by Joshua H. Stulman

Neal Adams’s artwork dominated the field of comics in the 1970’s. He is known for his sense of realism and drama. He won several awards and soon found himself the leader of a new generation of artists that changed the look of comics in the 1970’s, the era collectors call the Bronze Age.

Neal Adams started to break into the industry in the early 1960’s with his work on Ben Casey Medical Drama Newspaper strip. His artwork featured realistic portraiture and dynamic storytelling. He drew vehicles, guns, regular objects with such preciseness that very few artists had applied to comic illustration before.

He worked for Archie Comics producing “On Model” cartooning for the company while he searched for work at Marvel and DC. Adams initially found work at DC and began freelancing for them in the late 1960’s. At the same time, he sought out work for Marvel which landed him a stint on the X-Men. He worked openly for both companies at the same time, and refused to adopt a pseudonym as was the practice at the time. Adam’s work on X-Men introduced Havok as well as the villain, Sauron, and revived classic villains like Magneto and the Sentinels. He also drew most of the Kree-Skrull War saga in Avengers, which raised his profile further for his groundbreaking layouts and compositions that opened up panels of the page.

For DC Comics, Adams re-invented Batman and Green Arrow for a new modern generation. He is perhaps most famous for his long run on Batman that transitioned the hero away from the 1960’s campy style and towards a darker more realistic tone. During this time, he emerged as the preeminent cover artist for DC producing many memorable and appealing cover art.

Comic highlights of career include the Muhammad Ali vs Superman Treasury Edition, as well the legendary Green Lantern/Green Arrow team up saga that highlighted the social and political issues in the United States. These stories were among the first to cover racism, environmentalism, Native American rights, and drug abuse in the comic industry.

He is responsible for re-designing the now classic costumes for Green Arrow and Robin (Tim Drake). Neal Adams also co-created several characters including: Havok (Marvel’s X-Men), Jon Stewart Green Lantern (DC’s first African American hero), The Man-Bat, Ra’s Al Ghul, The League of Assassins, Talia, and the Reaper.

Neal Adams‘s influence can be felt throughout the remainder of the 1970’s, where he trained many young artists under his Continuity Studios company. Those that didn’t work directly with Neal Adams, learned his art style from reading and copying from the comics. Some of his greatest followers include: John Byrne, Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez, Howard Chaykin, Larry Hama, Mike Grell, and Jim Starlin (all comic super-stars in their own right). His work would continue to influence artists into the 90’s including the work of Todd McFarlane.

Beyond inspiring artists, Neal Adams used his popularity to raise awareness for creator rights and saw a recognition and credit restored to Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster (The Creators of Superman). He also joined the fight for the return of original artwork to their artists.

Adams’s won his well-deserved reputation through hard work that challenged the status quo and used his success to change the industry at its very core.

But this legendary artist isn’t done with comics yet! At age 79, Neal Adams is still putting out comics. In the past decade, Neal Adams as writer/artist has put out a six issue mini-series entitled Batman: Odyssey and a follow up seven issue miniseries. He also produced a six issue Superman mini-series, The Coming of the Supermen. In 2017, Neal Adams revisited his earlier Deadman work with a new six issue series as well as an additional Batman series for 2020 called Batman Vs Ra’s Al Ghul, featuring his villainous co-creation.

Now in 2020, Neal Adams has returned to Marvel Comics to team with acclaimed writer, Mark Waid, on a new Fantastic Four mini-series called, Fantastic Four: Antithesis!

CHECK OUT OUR GREAT SELECTION OF NEAL ADAMS COMICS

Joshua H. Stulman

Owner, Brooklyn Comic Shop