Ominous Press Poster 2 - Who's Who?

A mere week after introducing you all to the characters from Ominous Press’ Poster 1, here I am again to introduce the characters from Poster 2! It is interesting to note that Poster 2, while we (Bart and myself) believe it came out after Poster 1, was actually drawn before it. It has some nifty looking characters that don’t appear anywhere else, but would have played a large part in Ominous Press’ future.

So here's the poster:

And here are the outlined characters, the same as the last time:

And here's who's who:

1. Arkon
One of Bart’s favourite and oldest characters, who was due to have his own series eventually if Ominous Press had have continued.

2. Auoro (Pronounced Or-oh)
Taken from the Brutes & Babes tutorials in Wizard. I like to think of Brute & Babe and Mael & Auoro as separate characters, as their personalities are completely different in the two forms.

3. Mael
Also from the B&B tutorials. Bart was originally going to go with Arkon as the main character of the Ominous Press comics, but was urged to go with recognisable characters like Brute & Babe by Wizard founder Gareb Shamus.

4. Intrepid
One of Bart’s earliest creations, as far back as the early to mid 80’s if Bart recalls correctly. Intrepid is a very important character.

5. Nightbeast
Perhaps the coolest looking character in all of the Ominous Press Universe.

6. Insidious
Would kick Doctor Doom’s ass in a second, whilst kicking Lord Havok’s ass simultaneously.

7. Wolfhound
A detailed design process can be seen for this character in Bart’s B&B tutorial in Wizard #29, same with Pheros.

8. Warhammer
A member of a band of warriors who derive their strength and powers from a unique weapon wielded by each of them. This band of warriors are good guys and gals.

9. Sunder
Was initially named Thashur, but Bart was informed of another character with the same name, so he changed it to Sunder.

10. Pheros (Pronounced Fair-ose)
He looks huge in this image, but then, he is over 7 feet tall!

11. Steele
Another early character of Bart’s. Steele, along with many other characters, was created for a roleplaying game invented by Bart, Michael J Morrissey and John Pedercini in High School. The game was called, quite amusingly, 'The Game.'

12. Warspear
Another member of the weapon wielding WARriors. See what I did there?

13. Thrace
Just darn cool looking. He’s a really nasty fellow, apparently.

14. ???
Mystery will continue to surround this one, as Bart intends it. Not even a name will be forthcoming!

15. Slike
Snake dude. A late addition to this poster, by all accounts.

16. Zeus
Yep, he looks very different to the same character in Poster 1, and I’m not just talking about him appearing to be billy-bollocks nekid. This was an early design for Zeus, before he lost the hair, got the lightning strike mark on his scalp and some clothes to cover his various... ahem... appendages.

17. Talis
Talis is one of those characters that is to remain in the mysterious shadows, as per Bart’s request. But I can reveal that the big and cool looking hammer thing he is holding is called Skullsbane.

18. Warmonger
Just one of a variety of Armorgedden Armor types, Warmonger is considered a Stealth Class model, capable of great speeds for short amounts of time.

Fantastic stuff isn't it? You betcha! I personally love all of this Ominous Press stuff. I used to make lists of all of the known characters and where they appeared, what they did and a bunch of other information. Then I got talking to Bart and managed to get my hands on stacks of scripts and notes from the Ominous Press days and it soon became pretty clear that the published stories were really only the tip of the iceberg. There are literally hundreds of characters, in various levels of development (some are little more than a name, while others like Arkon are thoroughly fleshed out), and while I can't reveal much from the Ominous Press confidential files, whatever Bart has granted permission to release has been passed straight on to you. The names of the characters in these two posters is a perfect example of that.

Anywho, the next Who's Who will most likely deal with some of the gang from 'It Begins,' and it won't be far away! See you all soon.

Ominous Press Poster 1 - Who's who?

I picked up my copy of the first Ominous Press poster some time in 1995, if my memory serves me correctly. I recall getting it laminated and sticking it up on my wall pretty quickly after buying it. And for years afterward I would just stare at it and wonder... wonder about what would have been if Ominous Press had continued publishing comics, because as much as I loved the characters that we were introduced to in the three comics that were released, I just knew that there were more to come. Even in Poster 1 there are a few faces that don't really appear anywhere else, and an alphabetical list of copyrighted names of the characters featured in this poster appears in a few adverts featuring this artwork. But for years I would look at the names Nul, Igneous, Honor Guard, Warmonger and Saint Pyrs, and only be able to guess at who the names belonged to.

Then, I got to know Bart over the years and was able to put the names to the correct faces and even get a little bit of information on each of them.

