Your favorite artist(s) for your favorite character(s)? 1 1

[exitmusicblue]

Venom: McFarlane, honorable mention to Bagley, contemporary awards to Dell'Otto/Siqueira.

Moon Knight: Sienkiewicz, honorable mention to Garney.

Namor: Everett, honorable mention to Jae Lee.

Psylocke: Jim Lee.

Vampirella: Frazetta, honorable mention to Gonzalez, contemporary award to Artgerm.

Black Cat: JSC.

Dream of the Endless: McKean.

Archie/Betty/Veronica: DeCarlo, honorable mention to Montana.

 

Edited October 17, 2019 by exitmusicblue

[Unca Ben]

FF: Kirby
Spidey: Ditko, Romita
Thor: Kirby
Avengers:  Buscema
Capt. America: Kirby
Iron Man: Kirby, Colan
Ant/Giant-Man: Kirby, Heck
Hulk: Trimpe, M. Severin
DD: Wood, Colan
X-Men:  N. Adams, Steranko
Subby: Everett, Buscema
Nick Fury: Steranko
Doc Strange: Ditko, Brunner

all this if groups count.

 

...nah, I'm not stuck in the 60's.  

 

[Stefanomjr]

11 hours ago, Unca Ben said:

FF: Kirby
Spidey: Ditko, Romita
Thor: Kirby
Avengers:  Buscema
Capt. America: Kirby
Iron Man: Kirby, Colan
Ant/Giant-Man: Kirby, Heck
Hulk: Trimpe, M. Severin
DD: Wood, Colan
X-Men:  N. Adams, Steranko
Subby: Everett, Buscema
Nick Fury: Steranko
Doc Strange: Ditko, Brunner

all this if groups count.

 

...nah, I'm not stuck in the 60's.  

 

Im not well versed on the penciler/ inker dynamics for the "old stuff" even the material I read as kid in the 80s... I'll know the penciler but have to look up the inker.  I wish there was a cheat sheet that details the top penciler/ inkers combos  on various books over the decades. 

[Rick2you2]

Spectre: Mandrake

Phantom Stranger: Adams, Guillem March (covers), Aparo and DeZuniga (which I still can't get).

 

[ThothAmon]

Buscema Conan 

 

[grapeape]

Amazing Spider-Man  Ditko, Romita Sr.

Silver Surfer John Bucsema, Kirby

Moon Knight Bill Sienkiewicz

Captain America     Jack Kirby

Conan J Buscema B Smith

Daredevil  Bill Everett.  Gene Colan

FF.   Jack Kirby

Hulk  Kirby Sal Buscema H Trimpe

Ironman G Colan B Layton

X Men  Cockrum, Byrne 

Thor Kirby, John Buscema, 

DR DOOM  KIRBY, John Buscema, Mike Mignola

Nick Fury Shield  Steranko

Avengers Kirby J Buscema B Smith

Best inker Joe Sinnott on everything

 

——————————————————Superman.  Schuster, Swan, Burnley, Byrne, Garcia-Lopez

Batman and Robin Frank Quitely, Neal Adams Bill Finger

Joker     Brian Bolland

Jonah Hex  Tony Dezuniga

_________________________________________________________________________________Dave Stevens: Rocketeer    

 

 

 

 

Edited October 25, 2019 by grapeape

[alexgross.com]

hellboy: liefield. jk. you know who. 

 

[grapeape]

On 10/17/2019 at 5:01 AM, Stefanomjr said:

Im not well versed on the penciler/ inker dynamics for the "old stuff" even the material I read as kid in the 80s... I'll know the penciler but have to look up the inker.  I wish there was a cheat sheet that details the top penciler/ inkers combos  on various books over the decades. 

This list Top 20 inkers credit  goes to Atlas Comics: 

 

THE 20 GREATEST INKERS

OF AMERICAN COMIC BOOKS

 

#20 MARK FARMER
	Another youngster who has evidenced a willingness to sublimate his ego to the necessity of the story, Farmer has synthesized the strengths of many of the outstanding inkers of the 70's (McLeod, Rubenstein, Green) to create a clear, clean, warm style which invites the reader's eye to stay and linger. He is a welcome relief from the overwrought, line-happy "Image" offspring who often tax the brain and confuse storytelling with picture-making. SEE: Incredible Hulk with Dale Keown; Avengers (current series) with Alan Davis; and Superboy's Legion!   LEFT: Beautiful, clear brush strokes from Mark Farmer compliment Alan Davis' precision pencils. From X-Men #87
#19 JIMMY PALMIOTTI
	A standout in any era, relative youngster Palmiotti has developed a beautiful synthesis with his frequent partner, Joe Quesada. Each derives something from their collaboration which is not there independently. Palmiotti is precise and sharp, but without sacrificing warmth or intrigue within the pictures. He has a fantastic facility for shadows and how objects look when they occupy those shadowed spaces. Often simple forms and geometric shapes within the darkness will reveal themselves to be more that they appear, with Palmiotti's talent tricking the eye into seeing what he wants it to.   SEE: Daredevil (current series) #1 - 5 ; Legends of the Dark Knight #140 -145 with Paul Gulacy   LEFT: Our only beef is that the hands at the bottom of the page blend together, but otherwise this is a super piece by Jimmy and his partner in crime, Joe Quesada.
#18 DAN ADKINS
	A mainstay at Marvel for many years, Adkins is a perfect example of a man who had good skills as a penciller, but was far superior as an inker. He began with Marvel in the 60's after an apprenticeship with Wally Wood. Mavel put him to work drawing Dr. Strange, where Adkins' own uncertainty caused him to rely heavily on swipes and reference. He was replaced eventually, and moved on to the less demanding role of inker. For the next 20 years he brightened many Marvel books with his sharp, cultured lines. SEE: Captain Marvel (first Marvel series) #18-19   LEFT: Great work by Dan Adkins over the late Gil Kane. Adkins accentuated Gil's greatest asset: POWER!
#17 GEORGE KLEIN
	Most likened to Murphy Anderson, George Klein may have had an even more mannered and precise style. Klein, like Anderson (and to a lesser extent, Joe Sinnott) would create wonderful rounded shadows by dropping a well-weighted line and then creating a series of beautifully tapered feathers coming off of it, conforming to the contour of the object he was delineating. It gave those objects VOLUME, and always let you subconsciously know the size, shape and form of what you were looking at. Many modern inkers miss this elementary style of "investing" two-dimensional objects with the appearance of three dimensions. Often, their lines will be in direct opposition to forms they are supposed to define, or will throw shadows in a way which is counterintuitive to how we see them. Most of them would do well to study George Klein and simplify, simplify, simplify. SEE: Avengers #59 - 63, with John Buscema LEFT: Perfectly controlled feathering highlights George Klein's work. Note how the tapered lines always follow the contour of the form they define. From Avengers #58.
#16 JOE SIMON
	Joe Simon spent almost 20 years as half of one of comics most celebrated creative teams, the powerhouse of Simon and Kirby. During the 40's and beyond, Simon, with his creative dervish/partner Jack Kirby, succeeded in turning the industry upside down again and again. Captain America, The Red Skull, Sandman and Sandy, Manhunter, the Boy Commandos, romance comics, crime comics, kid gangs; they did it all! The chores were split on their innumerable creations: Simon usually writing and occasionally laying out out the stories, Kirby pencilling, and Simon more often than not providing inks and finishes. As to his style, Simon's own description says it all: he likened his inking to "hay", because of the long, thick, sometimes haphazard and overlapping brush strokes he applied to figures, backgrounds and shadows. The one thing Joe did NOT do very well was delineate textures! The comics, however, were always readable, fun, and uniquely Simon and Kirby! SEE: Yeesh! Hard to pin down EXACTLY since many Simon and Kirby jobs involved an inker round table, but most any S & K job has at least SOME great Simon inks! LEFT: A nice example of the unmistakeable Simon and Kirby style from 1950. Note the Joe Simon "hay" covering every surface.

