The Official Jamal Igle Blog

Girl in Repose

2012-01-27T12:01:00.001-05:00

First commission of the year :Ultimate Spider-man

2012-01-21T18:43:00.000-05:00

The commission list is open for 2012

Blank covers $100

Head $100

Head and Torso $200 Black and white $250 with some color

Single figure with minimal background $400 and $500 with some color.

Full color $600

Full "cover/pin up" commission $1000 Black and white multiple characters and full background 11x17

"Double page spread multiple characters and full Background $2000

Contact either myself at Jamalyigle@hotmail.com or Paolo Belefiore at Paolo@cadencecomicart.com

From the vaults.21

2012-01-16T18:18:00.001-05:00

From "The Search for Ray Palmer: Crime Society"

Story by Sean McKeever

Inks by Robert Hunter

From the vaults. Supergirl #59 The Final Issue.

2012-01-13T09:11:00.001-05:00

I almost made this my christmas card, LOL.

I've been trying to figure out what to say about this issue. What I could say about the art and the time but I keep falling short of the proper grandeur I keep reaching for.

I think there really is only one way to approach this.
Thank you.
Thank You Sterling, for being one of the best creative partners I've ever had. Thank you Keith Champagne, Jon Sibal, Marc Deering, John Dell and Robin Riggs for keeping up with my maddening exponentially growing obsession with detail. Thank You Nei Ruffino, Blond and Tom Chu for the beautiful color work you did. Thank you to all of the letterers who worked on the series. Thank you Nachie Castro, Wil Moss and Matt Idelson for showing faith, allowing me to experiment visually and pushing me to imrpove.
Most of all, Thank you Supergirl fans, for the love and occasional ire that you showed me over the years.

We wanted to bookend the series and I think the matching splashes from issue #34 and issue #59 say it all, don't you?

From the vaults. Supergirl #58... The finale part 1

2012-01-12T10:00:00.001-05:00

So here we are,brethren..The finale of two years of often hard and occasionally overwhelming work. We took an issue off and the entire team returned in full force for the final two issues. Jon Sibal on inks, Blond on colors, a cover by Amy Reeder and we were off to the races.

Security guard 1 is based on my buddy Drew. Security guard 2 is based on my other friend, Victor

I really wanted to milk the emotion from the scene, so I played it small. I kept Toyman's movements limited and shy.

Kid one is based on a picture of myself about 10 years old.

I love this scene so much, All of the tension between Cat and kara for almost two years finally came to a head and played out so well. The hardest part sometimes, are the intimate moments, no broad action, just small moments.

We also have a minin Bat cameo in the form of Detective Harvey Bullock GCPD.

the entire idea behind the Dollmaker , in my head was to harken back to a bygone era visually, sort of the antithesis of modern character design. I initially had this image of a sort of broken, fractured version of Little Lord Fauntleroy but it was a little too similar to to Klarion the witchboy. Matt Idelson suggested version 2, which as much more modern looking kid. I went back to the well with the third design, actually looking at some old images of cobblers and toymakers from the 18th century. I'n my head, his apron was made of human skin. Sterling suggested a more steampunk approach but we ultimately went with version 3.

The final confrontation between Lois and Lucy

Thumbnails for issue #58

The Ray # 2 preview

2012-01-11T12:48:00.003-05:00

From the vaults. Supergirl #56

2012-01-10T10:37:00.002-05:00

Supergirl #56 picks up immediately after the last issue, with Kara using Bizarrogirl's escape ship to return to Bizzaro world, The cube shaped home planet of Bizarro.

Jon Sibal returned to ink this issue and we were joined by new colorist. the man simply known as "Blond"

The destruction.. sort of... of Bizarro world. thematically i wanted to replicate what I did with the destruction of New krypton.

The bizarro in the baseballcap? Geoff Johns. the female behind him, Jill Thompson.

once again bizarro Geoff and Jill along with a lovelorn Bizarro Sterling Gates. Again I was using a very thick and chunky line to draw the Bizarros to make them visually different from Supergirl.

the supplicants, design-wise came first.

I just liked the idea of them being like giant insects that were all teeth, but sleek, like killer whale.

The "Orror" was the original name we were going to use for what would eventually become "the Godship".

Thumbnails for Supergirl#56

From the vaults. Supergirl #55

2012-01-09T19:24:00.002-05:00

This was a fun couple of pages because I began experimenting with how I would draw the Bizarro's in the next issue. instead of using sharpened pencils and leadholders, I used all blunt tips tp create the sharp angles of their features.

This is an example of why I became a visual artist:Creative problem solving. However... it's also an example of my occasional frustration with being a commercial artist. If you look back at the post for the previous issue, you'll see that I tried to create a lead like finish to Supergirl's body. So I was taken aback a bit when i got the script for this issue and read this:

Here's the problem. Lead statues aren't reflective.

So I decided to go with a chrome finish and instead of a single reflective image, I would do multiple variations within the reflections. it took time to figure it all out, but is really a great image in the end.

The first part of the issue was inked by Richard Friend, a really talented guy who I hope to work with again at some point.

Yes, I based my Perry on Lane Smith from "Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman"

Yes I did really research the type of break indicated in the script.

These pages were inked by frequent collaborator Marc Deering

the rest of the issue was inked by John Dell and I wish I had scans of his beautiful inks because Johni s one of the finest inkers in this business.

Thumbnails for Supergirl #55

From the vaults. Supergirl #54

2012-01-05T09:47:00.002-05:00

Supergirl # 54 was a beast of an issue. Going on my whole "Go out of top" plan for the end of my run. I did more work with the backgrounds on this issue to try and create a more "believable" version of Metropolis.

The opening panel of page 1 was a monster. Pete Woods "He who will always be awesome" designed an entire movable legend of metropolis that he built in Sketch up. I used that as the base for my placements. I then went in and built the actual buildings using the base as a layout.

Mr. Action to the rescue!

I love Jimmy Olsen, but I've thought that for the most part over the last 20 years with the exception of James Robinson and Kurt Busiek, no one has really used him to his potential. It's easier for a lot of writers to use Jimmy as comic relief. To me, Jimmy should be a mix between Tin Tin and MacGyver. Smart,brave, resourceful and inventive. Which is why I loved drawing this sequence. DC would never do it, but I think you could do a "Jimmy Olsen Adventures" series without Superman being involved.

