MAGNATUDE – And the Rigged Hall of Heroes create your own comic book character art contest , emphesis on rigged

I had lost The Savage Dragon #10, 1993 “Create Your Own Comic Book Hero” contest — a crushing defeat. I was sure The Mac was about to take over comics. But the possibility to avenge my creative defeat found me randomly in a South Jersey mall comic book shop.

Three years later, the comic book heavens opened up and presented me a chance at redemption.

See, at the time, like Dave Wilson and Tem Dee Comics and Collectibles, South Jersey comic shops were littered with pros. So much so that there was an Extreme Studios exodus from Hall of Heroes, NJ, all the way out to sunny California. I asked about the artwork — sequential penciled comic book pages aligned above the new comic book wall. I was told, “That’s John. He’s drawing Image now… Rob Liefeld. He’s living at Extreme Studios.” The employee who told me this was Sal, who later would become owner of Hall of Heroes.

It was amazing. It seemed like the entire comic book industry was plucking talent from my immediate area. Heck, even a few years earlier I had heard of Adam Hughes and Mike Manley, both from my area. Now, during the hottest time in the comic book industry, the talent pool was beyond active — and right here in South Jersey. This is what Florence must have felt like during the Italian Renaissance.

After this, I purchased some of John’s work as it appeared in the Extreme Studios and later Maximum Press line-up. Because of Hall of Heroes, the comic book industry felt a little bit smaller to me. Then one day, while I was purchasing John’s Chromium cover for Avengelyn #1, a light shone on the cash register as I saw a sign — a literal sign attached to a weird pole that ran up to the point of sale. The pole actually had a function — I was able to hang key chains, buttons, and even PVC figures from it in different ways to act as an impulse purchase display. These gimmicks flourished in South Jersey comic shops at the time; some were more circus than retail.

But this hand-drawn sign announced a “Create Your Own Comic Book Character” contest. Something that, looking back, was quite brilliant. These types of contests were prevalent throughout the comic book industry at the time. It was a time when everyone seemed to be featuring as much artwork as they could. To me, this is a little-discussed element that made ’90s comics as exciting as they were.

In my world, John Stinsman had gone from Hall of Heroes to Extreme Studios, and this contest would be my path as well. I set out to create a character I felt fit into the world of Rob Liefeld and all of his books. Funny thing is, the term “Extreme Universe” wasn’t as prevalent then as it is now. During this time it was Rob Liefeld and Youngblood, Bloodstrike, Supreme, and Prophet. I would create a character that fit into that world and then start packing my bags for California. All that stood between me and that was a contest held in a store in a South Jersey mall.

The kicker — after coming up with what I thought was the most amazing character — was that Bill Grover won with his creation, The Deformed1. Oh yes, the kicker you were waiting for: Bill was a Hall of Heroes employee. If the term “conflict of interest” was in the vernacular at the time, I would have protested.

PETER A DELUCA AKAPD

AKAPAD is a versatile thinker known across Philadelphia, Europe, and even in the vast Multiverse as The Electic One. By day, he excels as an IT Mastermind, assisting individuals, both big and small, with a wide range of simple and complex solutions. In contrast, he is also a talented illustrator, a passionate comic book enthusiast, a creative content creator, and an active live streamer. Additionally, his podcast, “AKAPAD The Film Buff Podcast,” boasts an impressive catalog of over 500 episodes available on nearly every major platform.