DEATHSTROKE BY: Hyperwerks' Karl Altstaetter

This edition of DEATHSTROKE BY comic book industry veteran Karl Altstaetter. Altstaetter has provided one-off art for numerous DC and Marvel Comic titles as well as a number of Image/Extreme/Awesome/Maximum work for Rob Liefeld, notably for his Bloodstrike properties. In addition to his work-for-hire, Altstaetter co-founded the comic book publisher Hyperwerks, known for the titles Deity, Catseye, Saint Angel, and Rostam: Tales of the Shahnameh, which are available digitally by clicking/tapping here. Altstaetter's piece below, simply titled Deathstroke, holds its visual power in the simplicity of its minimal coloring and cloud rendering contrasting with the complex visual detail of both Deathstroke's costume and the dot matrix-like texturing of the sky. If you want to check out more of Altstaetter's artwork, be sure to visually stroll through his DeviantArt gallery at this link.

Deathstroke
Art by Karl Altstaetter

DEATHSTROKE BY: Jericho by Phil Cho

Given both that it's Pride Month and his upcoming roles in both Deathstroke (2016) as well as the greater DC Comics' "Year of the Villain" mega-event, I thought that it would be appropriate to spotlight Jericho in this edition of DEATHSTROKE BY. With that said, the U.S. artist, and huge DC Comics fan, Phil Cho is doing some really interesting work, many examples of which appear in his DeviantArt gallery. Cho's Jericho piece (posted below) is from a larger commissioned series that features many characters from the Wolfman and Pérez era of the Teen Titans. The full body portrait depicts Joseph Wilson in full, classic super-heroic gear with his trademark black and green eye effects indicating that the viewer is about to experience a rather weird couple of minutes. Cho's art style is reminiscent of that which is used in animation cells utilizing color shading rather than the standard comic book line shading the effect of which adds a sense of motion to an otherwise static super-hero pose. Hats off to Phil Cho for a nice bit of art dedicated a much-underappreciated character.

DEATHSTROKE BY: Garrie Gastonny

One thing that I love about the DEATHSTROKE BY feature is that it gives me the opportunity to see Deathstroke through the artistic eyes of talented people who don't usually get a chance to interpret the Terminator for the public. One such talented person is Indonesian artist, Garrie Gastonny who brings us his stunning piece that depicts Slade's New 52 look, simply titled Deathstroke. Gastonny may be familiar to many as the penciler for Titan Comic's A1: Odessey (2013), Image Comic's The Vault (2011), Caliber (2008) and City of Dust (2008) for Radical Publishing, Warren Ellis' Supergod (2009) for Avatar Press, and most recently the story “Oneiroverse” from Heavy Metal Magazine (1977) #292, aka the "Psychedelic Special!"

Gastonny completed his moody Deathstroke piece by using watercolor, marker, and colored pencils on brown paper. Composition-wise, Deathstroke is in unmistakably in Gotham City atop the GCPD building luring Batman in for what is sure to be an epic clash. Much more of Gastonny's art is available for viewing at his DeviantArt gallery by clicking here. 

Deathstroke by Garrie Gastonny

DEATHSTROKE BY: Deathstroke and Harley Quinn by Leo Matos and Blackmoonrose13/Cat Lunascia

This edition of DEATHSTROKE BY comes to us courtesy of a couple of talented artists. The piece below is titled, aptly enough, Deathstroke and Harley Quinn. The first version features pencil and ink work by Brazilian artist, Leo Matos. More of Matos' pencil work can be seen in his DeviantArt gallery by clicking here.

Deathstroke and Harley Quinn
Pencils and inks by Leo Matos

Providing the appropriately moody finishes for this piece is US-based colorist, Blackmoonrose13, aka Cat Lunascia. More of Blackmoonrose13's color work is available here at her DeviantArt gallery by clicking here.

Deathstroke and Harley Quinn
Pencils and inks by Leo Matos
Colors by Blackmoonrose13/Cat Lunascia

DEATHSTROKE BY: ColourOnly85

There are times that I am in awe of the kind of work that can be found on DeviantArt, and the pieces I have posted below qualify as some of that work. A UK artist identified only as ColourOnly85 has produced a large, and I mean a large collection of vector abstracts depicting a plethora of DC Comics characters both heroes and villains. I have posted seven of these inspired pieces below that are in some way related to Deathstroke the Terminator. Be sure to check out ColourOnly85's DeviantArt Gallery at this link for more examples of his work.

84 Deathstroke

169 Ravager

101 Damian Wayne

48 Cheshire

20 Nightwing

12 Green Arrow

15 Deadshot

DEATHSTROKE BY: Deathstroke The Terminator (1991) Artist, Steve Erwin!