I based the Daily Planet bullpen on the Bullpen at the New York Times.

the kid in the glasses (Norrie) was intended to be a new reoccurring character. I also tried to throw in some little geeky easter eggs, some were removed though. Jimmy's Camera was supposed to be a "Ditkoh", and the Daily Planet uses "Kord" (As in Ted Kord , the former Blue Beetle) Computers. In the former DCU, Kord was purchased by Waynetech when Ted went bankrupt (Bruce gave the money to Ted, I believe). Wayne enterprises also owned the Daily Planet as well.

You people have no idea how much of a comic book geek I am.. LOL.

the "Closet of Solitude"

Items include: The Blood petal from Supergirl Annual #1, the framed photo of herself and Wondergirl (Cassie Sandsmark) from Supergirl # 43, the Newspaper from Supergirl #34, A piece of her mothers, Alura, S-sheild, Her fathers, Zor-el, headband, her wig from Her "Claire Conners" identity (Supergirl #10), An Amazonian spear, her Flamebird helmet, and a Superman action figure from World's finest #3

Definitely a homage moment

The first clue to the last arc we did. Note the evil, terse smile.

These were my initial concepts for Bizarro Supergirl. Initially I wanted her to be a complete opposite of Supergil and be covered almost completely. the costume would be a homage to her mother's outfit from the New krypton story. when that was turned down I decided to go with an outfit closer to the Silver Age Supergirl. You'll notice that the faces are more of a traditional Bizarro style. However when I saw Amy Reeder's cover for Supergirl #55, I changed the head to match her design.

Layouts for Supergirl #54

Supergirl #53, the beginning of the end

2012-01-04T11:23:00.001-05:00

After the end of War of the Supermen, I was looking for a creative change. I decided that I was going to leave the book. At that point I had been on Supergirl for almost 18 months, creatively for some of us that's a very long time to be on a single project. I knew I wanted to go out on a high point, while I was still into drawing the book and didn't want thew work to slack or look uninteresting. So I decided that if I was going out, it was going to be in style. I'm exceedingly proud of the work Sterling Gates I did on Supergirl and I think that this issue, which began the Bizzarogirl story arc is the best work we did.

The initial change in hair sketch for Kara and the original Gangbuster redesign.

The idea was to harken back to the original version of the character, but make it slicker and more streamlined.

Thumbnails for the issue

This was also the first and only cover that I had drawn for the series after being on for so long. they went from Josh Middleton to Amy Reeder but needed a cover for this issue.

Sketch and pencils

inks and solicited version (colors by Tom Chu)

Later Mark Chiarello would me to add a background element to the cover.

So I drew a new background, cleaned up the original speed lines and superimposed them in photoshop

Final published cover.

Layouts for pages 17,18 and 22

This would also be the last issue colored by Nei Ruffino, who did a magnificent job. Inked by the always awesome Jon Sibal.

From the Vaults. Supergirl #51

2012-01-03T11:04:00.002-05:00

An awesome cover by Joshua Middleton (His final cover from our run) adorns Supergirl #51. It was the last official part of "Last Stand on New Krypton". I didn't mean to neglect this issue but because at the time, it was a bit of a rush job. i'm not a 100% happy with how it came out but I wanted to show you guys the process from the issue.

the book was inked by Marc Deering and Jon Sibal

*Yeah I know, I'm a horrible speller. Thank god for spellcheck.

The Future.... is now

2012-01-02T09:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings Brethren,

I know that I've been very cryptic about my post-The Ray work and there's a reason for this.
For the last seven years I've enjoyed an exclusive arrangement with DC Entertainment, one that was mutually beneficial. I wanted to wait until I could officially make this announcement.

As of last Saturday, I am no longer exclusive to DC Entertainment/ Warner Bros.

Frankly, this has been a long time coming,While I was very happy for many years to be exclusive, There comes a time when you're ready to move on. There's no animosity, in fact just the opposite. I've never been calmer or more centered than I have since I made this decision. I was forced to turn down a lot of outside opportunities while I was exclusive because I was so busy that I couldn't take them on or contractually unable to do them.

So what does this mean?

Well, for one I already have a some comics work coming up, which will be announced soon, as well as securing other work in and out of the industry. I'm also available for work as well. I'll be taking private commissions and developing some projects and pitching some of the creator owned concepts I've been working on over the last few years.

I aslo have a plan that I'm formulating for product. I'll be revamping the website from the ground up, so stay tuned for that as well.
Does this mean I'll never work for DC Comics again, far from it. It may be sometime before you see my name on DC book however, since there have not been any conversations about future work.

This is a big deal for me. A lot of my identity for the better part of a decade was tied up into being a part of DC's internal talent pool. Hell, I started working at DC when I was a teenager. I've done more work for DC than any other publisher. However, it became clear to me that I needed to be more than that again, not just "DC Exclusive Artist Jamal Igle". I remain a DC Comics fan, I'm exceedingly proud of the work I've done. Still, I'm a different person now, and hopefully a better artist, than I was seven years ago. I will always be thankful for the trust the DCE placed in me for so long.

I'm looking forward to what's coming and the potential of what lies down the road.

The countdown is on!

2011-12-30T17:28:00.000-05:00

COUNTDOWN CLOCKS

Raging Bullets takes aim at The Ray!

2011-12-30T14:42:00.000-05:00

Sean Whelan and Jim "Sensei of the What-Not" Segulin give a really nice and in depth review of issue one ofn their podcast "Raging Bullets"
Glad you guys liked it so much.
You can check their show at here.

From the Vaults: War of The Supermen #1

2011-12-29T10:10:00.000-05:00

There's a lot to be said about War of the Supermen. Whether you liked it or hated it, It did have an impact for awhile with Superman fans.

War of the Supermen (or The 100 minute war) as DC described it was supposed to read in real time, each issue taking place over 20 minutes of time. It was a massive undertaking. For myself, it was daunting. I wasn't supposed to be the artist of Issue #1( Issue #0 was drawn by Eddy Barrows), it was supposed to be Aaron Lopresti. I was scheduled to draw issue #3 because i had scheduled a family vacation to Orlando. Suddenly, I get a call from Matt Idelson, saying they needed me to draw the first issue.

Are you fucking kidding me???

As usual I, I knuckled down and found a way, drawing the first half before i went on vacation for 10 days ,coming home and finishing the book at warp speed so that it shipped on time.

