# New Cover Art: Malodrax by Ben Counter



## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

I really really hope that isn't the cover, it's awful. Please be a placeholder like the first _Death of Integrity_ cover.


LotN


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## Doelago (Nov 29, 2009)

Lord of the Night said:


> I really really hope that isn't the cover, it's awful.


Awful cover for an awful book? Seems a perfect match to me.


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## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

Doelago said:


> Awful cover for an awful book? Seems a perfect match to me.


Bit premature.


LotN


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## aerogems (May 16, 2013)

Lord of the Night said:


> Bit premature.
> 
> 
> LotN


 I dunno... After the Soul Drinkers series, I'd be a bit wary of anything with Ben Counter's name attached to it. It might be good, who knows, but the cover art does seem a bit blah and uninspired. Like someone was just kind of phoning it in, so to speak. Add to that the downward spiral that became the Soul Drinkers series and it's hard not to be a bit pessimistic.


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## Jacobite (Jan 26, 2007)

It's not the best cover (French Eisenhorn FTW) I've seen but its by no means the worst either.

I haven't read any of the SM Battles books so I couldn't comment on the possible content but I thought Counter was one of the better BL authors?


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## Tawa (Jan 10, 2010)

aerogems said:


> I dunno... After the Soul Drinkers series, I'd be a bit wary of anything with Ben Counter's name attached to it. It might be good, who knows, but the cover art does seem a bit blah and uninspired. Like someone was just kind of phoning it in, so to speak. Add to that the downward spiral that became the Soul Drinkers series and it's hard not to be a bit pessimistic.


I will more than likely be avoiding this like the plague. Unless my sense of completeness kicks in regarding the series.....


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## Phoebus (Apr 17, 2010)

I quite like the cover. It's much better than many of the images we've seen lately (e.g. Yarrick's cover), and not just in terms of overall quality and complexity - it captures the Gothic feel perfectly, much like many of Clint Langley's designs. It does a far better job of capturing the look and feel of an Imperial Fist than, say, the rather cartoon-ish cover of 'Seventh Retribution'. _Malodrax_ captures the essence of a Terminator of the Imperial Fists. _Retribution_ looks more like fan-art to me.


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## MontytheMighty (Jul 21, 2009)

Lord of the Night said:


> I really really hope that isn't the cover, it's awful. Please be a placeholder like the first _Death of Integrity_ cover


What's so terrible about this cover?

...it looks fine to me. Maybe not the best but far from the worst


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## Anakwanar (Sep 26, 2011)

Usual normal cover - nothing wrong with it - want a beauty, check French editions for Eisenhorn


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## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

MontytheMighty said:


> What's so terrible about this cover?
> 
> ...it looks fine to me. Maybe not the best but far from the worst


Compare it to classics like these,

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5Urtv2eiaNw/USPltKUuhRI/AAAAAAAABH8/YFIde8vNzwQ/s1600/fjfghjfffffj.jpg

http://www.jonsullivanart.com/images/HELS..jpg

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ynAjTE2LWP0/UYbRohNHE1I/AAAAAAAABSw/-d-dKFudre8/s1600/uyyukyuk.jpg

Compare _Malodrax_ to the previous covers of SMB novels by Jon Sullivan, and it's pretty clear why I dislike it. I don't think Sullivan did that cover, or if he did then it's just a placeholder because it does not match his art style at all.


LotN


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## serghe (Apr 6, 2011)

If he wears a helmet, then the entire picture will be better. I just can't picture a space marine terminator go to battle without a helmet.


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## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

serghe said:


> If he wears a helmet, then the entire picture will be better. I just can't picture a space marine terminator go to battle without a helmet.


Same here, seems like in a suit of Terminator armour a helmet is a must to avoid the enemy simply shooting you in the face and negating the awesome protection capabilities of the suit.


LotN


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## Phoebus (Apr 17, 2010)

John Sullivan's artwork is great. No one is saying otherwise. The question is what on earth makes the cover for 'Malodrax' "bad". I have a very hard time understanding how one arrived at this conclusion on a qualitative level. The image is beautifully painted, its composition is excellent, its production quality is obvious professional, and it's obvious the artist took into consideration the nuances, and details that make Warhammer 40k what it is.

Does a helmetless Space Marine seriously make a cover bad? Some of the most epic Warhammer 40k images are full of Astartes sans helmet, to include the seminal Dark Angels painting by Jim Burns:
http://images3.wikia.nocookie.net/_...mmer40k/images/e/e5/Dark_Angels_Jim_Burns.jpg

Man, meaning no offense, I guess I'm really surprised that this thread even exists! :biggrin:


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## Romanov77 (Jan 27, 2013)

Dark Angels Tony Montana.


