Bret Blevins
{{Short description|American comic book artist}}
{{Infobox comics creator
| image =
| imagesize = 150
| caption =
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1960|8|13}}
| birth_place =
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| nationality = American
| cartoonist =
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| art =
| pencil = y
| ink = y
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| notable works = The Bozz Chronicles
New Mutants
Sleepwalker
| awards = Emmy Awards, 1999
| website = http://www.bretblevins.com
}}
Bret Blevins (sometimes spelled Brett Blevins) (born August 13, 1960){{cite web|last=Miller|first=John Jackson|authorlink=John Jackson Miller|url=http://cbgxtra.com/knowledge-base/for-your-reference/comics-industry-birthdays|title=Comics Industry Birthdays|work=Comics Buyer's Guide|location=Iola, Wisconsin|date=June 10, 2005|accessdate=December 12, 2010|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110218031356/http://cbgxtra.com/knowledge-base/for-your-reference/comics-industry-birthdays|archivedate=February 18, 2011|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}} is an American comics artist, animation storyboard artist, and painter. He is perhaps best known for his stint as the regular penciler of New Mutants for Marvel Comics.
Career
After cartooning for a local newspaper, Blevins became a professional comic book artist in the early 1980s.{{cite web|url= https://www.lambiek.net/artists/b/blevins_bret.htm|title= Bret Blevins|date= July 31, 2009|publisher= Lambiek Comiclopedia|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20150922152416/https://www.lambiek.net/artists/b/blevins_bret.htm|archivedate=September 22, 2015|url-status= live|df=mdy-all}} During that time, Blevins drew Marvel Comics' adaptations of films such as The Dark Crystal, Krull, and The Last Starfighter.{{cite journal|last= Friedt|first= Stephan|title= Marvel at the Movies: The House of Ideas' Hollywood Adaptations of the 1970s and 1980s|journal= Back Issue!|issue= 89|pages= 66–70|publisher= TwoMorrows Publishing|date= July 2016|location= Raleigh, North Carolina}} Blevins was a guest artist on a number of titles{{gcdb|type=credit|search= Bret+Blevins|title= Bret Blevins}} before co-creating The Bozz Chronicles with writer David Michelinie, which was published under Marvel's creator-owned Epic Comics imprint.{{cite web|url= http://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/comic-reviews/13152-the-bozz-chronicles-review|title= The Bozz Chronicles|first= Alister|last= Davison|date= n.d.|work= Starburst|archiveurl= https://archive.today/20240528042907/https://www.webcitation.org/6qxVbgEPY?url=http://www.starburstmagazine.com/reviews/comic-reviews/13152-the-bozz-chronicles-review|archivedate= May 28, 2024|url-status= live|df= mdy-all}} Blevins' first regular work on a superhero comic was on the 1987 revival of Strange Tales which was an anthology that featured two ongoing features produced by two different creative teams — Cloak and Dagger drawn by Blevins, and Doctor Strange. That same year, Blevins became the regular artist on New Mutants and drew the majority of issues from #55 (Sept. 1987) to #85 (Jan. 1990). He drew the Sleepwalker series in 1991–1992. Blevins was to have drawn an adaptation of The Wolf Man for Dark Horse Comics in the early 1990s but the project was cancelled before completion.{{cite journal|last= Weiss|first= Brett|title= Greatest Stories Never Told: The Wolf Man|journal= Back Issue!|issue= 46|pages= 66–68|publisher= TwoMorrows Publishing|date= February 2011|location= Raleigh, North Carolina}}
Blevins then began to work mainly for DC Comics, mainly on the Batman: Shadow of the Bat series and various Batman one-shots and limited series. He was one of the main artists for the character during the "KnightsEnd" storyline.{{cite book|last= Manning|first= Matthew K.|last2=Dougall|first2=Alastair, ed.|chapter= 1990s|title= Batman: A Visual History|publisher= Dorling Kindersley|date= 2014|location= London|page= 208|isbn= 978-1465424563|quote= [Bruce] Wayne finally reclaimed his Batman costume and defeated Azrael in a climactic battle in the Batcave, ending this saga by writers Doug Moench, Alan Grant, Chuck Dixon, Jo Duffy, and Dennis O'Neil and artists Mike Manley, Bret Blevins, Graham Nolan, Ron Wagner, Tom Grummett, Jim Balent, Ray Kryssing, and Barry Kitson.}}
