Absolute Martian Manhunter's Javier Rodriguez talks Batgirl Year One - Creator Owned Art

Javier Rodriguez is the critically acclaimed artist behind Defenders, Batgirl: Year One, Daredevil, Spider-Woman, and Absolute Martian Manhunter. I recently caught up with Rodriguez, who showcased a prized piece of art from his collection as part of Comic Frontier’s Creator Owned Art series. Here’s what he said:

I am not a collector of originals. I love looking at them, but when it comes to investing, I prefer printed comics. However, I do treasure some from friends and colleagues. Of all of them, the ones I cherish most are Batgirl: Year One (DC Comics, 2003) by Marcos Martin with inks by Álvaro López.

This comic is very important to me because it marked my entry into the US market. My friend Marcos, to whom I owe a significant part of my career, asked me if I would like to be the colorist for the series he was preparing. I had no experience coloring anyone but myself, but in an act of madness, I said yes. From there, not only did I gain a source of income with a career as a comic book colorist, but I also learned a lot about comics by seeing how other colleagues worked firsthand.

The page I show here is the original of page 3 of issue 1. But as you can see, it's not the one that was published. I imagine that Marcos wasn't sure about it and decided to change it, perhaps looking for that wide shot in the second panel. I like both, but perhaps I prefer the work on the figures in this one, which I treasure.

Anyway, it serves as an example of Marcos' exquisite taste for figures, Álvaro's exquisite composition, and clean lines. In short, this is a comic that I highly recommend to anyone who doesn't know it. It's a sample of where all of us involved were at that time. And in my case, for those who know my stuff as an artist, it shows where I come from and how important Marcos's work is in my career.