Which wasn't easy...

This page alone took two days to finish.

It was also my first real opportunity to draw Superman, I mean really draw Superman, So I think i made myself much more nervous that I probably should have.

At the same time we were putting a very definitive ending on the New Krypton story of Alura and Kara's rather rocky relationship.

It was also a rather finite ending for Reactron as well, going out like the son of a bitch he was. I think it's a really strong scene. In the end, no matter what their differences, Alura did what any good parent would do and protecter her daughter at the cost of her life.

I wish I hadn't draw such a derp face on Superman in panel 4

My Kirby moment.

one of things you might notice is that the shape of the rocks on this page were changed in the inks. While I was on vacation, I get an email from Idelson, again. he thought the original drawing I did made the asteroids look too much like potatoes. So he wanted something more crystal like. So I told him to let jon Sibal change them. I did a quick sketch of what they should look like, and had to scramble to find a Kinkos so that I could scan and email the sketch to Jon.

The other thing you'll notice is the change in the last panel from the pencils. Apparently DC frowns on crotch shots of the Junk of Steel.

James Robinson, one of my all time favorite comic book writers wrote this sequence and when I sent him the pencils, he paid me the best compliment I could have gotten:

"This is exactly how I saw it in my head"

The space fleet were laid out using Pete woods designs in Sketchup and then hand drawn.

Layouts for War of the Supermen #1

So that's the end of "From the Vaults" this week. I'm going to take tomorrow off from posting and enjoy the NewYears Eve celebrations. I have a big announcement coming on Monday, and from the Vaults will continue on Tuesday, January 3rd with Supergirl # 53

Happy New Year.

From the vaults. Worlds's Finest # 3

2011-12-28T10:16:00.003-05:00

World's Finest #3... Man, what a fun issue to draw. The first official team-up between Supergirl and the former Spoiler/Robin turned Batgirl, Stephanie Brown. How this came about was because of whatever reason the original series artist Julian Lopez didn't get past issue 1, so the editors got different artists to finish the series. The issue preceding mine was drawn by Ramon Bachs and issue after me by the awesome Phil Noto. Sterling called me up as I was finishing Supergirl #50 and asked me if I could do it. Immediately said yes and we were off to the races!

The issue was inked by Jon Sibal and Jack Purcell and colored by one of my favorite colorists, Brian Miller.

The "Hammersmith Tower" which was the current home of "Linda" and Lana Lang was based on the Williamsburg bank building in Brooklyn, New York. Now known as "1 Hanson Place" a luxury condominium, it's something I'm familiar with because I can see it from my apartment.

I love this page because it was the first time I've ever drawn Barbara Gordon, then known as Oracle. It was also another opportunity to draw the Batcave, which is always fun. Kara's the typical messy teenager.

Okay, I got a little bit of crap in some quarters for this scene, mostly because some people considered it to be fan service. Especially the fact that I chose to have Catwoman's suit zipped open. I'll cop to it, because at that point I really didn't have many opportunities to draw sexy women. I did try to minimize it. It's also a well established visual cue. If you go back and read Catwoman, the only time she has the suit completely zipped is when she's in action.

People were also a little miffed that Stephanie and Kara seemed to just leave Selina behind. Here's the thing... there was an entire sequence of dialogue that was cut from page 9

Supergirl: Think We should have freed her?

Batgirl: I would have once upon a time. We used to be friends. But I've heard about what she's been doing for the last few months..

Batgirl: ...And I don't like it.

I don't know why it was cut, but that's the nature of comics. I thought it fleshed things out a bit for new readers but it may have been too much expository information,

This sequence was a good bonding moment for the girls. Both having been trained by Batman and missing their then, thought-for-dead mentor.

I got to draw a giant robot.

I have the best job in the world.

And you can't have a World's Finest series without Superman.

layouts for World's Finest #3

Tomorrow: I don' blowed up New Krypton!

From the vaults. Supergirl #50

2011-12-27T00:00:00.002-05:00

Of all of the issues of Supergirl I drew, Issue 50 was the single most challenging for a number of reasons. At 40 pages, it was the single longest issue I had drawn in several years. I was purposely pulled off Supergirl to have the time to draw the entirety of 50, then World's finest #3 (which we'll review tomorrow) so they would ship in time. I really wanted to pull out all the stops on this and I think the results were positive.

The book actually picks up from the Supergirl annual #1 story which delved into the origin of Lucy Lane as Superwoman. Lucy had, up until that point been groomed secretly by her father General Lane, being promoted quickly without merit so that he could incorporate him into his unit. He then provider her with a supersuit that was made to mimic Kryptonian DNA as well as several other alien species.

When we pick up the story, the newly reconstituted Lucy, having drained the lifeforce from an errant hiker, lies naked in a crater in the woods.

I wanted to show a sense of genuine concern from the General as a set up to what follows.

This was an awesome stroke from Steling as writer. We created almost a mirror to the scene with kara and Zor-el, as general Lane's fear and Xenophobia kick in upon the realization that he's turned his daughter into the very thing he hates, a Kryptonian.

One of the subtle indicators of this change was the way I drew the heat vision as more of a direct beam rather than the wavy beam I drew in her previous appearances

We then move into the next scene. Gangbuster, a long time Superman supporting character, had been recently reintroduced in the the DC universe in the Trinity maxiseries by Kurt Busiek and Mike Norton

Originally Gangbuster was was a man named Jose Delgado, a High school teacher , who created the identity when Lex Luthor started recruiting his students for his criminal activities. he would be crippled saving Lois Lane's life, then healed via a cybernetic implant from... Lex Luthor. It would also allow Luthor to control his body.Eventually Superman and professor Emil Hamilton would break him free from Luthor's control.

The second Gangbuster was an alternate identity created by Superman, who was suffering from Post Traumatic Stress because he was forced to execute an other dimensional version of General Zod, Faora and Quex-Ul.

(Yes, that was an actual story)

Where was I? oh yeah, So anyway This story actually has seeds that go back all the way to Superman # 671, but more on that later. now When we pick up this story, Lana Lang, Supergirl confidant and Clark Kent's ex girlfriend has died.

Okay... not really. What happened was Lana kind of died, only to become a entombed in a cocoon in Supergirl # 49

So when we pick up the story, Gangbuster is running through a insect hive being chased by giant hybrid bug people.

