Darwyn Cooke Giant Size Freeze Frame Special

From DC The New Frontier #1 colors by Dave Stewart

Make Room for Richard Stark’s “Parker”

Editors note: In the wake of the artists untimely death, we’ve decided to rerun Josh’s article on Cooke’s fantastic Parker adaptations. Be sure to check back for more Cooke coverage in the coming days from NBC

There’s a man, a man with a mission. Nothing, broads, booze, bullets, will stop him from completing it. His name is Darwyn Cooke, he is adapting Parker to comics, and doing a damn fine job at it.

A Man Of His Time: The Brief And Wonderous Life Of Darwyn Cooke

On John Siuntres Word Balloon Podcast, IDW CEO Ted Adams described comics creator Darwyn Cooke, who passed away on 5/14/2016 from cancer, as an illustrator “that could do anything” which was true, but only in a way that is singular to Cooke. Given the right parameters, most comics illustrators could “draw anything” but a Darwyn Cooke comic had a paticular aesthetic that was was clearly referential to the medium historically while also being idiomatic to only him. So much about Cooke’s style and story was abberant to his peers or collaborators during his time in the industry. While having primarily published the majority of his work with DC Comics, Cooke was the rare big name creative talent that never had a definitive run with the big name properties, yet the imprint he left on the publisher and comics themselves is undeniable.

Cosmo’s Gallery Remembers Darwyn Cooke

On Saturday comics creator Darwyn Cooke passed away from cancer at the age of 53. While we extend our condolences to Cooke’s family & loved ones, we also recall his creative legacy. His vibrant, expressive style will be fondly remembered by fans for many years to come.

Thanks for all the stellar art. Rest In Peace.

Batman

My Darwyn Cooke Story

Darwyn Cooke opens his love letter to DC Comics characters — the six-issue DC: The New Frontier — with Johnny Cloud writing, on a cave wall on Dinosaur Island, the story of his last mission with the WWII special forces group The Losers. This first chapter is a poignant story of ordinary men in an extraordinary world, men whose heroism is ultimately overshadowed by the work of superheroes.

But more significantly, it’s also the story of a man telling a story, unsure of whether anyone will ever read it, but taking the time to craft it because the story matters and it must be shared — it’s a powerful representation of the creative drive that all writers and artists experience. And Darwyn Cooke had that creative drive — his body of work in the comics medium is extraordinary, some of the best comics ever made.

When I learned that Cooke died last week from cancer, two things immediately came to memory: the only time that I ever met him, and that image of Johnny Cloud writing a tribute to his fallen friends on a cave wall; it’s a sad opening image from one of my favorite comics, and I’m not surprised the tragic news brought it to mind.

Thinking about that image inspired me to write this. My memory of meeting Darwyn is one that I treasure, one that I would like to share, so if you’ll indulge me, this is the story of how I met my favorite comics creator, Darwyn Cooke…