I first discovered Eric Gapstur's work when I saw him inking Phil Hester in Legends of the Dark Knight. I'm very picky about who I like to see ink Phil, but Eric impressed me quite a bit. Eric and Phil kept on collaborating with Green Hornet, Superman, Batman Beyond, The Flash and Shipwreck, and I kept digging their work. Later, I discovered that Eric is also one heck of a penciler and a Legion fan as well, so I became his new #1 fan. When I asked Eric about doing a "Karate Kid vs." commission, he suggested a couple opponents before settling on Tasmia Mallor, the one and only Shadow Lass! Eric wanted to try a different angle on this commission instead of doing a face-to-face kicks flying type of drawing, and I'm glad that he did (even though I love those kind as well). To me, this commission tells a story. Tasmia has trained with Val Armorr before, and I'm sure that they are sparring once again. Shadow Lass has plunged the area into darkness, and is doing her best to sneak up on Val from behind, flying through the air to avoid making noise with her footsteps. Great idea and execution from Eric! Later, I sent these lines over to Simon Gough and let him have a go at it. I honestly wasn't sure what to expect, because this image was supposed to look dark. But I should know by now to only expect greatness from Simon, because he made it look gorgeous and helped to set the mood perfectly. I cannot thank and recommend Eric and Simon enough!

Tasmia Mallor is the champion of Talok VIII and is an excellent hand-to-hand combatant. She controls darkness and is one of the toughest Legionnaires around. That said, Val Armorr doesn't need to see to beat an opponent. And if she comes at him like in this commission, Val will surely hear her cape flapping in the air as she descends and greet her with a punch-kick surprise.

If you like this piece then please do go buy some books featuring Eric's work in either physical or digital format and/or go commission him yourself.

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