 

#15 GEORGE ROUSSOS

In comics since the 40's, George Roussos was so adept with a brush in his hand that his co-workers appointed the nickname "Inky" to him. His style was often thick, heavy with blacks and sported nice contrasts which complimented one of his prime collaborators in the 50's, Mort Meskin. Like most Golden Age inkers, Roussos toiled in complete anonymity until the advent of the Marvel Age, when his work under the name George Bell made him well known to fans. Roussos had worked with Kirby many times before, but now, finally with a measure of notoriety. His greatest asset was a instinctive ability at spotting blacks (it would be rather difficult to ink Meskin or Jerry Robinson and not pick up an understanding of placing blacks), and a heavy hand that gave the figures weight. Although his early work is somewhat tough to pin down, his style was distinct enough to identify sufficient material to judge his enormous output. George subsequently became Marvel's production chief, a position he held until his death in the late 80's. SEE: Fantastic Four #20-27 LEFT: We looked, but we didn't find a better repro for "Inky" Roussos. Trust us--he was great!

#14 JERRY ORDWAY
	Yeah, Jerry Ordway is a pretty good penciler, but man, can that guy ink! Jerry is probably the last in the line of great Silver Age-style inkers. Taking a lot from Murphy Anderson and Joe Sinnott (and with a pinch of Wally Wood), Jerry anticipated the elegant precision of Brian Bolland, but retained a warmth Bolland occasionally loses. He makes every penciler shimmer with class and polish. Although sometimes his style may dominate, it very often saves the average artist and turns him into something far superior. If Ordway is in the credits, You'll want to take a look at it! SEE: Fantastic Four #278-283, Crisis on Infinite Earths #5-12     LEFT: Another eminently "readable" Ordway page from All-Star Squadron. Characters pop from the background (blacks set behind Liberty Belle in panel 3) and groups are framed by well thrown shadows (panel 2) Pencils by Rich Buckler.
#13 GIORDANO
	Probably more influential as an editor, Giordano has nonetheless crafted some of the finest inks in comics since his early days with Jerry Iger in the 1940's. After a long stint pencilling, inking and editing comics with Charlton (where he helped create the characters that would eventually inspire Watchmen) he moved to DC in 1967 as a staff editor while still producing freelance inks over the likes of Neal Adams and Irv Novick. Giordano's style blended perfectly with Adams' own: deep blacks rendered in bold, confident strokes; sketchy linework which resolved itself into naturalistic shadows and detail under the eye. And although his pencilling tends to be a little stiff, is yet another example of the idea that the best inkers are also excellent artists in their own right. SEE: Batman #235-245 (plus many Batman issues circa 1971-72) LEFT: Sharp silouettes, stark lighting and solid forms are all handled with supreme ease under the brush of Giordano. Pencils by Irv Novick.

#12 BILL SIENKIEWICZ
	If Ralph Steadman inked comics, they might look a lot like the work of Bill Sienkiewicz. Ever since Bill began warping his style in the early eighties (then inking over his own pencils), his instinct was to become looser, bolder and more outrageous in his choices. In spite of the occasionally wild appearance of his pen and brushwork, the communication never becomes confused or tedious. On the contrary - drawing on his great draftsmanship and artist's eye, he brought something more to the pencils he finished. During the 90's especially, he subtly (and sometimes not so subtly) contributed a genuine extra dimension of mood and emotion the same way he had when working on the job by himself. Like a demented amalgam of Graham Ingels and Michael Kaluta, Bill can scratch, crosshatch, splotch, splatter and blot, yet never tax the viewer's eye. It is a desperately difficult and dangerous style, but one that Sienkiewicz handles with assuredness and elan. SEE: Galactus the Devourer #1-5 (with John J. Muth and John Buscema), Spectacular Spider-Man #223-228 LEFT: Bill's unique vision imposes itself on Sal Buscema's pencils. From Spectacular Spider-Man #223.
#11 SYD SHORES
	No wonder Syd Shores developed into a great penciller and inker. Consider his pedigree: sometime around 1941 he began working at Marvel (then Timely) as an assistant to Joe Simon and Jack Kirby - by all accounts the third or fourth member of the staff hired! He inked or pencilled (with Al Avison and others) parts of Captain America Comics starting with #2, and took on even more responsibilities when Simon and Kirby fled to DC following issue #10. Shores evidenced an unique and singular inking style, one perhaps only vaguely approximated by the great Bill Everett. Both had bold, but rough hewn lines and illustrative, photorealistic brushwork which gave the pages a beautiful, organic look unlike any other. Shores stayed at Marvel a long time, eventually becoming the bullpen supervisor around 1950, advising new artists, inking and pencilling all the time. He returned to inking full time for a few years in the '60's, giving Kirby (who else?) one of his finest collaborations of the era. SEE: Captain America #100-103, Daredevil #53-74 LEFT: The unmistakeable burnished linework of Syd Shores. Pencils by Gene Colan, from Daredevil #62.

 

#10 KLAUS JANSON

Known best for his intense and serendipitous pairing with Frank Miller, Klaus Janson has been doing outstanding work for Marvel, DC and others since the mid seventies. With a bold, heavy, thick brushstroke, Janson followed Tom Palmer's lead away from the Sinnott / Anderson style back to a darker image reminiscent of the greats of the past: Mort Meskin, George Roussos and early Kubert. In recent years he has proved himself a fine penciler as well, creating projects primarily for DC. Janson's world is invariably dark, shadowy, and fat with the same kind of visual energy which typifies noir thrillers like The Killers or Touch of Evil. SEE: Janson's run with Frank Miller on Daredevil (issues 158-190), and The Dark Knight Returns; What If? (1st series) #3 over Gil Kane's pencils is terrific, as are his other collaborations with Gil on John Carter and many covers.   LEFT: An outstanding example of the Miller / Janson pairing from Daredevil #164. Note the attention to detail in the lighting of Urich's spiral notepad in Panels 3 -6. Eleven panels on this page and no confusion.

#9 TERRY AUSTIN

Ask 100 fans who began collecting comics during the late 70's or 80's who their favorite inker is, and 80 will probably answer Terry Austin. With John Byrne, he crafted some of the eras best remembered comics, in the process moving away from the illustrative Tom Palmer influence back toward the more direct line look of Murphy Anderson and Joe Sinnott. This style, developed primarily by working with technical pens of varying line weights, became a template for aspiring inkers for a number of years. His influence can be seen in the work of Scott Williams, among others. SEE: Uncanny X-Men with John Byrne (issues 109 - 143) is a great modern age teaming; Terry also produced a fabulous job over Frank Miller on Daredevil #191. LEFT: A fantastic example of Terry Austin's perfectly controlled tech-pen Linework on the Alex Toth-pencilled Superman Annual #9

#8 KEVIN NOWLAN
	If you ever have a chance to see a Nowlan original, you'll appreciate even more the care and detail he puts on every page of inks. The contrast of bold, meaty brush strokes against elegant linework is an absolute pleasure to behold. Simple shadows and perfectly controlled lineweights give his figure WEIGHT, and the space around them volume. He features aspects of some of the great inkers: the ethereal line of a John Bolton; the precise hand of a Brian Bolland; the sharp contrasts of a Wally Wood and the confidence and conviction of a Klaus Janson. Still reletively young, he exhibits a mastery of his two-dimensional medium far beyond his years. SEE: Superman vs. Aliens; Superman: Distant Fires, a prestige-format DC book with Gil Kane (anything over Gil Kane - what a team!); Jack B. Quick in Tomorrow Stories (which he pencils himself).   LEFT: Kevin has it all - full command of complex lighting effects; natural, organic looking linework and solid, well rounded forms. From Moon Knight (third series) #1.
#7 JOHN SEVERIN
	The more you look at the career of John Severin, the better it gets. After a long and distinguished run during the 50's penciling and inking fantastic jobs for Atlas and EC, he turned in the 60's to some top flight inking over Jack Kirby and others, then teamed up with his sister Marie (a fine artist in her own right) for some beautiful Kull stories during the 70's - all this while still producing hilarious jobs for Cracked magazine! Influenced by Roy Crane, his inks have a bit of the Crane quality in them: direct, elegantly rendered without being overwrought, and above all, authentic. John has continued doing work into the 80's and 90's, each job just as painstanking as the others. If there's one thing John Severin never does, it is cut corners. SEE: A nice run with Ayers on Sgt. Fury #39 - 79--this is an outstanding example of a fine inker helping out a good storyteller but less than inspiring penciler; issues of Kull (first series) with his sister Marie; John's finishes over Kirby on early SHIELD issues of Strange Tales. LEFT: Here Severin loosens up Ayers' excellent, but sometimes stiff pencils. From Sgt. Fury #72.
#6 AYERS
	Ayers belongs on this list, if only for his prolific output. By his own count, he produced almost 20,000 inked pages from his earliest days in the industry (1947) until 1989. But the quality during those many years remained uniformly excellent, if not always spectacular. Like most inkers who began before the 1970's, the idea was to use the inks to clarify and enhance the storytelling - not to make beautiful pictures. This Ayers did to supreme effect for DC, Skywald, Charlton, ACG and his most loyal employer, Marvel Comics. His collaborations with Jack Kirby (hundreds upon hundreds of pages during the 50's and early 60's) stand as one of the great teamings in the history of comics. SEE: Fantastic Four # 6 - 20 (Except for #13 - a rare beauty by Steve Ditko!) LEFT: Probably King Kirby's most prolific partner, Ayers inked hundreds upon hundreds of pages of Jack's quickie western and monster stories before the Marvel super-hero era began.

