Iron Man: Crash

Iron Man: Crash
by Mike Saenz and Bill Bates
Marvel Comics Graphic Novel, 1988

'Iron Man: Crash' (72 pp) was published as a Marvel Graphic Novel in 1988. Along with the 65 pp graphic novel, there is a 7 page afterward featuring an essay from author Saenz, and descriptions of the computing procedures and software used to create the comic. 

Mike Saenz introduced the first computer-drawn comic book, the black and white Shatter, in February 1985 for First Comics. Shatter was composed using a MacIntosh PC. With the advent of the Mac II in 1987, Saenz was interested in using it to compose a more elaborate work, particularly in terms of deploying a full range of color, and arranged with Marvel editor Archie Goodwin to create 'Iron Man: Crash'.

'Crash' is set late in the 20th century. Tony Stark is 74 years old, but maintains a youthful physiology and appearance thanks to a regimen of anti-aging drugs. Stark Industries remains one of the world's top technology companies, and a major player in the international arms trade. 

Tony Stark intends to market his latest 'Iron Man' style technology - a sophisticated armor suite called the SAV - for use in industrial applications. Among the potential licensees is a Japanese conglomerate called ESON; Stark's decision to sell the SAV technology to ESON is not well received by Nick Fury, still the driving force at SHIELD, and a man wary of giving the Japanese an advantage in the highly competitive global technology market.

Stark's liberal stance is tested when, on a business trip to Japan to negotiate with ESON executives, he is attacked by unknown assailants.

Rather than taking Nick Fury's advice and flee Japan, Tony Stark decides that he will investigate the attack on his own - as Iron Man. And his newest suit of armor is more than a fighting machine......it possesses an array of devices that allow Stark access to the unique realm of Cyberspace......... 

'Iron Man: Crash' is one of the projects that sounded good in the planning, but failed in the execution. 

Even by the standards of the time, the artwork not very impressive. Most of the content of the novel was composed using the Mac II's graphics software (QuickDraw) and is necessarily low-res. 

A few panels feature more high-res imagery composed using Adobe Illustrator, as well as some CAD images of the Heli-carrier and vertibirds composed using Pro 3D. Regardless of the method used to draw the images, they all have a static, awkward quality that translates rather poorly into the inherently dynamic format of the comic book. 

A major drawback to 'Crash' is Saenz's writing. Many panels in the first part of the book are crammed with strings of pretentious 'tech' gobbledygook that's a chore to wade through.

The essay on 'The Making of Crash' that Saenz provides in the book's afterward also suffers from being less about informing the reader of the creative process and more about Saenz positioning himself as a sort of Tech Guru to the ignorant masses.

Given that Saenz' other major PC project during the mid-80s was the game MacPlaymate, which let the user place a Hand Icon onto certain regions of the anatomy of a rasterized drawing of a reclining nude woman (I'm not making this up - see screenshot below), this attitude seems more than a little pompous........

(For another review of 'Crash', see this link.)

The verdict ? 'Iron Man: Crash' is best regarded as an artifact from the pop culture of the late 80s, rather than a groundbreaking addition to the comic book / graphic novel canon. 

The PC-generated graphic novel 'Batman: Digital Justice', which was authored by Pepe Moreno, and came out in 1990, is better example of what artists were capable of doing at the dawn of the digital comics era.

Batman: Digital Justice

Batman: Digital Justice
by Pepe Moreno
DC, 1990

 

It was 30 years ago next month (i.e., March, 1985) that the first 'digital' comic strip, Shatter, was published in the PC magazine Big K............

In December of that year, First Comics released the first issue of a dedicated Shatter color comic book series, which eventually lasted for 14 issues.

Marvel, noticing the high sales of the initial issues of Shatter, hired its artist, Mike Saenz, to produce Iron Man: Crash in 1988. Crash was advertised as the 'world's first digital graphic novel.'

DC eventually entered the digital comics market two years later, with its own graphic novel, 'Batman: Digital Justice.'

As indicated in the jacket flap, 'Justice' was composed on a Mac II with 8 MB of RAM, 45 MB of hard disk space, and a Trinitron 19 inch monitor ....a high-end setup for the late 80s !

Pepe Moreno, author and artist of 80s comics favorites like 'Rebel' and 'Generation Zero', took a year to complete 'Justice.' Given that Moreno was a more accomplished artist than Saenz, and was working with more advanced computing equipment, 'Justice' - not surprisingly - is the better-looking of these early digital comics.

'Justice' is set in the early 21st century; a time when hardly anyone remembers the legend of a caped crusader named Batman. Law enforcement in Gotham City has been modernized, relying on a system of ubiquitous, hovering drones to deter crime and punish evildoers.

James Gordon's grandson - also named James - is a sergeant on Gotham's police force. As 'Justice' opens, Gordon is in plainclothes, and pursuing an illicit drug transaction, when a drone lays waste to perps and police alike.

