 |
|
The Green Hornet #5 Cover. 2013.
Ink(ed by Joe Rivera) on bristol board with digital color, 11 × 17″.
|
Here’s my latest cover for The Green Hornet, the 5th in the series by Mark Waid and Daniel Indro. There are a number of nice things about having a monthly cover gig. For starters, it’s consistent and dependable with predictable demands. But aside from the work aspect, it allows for more explorations of a character besides the classic, iconic shot that most covers demand. The best part, however, is getting to use the sketches that fell by the wayside. (My other monthly gig is for Superior Spider-Man Team-Up, formerly Avenging Spider-Man.)
The covers also start to add up pretty quickly. I’m working on the 7th at the moment. These are all inked by my Dad, Joe Rivera, as is usually the case with my work from 2011 and later. I color them all in Photoshop, but I’m contemplating giving my Dad a crack at that too. If you’d like to see a step-by-step demo, I detailed the entire process for the 1st cover in a previous post. While that took about 17 hours, the rest clocked in at 14, (including preliminary work, but not inks).
On a final note, if you’re unfamiliar with the Green Hornet, all you need to know is in the fantastic book about H.J. Ward by David Saunders. Ward is probably my favorite painter, and it turns out he helped to create the masked hero.
 |
|
Green Hornet #4. 2013. Ink(ed by Joe Rivera)
on bristol board with digital color, 11 × 17″.
|
 |
|
Green Hornet #3 Cover. 2013.
Ink(ed by Joe Rivera) on bristol board, 11 × 17″.
|
 |
|
Green Hornet #2 Cover. 2012.
Ink(ed by Joe Rivera) on bristol board, 11 × 17″.
|
 |
|
Green Hornet #1 Cover. 2012.
Ink(ed by Joe Rivera) on bristol board, 11 × 17. |
It must be really enjoyable fleshing out a character over multiple images like this. The first one with the maze of newspapers is great- its graphically interesting and evokes a “hot on the trail” vibe in layered ways.
Have you been able to get any more work done on your personal project you posted character sketches for? I'd love to see some updates for that.
Thanks, Erik! I haven't gotten a chance to work on my own story lately — too many other gigs and conventions — but I'm still picking away at the script. The hope is to start drawing pages next year.