Ed Brubaker (born November 17, 1966) is an
Eisner AwardThe Will Eisner Comic Industry Award, commonly shortened to the Eisner Award, is a prize given for creative achievement in American comic books. It is named in honor of the pioneering writer and artist Will Eisner, who was a regular participant in the award ceremony until his death in 2005, and...
-winning
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
cartoonistA cartoonist is a person who specializes in drawing cartoons. Traditionally much of this work was, and still is, humorous, and is intended primarily for entertainment purposes...
and
writerA writer is anyone who creates a written work, though the word usually designates those who write creatively or professionally, as well as those who have written in many different forms.-Profession:...
. He was born at the
National Naval Medical CenterThe National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, United States, also known as the Bethesda Naval Hospital, is considered the flagship of the United States Navy's system of medical centers...
,
BethesdaBethesda is a census designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, USA, just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House , which in turn took its name from Jerusalem's Pool of Bethesda...
,
MarylandMaryland is a state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia to the south and west, Pennsylvania to the north, and Delaware to the east. It is comparable in size to the European country of Belgium. According to the U.S...
.
Brubaker is best known for his work as a
comic bookA comic book is a magazine made up of narrative artwork, often accompanied by dialog and often including brief descriptive prose...
writer on such titles as
BatmanThe Batman, originally referred to as the Bat-Man, is a fictional character, a comic book superhero co-created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger , appearing in publications by DC Comics...
,
DaredevilDaredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City, Matt Murdock is...
,
Captain AmericaCaptain America is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...
,
Iron Fist,
CatwomanCatwoman is a fictional character associated with DC Comics' Batman franchise. The supervillainess was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, partially inspired by Kane's second cousin by marriage, Ruth Steel ....
,
Gotham CentralGotham Central is a police procedural comic book series that was published by DC Comics. It was written by Ed Brubaker and Greg Rucka, with pencils initially by Michael Lark....
,
Sleeper,
Uncanny X-MenUncanny X-Men, first published as simply The X-Men, is the flagship Marvel Comics comic book series for the X-Men franchise. Being the official canon, it features the adventures of the eponymous group of mutant superheroes. While hugely successful now, it took a number of years since the X-Men's...
, and
The Authority, and for helping to revive the
crime comicsCrime comics is a genre of American comic books and format of crime fiction. The genre was originally popular in the 1940s and 1950s and is marked by a moralistic editorial tone and graphic depictions of violence and criminal activity. Crime comics began in 1942 with the publication of Crime Does...
genre.
As of 2009, he lives in
Seattle, WashingtonSeattle is located in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Situated in the western part of Washington State on an isthmus between Puget Sound and Lake Washington, about south of the Canada – United States border, it is named after Chief Sealth, of the Duwamish and Suquamish tribes...
.
Alternative and independent comics work
Brubaker’s first work in comics was as a cartoonist, writing and drawing
Pajama Chronicles for Blackthorne Comics,
Purgatory U.S.A. for
Slave Labor GraphicsSlave Labor Graphics or commonly SLG, is an independent American comic book publisher, well-known for publishing darkly humorous, offbeat comics.-Company history:SLG was started in 1986 by Dan Vado, who is still the company's president and publisher....
, and the semi-autobiographical series
Lowlife for Slave Labor and later
Caliber ComicsCaliber Comics or Caliber Press was an American comic book publisher founded in 1989 by Gary Reed. Featuring primarily creator-owned comics, in the next decade Caliber published over 1300 comics and ranked as one of the America's leading independent publishers...
. At Caliber, he briefly edited the anthology series
Monkey Wrench.
In 1991, he began to contribute to the
Dark Horse ComicsDark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book publisher.Mike Richardson, the owner of several comic book shops in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area, began to publish in 1986 with an anthology series called Dark Horse Presents, investing profits from his stores into Dark...
anthology series
Dark Horse PresentsDark Horse Presents was the first comic book published by Dark Horse Comics in 1986 and was their flagship title until its September 2000 cancellation. Volume 2 however, began in July 2007.-Volume one:...