And I'm nothing if not generous to other Searsians, so, for anybody out there who has also wondered who some of these characters are, this post is all for you!

To begin with, here's the poster in question:

Not bad, eh? And here are the outlines of all of the characters to make it a little more simple to navigate:

And here's the who's who of the characters listed numerically, with a bit of information on them in my own words, from what has been published and a little of what I have gleaned over the years. (Please note: these are my own interpretations of the characters to a certain extent, and don't necessarily represent what Bart intended or considers them to be. But saying that, it's pretty close in parts and all of the following descriptions have been approved by Bart himself.)

1. Mael (also Maelloryll)
A mighty and powerful warrior for good and righteousness. Trained by Moon & Snake, he fights to find his other half, Auoro, to fulfill an ages long prophecy.

2. Arkon
A warrior from the distant past, cast into other worlds, wielding his great sword Giantkiller. Arkon is cursed to walk the worlds he does not know, hunting as he goes.

3. Insidious
Scientific genius with a bent for evil and destruction. Creator of genetic monstrosities and bitter enemy of Intrepid.

4. Intrepid
Gifted with an intelligence that borders on precognition, Intrepid fights crime with astonishing speed and skill. But who is the man behind the mask?

5. Nul
A powerful and twisted being. Nul can neutralise a hero's power, and can plant suggestions into people's minds. It also hunts witches in its spare time.

6. Sunder
Perhaps the most 'good' hero in the universe. He is idealistic and naive, and though a man of few words, his actions speak louder than any word could.

7. Nightbeast
Carrying the mask of previous incarnations, Nightbeast stalks the future's darkness, seeking out those that would do bad. But the mask hides a different man, who, too, seeks to balance the scales of justice.

8. Warmonger
A behemoth of engineered metal and advanced technology. Armorgedden Armors like this are highly prized and elaborately protected, due to their versatility as both a walking weapon and virtually impenitrable guard. And there's a human inside each one!

9. Auoro (also Auorosharrath)
Cut from the same cloth as Mael, though less powerful to begin with. But maturity brings increased levels of strength and a great change to her personality. She, too, awaits the fulfillment of the prophecy.

10. Steele
The man with the Golden Dagger. Wields great power from his base in Tirrus Tower, but his own abilities and motives are far-reaching and hidden from all but himself.

11. Zeus
The product of a barbaric and twisted experiment. Zeus, along with other Prometheans (formerly referred to as MegaMen), is a gladiatorial fighter, who's movements and thoughts are channeled to the eager public for a fee. He is a prisoner to a future humanity that is almost beyond saving.

12. Igneous
Has the power to produce immense heat, but not in the form of flame. Igneous can propel herself with the aid of this heat, and it also absorbs energy, be it a blast aimed at her or a localised phenomenon, without any harm to her. She's one of the goodies.
She also has big boobies.

13. Wolfhound
A hideous and wicked beast on his own, he now carries the soul of a demon inside him, willing him to even greater acts of evil than before. A frequent opponent of Pheros.

14. Pheros
Immensely powerful, origins unknown, affiliations unknown, moral compass unknown. Pheros is a just and overly righteous being. He longs for purity from evil and his actions often take this desire to extreme lengths, some would say too far. But who is there to stop him?

15.Honor Guard
An unlikely and reluctant hero, who follows the demands of an in-built need for duty and service to the people he protects. A real 'peoples hero,' fighting a battle he is both overwhelmed and outgunned in. But honor demands he fight on.

16. Saint Pyrs
Devout follower of a powerful, ancient religion. His costume is his religious cloth, and his power springs from the source. He is a force for good and purity in a world of increasing disconnection and immorality.

17. Dramaurg (also Ormaellidramaurg)
Evil twin to Mael, rules his kingdom with slavery and malice. Has melded himself with dark magics to make him a deadly and malicious being. Seeks also to fulfill the prophecy with Auoro.

And there you have it! Pretty cool stuff, huh?
And the good news for you guys is that this is merely the first of a series of introductions to some of the characters in the OPU. We still have Poster 2 to go, and some of the gang from 'It Begins' and 'Infinity!'

So come back soon, won't you?

It's mine... my own... my... PRECIOUS!!!

I'm sure every serious collector out there is the same as me in one particular way - we all have a single item that is something of a Holy Grail for us. An item that, despite our extensive seeking out, manages to elude us around every corner. Sometimes we'll catch a glimpse of it, a mere sparkle out of the corner of our eye, but obtaining this gem is akin to holding sand in one's hand, it slips through your fingers again and again.

And then, if you're a poor sap like me, you manage to find the item, to claim it as your own, only to have it perish or be lost in some way, in my case - misplacing it on a plane!