One of my all time favorite Supergirl pages.

We eventually find out that Gangbuster had been hired by STAR labs after the hive took over the hospital where Lana was and the Metropolis Crime Unit along with the superhero called The Guardian, had either been transformed or captured.

I had also gotten to draw Kimiyo Hoshi aka Dr. Light in this issue. to be honest, she's not my favorite character. I actually think she's kind of lame. Not powerwise, she's pretty powerful. I've always found her to be boring and one note. However you do what you can and I went out of my way to try and present her in the best possible ..ahem... light... trying to soften her look a bit.

I was also in the midst of refining my look for Kara at the same time, making her a little softer than I did previously to show her to be a bit more vulnerable.

I love this spread. Sterling suggested having cockroaches covering it, as if they were on the lens of a camera.

When Kara revives we are introduced to the transformed Lana as the new Insect Queen.

Now you might say "New"?

Well yes.

Back in the 1950's Lana Lang had become the insect Queen as a reward from an alien whose life she saved. She was given a Bio-ring that would allow her to mutate parts of her body.

Lois Lane would borrow Lana's Bio-ring become the insect Queen as well.

Now, remember I mentioned Superman #671. Well, in that storyline we were introduced to another insect queen , who had cloned a version Lana's body and was going to use it to take over the Earth.

So when I was redesigning Lana as the Insect Queen I wanted to harken back to the original costume design, using a wasps like coloring. I combined that look with the design by Peter vale

I even played with a more horrific version.

I was definitely going for an similar feeling to the end of the first Ghostbusters movie with this scene.

The issues ends with a newly revived Lucy as Superwoman, ready and full of evil.

Again, it was a great story to work on, an endurance test almost but I'm proud of it.

From the vaults continues tomorrow.

2011-12-26T08:45:00.000-05:00

Merry Post-Christmas! Enjoy the leftovers and the hangovers!

From the vaults. Supergirl #46

2011-12-23T01:12:00.002-05:00

Supergirl #46 was the last part of the "Hunt for Reactron" storyline that crossed over with Action Comics

when last we left our heroes, Reacton had murdered the members of Squad K, the Anti Kryptonian military team, and was about to kill Kara, Chris and Thara as well. As usual working on a crossover is always a headache,so because I was working so fast I was asked to design a set or Red Sun manacles

To get a feeling for where this issue was taking place, I designed a set to work from.

A little comparison from the pencils to finals

Now, because of scheduling, I wans;t able to draw the entire Issue, I dd however layout one of the pages i did't draw, which was drawn by Eduardo Pansica.

And reactron has his ass handed to him in a rather one sided fight with Flamebird. It was a fun squence. One of things I tried to do was have different visual moods for Flame bird so that as she calms down she becomes more sensual looking.

That way as we get to the kiss, It becomes sexy, tender and loving in it's way. You also see her heal Chris' wounds at the same time.

So that's it for this week. Happy Chanukah to my jewish friends and a very Merry Christmas,/Kwanzaa/Festivus to everyone.

Next Week: Supergirl #50, World's Finest and War of the Supermen!

The Ray #1 Reviews!

2011-12-22T09:40:00.003-05:00

The reviews for the Ray have been awesome, I'm so happy you guys are enjoying the book as much as you are:

Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray’s Power Girl showed the writing team’s adeptness at creating light-hearted superhero stories without sacrificing brains or heart, and The Ray #1reveals what the team can do when given the freedom of a new character. Joined by artist Jamal Igle, Palmiotti and Gray create one of the most fully realized titles of the DC relaunch, with a clear concept, strong voice, and memorable, diverse cast. Superhero and mainstream comics – December 2011 | Books | Comics Panel | The A.V. Club

In Power Girl, Gray, Palmiotti and artist Amanda Conner also relied on a nostalgia factor as well as a scalpel wielded to eliminate the clutter of a character far too good for her retcons. Not so, in The Ray. Despite Lucien being the third Ray, the writers only mention the legend of the first Ray, from Quality Comics, subsequently recapitulated in Pre-Crisis title Freedom Fighters. For all intent and purpose, the new Ray is precisely that -- a new character, visually and as written.
The Ray #1 (of 4) | Comics Bulletin

I wasn’t actually planning to pick up The Ray #1, and grabbed it on impulse when I hit the comic store. I’m incredibly glad I did, because this is a pitch-perfect debut issue that outshines many of the titles that DC introduced with the “New 52.” This is only a four-issue mini-series, but I hope we get to see lots more of this new character.
Newsarama.com : Best Shots Comic Reviews: AVENGERS ACADEMY, THE RAY, More

Gray and Palmiotti give us an entirely new character to carry the mantle of The Ray, and it works. Even those readers who are die hard Ray Terril fans from the 90s would be hard pressed not to enjoy this issue. Why? Because it’s got everything needed to impress and excite all in its first issue. Excellent artwork and writing that makes this one a definite must have if you see it on shelves!
DC Comics Reviews: The Ray #1

The Ray looks to be another quality book from the New 52. If the rest of the miniseries is this good, it could join The Huntress as another title I want to see go monthly. Who knew DC could produce so many great comics?
Comic Roundup: Avengers: X-Sanction, The Storyteller & The Ray | Geekadelphia

And that's just the tip of the Iceberg, again thank you all!

From the vaults. Supergirl #45

2011-12-22T00:26:00.000-05:00

The Hunt for Reactron, a balls to the wall chase as Supergirl, Nightwing (Lor-Zod/ Chris Kent) and Flamebird (Thara Ak Var). My issue was actually part 2 of the story, in which the three were framed for the destruction on the Metropolis sewer system and the "murder" of Mon- El, who had actually been captured by General Lane and Project 7734.

We opened the issue with a "O'Reilly Factor" Style show hosted by Morgan Edge, long time Superman supporting character. I tried to make it as psuedo patriotic as possible.

This spread took my 2 and a half days to pencil. The hardest part was getting all of the reference for the scene. luckily I've spent a lot of time in Paris, France over the years so I was very familiar with La Tour Eiffel.

I love the energy of this scene. I was trying to Make Chris as handsome as possible.

Again being familiar with paris, it was important that I get that feeling of being there across.

Layouts for issue #45

From the vaults. Supergirl #44

2011-12-21T09:36:00.000-05:00

Supergirl #44 was part of the Codename: Patriot crossover. As with most crossovers, you work with multiple artists and multiple headaches involved.

