Daniel Warren Johnson: Heart, Humanity and Heavy Metal

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I should be careful about this one – ’cause I’m pretty positive Walt adores Daniel Warren Johnson. And how could you not? The man’s style is so recognizable and so distinct, and energy bursts from every page! If any writer/artist ever screamed METAL!!! at me from my comic book, then it would definitely be Daniel Warren Johnson.

What I personally enjoy about the guy is how approachable he seems. When thinking about big companies like Marvel, DC, Image and the rest, you’d expect even the creators to seem like corporate people. Instead, Daniel Warren Johnson seems like a guy you’d meet at your favorite rock band concert – crazy talented yet very approachable.

This is really helped by the fact that he runs his own YouTube channel, where he streams while working on his art almost every Friday in what he calls “Fridays with DDubs.” There are over 170 episodes at the moment, and it’s such a blast to see his process, hear him share his thoughts, and get some insight into what he’s working on. I highly recommend checking it out if you have an inch of comic-love inside you (and if not – please let me know why you’re even reading this?!)

When the Art Hits Like a Powerbomb

Now, usually, this is the part where I tell you about the themes the writer likes to explore, or their writing style, genres, etc. etc. But Daniel Warren Johnson usually tackles both writing and art in his books. To avoid repetition, I’m taking some liberty to marvel at it in this part of the article – rebellious, I know!

And let me tell you, Daniel Warren Johnson’s art is to die for. It’s bombastic, it’s energetic, it’s kinetic – it SCREAMS action off of every page. You can feel every hit land (and there’s a lot of fighting in his books), you can track each movement in the panels, and it’s just a beauty to behold. There’s something in the way the man portrays action – it’s raw and exaggerated, yet it feels so real.

His work is reminiscent of a cartoonist style – while figures and motions are exaggerated, there’s a clear and precise anatomy that he follows. It’s highly stylistic, to the point that you’ll recognize the style the moment you see it. It’s a mix of Akira Toriyama and Jack Kirby – if that makes any sense to anyone like it does to me.

Another thing I especially enjoy is the way he incorporates sound effects into his artwork. They’re just as kinetic, misshapen with the panels and the action, warping around the characters or the buildings. I don’t think I’ve ever giggled at a sound effect before reading Transformers and seeing those little “OOOOO”-s through the window.

It’s not all fun and games, though. When it comes to themes in his writing, the man can get surprisingly emotional too. To match the high-paced, explosive action, Daniel Warren Johnson infuses deeply personal character moments throughout the story. Every story he tells is a personal drama, tackling grief, PTSD, loneliness, redemption… something for everyone!

It probably helps that he can be very focused with his narratives – they’re often tight and character-driven explorations. Family drama and relationships are often at the forefront, whether the characters are human wrestlers, transforming robots, or aliens. When you pick up a Daniel Warren Johnson book, you know you’ll be blown away by the action – and then cry into your book from the storytelling. So, fasten your seatbelt, and let’s take a dive into what these stories are!

Space Mullet

Space Mullet was the first of Daniel Warren Johnson’s outings that got major recognition. This web-comic ran from 2012 to 2017, and follows an Ex-Space Marine trucker Jonah and Alphius, his alien co-pilot. They are joined by a dysfunctional group of misfits and together, they will (try to) do good across space!

Daniel Warren Johnson had been making comics before Space Mullet, but this was the first time he created something much bigger. It was published episodically on his website until Dark Horse, and later Image, picked it up and released the Space Mullet TP.

Reading the story, you’ll run into things that would become staples of Daniel Warren Johnson’s writing – Jonah is crippled by past regrets and trauma, there’s talk of class and race (or species?), and it explores the relationship between the two protagonists deeply. Due to its initial format (and it being early work), it might not be as tight as his later stories – and it’s done monochromatically, since he was missing Mike Spicer at the time – but it’s still an interesting peek into the work of a master at the early stages of his career.

The Ghost Fleet

The Ghost Fleet was written by Donny Cates, with Daniel Warren Johnson on art and Lauren Affe on colors. If you have a valuable cargo – something so secret or dangerous – only the Ghost Fleet should trek it for you! At least, that was the initial idea… When a run goes wrong for partners and best friends Trace and Ward, only betrayal and mayhem will follow!

