People From London

"The external forms and fancies of religion in one age may be a little purer, in another a little more corrupt, but they inevitably adapt themselves to their period, and it would be extravagant to imagine them interchangeable."

"The information contained in the following pages is no collection of inferences deduced from study. I am bringing to my readers knowledge which I have obtained by favour rather than by effort. It will not be found the less valuable on that account; I venture, on the contrary, to declare that it will be found of incalculably greater value, easily as I have obtained it, than any results in a similar direction which I could possibly have procured by ordinary methods of research, even had I possessed, in the highest degree, that which I make no claim to possess at all - Oriental scholarship."

"Evolution of Man. For it must be realized that the evolution of man is a process still going on, and by no means yet complete. Darwinian writings have taught the modern world to regard the ape as an ancestor, but the simple conceit of Western speculation has rarely permitted European evolutionists to look in the other direction, and recognize the probability, that to our remote descendants we may be, as that unwelcome progenitor to us. Yet the two facts just declared hinge together. The higher evolution will be accomplished by our progress through the successive worlds of the system; and in higher forms we shall return to this earth again and again. But the avenues of thought through which we look forward to this prospect, are of almost inconceivable length."

"For the present let us consider the position of the adepts as they now exist, or, to use the designation more generally employed in India, of "the Mahatmas." [Mahatma -Great Soul, or Great Spirit, derived from Maha and Atma.] They constitute a Brotherhood, or Secret Association, which ramifies all over the East, but the principal seat of which for the present I gather to be in Tibet. But India has not yet been deserted by the adepts, and from that country they still receive many recruits. For the great fraternity is at once the least and the most exclusive organization in the world, and fresh recruits from any race or country are welcome, provided they possess the needed qualifications. The door, as I have been told by one who is himself an adept, is always open to the right man who knocks, but the road that has to be travelled before the door is reached is one which none but very determined travellers can hope to pass. It is manifestly impossible that I can describe its perils in any but very general terms, but it is not necessary to have learned any secrets of initiation to understand the character of the training through which a neophyte must pass before he attains the dignity of a proficient in occultism. The adept is not made: he becomes, as I have been constantly assured, and the process of becoming is mainly in his own hands. (Occultism and the Adepts II)"

"In regard to the complaint itself, that the teachings here reduced to an intelligible shape are incorrectly described by the name this book bears, I cannot do better than quote the note by which the editor of the Theosophist replies to his Brahman contributor. This note says: -“We print the above letter as it expresses in courteous language, and in an able manner, the views of a large number of our Hindoo brothers. At the same time it must be stated that the name of ‘Esoteric Buddhism’ was given... not because the doctrine propounded therein is meant to be specially Esoteric Buddhism... identified with any particular form of faith, but because Buddhism means the doctrine of the Buddhas, the Wise i.e. the Wisdom Religion.” For my own part I need only add that I fully accept and adopt that explanation of the matter."

"Preface to the Annotated Edition Since this book was first published in the beginning of 1883, I have come into possession of much additional information bearing on many of the problems dealt with. But I am glad to say that such later teaching only reveals incompleteness in my original conception of the esoteric doctrine, - no material error so far. Indeed I have received from the great Adept himself, from whom I obtained my instruction in the first instance, the assurance that the book as it now stands is a sound and trustworthy statement of the scheme of Nature as understood by the initiates of occult science, which may have to be a good deal developed in the future, if the interest it excites is keen enough to constitute an efficient demand for further teaching of this kind on the part of the world at large, but will never have to be remodelled or apologized for. In view of this assurance it seems best that I should now put forward my later conclusions and additional information in the form of annotations on each branch of the subject, rather than infuse them into the original text, which, under the circumstances, I am reluctant in any way to alter. I have therefore adopted that plan in the present edition."

"Dillon was a storyteller with few peers, able to render everything from a bloody confrontation to a quiet conversation, from moments of gut-busting comedy to the most crushing heartbreak imaginable."