 

 

#3 TOM PALMER

It doesn't seem so long ago that Tom Palmer was the young turk of the Marvel bullpen. It has, however, been THIRTY (!) years since the long-haired kid slipped through the doors of Marvel to hobnob with men who built the industry. Tom Palmer seems to have been the first in the line of "modern" inkers. His style broke sharply from the accepted style of the time exemplified by  Ayers, Joe Sinnott and George Klein. He showed a lusher, more illustrative approach and used his brush in an almost painterly fashion. All this played directly into other shifts in the industry, notably the commercial ideas sown by Neal Adams which blossomed to every corner of the business. It's no small wonder that these two men hooked up for some of the finest collaborations in comics history. Their work on Avengers and X-Men are justifiably lauded and have been pointed to by Adams himself as among his favorites. Their vision helped embolden the nascent steps from the more conventional 60's into the unpredictable and experimental 70's. Tom has been a Marvel mainstay ever since, giving the most mundane of stories a polish and direction which show he truly contributes a great load to the process. In addition, his popularity and skill influenced the next generation of inkers: Joe Rubenstein, Bob McLeod, Klaus Janson and many others each owe a stylistic debt to him. SEE: X-Men (first series) issues in the 50's and 60's with Neal Adams, as well as Avengers (first series) #74-84 with John Buscema and #93-97 Neal Adams (including the Kree / Skrull War); and don't forget him making John Byrne look almost professional again on X-Men: The Hidden Years! LEFT: Tom Palmer always adds more than he finds in the drawings. His use of zip-a-tone screens to enhance lighting effects is non-pareil. Pencils? Neal Adams. From Avengers #93

#5 FRANK GIACOIA
	In comics from 1941, Frank Giacoia's smooth, thick line has been recognizable over a surfeit of outstanding pencillers. Gil Kane (who called him "an extraordinarily powerful inker"), Carmine Infantino, Gene Colan and Jack Kirby all benefited from his heavy, robust linework which always helped tell the story in a simple, direct way. His collaboration with Kirby on the short-lived newspaper strip Johnny Reb and Billy Yank (which Giacoia created) was superb, as was generally the case when he teamed with the King. Frank worked for many publishers during his 40-odd years in comics: Lev Gleason, Hillman, Timely, DC and of course Marvel (where he sometimes moonlighted under the alias Frankie Ray while still working for DC). SEE: Fantastic Four #39 (as Frank Ray) has always been a favorite--the Daredevil figures are inked by Wally Wood; DC collaborations with Camine Infantino (early issues of Mystery in Space); and Amazing Spider-Man (with Gil Kane) circa #95 - 105. LEFT: Here's how an inker helps tell the story: nice, solid blacks; clear, easily readable panels; smooth transitions and flow.
#4 MURPHY ANDERSON
	Murphy Anderson helped define the look of the Silver Age at DC the way Joe Sinnott did at Marvel. He gave Gil Kane, Carmine Infantino and Curt Swan their most impressive visual counterpoint and exemplified the professional, solid and occasionally stagey style which dominated those years. Always controlled, sometimes even mannered, Anderson softened the angular pencils of Infantino with delicate feathering and supple linework. For Swan he warmed the usually cold and detached drawings with delicate shadows and rendering. With Kane he simply created impact. He is DC's top gun, bar none. SEE: DC's logo on the cover, the 1960's in the indicia and Murphy Anderson's name in the credits.     LEFT: From JLA #29, this is Murphy Anderson in his prime. Note the texture and shine of Doc Fate's helmet and the form and highlights in Black Canary's hair. Pencils by Mike Sekowsky.

 

#2 WALLY WOOD

After Alex Toth and Will Eisner, Wally Wood may have the greatest and boldest command of shadows ever thrown by an inker. Reflected light, multiple sources, four- and five-stage contrasts, vibrant silhouettes; all of these things flowed from the brush of Wally Wood. He was master of textures: a cold Minnesota forest was populated by individual elements--the coarse fur of a black bear, the reflective surface of running water, the harsh contrast of deep snow against knotted fir trees. Each had its distinct feel. His greatest gift, however, seemed to be his instinct for chiarscuro. Wally was perpetually using negative space folded into deep blacks, juxtaposing values, or letting shine and shimmer bleed into other areas of light, rather than containing them within a line. He visually captured optical tricks we've all seen a million times. The resulting verisimitude sold us on a world of three dimensions where there were actually only two. SEE: Wally's work over various Marvel and DC artists of the 60's, such as Gil Kane, Steve Ditko and others. His inks over Kirby on Sky Masters and Eisner on The Spirit are all time great teamings. Additionally, his inks (over his own pencils) during the EC era are spectacular. LEFT: Kirby called Woody his best inker, and you can see why. Great stuff from the unpublished newspaper strip, Surf Hunter, 1956.

#1 JOE SINNOTT

If you laid a Joe Sinnott inking job from 1965 and 1995 side by side, most people would be hard pressed to discern a difference. His style is mature, solid, assured, precise and smooth. He has been so good for so long that he tends to be overlooked except by those that appreciate the craft and professionalism of truly fine inking. Joe's greatest impact came as Jack Kirby's indisputably finest finisher. Their collaboration on Fantastic Four may have resulted in the slickest and most dynamic superhero comics ever produced. But he did more than that; from the time Kirby left Marvel for almost 15 years afterward, Joe was the look of Marvel. He kept the continuity of the Kirby years through the Buscema and Byrne years, with Marvel hewing a close editorial image to his style. Changing policy eventually turned them in a different direction, but Joe continued to do top flight work until his recent retirement. He still contributes outstanding pieces for The Jack Kirby Collector as well as the Bing Crosby Newsletter, and his beloved baseball illustrations. After 50 years in the business, he deserves recognition as one of the greats. SEE: Fantastic Four #44-62 feature what is probably Joe's finest work. In particular, issues #60-62 show perhaps the greatest single representation of the silver age style that Sinnott helped popularize. LEFT: Kirby and Sinnott are entering their prime period here. Rejected cover From FF #52 shows the care Joe lavished on every object. The strength of his line is unparalleled.

[grapeape]

On 10/16/2019 at 5:44 PM, Unca Ben said:

FF: Kirby
Spidey: Ditko, Romita
Thor: Kirby
Avengers:  Buscema
Capt. America: Kirby
Iron Man: Kirby, Colan
Ant/Giant-Man: Kirby, Heck
Hulk: Trimpe, M. Severin
DD: Wood, Colan
X-Men:  N. Adams, Steranko
Subby: Everett, Buscema
Nick Fury: Steranko
Doc Strange: Ditko, Brunner

all this if groups count.

 

...nah, I'm not stuck in the 60's.  

 

The Silver Age man......

[grapeape]

On 10/16/2019 at 5:27 PM, exitmusicblue said:

Venom: McFarlane, honorable mention to Bagley, contemporary awards to Dell'Otto/Siqueira.

Moon Knight: Sienkiewicz, honorable mention to Garney.

Namor: Everett, honorable mention to Jae Lee.

Psylocke: Jim Lee.

Vampirella: Frazetta, honorable mention to Gonzalez, contemporary award to Artgerm.

Black Cat: JSC.

Dream of the Endless: McKean.

Archie/Betty/Veronica: DeCarlo, honorable mention to Montana.