The Ghost Fleet is another early example of things that Daniel Warren Johnson will be known for – explosive, visceral action with a lot of heart! It is a mix of Mad Max, John Carpenter and all the action movies from the 80s! It’s dark, it’s violent, and it’s cut too short! However, all 8 glorious issues are collected in one nifty paperback – Ghost Fleet: The Whole Goddamned Thing.

Extremity

If Space Mullet was Daniel Warren Johnson’s first “major” book, then Extremity is the one that established him as a big name in the comic industry. This was the first major creator-owned book where he handled both writing and art. It’s also the first book where Mike Spicer joined him on colors – and these two would go on to do wonders!

Many say that Extremity is the child of Mad Max and Studio Ghibli – and while that’s true, the story is much more than that. We follow Thea on her quest for revenge against a clan that raided her family. On this journey, she’ll have to deal with losing her identity, face revenge and bloodlust, knights and spaceships, and everything in between.

How far will Thea go and how extreme will she become? There are many ways to find out 😉 The two trades (Artist and Warrior) collect six issues each, while the Extremity Deluxe hardcover collects the whole story. And I would be remiss not to mention the stunning Signature Edition – a mega-sized, extreme book reprinting original boards of the comic.

Murder Falcon

I don’t know how he does it, but everything Daniel Warren Johnson does just sounds METAL – and nothing screams it more than Murder Falcon. Just by looking at the cover and the characters, you can feel it radiating off the page – a falcon with the body of a superhero and a giant robotic arm! Heck yeah!!!

The premise of this book is simple – monsters are attacking the world. Murf, the eponymous Murder Falcon, comes from The Heavy to fight them. But he can’t do it alone – Jake, a guitarist dealing with grief and loss (because it’s a Daniel Warren Johnson book, of course!), needs to power up our hero – by SHREDDING on his guitar! 🤘

The book is wild, action packed, and everything Daniel Warren Johnson has done up to that point – turned to 11! There is both the trade paperback and the hardcover editions available, and it’s for all those getting their band back together!

Wonder Woman: Dead Earth

After giving a kick-ass performance with Murder Falcon, the duo of Daniel Warren Johnson and Mike Spicer made a short pit stop over at DC, working on Wonder Woman. In this post-apocalyptic tale, we see Princess Diana of Themyscira like we’ve never seen her before. She took similar steps to the main universe version – leaving the island to join the Man’s World and protect it. But something has gone wrong…

Diana wakes up to save kids from a monster, only to realize she feels weak and helpless, unable to fly and with her powers on the fritz. Worst of all, she wakes up to find the Earth – dead. After a nuclear catastrophe, with only one city left standing, Diana swears to protect it from the monsters roaming around, while uncovering the reasons behind everything that’s happened – and how she may be connected to it.

I already wrote about how Daniel Warren Johnson loves to explore wacky sci-fi concepts while still infusing humanity into his characters – and this is a prime example. While DC superheroes often have godlike powers, it’s their humanity that makes them interesting – and Diana is (or should be) always full of compassion and love. Wonder Woman: Dead Earth puts her in an interesting situation – and Daniel Warren Johnson gets to flex his artistic muscles with her feats of strength to give us a true spectacle!

Beta Ray Bill: Argent Star

After sharpening their teeth at DC, Johnson and Spicer jumped over to Marvel. Beta Ray Bill is a Korbinite who was transformed into a cyborg to defend his people from Surtur, the Fire Giant – gaining strength and vulnerability (the whole package), but at the cost of his physical appearance. After impressing Odin by lifting Mjolnir, he was given another hammer – Stormbreaker – which allowed him to revert to his original form.

But with Thor becoming the All-Father, the King in Black invading Earth, and Stormbreaker destroyed, it’s up to Bill to defend Asgard while dealing with being stuck in his horse-like form and rekindling his relationship with Lady Sif. And who better to balance this storm (pardon the pun) of emotions and motives than Daniel Warren Johnson?

