Fluit Notes

Memories of Nightcrawler

One of my favorite characters- for almost as long as I’ve been reading comics- is Kurt Wagner, aka Nightcrawler. 

 

The funny thing about it is that Nightcrawler wasn’t even in the first issue of X-Men that I bought- Uncanny X-Men #202.  His first mini-series was being published concurrently so Nightcrawler was given a short break from the main title.  But, when I finally met the character, he quickly became one of my favorites.

 

I like that he enjoyed his powers.  Especially in the X-Men, a large number of characters view their powers as a burden or even a curse.  But not Nightcrawler.  He enjoyed surprising his friends with short teleports.  He laughed off complaints about the smell of sulfur that his teleports left behind.  He had fun climbing on walls and was pleasantly surprised when he learned he became almost invisible in shadows.  He swung through Danger Room exercises with delight.  In doing so, Nightcrawler reminded us that being a superhero is supposed to be fun.  That’s one of the reasons why we read about them, after all, especially when we’re young.  We want to be superheroes.  We want to fly and run fast and beat up the bad guys.  Nightcrawler embodied that attitude.  He was able to do incredible things that no one else could do and he had fun doing them.

 

I like that he made jokes.  More than that, I like the kind of jokes that he made.  Nightcrawler wasn’t the class clown, cutting up all the time whether or not it’s appropriate.  And he wasn’t mean-spirited, making fun of other people instead of having fun with them.  He was simply good-natured.  He kept things light.  He smiled even in the midst of dire situations.  And he helped others feel better.  This was true of both other characters and readers who appreciated his positive outlook on life and his sense of humor. 

 

I like that he wasn’t ashamed of who he was.  When Nightcrawler joined the X-Men, Professor Xavier borrowed image inducers so that mutants who didn’t look human would be able to go about unmolested.  At first, Nightcrawler treated it like a game.  He didn’t come up with some anonymous alter ego.  He walked around looking like Errol Flynn.  He drew attention to himself, instead of hiding from it.  Eventually, Nightcrawler rejected the need for an image inducer at all.  Although it meant that he was occasionally left outside as sentry or back-up, Nightcrawler refused to pretend he was something other than what he was.  He wasn’t embarrassed by his three fingers, blue fur or tail and he saw no reason why someone else’s discomfort should impede on his freedom.  That’s a powerful example.  The X-Men have often served as models or metaphors for those who feel out of place, particularly teenagers and minorities.  By being comfortable in his own fur, Nightcrawler showed us that we could be comfortable with who we were as well. 

 

I like that he made friends.  Nightcrawler was personable.  He was able to get along with just about anybody.  He hung out with the surly Wolverine and brought out the best in him.  He hung out with the quiet Colossus and brought him out of his shell.  He patiently overcame Kitty’s initial fear of him and eventually became one of her greatest friends.  He meshed well with the stoic Captain Britain and the emotional Rachel.  He was often the first to befriend new members, such as Kylun and Douglock.  He also held on to friendships for a lifetime, such as childhood friend and intermittent lover Amanda Sefton.  He was kind to those with very different backgrounds and attitudes, such as Stacy X.  Even in his solo title, Nightcrawler made a new friend in Night Nurse. Maybe that’s why he was so beloved by fans.  It was easy for us to imagine being his friend as well.

 

I like that he was a man of faith.  As a Christian, I’m used to seeing negative depictions in popular fiction.  However, Nightcrawler was a shining example of how faith can have a positive impact on someone’s life.  He was the exact opposite of so many religious stereotypes: accepting instead of prejudiced, joyful instead of dour, intelligent instead of dim-witted.  His faith was a source of his strength of character and jubilant personality, not an impediment to it.  Kurt Wagner was a wonderful public face for Christianity, without being a commercial for it. 

 

I like that he became a leader.  There’s a well-known aphorism: some are born great, some have greatness thrust upon them.  Nightcrawler was not a born leader.  In the circus, Kurt Wagner was the acrobat, not the ringleader.  Yet he stepped up into leadership roles when he needed to and gradually grew into them.  His first leadership experience came when both Cyclops and Storm were absent from the X-Men.  At that time, he wasn’t yet confident in the position.  Yet, when Nightcrawler later helped found Excalibur, he naturally rose as the team’s leader.  He successfully steered Excalibur through numerous challenges and changes.  He even put together a substitute team of “N-Men” when his regular team was out of commission.  Even so, Nightcrawler didn’t have Cyclops’ innate need to be a leader.  When he returned to the X-Men, he willingly took supporting roles, allowing Angel to serve as squad leader and stepping in later only when called upon.  It was nice to see Nightcrawler change and grow.  It was also nice to see that a leader didn’t have to be stoic and gruff. 