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## Phoebus (Apr 17, 2010)

I never noticed that before! :biggrin:


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## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

Romanov77 said:


> Dark Angels Tony Montana.


Damn! You're right, hehe never saw that before. :laugh:



Phoebus said:


> John Sullivan's artwork is great. No one is saying otherwise. The question is what on earth makes the cover for 'Malodrax' "bad". I have a very hard time understanding how one arrived at this conclusion on a qualitative level. The image is beautifully painted, its composition is excellent, its production quality is obvious professional, and it's obvious the artist took into consideration the nuances, and details that make Warhammer 40k what it is.
> 
> Man, meaning no offense, I guess I'm really surprised that this thread even exists! :biggrin:


It lacks the grandeur and detail of the others. It's just Lysander, and an Imperial Fist behind him, and the lack of detail in both of them doesn't suit the SMB series. Nor does Lysander's face match Sullivan's style of art, which makes me think this is a placeholder or somebody else has done Malodrax which since Sullivan has not mentioned that he isn't doing it or that someone else has taken over the series, I must assume that this is just a placeholder piece until Sullivan's real cover comes out.

It exists to show you all the cover, my opinion of it is just an extra.


LotN


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## Hachiko (Jan 26, 2011)

Lord of the Night said:


> Compare _Malodrax_ to the previous covers of SMB novels by Jon Sullivan, and it's pretty clear why I dislike it. I don't think Sullivan did that cover, or if he did then it's just a placeholder because it does not match his art style at all.
> LotN


I was just about to ask if this means the Sullivan is stepping away from the SMB series.

The cover isn't bad tbh, but it blows the continuity of superb Sullivan covers to bits obviously.


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## Phoebus (Apr 17, 2010)

> It lacks the grandeur and detail of the others. It's just Lysander, and an Imperial Fist behind him, ...


I think I see what you're saying. You prefer the wrap-around/battle scene format that Sullivan used for most of his covers. I agree that Sullivan's covers incorporated more elements. My issue was with the idea that the cover lacked in detail in the sense that Lysander's power armour was bland or unadorned, for instance.



> Nor does Lysander's face match Sullivan's style of art, ...


Nor should it... as I seriously doubt this is Sullivan's piece.



> ... which makes me think this is a placeholder or somebody else has done Malodrax which since Sullivan has not mentioned that he isn't doing it or that someone else has taken over the series, I must assume that this is just a placeholder piece until Sullivan's real cover comes out.


I would be shocked if this was a placeholder. I don't know whether Sullivan is the exclusive artist for the SMB series or not, but I wouldn't mind it one bit if he was (visual continuity can be nice for a series).

What I can tell you is that this piece strikes me as finished artwork. Beyond that, I struggle to see why Black Library would commission as a placeholder an illustration that is heads and shoulders above the quality of _finished_ covers for a number of novels, novellas, audiobooks, and short stories they've released (off the top of my head: 'Seventh Retribution', 'Yarrick', 'Mephiston', the last four Tau entries, 'Treacheries of the Space Marines', 'Malediction', etc.).

At any rate, my biggest issue was with the idea that this piece lacked _detail_ (as opposed to additional elements or a background), or that the figures present were illustrated less ably than the majority of the finished covers we see. That's simply not the case. At the end of the day, though, everyone's entitled to their opinion. Such is life with art, and the last thing I want to do is get in a "this artist's better than that one" debate. Taste is always going to be subjective, and, anyways, it's not as if I have _anything_ against Sullivan's art. I think it's a breath of fresh air, and I honestly feel he's one of three recent cover artists (the others being Clint Langley and Neil Roberts) that simply _nail_ the feel of the setting!


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## Sequere_me_in_Tenebras (Nov 11, 2012)

It's a tad to bland - and the facial features just don't do it for me. That's the polite version.


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## Roninman (Jul 23, 2010)

Phoebus said:


> I quite like the cover. It's much better than many of the images we've seen lately (e.g. Yarrick's cover), and not just in terms of overall quality and complexity - it captures the Gothic feel perfectly, much like many of Clint Langley's designs. It does a far better job of capturing the look and feel of an Imperial Fist than, say, the rather cartoon-ish cover of 'Seventh Retribution'. _Malodrax_ captures the essence of a Terminator of the Imperial Fists. _Retribution_ looks more like fan-art to me.


I agree. One of best SMB covers actually. Sadly cover could be best thing about this book.


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