 

Thanks for bringing up Decarlo.....solid list 

[exitmusicblue]

2 hours ago, grapeape said:

This list Top 20 inkers credit  goes to Atlas Comics: 

 

THE 20 GREATEST INKERS

OF AMERICAN COMIC BOOKS

 

#20 MARK FARMER
	Another youngster who has evidenced a willingness to sublimate his ego to the necessity of the story, Farmer has synthesized the strengths of many of the outstanding inkers of the 70's (McLeod, Rubenstein, Green) to create a clear, clean, warm style which invites the reader's eye to stay and linger. He is a welcome relief from the overwrought, line-happy "Image" offspring who often tax the brain and confuse storytelling with picture-making. SEE: Incredible Hulk with Dale Keown; Avengers (current series) with Alan Davis; and Superboy's Legion!   LEFT: Beautiful, clear brush strokes from Mark Farmer compliment Alan Davis' precision pencils. From X-Men #87
#19 JIMMY PALMIOTTI
	A standout in any era, relative youngster Palmiotti has developed a beautiful synthesis with his frequent partner, Joe Quesada. Each derives something from their collaboration which is not there independently. Palmiotti is precise and sharp, but without sacrificing warmth or intrigue within the pictures. He has a fantastic facility for shadows and how objects look when they occupy those shadowed spaces. Often simple forms and geometric shapes within the darkness will reveal themselves to be more that they appear, with Palmiotti's talent tricking the eye into seeing what he wants it to.   SEE: Daredevil (current series) #1 - 5 ; Legends of the Dark Knight #140 -145 with Paul Gulacy   LEFT: Our only beef is that the hands at the bottom of the page blend together, but otherwise this is a super piece by Jimmy and his partner in crime, Joe Quesada.
#18 DAN ADKINS
	A mainstay at Marvel for many years, Adkins is a perfect example of a man who had good skills as a penciller, but was far superior as an inker. He began with Marvel in the 60's after an apprenticeship with Wally Wood. Mavel put him to work drawing Dr. Strange, where Adkins' own uncertainty caused him to rely heavily on swipes and reference. He was replaced eventually, and moved on to the less demanding role of inker. For the next 20 years he brightened many Marvel books with his sharp, cultured lines. SEE: Captain Marvel (first Marvel series) #18-19   LEFT: Great work by Dan Adkins over the late Gil Kane. Adkins accentuated Gil's greatest asset: POWER!
#17 GEORGE KLEIN
	Most likened to Murphy Anderson, George Klein may have had an even more mannered and precise style. Klein, like Anderson (and to a lesser extent, Joe Sinnott) would create wonderful rounded shadows by dropping a well-weighted line and then creating a series of beautifully tapered feathers coming off of it, conforming to the contour of the object he was delineating. It gave those objects VOLUME, and always let you subconsciously know the size, shape and form of what you were looking at. Many modern inkers miss this elementary style of "investing" two-dimensional objects with the appearance of three dimensions. Often, their lines will be in direct opposition to forms they are supposed to define, or will throw shadows in a way which is counterintuitive to how we see them. Most of them would do well to study George Klein and simplify, simplify, simplify. SEE: Avengers #59 - 63, with John Buscema LEFT: Perfectly controlled feathering highlights George Klein's work. Note how the tapered lines always follow the contour of the form they define. From Avengers #58.
#16 JOE SIMON
	Joe Simon spent almost 20 years as half of one of comics most celebrated creative teams, the powerhouse of Simon and Kirby. During the 40's and beyond, Simon, with his creative dervish/partner Jack Kirby, succeeded in turning the industry upside down again and again. Captain America, The Red Skull, Sandman and Sandy, Manhunter, the Boy Commandos, romance comics, crime comics, kid gangs; they did it all! The chores were split on their innumerable creations: Simon usually writing and occasionally laying out out the stories, Kirby pencilling, and Simon more often than not providing inks and finishes. As to his style, Simon's own description says it all: he likened his inking to "hay", because of the long, thick, sometimes haphazard and overlapping brush strokes he applied to figures, backgrounds and shadows. The one thing Joe did NOT do very well was delineate textures! The comics, however, were always readable, fun, and uniquely Simon and Kirby! SEE: Yeesh! Hard to pin down EXACTLY since many Simon and Kirby jobs involved an inker round table, but most any S & K job has at least SOME great Simon inks! LEFT: A nice example of the unmistakeable Simon and Kirby style from 1950. Note the Joe Simon "hay" covering every surface.

 

#15 GEORGE ROUSSOS

In comics since the 40's, George Roussos was so adept with a brush in his hand that his co-workers appointed the nickname "Inky" to him. His style was often thick, heavy with blacks and sported nice contrasts which complimented one of his prime collaborators in the 50's, Mort Meskin. Like most Golden Age inkers, Roussos toiled in complete anonymity until the advent of the Marvel Age, when his work under the name George Bell made him well known to fans. Roussos had worked with Kirby many times before, but now, finally with a measure of notoriety. His greatest asset was a instinctive ability at spotting blacks (it would be rather difficult to ink Meskin or Jerry Robinson and not pick up an understanding of placing blacks), and a heavy hand that gave the figures weight. Although his early work is somewhat tough to pin down, his style was distinct enough to identify sufficient material to judge his enormous output. George subsequently became Marvel's production chief, a position he held until his death in the late 80's. SEE: Fantastic Four #20-27 LEFT: We looked, but we didn't find a better repro for "Inky" Roussos. Trust us--he was great!

#14 JERRY ORDWAY
	Yeah, Jerry Ordway is a pretty good penciler, but man, can that guy ink! Jerry is probably the last in the line of great Silver Age-style inkers. Taking a lot from Murphy Anderson and Joe Sinnott (and with a pinch of Wally Wood), Jerry anticipated the elegant precision of Brian Bolland, but retained a warmth Bolland occasionally loses. He makes every penciler shimmer with class and polish. Although sometimes his style may dominate, it very often saves the average artist and turns him into something far superior. If Ordway is in the credits, You'll want to take a look at it! SEE: Fantastic Four #278-283, Crisis on Infinite Earths #5-12     LEFT: Another eminently "readable" Ordway page from All-Star Squadron. Characters pop from the background (blacks set behind Liberty Belle in panel 3) and groups are framed by well thrown shadows (panel 2) Pencils by Rich Buckler.
#13 GIORDANO
	Probably more influential as an editor, Giordano has nonetheless crafted some of the finest inks in comics since his early days with Jerry Iger in the 1940's. After a long stint pencilling, inking and editing comics with Charlton (where he helped create the characters that would eventually inspire Watchmen) he moved to DC in 1967 as a staff editor while still producing freelance inks over the likes of Neal Adams and Irv Novick. Giordano's style blended perfectly with Adams' own: deep blacks rendered in bold, confident strokes; sketchy linework which resolved itself into naturalistic shadows and detail under the eye. And although his pencilling tends to be a little stiff, is yet another example of the idea that the best inkers are also excellent artists in their own right. SEE: Batman #235-245 (plus many Batman issues circa 1971-72) LEFT: Sharp silouettes, stark lighting and solid forms are all handled with supreme ease under the brush of Giordano. Pencils by Irv Novick.

#12 BILL SIENKIEWICZ
	If Ralph Steadman inked comics, they might look a lot like the work of Bill Sienkiewicz. Ever since Bill began warping his style in the early eighties (then inking over his own pencils), his instinct was to become looser, bolder and more outrageous in his choices. In spite of the occasionally wild appearance of his pen and brushwork, the communication never becomes confused or tedious. On the contrary - drawing on his great draftsmanship and artist's eye, he brought something more to the pencils he finished. During the 90's especially, he subtly (and sometimes not so subtly) contributed a genuine extra dimension of mood and emotion the same way he had when working on the job by himself. Like a demented amalgam of Graham Ingels and Michael Kaluta, Bill can scratch, crosshatch, splotch, splatter and blot, yet never tax the viewer's eye. It is a desperately difficult and dangerous style, but one that Sienkiewicz handles with assuredness and elan. SEE: Galactus the Devourer #1-5 (with John J. Muth and John Buscema), Spectacular Spider-Man #223-228 LEFT: Bill's unique vision imposes itself on Sal Buscema's pencils. From Spectacular Spider-Man #223.
#11 SYD SHORES
	No wonder Syd Shores developed into a great penciller and inker. Consider his pedigree: sometime around 1941 he began working at Marvel (then Timely) as an assistant to Joe Simon and Jack Kirby - by all accounts the third or fourth member of the staff hired! He inked or pencilled (with Al Avison and others) parts of Captain America Comics starting with #2, and took on even more responsibilities when Simon and Kirby fled to DC following issue #10. Shores evidenced an unique and singular inking style, one perhaps only vaguely approximated by the great Bill Everett. Both had bold, but rough hewn lines and illustrative, photorealistic brushwork which gave the pages a beautiful, organic look unlike any other. Shores stayed at Marvel a long time, eventually becoming the bullpen supervisor around 1950, advising new artists, inking and pencilling all the time. He returned to inking full time for a few years in the '60's, giving Kirby (who else?) one of his finest collaborations of the era. SEE: Captain America #100-103, Daredevil #53-74 LEFT: The unmistakeable burnished linework of Syd Shores. Pencils by Gene Colan, from Daredevil #62.

