Favorite John Byrne Runs

[day_walker]

I'm reading Alpha Flight. I'm up to #8 and enjoying it very much so far.

[John Aston]

Uncanny v.1 112-143 is still classic.

Byrne's Cap run is underrated imo. I think his FF run was hit or miss. There are some great issues and there are some where he literally "mails it in" with a lot of blank empty background panels. The same can be said of his Alpha Flight toward the end of that series, where apparently he just didn't give a damn.

I understand where you're coming from. However, in Byrne's defense, omitting a background here and there isn't a visual crime. Not all panels of a comic must be rendered complete with backgrounds. One could argue the redundancy and misuse of the artist's time drawing the same background in five panels on the same page when dialogue balloons will hide the art.

Plus depicting the character in color with a blank background could be a visual cue on the importance of what's taking place in the story. Depends. Though, I do have to raise an eyebrow at the blank pages in Alpha Flight.

[Johnny Thunders!]

I love his X-Men, FF, Captain America, Spiderman team ups, and Alpha Flight. Great superhero comics that looked amazing. I love that issue of the Thing where he has the modern Thing meet the 1962 version so that he can share a cure for his condition. I also love the FF issue where Franklin first becomes a cosmic being. Is there an artist now that generates the type of excitement Byrne did in his heyday?

[CliffHanger2]

No I don't think so but then the day of the superstar comic artist seems to be over. It's definitely over for the superstar artist/writer I mean you just don't see that anymore.

[Jon Rock]

I like his Angel stuff with IDW, Fanastic Four is my favorite though.

What is the opinion on his Iron Man run I saw they recently put out a trade of it.

[Johnny Thunders!]

No I don't think so but then the day of the superstar comic artist seems to be over. It's definitely over for the superstar artist/writer I mean you just don't see that anymore.

The only ones I can think of are Paul Pope, Darwyn Cooke, maybe Keith Giffen, Mike Allred, none of them have the same superstar quality. Byrne seemed like he couldn't miss for about 10 years.

[Marvell2100]

Namor and Fantastic Four. Both defining runs. I tried his Next Men. Good early on but it began to bog down very soon.

[Owain]

Hard to choose. So many good runs!

[Mace Dolex]

I happened upon John Byrne's work pretty late in the game with the comic Marvel Magazine from the mid-90's that had reprints of Daredevil, Iron Man, and Fantastic Four and Hulk by John Byrne.

After always reading so much praise for his work I got hooked that I immediately went out and collected all his Superman stuff and X-Men reprints.

Byrne is one of may favorite artists that I've even gotten to buying comics from characters I don't enjoy like Namor, Captain America, Next Men, Danger Unlimited, She-Hulk.

[Joey Deadcat]

Fantastic Four, Namor, and Alpha Flight.

Now I'm aware that AF wasn't one of his favorite works but I dug that he was doing something different with a super-hero team series.

[King Poindexter]

Byrne had so many good runs.

Incredible Hulk - What could have been... His artwork and knowledge of the characters were perfect for the Hulk. He blames Shooter for his quick exit, and it's a shame that he couldn't just be left alone, because I'm guessing that "defining run" would also be attached to this.

Fantastic Four - Nobody understood what made Stan and Jack's FF become a phenomenon more that JB. Amidst all the action, fantastical plots, and techno babble from Reed (and Doom), there was a genuine feeling of family and comfort that he connected to that was a perfect homage to Stan and Jack's run.

Alpha Flight - This was about as good as his X-Men stuff was, and it's hard to believe that he didn't like his work here.

Uncanny X-Men - 'nuff said! But I'll say more. He made a bunch of strange characters that did not have the appeal of Spider-Man, the FF, Avengers, or Hulk, to be very engaging characters with real issues and great villains.

West Coast Avengers - Again, what could have been. This was to be his grand return to Marvel! (Star Brand wasn't "Marvel") It was everything I could have hoped for, but clues to trouble surfaced as soon as his promoted 5 issue initial story was suddenly 4 parts. Apparently, he worked through that, but then seemed to lose direction when he started writing the East Coast Avengers, too, and by his next big arc on WCA, he was gone midway through his story arc.

Namor - One of the best comics of the early 90's when comic quality started slipping fast. Everything about this series on paper shouldn't have worked. The lead character and the new status quo for him worked because of Byrne, because nobody else could have pulled that off.

She-Hulk - Like Namor, this was something that only Byrne could make work at such a high level. A very creative series that, unfortunately, never really had a chance to be a huge hit. Even Byrne couldn't sell it. By this time, Byrne had lost his place as top dog to the likes of McFarlane, and Jim Lee was climbing fast. Byrne was "old school" to newer readers like John Buscema was seen as by the generation that anointed Byrne king. Again, trouble with the editor caused Byrne to leave, although he did return a few years later for a longer run than his initial 8 issues.

Superman - Man of Steel was excellent! Even though I was heartbroken that he left Marvel, I followed him to DC. His Superman series started out just as awesome, but got quickly cluttered with company crossovers that made a mess out of it.

X-Men: The Hidden Years - The series that showed the true character of Joe Quesada. This was some of Byrne's most inspired work in a decade. Great art (with Tom Palmer on inks) and some really strong storytelling. Some of the most entertaining X-Men comics I've ever read.

Spider-Man - I think his Spider-Man stuff is underrated. It's the very definition of a solid comic, but when you have so much greatness that you have produced in comics, "solid" just isn't good enough. His Iron-Man was also very solid stuff. I never read his Wonder Woman, but assume it's the same solid disappointment.

[day_walker]

Alpha Flight - This was about as good as his X-Men stuff was, and it's hard to believe that he didn't like his work here.

Really?! I didn't know that. I loved his Alpha Flight.
The only Byrne stuff I've read that I don't really like is his West Coast Avengers and, to a lesser extent, his relatively short run on The Avengers.

[Iron Chi]

When I think of Uncanny X-men, Byrne's version is what my mind immediately goes to. Probably because he was drawing it when I started reading them.

Also liked FF and Iron Fist.

[FishboneX]

When I think of Uncanny X-men, Byrne's version is what my mind immediately goes to. Probably because he was drawing it when I started reading them.

Also liked FF and Iron Fist.

I've been reading comics since the mid 70s, and most of my "classic" versions of characters were all drawn/written by John Byrne. It wasn't until XMen that I realized it was him, but once I did I knew that his avengers run was my favorite. That Marvel Premeire that I loved with Ant Man? That was him. Iron Fist? That was also him. I loved Alpha Flight and his Fantastic Four was the only time I ever LOVED the team. His Namor was so interesting, and his She Hulk was hilarious. His Captain America with Baron Blood and Union Jack? Fantastic. The man was the best, so much so that Marvel used his depictions of the characters in their logo box for years. And even over to DC, his Man of Steel book had me loving Superman for the first time ever. He is my favorite artist ever, and a great writer as well.

[Bad Wolf]

The man was the best, so much so that Marvel used his depictions of the characters in their logo box for years.

Yes! I think that's why his versions of most characters are the definitive ones for me.