cover ED TADEM

Two continuing tales of Bicentennial street justice, featuring "Jackie Karma," by B. CLAY MOORE & ED TADEM, and "Cool," by SETH PECK & TIGH WALKER. Jackie Karma is a Sixties-era New York City karate master and street fighting legend who comes out of retirement to battle an old foe, while "Cool" features Los Angeles bounty hunters Pete Walker and Leon Campbell as they deal with runaway strippers, geriatric gangsters, drug-dealing dwarves and ex-porn star hit men.

JANUARY 9 o 32 PAGES o BW o $2.99

King of Cool

When two shirtless, bearded men fight in an abandoned swimming pool, EVERYBODY wins!

From "Cool" chapter 4

Covers!

The cover with logo for '76 #1, solicited soon for January:

Ed's art for the cover to #3:

Ed Tadem pencils, '76 #4

Go ahead and click it. You know you want to.
Page two from chapter four of JACKIE KARMA:

Get Your FreeCon

I'll be at the Free State FreeCon in Lawrence this weekend, as will Jason Aaron and possibly Clay. Stop in and say hello!!!


Here's a little bit of genius from Tigh...

'76 in the news!

A couple of articles to accompany the Baltimore announcement:

Comic Book Resources

Newsarama

The boys up at Newsarama

Well, sort of.

Image is announcing the book in Baltimore:

http://forum.newsarama.com/showthread.php?t=128145

Promo Sketch

Theme songs

So click on this YouTube track. "All of Our Dreams Are Coming True" by Gene Page:

It's the closing credits theme to Jackie Karma episode one. At about the 55 second mark (or the 3:10 mark, counting down), listen and CLICK on this image. That's how it's designed to sync:

Dining in the City

I love the exchange in the first panel here. Yes, I wrote it, but it's been a long time, and sometimes when you letter old pages, you realize you've forgetten that now and then you like your own writing:

Rough page layout from issue #4

These are just layouts....how great is that fucking house???

Know Your Street Heroes & Villains

From the Jackie Karma Bible:

Jackie Karma: Ten years ago, Jackie Karma and Marcus King worked together to clean up the corrupt streets of New York. Since that time, Jackie has retired from competitive martial arts, completed a law degree, and is working in Manhattan as John Carmichael, attorney.

Trained by a secret martial arts order in the ways of the Golden Lion, Jackie is a master of unorthodox fighting styles, which he uses to full effect. Once Jackie emerged as a force in the late sixties, he abandonded the order, and the order disbanded (although remnants remain together as the Sabaki Boys). In the years since they disappeared, Jackie and Marcus have become street legends, and their return lifts the inner city’s spirits.

Marcus King: Marcus was once your prototypical angry young black man. Putting aside his resentment of white men of privilege, he formed a strong bond with Jackie Karma in the late sixties, and the two formed a legendary duo. After he and Jackie gave up a life of physical combat, he drifted from the Black Panthers into community activism. Exchanging fists of fury for a headful of knowledge, Marcus is doing research in the city library when Jackie tracks him down.

Marcus’s fighting style was reliant upon street brawling as much as anything, but his excellent athleticism allowed him to pick up a few moves from Jackie.

Gil Gunn: The baddest of the bad back in the day, Gunn was once a high powered pimp and heroin dealer, but he’s been gone for the better part of a decade, having been kicked out of town by Jackie, Marcus and Bobby Howler. Now he’s back, with an array of cheap pills and vicious smack designed to send users into orbit. Jackie initially figures he needs to take Gunn out again in order to stop the city from sliding further into despair, but he begins to realize the stakes are much, much higher than New York City.

Rejected "Cool" Promo #2

Shot of Pete slumped at a table littered with beer bottles.

Text:

Bruce Wayne is a billionaire who uses his fortune to wage a one-man war against crime.

Pete Walker bounces checks at Pizza Shack and wages a one-man war against sobriety.

Fuck Batman.

Rejected "Cool" Promo #1

Shot of Leon busting up a pimp. The pimp has a huge yellow fedora and a floor-length purple coat with leopard fur trim.

