DeKraker interview: card set, more coming soon

ComicBloc has a long interview with Legion fill-in artist Adam DeKraker. There are some phenomenal shots of his pencil art (including pages from issue 18 and the cover and a page from issue 20) as well as the standard "who are your influences" and "what else are you working on now". Some interesting comments (the most interesting one highlighted in red - Note: see update at the bottom):

AD: I’m really enjoying my work on Legion these days. I’m always proud of being a better artist than I was last time I drew anything, but I’m also always completely aware of how far I have to go. I always wish I had another crack at everything I draw! But the nature of the job is that ya gotta let it go, warts and all. Learn from what didn’t work, and try your best to get it right the next time.

AD: Also on sale this month, I’m sitting in for regular artist Barry Kitson on an issue of Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes (issue #18). And, I’ll be back on that title for a few issues starting with #20, working over Kitson’s ace layouts with the super talented Mick Gray inking. I’ll also just found out that I’ll be sharing regular pencilling duties with Jan Duursema on the new Star Wars title from Dark Horse, STAR WARS: LEGACY! I also have some trading card artwork for the Upperdeck Titans/Legion set. Dunno when those hit stores.

PMH: Filling in on the Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes sounds like it’s right up your alley. So who is your favorite Legionnaire to draw?

AD: You know, I’m only just becoming familiar with these characters. It’s funny, because the more you draw a character the more ya have affection for them. The first time I draw them, it’s kinda like “Who the hell is this? What’s their deal? What kinda belt is that?” It takes working on them a few times before ya figure ‘em out a bit. I’ve kinda caught some crap for being inconsistent with my interpretations on my first couple passes on these characters. It’s a completely legit criticism—it’s taken getting to know them to kinda settle on what my take on them is gonna be. When it starts to come together, that’s when I really start enjoying drawing them.

An upcoming issue focuses on Cosmic Boy quite a bit, and I think I may have developed a bit of a crush on him. He was really fun to draw—and a lot of that comes from what’s happening to his character in this issue—it’s quite funny and sweet. I’ve enjoyed Timber Wolf, Atom Girl, Karate Kid, and Invisible Kid quite a bit, too. There’s really no character I dislike. It’s such a big cast, it’s gonna take me awhile to really get acquainted with all of ‘em, but I’m looking forward to it!

A new card set too, huh? Here's a list of all of the trading cards we've seen so far over the years. It's deserving of a post all its own one of these days, too. Trivia: No Legionnaire has appeared on a card since the Kingdom Come set in 1996.

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Update: As Scott points out in the comments, the card set is the Vs. System I wrote about back in February. D'oh!