(disco) Dazzler - Pepe Larraz

The embers of my lifelong (well since the age of 7) love of X-Men had been cooling until Pepe Larraz and Jonathan Hickman came along and revitalized the franchise and kindled those embers back into a roaring flame.

As those familiar with his name know, Pepe works mostly digitally except for some covers and some very early work. You can get pages as monoprints, which I have and gladly will again for the right pages and prices, but it's hard to get his traditional work, even sketches.

That was one of my main targets at NYCC this year. He only took I believe 4 Pre-Con commissions via his rep prior to the show, and he only took 3 bust sketches for the whole weekend, I was 7th in line Thursday, so that wasn't to be either. He did though take a handful (seemed to be around 6 to 10 per day) of remarques and profile head sketches each day, and I was lucky enough to get one on Thursday and another on Saturday. You had to wait by his table for the rest of the line of signature only fans to be served first and then had to continue to wait with him until it was your turn for your remarque or profile sketch. It was maybe a commitment of an hour and a half to two hours. Very much worth it to me, I do not mention to complain, I just assume it could be helpful data for someone reading this who might get to see him at a future larger con that might have a similar experience/structure.

I love this Dazzler it looks like she might be celebrating the resurrection of a long lost friend in the Arbor Magna or throwing back drinks at the Green Lagoon. I'll miss the Krakoan era and I'll always be a fan of those books and grateful to Pepe and Jonathan for that chapter. This was done on 6x8 bristol with pencil, ink, and paint markers.