Text:

Superman fights crime and battles villains in outrageous costumes.

So does Leon Campbell.

Fuck Superman.

Lettering '76

So have a JACKIE page. John Carmichael, attorney at law, considers his youth (from '76 #2):

'76 The Soundtrack

Clay and I have both selected music to accompany each chapter of the book, and we'll post the playlist here (and possibly) in the book also. I can't write without background music, and in many cases what I listen to influences the work (and vice versa). Clay's the only guy I know who's abigger music freak than I am, so expect some selections well off the beaten path.

Pencils to '76 #3 cover

By Easy Ed Tadem (click for a bigger view):

Script to Art

By request.

Here's a page of script from '76 #3, along with Ed's finished art:

PAGE TEN

Panel 1. Sam isn’t all that into the
conversation as it goes on. She’s got Gino’s bagel.

SAM:
Yeah, I know. Wops don’t like working for niggers. And Nicky ain’t crazy about smack.

GINO:
Right. That.


Panel 2. Sam shrugs. Gino pleads.

SAM:
So what do you want me to do?

GINO:
Watch me, Sam.


Panel 3.

SAM:
Watch you? You want me to be a bodyguard for you? Seriously?

GINO:
There’s more to it than that. It ain’t just Gil who’s back.


Panel 4. Sam takes a bite of the bagel.

SAM:
Spill it, Gino. Why should I care about any of this bullshit?


Panel 5. Gino, leaning forward, pleading. If we can see Sam, she’s clearly surprised by this news.

GINO:
Sam—Jackie’s back. He rumbled with the Sabakis just this afternoon. And Marcus was with him. I can’t get mixed up in all this, Sam. You gotta help me—


Panel 6. Sam settles back in her seat, arms crossed, now oblivious to Gino’s rambling. She has a slight smile on her face.

SAM:
Well, well, well. Karma and King. Shit, Gino--

SAM:
--It’s about time we had some excitement around here.

The Process

From '76 #3. Cool, chapter three, page one.

Pencils to inks to tones, by Tigh Walker:

Ed Tadem Concepts and Prelims

Character designs for the Jackie Karma crew, late sixties version. Bobby Howler, Jackie Karma and Marcus King:

Rough for the cover of '76 #3:

Pencils

Here's a look at some of Tigh's pencils from issue #2

Early Pete Model Sheets

I based Pete on someone...Tigh nailed it as usual.

The Animated Jackie Karma

Some fun character sheets for the animated JACKIE KARMA. Jackie, Sam(antha) Jones, and Holly Gold. By our own Ed Tadem, of course:

Tadem & Griffin Covering '76

Ed Tadem has been working up some lush and lovely covers for '76, and the plan is for Hawaiian Dick's Steven Griffin to handle trade dress and design. With that in mind, here's an early combination of the talented twosome on the first '76 cover, featuring a number of cast members (give a click for a full view):

Tigh Walker, superstar to be

I first met Tigh Walker, the artist on COOL, at a convention in Toronto a couple of years back. He had some rough samples on hand, and I was immediately struck by the enormous potential in his work, and by his obvious intelligence. Potential and intelligence are a dangerous combination.

A couple of years down the road and Tigh is emerging as one of the best young artists I know. Frankly, his progress is astonishing. It's only a matter of time before people realize the kind of talent we're dealing with on this book. Tigh and Jackie Karma artist Ed Tadem give the book an insane one-two punch. These guys understand the importance of environment in comics, which is something that seems to keep slipping away from modern comics...

Anyway, here are a couple of random Tigh Walker Pages from COOL (both from '76 #2):

'76 Daily!

A select few have been asking about progress on '76, a book that Seth Peck, Ed Tadem, Tigh Walker and I are producing for Image Comics. I thought I'd update progress daily here, so those of you who are curious can drop in when you get the urge and see what's happening.


As an example of behind the scenes planning, part of the book takes place in the apartment of Jackie Karma's girlfriend, Lindsey. Here's artist Ed Tadem's rough layout of her apartment:



More to come soon!