OK, I’m going to try and start a new recurring feature on SoS! this week. Every Friday from today until who knows when, I’ll be spotlighting the work of one of the artists from the “Filipino Wave” that hit the US comics industry in the 1970s and early 1980s.

I’ll be going in alphabetical order, using the list of artists compiled by UK artist and comics historian David A. Roach in his article “Philippine Comic Book Artists in U.S. Comics” (Comic Book Artist #4, vol. 2, September 2004). Note that Roach’s article lists a “Juaquin Albistur” as an artist of unconfirmed Filipino origin, but I wonder if perhaps the few references to “Juaquin Albistur” in the credits of DC’s comics were actually misspelled references to Argentine artist Joaquin Albistur, who had previously worked for a number of American comics publishers in the 1950s.

Anyway, an alphabetical list of Filipino Wave artists would rightly start off with the legendary Alfredo Alcala, but seeing as how I just did a post on his work on Rook Magazine’s Voltar serial a few weeks ago, I hope no one objects to me skipping Alcala and going straight to Mar Amongo (October 9, 1936 – August 10, 2005).

Amongo’s style has been described by award-winning graphic novelist Gerry Alanguilan as “meticulous and realistic,” and that approach is exemplified in the work I’ve reproduced below, a cheeky little “silent” story entitled “Graveyard Shift” (from DC Comics’ House of Mystery #277, February 1980) written by Bob Toomey. As with all the art I post in this blog, these images are being shared in the spirit of fair use:

Mar Amongo’s American comics bibliography:

All-Out War #3, “Last Ace for a Gunner” (February 1980, DC Comics)



#3, “Last Ace for a Gunner” (February 1980, DC Comics) G.I. Combat #221, “The 9 Lives of Pvt. Glover” (August 1980, DC Comics)

#221, “The 9 Lives of Pvt. Glover” (August 1980, DC Comics) G.I. Combat #225, “Finale for a Frogman” (January 1981, DC Comics)



#225, “Finale for a Frogman” (January 1981, DC Comics) G.I. Combat #244, “Body Count” (August 1982, DC Comics)



#244, “Body Count” (August 1982, DC Comics) G.I. Combat #272, “Code-word: Treachery” (December 1984, DC Comics)



#272, “Code-word: Treachery” (December 1984, DC Comics) Ghosts #86, “The Ferry Boat Phantom” (March 1980, DC Comics)



#86, “The Ferry Boat Phantom” (March 1980, DC Comics) House of Mystery #277, “Graveyard Shift” (February 1980, DC Comics)



#277, “Graveyard Shift” (February 1980, DC Comics) House of Mystery #282, “I’m Off to My Funeral” (July 1980, DC Comics)



#282, “I’m Off to My Funeral” (July 1980, DC Comics) House of Mystery #289, “The Comeback of David MacDannon” (February 1981, DC Comics)



#289, “The Comeback of David MacDannon” (February 1981, DC Comics) Monsters of the Movies #6 (April 1975, Curtis Magazines)

#6 (April 1975, Curtis Magazines) Weird War Tales #99, “Divine Wind” (May 1981, DC Comics)

#99, “Divine Wind” (May 1981, DC Comics) Secrets of Sinister House #6, “Brief Reunion!” (inks only, Aug/Sept 1972, DC Comics)

To read all of the Filipino Comics Art Fridays entries, click here.