, a comic he would continue to contribute to intermittently throughout the decade. Among those contributions was the three part serial "An Accidental Death" (
Dark Horse Presents #65–67), a collaboration with artist
Eric ShanowerEric James Shanower is an American comics artist and writer, best known for his Oz novels and comics and the on-going retelling of the Trojan War as Age of Bronze.-Biography:...
, which garnered the two a 1993
Eisner AwardThe Will Eisner Comic Industry Award, commonly shortened to the Eisner Award, is a prize given for creative achievement in American comic books. It is named in honor of the pioneering writer and artist Will Eisner, who was a regular participant in the award ceremony until his death in 2005, and...
nomination.
In 1997, he began to publish his cartoonist work through the
small pressSmall press is a term often used to describe publishers with annual sales below a certain level. Commonly, in the United States, this is set at $50 million, after returns and discounts...
publisher
Alternative ComicsAlternative Comics is a U.S. independent graphic novel and comic book publisher, established 1993. Located in Gainesville, Florida, it is owned and operated by its founder, attorney Jeff Mason.-Overview:...
. In the one-off
At the Seams, a romantic triangle is explored through three stories which each depict a different participant’s point-of-view. The comic was a 1997 Ignatz Award nominee for Outstanding Graphic Novel or Collection. His other work for Alternative Comics, the humorous and experimental
Detour #1, was to be the first issue of a series, though only one issue was ever published.
Detour was nevertheless nominated for the "Best New Series" Eisner in 1997.
The Fall, a graphic novel that was written by Brubaker and illustrated by
BerlinBerlin is the title of a comic book series created by Jason Lutes and published by Black Eye Productions and then Drawn and Quarterly. Planned as a series of 24 magazines, it describes life in Berlin from 1928 to 1933, during the decline of the Weimar Republic.-Book One:The first eight issues were...
creator
Jason LutesJason Lutes is an American comics creator. His work is mainly historical fiction, but he also works in traditional fiction. His work includes the Berlin series and Jar of Fools, as well as The Fall , and many short pieces for anthologies and compilations.Lutes was born in New Jersey, but his...
was published by
Drawn and QuarterlyDrawn and Quarterly is a Canadian comic book publishing company, headed by publisher Chris Oliveros, and based in Montreal, Quebec. Its focus is on graphic novels and underground or alternative comics...
in 2001. This work had previously been anthologized in five parts in
Dark Horse Presents in 1998. The story involved a convenience store clerk who gets involved in a ten-year-old murder mystery after he uses a stolen credit card. In 2004
IDW PublishingIDW Publishing, also known as Idea + Design Works, LLC and IDW, is an American comic book company owned by IDT Corp.. The company was founded in 1999 and has been awarded the title "Publisher of the Year Under 5% Market Share" for the years 2004, 2005 and 2006 by Diamond Comic Distributors...
announced that Brubaker and artist
Sean PhillipsSean Phillips is a British comic book artist, inker, and penciller.He is best known in the American comic industry for his work on DC Comics' Sleeper, WildC.A.T.s, Batman and Hellblazer.-Biography:...
would collaborate on a
creator ownedCreator ownership is an arrangement in which the creator or creators of a work of fiction retain full ownership of the material, regardless of whether it is self-published or by a corporate publisher. In some fields of publishing, such as novels, creator ownership is a standard arrangement...
piratePiracy is a war-like act committed by private parties that engaged in acts of robbery and/or criminal violence at sea. The term can include acts committed in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the...
series titled
Black Sails for them. That series has not yet materialized and
The Fall is the last independent comic book work by Brubaker to date.
DC Comics
Predating Brubaker's Alternative Comics work by two years,
Vertigo Visions: PrezPrez: First Teen President was a four issue comic series by writer Joe Simon and artist Jerry Grandenetti, released by DC Comics in 1973 and 1974...
, Smells Like Teen President (1995) was Brubaker's first work for one of the two major American comic book publishers. Published by
DC ComicsDC Comics is one of the largest and most popular American comic book and related media companies, along with Marvel Comics. It is the publishing division of DC Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary company of Warner Bros. Entertainment...