This fight sequence was a bit daunting, because of the the confined space and the fact that I had , with the exception of General lane, never drawn any of these characters before. I also didn't have clear reference as well so my characters were a bit off model versus the artist who drew the issues before and after.

As I usually try to do is incorporate as much real backgrounds into my work as possible from Las Vegas

To Downtown Los Angeles

And the Hollywood hills and the Grifith Park observatory.

I love this spread, Although some of my critics said that my Superman was too stiff. Nei once again did an amazing job.

Layouts for Supergirl #44

From the vaults. Supergirl #43

2011-12-20T10:25:00.003-05:00

Supergirl was one of the more emotional issues of our run. it's a sort of "Coming of Age story" for Kara. For the record, we never said exactly how old Kara was in her run. In my mind, she was 16 when we started on issue #34, so with this issue I would continue to think of her as a 17 year old for the remainder of my run.

The First panel was me doing my best recreation of Josh Middleton's cover, so that as we zoomed out from the cover we would reveal that it was a photo on Kara's desk on New Krypton.

Again with the Kryptonian clothing? Well yes. I really wanted to push the idea that the white clothing as ceremonial clothing.

We also introduced Alura's new costume in the is issue, designed , just like everything else awesome on New Krypton by Pete Woods

Pete also designed the "Tomb of Zor-el" and it was with this issue I started to play with incorporating sketch up into my layouts.

You'll notice on the pennants in the background a bunch of symbols. Those symbols aren't random creations. Once again my love for All things Superman the movie comes through. the symbols were created for the movie.

image provided by capedwonder.com

Now here's a little tidbit that still continues to irk me. this entire issue was a set up for us to have a Supergirl crossover into "Blackest Night" where Zor-El would rise from his tomb. We were later told "No" by the Powers that be and thought that was the end of it. Until Sterling and I opened up the Blackest Night Superman miniseries and saw, without our knowledge, that exact storyline thrown in at the last minute. I called Sterling as soon as I saw it and we both said the same thing... which isn't repeatable because kids read this blog.

That's corporate comics though. You learn to roll with the punches.

Layouts from Supergirl #43

From the vaults. Supergirl #42

2011-12-19T10:40:00.004-05:00

One of the more interesting issues of Supergirl was issue #42. People were curious about why I hadn't drawn the previous issue, #41, and the truth of the matter was I had a family vacation. We had arranged it months before and I had been on the book for nearly 8 months without a break. So we took two weeks to visit our family in France and the issue was drawn by Resurrection Man artist Fernando Dagnino.

In a way I was sort of walking in cold because I didn't get to see any of the pages until the book was near press, so the way the follow up was written from an outsiders perspective. For the most part the issue is a dramatic piece, giving me the opportunity to flex my storytelling chops,

I love how this scene between Lana and Kara played out.

The family portrait of the Lanes on the mantle

The last two panels on this page were a fun exercise, because instead of doing a photstat of panel 3 and zooming in, I re-drew everything by hand.

LAna's phone call and the subtle change in emotion were another big clue leading towards Supergirl #50

The Solar Fly-by that closes the issue was a brilliant Sterling Gates idea.

Another fun sequence for me was the interaction between Lana, Lois and Kara. These ladies were really the cast of our series at that point. I did everything I could to differentiate them stylistically, not just facially. I had Lana dressed almost exclusively in Asian influenced clothing, something I saw Carlos Pacheco do with her a bit in Superman. Mandarin jackets, Chinese dresses. Kara ,at least in this instance, was dressed in an outfit I found in a Japanese Young Miss magazine, but I felt was an almost "Civilian" version of her Supergirl costume. Lois was much more conservative.

Again, I didn't have too many opportunities to draw "Linda Lang" so I took them where I could.

The Death of Superwoman....?
In the previous issue Major Lucy Lane, who had been unmasked as the villainous Superwoman in issue#40 had been killed accidentally when kara pulled her powersuit apart.

So when the issue opens, we see General Sam Lane, leader of Project 7734 dealing with the loss of his daughter.

Readers would also get more insight in to the snippet of conversation between the two that we began in Supergirl # 37

Initially the scene had an ambiguous, ominous tone to it.

But would be revealed as a much more loving exchange between Sam and his daughter.

I actually, at this point started basing Sam Lane on R. Lee Ermey (Gunnery Sgt.,retired) from Full Metal Jacket. It seemed fitting.

Just a little bit of behind the scenes tinkering. we had to change the Starlabs building for the traditional, to the new design by Renato Guedes from his Superman run.

The Future....

2011-12-18T12:06:00.000-05:00

I'll be making an announcement around the first of the year. Stay tuned.

Signing at Acme Superstore Saturday

2011-12-16T00:30:00.002-05:00

Acme is proud to announce Jamal Igle will appearing at the store on Saturday December 17th for the very first time for the debut of THE RAY #1, from DC Comics!

From the vaults. Supergirl #40

2011-12-16T00:15:00.002-05:00

I wanted to jump ahead in this issue because I really like this sequence of pages

Part of the reason I added the shorts to the costume is because of this fight scene. When Sterling and I were discussing his ideas for the book, this was one of the sequences we wanted to do. Originally I had planned for Kara to remove the skirt entirely and go into full on martial arts mode. However as with alot of things , it was cut for lack of space.

Crashing water is particularly tough to draw, so I used some photos of pounding Hawaiian surf to get a feel for it.

I really like this page, particularly the last shot with Lana.

I'm glad that I was able to get across the creepiness of this scene. It's also the first hint of something we're building to in Supergirl 50.

And of course the reveal of Lucy as Superwoman

Layouts to Supergirl #40

See you Monday!

From the vaults. Supergirl #39

2011-12-15T01:21:00.001-05:00

Picking up from the events from last issue, Reactron and Superwoman are still in his Ex's apartment when Krull decides he's going to ghet his jollies anyway.

Util Superwoman swoops in for the save.

This double page spread is one of my favorites for a multitude of reasons. First I felt like I really set a good stage, complete with enough acting and believable set dressing. Like I said, this is basically my kitchen demolished. It took the better part of three days to pencil. this was also the first issue that Jon Sibal inked over me and we gelled immediately. I would work with him for the rest of my run as well as on Zatanna and a few other things. Now this is also an example of where things sometimes have to be changed in midstream. You'll notice on Superwoman both on this page and the page that follows, I had drawn in a "halo" effect in fornt of her eyes. In my mind, her power came from the suit that's how her vision powers would manifest. It was decided that it was too obvious a tell that she wasn't a kryptonian. So Nei ruffino our colorist and a talented draftsperson herself was able to go in and make the changes herself.