 

I even like the way in which he died.  After all, in addition to all of his other traits, Nightcrawler was also a hero.  He pushed himself to be better.  He refused to accept limits- working on teleporting over greater distances, with greater frequency and with more passengers.  He risked his own safety to save his friends and his own life to save the world.  In the end, he sacrificed himself to save a young girl named Hope.  That’s a fitting legacy.  Having dedicated his life to protecting the world, Nightcrawler died to preserve hope. 

 

I like to think that Nightcrawler and I have a lot in common.  That’s one reason why I’m so attached to him as a character.  He’s also a better version of me, reminding me to be both joyful and unashamed.  He’s both who I am and who I aspire to be. 

 

Nightcrawler was a lot of fun to read about and a lot of fun to have around.  I will miss seeing him in X-Men stories, though I can always go back and read my favorites again.  And yet, I have hope for there is always the chance that we will one day see him again.  Until then, good-bye fuzzy elf, my favorite fictional friend.

 

The End. 

Where Are They Now: CrossGen Part III

CrossGen continued to hire new talent and add new titles in 2002. They eventually expanded to a robust line of twelve monthly titles at which point they seemed poised to become a major player in the comic book industry. However, their continued expansion in 2003 led to a bloated line, increased debt and decreasing individual sales. Though this series of articles hasn’t been entirely chronological in nature, this third entry includes many of the creators who came aboard during this time. Some of them helped build the company to its twelve title peak at the end of 2002. Others found new opportunities as the company added freelance projects and licensed properties. And, even as the CrossGen faced the struggles that would lead to their bankruptcy, they continued to unearth new talent.

Chuck Dixon: Dixon arrived at CrossGen as one of the most prolific writers of the 1990s. He was predominantly associated with street-level heroes such as The Punisher at Marvel and Batman at DC. For CrossGen, he wrote Sigil and Crux, co-created Way of the Rat and Brath,and helmed one of the company’s last hits, the pirate comic El Cazador. When CrossGen folded, Dixon was no longer the high-demand writer he had been before. However, he still managed to keep working for companies like Devil’s Due, Moonstone and even DC. Currently, he’s one of the focal writers for IDW’s GI Joe.

Scott Beatty: Beatty was one of the freelance writers hired later in CrossGen’s lifespan. He had previously been one of the writers for DC’s Batman office,
working on Robin: Year One with Chuck Dixon. For CrossGen, he was given the task of replacing Mark Waid on Ruse. After CrossGen, Beatty continued his Bat-work with Batgirl: Year One, as well as stints on Gotham Knights and Nightwing. He also worked for Wildstorm, penning their Revelations series. His most recent work includes Buck Rogers for Dynamite Entertainment.

Ian Edginton: Edginton was the other freelance writer brought in near the end of the company. The British writer had previously worked on Warren Ellis’ update of X-Force, as well as other comics such as Blade, Star Trek, Aliens vs. Predator and Xena. His biggest contribution at CrossGen was a nine-issue run on their most popular title, Sojourn. He also wrote the last few issues of Scion. By the time CrossGen came to an end, Edginton had become a frequent contributor on Britian’s premier title, 2000 AD. He’s also worked for Wildstorm as the regular writer on Stormwatch: PHD. His most recent release is Radical Publishing’s Aladdin comic.

Paul Pelletier: Pelletier drew Darkstars, Flash, Green Lantern and Superboy for DC comics before coming to CrossGen. At CrossGen, he was placed on the space opera Negation with writer Tony Bedard. They became a much-loved team and were assigned to the massive crossover, Negation War, which was left unfinished when the company collapsed. They reunited at Marvel, when Pelletier was named the regular penciler during Bedard’s run on Exiles. More recently, Pelletier has played with Marvel’s cosmic heroes, serving as the artist on Fantastic Four, Guardians of the Galaxy and War of Kings. His latest work appears in Incredible Hulk.

Karl Moline: Karl Moline was a different hire for CrossGen. The company usually discovered new talent or grabbed veterans from the Big Two companies. Moline, however, was an established talent but he was best known for his work at Dark Horse where he had collaborated with Joss Whedon on Fray.