 

#10 KLAUS JANSON

Known best for his intense and serendipitous pairing with Frank Miller, Klaus Janson has been doing outstanding work for Marvel, DC and others since the mid seventies. With a bold, heavy, thick brushstroke, Janson followed Tom Palmer's lead away from the Sinnott / Anderson style back to a darker image reminiscent of the greats of the past: Mort Meskin, George Roussos and early Kubert. In recent years he has proved himself a fine penciler as well, creating projects primarily for DC. Janson's world is invariably dark, shadowy, and fat with the same kind of visual energy which typifies noir thrillers like The Killers or Touch of Evil. SEE: Janson's run with Frank Miller on Daredevil (issues 158-190), and The Dark Knight Returns; What If? (1st series) #3 over Gil Kane's pencils is terrific, as are his other collaborations with Gil on John Carter and many covers.   LEFT: An outstanding example of the Miller / Janson pairing from Daredevil #164. Note the attention to detail in the lighting of Urich's spiral notepad in Panels 3 -6. Eleven panels on this page and no confusion.

#9 TERRY AUSTIN

Ask 100 fans who began collecting comics during the late 70's or 80's who their favorite inker is, and 80 will probably answer Terry Austin. With John Byrne, he crafted some of the eras best remembered comics, in the process moving away from the illustrative Tom Palmer influence back toward the more direct line look of Murphy Anderson and Joe Sinnott. This style, developed primarily by working with technical pens of varying line weights, became a template for aspiring inkers for a number of years. His influence can be seen in the work of Scott Williams, among others. SEE: Uncanny X-Men with John Byrne (issues 109 - 143) is a great modern age teaming; Terry also produced a fabulous job over Frank Miller on Daredevil #191. LEFT: A fantastic example of Terry Austin's perfectly controlled tech-pen Linework on the Alex Toth-pencilled Superman Annual #9

#8 KEVIN NOWLAN
	If you ever have a chance to see a Nowlan original, you'll appreciate even more the care and detail he puts on every page of inks. The contrast of bold, meaty brush strokes against elegant linework is an absolute pleasure to behold. Simple shadows and perfectly controlled lineweights give his figure WEIGHT, and the space around them volume. He features aspects of some of the great inkers: the ethereal line of a John Bolton; the precise hand of a Brian Bolland; the sharp contrasts of a Wally Wood and the confidence and conviction of a Klaus Janson. Still reletively young, he exhibits a mastery of his two-dimensional medium far beyond his years. SEE: Superman vs. Aliens; Superman: Distant Fires, a prestige-format DC book with Gil Kane (anything over Gil Kane - what a team!); Jack B. Quick in Tomorrow Stories (which he pencils himself).   LEFT: Kevin has it all - full command of complex lighting effects; natural, organic looking linework and solid, well rounded forms. From Moon Knight (third series) #1.
#7 JOHN SEVERIN
	The more you look at the career of John Severin, the better it gets. After a long and distinguished run during the 50's penciling and inking fantastic jobs for Atlas and EC, he turned in the 60's to some top flight inking over Jack Kirby and others, then teamed up with his sister Marie (a fine artist in her own right) for some beautiful Kull stories during the 70's - all this while still producing hilarious jobs for Cracked magazine! Influenced by Roy Crane, his inks have a bit of the Crane quality in them: direct, elegantly rendered without being overwrought, and above all, authentic. John has continued doing work into the 80's and 90's, each job just as painstanking as the others. If there's one thing John Severin never does, it is cut corners. SEE: A nice run with Ayers on Sgt. Fury #39 - 79--this is an outstanding example of a fine inker helping out a good storyteller but less than inspiring penciler; issues of Kull (first series) with his sister Marie; John's finishes over Kirby on early SHIELD issues of Strange Tales. LEFT: Here Severin loosens up Ayers' excellent, but sometimes stiff pencils. From Sgt. Fury #72.
#6 AYERS
	Ayers belongs on this list, if only for his prolific output. By his own count, he produced almost 20,000 inked pages from his earliest days in the industry (1947) until 1989. But the quality during those many years remained uniformly excellent, if not always spectacular. Like most inkers who began before the 1970's, the idea was to use the inks to clarify and enhance the storytelling - not to make beautiful pictures. This Ayers did to supreme effect for DC, Skywald, Charlton, ACG and his most loyal employer, Marvel Comics. His collaborations with Jack Kirby (hundreds upon hundreds of pages during the 50's and early 60's) stand as one of the great teamings in the history of comics. SEE: Fantastic Four # 6 - 20 (Except for #13 - a rare beauty by Steve Ditko!) LEFT: Probably King Kirby's most prolific partner, Ayers inked hundreds upon hundreds of pages of Jack's quickie western and monster stories before the Marvel super-hero era began.

 

 

#3 TOM PALMER

It doesn't seem so long ago that Tom Palmer was the young turk of the Marvel bullpen. It has, however, been THIRTY (!) years since the long-haired kid slipped through the doors of Marvel to hobnob with men who built the industry. Tom Palmer seems to have been the first in the line of "modern" inkers. His style broke sharply from the accepted style of the time exemplified by  Ayers, Joe Sinnott and George Klein. He showed a lusher, more illustrative approach and used his brush in an almost painterly fashion. All this played directly into other shifts in the industry, notably the commercial ideas sown by Neal Adams which blossomed to every corner of the business. It's no small wonder that these two men hooked up for some of the finest collaborations in comics history. Their work on Avengers and X-Men are justifiably lauded and have been pointed to by Adams himself as among his favorites. Their vision helped embolden the nascent steps from the more conventional 60's into the unpredictable and experimental 70's. Tom has been a Marvel mainstay ever since, giving the most mundane of stories a polish and direction which show he truly contributes a great load to the process. In addition, his popularity and skill influenced the next generation of inkers: Joe Rubenstein, Bob McLeod, Klaus Janson and many others each owe a stylistic debt to him. SEE: X-Men (first series) issues in the 50's and 60's with Neal Adams, as well as Avengers (first series) #74-84 with John Buscema and #93-97 Neal Adams (including the Kree / Skrull War); and don't forget him making John Byrne look almost professional again on X-Men: The Hidden Years! LEFT: Tom Palmer always adds more than he finds in the drawings. His use of zip-a-tone screens to enhance lighting effects is non-pareil. Pencils? Neal Adams. From Avengers #93

#5 FRANK GIACOIA
	In comics from 1941, Frank Giacoia's smooth, thick line has been recognizable over a surfeit of outstanding pencillers. Gil Kane (who called him "an extraordinarily powerful inker"), Carmine Infantino, Gene Colan and Jack Kirby all benefited from his heavy, robust linework which always helped tell the story in a simple, direct way. His collaboration with Kirby on the short-lived newspaper strip Johnny Reb and Billy Yank (which Giacoia created) was superb, as was generally the case when he teamed with the King. Frank worked for many publishers during his 40-odd years in comics: Lev Gleason, Hillman, Timely, DC and of course Marvel (where he sometimes moonlighted under the alias Frankie Ray while still working for DC). SEE: Fantastic Four #39 (as Frank Ray) has always been a favorite--the Daredevil figures are inked by Wally Wood; DC collaborations with Camine Infantino (early issues of Mystery in Space); and Amazing Spider-Man (with Gil Kane) circa #95 - 105. LEFT: Here's how an inker helps tell the story: nice, solid blacks; clear, easily readable panels; smooth transitions and flow.
#4 MURPHY ANDERSON
	Murphy Anderson helped define the look of the Silver Age at DC the way Joe Sinnott did at Marvel. He gave Gil Kane, Carmine Infantino and Curt Swan their most impressive visual counterpoint and exemplified the professional, solid and occasionally stagey style which dominated those years. Always controlled, sometimes even mannered, Anderson softened the angular pencils of Infantino with delicate feathering and supple linework. For Swan he warmed the usually cold and detached drawings with delicate shadows and rendering. With Kane he simply created impact. He is DC's top gun, bar none. SEE: DC's logo on the cover, the 1960's in the indicia and Murphy Anderson's name in the credits.     LEFT: From JLA #29, this is Murphy Anderson in his prime. Note the texture and shine of Doc Fate's helmet and the form and highlights in Black Canary's hair. Pencils by Mike Sekowsky.