Outraged, Gordon starts an investigation of the drone's programming, which leads to a direct rebuke from his superior officers. Continuing his investigation through covert channels, Gordon discovers that a rogue AI - the digital embodiment of the long-ago super villain 'The Joker' - is in control of the city's computer network.

Stymied by a bureaucratic coverup, corruption in City Hall, and the deaths of close friends and associates, James Gordon finds himself alone and embattled......

However, when he pokes through some of his grandfather's old files, Gordon comes across knowledge that may turn the tables on the Joker.....knowledge about the legend of Batman........

I won't disclose any spoilers, save to say that Batman - and a reincarnated Robin, and a reincarnated Catwoman - will soon be dispensing digital justice on the evil forces, digital and 'real', besieging Gotham City.

To anyone under 30, obviously the computer-drawn and colored artwork in 'Justice' is going to appear crude. However, if you are willing to make allowances for the limitations of the technology at that time (keep in mind that today's XBox One is a more powerful PC than anything available in 1989), you will find that Moreno succeeds in giving 'Justice' a unique look and atmosphere, and the graphic novel retains its artistic appeal even to the present day.

Copies of 'Batman: Digital Justice' can be obtained for reasonable prices from your usual online vendors (I got mine for $5, from the discount bins at my local comics shop). It's well worth picking up.

'Shatter' issue 3

 'Shatter' issue three was released in June 1986; Steven Grant handled the scripting chores while Steve Erwin and Bob Dienethal handled the artwork.

The inside-cover Letters Page touches on the arcane topic of whether a curved line is too perfect to have been drawn on a MacIntosh...! 

This was computer artwork ca. mid-1986, after all.

 In this issue, Shatter - aka Sadr Al-Din Morales - finds himself unhappy with serving as a thrall to the Alien Nation and its overlord, Unrath.

Deciding to light out for home, he stumbles upon an orgy (?!) and later, a whip-wielding dominatrix (?!)...

His escape attempt unsuccessful, Shatter must stand beside Unrath and watch as the forces of conglomerate 'Simon Schuster Jovanovich' close in on the Nation....

we'll see what happens next issue......

'Shatter' issue 2

Issue 2 of ‘Shatter’ appeared in February 1986.

At the end of issue one, we saw hero Jack Scratch (aka Shatter) and his companions, ‘The Artist's Underground’, at the mercy of a corporate heavy. 

The tables are turned, causing an unpleasant episode of face-exploding (!):

While the Mac-based artistry of this issue seems crude to today's eyes, there are some panels  that demonstrate the potential of PC-based comic and graphic art:

Later on in the issue, Cyan, the leader of the local cell of the Artist's Underground, has a violent confrontation with her ex-husband...........

....while Jack Scratch decides to seek shelter with the 'Alien Nation', a collective headed by an eccentric homeboy named 'E.T.' Unrath:

Will Cyan survive ? Will Jack Scratch be protected by the Alien Nation or find himself an outcast again ? 

We'll find out in issue No. 3......

Shatter: Issue One

Shatter: Issue One

(First Comics, December 1985)

This marks the first issue of the 'dedicated' Shatter comic book from First Comics.

In the editorial page on the inside front cover, First Comics editor Mike Gold tells us that the  special introductory issue of Shatter from February 1985 sold out, as did the second printing. While there is always an element of hyperbole in these statements, it does appear that the comic-buying public was intrigued with the idea of a title with its artwork composed on a computer.

By the time Shatter No. 1 was ready for preparation, the First Comics team of artist Mike Saenz and writer Gold had an updated piece of software at their disposal: MacDraw, which allowed them to create 'layers' and place them atop one another. As well, a higher-res font was used to create the comic's text. 

And most impressive of all, Apple / Steve Jobs provided First Comics with a FREE newfangled LaserWriter - in 1985 such devices cost $7,000 ! 

The ability of the LaserWriter to generate prints at 300 dpi meant a visible improvement in the artwork of the comic.

The initial pages of this first issue are confusing in terms of plot, mainly because no effort is made to update the reader on events taking place during Shatter's run as a backup feature in the First Comics title 'Jon Sable'. 

But it seems that Jack Scratch has decided to throw his lot in with a team of malcontents known as the 'Artists Underground', which include some geeks, and (naturally) a playboy bunny:

The old tenement building housing the secret base of the Artists Underground happens to contain a swimming pool, and the attractive leader of the Underground, Cyan, likes to swim a lot, which in turn provides a convenient excuse for some Old School MacIntosh cheesecake (keep in mind this is 11 years before 'Tomb Raider' first appeared on the Sega Saturn).

Unfortunately for Jack Scratch, a potential romantic encounter is interrupted by the appearance of some high-tech ninjas:

Has Cyan sold out the Underground to Corporate Interests ?! We'll have to see in 'Shatter' issue 2.....