At CrossGen, he teamed with writer Tony Bedard on the ‘50s-style horror comic, Route 666. Since CrossGen, Moline has worked on Marvel’s The Loners and returned to Dark Horse with Buffy
the Vampire Slayer and BPRD.

Jeff Johnson: A martial artist himself, Jeff Johnson was the perfect choice to draw CrossGen’s kung fu comic, Way of the Rat. Before coming to CrossGen, Johnson had worked with writer Gerard Jones on Marvel’s Wonder Man and Malibu’s Solitaire. He had also drawn the Fantastic Four. Later, he teamed with former CrossGen writer Ron Marz on Star Wars: Empire and contributed covers for Marz’ Dragon Prince. However, he has spent most of his time in animation.

Matthew Smith: Also known as Matt Smith, he took over The Path, when Bart Sears was promoted to art director. Before CrossGen, he had worked on Sandman Mystery Theatre, the DC crossover Day of Judgment and Marvel’s Nightcrawler Icons mini-series. Since CrossGen, he has worked on Stormwatch: PHD and Lobster Johnson. Last year, he contributed an arc to Doctor Who: The Ongoing Series and was recently named the regular artist on that series, beginning with issue 13 (not to be confused with the actor of the same name currently playing the role).

Mark Pennington: Pennington started out as CrossGen as an inker. Like Andy Smith, he worked over Bart Sears pencils before becoming a penciler himself. Pennington inked both Sears and Matt Smith on The Path before becoming that series’ third penciler. Pennington had extensive experience as an inker before CrossGen, having worked on such titles as Judge Dredd, Death: The Time of Your Life and Shade. His post-CrossGen work includes inking duties on the Vertigo comic Crossing Midnight and penciling IDW’s Angel Spotlight: Gunn. Pennington is currently associated with Baraka Studios, from which he contributes art to comic books and collectible cards.

Jim Fern: Fern filled in for Jimmy Cheung on several arcs of Scion. Also known as James Bosch, he had previously worked on titles such as Green Lantern and LEGION before coming to CrossGen. After CrossGen, Fern found a home with DC’s Vertigo imprint. He drew an arc of Fables. He was the co-plotter and penciler on Crossing Midnight. And he’s currently working on a Fables graphic novel.

Ivan Reis: Reis wasn’t new to North American comics when he was hired by CrossGen. He had previously worked for Dark Horse on Xena, the Mask and Ghost. He had even drawn one issue of Grant Morrison’s The Invisibles. At CrossGen, he was named the first regular artist on Lady Death. He left that title for better opportunities at DC and was given an exclusive contract in 2004. He worked on Superman and Teen Titans but is most associated with Green Lantern. He has been one of several artists during Geoff Johns’ run and recently finished work on the huge Blackest Night story.

Greg Tocchini: Tocchini was a relatively unknown Brazilian in comics when CrossGen hired him as the artist for their second DemonWars mini-series. But that was just the doorway he needed. Since working for CrossGen, Tocchini has drawn Thor for Marvel, Ion for DC and The Odyssey for Marvel’sline of illustrated classics. He is currently working on Last Days of American Crime for Radical Publishing with writer Rick Remender.

As CrossGen expanded, they also hired a number of veteran writers to work on their licensed and
creator-owned comics, as well as in their regular universe. The list of established pros who did work at CrossGen includes Pablo Marcos, Rudy Nebres, Ron Wagner, Rod Whigham, Ernie Colon
and Mike Ploog.

Although I focused on the writers and pencilers, CrossGen also employed many inkers and colorists.
Many of these artists had distinguished careers in their field before coming to CrossGen, such as JLA inker John Dell. And many of them are still working in comics today, such as colorist Justin Ponsor. Their contributions were important to CrossGen’s success, short-lived though it may have been.

Where Are They Now: CrossGen, Part II

CrossGen launched its comic book line in the summer of 2000 with four titles: Meridian, Mystic, Scion and Sigil.  That initial success demonstrated that they were a legitimate, viable comic book company and it allowed them to attract even more big-name creators.  In that first year of publishing, CrossGen added veteran artists Butch Guice and Bart Sears and popular writer Mark Waid.  However, their biggest splash came when they announced that they had signed superstar artist George Perez.  With these new additions, CrossGen was able to introduce some of their most successful titles in 2001.   

