Devil Dinosaur: The Unseen Project

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Atomic Surgery is proud to present this gem from the "Great Idea Vaults" of Mark Schultz and Roger Petersen. Mark tells the story:

"Two or so years ago, illustrator, cartoonist and SubHuman comic artist Roger Petersen approached me with a pet project: he was in the mind to resurrect Jack Kirby's Devil Dinosaur--a much-beloved though short-lived Marvel comic from the mid-70's--and he asked me to put together a plot proposal to pitch at Marvel.

Roger had already had at his vision of Devil and Moonboy with gusto, completing the art on a beautiful seven page comic continuity, as well as a gorgeous painted cover image (complete with layout mock-up). We agreed that our relaunch should be aimed at a young audience--ideally, kids 6, 7, 8 who were theoretically just waiting for something cool to hook them on comics."

"The proposal I came up with, to the best of my recollection, suggested retelling ancient iconic myths (the flood, Atlantis...) as adventures that Devil and Moonboy actually experience. We thought it was a lot of age-appropriate fun (although maybe unintentionally Creationist friendly--hey, it's just a story, kids...), but, although encouraged to submit by an upper-echelon editor, never received a reply from Marvel. "





Art and Story © Roger Petersen. Devil Dinosaur © Marvel Comics

"Since then, Marvel has featured a revamped Devil Dinosaur under the auspices of another creator, so that pretty much puts a period at the end of our proposed version. Roger's spec continuity and his cover are probably all we'll ever see of his elegantly-designed vision."