For nearly a decade, from the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, Steve Erwin was a mainstay artist for DC Comics. After a year working for First Comics, Erwin joined DC in 1987 to pencil the final three issues of Vigilante (1983). Erwin was then chosen to pencil the new series, Checkmate (1987) based upon the clandestine DC spy organization. After doing art for 25 issues of Checkmate, Erwin penciled various fill-in issues, one of which was the 1990 Deathstroke solo adventure in The New Titans (1984) #70, which served as a trial run for a future Deathstroke series. The issue was so well-received by fans that, the following year, Erwin was tabbed to launch Deathstroke the Terminator (1991) with Deathstroke co-creator, the legendary Marv Wolfman. Because of his work in this title, Erwin became the definitive Deathstroke artist for the early-to-mid 1990s penciling the landmark "Full Cycle," "City of Assassins," "Nuclear Winter," and "World Tour" storylines. Posted below are some pencil and ink pieces by Erwin that draw upon his Vigilante, Checkmate, and Deathstroke the Terminator past. As always, for best viewing results, open each image into its own tab.

An unmasked Deathstroke
Art by Steve Erwin

Peacemaker, Deathstroke, the Vigilante, and a Checkmate Knight
Art by Steve Erwin

DC Angels
 The Ravager, Vigilante, and Black Thorn
Art by Steve Erwin

DEATHSTROKE BY: lonelywritergirl16, AKA beth

I've said it before, but I love DeviantArt! There are so many talented artists in the world and DA gives them all the opportunity to shine. A prime example of this is a self-described "student artist" from the UK going by the name lonelywritergirl16, identifiable only as "beth" [sic]. Her piece called Slade's Titans imagines a reality in which Slade, from the Teen Titans animated series, successfully recruited Robin to his nefarious cause. Robin then in-turn delivered to him the rest of the Teen Titans! lonelywritergirl16's redesign of the Titans' costumes to incorporate Slade's bifurcated black-and-orange motif is an excellent touch as is Slade's menacing presence in the background. In the DA comments thread, lonelywritergirl16 mentioned planning fanfic for her concept, but I'm not sure what ever became of it. I have to admit, her idea does sound like an Elseworlds or Multiversity tale that I'd love to read. Check out more of lonelywritergirl16's DeviantArt gallery here. Slade's Titans and Slade's Titans colour version are both posted below. As always, for best viewing results, open the images below into their own tabs.

Slade's Titans
Art by lonelywritergirl16/beth

Slade's Titans colour version
Art by lonelywritergirl16/beth

DEATHSTROKE BY: Von Catapusan

This elegant Deathstroke piece was created by Philippine artist, Von Catapusan. Catapusan brilliantly captures a moment where Slade attempts to recenter himself after what appears to have been a rough bit of work for our favorite assassin. This original piece looks good enough to be a commercial cover image. After viewing some of his other work, focusing on other comic book characters as well as some stunning female portrait pieces of various styles, I can't wait to see where this young man's career takes him. Check out Catapusan's DeviantArt galley by clicking here. 

Deathstroke
Art by Von Catapusan

Deathstroke in progress by Von Catapusan

DEATHSTROKE BY: Scott Cohn

This little beauty comes to us from the talented hand of Scott Cohn. This piece caught my eye because it's one of the few privately done works that depicts one of Deathstroke's "blue period" costumes, the second one to be exact. Though the piece is not fully colored, the black and white pencil and ink work is highlighted with muted tones of blue on the metallic sections of the suit. Cohn has done professional comic book work, notably for Dynamite Entertainment's Army of  Darkness (2007) #s 14-27, four issues of Mirage's Tales of the TMNT (2004), and numerous issues of DC Comics' various Cartoon Network properties. Check out Scott Cohn's DeviantArt gallery at this link.

Art by Scott Cohn

DEATHSTROKE BY: Esteban Salinas

Given its subject, it could be rightfully said that I am blown away by this piece of Deathstroke art (figuratively, of course). This visually striking, and moody piece is by an American digital artist named Esteban Salinas. Salinas goes by the name of Deviantapplestudios on DeviantArt and his gallery can be viewed at this link. The work's bright, bifurcated orange and purple, watercolor-inspired background allows the dark and menacing figure in the foreground to demand the viewers' full attention. The character's visual detail provides just enough to the viewer that it is unmistakable who this is, but it is abstract enough that the image feels like one from a nightmare. Though the color of blood is never directly represented, the smoking gun barrel, as well as the orange, purple, and black splatter effects, evoke the chilling notion that Slade has just fulfilled one of his gruesome contracts. I strongly encourage everyone to visit Salinas' gallery at the link above. You won't be sorry you did.

