The 3rd placed art Dredd in the Current Tourney and his recent work on Dredd and Hershey have clearly reminded us quite why that is. He will of course be best known as the artist who gave us Nikolai Dante but he has done so much more and we are lucky to still have him around. Hey if you haven't check out the Great Dante Readthrough to learn more about his iconic series from the man himself.
I always find myself surprised when I see Carl Critchlow in the Classic side as he has done so much work for Tharg since the Millennium but not so recently. He's the artist I'd be least surprised to see switch side at some point in the future as we gladly see him back in the Prog - get on it Tharg huh!
Time for you to decide your favourite as the droids square up to the tee...
Simon Fraser - more info (http://www.2000ad.org/?zone=droid&page=profiles&choice=simonf)
OR
Carl Critchlow - more info (http://www.2000ad.org/?zone=droid&page=profiles&choice=CARLC)
Remember for this tourney you have 5 votes to distribute as you please between these two artists, whole numbers only. So you can vote 5 - 0; 4 - 1; or 3 - 2; either way depending on how much more you like one artist's work over the other.
If you can't be doing with that just name your favourite - remember bold tags, or other ways of highlighting always appreciated - and I'll give them 3 votes and nowt to the other droid.
Three day votes, so this one ends morning of Friday 4th June
Remember we only consider work for Tharg in these Tourneys
What the heck is all this about - well we have a thread for that (https://forums.2000ad.com/index.php?topic=47534.0)
How does this new voting work? Look here (https://forums.2000ad.com/index.php?topic=47534.msg1059536#msg1059536) and why again? (https://forums.2000ad.com/index.php?topic=47534.msg1059557#msg1059557)
I don't understand how this works, what are the rules of the Ryder Cup - yep got ya covered there too (https://forums.2000ad.com/index.php?topic=47534.msg1059595#msg1059595)
Anything else just ask and I'll make something up. Most importantly have fun!
Simon 3 : Carl 2
I like Carl Critchlow a lot, but ADORE Simon Fraser.
Fraser 4 Critchlow 1 for me.
This is ridiculous. Surely both are still current? Nobody would bat an eyelid if critchlow turned up on a Dredd.
I mean I'm bitching because I really like both these guys A LOT.
Fraser wins 3-2
I'm away to huff.
Carl has done some great work via some different styles on Nemesis, Flesh and Dredd. Simon gave us Dante.
Carl Critchlow 2, Simon Fraser 3.
Fraser 4, Critchlow 1.
I love Critchlow's ever-evolving work, and have done for (checks notes) almost 40 years (Pre-2000AD work acknowledged but not considered) but Fraser gives me the best architecture, exciting page layouts and the most believable people. I was reading Family last night, and Simon has been this consistently good for years now.
Simon Fraser - 3
Carl Critchlow - 2
A 4-1 win for Fraser.
SBT
Carl Critchlow 2, Simon Fraser 3.
Fraser 3 Critchlow 2
They're both pretty awesome to be fair.
That recent Fraser Dredd was gorgeous btw.
Fraser Red Devils (2) Critchlow Barbarians (3)
(I'm toying with Rugby names for this one. Those of you of a similar vintage to me - and with equally excellent taste :D - will probably guess why.)
Critchlow - lobster random art is amazing
Carl Critchlow has got be one of the most underrated of all 2000AD artists; his Dredd is great and I'd love to see way more of it. I'm not a big fan of Lobster Random as a character but his art was good.
But then it's Simon Fraser; Dante's enough before you consider Dredd, Hershey or anything else.
4-1 to Fraser
Carl Critchlow 1: Simon Fraser 4
3-2 Critchlow.
Fraser 4, Critchlow 1, and I really like Critchlow. These are hard, I have abstained form most of them because I couldn't choose!
Simon Fraser 1 Carl Critchlow 4
Fraser 3 : Critchlow 2
Last day - last chance VOTE or... or... well... don't.... but either way I'm counting up in the morning.
So what do we have here. Both these artists are favs of mine. I'm lucky enough to have original art by both in my collection and really love the work of them both. So this one is down to fine lines. For me though the winner does two things better than almost any modern artist. Firstly his character work and secondly his sweeping cityscapes - and I'm a sucker for cityscapes. Hos recent work on Hershey with its dynamic layout to a punchy strip adds to his work on my favourite 2000ad strip of all time to mean for me its
Simon Fraser 3 : Carl Critchlow 2
That Carl Critchlow gets 2 points off one of my all time favs shows how much Tharg needs to get hom back in the Prog - come on Tharg don't make me all caps that!
3-2 to carl.
beguiled by both, but the clincher - as ever - is *that* prog.
Fraser FC 3 - Critchlow United 2
Fraser 3 Critchlow 2, please Bob.
Only knowing Critchlow from Thrud, I was surprised to see him pop up on Lobster Random when I came back to the Prog. Not in a good way. I really didn't like his work at the time: too many lines everywhere for my tastes. Not sure what happened but somewhere along the way that changed and I really liked his Dredd work: Out of the Undercity and the stuff he was doing around Tour of Duty in particular. He seemed to be in regular rotation for a while and then just disappear. Anyone know what he's up to now? I'd love to see him back on a Dredd story.
Simon Fraser, on the other hand, is inseparable from Nikolai Dante and my unconventional love for both knows no bounds. One thing I find quite interesting is that Fraser isn't afraid to let characters' faces bend and distort away from their normal shape as a way of conveying emotion. It's a cartoonish effect that I really like but sometimes seem odd alongside the astonishing architecture and backdrops.
With The Strip That Dare Not Speak Its Name, it was a bittersweet thing to see his work back in the Prog. Recognisably the same but maturing with age. The use of spot colours and an exceptional command of panel structure and layouts are delightful.
A result that reflects the strength of the winner rather than the weakness of the loser.
Fraser 4 - 1 Critchlow
VOTING CLOSED
This one was relatively straightforward no tooing and froing. Simon Fraser steadily and surely built a lead and extended it as the vote went on. That is not to say there wasn't a lot of love fopr Carl Critchlow, just that he could stop the flood for Simon.
Overall though these are worrying times for Classic Team, not only have they been hauled back from a commanding lead, but after briefly stablising the position Current Team have kept their momentum and started to stretch into a decent lead. Its not to late at all for Classic Team but they need to start turning this back around soon.
Current Team 12.5 : Classic Team 9.5
Current Team 1007 : Classic Team 1032*
*I will check these over the weekend as I'm just not sure I've added things up right???