Mark Waid:  Mark Waid was one of the biggest writers in the comic book industry before coming to CrossGen, with Captain America, the Flash, JLA and Kingdom Come to his credit.  At CrossGen, he co-created Crux with artist Steve Epting and wrote one of CrossGen’s most successful titles, the detective comic, Ruse. He also took over Sigil from Barbara Kesel and co-created Negation before handing it off to Tony Bedard.  Waid was also one of the first high-profile departures from the company.  He had one of his greatest successes after CrossGen, as the writer on Fantastic Four with artist Mike Wieringo.  Mark Waid is now the editor-in-chief at Boom Studios where he also writes their superhero/supervillain titles Irredeemable and Incorruptible.   

Tony Bedard:  Bedard was relatively unknown in comics even though he had been working in the industry for almost a decade- interning, editing and writing for companies such as Valiant, Crusade and Malibu.  CrossGen became his coming out party.  He took over Mystic from Ron Marz, co-created Negation with Mark Waid and wrote Route 666 with artist Karl Moline.  After CrossGen, Bedard became a regular presence as a free-lance writer at both Marvel and DC.  He wrote an acclaimed run on Exiles and was part of the rotation of writers on Countdown.  Bedard is currently the writer of REBELS and will take over as the writer of Green Lantern Corps next month.   

Bart Sears: A graduate of the famous Joe Kubert School of Art, Sears worked on a number of high-profile comics in the ‘90s, including Justice League Europe and X-O Manowar.  His first CrossGen assignment was the melodramatic The First, featuring that universe’s pantheon of gods.  Sears then moved on to the samurai epic, The Path, becoming the first CrossGen artist to put his artistic stamp on two different titles.  After CrossGen, Sears returned to superhero work, with stints on Captain America and the Falcon and Weapon X, before diving into more fantasy-related titles again with DC’s Warlord and Dark Horse’s The Helm.  He has been working for the video game company, Heatwave Interactive, since 2008. 

Andrea DiVito: DiVito was part of the contingent of Italian artists who gained a foothold in North America through CrossGen.  He started at CrossGen as an associate penciller doing fill-in work before becoming the regular penciller on The First.  He then became the first penciller on Brath.  Since CrossGen, DiVito has kept busy at Marvel working on Thor: Disassembled, the Thing, Annihilation and World War Hulk.  His most recent work is on the cosmic hero Nova.  

Andy Smith: Andy Smith started out at CrossGen as an inker, working on Bart Sears’ pencils on The First.  He switched to pencils and after a couple of fill-in issues on other series, eventually became the third regular penciler on that title.  Smith found occasional work in comics after CrossGen, providing freelance work on Marvel’s Weapon X, DC’s Green Lantern, Atom and Superman: Confidential.  He is now mostly a corporate artist, having worked for companies such as Bally’s Total Fitness and Fidelity Investments.  

Steve Epting: Few artists improved their standing as much as Steve Epting.  Before joining the company, he was considered a stalwart but not a standout, putting in long runs on Marvel comics such as The Avengers and X-Factor.  At CrossGen, he opened a lot of eyes, first co-creating Crux with Mark Waid and then co-creating El Cazador with Chuck Dixon.  He is now the critically acclaimed artist on Captain America with writer Ed Brubaker though he most recently spent time with the same writer on a side project: The Marvels Project.   

Paul Ryan: Ryan had one of the longest-resumes in comics before coming to CrossGen.  He had co-created DP7 as part of Marvel’s New Universe and paired with Tom DeFalco on that company’s flagship title, Fantastic Four.  Ryan first worked for CrossGen as a freelance artist doing single issue fill-ins.  However, he was eventually offered the job of taking over as the regular penciler on Crux after Steve Epting started work on El Cazador.  Ryan has been working on The Phantom newspaper comic strip since 2005.   

Sergio Cariello: He’s the Ted McGinley of CrossGen comics (from the pop culture book, Jumping the Shark).  Sergio Cariello worked on the final issues of Crux, Scion and Sojourn as each of those titles came to an end.  Cariello actually had a productive career in comics before coming to CrossGen, working on Daredevil, Deathstroke and Azrael among other titles.  He’s kept active since the company folded as well with his most recent work appearing in Dynamite’s The Lone Ranger series.   