And then you are right back where you started...

Well, I lost my particular Holy Grail over 10 years ago now, on that fateful plane trip from Melbourne to Edinburgh. I say fateful because whilst I lost my gem, I met my now wife a few days after getting off that plane.
But in those proceeding 10 years, I went back to searching near and far for my once-lost Grail, and I didn't get even the slightest hint of it in that time. That is, until a few weeks ago.
Yes, fellow seekers of Searsian artefacts, I can say that for the second, and hopefully last time (barring any unforseen incidents) I own this little beauty below:

'What?' I hear you say, 'That's it?! That's your Holy Grail?!?' Well... yes! It may not look like much, but this Judge Dredd badge, measuring a modest 45 x 32mm, most certainly is my Holy Grail. Why? Only because this badge is one of the most rare, if not the rarest, of all Bart Sears items. There are other things that are rare, like the Wizard Binder and a few trading cards, but I have only ever seen this badge come up for sale twice in something like 13 years on eBay or any other auction site. Twice! Two times! That makes it very, very rare.

As far as particulars are concerned, it is (as stated above) 45 x 32mm, made of what I believe to be hard acrylic and it is embossed. The blue text and linework (which is reflective and cool looking) is raised about half a millimetre off the white base. There are no copyright or trademark stamps anywhere to be seen (which would suggest to me that a sticker was originally involved in some way), though I know it be a product of SQP from 1989. SQP (or SQProductions) was responsible for Quality Comics back in the late 80's, who reprinted a lot of the british 2000 A.D. comics with new covers, 30 of which feature Bart's art on them. SQP also ran the official Conan Fan Club for a while, and Bart produced several images for that too.

Several of Bart's pieces from this time for SQP were used for promotional material and a good few T-Shirts as well, and for one single badge... my badge!

For those of you wishing to see where the badge artwork is taken from, here's the original cover:

And there you have it. My Holy Grail. My Precious. Returned to me once more, and never to leave again. Rest assured, it won't be going anywhere near an airport, let alone an airplane, any time soon.

Bart Sears - Film & Television STAR!!!!

Howdy Searsians! Yes, I'm still alive, fear not. I've just been through another rather busy stint of work on other projects, but I'm here now with some more cool Bart Sears goodies. This time, to be a little different, I thought it might be fun to showcase some Bart Sears items that have appeared on both the small & silver screen.
Whenever I'm watching a TV show or movie and a scene comes up that may just have a Bart Sears comic, poster, or whatever in it (usually in a comic shop), I pay very close attention to it.

And this is what I've found so far...

This one is from the first series of Lost. Episode 14 has a scene where the kid, Walt, is reading Hurley's Spanish copy of 'Green Lantern/Flash – Faster Friends.' As you can see, a few of the pages Bart pencilled are shown.

Next up are a few frames from Judd Apatow's first big movie, 'The 40 year-old Virgin,' starring Steve Carell and Catherine Keener, both of whom are shown above with action figure boxes featuring Bart's artwork. Catherine Keener's circled one is the Gambit 10-inch figure, whilst Steve Carell's is the Sabretooth 10-inch figure.

Next up is a scene from the great show, The Big Bang Theory. This framegrab is from Season 2, Episode 20. It shows Penny with Bart's comic, The Scream #3, over her left shoulder.

And lastly, I just found this one this morning. It is from Rainn Wilson's recent film, Super. In the background, middle shelf, is that same The Scream cover from the previous one.

Anyway, that's all I've found to date. Anybody seen Bart Sears stuff anywhere else? Let me know if you have!
I'll be doing another post here soon enough, as I want to catch up on all of the things that Bart has been doing over the last little while. I'll show you what has come out and what to expect in the future too. So I'll see you all soon.

Guess what the Postman delivered today? #12

Searsons Greetings to one and all! I hope you all had a wonderfully Searsious Christmas and a Searstastic New Years!
My previous post about some Bart Sears Trading Cards was deliberately put up when it was, becuase I knew that a brand-spanking-new Bart Sears card was on its way to me.
And it arrived on my doorstep this morning.
But the backstory first...
In early December on Facebook, a lovely fellow and fellow Searsian, Nathan Ohlendorf, posted that "For those of you who are interested (and it should be all of you!) the FIRST promo card for FEMFORCE is now available and it is by BART SEARS!!" Needless to say, I contacted Nathan and sent him a SASE and waited for the card to arrive. And here it is, both front and back side-by-side...

