Man, they're dropping like flies!
Re-reading the 100-page "Manhunter" issues of DETECTIVE (issues 438-443) I was struck by how many of my favorites have died in recent years. Dick Giordano, Jim Aparo, Joe Kubert, Carmine infantino, Marshall Rogers, and just recently Berni Wrightson.
I always enjoyed Buckler's work, despite the obvious swipes. Particularly on Batman, virtually every artist, including Giordano, was swiping Adams' style anyway, just not quite as obviously (Grell, Brunner, Buckler, Byrne, Nasser...)
I love that Batman 265 issue, with Buckler inked by Wrightson, a one-time only collaboration, and surprisingly Wrightson's style does not dominate, it just looks like a very cleanly inked Buckler.
My first sample of Buckler's work was a Robin backup series in BATMAN 241 and 242.
I recall a Buckler interview (probably in COMIC BOOK ARTIST) where Buckler described editorial criticism of his early 70's work, that it morphed from story to story and didn't have a distinctive "voice" and individual style. And when he started imitating Neal Adams, they ironically said "You've found your voice!"
Compare, for example, the 1971-1972 work of Buckler's on the Robin backups in BATMAN, and his simultaneous "Rose and the Thorn" backups in LOIS LANE, that are almost unrecognizable as the same artist.
Buckler's first pro work for DC was a HOUSE OF SECRETS 90 issue in 1971, where Neal Adams inked the story to help Buckler make that first sale to DC.
Buckler was one of many "hack" artists at Marvel in the early/mid 1970's, that just churned out stuff in the house style. I think Buckler's main series was FANTASTIC FOUR (roughly 140 to 180, Buckler, Perez and J Buscema alternating the art chores).
Buckler's most distinctive and individual work was his DEATHLOK series with writer Doug Moench in
ASTONISHING TALES 25-36, circa 1973-1976. (Concluded much later in MARVEL SPOTLIGHT 33, in 1977)
Another was an early McGregor Killraven story in AMAZING ADVENTURES 25, in 1974. Buckler also did a few issues of McGregor's Black Panther series in
JUNGLE ACTION 6-24 in the same period.
After that Buckler went over to DC and for a while was their primary cover artist from 1977-1982. The series I recall most of his from that period was his run in WORLD'S FINEST(nice art but very unmemorable stories by Haney, O'Neil and others), and a few scattered but really nice issues of TIME WARP, JONAH HEX, DC SPECIAL (Captain Comet, with dinosaurs), JLA, and BATMAN.
In that same period, Buckler was doing a lot of work for Continuity Associates (which is to say Neal Adams) so not surprisingly his work increasingly came to resemble that of Adams. That was a job requirement at Continuity. As seen at Continuity comics through the 80's and 90's, even artists as distinctive as Rudy Nebres would draw like Neal Adams.
While I wouldn't point to Buckler as one of my absolute favorites such as Adams or Wrightson or Kirby, Buckler did do some nice and solid work, that I enjoy and occasionally re-read.
I think only Keith Giffen rivals him in the shameless art swiping category, though.
