I can’t get into it. Sorry.
March 16th, 2008 by david brothers | Tags: greg land, Marvel comics, x-menI’m with Hoatzin.
I love the idea of Brubaker and Fraction trading off arcs on Uncanny. I’m a Terry and Rachel Dodson fan. I think that they have an awesome style.
The only wrench in the works is Greg Land for me.
I’m not gonna lie– Land has a seriously sick art style. I used to dig it. His characters are realistic, though his action scenes are kinda stiff, but it’s aesthetically pleasing. Then I started noticing more and more weirdness. Didn’t I see this Storm two issues ago? Wasn’t this Wolverine from…? What’s with these facial expressions?
Land is a hard sell for me right now. Brubaker and Fraction are writing two of my favorite Marvel books and Land is the thing that will make or break it for me. Marvel released his cover for Uncanny 500 and it looks like more of the same.
Solenna, of SolArts.net, feels the same way, but she’s better than I am because she’s got proof and no small amount of skill in creating GIFs. Thanks to our own Hoatzin and FBB’s David Uzumeri in helping her source. Big ups to her for putting in all the leg work, so go to her site and show her some love.
The GIF’s 200-some k. Is that gonna lag anyone out? I figure that we’re all on broadband these days, so we can handle it, right? Direct: http://4thletter.net/gregland.gif
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What is with this bringing back Daken crap? Does anyone like this character? Anyone at all? He’s the most embarrassing thing that came out of Marvel in 2007 from one of their most embarrassing books. He’s like a spoof of the 1990s FROM the 1990s that isn’t even funny anymore.
You and Hoatzin and Alanna are doing the Lord’s work here. Bless you.
Has anyone sent this link to Rich Johnston yet?
“I’m not gonna lie– Land has a seriously sick art style. I used to dig it. His characters are realistic, though his action scenes are kinda stiff, but it’s aesthetically pleasing. Then I started noticing more and more weirdness. Didn’t I see this Storm two issues ago? Wasn’t this Wolverine from…? What’s with these facial expressions?”
This is exactly it. It’s the reason why he still keeps getting work: It looks good on the surface. People glance at it and are wowed by how “realistic” and “detailed” the characters look, but once you really start paying attention to it you begin to notice the fakeness. I went through the same thing when I first saw his art on Ultimate Fantastic Four.
It should also be noted that he used to actually draw things himself (way back when he was working for DC). Apparently he noticed he could get away with being lazy.
I actually liked his Birds of Prey run. Seeing this stuff now is a bit painful.
Greg Land wins most talented tracer, 2008.
Once I started reading these things, and noticing the weird o-faces and such, it totally ruined him as an artist for me. When he first came back to Marvel and did Phoenix: End Song he was still drawing a lot of stuff himself, and it looked great. Since then though… more and more awkward (traced) characters.
This is making me nostalgic for the days when I thought Humberto Ramos was the worst the art on X-Men could get.
Oh Jesus, you made LITG.
Dude, where the fuck is Gambit on the Uncanny #500 cover? FAIL 😛
That said, I miss old Sojourn!Greg Land. It was 78.3% less porny.
Because of the scattershot cut-n-paste method Land is obviously using here, the image has no sense of direction or flow. It’s like a bad elementary school collage made from magazine clippings glued willy-nilly about the page! C’mon Land — at least make some sort of effort!
Uhm there is a flow to the picture, all the characters are coming from the left, facing right or moving along a right path. That’s flow. I agree that a lot of those are in fact very similar but I can attest to several pieces of my own artwork involving multiple character in the same or nearly the same pose being able to be placed on top of one another. When you draw a particular pose enough times sometimes its faster to just do it that way. I dont know, maybe he did trace, but Im saying give him the benefit of the doubt.
Then again, we’re comic book fans, when are we rational? When DON’T we jump to conclusions?
Dartfin, this is not us jumping to conclusions. This is an artist with a well-documented history of tracing photos from magazines and re-using the same images over and over again. Just try Googling for it and you’ll see.
Also, there is no flow to that picture at all. It’s an assembly of characters in completely randomly decided poses, for absolutely no reason. Some of them are standing still while striking a pose. Some of them are flying upwards. Some of them are flying/running forwards. Some of them are moving off to the right. Some of them are moving off to the left. The entire compostion makes no sense. What are they even doing?
I’m telling you, people, he randomly places characters on backgrounds like a five year old with Colorforms.
Thanks SO much for the info. I am an original art collector and I was going to drop a small fortune to own the original art to this cover from Greg land himself. I only collect x men art so I didnt even know that this was going on with Gregs art as I havent been following him (I dont even read the ultimate stuff). I would have been pretty upset to sell off some of my favorite pieces to own a cover that is 50% or more traced! Thanks again!