And the best thing is, it only cost me a few stamps!
So this is the first Bart Sears trading card to be produced in the better part of half a decade, and you'd have to go even further back to 1997 to find a card that Bart produced the artwork specifically for! So it is a great day, indeed.

And the even better news is that Bart produced the artwork for 2 cards from this 50-card FemForce set, so there is the regular version of this Jet Girl card to get, plus a different one. I'm excited by it, I can tell you!

And it would be wrong of me not to thank Nathan for not only commissioning Bart to do the artwork, not to mention actually producing the card set, but especially for his and the folks at www.sadlittles.com
for generously giving these puppies out free of charge. Splendid folks, them.
So go check out their website, and send your own SASE to avail of this fantastic promotional offer too!

Bart Sears Trading Cards #2

Back in September of 2009, I did a little post on some of Bart's Trading Cards. And since I recently scanned in all of the cards that feature Bart's artwork, I thought it might be fun to share with you some more of them right here and now.
So let's do it!
I'll try and be less wordy this time around, and just let the cool artwork speak for itself.

So, I thought I'd start of with the three cards Bart created for the Creator's Universe set back in 1993.

As you can see, they all feature characters from Ominous Press, and all are inked by Bart too. I've put in the original art for these cards as well, just to show the complete images, minus the rather butcher-like cropping that goes on in the final cards.

Next are some cards from one of my favourite sets featuring Bart's art, Monumental Overpower!


And here's both the original art and final card for Starro, from the series 'DC Cosmic Cards '93.'

And finally, here is both the front and back of the 'Winter' card from Wildstorm Set 1.

And there you have it, I kept my mouth closed as promised. There are still plenty of cards to show you, and I promise I won't make you wait another 15 months for the next batch!

HeroWish

Hi all, got some exciting Bart Sears news for you! For those of you who read and loved the Conan: Kiss of the Undead story that Bart pencilled, Bart has teamed up with HeroWish to auction off the first page of that comic. HeroWish is a new comic-related charity, who has teamed up with the folks at the Make-A-Wish Foundation and all of the proceeds from not only the Bart Sears page, but a great list of other items from some big names in comics go straight to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

But instead of me rambling on and on (as I am want to do), here's the Press Release-


Contact: Victoria Homan, Marketing Director
Telephone: 910-603-8366
Email: victoria.homan@gmail.com

ORIGINAL COMIC BOOK ART TO BE AUCTIONED FOR CHARITY
The Comic Conspiracy teams with
Make-A-Wish Foundation® for HeroWish

On Friday December 17th North Carolina’s oldest comic book shop will be auctioning off pieces of original comic art, statues and signed memorabilia to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation® of Central & Western North Carolina. The auction will take place at Circa Gallery, located at 150 Sunset Ave. in Asheboro, N.C. beginning at 6:00 p.m. The artwork and memorabilia will be on display at the gallery from December 14th until the end of the auction. Items up for grabs include pieces donated by industry greats such as Stan Lee, Billy Tucci, Billy Tan, Bart Sears, Joe Staton, Neil Vokes, Jim Valentino, Jamal Igle, Al Bigley, Koi Turnbull and many more.
“I was very pleased at the response we got from the comic book industry.” said Jeff Lamb, owner of The Comic Conspiracy. “Once we had a couple of confirmed donations the whole thing just snowballed.”
Personnel at The Comic Conspiracy, with additional help from long time shop customers and friends, began contacting artists, writers and editors at DC Comics, Marvel Comics and many independent publishers and requested donations for the HeroWish charity auction.
“Once the artists realized that HeroWish was the real deal and that 100% of the proceeds from the auction were going to Make-A-Wish Foundation®, we were able to add quite a few prestigious names to our confirmed donation list.” said Ellis Aldridge, a business partner at the comic shop.
After securing a venue for the auction, the necessary papers were submitted to Make-A-Wish Foundation® and Don Timmons came on board as the representative for the Central and Western N.C. Chapter of the organization. The Make-A-Wish Foundation® is the nation’s largest wish-granting organization. Since 1980, Make-A-Wish has enriched the lives of children with life-threatening medical conditions through its wish-granting work. The Foundation's mission reflects the life-changing impact that a Make-A-Wish experience has on children, families, donors, sponsors and entire communities. From their humble beginnings with one boy’s wish to be a police officer, they’ve evolved into an organization that grants a child’s wish in the U.S. every 40 minutes.
Circa Gallery owners Mandy Sloan and Amy Keith Barney have donated use of their gallery for displaying the artwork and holding the live auction. The shop also recruited the services of veteran auctioneer Ray Parks of Ray Parks Auctions who also willingly agreed to donate his time to HeroWish.
“We’re a small shop in a small town and we’re having to run this entire event on a zero budget.” said business partner Benny Littreal. “We’re completely dependent upon people willing to donate their time and energy to this project.”
Items to be auctioned for HeroWish will also be available for viewing on The Comic Conspiracy website beginning no later than December 1, 2010. In addition to being a live auction, absentee bidders will be able to phone in bids from all over the world. Any items which are unsold at the live auction will be listed in an online auction at a later date. Items remaining unsold will be returned to the artists and writers that donated them. Anyone wishing to bid either in person or by telephone must register either online, by telephone or in person at the store. Non-auction contributions will also be gratefully accepted.