"Steve Dillon was a master storyteller. Preacher, Punisher, all of it done with so much exceptional skill [and] magic."

"My experience of Steve was always this consummate professional who never took it too seriously or wanted to blow his own trumpet. He drew my first pro job as a scriptwriter and showed how you really can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. What a lovely guy, what an immense talent – he will be sorely missed."

"[His] pages were as fluid as camerawork, as efficient and composed as theater. [...] Everything breathed."

"The artist of Preacher was, and is—and could only ever have been—my good friend Steve Dillon, and he captured exactly what it was I wanted."

"I'd say Steve is the best storyteller in the industry. He's got an almost supernatural gift for it. [...] He also has the very useful ability to look into my head and see exactly what I mean. I can write a script for him that will be extremely sparse, 'cause I know he will nail it perfectly."

"Steve was best man at my wedding and my good and dear friend. I think he probably taught me more about what that word means than anyone else."

"It was his ability with character – to say so much with what looked like so little – that was really one of the secrets of Steve's success, and therefore, the secret of our success together."

"[Preacher] was a perfect example of our creative partnership, in that we both gave it our all and we each trusted the other to do the job and not make life difficult. [...] There are some truly insane things in that book, but Steve refused to be awed by them, always finding a way to render them as part of a complete, logical world. Too many artists would have emphasised the outlandish at the expense of narrative and character. Not Steve."

"We had a kind of perfect symbiotic relationship: "I write, you draw; we trust each other." And it was actually as simple as that! There was no careful dissection and discussion of what we were doing. There was no "Would it be better if...?""

"He was a legend among comic-book fans and considered a master of his craft by colleagues. Known for a deeply expressive, often humorous style that leapt off the page, he created characters that could communicate volumes with a single expression."

"What Dillon did better than just about anybody was tell stories using the human form. If we were to deploy a cinematic metaphor, Dillon was exceedingly good at cinematography, but he was unparalleled at directing, if you will, his characters. He conjured body language and facial expressions that could break your heart, crack you up, or make you gasp."

"Steve was a true original, a natural destined to bring pleasure to the world with his amazing work."

"Master storyteller - brilliantly immersive, [a] true original. Contributions to the form immeasurable[.]"

"He had such a feeling for film noir. He was one of the comic greats."

"Steve was one of the definitive artists on 2000 AD. He was a titan."

"Dillon will be remembered as one of the best storytellers the comics medium has seen; and rightly so: because all he needed was an eye-level angle, a single point of focus, and his repertoire of facial expressions to take you from expansive sci-fi worlds to demons and vampires to a couple on the bed discussing their relationship— all using the same approach, all telling complete and interesting stories entirely visually. And maybe best of all: he made it seem so effortless; and that's the true thing we'll miss from comics, going forward. It wasn't brash, it wasn't showing off; but what it was was incredibly simple, incredibly economic, with incredibly well-crafted storytelling."

"Steve Dillon was one of our best quiet dramatists."

"Steve Dillon was one of the best because he knew what was most important in what we do: the storytelling. That's his legacy."

"For those who knew him, or had met him even once, and for the many more who admired and were inspired by his work, two themes emerged: first, his friendliness, good nature and powerful humor, and second, his astonishing skill as a storyteller from a young age."

"I very rarely ever told Steve how much I admired and appreciated his work, so that's the note I think I would like to end on, is just how big a fan I was of his work, and how brilliant and natural an artist he was."

"In a long and storied career, Dillon's work was characterized by concise layouts, subtle manipulations of time and space, and a remarkably expressive cartooning style that gave his comics an emotional resonance unlike any other."

"Started my career photocopying Steve Dillon. A genius storyteller, he pushed comics forward by merging genres in order to elevate them."

"Making comics for adults — not stolid, "highbrow" comics, but explosive, shocking comics that tickle grownup palates — is a challenge for many creators, but it's one that artist Steve Dillon embraced with gusto."