 

#2 WALLY WOOD

After Alex Toth and Will Eisner, Wally Wood may have the greatest and boldest command of shadows ever thrown by an inker. Reflected light, multiple sources, four- and five-stage contrasts, vibrant silhouettes; all of these things flowed from the brush of Wally Wood. He was master of textures: a cold Minnesota forest was populated by individual elements--the coarse fur of a black bear, the reflective surface of running water, the harsh contrast of deep snow against knotted fir trees. Each had its distinct feel. His greatest gift, however, seemed to be his instinct for chiarscuro. Wally was perpetually using negative space folded into deep blacks, juxtaposing values, or letting shine and shimmer bleed into other areas of light, rather than containing them within a line. He visually captured optical tricks we've all seen a million times. The resulting verisimitude sold us on a world of three dimensions where there were actually only two. SEE: Wally's work over various Marvel and DC artists of the 60's, such as Gil Kane, Steve Ditko and others. His inks over Kirby on Sky Masters and Eisner on The Spirit are all time great teamings. Additionally, his inks (over his own pencils) during the EC era are spectacular. LEFT: Kirby called Woody his best inker, and you can see why. Great stuff from the unpublished newspaper strip, Surf Hunter, 1956.

#1 JOE SINNOTT

If you laid a Joe Sinnott inking job from 1965 and 1995 side by side, most people would be hard pressed to discern a difference. His style is mature, solid, assured, precise and smooth. He has been so good for so long that he tends to be overlooked except by those that appreciate the craft and professionalism of truly fine inking. Joe's greatest impact came as Jack Kirby's indisputably finest finisher. Their collaboration on Fantastic Four may have resulted in the slickest and most dynamic superhero comics ever produced. But he did more than that; from the time Kirby left Marvel for almost 15 years afterward, Joe was the look of Marvel. He kept the continuity of the Kirby years through the Buscema and Byrne years, with Marvel hewing a close editorial image to his style. Changing policy eventually turned them in a different direction, but Joe continued to do top flight work until his recent retirement. He still contributes outstanding pieces for The Jack Kirby Collector as well as the Bing Crosby Newsletter, and his beloved baseball illustrations. After 50 years in the business, he deserves recognition as one of the greats. SEE: Fantastic Four #44-62 feature what is probably Joe's finest work. In particular, issues #60-62 show perhaps the greatest single representation of the silver age style that Sinnott helped popularize. LEFT: Kirby and Sinnott are entering their prime period here. Rejected cover From FF #52 shows the care Joe lavished on every object. The strength of his line is unparalleled.

Oft-thankless but crucial work.

[hmendryk]

10 hours ago, grapeape said:

This list Top 20 inkers credit  goes to Atlas Comics: 

 

THE 20 GREATEST INKERS

OF AMERICAN COMIC BOOKS

 

#20 MARK FARMER
	Another youngster who has evidenced a willingness to sublimate his ego to the necessity of the story, Farmer has synthesized the strengths of many of the outstanding inkers of the 70's (McLeod, Rubenstein, Green) to create a clear, clean, warm style which invites the reader's eye to stay and linger. He is a welcome relief from the overwrought, line-happy "Image" offspring who often tax the brain and confuse storytelling with picture-making. SEE: Incredible Hulk with Dale Keown; Avengers (current series) with Alan Davis; and Superboy's Legion!   LEFT: Beautiful, clear brush strokes from Mark Farmer compliment Alan Davis' precision pencils. From X-Men #87
#19 JIMMY PALMIOTTI
	A standout in any era, relative youngster Palmiotti has developed a beautiful synthesis with his frequent partner, Joe Quesada. Each derives something from their collaboration which is not there independently. Palmiotti is precise and sharp, but without sacrificing warmth or intrigue within the pictures. He has a fantastic facility for shadows and how objects look when they occupy those shadowed spaces. Often simple forms and geometric shapes within the darkness will reveal themselves to be more that they appear, with Palmiotti's talent tricking the eye into seeing what he wants it to.   SEE: Daredevil (current series) #1 - 5 ; Legends of the Dark Knight #140 -145 with Paul Gulacy   LEFT: Our only beef is that the hands at the bottom of the page blend together, but otherwise this is a super piece by Jimmy and his partner in crime, Joe Quesada.
#18 DAN ADKINS
	A mainstay at Marvel for many years, Adkins is a perfect example of a man who had good skills as a penciller, but was far superior as an inker. He began with Marvel in the 60's after an apprenticeship with Wally Wood. Mavel put him to work drawing Dr. Strange, where Adkins' own uncertainty caused him to rely heavily on swipes and reference. He was replaced eventually, and moved on to the less demanding role of inker. For the next 20 years he brightened many Marvel books with his sharp, cultured lines. SEE: Captain Marvel (first Marvel series) #18-19   LEFT: Great work by Dan Adkins over the late Gil Kane. Adkins accentuated Gil's greatest asset: POWER!
#17 GEORGE KLEIN
	Most likened to Murphy Anderson, George Klein may have had an even more mannered and precise style. Klein, like Anderson (and to a lesser extent, Joe Sinnott) would create wonderful rounded shadows by dropping a well-weighted line and then creating a series of beautifully tapered feathers coming off of it, conforming to the contour of the object he was delineating. It gave those objects VOLUME, and always let you subconsciously know the size, shape and form of what you were looking at. Many modern inkers miss this elementary style of "investing" two-dimensional objects with the appearance of three dimensions. Often, their lines will be in direct opposition to forms they are supposed to define, or will throw shadows in a way which is counterintuitive to how we see them. Most of them would do well to study George Klein and simplify, simplify, simplify. SEE: Avengers #59 - 63, with John Buscema LEFT: Perfectly controlled feathering highlights George Klein's work. Note how the tapered lines always follow the contour of the form they define. From Avengers #58.
#16 JOE SIMON
	Joe Simon spent almost 20 years as half of one of comics most celebrated creative teams, the powerhouse of Simon and Kirby. During the 40's and beyond, Simon, with his creative dervish/partner Jack Kirby, succeeded in turning the industry upside down again and again. Captain America, The Red Skull, Sandman and Sandy, Manhunter, the Boy Commandos, romance comics, crime comics, kid gangs; they did it all! The chores were split on their innumerable creations: Simon usually writing and occasionally laying out out the stories, Kirby pencilling, and Simon more often than not providing inks and finishes. As to his style, Simon's own description says it all: he likened his inking to "hay", because of the long, thick, sometimes haphazard and overlapping brush strokes he applied to figures, backgrounds and shadows. The one thing Joe did NOT do very well was delineate textures! The comics, however, were always readable, fun, and uniquely Simon and Kirby! SEE: Yeesh! Hard to pin down EXACTLY since many Simon and Kirby jobs involved an inker round table, but most any S & K job has at least SOME great Simon inks! LEFT: A nice example of the unmistakeable Simon and Kirby style from 1950. Note the Joe Simon "hay" covering every surface.

 

#15 GEORGE ROUSSOS

In comics since the 40's, George Roussos was so adept with a brush in his hand that his co-workers appointed the nickname "Inky" to him. His style was often thick, heavy with blacks and sported nice contrasts which complimented one of his prime collaborators in the 50's, Mort Meskin. Like most Golden Age inkers, Roussos toiled in complete anonymity until the advent of the Marvel Age, when his work under the name George Bell made him well known to fans. Roussos had worked with Kirby many times before, but now, finally with a measure of notoriety. His greatest asset was a instinctive ability at spotting blacks (it would be rather difficult to ink Meskin or Jerry Robinson and not pick up an understanding of placing blacks), and a heavy hand that gave the figures weight. Although his early work is somewhat tough to pin down, his style was distinct enough to identify sufficient material to judge his enormous output. George subsequently became Marvel's production chief, a position he held until his death in the late 80's. SEE: Fantastic Four #20-27 LEFT: We looked, but we didn't find a better repro for "Inky" Roussos. Trust us--he was great!