Greg Land: Greg Land came to CrossGen off of two very successful runs on DC’s Batman family of titles, Birds of Prey and Nightwing.  At CrossGen, he was assigned to the traditional fantasy epic, Sojourn, with writer Ron Marz.  His gorgeous art quickly won Land (and CrossGen) popular acclaim though his increasing use of photo references also won him critical scorn.  Undeterred, Land landed at Marvel where he provided numerous covers as well as the interior art for titles such as Phoenix: Endsong.  He is currently one of the regular artists on Uncanny X-Men.  

Butch Guice: Guice had been working in comics for about 15 years before coming to CrossGen.  He was most famous for being one of the Superman artists during “The Death of Superman” storyline and had most recently worked on DC’s Birds of Prey.  At CrossGen, he was the regular penciler on the mystery title, Ruse.  Guice seemed to take some time re-establishing himself after CrossGen.  He worked for the French company Humanoids and put in a short run on Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis.  More recently, he worked on Marvel’s Ultimate Origins and Captain America Reborn.      

George Perez: One of the biggest names in the history of comics, the signing of George Perez was one of CrossGen’s greatest coups.  Perez had worked on almost every superhero for the Big Two companies of Marvel and DC: Fantastic Four, Avengers, Justice League of America, New Teen Titans, Crisis on Infinite Earths, Wonder Woman, Batman, Superman, Incredible Hulk and Avengers again.  CrossGen first assigned Perez to their anthology title, CrossGen Chronicles, so that he could play in every one of their worlds.  After a break to work on JLA/Avengers, Perez returned to CrossGen with Solus.  Perez has continued to be one of the masters of comics since CrossGen closed down, working on Infinite Crisis and Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds.  He is reportedly finishing work on the oft-delayed Titans graphic novel “Games.”   

That covers another third including some of the biggest names to come to and come out of CrossGen comics.  Come back one more week for the final installment of “Where Are They Now?—CrossGen.”  

Where Are They Now: CrossGen

In the year 2000, a new comic book company entered the scene.  They would eschew the superhero fare that was typical of most comic books and concentrate on underrepresented genres such as science-fiction and fantasy.  They would borrow corporate techniques, developing an in-house art studio and attracting veteran comic book creators with benefits and health plans.  They garnered a very loyal audience of fans and grew quickly- briefly passing Dark Horse and Image as the third largest publisher.  And then it all fell apart.  Their expenses mounted too quickly and they fell behind on payments to creators and other companies.  This led to public spats with freelance artists such as Robin Riggs and their printer, Quebecor.  The company slashed its titles, but even the leaner line couldn’t survive.  They filed for bankruptcy in 2003 and closed up shop soon after.  That company was CrossGen comics. 

 

During their brief heyday, CrossGen was also notorious for getting into public feuds. Marvel-publisher-at-the-time Bill Jemas made multiple disparaging comments about the little-company-that-could and even insulted the talent of their creators as not being good enough to work at Marvel.  Even Marvel writer Mark Millar got into the act, publicly criticizing CrossGen for not working enough with freelance creators.  Yet despite the insults lobbied at both the company and its creators, when CrossGen finally folded, most of their talent found work at other companies, including Marvel.  That’s not entirely surprising as many of the creators were comic book veterans with well-established careers before CrossGen.  Yet many of the creators left CrossGen with higher profiles and moved on to major projects.  Of course, working at CrossGen wasn’t a boon to every career.  A few prominent names failed to re-surface in prominent roles after the company collapsed. 

 

Barbara Kesel:  Best-known as a writer for her work on DC’s Hawk and Dove with Rob Liefeld, Kesel was the first writer hired by CrossGen.  She worked on one of their most-lauded titles, Meridian starring the adolescent Sephie, and one of their most-lambasted, The First.  Kesel was one of the few creators to go down with the CrossGen ship.  She is now part of a comic book packaging company called The Pack with former DC editor Brian Augustyn.

 

Ron Marz:  Ron was the writer of Silver Surfer, X-O Manowar and the controversial Green Lantern story that turned Hal Jordan evil and replaced him with Kyle Rayner.  Despite all of that experience on galactic superheroes, Marz found his niche at CrossGen working on fantasy titles such as Mystic, Scion and Sojourn.  He is now the top creative force for Top Cow, writing Witchblade and Magdalena.

 

Joshua Middleton: Josh was one of the first young creators discovered by CrossGen.  He had a brief run as the first artist on Meridian.  He re-surfaced at Marvel as the artist on X-Men Unlimited and NYX.  Recently, Middleton specialized as a cover artist.  However, he just completed his run as the cover artist for Supergirl, which he claimed on his blog is his last mainstream work for a while.

