Comments on: FIGHT! Toth vs Rude — now with Rude response

By: Massiv kritik af skitser : Framelab

Massiv kritik af skitser : Framelab — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 11:01:52 +0000

[...] Back in the ’80s, Steve Rude drew a Jonny Quest comic book. Seeking advice, he faxed the pencilled art to Alex Toth, who responded with a hand-written critique on February 15, 1986. Copies of Mr. Toth’s response circulated among professionals for years, and were made public on Concept Art in 2006. Mr. Rude replied in Draw! #11 (May 2005). [...]

By: click

click — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 23:43:14 +0000

Hi everyone A big thank you for this wonderful site, it has helped me immensely

By: drmedula

drmedula — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 01:14:38 +0000

Yes, Toth was a hell of an artist, and many of his criticisms are perceptive and valid. But here’s the REAL bottom line: Steve Rude has dedicated his career to making the best comics (and illustrations) he could- he never truly compromised his talent or vision. Toth spent the best years of his life hacking out material he damn well knew was crap for the Hanna-Barbera meatgrinder (and the fact he would occasionally turn out a good comics job on the side just proves what a waste of talent it was).And I’m sure his fans will argue he did the best he could inside “the system”- but the “system” didn’t stop guys like Bruce Timm or Ralph Bakshi (an inferior cartoonist to Toth in every way, but what risks he took!)Toth’s rallying cry to his fellow artists to “keep growing” is quite stirring- it’s truly tragic he didn’t really listen to himself…

By: Ed Binn

Ed Binn — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 12:36:25 +0000

Toth had to be deranged-how did an uptight guy like him live so long? Either a heart attack or someone shooting him are likely scenarios. I would like to know how Vince Colletta (a pretty tough guy) kept from beating the crap out of him after Toth complained about, what I thought, were very competent inks on the Hot Wheels comics?

By: Kauser Ali

Kauser Ali — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 00:47:08 +0000

I think Toth had some good points in his criticism. I’m glad Rude responded with graciousness, defending what he felt was right and accepting the flaws.

I have to say, Djurdjevic is spot on in his storytelling and anatomy. His lighting is something I enjoy as well.

Neal Adams is known for similar harsh critiques.

I’m going to say that while these sort of critiques would be hard for any artist to sit through they are vitally important in polishing our skill set. If we are to become better drafstmen we must see through another’s eyes our own shortcomings.

By: Bhanu

Bhanu — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 06:29:34 +0000

Djurdjevic not as good as he thinks????
What the hell, hes great in all apartments of storytelling be it just through concepts or through cover art of sequentials. Anyways…TOths critique are wonderful read….insightful ,.

By: Dave

Dave — Thu, 22 May 2008 01:38:46 +0000

The problem is, Djurdjevic is not as good as he thinks he is. With Toth, it is a different matter.

By: Justin

Justin — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 03:20:42 +0000

You guys should meet Mr. Marko Djurdjevic. He will shoot you down so fast, and with just as much- if not more ferocity than Toth-your head will spin. If it was legal I swear he would start swingin’ for the fences.

But it’s a wake-up call.

By: Norm Breyfogle

Norm Breyfogle — Tue, 03 Oct 2006 19:39:20 +0000

Although I’m a big fan of Toth’s work, I’m not a fan of his well-known rudeness (no pun intented).

By: Dwight Williams

Dwight Williams — Mon, 02 Oct 2006 21:05:27 +0000

Tom: Good points, those!

Cameron: Now that you’ve pointed that passage out to me, I see how the laughter’s apropos!

By: tom floyd

tom floyd — Mon, 02 Oct 2006 18:47:39 +0000

It isn’t just the ‘history’ of comics this crit pertains too, it is the process and act of storytelling. I think all ‘artists’ should read and heed the words of Alex Toth. Maybe he was a bit hotheaded at the crit, but the basis of what he is saying is true. Staging, storytelling, getting the story across to the reader – is all of what us artists want to do. This are some great guidelines for learning. Not that any of use are every going to be perfect – but they are words to heed and learn from, especially the summation pages about art and being an artist – and thinking.

By: Pete Bangs

Pete Bangs — Mon, 25 Sep 2006 08:03:31 +0000

Anyone at all familiar with the late Mr Toth will know how passionate he was about the art of comics and that he could have a fairly narrow view on how things should be done. This is very much in keeping with Mr Toth’s style and it’s great that Steve Rude could look at it objectively and take some lessons from it.

By: Cameron Stewart

Cameron Stewart — Sat, 23 Sep 2006 03:04:55 +0000

” Since my story was basically a continuation of what Doug had done in the first half of the book, Doug had already done the introduction shots of all the regulars, though Alex wasn’t aware of this context. ( I informed Alex of this, but he just got more mad.) ”

That last bit made me laugh out loud.

By: lauren

lauren — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 22:40:35 +0000

I thoughtit was interesting to see 2 comics professionals interact in a critique format.

From reading the text Toth wrote, it seems as if he was trying to provide his experience and perspective in a no holds barred fashion. Steve Rude responeded by defending the choices he thought were correct and admitting the mistakes.

We can all learn from this expereince that being gracious when criticism is offered is the high road. This applies to all of life and not just art.

By: Chris Rice

Chris Rice — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 21:42:35 +0000

Well, that’s why we read Heidi McDonald’s Beat, not Jonathan’s Beat.
You don’t have to be interested in every story that Heidi writes, and you obviously have little interest in the history of comics, which is fair enough. However, I suspect there are a few more people on the site who give a rats ass about the story, than your opinion of it.
Might I suggest that the Wizard site might be a little more your speed…