"Daze of Future Past" ("X-Men: Days of Future Past")
When you're homaging a movie which has most of its source material, not to mention its title, taken from arguably the most important X-Men story arc in the entire run so much so the covers of those two issues are some of the most iconic images ever to appear on comic books themselves... yeah, there's no question what to draw. The decision's already made.
Not that I'm complaining. John Byrne and Terry Austin's cover to "Uncanny X-Men" #141 has been homaged hundreds of times over the past two decades it's almost become an unspoken requirement as an artist to take a crack at it. This was my attempt and regardless of whether I passed or failed, it was a lot of fun and an illustration I can walk away feeling accomplished.
I should point out one of the people wanted on the poster behind Erik and Kari is the late Ernest Borgnine. While we occasionally tried our hands depicting other real life actors, Borgnine is the only entertainer Tony and I made a frequent 'guest star' in the blockbuster gallery. That's because aside from all his cheesy roles, we held nothing short than great respect for him. Whether it was "The Poseidon Adventure", "Airwolf", voicing Mermaid Man on "Spongebob Squarepants" chewing the scene in "Red", or other roles in his vast IMDB biography, Tony and I considered him one of the all-time greats in Hollywood. If he were involved in a production, you can bet we'd see it sooner or later. Sadly, Ernest Borgnine passed away in July of 2012. This picture is dedicated in his memory; the "Sergeant Slaughter" of the Plight universe. - Jake