Progress Report: Black Axe

Here is a sneak peek at the first seven pages of Black Axe # 1, with art by Fabio Nahon.

Fabio is truly a maestro when he's got his mitts on an old-fashioned graphite pencil.  Those are seven seriously nasty pages, son.  No doubt.

Anatomy of a Cover: Marco D. Carrillo on Astro Crusader #1

Let's take a quick look at process of coming up with a cover for Astro Crusader #1.

First, original artist Fabio Nahon sketched out his idea.  I loved the linework, but worried that our hero looked a little too thick and blocky around the midsection.  I wanted him to be more sleek, and less muscular.

Then Marco D. Carrillo stepped up and came up with a cool composition.  I thought it was very dynamic, but I decided it might be better to show a little more of the character's costume.

This was the basic composition Marco and I finally agreed on.

Here are the finished pencils and inks:

Marco takes a first pass on the colors.  I thought the cloud effects were a little distracting, and I asked him to turn down the intensity on both the power beams and the reflected light on Astro Crusader's costume.

And here's the finished product:

Bright, clean, and pop-infused!  Nice work, Marco!  I love it!

Five Page Preview of Astro Crusader #1

Two different versions of a Black Axe page

I don't want to say that Fabio Nahon has some perfectionist tendencies, but sometimes he will send me page that I think looks amazing... and then he will change his mind, take it back, and re-draw everything!  Wow -- that is true dedication to craftsmanship.  You have to admire a man with such high standards.

Here's a peek at his process, as he sent me the opening page of Black Axe #1.  Then he decided he wasn't thrilled with the results, and sent me a different version of the same page.  See for yourself.

Here's Fabio's take on the first draft:

And here's the page that he was eventually happy with:

It's kinda like playing one of those "Spot the Difference" games!  As you can see, he made different choices in terms of rendering armor, rock formations, shadows, trees, and more.  Fundamentally, very similar pages. But at the level of fine detail, a very different approach to the two versions.

It's kinda fun for me to see the way an artist's mind works, the stylistic choices they make, and the different techniques they have at their disposal.  Very cool.

Design Workshop: Fabio Nahon and the characters of Black Axe

Fabio Nahon designs some of the major characters for the Hypersmash title, Black Axe.

The Return of Fabio Nahon!

One of the more disappointing earlier developments in the history of Hypersmash Studios came when artist Fabio Nahon had to step away and discontinue his work on Battle Team Omega after producing several excellent pages of finished art. Recently, Fabio left a message through the Comments Section of this very blog and we were able to establish contact for the first time in years. He generously offered to provide a free pin-up of my choosing, but after a couple of emails, we decided to get more ambitious and collaborate on something a little more substantial. So I am proud to announce that Fabio Nahon will makes his return to Hypersmash Comics as the artist on a new original title, Astro Crusader! He’s already re-designed the costume, put together layouts on a handful of pages, and produced finished pencils and inks for the story’s introduction. All the disappointment I used to have because of our interrupted collaboration has faded away and it is a pleasant surprise to be working with Fabio again years later on this exciting new project! Keep an eye out for Astro Crusader – I have a feeling it's going to be a good one!

Four versions of a single page

As you probably know, I'm sorta knew to comic book self-publishing. Sure, I've been a fan who has read and enjoyed comics for a long time, but I had no involvement in the creation or production of a comic. So it seemed unusual to me when I ended up receiving four different versions of Page 1 of my Battle Team Omega script. I thought I would share the various versions with everyone, as a interesting peek "Behind the Scene." (Click any image to enlarge.)

1) First is Fabio Nahon's lay-out for the page. As you can see, the thugs start out as generic tough guys:

2) Next is a detailed page with full pencils. Here, the mercenaries are now equipped with high-tech gear. Fabio obviously put a lot of time into this page, and it shows...

3)...which is why I was stunned to see that he made an independent decision to re-draw the page! That's a true sign of professionalism and craftsmanship when an artist takes a perfectly functional page and decides to go back to the drawing board (literally.) The improvements Fabio made are obvious, cleaning up the composition and making everything less cluttered. The page certainly reads better in this revision:

4) Unfortunately, I was informed that Fabio would be unable to continue on the book and Nel Angeiras stepped in to take his place. Which led to a fourth interpretation of the book's opening scene. It seems like Nel used Fabio's pages as a guide, while also bringing his unique artistic vision to the page. Check it out:


So there you have it! Four very interesting versions of one page! I think it offers a fascinating insight into the work process of these artists (while also serving as a handy guide for all the different ways Blade Superior can sneak up on a bunch of armed mercenaries.) Hope you enjoyed it.

Two versions of a double-page spread

(Make sure to click to enlarge.)

Inked pages for Battle Team Omega

Battle Team Omega pages 3, 4, 5, 7 and 8

Battle Team Omega page 1 and 2, plus layouts

Sample Sequentials: Fabio Nahon

There are some interesting prospects for the different Hypersmash titles we’re developing, and I can’t talk about things in too much detail right now, but I just want to say that I’m excited by the idea of multimedia possibilities. I’ve started preliminary discussions with some very talented and very successful old friends, and even if nothing comes from it, it’s a really cool experience.

One of the surprising results of these discussions is that Hypersmash Studios has been generously loaned a skilled artist named Fabio Nahon! Man, how did that happen?

I’ll be honest with you – I know almost nothing about Fabio. I have no biographical info on him. From what I’ve been told, I am operating under the strong impression that he doesn’t speak English. So I’ve never been in contact with the man, never communicated with him except through intermediaries.

An old college buddy told me that he saw Fabio’s portfolio, and suggested that we work together. So Fabio is helping out, and drawing up his own interpretation of my script, in order to provide a useful sample of the story and its general shape. Huh. Pretty cool.

At this point, I want to make clear that Jason is the co-creator, co-owner, and permanent lead artist to Battle Team Omega. The nature of collaboration is based on mutual and shared success and that’s always been the approach I’ve taken with all my artists. The story, characters, and designs of the book are every bit as much the work of Jason, as they are mine – if not more. Nobody will ever be able to draw our creations the way he does, and the defining visual style of the book will come from his pencil, his brain, and his artistic skill. From a creative, moral, and legal standpoint, I firmly believe that Battle Team Omega is a creation that Jason and I share 50/50. And that’s the way it should be.

Jason has generously agreed to give Fabio an opportunity to create his alternate interpretation of our story, which is a really cool situation. In the next couple of posts, we'll get to see Fabio's take on the title.

And now, having said that, let’s take a moment to welcome Fabio Nahon to the Hypersmash family.

Here are some of the sample sequentials from his outstanding portfolio. I get the feeling that these pages will give you a pretty good indication of his abundant talent. (Translation: if you're not impressed by these pages, then might not be any hope for you...) Enjoy!