#14 JERRY ORDWAY
	Yeah, Jerry Ordway is a pretty good penciler, but man, can that guy ink! Jerry is probably the last in the line of great Silver Age-style inkers. Taking a lot from Murphy Anderson and Joe Sinnott (and with a pinch of Wally Wood), Jerry anticipated the elegant precision of Brian Bolland, but retained a warmth Bolland occasionally loses. He makes every penciler shimmer with class and polish. Although sometimes his style may dominate, it very often saves the average artist and turns him into something far superior. If Ordway is in the credits, You'll want to take a look at it! SEE: Fantastic Four #278-283, Crisis on Infinite Earths #5-12     LEFT: Another eminently "readable" Ordway page from All-Star Squadron. Characters pop from the background (blacks set behind Liberty Belle in panel 3) and groups are framed by well thrown shadows (panel 2) Pencils by Rich Buckler.
#13 GIORDANO
	Probably more influential as an editor, Giordano has nonetheless crafted some of the finest inks in comics since his early days with Jerry Iger in the 1940's. After a long stint pencilling, inking and editing comics with Charlton (where he helped create the characters that would eventually inspire Watchmen) he moved to DC in 1967 as a staff editor while still producing freelance inks over the likes of Neal Adams and Irv Novick. Giordano's style blended perfectly with Adams' own: deep blacks rendered in bold, confident strokes; sketchy linework which resolved itself into naturalistic shadows and detail under the eye. And although his pencilling tends to be a little stiff, is yet another example of the idea that the best inkers are also excellent artists in their own right. SEE: Batman #235-245 (plus many Batman issues circa 1971-72) LEFT: Sharp silouettes, stark lighting and solid forms are all handled with supreme ease under the brush of Giordano. Pencils by Irv Novick.

#12 BILL SIENKIEWICZ
	If Ralph Steadman inked comics, they might look a lot like the work of Bill Sienkiewicz. Ever since Bill began warping his style in the early eighties (then inking over his own pencils), his instinct was to become looser, bolder and more outrageous in his choices. In spite of the occasionally wild appearance of his pen and brushwork, the communication never becomes confused or tedious. On the contrary - drawing on his great draftsmanship and artist's eye, he brought something more to the pencils he finished. During the 90's especially, he subtly (and sometimes not so subtly) contributed a genuine extra dimension of mood and emotion the same way he had when working on the job by himself. Like a demented amalgam of Graham Ingels and Michael Kaluta, Bill can scratch, crosshatch, splotch, splatter and blot, yet never tax the viewer's eye. It is a desperately difficult and dangerous style, but one that Sienkiewicz handles with assuredness and elan. SEE: Galactus the Devourer #1-5 (with John J. Muth and John Buscema), Spectacular Spider-Man #223-228 LEFT: Bill's unique vision imposes itself on Sal Buscema's pencils. From Spectacular Spider-Man #223.
#11 SYD SHORES
	No wonder Syd Shores developed into a great penciller and inker. Consider his pedigree: sometime around 1941 he began working at Marvel (then Timely) as an assistant to Joe Simon and Jack Kirby - by all accounts the third or fourth member of the staff hired! He inked or pencilled (with Al Avison and others) parts of Captain America Comics starting with #2, and took on even more responsibilities when Simon and Kirby fled to DC following issue #10. Shores evidenced an unique and singular inking style, one perhaps only vaguely approximated by the great Bill Everett. Both had bold, but rough hewn lines and illustrative, photorealistic brushwork which gave the pages a beautiful, organic look unlike any other. Shores stayed at Marvel a long time, eventually becoming the bullpen supervisor around 1950, advising new artists, inking and pencilling all the time. He returned to inking full time for a few years in the '60's, giving Kirby (who else?) one of his finest collaborations of the era. SEE: Captain America #100-103, Daredevil #53-74 LEFT: The unmistakeable burnished linework of Syd Shores. Pencils by Gene Colan, from Daredevil #62.

 

#10 KLAUS JANSON

Known best for his intense and serendipitous pairing with Frank Miller, Klaus Janson has been doing outstanding work for Marvel, DC and others since the mid seventies. With a bold, heavy, thick brushstroke, Janson followed Tom Palmer's lead away from the Sinnott / Anderson style back to a darker image reminiscent of the greats of the past: Mort Meskin, George Roussos and early Kubert. In recent years he has proved himself a fine penciler as well, creating projects primarily for DC. Janson's world is invariably dark, shadowy, and fat with the same kind of visual energy which typifies noir thrillers like The Killers or Touch of Evil. SEE: Janson's run with Frank Miller on Daredevil (issues 158-190), and The Dark Knight Returns; What If? (1st series) #3 over Gil Kane's pencils is terrific, as are his other collaborations with Gil on John Carter and many covers.   LEFT: An outstanding example of the Miller / Janson pairing from Daredevil #164. Note the attention to detail in the lighting of Urich's spiral notepad in Panels 3 -6. Eleven panels on this page and no confusion.

#9 TERRY AUSTIN

Ask 100 fans who began collecting comics during the late 70's or 80's who their favorite inker is, and 80 will probably answer Terry Austin. With John Byrne, he crafted some of the eras best remembered comics, in the process moving away from the illustrative Tom Palmer influence back toward the more direct line look of Murphy Anderson and Joe Sinnott. This style, developed primarily by working with technical pens of varying line weights, became a template for aspiring inkers for a number of years. His influence can be seen in the work of Scott Williams, among others. SEE: Uncanny X-Men with John Byrne (issues 109 - 143) is a great modern age teaming; Terry also produced a fabulous job over Frank Miller on Daredevil #191. LEFT: A fantastic example of Terry Austin's perfectly controlled tech-pen Linework on the Alex Toth-pencilled Superman Annual #9

#8 KEVIN NOWLAN
	If you ever have a chance to see a Nowlan original, you'll appreciate even more the care and detail he puts on every page of inks. The contrast of bold, meaty brush strokes against elegant linework is an absolute pleasure to behold. Simple shadows and perfectly controlled lineweights give his figure WEIGHT, and the space around them volume. He features aspects of some of the great inkers: the ethereal line of a John Bolton; the precise hand of a Brian Bolland; the sharp contrasts of a Wally Wood and the confidence and conviction of a Klaus Janson. Still reletively young, he exhibits a mastery of his two-dimensional medium far beyond his years. SEE: Superman vs. Aliens; Superman: Distant Fires, a prestige-format DC book with Gil Kane (anything over Gil Kane - what a team!); Jack B. Quick in Tomorrow Stories (which he pencils himself).   LEFT: Kevin has it all - full command of complex lighting effects; natural, organic looking linework and solid, well rounded forms. From Moon Knight (third series) #1.
#7 JOHN SEVERIN
	The more you look at the career of John Severin, the better it gets. After a long and distinguished run during the 50's penciling and inking fantastic jobs for Atlas and EC, he turned in the 60's to some top flight inking over Jack Kirby and others, then teamed up with his sister Marie (a fine artist in her own right) for some beautiful Kull stories during the 70's - all this while still producing hilarious jobs for Cracked magazine! Influenced by Roy Crane, his inks have a bit of the Crane quality in them: direct, elegantly rendered without being overwrought, and above all, authentic. John has continued doing work into the 80's and 90's, each job just as painstanking as the others. If there's one thing John Severin never does, it is cut corners. SEE: A nice run with Ayers on Sgt. Fury #39 - 79--this is an outstanding example of a fine inker helping out a good storyteller but less than inspiring penciler; issues of Kull (first series) with his sister Marie; John's finishes over Kirby on early SHIELD issues of Strange Tales. LEFT: Here Severin loosens up Ayers' excellent, but sometimes stiff pencils. From Sgt. Fury #72.
#6 AYERS
	Ayers belongs on this list, if only for his prolific output. By his own count, he produced almost 20,000 inked pages from his earliest days in the industry (1947) until 1989. But the quality during those many years remained uniformly excellent, if not always spectacular. Like most inkers who began before the 1970's, the idea was to use the inks to clarify and enhance the storytelling - not to make beautiful pictures. This Ayers did to supreme effect for DC, Skywald, Charlton, ACG and his most loyal employer, Marvel Comics. His collaborations with Jack Kirby (hundreds upon hundreds of pages during the 50's and early 60's) stand as one of the great teamings in the history of comics. SEE: Fantastic Four # 6 - 20 (Except for #13 - a rare beauty by Steve Ditko!) LEFT: Probably King Kirby's most prolific partner, Ayers inked hundreds upon hundreds of pages of Jack's quickie western and monster stories before the Marvel super-hero era began.