The Comic Conspiracy opened its doors in 1978 in Asheboro, making it North Carolina’s oldest running comic shop. The store features a wide variety of current release comics as well as collectible Gold, Silver and Bronze-Age books, prints and posters, action figures, HeroClix gaming, collecting supplies and a discount subscription service.

# # # #

If you would like more information on the HeroWish auction, or if you would like to register to bid in the auction, please come by The Comic Conspiracy at 108 North St. in downtown Asheboro. You can also contact the shop at 336-318-1064 or contact Marketing Director Victoria Homan at 910-603-8366. The shop will also be taking bidder registrations on their website www.thecomicconspiracy.com and through Victoria’s email: victoria.homan@gmail.com.

Me again. I also managed to do a quick interview with The Comic Conspiracy owner, Jeff Lamb, here's how it went-

Jay: You've certainly been able to attract some big names to this auction, how did it feel personally as a comics person to be talking to all of these giants in the industry?

Jeff: Actually I started off contacting a few artists that I already knew or had spoken with at conventions like Baltimore Con and Heroes Con in Charlotte, NC, people like Billy Tucci, Neil Vokes and Jamal Igle. When the ball started rolling Victoria Homan, our marketing director here at The Comic Conspiracy and I, started contacting every artist, writer and editor we could find a link to. We've actually developed more solid relationships with a lot of these people through HeroWish than we ever had just being another face at a convention.

Jay: Any pieces of art or memorabilia up for auction that you would personally like to get your hands on?

Jeff: Actually at this point in time the donations have just now started to arrive at the shop. I'm really looking forward to seeing that Bart Sears Conan page and we still have some heavy hitters whose contributions haven't arrived yet. As far as what we have received so far I really like the Koi Turnbull Flash page. It has incredible detail and super action as Flash and Superman take on an android abominable snowman. There is also a book called 1000 Comics You Must Read in Your Lifetime which was written, signed and donated by Tony Isabella. Definitely have my eye on that one.

Jay: How can folks go about bidding on the items? (I know, it says it in the press release, but I thought it might be cool to have you answer it in your own voice)

Jeff: Anyone who bids has to register first whether they are bidding live at Circa Gallery or wish to phone in an absentee bid from anywhere in the world. The easiest way to register is on our website. I had our computer guru Ellis Aldridge put in some big buttons on the HeroWish page that are just begging to be pushed. You can also call the shop or Victoria Homan and register by phone.

Jay: If this undertaking proves to be a success, do you think this will be a regular thing for you guys?

Jeff: We intended HeroWish to be an annual event when we started it. I think more shops need to become involved in community and charity. We have other events planned such as the Christian Rock Christmas food drive which features pro-quality bands donating their time and talent to feed the hungry. I was a road musician for the better part of 30 years. I know all the bands performing at CRC and these guys can flat out play and sing. We also have plans for some of our cosplay super-hero friends to visit regional children's hospitals and give out some comics and related items. This summer we will be sponsoring a "Rasslin' & Readin'" event with some of the professional wrestling people in the area, that stuff started in the south you know, as well as a "Battle of the Bands" which is also a food drive for our regional Christian's United Outreach Center.

Jay: Who would you like to personally thank?

Jeff: I want to thank all of my staff, Benny and Stephanie and especially Victoria and Ellis simply because they work so darned hard and believe in the good the shop can do. I thank the entire comic industry for putting up with a barrage of emails and phone calls, this wouldn't happen at all without you guys. I want to thank the folks at Make-A-Wish, Don and Karen, for giving us an insight that we never had as far as what this kind of work is all about. And last but not least I thank Jesus Christ for giving everyone involved another day to get the work done, the fortitude to keep it going and for blessing us with the wisdom to make it happen.

So there you go folks, a worthy cause indeed and some great stuff to bid on. If you would like to see what is on offer for the auction, you can have a look here.
Why don't you think about making a bid on a piece!

Oh, and here's Bart's piece as it will be sold-
A beauty, ain't she?