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I am really getting sick of the Greg Land bashing. Like its getting stupid. You guys are getting mad because he is copying his own work. And you guys are saying he traced some this work, but looking at the gif, many of the poses are not similar to the original. And then the Cassady one? Like no one can possibly have the same pose?
Don’t get me wrong, some of his stuff is pretty darn traced, like Pixie or Emma. But there are some pieces in that image are not traced, and are more used for referance.
And honestly? I would prefer to see an image with random poses for no purpose then just a whole bunch of characters standing around (Like Avengers: The Iniative). Its a lot more pleasing to the eye then just simple standing.
u mad?
WTF?
The simple reason that the cover depicts the characters striking the posed is to grab readers’s attention from the hundreds of other comics.
I think this image by land achieves it superbly.
As for as tracing is concerened, you have already declared him guilty and trying to fit various pieces to prove your claim. If he indeed traces, where is the original image for Beast? Colossus etc.
Wolvie’s face does not match with cyclops. Also, the fist is moved if you look closely.
As for as swiping: Byrne’s X-men cover preceeds Perez’z crisis#7 cover. Does that make Perez a fake? I don’t think so. In case of great artists, it’s a homage but here it’s a swipe. Fine yardsticks you guys have here.
If he is recyling it, let him recycle it millionth time is that perticular pose looks good to a reader. Atleast his art is far better than sloppy Jimenez crapolla that spoiled the whole infinite crisis series.
What I am trying to say is if monalisa looks good in that perticular pose, daVinci will draw her the same way thousand times & not change it a bit & that’s what we would want him to do.
I maybe wrong here but please guys the guy IS an artist.He has done good stuff before. If you can match him at that level, pass judgement otherwise it will look like a lots of dogs barking out there cause they can’t outrun a cheetah.
The simple reason that the cover depicts the characters striking the posed is to grab readers’s attention from the hundreds of other comics.
I think this image by land achieves it superbly.
In the sense that “Wow! That looks like shit compared to the other covers,” sure.
As for as tracing is concerened, you have already declared him guilty and trying to fit various pieces to prove your claim. If he indeed traces, where is the original image for Beast? Colossus etc.
Well, that certainly showed us. We can’t place two characters, so the other couple dozen never happened.
OJ could have been acquitted way earlier originally if someone like you just simply said, “Hey! How can he be a murderer when he didn’t kill Kato? Huh?”
Wolvie’s face does not match with cyclops. Also, the fist is moved if you look closely.
Much like that infamous Ultimate Power swipe where Arcana is obviously traced from a porn chick playing with herself, but Land changed her arm’s direction at the elbow.
As for as swiping: Byrne’s X-men cover preceeds Perez’z crisis#7 cover. Does that make Perez a fake? I don’t think so. In case of great artists, it’s a homage but here it’s a swipe. Fine yardsticks you guys have here.
Of course not. Perez used an iconic cover that everyone recognizes as the centerpiece for another high-profile work. Unless there’s something I’m missing, he wasn’t trying to sneak his swipe under anyone’s nose.
But compare that to Armor in the background. Are you really saying that that tiny part of the picture is supposed to make us say, “Oh yeah! It’s just like that cover that Cassady did for Astonishing!”
This is the same guy who rather than draw Ultimate Dr. Doom like Ultimate Dr. Doom, just drew him as the 616 Doom because there was more material to swipe from. The way he portrays Doom on the cover of UF4 #30 is the exact same appearance as a statue of Doom sitting on a throne, down to the placement of his fingers. The one difference is that his head is facing a different direction.
If he is recyling it, let him recycle it millionth time is that perticular pose looks good to a reader.
You do see that Scarlet Witch/Storm pose, right? And the many instances of “orgasm face”?
What I am trying to say is if monalisa looks good in that perticular pose, daVinci will draw her the same way thousand times & not change it a bit & that’s what we would want him to do.
And people would have called him a hack by the third or fourth example. They’d be right to do so.
I maybe wrong here but please guys the guy IS an artist.He has done good stuff before. If you can match him at that level, pass judgement otherwise it will look like a lots of dogs barking out there cause they can’t outrun a cheetah.
The “if you can’t do it that well, don’t complain” argument has never worked. I’m still pretty shocked that people still try to use that to this day. Am I not allowed to criticize the president because I’ve never run a country? I can’t say that the Happening was a piece of shit because I’m not a director? Give me a break.
No, I’m not an artist. I know my faults. It’s a shame Land doesn’t admit to his.
Gavok said everything I wanted to say, but with less “u mad.”
u maaaaaaaaaaaaaad.
Hey Gavok,
Since you have take great care in replying to my post, I felt that I should return the favour.
