The Defiants and the Art of the Antihero with Rob Liefeld

Rob Liefeld is a prolific artist and writer who dominated the comic scene in the 1990s, introducing the world to an energetic, avant-garde style of comic art and new kind of superhero. During his 30+ year career in the comic industry, Liefeld has worked on some of the industry’s most celebrated titles, including X-Men, Captain America, The Avengers, Spiderman and more, while making an immeasurable impact with the introduction of his own iconic characters such as Deadpool and Cable. In 1992, Liefeld co-founded Image Comics, the third largest comic book and graphic novel publisher, which effectively helped change the comic industry Known to be on the cutting edge of creativity, Liefeld now ventures into the world of NFTs with the launch of The Defiants – a disparate collection of Warriors united in defense of humanity.

It all started at a comic convention in San Francisco during the late eighties, when a young Rob Liefeld made the trek from Anaheim to present his works to comic editors in hopes of securing a future in the industry. Despite initially shying away from the major comic publishers, DC and Marvel, Liefeld caught the attention of a Marvel editor, and in 1989 the self-taught artist began pencilling for Marvel’s The New Mutants.

New characters created and developed by Liefeld, like Domino, Shatterstar, Stryfe, Wildside and Warpath helped breath new life into the then ailing franchise, but it was the introduction of mouthy mercenary Deadpool that would change everything for Liefeld. Eventually Liefeld was granted total creative control of The New Mutants leading to a total transformation and the birth of X-Force in 1991. The revamped comic was met with extreme enthusiasm, with X-Force #1 remaining the second-highest selling American comic book of all time with 5 million copies sold.

Two of Liefeld’s notable original characters, Cable and his archenemy Stryfe, were introduced in The New Mutants #97. When Deadpool, the world’s favorite “Merc with a Mouth” made his first appearance in The New Mutants #98, he was an instant fan favorite. Inspired by some of Liefeld’s favorite characters, The Wolverine and Spiderman, Deadpool was actually first introduced as a super villain before evolving into the crime fighting anti-hero we know and love. Deadpool eventually transcended beyond printed comic books to the silver screen, with two major motion pictures featuring Ryan Reynolds playing the titular character. These films shattered box office records making over $1.5 billion dollars worldwide.

“Every figure that Rob draws has a certain energy to it, a certain excitement. Every character Rob drew had seven knives and six guns and shoulder pads and pouches and belts and straps and ammunition. It was an aesthetic that as a kid absolutely blew me away. I idolized the guy…Everything he draws is interesting, whether it’s accurate or not. A lot of people look at the way Rob draws the human body and they say, ‘That’s wrong in my eyes.’ I would say that these people have no joy in their souls. It’s not like Rob doesn’t know what a human body looks like, I think Rob looks at a human body and goes: ‘That’s boring. I can do better.'”
-Liefeld’s friend, Image Comics partner, and The Walking Dead creator, Robert Kirkman.

Liefeld plans to continue expanding his legacy on the screen: In 2021, it was announced that Liefeld’s original character PROPHET (first introduced in Young Bloods #2) would be adapted to a major motion picture directed by Sam Hargrave, starring Jake Gyllenhaal as the title character John Prophet and Liefeld serving as Executive producer.

But Liefeld is not stopping there. Looking to the future of media and content consumption, Liefeld will be releasing his latest brainchild The Defiants in NFT form on MakersPlace. The first of four titles he plans to release in this novel form, The Defiants marks Liefeld’s foray into the future of comic art.

“The Defiants is an offbeat concept featuring the wildest characters I’ve ever created, I’m thrilled to share their world in the realm of NFTs.”
– Rob Liefeld

Collectors and fans will now have the opportunity to add one of the original characters – Argos, Astra, Golden Rage, Redstone or Vandel- to their collection, allowing for a completely new way to engage with the comic legend’s work and commemorating the beginning of a new era for Liefeld’s work.

The Defiants

The Defiants – Heroes

Editions: One
Pricing: Accepting Offers Only

*A 24 hour auction will ensue once reserve price is met.

** The winner of the 1/1 auction will receive access to three exclusive bonuses: a signed copy of “Deadpool 30th Anniversary, Nerdy 30”, a signed copy of “Venompool, Limited Edition”, and the opportunity to schedule a one-on-one Zoom call with Rob Liefeld himself.

The Defiants – Team

Editions: Open
Pricing: $500

*Only owners of all 5 individual character pieces (below) will qualify to purchase “The Defiants – Team”

**Collectors of “The Defiants – Team” will each receive an exclusive hand drawn digital pencil of the “Vandel” character. A bonus “Vandel” collectible is available to the first 250 buyers on a first-come-first-served basis.