The Third Barry Smith Piece in The Fifty!

It is framed so why not announce and anoint it officially: Barry Windsor-Smith Daredevil 236 page for The Fifty! I have three pages so far from this issue and have my eye on a fourth but this is my favorite of those I own.

Barry Smith full art Daredevil 236

When I owned 2 pages from this issue I took them to a show where Bob Wiacek was appearing. Bob shares inking duties with Barry Smith over the Smith pencils for this issue. I asked Bob if he had inked either of the pages and I figured he had likely done one or the other as this page was so dense and dark and the other is very sparse and light-handed. Bob told me he did not ink either of the pages and as I pondered this I decided to show the pages to artist Jimmy Cheung, who was also attending the show. As I told Jimmy of my encounter with Bob he laughed and said something like "of course Barry inked these pages. that's a Barry line there, and those as well" as he pointed out his examples. It hit me in the face how obvious it was as he said it.

Every so often I am reminded of this lesson and have to remember to really look at the art I own. It was lessons like the one Jimmy gave me that spawned my decision to put my art on the walls and eventually create the concept of The Fifty.

I love this page. I only became aware of the rogue issues Barry did occasionally for Marvel after I became a collector of his original comic art. For some reason the pages from Iron man have escaped me and yet this issue seems to find me. This is a great story page with Black Widow sticking up for DD and it not helping one bit. My  favorite panel is that one of DD upside down at the bottom of the page but that middle tier is tremendous as well. DD's head in the panel with Natasha's kick is also well done.

I am just throwing the pieces in here when I rank them but it is really making me think about which pieces deserve what spots.


The Fifty
1  Barry Windsor-Smith Storyteller Young Gods page 4 (framed)
2  Tony Harris / Ray Snyder Dr. Strange WIRED Magazine cover  (framed)
3  Barry Windsor-Smith Weapon X page  (framed)
4  Gene Colan / Tom Palmer Tomb of Dracula 44 page 22  (framed)
5  Tony Harris Starman 3 cover  (framed)
6  Barry Windsor-Smith Daredevil 236 page (framed)
7  Tony Harris Starman 53 cover  (framed)

8  David Mazzucchelli Daredevil 233 page 19

9  JHW3 Milestone Forever pinup

10  Simon Bisley Dr. Strange vs The Mindless Ones
11  Paul Smith Dr. Strange vs Dr.Doom  (framed)
12  Dave Sim Mars Attacks variant cover
13  Gene Colan / Tom Palmer Tomb of Dracula 44 page 1 splash  (framed)
14  Dan Green Dr. Strange: Into Shamballa splash (framed)
15  Tony Harris 1994 Starman pinup  (framed)
16 Bill Sienkiewicz Superman 400 pinup recreation

17  Ted McKeever Dr. Strange vs Dr.Doom in Hell
18  Dean Ormston Dr. Strange & Eternity

19  Bryan Talbot Dr. Strange commission
20  Dan Adkins Dr Strange 170 page 11  (framed)

21 Ulises Farinas - Dr. Strange in his Sanctum Sanctorum

22  Rudy Nebres - Dr. Strange, Dracula & The Scarlet Witch
23  Mike Allred - Doctor Strange, Clea, The Ancient One, Wong, and Rintrah...A Day Off
24  Anna Merli Clea
25  Mitchell Bretweiser Dr. Strange watercolor
26  Jae Lee Dr. Strange
27  Darwyn Cooke Wonder Woman  (framed)

Comic Art Con Acquisition - Barry Windsor-Smith Daredevil 236 page 4

BWS Daredevil 236 page 4

Here is what I drove an hour to pick up today. Well worth it, no? I add this one to the two others from this issue I own. I will post all three of them later today or early this week, but for now let's give the new addition the spotlight.

The Fifty - Barry Windsor-Smith Weapon X

This could be the most valuable page in my collection. But it is special to me not for its' monetary value but for the sheer beauty and artistry of the page. Ladies and gentlemen, page 7 from Chapter 2 of Barry Windsor Smith's epic Wolverine origin story, Weapon X!

Barry Windsor-Smith Weapon X Chapter 2 page 7

This is such a great page, art AND story. You have the previously vicious but now sedated and subdued Wolverine and the scientists central to his creation expressing their true ignorance of what a unique patient they have with their current Weapon X subject. The linework on the page, especially on the Wolverine panels,is amazing. (The figure in panel two looks straight out of the Trimpe/BWS Machine Man series.) Wolverine in the tank is an iconic and unforgettable image and you can see why on this page. The images are mesmerizing: tubes, wires, and futuristic technology supporting and evolving the primitive and bestial figure of Wolverine.

I love it. It was one of the first pieces I had framed when I first envisioned The Fifty. It hangs proudly about six feet in front of me, 2 o'clock high, and it is beautiful.

The Fifty
1  BWS Storyteller Young Gods page 4
2  Tony Harris / Ray Snyder Dr. Strange WIRED Magazine cover
3  BWS Weapon X page
4  Gene Colan / Tom Palmer Tomb of Dracula 44 page 1 splash

5  Simon Bisley Dr. Strange vs The Mindless Ones
6  Ted McKeever Dr. Strange vs Dr.Doom in Hell
7  Dan Green Dr. Strange: Into Shamballa splash
8  Tony Harris 1994 Starman pinup
9  Bill Sienkiewicz Superman 400 pinup recreation

10  JHW3 Milestone Forever pinup

11  Darwyn Cooke Wonder Woman

12  Dan Adkins Dr Strange 170 page 11

13 JH Williams 3rd / Mick Gray Promethea 24 double page spread

14  Rudy Nebres - Dr. Strange, Dracula & The Scarlet Witch
15  Anna Merli Clea
16  Mitchell Bretweiser Dr. Strange watercolor
17  Jae Lee Dr. Strange