FW Presents: Showcase Gene Colan: DAREDEVIL

On this latest episode of FW Presents celebrating the artistic greatness of Gene Colan, Ryan Daly at last tackles the superhero that Colan drew more than any other during his long career. Joining Ryan is fellow Fire and Water all-star Siskoid, whose heretofore secret love of the Man Without Fear will serve him as the two discuss DAREDEVIL #26, in which ol' Horn Head contends with the villainy of Stiltman, Leap-Frog, and the Masked Marauder! Yeah. Seriously.

Throughout his life, Gene Colan brought his truly unique art style to the pages of Batman, The Tomb of Dracula, Iron Man, Wonder Woman, The Avengers, Howard the Duck, Doctor Strange, The Spectre, and so many others. What issues will Ryan chronicle on this podcast? You’ll have to tune in to find out!

Let us know what you think! Leave a comment or send an email to: RDalyPodcast@gmail.com.

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Intro: Gene Colan interview from “The Men Without Fear”; “The Vampire Hunters” by Wojciech Kilar.

Additional music: “Friend of the Devil" by The Grateful Dead; "Devil Inside" by INXS.

Thanks for listening!

4 responses to “FW Presents: Showcase Gene Colan: DAREDEVIL

  1. Fun show guys. My life-long buddy Grover LOVES Daredevil, and I would read his comics off and on, when we wer kids, so I was more of a fan from afar, but there’s definitely something appealing about DD, no matter the treatment. He IS like Marvel’s Batman (sorry Moon Knight) in that his elastic nature somehow makes him viable in straight-up super heroic stories, as well as crime noir and horror, more so than almost every other major Marvel character, as you pointed out.

    Colan’s reliance on heavy shadowing (even in this period) was a natural progression from Wally Wood, who was also a master of shadows and lighting, and designed DD’s iconic red suit, and set the pace for the book after it floundered a bit out of the gate. He seemed to kind of keep John Romita’s DD face and work his own magic from there. Mike Murdock is just nuts. I wish they’d done that on the Netflix show, just to see how they would have handled it!

    I first met both Leap Frog and Stilt-Man in 80s Spider-Man comics, so I have a soft spot for these guys. I thought Stilt-Man looked pretty awesome at age 7, and couldn’t figure out why they were portraying him as a loser on the inside. Leap Frog…yeah, I understood that one more, but I loved the stories featuring his son the Fabulous Frog Man!

    Chris

  2. Thank you, gentlemen. This episode was as entertaining as ever.

    As the two of you have helped me to realize over the last year or so, I am a sucker for monochromatic superheroes with clean and simple looks, like Daredevil and Silver Surfer. So this issue looks like it was made for me.

    It sounds like I discovered Daredevil around the same time that Siskoid did. As a result, this early era of Daredevil’s career is a bit of a blind spot for me. Based on your coverage of this issue, it sounds like an era worth exploring. Back when I first met Daredevil as a young teen, I enjoyed the street level grittiness of his stories. Now a days, I think I am in a better positioned to enjoy the character’s more carefree, swashbuckling origins.

  3. I’ve not been able to keep up with commenting, this show comes out so frequently, but don’t doubt I love the chat about Gene Colan’s work. Thanks so much, Ryan.

    And it’s Siskoid who has come up with the phrase to beat when describing ‘the Dean’s’ later work: ‘ It’s a fog with images playing on it‘.

    Dang, that’s good.

    As is the art this issue, which I’ve enjoyed in eye-popping Marvel Unlimited vision; I actually really like the super-bright colours, possibly because I originally read this issue in black & white in Marvel UK. To my eyes it doesn’t look so dissimilar to his Seventies work. Every page is utterly beautiful.

  4. Like Martin, I’m listening but unable to keep up with commenting! Looking at the pages you provided reminded me that Colan and Lee were working in “the Marvel Method.” It was up to Gene to pace the story to hit the beats just right, the Stan would figure out the balloons and captions, in his singular way! So, for instance, that page of Daredevil just swinging and leaping around NYC; it doesn’t serve the story, per se, but it does serve to introduce the character to new eyes. This is who he is, how he moves , how other people react to him. The thought balloons help to explain where he is/was, what his strengths/handicaps are, and what is on his mind (finally something about the plot!). It’s not really an action scene, there is no conflict, but the is movement. Not only is the character moving, the panels are moving! All those borders whose sides don’t align with the page edges contribute to the sense of motion in this medium of still pictures. Gene Colan was an absolute master at that!

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