The Art of Wayne Boring

March 27, 2004 6:37 PM

The other guy who drew Superman, Wayne Boring. Boring's style defined Superman in the fifties, and still looks nice today.
posted by interrobang (16 comments total)

My goodness. That Superman is about four feet wide.
posted by Hildegarde at 7:16 PM on March 27, 2004

... and still looks nice today.

Eh... it's kinda... boring.
posted by The Michael The at 7:28 PM on March 27, 2004

For my money, the definitive Superman artist was Curt Swan.
posted by Guy Smiley at 7:46 PM on March 27, 2004

I love Curt Swan, too. I just think Wayne needs a little attention. Even if it's far too late.
posted by interrobang at 7:51 PM on March 27, 2004

(And great link, Guy Smiley. Thanks.)
posted by interrobang at 7:52 PM on March 27, 2004

...here's a Wayne Boring story from Guy Smiley's awesome link. Thanks again!
posted by interrobang at 8:02 PM on March 27, 2004

Worst. Name. Ever.

/comicbookguy
posted by wendell at 8:20 PM on March 27, 2004

posted by quonsar at 8:35 PM on March 27, 2004

Thanks for those links, Guy. Swan's version of Superman is definitive in my book, too. I also loved the "I have to see a man about a heist" line in that Swan meets Superman tale.
posted by MegoSteve at 8:43 PM on March 27, 2004

I'm sorry, but I must disagree. As a young man reading Superman and Action Comics, I was always disappointed to see Wayne Boring's work between the covers. Even such rousing tales as "Superman's Return to Krypton!" suffered from Boring's "pulp fiction" style.

Curt Swan and Murphy Anderson were the definitive Superman artists.
posted by SPrintF at 9:39 PM on March 27, 2004

Sorry, I should have said "Boring's style defined Superman for a period in the fifties".

I don't like Boring more or less than Curt Swan or Al Plastino. I like how awkward his Superman is: how he flies into the frame at such an insanely oblique angle, how he's three chests wide, how woodblocky the art is. That's all.

The main thing is, I've been reading Guy Smiley's link for a couple of hours. Like Wayne Boring or not, this thread is a net plus.
posted by interrobang at 10:06 PM on March 27, 2004

Great links, but I'm not feeling his art that much. I think a lot of 1950s comics have that sort of flat, stiff look to them. At the time I think the best artists were working over at EC, which I feel their stuff holds up and is as good if not better than todays stuff.
posted by bobo123 at 11:04 PM on March 27, 2004

Oh thanks for the links interrobang, this is the Superman I grew with (I am not that older! but there was a reprint in the 70s of this Superman series).

Actually, there's a collector comic book store in Barcelona where they have the whole collection (54 comic books in 9 volumes, and it costs more than 700$!!!!!!)
posted by samelborp at 2:16 AM on March 28, 2004

As a Superman fanatic, I was never a big fan of Boring's artwork. I hate it when they don't draw Supes as "Super" looking.

When you see something like this from Alex Ross, you see "super"
posted by owillis at 7:31 AM on March 28, 2004

I love Alex Ross, but for the pages of your typical comic book, I really liked John Byrne's Man Of Steel.
posted by grabbingsand at 10:16 AM on March 28, 2004

There is no single definitive Superman. The character has been in some great hands over the past century, both on the pulp page and in the audio/visual realm. Even when Superman is bad (anyone remember the musical?) he's still pretty damn good. In fact when Smallville first became a television series I winced and almost didn't give it a second thought, but I'm mildly surprised at where they've taken the initial idea. Superman Mythology has longevity because the story inspires the best from those who continue to share it, and a father would take no small amount of joy in sharing that with his son. I don't think it's any one artist that makes Superman great. Superman the myth has helped make a lot of artists some of the greatest artists in the history of comics. Or perhaps it's a mutual kind of thing. Greatness seeks out greatness, attracts it, and brings out the best in those with potential.

Now the actual story writing? Not quite as consistently super. Ventriloquism? Multi colored kryptonite? The super menagerie? What drugs were they on back then?
posted by ZachsMind at 12:33 PM on March 28, 2004