CLASSIC COLLABORATIONS 001

Part One of Two

During my first decade of writing comicbooks professionally, it was a rare occurrence for me to collaborate with artists that I was already keenly aware of -- if not an outright fan of -- before I’d gone pro.

The reason for this was twofold: 1) Especially early on in my career, I certainly didn’t feel experienced enough -- or worthy enough -- to even contemplate working with any artist who was, in my mind, on a much higher level than me in the industry, let alone of legendary (or even semi-legendary) status, and 2) I had a strong sense that I would do better work overall if I kept mainly to collaborating with artists that were of my generation, that were relatively new to the industry, young and hungry… just like I was. I tried very hard to cultivate creator partnerships that were much more equal and balanced. And that list was mighty indeed: Ladronn. Javier Pulido. Ed McGuinness. Eric Canete. Leonardo Manco. Lee Bermejo. Dustin Nguyen. Ashley Wood. Clementé Sauvé (RIP). Jim Muniz. Stefano Caselli. Giuseppe Camuncoli. Frazer Irving. Tom Scioli. Andy Suriano. I proudly worked with all of these great comicbook artists when they were all fairly green (as I was when then, too).

But I did have occasion to work with a small handful of artists who I certainly considered “A-list”. When I was breaking into the industry as a full-time professional, I had no idea that I would stumble into these truly wild opportunities, much less having most of them pop up freakishly early in my career. And I took none of them for granted…

Steve Rude (X-MEN: CHILDREN OF THE ATOM #1-3) They say, “Never work with your heroes.” And, for the most part, I heeded that advice. But in the case of Steve “the Dude” Rude, I just couldn’t resist. Along with writer, Mike Baron (another literary hero of mine back in the day), he was the artistic powerhouse behind one of my absolute favorite series of the 1980’s (and beyond): Nexus. To have Steve drawing the first “prestigious” project of my career -- my first Marvel comicbook with a #1 on the cover -- was incredibly significant. Just the fact that he was willing to work with me sent my stock -- particularly with other young artists of my generation -- sky high. It was like I was suddenly a made man.

Meanwhile, Steve and I both dove deep into the pre-production process -- a true collaboration -- and the effort and energy we put into it showed in the three issues he ended up drawing. Gloriously intense and unfailingly earnest, Steve was always exactly as you’d want him to be. And when he judged my issue #3 script as “Baron-level”, I took it as the highest possible compliment.

He definitely taught me a few things, mostly by example, about maintaining a personal commitment to your own work, far beyond the corporate needs of the project. This maverick attitude would bring with it certain consequences, like when the Dude was unceremoniously fired for being “behind schedule” (as dumb an editorial move as you could imagine at that time… and it still stings to this day).

As you can see, his painted covers were both exquisite and sublime. And here's one of Steve’s more Nexus-like pages from COTA Book One…

Paul Smith (X-MEN: CHILDREN OF THE ATOM #4) With the Dude gone, the only artist that we could think of to attempt to fill those shoes was Paul Smith. After all, in addition to his legendary ten-issue run on Uncanny X-Men back in 1982-83, he was also the regular fill-in artist on Nexus for a good year or so. Just the thought of working with him went a long way towards making up for the genuine heartache I felt seeing the great Steve Rude get the boot.

Although I’d briefly met him in person at SDCC a few years earlier, when Paul and I eventually spoke on the phone after he jumped onto COTA, we talked about how he would once again be taking the reins of a series from Steve Rude. He said something I’ll never forget: “Smitty ain’t the Dude… but the Dude ain’t Smitty.”

Too bad he didn’t even last a full issue (for reasons unknown, although I suspect they involved a motorcycle and the call of the wide open desert).

John Buscema (DEATHLOK #10) This is a pretty big one, from a historical perspective, if nothing else. But there’s so much more to getting the chance to work -- in any capacity -- with one of the all-time preeminent Marvel artists. Not to mention, it was a complete surprise when it actually happened. As if it would ever need to be said, Buscema was/is an absolute giant in the field. When I was a kid, I absolutely cherished the classic back issues of Avengers that he illustrated in the 1960’s. As it turned out, this Deathlok job -- a complete one-off I have no idea what convinced him to take -- was close to being one of his last before he passed away in 2002.

Kevin Maguire (GEN 13 #42) As far as I’m concerned, Kevin’s work penciling DC’s Justice League International in the late 1980’s alone earns him Mt. Rushmore status in my eyes. And I almost fell out of my chair when we were initially paired up for this random Gen 13 fill-in issue back in 1999.

Before I even started writing, I called Kevin and asked him what he was interested in drawing for this particular gig. I suppose I could’ve predicted his answer from all the previous interviews of his that I’d already read: “James Bond and pro wrestling.” The story I ended up writing happily featured iterations of both, and Kevin delivered in a big way. This issue was also a typical showcase for his other artistic strength of perfect characterization through subtle -- but distinctive -- facial expressions…

A few years later, Kevin and I collaborated on a Velocity one-shot for Top Cow’s “Pilot Season” program (which we won, if I correctly recall). Good times, all around.

We’ll pick up with Part Two of this exclusive hit list in the next newsletter.

And, by the way, WEAPON X-MEN #4 hits your LCS this week. And if this cover pushes your Nostalgia Comics buttons in any way, shape or form, then you won’t wanna miss this one. I mean, c’mon… it’s the RISE OF RED RONIN!!!

Joe Casey

USA