1 - Posted on 11/28/2025

Lovely bold image, and a very individual pose for Elric - making him look particularly otherworldy and alien. The fully black tree also makes the landscape seem more mystical. Nice piece. 

1 - Posted on 11/28/2025

What a freaking great piece. Right out of the gates indeed! Awesome early Mignola illustration from the same year he started as an inker with Marvel! congrats Rick. 

1 - Posted on 11/28/2025

Even though Mignola himself didn't think so, the talent was there from the jump.  Love these early pieces.  Actually surprising how many of them survived and circulated throughout the hobby.  Some of them even had his handwritten name and home address on the back (or the name of his art school).  This one is fantastic!  So many of the Mignola trademarks already evident.  Love it.

1 - Posted on 11/28/2025

Now that's a pretty one. Interesting seeing his early style. Congrats!

1 - Posted on 11/28/2025

Can....can I have this? Pleeez.

1 - Posted on 11/28/2025

Very cool early Mignola. 

1 - Posted on 11/28/2025

Wow, love vintage Mignola illustrations, with Corum still years away, and Elric being the coolest, congrats!

1 - Posted on 11/28/2025

He certainly did have the right stuff, Rick! That's why I've always loved all of these single character pinups he drew back in 1982. Even back then, I felt his early style was well suited for Elric of Meliboné!

1 - Posted on 11/28/2025

Love Mignola's rendition! Congrats!!

1 - Posted on 11/29/2025

Sweet!

1 - Posted on 11/29/2025

Fascinating look at early Mignola art!  Really pure and clean linework where you can see a lot of his influences from the Studio. 

1 - Posted on 11/29/2025

Super lovely early Mignola

1 - Posted on 11/29/2025

Does this make you the Gatekeeper?

1 - Posted on 11/29/2025

Mignola also should have drawn Elrod of Melvinbone from Cerebus ... 

https://cerebus.fandom.com/wiki/Elrod

1 - Posted on 12/1/2025

....now that is something!!

1 - Posted on 12/1/2025

I FIND IT EXTRAORDINARY! It is plenty of talent!

1 - Posted on 12/1/2025

Love this piece.  Saw it on eBay recently but I guess you beat me to it.  I picked up the recent Elric cover he did, and this is so different, but equally as amazing!  

1 - Posted on 12/1/2025

It doesn't feel like an arm.

1 - Posted on 12/2/2025

Right?!?  SO very cool to get to see an early work (a -beautiful- early work) from an artist like Mike and recognize (just as you say) his innate sense of... Mignolaness, right out of the gate.  He's still closing in on it, but he's well on his way.  So many artists (completely understandably) spotlight Stormbringer when they draw Elric, but Mike favors the strength of the composition here (of course he does), and instead stages the blade back behind our hero, with that foreboding black tree, which balances the thing and makes it all smolder with a malice or menace that, of course, Mignola. :)  And then the berm in the bottom right of the page cinches the whole thing down to (literally) ground and balance the composition.  Another classic pick up for your incredible collection, Rick!  Congrats!

1 - Posted on 12/5/2025

Nice one! I love his early-mid 80s style. Always caught my eye. 

1 - Posted on 12/8/2025

Awesome!  Always loved early Mignola art, brings back memories of all those cool, old Comic Reader illos. 

1 - Posted on 12/12/2025

Wow this is quite an amazing piece very different from the Mignola ive come to love but definitely see the same brilliance. This somehow reminds me more of Wrightson than it does Mignola funny enough. I love how clever the placement is with the darks to lead and frame the main figure. Another fantastic piece major congrats Rick!  

1 - Posted on 12/13/2025

Wonderful piece!!!