Innovation's '91 DS Comic, Book 3

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Another '93 NYC Fest photo from the Dark Shadows Festival Memory Book 1983-1993:

And yet more '93 NYC Fest photos from the Dark Shadows Festival Memory Book 1983-1993 to come...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

The depiction of Barnabas in yesterday's graphic -

- is fairly detailed, well, detailed for Felipe Echevarria's style. So why is Willie, who appears in the same panel -

- so abstract? And so abstract after he was depicted with more detail in -

- Tuesday's graphic?

I know, ours is not to ask such questions because there are no answers...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And here's the eighteenth page -

(Click here for a 1328X1996 version)

And once again note the dialogue and the panel that didn't appear in the slideshow...

And even if I didn't know Scott Rockwell had written this issue, this page would have been a dead giveaway because it's so much like what he did with Barnabas for Book 1. Though he definitely takes Willie's humor in a whole new direction. Though I can't say I absolutely can't see where they might have had Willie make the same remark on the actual '91 Series...

[Gothick]

This scene is like a trial run for the Burton/Depp movie. Except that Barnabas isn't wearing clown makeup.

G.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I can easily imagine that today's quote from Page 19 -

Book Three/Issue One/Page 19 - Barnabas: 'PLEASE,
WILLIE, CERTAIN SUBJECTS STILL MAKE ME
UNCOMFORTABLE. I'VE ASKED YOU BEFORE TO REFRAIN
 FROM MENTIONING THEM.'

- could have also been a part of the Depp/DS film.

As for the '91 Series' Willie, he was often used on the show as a humorous counterpoint to all the, as DC often put it, "biting, ripping and tearing" - and it was DC's specific intention that it be that way...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And two final '93 NYC Fest photos from the Dark Shadows Festival Memory Book 1983-1993:

[Uncle Roger]

While I was unable to attend this particular festival, I was able to meet Roy Thinnes, Jim Fyfe and Barbara Blackburn at other events. They were all very gracious and easy to talk to. I especially liked Barbara who told me that she would have loved to appear at other festivals but she was no longer invited. Guess who strikes again.

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Here's the nineteenth page -

(Click here for a 1328X1996 version)

And note the bits of dialogue and the section of the top panel that didn't appear in the slideshow...

And one thing that continues to be really fascinating is how Felipe Echevarria decides who and how to add details to faces. With the bottom left panel as an example, why is Julia in more detail than several other faces at a similar perspective or even closer have been? 

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I just realized that in these two instances -

Book Three/Issue One/Page 19 - Julia: 'IT'S HARD TO SAY,
BARNABAS. I'VE BEEN TAKING SAMPLES OF YOUR BLOOD
ON A WEEKLY BASIS TO ANALYSE, AND THE ABBERANT
CELLS ARE STILL APPARENT.' Julia: 'I'D SAY THAT WE
WON'T HAVE A CURE UNTIL THE ABBERANT CELLS ARE
ENTIRELY ERADICATED.'


Book Three/Issue One/Page 20 - Julia: 'PLEASE TRY TO
UNDERSTAND, BARNABAS. I CAN'T CONSIDER YOU "CURED"
UNTIL THE ABBERANT CELLS ARE GONE. I'VE REDUCED THE
FREQUENCY OF THE TREATMENTS OVER THE PAST FEW
WEEKS ... WE ARE MAKING PROGRESS.'

- the comic spelled aberrant incorrectly (with two b's instead of two r's). But then, this isn't the first time something has been misspelled in these Innovation comics...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And here's the third page (twenty-seventh page) of the letters column:

(Click here for a 1328X1996 version (without any of the artifacts that the forum's system created when downsizing the image))

Note that the first column on this page features the second panel from Page 14, the center column features the third panel from that page, and the third column features the fourth panel from the same page, all without the dialogue bubbles written over them...

Sadly, we never got to Issue 4 of this book because it would have been quite interesting to see how it would have gone beyond the '91 Series. And the fact that Scott Rockwell says that issue would have gone beyond the show would seem to possibly confirm a theory about the missing issues of Book 3 that occurred to me a couple weeks ago. But I'll hold off getting into it until after I post Page 24...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Besides the two posters that were sold to the public, there were also versions of the posters that comics shops could display to promote the DS Innovation comics. Here's a copy of the first promo poster:

(Click here for a 1811X3000 version)

(Seeing E. Silas Smith's beautiful artwork makes one happy that Felipe Echevarria wasn't picked to do the first book. Can you even imagine what promo posters done by him might have looked like if he'd drawn images that were more abstract and "looking-through-gauze" than detailed?!)

[Mysterious Benefactor]

Here's a copy of the second promo poster:

(Click here for a 1804X3000 version)

Notice how the tag line "A Love Story Beyond Time" was added to this second promo poster and a description of the series was also added...

It's interesting how the "A Love Story Beyond Time" concept is front and center in Book 1 because it's been much less of a focus in Books 2 and 3. Well, what we got of Book 3. Though, as I've said, I do really like how Book 2 is so focused on Willie. We'll never know how the focus on Sarah in Book 3 might have turned out...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

And here's the fourth page (twenty-eighth page) and last page of the letters column in this issue and the series as a whole:

(Click here for a 1328X1996 version (without any of the artifacts that the forum's system created when downsizing the image))

Note that the first column on this page features the third top panel from Page 11, the center column features the center top panel from that page, and the third column features the third bottom panel from the same page, all without the dialogue bubbles written over them...

Also notice how this is the only time the last page in the letters column hasn't featured a preview of the next issue. One might see that as an indication that when the issue went to press they knew there wasn't going to be a Book 3, Issue 2 - but one might be wrong. And possible evidence of that will come when I post an upcoming page in the issue...

And considering Scott Rockwell mentions how Maggie was to be featured more prominently in Issues 2 & 3 of Book 3, that would also seem to be evidence that they may not have known Issue 1 would be the series' last. It also makes me very sad that we never got Issues 2 & 3...

[Mysterious Benefactor]

I didn't realize until just a few minutes ago that back on the 24th I completely forgot to post the twentieth page, so here it is -

(Click here for a 1328X1996 version)

And once again this is a page where all the dialogue and all the panels made it into the slideshow...

[patrickm]

What a gawd awful drawing of Barbara Steele. Looks more like Lebeau  from Hogan's Heroes as a commando.