Here's a another great penciled page, establishing Mike Henderson's office.

THE PAPERFILMS BLOG!: "The Ray' #1 is out today!

2011-12-14T00:29:00.001-05:00

THE PAPERFILMS BLOG!: "The Ray' #1 is out today!: The first issue of the Palmiotti/Gray-scribed, Jamal Igle-drawn The Ray hits the shops today, so get out there and snag your copy now!!!

From the vaults. Supergirl #38

2011-12-14T00:18:00.005-05:00

FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT!!! Okay, this is the kind of stuff you get into superhero comics for, a mid air catfight.

Now if you remember from yesterday, Lucy(Superwoman) had just laid out Kara with a sneaky haymaker to the jaw, so I really wanted to go from one issue to another. in the script Sterling had a very specific idea, which worked for me as well. A POV shot of Kara about to take a shot to the jaw.

This of course was all Superwoman's idea of trying to convince Kara to stay off of Earth.

We were also beginning to explore lana lang and her relationship with Kara as well for the first time since our first issue.

We were also laying clues to a sub plot involving Cat grant that we wouldn't pick up again until Supergirl #55. Keep an eye on that doll, it pops up again.

The thing with Cat for me was pushing that sort of aging cougar angle, dressing far too inappropriately, picking up the thread that Geoff Johns had started with his run on Action. Cat is a woman of complexity, but for now i wanted to deal with the surface and make her look as shallow as possible.

Now we see Lucy in her dress uniform. in the intervening years Lucy had joined the military and was now a member of her fathers unit ,Project 7734. I tried to make the autopsy scene as accurate as possible, which took time to gather the proper reference.

Reactron... What an asshole...

His origin appeared in Doom Patrol Vol. 2 #10

He reappeared in Supergirl # 25, redesigned by Drew Johnson

Reactron aka Major Krull would become a reoccurring villian during our run. Originally introduced in The Daring new Adventures of Supergirl in 1983, he's had a few redesigns, the last by artist Gary Frank.

Krull was an atomic powered villain who with the help of General Lane was given a boost by placing a piece of Gold Kryptonite in his heart, allowing him to temporarily rob a Kryptonian of their powers.

Krull tries to use the Gold K on Superwoman, but when it doesn't work...

Readers get their first clue that she's not Kryptonian. I have to admit I loved the speculation that was going around at the time. Was she Maxima reborn? A New God, was she Kirsten Wells come back from the future? It was fun to watch the theories form.


  I think what I wanted ultimately was to make him as lecherous and reprehensible character  wise as possible.  I think it worked. The apartment they're in where he's stalking his ex-girl-
friend is actually My apartment, LOL. 
This was also the last issue that Keith Champagne would work on.   It's not a situation I'm 
proud of and I do take some of the blame. Through a combination of miscommunication
 between  Keith and Editorial and a lack of communication between 
Keith and myself (For which I've apologized for and he graciously accepted.) 
He ended up losing the book. I'm man enough to admit when I make a mistake and that was
 one time when I should have been more clear about my feelings with my collaborators. 
Keith isn't just a talented inker but a talented writer as well.     
 You would do well to pick up some of his work on Green Lantern over Doug Mahnke and       some of his writing work such as  Armor X on Graphicly.com

Tomorrow: The Fix is in, and a new inker comes on board.

Ramp up to THE RAY! part 8: Lip Service radio show

2011-12-13T23:42:00.000-05:00

I appeared on the radio show "Lip Service" hosted by Rod and Barbara Jenkins of Kissmecomix.com
Click here

Ramp up to THE RAY! part 7:Palmiotti and Gray talk to IGN

2011-12-13T21:50:00.000-05:00

Over at IGN.Com Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray discuss their take on the new Ray and say some nice things about your truly along the way. Click here
Also if you're in the New York area tomorrow night. I'll be signing at Jim Hanley's universe( 4 West 33rd Street)from 6 to 8p.m.

Ramp up to THE RAY! part 6: Interview with CBR

2011-12-13T10:39:00.002-05:00

Over on Comic book resources Alex Dueben and I talk about The Ray including some behind the scenes material, my career and my advice to a younger me. Click here

From the vaults. Supergirl #37

2011-12-13T00:00:00.001-05:00

We originally introduced the new Superwoman in the pages of Supergirl #35. Her identity was intentionally shrouded in secret, even to me at the time but later revealed to be Lois Lane's younger sister Lucy.

Lucy was a long running DC comics character, created to be a pseudo foil for Jimmy Olsen.

In later years Lucy had appeared in the Superman comics , she was eventually married off to fellow Daily Planet reporter Ron "Scoop" Troupe.

Her identity would be shrouded until Supergirl # 40,which was definitely a huge " WTF " for a lot of long time fans, but we'll get to that in another post.

The costume was designed by Alex Ross, Along with the original costumes for Flamebird and Nightwing .At the time Flamebird was going to be Linda Danvers and Nightwing Conner "Kon-El" Kent. Somewhere along the way it was changed that they would be the rescued "Chris "Lor-Zod" Kent and Kara's childhood friend, Thara Ak-Var.

The first time she appears in Supergirl, she tries to pass herself off as an earnest fellow Kryptonian who decided to fight crime under the EL family standard.

In panel one, I was trying to get across the idea that Lucy wasn't living in her kryptonian quarters, just using it as a base. So I had her footprints in the dust on the floor.

The panel with General Lane was also a stroke of genius on Sterling Gates' part. Since we didn't, as readers know her identity, the interchange between them was far more ambiguous and sinister. We would expand on the scene later on in Supergirl #50.

In the opening sequence of Supergirl # 37, Her motivations, if not her identity are made much more clear. At this point I knew exactly who she was character-wise and had worked very hard to make her physically different. I wanted her to be more visibly sexy, more womanly than Kara. I drew her a bit more buxom to push that aspect.

One of the things I did to throw people off was, that we introduced another female Kryptonian, Lyra Kam-Phar. I purposely drew her with the exact same physical proportions as Superwoman.