 

 

#3 TOM PALMER

It doesn't seem so long ago that Tom Palmer was the young turk of the Marvel bullpen. It has, however, been THIRTY (!) years since the long-haired kid slipped through the doors of Marvel to hobnob with men who built the industry. Tom Palmer seems to have been the first in the line of "modern" inkers. His style broke sharply from the accepted style of the time exemplified by  Ayers, Joe Sinnott and George Klein. He showed a lusher, more illustrative approach and used his brush in an almost painterly fashion. All this played directly into other shifts in the industry, notably the commercial ideas sown by Neal Adams which blossomed to every corner of the business. It's no small wonder that these two men hooked up for some of the finest collaborations in comics history. Their work on Avengers and X-Men are justifiably lauded and have been pointed to by Adams himself as among his favorites. Their vision helped embolden the nascent steps from the more conventional 60's into the unpredictable and experimental 70's. Tom has been a Marvel mainstay ever since, giving the most mundane of stories a polish and direction which show he truly contributes a great load to the process. In addition, his popularity and skill influenced the next generation of inkers: Joe Rubenstein, Bob McLeod, Klaus Janson and many others each owe a stylistic debt to him. SEE: X-Men (first series) issues in the 50's and 60's with Neal Adams, as well as Avengers (first series) #74-84 with John Buscema and #93-97 Neal Adams (including the Kree / Skrull War); and don't forget him making John Byrne look almost professional again on X-Men: The Hidden Years! LEFT: Tom Palmer always adds more than he finds in the drawings. His use of zip-a-tone screens to enhance lighting effects is non-pareil. Pencils? Neal Adams. From Avengers #93

#5 FRANK GIACOIA
	In comics from 1941, Frank Giacoia's smooth, thick line has been recognizable over a surfeit of outstanding pencillers. Gil Kane (who called him "an extraordinarily powerful inker"), Carmine Infantino, Gene Colan and Jack Kirby all benefited from his heavy, robust linework which always helped tell the story in a simple, direct way. His collaboration with Kirby on the short-lived newspaper strip Johnny Reb and Billy Yank (which Giacoia created) was superb, as was generally the case when he teamed with the King. Frank worked for many publishers during his 40-odd years in comics: Lev Gleason, Hillman, Timely, DC and of course Marvel (where he sometimes moonlighted under the alias Frankie Ray while still working for DC). SEE: Fantastic Four #39 (as Frank Ray) has always been a favorite--the Daredevil figures are inked by Wally Wood; DC collaborations with Camine Infantino (early issues of Mystery in Space); and Amazing Spider-Man (with Gil Kane) circa #95 - 105. LEFT: Here's how an inker helps tell the story: nice, solid blacks; clear, easily readable panels; smooth transitions and flow.
#4 MURPHY ANDERSON
	Murphy Anderson helped define the look of the Silver Age at DC the way Joe Sinnott did at Marvel. He gave Gil Kane, Carmine Infantino and Curt Swan their most impressive visual counterpoint and exemplified the professional, solid and occasionally stagey style which dominated those years. Always controlled, sometimes even mannered, Anderson softened the angular pencils of Infantino with delicate feathering and supple linework. For Swan he warmed the usually cold and detached drawings with delicate shadows and rendering. With Kane he simply created impact. He is DC's top gun, bar none. SEE: DC's logo on the cover, the 1960's in the indicia and Murphy Anderson's name in the credits.     LEFT: From JLA #29, this is Murphy Anderson in his prime. Note the texture and shine of Doc Fate's helmet and the form and highlights in Black Canary's hair. Pencils by Mike Sekowsky.

 

#2 WALLY WOOD

After Alex Toth and Will Eisner, Wally Wood may have the greatest and boldest command of shadows ever thrown by an inker. Reflected light, multiple sources, four- and five-stage contrasts, vibrant silhouettes; all of these things flowed from the brush of Wally Wood. He was master of textures: a cold Minnesota forest was populated by individual elements--the coarse fur of a black bear, the reflective surface of running water, the harsh contrast of deep snow against knotted fir trees. Each had its distinct feel. His greatest gift, however, seemed to be his instinct for chiarscuro. Wally was perpetually using negative space folded into deep blacks, juxtaposing values, or letting shine and shimmer bleed into other areas of light, rather than containing them within a line. He visually captured optical tricks we've all seen a million times. The resulting verisimitude sold us on a world of three dimensions where there were actually only two. SEE: Wally's work over various Marvel and DC artists of the 60's, such as Gil Kane, Steve Ditko and others. His inks over Kirby on Sky Masters and Eisner on The Spirit are all time great teamings. Additionally, his inks (over his own pencils) during the EC era are spectacular. LEFT: Kirby called Woody his best inker, and you can see why. Great stuff from the unpublished newspaper strip, Surf Hunter, 1956.

#1 JOE SINNOTT

If you laid a Joe Sinnott inking job from 1965 and 1995 side by side, most people would be hard pressed to discern a difference. His style is mature, solid, assured, precise and smooth. He has been so good for so long that he tends to be overlooked except by those that appreciate the craft and professionalism of truly fine inking. Joe's greatest impact came as Jack Kirby's indisputably finest finisher. Their collaboration on Fantastic Four may have resulted in the slickest and most dynamic superhero comics ever produced. But he did more than that; from the time Kirby left Marvel for almost 15 years afterward, Joe was the look of Marvel. He kept the continuity of the Kirby years through the Buscema and Byrne years, with Marvel hewing a close editorial image to his style. Changing policy eventually turned them in a different direction, but Joe continued to do top flight work until his recent retirement. He still contributes outstanding pieces for The Jack Kirby Collector as well as the Bing Crosby Newsletter, and his beloved baseball illustrations. After 50 years in the business, he deserves recognition as one of the greats. SEE: Fantastic Four #44-62 feature what is probably Joe's finest work. In particular, issues #60-62 show perhaps the greatest single representation of the silver age style that Sinnott helped popularize. LEFT: Kirby and Sinnott are entering their prime period here. Rejected cover From FF #52 shows the care Joe lavished on every object. The strength of his line is unparalleled.

A list of the best inkers that includes many of Jack Kirby's inkers including Joe Simon, but does not include the Jack Kirby himself? Nobody inked Kirby better than Kirby!

[grapeape]

2 hours ago, hmendryk said:

A list of the best inkers that includes many of Jack Kirby's inkers including Joe Simon, but does not include the Jack Kirby himself? Nobody inked Kirby better than Kirby!

Bold statement and I respectfully disagree. Joe Sinnott was the greatest inker on Kirby FF. The majority of Jacks seminal work was inked by others.

Your love for King Kirby is admirably noted !!!!

[Dale Roberts]

14 hours ago, grapeape said:

The Silver Age man......

I've always thought the best Spider-man issues are those where Gil Kane penciled and Romita inked them. Just check out the layouts in ASM #90, just fantastic.

I'll give this a go.

Spider-man - Kane/ Romita followed by Romita

Batman, Green Lantern, Superman, Superboy, X-Men - Neal Adams

Basically any horror stuff - Bernie Wrightson and Neal Adams

Warlock, Captain Marvel, Superboy and the Legion - Jim Starlin

Daredevil - Gene Colan followed by early Frank Miller

Avengers - George Perez, Byrne

Fantastic Four - Buscema (sorry Jack)

Captain America, Hulk - John Romita

X-Men - Jim Lee

misc - Love Alan Davis, Farmer combination - Justice League the Nail was spectacular. Splash pages were amazing, reminiscent of ASM Ann 1 for splash greatness, really fond of Alex Toth stuff, Rich Buckler during the 70s was very good on most of what he worked on, early Sienkiewicz Moon Knight rocks, probably much more, but this is what comes to mind.

 

[piper]

On 10/17/2019 at 2:34 PM, Rick2you2 said:

Spectre: Mandrake

Phantom Stranger: Adams, Guillem March (covers), Aparo and DeZuniga (which I still can't get).

 

I’m still thrilled to have a few Aparo Phantom Stranger Pages. Need more!

[Rick2you2]

Just now, piper said:

I’m still thrilled to have a few Aparo Phantom Stranger Pages. Need more!

They have dropped in price lately. 

[hmendryk]

21 hours ago, grapeape said:

Bold statement and I respectfully disagree. Joe Sinnott was the greatest inker on Kirby FF. The majority of Jacks seminal work was inked by others.

Your love for King Kirby is admirably noted !!!!

Just the fact you use the term "seminal" means you are judging based on the perceived importance of the comic book feature and not on the merits of the actual inking. And while it is true that Kirby did little inking during the silver age, he did a lot of his own inking during previous periods.