’ "mature readers" imprint Vertigo, the comic was a broad
political satirePolitical satire is a significant part of satire that specializes in gaining entertainment from politics; it has also been used with subversive intent where political speech and dissent are forbidden by a regime, as a method of advancing political arguments where such arguments are expressly...
which revamped an obscure 1970s
Joe SimonJoseph H. Simon is a Jewish-American comic book writer, artist, editor, and publisher. Simon created or co-created many important characters in the 1930s-1940s Golden Age of Comic Books and served as the first editor of Timely Comics, the company that would evolve into Marvel Comics...
creation. Brubaker worked with his "An Accidental Death" collaborator, artist Eric Shanower, again on the comic.
Brubaker's next major work for Vertigo was the four issue
limited seriesA limited series is a series with a set number of installments. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is determined before production and it differs from a one shot in that it is composed of multiple issues....
Scene of the Crime (1999), which marked his first collaboration with both
Michael LarkMichael Lark is an American comics artist.Lark has provided pencils for DC Comics' Batman, Terminal City, Gotham Central and Legend of the Hawkman. Marvel Comics includes The Pulse and Captain America. As of February 2006, Lark is the regular penciller of Marvel's Daredevil.-Bibliography:-Marvel...
and Sean Phillips, two artists who would frequently work with the writer in later years. A
slackerThe term slacker is commonly used to refer to a person who avoids work , or an educated person who is viewed as an underachiever...
detective story set in San Francisco, the series was critically acclaimed and the first to gain Brubaker attention from Hollywood producers.
In late 2000, Brubaker signed a one-year exclusive contract with DC Comics. The contract was renewed in 2001 That same year the writer began to do his first mainstream super-hero work, on the series
BatmanThe Batman, originally referred to as the Bat-Man, is a fictional character, a comic book superhero co-created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger , appearing in publications by DC Comics...
. He would continue to work on various series starring the Batman character until late 2003.
Returning to Vertigo in 2000, Brubaker and artist
Warren PleeceWarren Pleece is a British comics artist. He is best known for his work at the DC Comics imprint Vertigo.-Biography:With his brother Gary Pleece, he wrote and drew four issues of a self published comics magazine called Velocity between 1987 and 1989...
produced the science fiction series
DeadendersDeadenders is an science fiction comic book series written by Ed Brubaker and published by DC Comics. It is set in a post-apocalyptic future in New Bedlam, USA and features a heavy Mod content among the characters. The cover work is by Philip Bond...
. The series lasted 16 issues before being canceled in 2001. Staying with Vertigo in 2001, Brubaker wrote the four issue
Sandman Presents: Dead Boy DetectivesThe Dead Boy Detectives are fictional characters that have appeared in comic books published by DC Comics' Vertigo imprint. They were created by writer Neil Gaiman and artists Matt Wagner and Malcolm Jones III in The Sandman #25 ....
, which was drawn by artist
Bryan TalbotBryan Talbot is a comic book artist and writer. He is best known as the creator of The Adventures of Luther Arkwright and its sequel Heart of Empire.-Biography:Talbot began his comics work in the underground comix scene of the late 1960s...
.
Also in 2001, Brubaker and artist
Darwyn CookeDarwyn Cooke is an Eisner Award-winning comic book writer, artist, cartoonist and animator, best known for his work on the comic books Catwoman, DC: The New Frontier and The Spirit.-Biography:...
teamed up to revamp the
CatwomanCatwoman is a fictional character associated with DC Comics' Batman franchise. The supervillainess was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, partially inspired by Kane's second cousin by marriage, Ruth Steel ....
character. They started with the four issue serial "Trail of the Catwoman" which ran in
Detective ComicsDetective Comics is an American comic book published monthly by DC Comics since 1937, best-known for introducing the iconic superhero Batman. It is, along with Action Comics, the book that launched with the debut of Superman, one of the medium's signature series, and the source of its company's name...