“Wow! That looks like shit compared to the other covers”
which other covers you are talking about? If it looks like shit to you, better wash your eyes clean (along with your mouth).
“OJ could have been acquitted way earlier originally if someone like you just simply said, “Hey! How can he be a murderer when he didn’t kill Kato? Huh?”
Grow up moron. You are equating murder, a serious crime with comic art swipe all the while being sarcastic.
Huh?. What is it that drives your vendetta against Land. He owes you money?slept with your mom?
“Much like that infamous Ultimate Power swipe where Arcana is obviously traced from a porn chick playing with herself, but Land changed her arm’s direction at the elbow.”
How many hours of porn you watched closely to spot that? .. and how many videos in total?
Hey man,did you atleast enjoyed them or you were too busy trying to spot the matching poses with Land’s art.
BTW, did you catch the wolvie fight scenes in any of them? Who knows maybe your schizophreniac mind made you see that as well…..
“Perez used an iconic cover that everyone recognizes as the centerpiece for another high-profile work..”
Uncanny 500 is not high profile?
“Oh yeah! It’s just like that cover that Cassady did for Astonishing”
Yeah. Bring Cassaday into it.
This is the guy who made emma frost look like woman dying with AIDS during his run on Ashtonishing…
“You do see that Scarlet Witch/Storm pose, right? And the many instances of “orgasm face”?”
Orgasm face? Please do yourself a favour and ask your girlfriend(if you have one)whether there is an “orgasm face”. You’ll get your answer.
“And people would have called him a hack by the third or fourth example. They’d be right to do so”
People can call him “hack/swiper/whatever…”& he would not have cared less. I can call you an @$$hoLe right now. Does that make you one? Waitaminute… wrong question , right guy .
“The “if you can’t do it that well, don’t complain” argument has never worked”
What makes you think that argument has never worked? Just because you think so? Ha Ha !! Better never get out of your wonderland Alice.
“I can’t say that the Happening was a piece of shit because I’m not a director? Give me a break.”
Wow! there IS somehing we both agree on. That movie was a crap-fest sure. But I got the similar feeling about the director’s ability earlier on after his “signs” & unlike you I never grumbled. What I did was to stop watching his movies. Straight and simple. What’s so difficult about it . When you don’t like something, do something constructive. If you don’t like the way Land is drawing stop buying his books. If the sizeable amount of readers are lost, the company will have no alternative but to replace him( highly unlikely since you grumblers are a minority).
“No, I’m not an artist. I know my faults. It’s a shame Land doesn’t admit to his”
Neither you are a writer or you wouln not end the sentence like that 🙂
Whatever your motive may be in dissing Land, you are not going to succeed. You may call him/his art “shit”, but it’s you whose has shit all over your mind. Admit THAT first.
which other covers you are talking about?
Whichever ones you were talking about.
If it looks like shit to you, better wash your eyes clean (along with your mouth).
Oh snap! This part is great because it works perfectly into his next line…
Grow up moron.
But wait! There’s more!
Huh?. What is it that drives your vendetta against Land. He owes you money?slept with your mom?
Yes, grow up indeed! Thank you for being the voice of reason in all this madness, yraj.
How many hours of porn you watched closely to spot that? .. and how many videos in total?
Hey man,did you atleast enjoyed them or you were too busy trying to spot the matching poses with Land’s art.
Exactly. Me and the many, many others who laughed at Ultimate Power’s Arcana had to watch hours upon hours of porn to realize that this picture came from a less-than-wholesome source:
Uncanny 500 is not high profile?
It is high profile, but Armor is certainly not the centerpiece.
Yeah. Bring Cassaday into it.
This is the guy who made emma frost look like woman dying with AIDS during his run on Ashtonishing…
And yet Land feels the need to rip him off.
Orgasm face? Please do yourself a favour and ask your girlfriend(if you have one)whether there is an “orgasm face”. You’ll get your answer.
All I have to do is look into the mirror after reading your post and I’ll see my own orgasm face! 😀
People can call him “hack/swiper/whatever…”& he would not have cared less. I can call you an @$$hoLe right now. Does that make you one? Waitaminute… wrong question , right guy .
Wait, I lost track here. Is this statement about him actually being a hack/swiper or him caring about how he’s a hack/swiper? I guess you lost track too.
What makes you think that argument has never worked? Just because you think so? Ha Ha !! Better never get out of your wonderland Alice.
Because it’s a flawed argument. I don’t have to be able to sing to identify William Hung as a bad singer.
Hell, despite your claims that you don’t “grumble”, you still identified the Happening as a crapfest. How dare you insult that movie? What movies have you directed, huh?
What I did was to stop watching his movies. Straight and simple. What’s so difficult about it . When you don’t like something, do something constructive. If you don’t like the way Land is drawing stop buying his books.
