 | Hulk artist Gabriel Hardman on storytelling and creative supervillains |
From the earliest days of the series, the Hulk has attracted some of the most impressive artistry in comics. Without a doubt, artist Herb Trimpe set a landmark with the character, delineating more wreckage, monsters and flexing muscles per inch of paper than had been seen before. The modern Hulk is of course split into two titles, one following the 'Hulk Family' written by Greg Pak and currently drawn by Dale Eaglesham and the other centered on the Red Hulk (General Thaddeus 'Thunderbolt' Ross) written by Jeff Parker and drawn by Gabriel Hardman.
Parker and Hardman had recently collaborated on the fan favorite series Atlas before moving over to the gamma camp and taking over the direction of the second Hulk series. Parker has become something of a fan favorite writer in recent years, and was the subject of a very vocal online campaign demanding his appointment as Hulk scribe. A master of humor, action and characterization, Parker's pairing with Hardman on the Hulk title seemed too good to be true.
An acclaimed artist of the screen as well as the page, Hardman took a moment to talk to CBR.com about his experience and offered hints at what lies ahead for the Red Hulk...
CBR News: Gabriel, you're well known by Marvel Comics fans for your collaborations with Jeff Parker on books like "Agents of Atlas" and "Hulk," but let's kick things off by talking about your other artistic career, the one that some fans may not know about. You're a veteran story board artist who's worked on movies like "Inception," "Spider-Man 3," "X-Men 2 and 3," "Superman Returns" and "Tropic Thunder." What is the exact role of a storyboard artist on a film today, and what are some of the things expected of you in particular?
Gabriel Hardman: The primary job of a storyboard artist is the same as it's always been: drawing a comic-like representation of the angles a director plans to shoot so the crew knows how to prepare. That's the baseline but it frequently encompasses a lot more. Often I'm in the position to design a sequence on paper and present it to the director. Much of that work can make it into the final film. Frequently over the last several years, I've been in charge of supervising the previs (animatic) artists and together we craft low-ish res computer animated sequences. Something like a CG animated storyboard with the look of a video game cut sequence.
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According to IMDB, your body of work as a storyboard artist is pretty extensive. It stretches all the way back to 1997 with the first "Austin Powers" movie and goes all the way up through last year's "Inception." What are some of your favorite films that you've worked on? Why do these films stand out for you?
"Inception," "X-Men 2" and "Tropic Thunder" are the movies I enjoyed the most as an audience member, but it's difficult for me to look at the movies I've worked on objectively. I was the only storyboard artist on "Inception." I had read the script dozens of times. I boarded most of the movie, including everything from the point they enter the multileveled dream that takes up the last third of the film. I knew exactly what was going to happen. Still I found the movie riveting.
Then there are other movies where the final product is terrible, but working on them was a great experience.
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One of the things that you seem to be getting a chance to do a lot of in "Hulk" is character design, specifically villains. Do you have a general philosophy when it comes to creating new characters?
I think it's important that the characters feel like they fit in the Marvel Universe as a whole. And no matter how far we get from 1961, at its core Marvel was designed by Jack Kirby. Even if it's not directly apparent in the designs, I like to keep that in mind.
One of the latest villains you redesigned was the new M.O.D.O.K. who made his debut in "Hulk" #29. It seems like the original M.O.D.O.K., while being an intimidating foe to fight, also had a slight comical aspect to him. This new M.O.D.O.K. is a lot creepier and horrific. Is that what you were going for?
I gave him a little more of Peter Lorre, but the M.O.D.O.K. redesign was fairly superficial. He has spider legs when he's revealed, but that's just one of the modular components he'll have at his disposal.
The next new villain you and Jeff are pitting the Hulk against is General Fortean. He looks like he'll be coming after the Red Hulk in a mecha style battle suit. Is Fortean's battle suit merely practical or does it also comment on the way he approaches problems -- mechanically and with a lot of fire power?
Fortean is more an opponent than a villain. He want's to take down Red Hulk, and not without reason. He's not all about brute force, but he's not going to bring a knife to a gunfight either. That's the reason behind the battle suit.
In "Hulk" #31 you and Jeff introduce another new villain named Zero/One. What can you tell us about this character? Jeff referred to her as a she...
Readers will find out more about Zero/One as the series progresses. Zero/One is a character we've been seeding since the beginning of our run, but I'd rather readers find out about her in the book.
Read the entire interview at CBR.com and see more of Hardman's outstanding Hulk art!
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