Another character we introduced was Inspector Michael Henderson who I based physically on one of my favorite actors, Dennis Haysbert. Now you'll notice that in the sketch, He's named William Henderson. That's because at the time, we wanted to bring a new Bill Henderson into the series. For those of you who aren't long time Superman fans, Bill Henderson was a character form "The Adventures of Superman"Radio series and then the TV series played by character actor Robert Shayne. In the comics, Bill Henderson was a police detective who eventually became Police Commissioner of Metropolis.

Our Inspector would be the head of the MPD Special Crimes unit investigating the murder of Agent:Liberty. Guess who killed him?

Here's the original layout for hte douple page spread. I had originally conceived of the shot as an overhead bird's eye view, but thought it was too boring. I really wanted to push the angles as I'm want to do in my work.

Any way... back to Superwoman and Kara, whom Kara has realized she can't trust. again, really trying to push the differences between the two of them physically.

Pow, the shot heard around the world!

Another element I was able to design was the "War Room". It was used a few times but eventually abandoned , since Pete Woods designs were so much better than mine.

layouts and thumbnails from Supergirl #37

Tomorrow: Chick fights and REACTRON!

On sale now: Superman:Grounded Vol.2

2011-12-12T20:08:00.002-05:00

art from Superman #714

Written by J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI and CHRIS ROBERSON; Art by EDDY BARROWS, ALLAN GOLDMAN, JP MAYER and others; Cover by JOHN CASSADAY

In this second "Grounded" volume, from SUPERMAN #707-711 and 713-714, Superman meets the new Wonder Woman for the first time! But why can't he shake the feeling that he already knows her? Then, Superman visits Boulder, Colorado, where The Flash made a strange discovery that relates to Superman. And in Salt Lake City, Batman arrives to revisit one of his earliest adventures with The Man of Steel!

Ramp up to THE RAY! part 5:Talking comics with Tim

2011-12-12T19:25:00.000-05:00

Over on Comic book Resources Tim O'Shea and I talk the Ray amongst other topics. Click here

The Ray # 4 Solicitation

2011-12-12T17:20:00.003-05:00

THE RAY #4
Written by JUSTIN GRAY and JIMMY PALMIOTTI
Art by JAMAL IGLE and RICH PERROTTA
Cover by JAMAL IGLE
On sale MARCH 14 • 32 pg, FC, 4 of 4, $2.99 US • RATED T
The final conflict between The Ray and the evil maestro who has been behind all his woes comes to a conclusion. Lucien will need to take his powers to an all-new level to defeat the evil Director and his reality warping abilities.

Firestorm fan talks about my redesign of Pohzar

2011-12-12T13:36:00.000-05:00

The Firestorm fan page (http://firestormfan.com/) is doing a week of discussion of former Firestorm Mikhal "Pozhar" Arkadian, including artwork from my run on the character as well as the redesign I did for the character, Check it out here

Ramp up to THE RAY! part 4: The League of Ordinary Gentlemen podcast

2011-12-12T11:28:00.003-05:00

This week, we chat with Jamal Igle about his new project The Ray for DC's new 52. Plus, his travels to comic-cons around the globe, his long association with DC, and even his brief but poignant meeting with John and Dursin years ago. And he remembered! Plus, some big news from Big Josh!

Click here

From the vaults. Supergirl #36

2011-12-12T00:01:00.000-05:00

Probably one of the most emotionally difficult sequences I've ever drawn, The opening 10 page sequence from Supergirl#36 will stand as one of my all time favorite issues.

Okay, there's a problem that most people don't know about. When I was drew this sequence I was ahead of schedule, so when Pete Woods drew this page in Action comics..

Reactron was in front of him rather than behind as it was in my script. I wanted to redraw it but there wasn't time.

The whole idea for me, visually was to create a great sense of chaos in the scene as Kara runs headlong,ignoring the carnage around her.

Superman chanelling Magnus:Robot fighter. I love that panel.

I had actually intended the first panel to be akin to a shot that was done in Josh Whedon's astonishing X-men run. I still think it works but I had hoped for a much more solid red tint to the shot.

These three pages were the toughest for me. As some of you know, I've had two friends of mine killed by gun violence. One was murdered, the other accidentally. Sterling had lost his father to illness as well, so this seen was very personal for both of us. I was on the verge of tears for three days drawing this seen , particularly Page 10. Nei wasn't available for this issue, but we were ably and beautifully colored by the fantastic Tom Chu of ColorDojo.

The first appearance of the white Kryptonian robes in the DCU as well as the whole crystal fortress motif.

Pencils from the argument sequence. I always liked the way this came out.

A rare touching moment for the cousins of Steel

Here's where we begin to see the hard heart of Alura start to take form. We likened her to a person trying to deal with PTSD (Post traumatic stress disorder). He captivity, coupled with the death of her husband forces her to build a wall between her and her daughter.

Tomorrow: Superwoman!

Ramp up to THE RAY! part 3: The Acme Wave Projector podcast

2011-12-11T18:36:00.003-05:00

Recorded at NC Comic con. Click here

Ramp up to THE RAY! part 2:Agent of Style

2011-12-09T19:05:00.003-05:00

Over on Newsarama Alan Kistler discusses the various incarnations of the Ray and says some very complimentary things about me redesign. Check it out here

From the vaults. Supergirl #35

2011-12-09T00:15:00.000-05:00

I love this page, it took me almost two days to complete.

So I'll cop to it, I was totally trying to channel the Krypton scenes from Superman the movie and the Power drain chamber from Superman 2. Which is hard. I would do it again for War of the Supermen #1 but at this time I hadn't quite figured out how to drawn the floor in perspective.

I really wanted to get the acting just right with these pages, the sense of pain from Kara, the sense of caring, particularly with Alura since it would be contradicted by the hard emotional shell she tries to hide behind after Zor-El's death next issue.

I really over think these things occasionally but you might notice in panel 3, I gave the Kryptonians this sort of, sideways thumbs up salute.

I based my Zor-El on Scott Bakula. I always thought he had a kind fatherly face.

Again with this scene I was not only trying to show a progression of age, but also mimic stylistically Gary Franks' work in Action Comics and Pete Wood's designs for Kandor.

Thumbnails from issue #35

Images for Inkers now available

2011-12-08T16:24:00.000-05:00

I've uploaded a batch of High Resolution pages to my deviant art folder for all of you budding inkers to use. You can hit the deviantart like or click here.

