EXCLUSIVE: One of comics’ top artists discusses his variant cover for Dynamite’s James Bond: VARGR #1.
It’s 007 WEEK! Spectre comes out Friday here in the States but on 11/4, Dynamite brings us something long overdue: The first James Bond comic book in ages.
And Dynamite, in concert with the Ian Fleming estate, didn’t mess around, selecting Warren Ellis as the writer. The artist is Jason Masters — and as can be expected, there is an array of covers for Issue #1. Every day this week, we’re going to feature one at 13th Dimension — with brief commentary from the artist — including illustrators like Jock, Gabriel Hardman and Dan Panosian.
Part 001: Dom Reardon, click here.
Today, it’s Jock:
Dan Greenfield: How did you come up with that image?
Jock: Like every other cover I do — pretty much trial and error until I find something interesting!
Dan: You’re the only one of the cover artists not to show Bond’s face — assuming that’s Bond shooting into the Union Jack. Did you intentionally avoid giving your Bond a specific look?
Jock: Not intentionally, though I feel like it’d be hard not to be influenced by a movie Bond. I was happy to come up with something else.
Dan: Pick a favorite Bond movie poster or book cover.
Jock: The early painted Sean Connery posters — easily my favorites now. From Russia With Love has such an iconic shot of Bond.
November 3, 2015
I love Jock’s work but I feel like this is one of his weakest art pieces in the James Bond #1 variant collection as well as Jock’s weakest overall piece. I don’t understand how a picture of an arm holding a semi-automatic, shooting at a flag will ignite enough interest to pick up a book. This cover tells me no hint of what’s inside and that’s partly what comic covers should be about. I’ll pick up the book though because it’s Bond and Warren Ellis and that’s too good of a matchup to pass up.
November 4, 2015
FYI — THIS is a Bond cover: http://www.1stprintcomics.com/Browse/Product.aspx?p=55
Granted, it borrows heavily from the films but it’s worlds better than the one in this article.