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| Norman Breyfogle Art by Michael Netzer |
While Tim Burton's 1989, Batman, film got me into Batman as a character, it was definitely the dynamic and dazzling art of Norm Breyfogle that got me into Batman comics. Breyfogle was well into his breakout run on Detective Comics (1937) when stumbled across issue #605 (part-two of the famed multiple Clayface-centric "The Mud Pack" story) in a local convenience store. I bought the comic book and found myself thoroughly mesmerized by Breyfogle's kinetic and energetic style as well as his ability to convey emotion through facial expression. I bought the Batman (1940) title to simply follow the character, even though Jim Aparo's art at the time didn't exactly wow me, but I devoured Detective for monthly servings of Breyfogle's visual feast for my eyes.
I followed Breyfogle when he jumped to Batman in 1990 and then again when he helped to launched Batman: Shadow of the Bat (1992). When he left DC, I even went so far as to travel an hour away from my home town to get his first two issues of Malibu's Ultraverse title, Prime (1993), from an honest-to-goodness comic shop, though this endeavor proved to be financially unsustainable for me at the time. As with a lot of books, publishers, retailers, and fans I exited the comic book scene during the market collapse of the mid-90s and lost track of Breyfogle and his work for many years.
I followed Breyfogle when he jumped to Batman in 1990 and then again when he helped to launched Batman: Shadow of the Bat (1992). When he left DC, I even went so far as to travel an hour away from my home town to get his first two issues of Malibu's Ultraverse title, Prime (1993), from an honest-to-goodness comic shop, though this endeavor proved to be financially unsustainable for me at the time. As with a lot of books, publishers, retailers, and fans I exited the comic book scene during the market collapse of the mid-90s and lost track of Breyfogle and his work for many years.
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| My gateway to Norm Breyfogle, Detective Comics (1937) #605 |
By the time I rediscovered my passion for comics in the mid-2000s, Breyfogle had fallen out of the spotlight as a new crop of talented artists had since burst on to the scene. I didn't run across his work again until 2014 when he contributed to three issues of Trinity of Sin: The Phantom Stranger (2012). I had kept my eyes open for more of his work, but unfortunately Phantom Stranger #20 would mark his final professional work in the industry. In December of 2014, he suffered a stroke that robbed him of the use of the left side of his body (he was left-handed), ending his art career. Just under four years later, Breyfogle succumbed to heart failure at the age of 58.
In remembrance of Norm Breyfogle on the fifth anniversary of his final professional comic book job (June 4, 2014), I have posted below a special commissioned pencil and ink piece featuring Deathstroke battling the Tim Drake Robin and Wonder Girl by Breyfogle. This piece represents one of the only times that I am aware that Breyfogle ever drew Deathstroke for the public. From the Deathstroke Files, here's to the life and legacy of Norm Breyfogle; one hell of a comic book artist!
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| Pencils and inks by the late, great Norm Breyfogle. |