From the vaults. Supergirl #34

2011-12-08T00:57:00.006-05:00

So as with everything, if you want examine your future it helps to look at the past. We start with Supergirl #34. As it's pretty well documented, I came on the book in the midst of working on Tangent:Superman's Reign. Unfortunately I didn't have a lot of time to get comfortable with Kara as a character before I began working on the book

This wasn't the first Image I drew of Kara, it's the second (Ably inked by Keith Champagne, who also inked issues 34-39). It really captured the feeling I wanted to bring into the book for readers. A fun, light version that defied the heavy subjects we ended up exploring during our run.

I was so excited and nervous while drawing this scene at the Daily Planet. Again, I really didn't have much prep time and I was trying to emulate the designs the Gary Frank did on Action Comics. I hadn't figured out how my Superman/ Clark Kent would look like because I was trying to match an already established design.

One of the fun parts of this issue was drawing Jeff Johnson of the website http://www.drawmein.com/. I'll let Jeff describe how this came about:

First off, I love these panels. I really do. Jamal Igle did a great job. I can't praise the man enough! He's been so cool about things since I first contacted him in August of last year.

Yeah, patience pays off. Originally he said, "I can't make any promises because it all depends on the script I'm working on. However if I can fit you in, I will."

Time passed on by, and I usually don't sweat it. After all, even if I get drawn in the same day I ask, it takes at least three months before it sees print. But I was beginning to think I was forgotten about. Then the news hit in June; Supergirl was to get a new creative team with Jamal as the penciler. I decided to congratulate the man, after all... as a reader of the book, this was great news. I reintroduced myself and my campaign, thinking he'd forgotten all about me. He hadn't.

"I do remember you actually, I have your site book marked. I'll see what I can do about slipping you into issue 34.... I think I can get you in as an angry baseball fan."

A month later he sent me an e-mail with the penciled page attached. When Supergirl #34 hit the stands in October, he even blogged about the panel, myself, and the campaign. What a shock to see somebody blogging about me!

Thumbnails from the first eight pages of the issue

I had also pitched an alternate costume design which would have incorporated elements of previous Supergirl costumes. Particularly a variation of the boots and red skirt from the 1980's/Matrix Supergirl. It was decided however that they didn't want to stray from the then current costume as designed by Michael Turner. I did however take some elements such as the new cape attachment and the ...well...

THE SHORTS

The Shorts, the shorts, the infamous shorts. Since there's no way to get around it, I'll tackle it head on. The first thing i need to say is they were never intended to appear as a separate pair of shorts. the whole idea was that they were supposed to be a skort, which is a popular item with female athletes. What happened is,Nei Ruffino had accidentally colored them red with a gold trim rather than the blue they were supposed to be. We went with it and most people didn't notice, until I did the interview with Newsarama that was picked up by NPR

I actually drew the unmodified costume into the issue until the end of the baseball scene. Notice that the height of the shirt, the sleeves and skirt are the same as when Ian Churchill drew the book.

Then after her talk with Superman, Kara subtly changes her skirt. We never point it out because frankly I didn't think it would be that big a deal.

Live and Learn.

Tomorrow: Supergirl# 35 and the difficulty of trying to draw kryptonian floor panels

ESSADEE Larry.

My Week in Caracas

2011-12-07T21:41:00.001-05:00

Ramp up to THE RAY!

2011-12-07T11:01:00.004-05:00

I've got two signings coming up next week with the release of the first issue of The Ray, written by Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray

To celebrate, JHU will be hosting a signing with the artists of this hotly anticipated comic! Meet Jamal Igle and Rich Perrotta at our Manhattan Location, Wednesday, December 14 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm! Please note a purchase of The Ray #1 is required to attend the signing.

Jim Hanley's Universe

4 West 33 Street

New York, NY 10001

TELEPHONE:

1-212-268-7088 (Manhattan)

1-718-351-6299 (Staten Island)

FAX:

1-212-268-7728 (Main Office - Manhattan)

Dominion preview now available on Digibidi

2011-11-25T11:02:00.002-05:00

Thanks to www.digibidi.com for providing this 9 page preview of Dominion (Formerly L'Armee Des Anges).

L'armée des anges : Dominion de Jamal Igle, Thomas Fenton, éditions Humanoïdes Associés

Présenté par digiBiDi, la BD à la demande - Location de bande dessinée, comics, manga, roman graphique online

Be warned: This version is in French but if you like it you can purchase the English edition from Instock trades.

From the Vaults returns in December:Supergirl edition

2011-11-25T10:53:00.000-05:00

It's hard for me to believe sometimes but it's been almost a year since the last time I drew a Supergirl page. With the overwhelming success of "From the Vaults", I've decided that starting December 8th, I'll be posting 5 pages from every issue of Supergirl drew from 2008-2010. I'll also show some behind the scen process sketches as well.
You might be asking , Why wait until the 8th to start? Well the truth of the matter is that I'll be attending the Caracas Comic con in Caracas, Venezuela on December 3 and 4th http://www.caracascomiccon.com/ and traveling the other days.

So check back on December 8th as we roll deep in to the files starting with Supergirl #34!

The Ray #1 preview!

2011-11-21T10:42:00.001-05:00

The Ray ships on December 14th
I've also posted the pencils to these pages on my Deviantart page.

A brand new interview

2011-11-17T16:07:00.001-05:00

As if you weren't tired of me yapping about myself, here's an interview i did while I was at the San Diego Comic con this past summer with Comicsbulletin.com

The Ray # 3 Solicitation

2011-11-14T17:04:00.001-05:00

THE RAY #3
Written by JUSTIN GRAY and JIMMY PALMIOTTI
Art by JAMAL IGLE and RICH PEROTTA
Cover by JAMAL IGLE
On sale FEBRUARY 22 • 32 pg, FC, 3 of 4, $2.99 US • RATED T
Lucien can rescue Chanti from the clutches of the Isopods, but can he save his relationship with her? More important, can he save her family from the evil Director, who wants to destroy everything for his art?

I love color: My daughter Catie has a striking resemble with Ei...

2011-11-14T07:58:00.000-05:00

I love color:
My daughter Catie has a striking resemble with Ei...: My daughter Catie has a striking resemble with Einstein?! And to top it off, she just draw a moon, space ship, and space rock on her black ...