"Steve was a great guy and a terrific talent. [...] One of those comic artists you could call a 'natural'."

"I knew he was good but, to my shame, I never realised quite how good. One of the most brilliant artists ever to put pen to paper for 2000 AD."

"It is often said that good comic art should not be so detailed as to slow the pace, but equally must be accurate and vivid to conjure scenes real enough to live in the reader's imagination. Steve's art managed these traits perfectly, sacrificing flashy page layouts and complex panel constructions for the sake of concise storytelling."

"Steve Dillon's art is perfect for the [Preacher] story. It puts tainted saliva on the fangs of Garth Ennis's prose. It puts the shadow behind the curtain and makes the blood on the floor crawl."

"He completely inspired me. I was six years old when he started working professionally in comics. [...] I loved to see him drawing, all the amazing things he would do. He put my name backwards on a spaceship in Nick Fury, and in Block Mania he drew a Judge with a "Glyn" badge; he was always doing stuff like that for me. He was my hero and he was drawing superheroes -- when you're six, there's nothing better than that."

"Most of you already know there are few in the history of comics [who] could touch Steve for storytelling, and I fear I [might] have picked his brain ad nauseum on the subject - but this is the point, and why I loved Steve - he made me feel like an equal, a colleague in "the trenches". [...] His work has been a huge influence on mine, and his kindness and frank wisdom even moreso."

"I was immediately impressed with his talent, and we gave him a script without hesitation. [...] His style was like a muscular version of Brian Bolland's work. He always made sure to tell the story first and he made the process look easy."

"One of the most gifted comic storytellers I've ever seen."

"It's not like watching a car crash. It's like watching people setting fire to their own cars and ramming into school buses at high speed."

"He knew in his his DNA how to tell a good story, and more than most professionals twice his age and experience. His use of composition, figure drawing and characterisation was second to none."

"Steve was an inspiration to us all, and a big brother to so many. [...] He and Brett Ewins inspired a whole generation of us to start making comic books."

"Steve Dillon was the finest of artists [and] finest of people. Working with him was an honor."

"I suppose [the apex of my work] would have to be Preacher. It's the thing that's the longest lasting, it's the thing that's seemed to have had the most effect on people. It's also something that me and Garth came up with ourselves."

"I drew a lot of scenes [in Preacher] of people vomiting. I'm probably the world's leading expert on drawing vomiting now."

"It's been ironic, really, because I got into comics wanting to draw superheroes. I used to draw superheroes for fun when I was a kid but in my career, from the earliest days, I wasn't drawing superheroes. Nick Fury: Agent of SHIELD wasn't really a superhero. The first thing that I did, the Hulk, wasn't really a superhero either. If you look at the Doctor Who stuff, what I did for Warrior, then if you look at the work I did on Hellblazer and Preacher as well, that's not superheroes either. The closest I ever got to doing a superhero comic was Wolverine: Origins."

"I've been lucky to have worked with some really good writers on Punisher. There's been Garth Ennis, Daniel Way, Jason Aaron and now Becky. I just look forward to seeing the scripts come through. When a writer knows what they're doing and know[s] the story they want to tell, it makes life a whole lot easier."

"As [Garth and I] talked it over, I thought [Preacher] was a great idea for a story. I was very conscious that nothing like it had been done by a big, mainstream comic publisher before and I wondered if we’d get away with the stuff we wanted to do. As it turned out, DC, and Vertigo's Karen Berger in particular, were great. There were a few battles but, for the most part, we managed to get it done the way we wanted it."

"I think the wonderful thing about Steve is: he was such an effortless storyteller. [...] His work has a real solid simplicity to it. And actually, as an artist, trying to do stuff like that: it's very, very hard because there's nothing to hide behind."

"I always end up working with writers with a twisted sense of humour and a fine sense of warped violence. And that's right up my strasse."

"He was a gifted artist, brilliant raconteur, loving dad, the best Guinness drinking buddy I have ever had."