And if you don’t like a comic blogging website, call one of its writers a porn fiend “@$$hoLe”. Got it.
By the way, I notice that you write out the censored “@$$hoLe”, but you have no problem saying “shit”. I’m curious, what’s the thought process in that?
Neither you are a writer or you wouln not end the sentence like that 🙂
I do use spell-check, so I have that going for me.
Whatever your motive may be in dissing Land, you are not going to succeed. You may call him/his art “shit”, but it’s you whose has shit all over your mind. Admit THAT first.
Um… No. No, I won’t. Thanks for playing.
Neither will Land admit to being what you want him to be because of your false accusations.
“All I have to do is look into the mirror after reading your post and I’ll see my own orgasm face! :D”
Is my writing erotic? You really need to consult a sexologist about it.
Ohhhhhh!!!!! right .. I see some repressed sexual issues here . Just because Land has access to lots of porn (according to you) please don’t take out your frustration on him .
Just becasue you are one of the writer of comic blog, you can diss out someone as you please? If so, be ready for rebuttal..
Neither will Land admit to being what you want him to be because of your false accusations.
I want him to be a good artist who doesn’t rip people off or copy the same unnatural poses over and over again like he seemed to be back in his Birds of Prey days. Really, click that link. Those sure are a lot of “false accusations”, aren’t there?
Just because Land has access to lots of porn (according to you) please don’t take out your frustration on him.
Don’t worry, yraj. I won’t. In fact, I’m going to stick to my guns and make fun of him because, get this, he’s a swiper with a crappy art style that proceeds to ruin every book he draws for. But don’t let that stop you from responding to evidence with insults and insinuations.
Just becasue you are one of the writer of comic blog, you can diss out someone as you please?
USA! USA! USA!
Besides, didn’t you say earlier, “When you don’t like something, do something constructive”? What isn’t constructive about this article?
If so, be ready for rebuttal..
Does your last comment even count as a rebuttal? All you did was whoosh the “orgasm face” joke and come up with alternate reasons why I don’t like your favorite artist. I’m curious, is this whole experience like finding out that Santa Claus doesn’t exist to you? You haven’t been taking it so well.
In one of the sentence, Land seems to be good artist “..back in his Birds of Prey days”
In other sentence “..he’s a swiper with a crappy art style that proceeds to ruin every book he draws for.”
Make up your mind.(& do look back in the mirror too & check your O-face while you are at it).
“Besides, didn’t you say earlier, “When you don’t like something, do something constructive”? What isn’t constructive about this article?”
The repeated ridicule of the artist is NOT constructive. Get yourself to draw 1/10th of what he does & you’ll get your answer.
“I’m curious, is this whole experience like finding out that Santa Claus doesn’t exist to you? You haven’t been taking it so well.”
Have you taken your daily medication? You sure seems to have lost YOUR track here.
You want rebuttal, here’s one–>http://www.comicbycomic.com/2008/08/greg-vs-greg-part-2-greg-land.html
People having different opinions from other people in groundbreaking SHOCKER
Some people like him, others don’t. That’s the way the real world works. I don’t like him and won’t read books drawn by him. You, apparently, like him and don’t get why people wouldn’t.
Otherwise, you wouldn’t be defending him with weak rebuttals on a site where no one likes him.
Make up your mind.
He used to be a decent artist and he no longer is because he falls back on cutting corners. What’s not to get?
The repeated ridicule of the artist is NOT constructive.
The article points out his failings and flaws as an artist. Nowhere in the article does david call Land’s mom a whore or anything like that. Sorry we can’t be a bunch of yes-men like you.
You want rebuttal, here’s one
A guy who says that he doesn’t care about Land’s failings because he likes him anyway. Okay. Doesn’t change my mind.
All right, I got it. Since you get a kick out of plagiarism and all that, let me put it like this:
Life is very short, and there’s no time for fussing and fighting, my friend. I have always thought that it’s a crime, so I will ask you once again: Try to see it my way, only time will tell if I am right or I am wrong. While you see it your way, there’s a chance that we might fall apart before too long.
We can work it out. We can work it out.
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[…] What I said before still stands. Get this lazy scrub out of here, and put somebody good on his books. Do better. […]
Is the story any good?
I agree the Arcana artwork looks like it was taken from an adult sampler.
Ok, I’ll admit I’m a bit slow, but what is the nature of the animated gif above?
Where do those images come from?
— MrJM
@MrJM: Those images are taken from other comics that Greg Land has drawn. That is, except for the one labeled “Cassady”. That one is something he stole from another artist. They’re all poses that he copies and pastes as if they were Clipart, changes the costumes and calls them a new drawing.