In 1996, Blevins moved into the field of television animation. He primarily drew storyboards for Warner Bros. produced cartoons such as Superman: The Animated Series, The New Batman/Superman Adventures, Batman Beyond, and the Justice League. In 1996, Blevins won two Emmy Awards for his storyboard contributions to some of those shows.{{cite web|url= http://www.krolgallery.com/bretblevins/|title= Bret Blevins|date= n.d.|publisher= Krolgallery.com|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20090422040537/http://www.krolgallery.com/bretblevins|archivedate= April 22, 2009|url-status= dead|df=mdy-all|accessdate= December 17, 2008}} Blevins stopped regularly drawing storyboards in 2005. In 2018, Blevins collaborated with writer Joe Keatinge on the Stellar limited series published by Image Comics.{{cite web|url= https://www.newsarama.com/40112-bret-blevins-returns-to-co-pilot-image-s-stellar-with-joe-keatinge.html|title= Bret Blevins Returns To Co-Pilot Image's Stellar With Joe Keatinge|first= Lan|last= Pitts|date= May 29, 2018|publisher= Newsarama|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20180615012926/https://www.newsarama.com/40112-bret-blevins-returns-to-co-pilot-image-s-stellar-with-joe-keatinge.html|archivedate= June 15, 2018|url-status= live|df= mdy-all|quote= Bret Blevins returns to mainstream comic books this June in a sci-fi story about a bounty hunt gone wrong – based on an original idea by Robert Kirkman and Marc Silvestri.}}
With the July 13, 2022 publication date of The Phantom daily comic strip, Blevins began filling in as ghost artist while regular artist Mike Manley dealt with health issues.{{cite web |url= https://www.dailycartoonist.com/index.php/2022/06/14/bret-blevins-identified-as-phantom-ghost-artist/|first= D.D.|last= Gegg|date= June 14, 2022| title= Bret Blevins Identified as Phantom Ghost Artist| access-date= June 15, 2022}}
Bibliography
=DC Comics=
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
- Batman Annual #19 (1995)
- Batman: Brotherhood of the Bat #1 (1995)
- Batman Day Special Edition #1 (three pages) (2017)
- Batman: Gotham Nights II #4 (1995)
- Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #50 (1993)
- Batman: Shadow of the Bat #16–18, 21–23, 25–33, 0, 50 (1993–1996)
- Convergence Justice League International #2 (2015)
- Harley Quinn vol. 3 #2–3, 8, 10, 13, 17–25, 32–33 (2016–2018)
- Harley Quinn: Harley Loves Joker #1–2 (2018)
- Harley Quinn: Road Trip Special #1 (2015)
- Shade #3 (1997)
- Starman Annual #1 (1996)
- Supergirl Plus #1 (1997)
- Superman #660 (2007)
- Superman Adventures #5, 21, 39, 41 (1997–2000)
- Vigilante: City Lights, Prairie Justice #3–4 (1996)
- Who's Who: The Definitive Directory of the DC Universe #8–9 (1985)
{{div col end}}
=Disney Comics=
- Disney Adventures Comic Zone #Winter 2004, #Winter 2005 (2004–2005)
=Hamilton Comics=
- Saban's Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #1 Cover Art (1994)
=Image Comics=
- Stellar #1–6 (2018)
=Marvel Comics=
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- Cloak and Dagger vol. 2 #10 (1987)
- Conan #7 (1996)
- The Destroyer #8 (1990)
- Doctor Strange vol. 2 #70 (1985)
- Excalibur #28 (1990)
- Ghost Rider #32–37 (1992–1993)
- Heroes for Hope Starring the X-Men #1 (1985)
- The Incredible Hulk vol. 2 #310 (1985)
- Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade #1–4 (1989)
- Marvel Comics Presents #106 (1992)
- Marvel Fanfare #56–58 (Shanna the She-Devil) (1991)
- Marvel Graphic Novel: The Inhumans (1988)
- Marvel Super Special #24 (The Dark Crystal); #28 (Krull); #31 (The Last Starfighter) (1983–1984)
- Marvel Team-Up #149 (1985)
- Marvel Universe #5 (1998)
- New Mutants #49, 55, 57–61, 64–69, 71–74, 79–80, 82–83; 85 (inker), Summer Special #1 (1987–1990)
- Nightmask #1 (1986)
- Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #2, 4, 6–7, 11–12 (1983)
- Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition #8–10 (1986)
- Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Update '89 #7 (1989)
- The Saga of Crystar, Crystal Warrior #1–2 (1983)
- Sleepwalker #1–3, 5–11, 13–17, 25 (1991–1993)
- Solomon Kane #1–3 (1985–1986)
- Star Wars #89 (1984)
- Strange Tales vol. 2 #1–10 (1987–1988)
- Thor #371–372 (1986)
- Uncanny X-Men #211, 219, Annual #7 (1984–1987)
==Epic Comics==
- Akira #38 (1996)
- The Bozz Chronicles #1–6 (1985–1986)
- Clive Barker's Nightbreed #6–7 (1990–1991)
- Heavy Hitters Annual #1 (1993)
- The Shadowline Saga Critical Mass #5 (1990)
- The Trouble with Girls: Night of the Lizard #1–4 (1993)
{{div col end}}
=Pacific Comics=
- Twisted Tales #3 (1983)
=Philomel Books=
- Redwall: The Graphic Novel (2007)
=Valiant Comics=
- Ninjak #20 (1995)
References
{{reflist|30em}}
External links
- {{comicbookdb|type=creator|id=1299|title=Bret Blevins}}
- [http://www.mikesamazingworld.com/mikes/features/creator.php?creatorid=1800 Bret Blevins] at Mike's Amazing World of Comics
- [http://www.maelmill-insi.de/UHBMCC/namb22.htm#N395 Bret Blevins] at the Unofficial Handbook of Marvel Comics Creators
{{s-start}}
{{succession box|title=Strange Tales vol. 2 artist|before=n/a|after=Dan Lawlis|years= 1987–1988}}
{{succession box|title=New Mutants artist|before= Jackson Guice|after= Terry Shoemaker|years= 1987–1989}}
{{succession box|title=Sleepwalker artist|before= n/a|after= Kelly Krantz|years= 1991–1992}}
{{succession box|title=Batman: Shadow of the Bat artist|before= Joe Staton|after= Barry Kitson|years= 1993–1994}}
{{s-end}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blevins, Bret}}
Category:20th-century American artists
Category:21st-century American painters
Category:American comics artists
Category:American storyboard artists