So what exactly are you paying this man a presumably large amount of money for? I'm not trolling here, I seriously want to know. All you just described is a cheerleader, a cheerleader who knows jack shit about gaming and commands an absurdly high wage.
You could probably browse ConceptArt.org and EatPoo.com forums for 15 mins and find a better artist who is more creative, and every bit as clueless about gaming as McFarlane is who will work for ramen noodles and enough cash for a weekend mushroom trip.
I think you just got these names together to make a lot of noise for an unknown company.
What his compensation is, really isn't relevant, but your first assumption is dead wrong.
find a better artist who is more creative, and every bit as clueless about gaming as McFarlane
First off please don't twist or contort what I say, hell it's not that hard man, it's in a text box right above your post. I said he's not a computer gamer, no that he didn't know what he was doing.
Obviously you don't like Todd, that's pretty clear, but the above quote pretty much makes your post irrelevant and ignorant to facts.
"Better artist"? Isn't that pretty much in the eye of the fan/viewer? And last I checked he has a global following that nets spawn.com 300 million uniques a month, but ya he's a shallow hack with no talent.
The comic strip parody further illustrates the point. People don't go to those lengths to trash talk nobodies. Just like Yankee stadium, the louder they boo you the less you suck, they don't boo nobodies.
"More Creative"? Seriously? Or did I miss the part where every comic book artist in the past 25 years has had enough talent, and sack, to venture off on his own and create a 40+ million dollar a year company. Where is that place, google earth it for me and let me in, I'm obviously stupid.
Todd is involved in the IP to drive the artistic vision and assist in growing the actual IP itself. This is far more than just a computer game, well it will be at some point. To spawn (no pun intended) a new IP in this day and age, and have it get global recognition is going to take far more than just a game and it was planned that way from day one, years and years ago.