A LOOK BACK: American Flagg!

I was attending UCLA in 1983 when American Flagg! debuted. While I can’t recall specifically what comics I was reading at the time, aside from some early black and white titles that signaled the start of the independent comics movement like Cerebus, Elfquest, and Love and Rockets, there wasn’t much in the mainstream that I can recall particularly inspired me, though I had discovered the direct market just a few years earlier.

Then along came Howard Chaykin’s American Flagg! This year marks its 25th anniversary.

It’s probably the single series which reignited my passion for comics and which showed me that comics like my own that did not solely feature superheroes in tights were a viable alternative in the new direct comics market.

While Chaykin’s aesthetic roots are firmly planted in the pulps and mainstream comics, this certainly was a series that was truly all him, which reflected his own sensibilities and views. Flagg featured a strong author’s point of view, and featured a unique blend of science fiction, satire, and mature themes. Chaykin created a rich setting environment for his near-apocalyptic tale of consumerism and the corporate state run amuck. (It also should be noted that Chaykin also considered Flagg to be a comedy.)

Of course, like all great comics, while the concept and story were outstanding, the art brought it to a whole new level. With Flagg, Chaykin’s strong sense of design came to the forefront, punctuated by his effective use of Duoshade.

Flagg was a comic-book series that I eagerly anticipated each month, and one for a long time I continually pored over for both study and inspiration.

Though the series continued for several more years after the first 12-issue story arc, Chaykin—never one to linger and always with his eye on the next project—eventually lost interest in the series and at different times during its history turned it over to other artists and writers. For the most part, my interest gradually cooled in the series as well. Nevertheless, in its first few years, Flagg completely reinvented the form for me showing how much more could be done in monthly comic-book format. Flagg still brings back terrific memories of my college days and of an exciting and inspiring time to be part of comics.

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!”