SubscribeNote: There could be only three winners of our Shadowman: In A New Light redesign contest, but that doesn’t mean we were short on great entries. Here’s the rest of the Top 20, our runner-ups. Thanks again to the judges and the artists who submitted! – Chris A.
Thomas Fummo
Score: 46 out of 60
Chris: 7. Long-time P:R commenter and submitter Thomas Fummo has turned in his best work yet. I feel like Fummo really understand’s this character, and brings a more classic superhero look to him akin to Jack Kirby’s Creeper. I especially love the flat black of the costume with the skull imposed on the face.
Vito: 7.5. Yeah, and that “S” logo on his chest isn’t so overt. It’s subtle enough to not distract. I like it, but I don’t love it. It’s certainly fitting, and in light of the current costume, it’s appropriate. It just seems a little flat to me. I’ve seen it before though…
Joel: 7. The costume has a nice silhouette, which is good as it’s pretty much all silhouette. I’ve mentioned elsewhere that it bugs me when a character has one torn and raggedy element in an otherwise immaculate and clearly high-maintenance outfit. But it works here, because this costume needs the smaller shape-details on the boots and gloves to contrast with the stark graphic flatness of the rest of the design. This is, hands down, my favorite stylized skull of the whole show. But I’m not a fan of the “S”. It looks too much like a backwards “3”, and will look like a backwards sharfes-S when his arm is lowered.
Jon: 8. Yeah, everybody’s covering the strengths really well – the sleek and ragged elements work both thematically and visually, the silhouette is great, the “S” is pretty subtle, I like the mask too. It DOES need something that incontrovertibly says “Shadowman” – so as not to interrupt the flow of the costume, maybe something done with the weapon?
Glen: 8. I like the mummy-wrapped nature of the boots and gloves, and the mask is intriguing. The silhouette’s great, but that swooping S-on the costume effect seems a bit too finished (and, yeah, too figure-skater) to jibe with the roughness of the rest of the design. Ditto the belt-pouches, which strike me as a bit too tidy.
Vito: Gah! I know where that “S” is from! The Before Watchmen: Silk Spectre. That’s not a bad thing (it’s actually a really cool retro design) but I can’t stop seeing it now.
Patch: 8.5. I like this, Thomas. It’s modern and moody. I think you could downplay the swirl on the chest and hip so that they don’t meet behind the belt but this is a nice look with a current feel. Contrasting black and white is a good design decision.
