Leonardi & Austin Are Criminally Underrated | CLOAK AND DAGGER (Marvel Comics, 1985)

   • COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN!   Steven and Chris discuss Marvel's brooding teen superheroes — CLOAK and DAGGER — from the 1985 ongoing series; they go over the first four issues written by Bill Mantlo with art by the incredible yet overlooked art team of Rick Leonardi and Terry Austin. COMICS ROT YOUR BRAIN! is a deep dive into ‘80s comics (plus a few notable exceptions). In this weekly podcast, screenwriters Steven Bagatourian (AMERICAN GUN) and Chris Derrick (STAR TREK: PICARD) discuss their favorite books, runs, and creators from the Bronze Age. Support Our Patreon -   / comicsrotyourbrain   👉🏼 Rick Leonardi - "Murderers' Row" The Comics Journal article by Tegan O'Neil https://www.tcj.com/murderers-row-ric... Leonardi & Austin Are Criminally Underrated | CLOAK AND DAGGER (Marvel Comics, 1985) 🎙️ SHOW NOTES 💥 00:00 - Theme song & Intro 01:42 - Who are Cloak and Dagger? 03:20 - Cloak's cape by Leonardi influenced Todd McFarlane's Batman and Spawn 05:09 - Leonardi pre-dates Arthur Adams' Longshot 07:58 - An art aesthetic that epitomizes Marvel Comics of this era 08:32 - Would Cloak and Dagger have been better served at Epic Comics? 14:57 - Jim Shooter was okay with this shocking comic concept? Really? 16:10 - Cloak and Dagger's powers “mature” the teens 17:03 - ISSUE ONE and how the coloring establishes a unique dynamism to focus your attention 18:30 - Leonardi & Austin gove a masterclass in visual storytelling 22:02 - Leonardi... a forgotten trailblazer 23:24 - Glynis Oliver and Ken Bruzenak’s unsung genius work 25:01 - Where Cloak and Dagger stumble; the promise of the premise is unfulfilled 27:02 - Dealing with the X-rated nature of the story setting 29:01 - The storyteller's charm of 80s-style overwriting 31:11 - Leonardi's stylized treatment of Cloak's cloak 35:29 - Leonardi influencing Frank Miller's SIN CITY 48:02 - Bill Mantlo's concern for society's vulnerable and inspiration for Cloak & Dagger 56:40 - Further defining Cloak's power 1:02:35 - ISSUE TWO: meeting Dagger's father 1:21:04 - Where Mantlo shines and assessing 80s writing pro's and con's 1:25:00 - Cloak, one of the original Black superheroes 1:35:45 - The visual language/storytelling by avoiding backgrounds 1:38:14 - ISSUE THREE: Marvel goosing the sales with a Spider-man appearance 1:44:45 - Glynis Oliver and women colorists in comics in the 80s 1:46:44 - Recoloring of reprints in collected editions 1:49:03 - Absolute Batman: Year One does the re-issue coloring RIGHT 1:54:17 - Rick Leonardi article, “Murderers’ Row” by Tegan O'Neil 2:04:01 - How modern coloring fails by using gradients 2:04:44 - Lack of intentional art choice and why do movies look bad now YouTube video 2:11:01 - De Luca Effect to intro Spider-man 2:15:11 - Bill Mantlo’s passion for the underprivileged and protecting the vulnerable 2:19:52 - Challenging stories in comics; Grant Morrison's St. Swithin’s Day 2:26:03 - Spider-Man's attempted seduction of Dagger?!?!!? 2:38:44 - ISSUE FOUR; The Beyonder 3:02:07 - A silent page that shows The Beyonder's effect on the disenfranchised 3:11:52 - More from Tegan O'Neil's article on Leonardi's career 3:18:13 - Final Thoughts Copyright © 2025 Comics Rot Your Brain! #comics #marvelcomics #comicbooks #toddmcfarlane