The Thing (2009)
by Steve Rude (1956-)
11 x 14 in., ink, marker and watercolor on paper
Coppola Collection

I was in graduate school at UW-Madison (1978-82) when Madison natives Steve Rude and writer Mike Baron first published Nexus (1981). The local, Capital City imprint did not last long, and Nexus moved to Dark Horse Comics.

Rude’s interpretation of the Marvel Heroes looks straight out of the early 1960s, which is a good thing.

The Thing first appeared in Fantastic Four #1 in 1961, created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee. The modular “Flying Bathtub” version of the FF’s fantasticar first appeared on the cover of FF #3.