Comics

2000 AD Covers Uncovered: Smash!-ed it – Andy Clarke brings Cursitor Doom and Adam Eterno to Smash!

20th December 2023

Every week, 2000 AD brings you the galaxy’s greatest artwork and 2000 AD Covers Uncovered takes you behind-the-scenes with the headline artists responsible for our top cover art – join bloggers Richard Bruton and Pete Wells as they uncover the greatest covers from 2000 AD!

For a third and final time, we’re with cover artist Andy Clarke to talk about covering Smash!

The wonderful weirdness of Brit superheroes all comes to a head here with the third and final issue by Paul Grist and VV Glass. This week, we’ve got another superheroic treat for you with another Smash!-ing Andy Clarke cover to the hit three-issue series that brings together classic Brit super-types from across the ages – SMASH!

Issue 3 of Smash! brings six decades of all-out adventuring to an explosive ending, with Cursitor Doom and time-travelling Adam Eterno entering the fray as the demon trapped in the idol since the time of Janus Stark gets free – and The Spider has to choose a side! It really is the fabulous finale to three issues of incredible superheroing action the way only Brit comics can deliver it.

SMASH! #3 arrives in comic book stores and on the 2000 AD webshop and app on 20 December. Time to let Andy show us how the cover came together. So, one last time everyone, here’ssssss Andy…

For a lot more about Smash! and putting together the covers, be sure to go and read Andy’s Covers Uncovered for Smash! issue 1 and issue 2.

Done that? Good, because it will come as no surprise to you now that editor Oliver Pickles sent along more reference material for Andy to use – this time of Cursitor Doom and Adam Eterno…

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Andy’s kept the same vibe to the third and final issue, giving them all a consistent, film poster look. But on this one, the idol that’s been the centre to the whole series really comes to the fore.

And that’s not the only element to get more focus… with The Spider taking centre-stage, although it wasn’t always like that, as you can see from the first couple of sketches…

As Andy tells us… ‘I thought a big head might work for issue 3.’

So the big Spider head enters with sketch 3, along with Cursitor Doom. Sketches 4 & 5 bring us Adam Eterno and then, with sketch 6, we’re at the final complete look of the cover…

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Although, as Andy points out, it wasn’t all smooth sailing on this one –

ANDY CLARKE: As with #2, this one needed a bit more work to realise. It wasn’t quite there as a layout with full-figure poses, so having a big head-and-shoulders Spider at the back looking out seemed to at least have some potential. It would also make it look a little different to the other two covers while being completely in keeping with them due to the Idol being in the exact same position.’

So, with the layout sorted for this one, it’s time to get on with making the finished cover happen.

As with previous issues, Andy’s process followed a simple pattern. The sketch layout is worked up into full and very detailed pencils. Next we have an inking stage where Andy’s method involves being very sparing with the inks – only inking the outlines, only adding blacks in the bits where he’s absolutely sure greys wouldn’t work better. And it’s in that greytone stage that all the detail happens – and it’s a hell of a lot of detail! After this, the hard work of adding colours, first as flat colour and then as the glorious full-colour cover that’s going to be flying off the shelves!

Again, just like we did with issue 2’s Covers Uncovered, we want to just show you some blowups of the greytone stage – just so you can appreciate all the work that’s gone into it!

See, that’s exactly what we mean about the detail – who can say they really noticed the detailing on Cursitor Doom’s jacket? But there it is, perfectly done.

Now, on with the colours…

Now, one final word from Andy…

ANDY CLARKE: These covers were good for me – they held their own set of problems that as someone still pretty new to colouring his own stuff, took some proper noodle-scratching to work out, which is what you want really. If nothing else, I learned a few things on these and that’s always a good outcome – but whether they’re effective or not isn’t for me to say. I’m really grateful to Oliver for risking his reputation and giving me the opportunity to take a crack at them – I had a great time doing them.

And there we have it – a third and final cover for Smash! from Andy – we reckon he’s [sorry, can’t resist] SMASH!-ed it again! Thank you so much to Andy once more for sending those along.

You can find Smash! issue 3 in comics shops and from the 2000 AD webshop and app on 20 December, and there’s also the chance to pick up all three SMASH! Issues in a bundle from the webshop right here.  

Andy’s Covers Uncovered pieces for Smash! Issue 1 and Issue 2 are essential reading of course, but there’s also these to take a little look at – Prog 2287, Prog 2290, Prog 2312,  Megazine 444, and not forgetting the Prog 2350 subscriber-exclusive cover!