F.M. :: GOLDEN MICHAEL

HOWARD THE DUCK MAGAZINE 5 PAGE 1 BY MICHAEL GOLDEN AND BOB MCLEOD

Artists: Michael Golden (Penciller) , Bob McLeod (Inker)

13 Comments - 280 Views - 14 Likes

HOWARD THE DUCK MAGAZINE 5 PAGE 1 BY MICHAEL GOLDEN AND BOB MCLEOD Comic Art

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Artwork Details

Title:	HOWARD THE DUCK MAGAZINE 5 PAGE 1 BY MICHAEL GOLDEN AND BOB MCLEOD
Artist:	Michael Golden (Penciller)
Artist:	Bob McLeod (Inker)
Media Type:	Mixed Media
Art Type:	Interior Page
For Sale Status:	NFS
Views:	280
Likes on CAF:	14 15
Comments:	13
Added to Site:	2/8/2025
Comic Art Archive:

Description

I realise that this page is not exactly a top tier one, worthy of my usual birthday event. And yet it�s drawn by one of my favourite artists, Michael Golden, and inked by one of my favourite inkers, Bob McLeod. I simply chose to showcase in this context as Michael Golden original art is becoming increasingly rare to come by, especially his (quality) vintage published work.

(And I�ve been trying over the years to include a piece by him with every birthday celebration).

Here we have page 1 of his story published in Howard Magazine 5.

The storytelling is crystal clear as always with Golden. Who needs words with such flow and perfect acting of the characters. Anybody can tell what is happening here and mentally fills in the dialogue to make it work.

In the first panel, we have another example of Golden experimentation (similar to what he did for his Lady Daemon strip, some of which I own) with collage, something that may have looked like a great idea back when but has not aged well. At the very least, you have a decapitated skull and some art on the left, a recuring gothic motif Golden was using in several of his early strips.

Then a closed in establishing shot in the second panel to show us characters arguing about something. Having the door entrance boxing them in like that is a usual cinematic trick often used in moving storytelling.

The acting of the writer in panel three is a bit overdone but clearly establishes that he is passionately arguing and defending his work. The work in the background with all the stuff pinned on the board on the wall is fantastic and really grounds this office scene believably.

Then the annoyed editor is dismissing the argument thrown at him with but a wave of his hand, thinking he is closing the discussion. His body language and acting are perfect (just look at his tired gaze, indicating it�s probably not the first conversation of this type he has had with this writer). Again, the office backgrounds are meticulously depicted.

Then the last panel where all hell breaks loose. Again, the acting of the angry writer exploding is very theatrical. A realistic depicting of the scene would have had him throw what was on his enemy�s desk with but one arm. And yet, by having him using both arms in an open gesture like that, Golden created a much more dynamic and dramatic image. Can you imagine the violence of this moment in real life if it happened exactly like this? Judging by the editor�s face and the passerby, they certainly would agree. Lastly, you can tell Golden had fun sending all the junk on the desk flying around.

The fun part here, since it is an obvious riff on the politics of the Marvel office editorial life, is trying to identify who is who in this story. The emotional writer being dismissed is most likely Bill Mantlo who wrote the story. Unless it was meant to be Steve Gerber, creator of Howard who had a bone to grind with Marvel over his creation? There is mention in the dialogue to vampire comics becoming a thing of the past so I thought Wolfman could also fit in there but he never looked like the guy on the page. It could also be an amalgam of different writers. The powerful editor seated at his desk is obviously Jim Shooter. His contentious relationships with many creators during his tenure is well documented and this page is clearly a parody of it. The third guy appearing in the last panel passing by I think may be a young Mark Gruenwald? Anyway, this is great and fun mise en abyme stuff :)

To mention the inks by McLeod is important for various reasons. One, early Golden art was not always blessed with compatible inkers or sadly, even apt ones. Second, while Bob was always a strong inker whose style was immediately recognizable, I find he did Golden�s pencils justice here, not overpowering them too much. Third, his wash work is fantastic on this page, fully fleshed with variations in tones and incredibly precise. Just look at the work on the light and shadows alone in panel 3 & 4.

Now if Marvel would be so kind to compile the Howard magazine stuff in a deserving format?

This is part 2 of my 2025 CAF birthday party, incidentally also my 20th year on CAF.

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Joined:	May 2005
Last Login:	September 2025
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Dr. Balls
Member Since 2012

2 - Posted on 2/8/2025

This is a great storytelling piece by Golden - I'm not real knowledgable of Golden's work, but he pretty much brough The Nam to life when I read it back in the 80s and I can see a lot of that dynamic storytelling in the expressions here.

Ruben DaCollector
Member Since 2008

2 - Posted on 2/8/2025

Dr. Balls wrote:

Yeah, The 'Nam was a great comic that came out at the right time, with Hollywood pumping out so many Vietname related action movies at the time. The Golden art in that title really sang!

James S
Member Since 2017

1 - Posted on 2/8/2025

Happy Birthday, and love the way this page is drawn!

John Livesay
Member Since 2009

1 - Posted on 2/8/2025

Nice!

E DLS
Member Since 2005

1 - Posted on 2/8/2025

Although both are wearing glasses in all the photos I've seen, it's definitely Mantlo. And if that isn't Shooter, I'll eat this page. But you'd have to give it to me first. Haha! Loved Golden's work on this mag. And this is a fine example. Regardless of what tier you put it in. Oh, and happy birthday my friend.

Ruben DaCollector
Member Since 2008

1 - Posted on 2/8/2025

It's always fun to see pages depicting well know Marvel creators and editors. This page is great just for that reason alone. McLeod pulled back just enough to allow for a 50/50 Golden/McLeod aesthetic appearance. But I also have to point out how much I love the top panel! When reading comics back in my youth, I always enjoyed seeing realistic looking buildings here and there, whenever the artists chose to insert a photocopy instead of drawing the buildings in by hand. That's a reat aerial shot of the New York skyline!

Andr� .
Member Since 2015

1 - Posted on 2/8/2025

The layers of wash here are truly impressive.

Duke Fleed aka #1 Groo Fan
Member Since 2013

1 - Posted on 2/8/2025

Lovely work. With this style, he could easily have gotten work at Mad Magazine.

Kavi H
Member Since 2018

1 - Posted on 2/8/2025

Happy birthday Part 2!

I like this page a lot, especially the "meta" nature of the content. And even if it's a stat I always appreciate seeing a good shot at the NYC skyline from various eras and angles/viewpoints. The figure work is nice. Really a great page

James Dornoff
Member Since 2019

1 - Posted on 2/9/2025

Great looking art page, lots of great detailing, especially in the bulletin board. Nice shading, tonal work and design, with great use of city scape that is a stat, I am assuming.

Marcus Wai
Member Since 2005

1 - Posted on 2/9/2025

It's great meta storytelling that fits so well with Howard The Duck, wry humor. Yeah, Shooter was not a boss that was loved.

Nils E
Member Since 2014

1 - Posted on 2/10/2025

I love Golden's realism with cartoonish flow

K Gearon
Member Since 2011

1 - Posted on 2/18/2025

Great top to bottom storytelling and equally great grey tone work...sweet page from 2 master. Happy birthday and happy 20th CAF anniversary!

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