While the setup is promising, this story gets even better. It quickly turns into a deep exploration of Bill – who he is and how he sees and values himself in relation to others. But it’s not just about physical appearance – it’s about the way we see ourselves, and the cost of changing that. It’s probably my favorite Daniel Warren Johnson story I’ve read, and it’s a shame there’s only the Beta Ray Bill: Argent Star trade paperback available – because the action, which slips between these deeper moments, deserves the oversized treatment just like his other books.

Do a Powerbomb

Wrestling is a niche that can be quite polarizing – many adore it, while others despise it. As someone who grew up watching WWE Raw and the like, colorful costumes and spectacle were always close to the drawer in my heart where I keep superheroes. So it’s no wonder that a comic book that makes wrestling super heroic (and of course – METAL) gets all the praise it does!

Lona Steelrose is working to become a big-time pro wrestler – but the shadow of past tragedy weighs heavily on her. And, as is always the case, everything changes when a necromancer who just REALLY likes wrestling abducts her to participate in his messed-up pro wrestling tournament. The catch? She has to tag team with the man responsible for all her trauma.

Family drama, neck-breaking (another pun, I can’t help myself) action, and the epic Daniel Warren Johnson + Spicer art make this story such a memorable experience. There are many twists, turns, and surprises waiting to be discovered under those luchador masks – and it’s all in the pages of the Do a Powerbomb trade paperback.

The Jurassic League

Honestly, I’m not even going to tell you much about this book – I simply refuse and think the name speaks for itself. With the story by Daniel Warren Johnson and Juan Gedeon (who also does the art), and Spicer on colors, this is the story of the Justice League as dinosaurs. I mean, you have Batsaur, Supersaur, and Wonderdon (and others!) facing off against Brontozarro, Giganta, Jokerzard… It’s silly, it’s action-packed, and it mixes the Justice League with dinosaurs – what more do you need?

Transformers

June of 2023 had one of those “you had to be there” moments when Void Rivals #1 hit the shelves. Robert Kirkman and Lorenzo De Felici promised a sci-fi story about two warring people stranded on a planet together, but what we got was far bigger than that! On one page, we saw a recognizable white jet with a red stripe… who, after powering up, indeed transformed into Jetfire – secretly launching the new Energon Universe!

Soon after that, Transformers by Daniel Warren Johnson was announced – and what a book it is! If you ever wanted to see Optimus Prime body-slam Starscream, this is the book for you. It’s action-packed, full of shocking deaths, and loaded with human moments from both bots and humans alike – and that’s only issue one!

Jorge Corona jumped in on art after issue #6 but kept the style remarkably consistent – likely helped by the fact that Mike Spicer did the colors for most of the issues as well. It’s a truly spectacular book to read, and the bots look so alien yet so human all at once.

The first paperback – Transformers Vol. 1: Robots in Disguise – collects the first six issues of the story, and the second – Transformers Vol. 2: Transport to Oblivion – collects issues seven to twelve, while the competing-cover Transformers Deluxe hardcover collects all twelve.

Question for you all, though – which cover will you pick? I went with the Optimus cover, since Starscream SUCKS. Agreed?

The Moon is Following Us

The final maxi-series by Daniel Warren Johnson – and the one currently being published – The Moon is Following Us is a story about parents doing everything in their power to get back their daughter, Penny.

The art is done by Riley Rossmo – who is very difficult for me to pin down. In some books – like Martian Manhunter or Illuminati – I really enjoyed his style, while books like Harley Quinn and Tim Drake: Robin just didn’t do it for me. Here? It definitely does!

Rossmo is allowed to go wild and whimsical under Johnson’s pen, giving us moments of high-octane action that pair and contrast well with Daniel Warren Johnson’s art on the couple’s more mundane domestic life. It was quite an inspired pick – letting Johnson focus on the less action-packed scenes, while Rossmo’s softer, “edgeless” approach is used for the otherworld. But it works! The first trade paperback of The Moon Is Following Us collects the first half of the story, so make sure to grab it while waiting for each new issue.

Feel Something, Then Smash Something!

Daniel Warren Johnson is the one to look out for – both when he publishes amazing, heart-pounding books and when he discusses his process with anyone who wants to hear about it. He infuses heart and humanity into the most alien of settings, and reminds us that, whatever happens, everyone should take a breath and look inside for the best in us. Then, jump right back into the action!