Mister X Poster Rough 3

This is one of a series of original color roughs from my design work on the 1980s comic book series MISTER X. It was a rough exploring ideas for the posters released to comic shops, and is mounted on a piece of quality card measuring 6.75" x 5". For more about me and my role in the Mister X series, please read below! Thanks for looking.

Paul Rivoche served as co-creator of the 1980s comic book Mister X, published by Vortex Comics, collaborating with Dean Motter to develop Motter’s basic starting point for the character. Rivoche shaped the series' distinctive retro-futuristic, noir-inspired visual style and aesthetics, influenced by art deco, Bauhaus, and European "ligne claire" cartooning by artists like Hergé and Yves Chaland. He was inspired to produce a series of striking promotional posters that generated significant pre-publication buzz with their mysterious, Metropolis-like imagery.

Rivoche drew the first three pages of the proposed comic, written by Motter, and handled coloring and lettering for the debut issue. However, due to payment disputes and delays, he departed the project before its 1984 launch, after which the Hernandez brothers (Jaime, Gilbert, and Mario) took over production using his foundational designs, later also leaving the series after payment disputes. Despite Rivoche’s departure, he continued to provide cover art for several issues, including Mister X #1 (June 1984), #2 (December 1984), and #6 (August 1987), and also drew a backup story titled Hollow Man.

He later continued to influence the series' legacy by contributing new commission art to Mister X: The Archives, a book published by Dark Horse Comics in 2008 as a hardcover, with a paperback edition later released in 2017. This book seriously diminished Rivoche’s role in the creation and development of the Mister X concept, removing his role as a full co-creator and relegating him to the status of one of many illustrators of the series.

Rivoche’s early designs and posters significantly defined the series' visual identity and had far-reaching effects, later directly influencing works like Batman: The Animated Series and films such as Dark City and Tim Burton’s Batman.