Countdown to San Diego 2008 (Part 5): Program Art

Every year the organizers of the San Diego Comic-Con International invite people to submit art and articles for the show’s program focused on any of the various theme’s of that year’s show. The themes are usually connected to the anniversary of some character or series.

I’ve always enjoyed submitting these contributions which, in the best comics tradition, I have used as an opportunity to crossover my own character, Rob Hanes, with other features. I like to think the Comic-Con people enjoy them too since my art often gets nicely featured in the final program.

Below is my contribution to this year’s program honoring the 25th anniversary of Howard Chaykin’s American Flagg. Flagg was a real watershed series for me in that its appearance helped reinvigorate my interest in comics again. It debuted when I was in college and it helped make First Comics one of the first successful comic-book companies that provided a viable alternative to the mainstream “Big Two” publishers. It gave me real hope that a series like my own had a chance to find an audience. (American Flagg will be the subject at a later date in my occasional posts entitled “A Look Back” that examine some of the comics that influenced me when I was growing up.)

You can click on the image to see it full size.


I’ve had the fortune to interact with Flagg’s creator, Howard Chaykin, a few times. These include a time when some buddies of his brought him by my table, and he told me “Everybody’s been telling me your work looks like Toth and I should take a look!”