Customer Reviews

Modern Masters Volume 18: John Romita Jr. (Modern Masters (TwoMorrows Publishing))

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I love JR JR's art. That's why I bought this book. It's basically a transcript of an interview with the artist by Tom Field, interspersed with black and white samples of Romita Jr's work throughout his 30+ years as a comic artist, almost exclusively for Marvel. JR JR may be one of the best artists in the biz at telling a story using sequential images but as an interviewee he is an incredibly poor chronicler of his own history and artistic approach. Not only does he come across as blunt almost to the point of rudeness (I suspect he and the interviewer may not have got along?) but he has a very poor memory. Case in point:

"INTERVIEWER: How did the offer come to do "Uncanny [X-Men]"? Did that come from Louise Simonson?

JRJR: I don't remember who came up to me.

INTERVIEWER: It might have been [Jim] Shooter?

JRJR: I don't remember who came to me first. I know Louise was the editor on that book, but I don't know whose suggestion it was. Maybe it was Shooter, I don't know."

Most disappointingly of all he offers very little interesting insight into his craft. The overall impression the interview leaves of Romita Jr is that he's a rather boring, self-critical, hard working artist who, most strikingly, always did what he was told: the editors would say "Draw this title" and then "Draw that title" and he'd pretty much just say "Okay." A real team player, but a follower, not a leader. Thankfully his artwork is a different story.

There's also a 40-odd page art gallery at the end, again featuring black and white images. Most of the artworks are pages (text included) from JR JR's comics, understandably, with a few pinups. If you're familiar with a lot of his work, as I am, you might find these pages a little disappointing, as I did, given the relative lack of new, exclusive or rare material.

For those who have recently heard that comics is an art form, this collection is a good start of acknowledging it.

Although this volume is jam-packed with sketches, never-seen pages and an extended interview with the J.R.Jr., it's still not enough. After all, we're talking about an artist whose career spans for 30 years.
For the die-hard fans - such as myself who consider him the best in the field - this book is a boost (and quite enjoyable) if read alongside the hardcover 'MARVEL VISIONAIRES - JOHN ROMITA JR.'

For those used to in-depth perspectives from the artist about comics and styles, do not expect much; John Romita Jr. is a very down-to-earth person, whose comments and statements on the market and peers are direct. He sees himself as guy ready to deliver a fine work and do what he's told to. Nothing more; we wish we could have in the book more of his thoughts about spider-man, ideas, creations and such. Therefore, as an interviewee, he can be quite straightforward and does not give too much away about his style, which, different from MANY artists, only gets better.

But if you read 'THE ART OF JOHN ROMITA', it's not difficult to notice the son's got the same traits as his father - both in art and personality. And the comic market should be thankful of having an artist who has as main influence, his own father - a great collaborator from the silver age of comics. J.R.Jr. brought that style its modern age.

Still, it's a helluva book - this a guy who drew every single main character (and more) of the Marvel Universe. And he's still delivering it!

Believe you me, it's worth it.

JR JR is a solid storyteller and a very Dynamic Artist!
His drawings inspire me to Draw!

Spider-Man, Wolverine, Gambit, Daredevil, are all names and characters well known to Marvel comic fans everywhere. "John Romita Jr." is the eighteenth entry in the Modern Masters series, looks at the art and design of John Romita who has drawn all of these Marvel characters and a great many more. Romita's art has had a major impact on Marvel for the past three decades with his original blend of great art, great storytelling, and great professionalism. JRJR, as he has been dubbed by his fans, is one of the most enduringly popular Marvel artists and storytellers, and "John Romita Jr." is a 'must' for his legion of fans, as well as being a very highly recommended addition to personal, academic, and community library reference collections.