 

Steve McNiven: A school teacher in Toronto before being accepted into CrossGen’s associate artist program, McNiven became the second regular penciller on Meridian.  He found a new home at Marvel, working on Ultimate titles and New Avengers before working on the biggest story of the decade, Civil War.  Since then, McNiven has re-teamed with Civil War writer Mark Millar on the recently concluded Wolverine story “Old Man Logan” and the upcoming Marvel Icon comic Nemesis.    

 

Brandon Peterson: Peterson was a bench player at the X-office, filling in for other artists and pitching in on mini-series such as the second Astonishing X-Men, before coming to CrossGen.  For CrossGen, he launched Mystic, became the company’s art director and created Chimera.  He went back to Marvel and worked on titles such as Ultimate X-Men.  More recently, he’s contributed covers to the X-Men’s Divided We Stand, War of Kings and Deathlok. 

 

Fabrizio Fiorentino: One of several Italian artists hired by CrossGen, Fiorentino became the second regular penciler on Mystic and the second regular penciler on the company’s version of Lady Death.  He’s kept active in the US market, drawing Doc Samson for Marvel and Countdown to Adventure for DC.  His latest job is working on DC’s Titans: Villains for Hire special.

 

Aaron Lopresti: Lopresti made his debut for Malibu’s Ultraverse line when he worked on Steve Gerber’s Sludge.  However, he was still relatively unknown in the comics field when he was hired by CrossGen and made the third regular penciler on Mystic.  Lopresti went from CrossGen to Marvel, where he was the regular penciler on a new Excalibur series from Chris Claremont.  He then went from Marvel to DC where he was the regular penciler on Gail Simone’s Wonder Woman for a time.  He is currently working on Justice League: Generations Lost.

 

Jimmy Cheung: Jimmy had worked at Marvel’s X-office before coming to CrossGen, launching a Maverick ongoing series and contributing a vastly underrated run on X-Force.  At CrossGen, he was the other half of the long-running Scion team with writer Ron Marz.  He also contributed a few issues of Lady Death in the company’s waning days.  Since then, he’s been a major presence at Marvel Comics.  He was the co-creator of Young Avengers with writer Allen Heinberg, and contributed covers to both Avengers: Initiative and Secret Warriors.  A new Young Avengers story, Avengers: Children’s Crusade, by Heinberg and Cheung is scheduled to debut this summer.

 

Luke Ross: Ross was associated with CrossGen for only a short period of time.  He did some fill-in work on Sojourn and some of the final issues of Scion.  Before that, he had done work with Innovation, Malibu and Valiant in the US and other companies in his native Brazil (his real name is Luciano Quieroz).  Since then, he has become the highly-acclaimed artist of DC’s Jonah Hex. 

 

Ben and Ray Lai: The Lai brothers were some of CrossGen’s young discoveries.  They were the original artist team on Sigil.  However, their tenure with the company didn’t last very long.  They showed up again at Marvel in 2003 as the artists on Dan Jurgens’ Thor.  Despite the occasional issue or pin-up after that, the Lai brothers do not appear to be currently active in comics. 

 

Scot Eaton: Scot took over for the Lai brothers as the regular artist on Sigil and became the longest-serving artist on that title.  However, Eaton wasn’t new to comics when he came to CrossGen having previously worked on titles such as Marvel’s Silver Surfer.  After CrossGen, Eaton went back to Marvel.  This time around, he was handed bigger properties, following the Lai brothers again by working on Thor with Dan Jurgens and contributing art to the X-Men’s Messiah CompleX crossover.  Currently, he’s working on the Black Panther mini-series, DoomWar. 

 

Dale Eaglesham: The third of the Sigil artists, Eaglesham came to CrossGen after approximately 15 years in the comic book business.  Some of his earlier work includes issues of Eternal Warrior for Valiant and Conan the King.  Dale’s career has been pretty steady since his CrossGen days.  He was the artist on Villains United for DC and on the re-launch of Justice Society of America.  Most recently, Eaglesham signed an exclusive contract with Marvel and was assigned to the Fantastic Four.

 

That’s a look at a dozen former CrossGen creators, which is by no means an exhaustive list.  Some of the artists are currently working on Justice League: Generation Lost, Titans: Villains for Hire, Avengers: Children’s Crusade, DoomWar, Fantastic Four and Nemesis.  And an original CrossGen writer is currently the top scribe at Top Cow.