Frank Springer's dead

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Mon Apr 06, 2009 2:01 pm

http://www.newsday.com/iphone/ny-lispri ... 8600.story

Reports that he thought he was talking to a friendly Autobot but he'd got the character models mixed up and it was actually an evil Decepticon remain unconfirmed. Respect to the man who drew the most awesome Ravage transformation ever and inadvertantly invented Krunix.

CounterPunch · Post by **CounterPunch** » Mon Apr 06, 2009 3:14 pm

Got to a good age, seemed to have more success than I had realised

Post by **Denyer** » Mon Apr 06, 2009 6:33 pm

Shame. Decent innings, but that's never much consolation to a partner of several decades.

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Mon Apr 06, 2009 6:49 pm

CounterPunch wrote:Got to a good age, seemed to have more success than I had realised

If they only drew a few issues of Transformers, chances are an artist is a successful one (Hitch, Trimpe, Raiz, Kitson, somehow Turner). If they drew loads of issues of Transformers (Wildman [though I do remember an amusing interview where he was banging on about doing the comic of the X-Men cartoon...], Delbo) chances are they're a nobody.

Post by **inflatable dalek** » Tue Apr 07, 2009 8:14 am

I suppose the ultimate extension of that logic is Dave Gibbons only managing a couple of covers.

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Tue Apr 07, 2009 2:33 pm

Ditto Jim Lee and Alan Davis

Halfshell · Post by **Halfshell** » Tue Apr 07, 2009 2:43 pm

Don's career really is dead in the water, isn't it?

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Tue Apr 07, 2009 2:49 pm

Oh yes... I do think if he was going to get picked up for something else, it would have happened a couple of years ago...

Post by **inflatable dalek** » Tue Apr 07, 2009 7:03 pm

He's basically done a Denise Crosby and left to escape typecasting only to wind up doing nothing more than coming back to do guest spots (alright, I know about the Terminator comics, that's just akin to Crosby's guest spots on Superman. A perfecr metaphor!). I suspect he regrets not finishing Beast Wars now.

Cliffjumper · Post by **Cliffjumper** » Tue Apr 07, 2009 7:12 pm

...and letting his previous unofficial deputy Guido get his foot in the door at IDW in the meantime. I always kinda picture Figueroa like that ILM artist in that old Shortpacked strip...

I think the problem is that Figueroa probably didn't create half as much of a stir in the industry in general, as opposed to within the fandom (remember, by the time he became main artist the DW book was in terminal decline). Being able to draw pretty good giant robots (but demonstrably very little else... his humans tended to be awful, it's just that the books he did meant he didn't do them very often) puts you in a bit of a niche in the Western comic industry.

It's a bit like Geoff (only Figueroa isn't as good), who never hit quite the same heights when there wasn't a big robot lamping another robot involved...

Post by **inflatable dalek** » Tue Apr 07, 2009 7:28 pm

Though Geoff's lack of success is at least partially self motivated (possibly he realised he didn't stand a chance and redirected his energies, possibly realising he could earn shit loads in advertising made being Furman's bitch less appealing).

Don's problem is now not only has he not made it in the wider comic world but by making self proclaimed "I'm off to do better things" and not finishing the mini he was on (and seriously, what else better did he have to do he couldn't have waited a few weeks?) has had the effect of making him look a bit of a prick to the fan base he could be depending on for the mullah from convention appearances in years to come.