Deathstroke by Esteban Salinas

DEATHSTROKE BY: Michael, Huet, Ramirez, & Magnaye

I ran across this dazzling bit of Deathstroke artwork and thought, "Hey, that would be perfect for DEATHSTROKE BY feature of my blog." But after researching the art credits, I found myself down a virtual rabbit hole that not only illustrates the process of comic book art but also introduced me to a quartet of super-talented artists from the Philippines.

The first image below shows the penciling for a stunning Deathstroke action pose by comic book artist, Heubert Khan Michael. You may be familiar with his work from Dynamite Entertainment's Vampirella (2011) and their Project Superpowers miniseries, The Owl (2013), or from Blackbox Comics'  I.T.: The Secret World of Modern Banking 2 (2018). But as I kept digging, I found that Michael's pencil work had been finished by a score of different artists. Check out Heubert Khan Michael's DeviantArt gallery here.

Pencils by Heubert Khan Michael

In the next image, veteran inker, Jeffery Huet, added inks to Micheal's pencils. Some of Huet's work can be seen in Marvel Comics' Iron Man (2005) #s 27-32, numerous issues in the "Planet Hulk" story from The Incredible Hulk (2000), as well as five issues of DC Comics New 52 Animal Man (2011), #s 4-8. Check out Huet's DeviantArt gallery here.

Pencils by Heubert Khan Michael, Inks by Jeffrey Huet

The fully inked image has been finished by Levy Ramirez. Ramirez's other coloring work can be seen in Advent Comics' Chamber of Terror (2018) #1. Check out Ramirez's DeviantArt gallery here. 

Pencils by Heubert Khan Michael, inks by Jeffrey Huet, colors by
Levy Ramirez

Michael's penciled image was also finished by a color artist, Bryan Arfel Magnaye, who is known for his work on numerous independent comics, including Red Anvil Comics' War of the Independents (2011) # 2.5. Check out his DeviantArt gallery here.

Pencils by Heubert Khan Micheal, inks and colors by
Bryan Arfel Magnaye

I'm not sure if anyone else has finished the pencil and ink work in addition to the pieces I've found. If I run across any more, I'll add them as an update to this post.

DEATHSTROKE BY: Tom Kelly

DeviantArt is truly amazing. American artist, Tom Kelly (TomKellyART) is doing really great stuff juxtaposing rich colors with black as well as creatively utilizing negative space. Kelly has a rather large gallery featuring myriad characters from multiple forms of speculative fiction (i.e comic books, video games, sci-fi, etc.). You can check out his gallery at this link. Posted below are two of Kelly's stunning works featuring Deathstroke. Enjoy!

Deathstroke dead eye by Tom Kelly

Deathstroke Bullet Storm by Tom Kelly

DEATHSTROKE BY: Diego Riselli

Here is an amazing stylized Deathstroke by Italian artist, Diego Riselli. Riselli, known as "funky23" on DeviantArt, describes himself as "self-taught with Adobe Illustrator" and likes drawing in a style reminiscent of the 1950s and 60s. I strongly encourage everyone to check his full gallery out on DeviantArt as he is a special talent that utilizes a wide array of subject matter, moods, and styles.

Deathstroke by funky23, aka Diego Riselli

DEATHSTROKE BY: Clayton Henry

Here is some Deathstroke art by Marvel stalwart, Clayton Henry. Though better known for his X-Men work, Henry does Slade Wilson proud with this action shot.

DEATHSTROKE BY (Hidden Treasure Edition): John Byrne

I was scouring the internet for new bits of Deathstroke content when I ran across something very interesting. It was a 2010 pencil piece by comics legend John Byrne featuring everyone's favorite super-soldier of fortune locked in battle with Marvel's own super-soldier, Captain America. Even though I really wish that this art could have been part of a real inter-company story featuring these great characters, I liked the piece so much that I posted it below.

DEATHSTROKE BY (Ravager Edition): Matthew Skipworth

Here is a dazzling piece of artwork featuring Rose Wilson as the Ravager by UK artist Matthew Skipworth. If you like what you see below and want to check out more of Matthew's work, click/tap your way over to his Deviant Art page at http://crimsonartz.deviantart.com/.

DEATHSTROKE BY: Mike Grell With Finishes by Jake Townsend

Comic's legend Mike Grell is best known for his work on Green Arrow and the Warlord for DC and his creator-owned projects like Jon Sable: Freelance and Shaman's Tear's. Pictured below is a pencil drawing of Deathstroke by Grell.

Not long after I found Grells pencils, I found an inked and colored version of Grell's Deathstroke by an artist on Deviant Art named Jake Townsend. Not a bad job at all! Both versions of this picture are why I am insanely jealous of anyone with artistic talent.

DEATHSTROKE BY: Michele Fiffe

Michele Fiffe, creator of the independent comic COPRA, tried his very talented hand at rendering the world's greatest assassin, to some pretty cool results.