#759-762. In the serial, private detective
Slam BradleySamuel Emerson "Slam" Bradley is a fictional character that has appeared in various comic book series published by DC Comics. He is a private detective who exists in DC's main shared universe, known as the DC Universe...
attempts to investigate the death of Selina Kyle (AKA Catwoman). The story led into a new
Catwoman title in late 2001 by Brubaker and Cooke in which the character's
costumeThe term costume can refer to wardrobe and dress in general, or to the distinctive style of dress of a particular people, class, or period. Costume may also refer to the artistic arrangement of accessories in a picture, statue, poem, or play, appropriate to the time, place, or other circumstances...
, supporting cast and
modus operandiModus operandi is a Latin phrase, approximately translated as "method of operating". The plural is modi operandi...
were all redesigned and redeveloped. Brubaker stayed on the series, which was met with critical and fan acclaim, up until #37 (January 2004).
At the 2001
San Diego Comic ConventionComic-Con International: San Diego, commonly known as Comic-Con or the San Diego Comic-Con was founded as the Golden State Comic Book Convention and later the San Diego Comic Book Convention in 1970 by Shel Dorf and a group of San Diegans...
Brubaker and Marvel writer
Brian Michael BendisBrian Michael Bendis is an American comic book writer and erstwhile artist. He has won critical acclaim for his self-published, Image Comics and Marvel Comics work, and is one of the most successful writers working in mainstream comics, with his books selling consistently highly for nearly a...
discussed co-writing a story which would team up DC's Batman with Marvel's
DaredevilDaredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City, Matt Murdock is...
. The two writers were enthusiastic about their ideas, which included a fight between Batman and Marvel villain
BullseyeBullseye is a fictional character, a comic book supervillain in the Marvel Comics universe.A psychopathic assassin, Bullseye uses the opportunities afforded by his line of work to exercise his homicidal tendencies and to work out his own personal vendetta against Daredevil.While he possesses no...
as well as another between Catwoman and Elektra. DC editors Matt Idelson and Bob Schreck were also enthusiastic, but DC executive editor
Paul LevitzPaul Levitz is an American comic book writer, editor and executive. The president of DC Comics since 2002, he has worked for the company for over 35 years in a wide variety of roles...
objected to the project due to a prior disagreement with Marvel editor-in-chief
Joe QuesadaJoseph "Joe" Quesada is an American comic book editor, writer and artist. He is currently the editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics.-Writer and artist:...
. The aborted project became controversial when Bendis publicly spoke about Levitz's decision at the 2002 Wizard World Chicago comic convention. Bendis later apologized for his comments, saying that he regretted ever discussing the project in public.
In early 2003, Brubaker and writer
Greg RuckaGregory "Greg" Rucka is an American comic book writer and novelist. He is married to fellow comic writer Jennnifer Van Meter...
created and co-wrote the
Gotham CentralGotham Central is a police procedural comic book series that was published by DC Comics. It was written by Ed Brubaker and Greg Rucka, with pencils initially by Michael Lark....
series. Focusing on the activities of the
Gotham City Police DepartmentThe Gotham City Police Department is a fictional police department servicing Gotham City, as depicted in comic books published by DC Comics, in particular those tied into the Batman books.-History of GCPD:...
, the two writers either co-wrote storylines or wrote alternate arcs separately throughout the series, which featured artwork from Brubaker's
Scene of the Crime collaborator Michael Lark. The title was cancelled in 2006, shortly after Brubaker's last issue.
Wildstorm
In 2002 Brubaker did his first work for
WildstormWildStorm Productions, or simply WildStorm, publishes American comic books. Originally an independent company established by Jim Lee and further expanded upon in subsequent years by other creators, WildStorm became a publishing imprint of DC Comics in 1999...
, (another DC imprint), with the series
Point BlankPoint Blank was a five-issue comic book limited series written by Ed Brubaker with art by Colin Wilson. It was published by Wildstorm comics.It starred Grifter from the Wildcats investigating an attempted murder on his friend John Lynch.-Plot:...
which featured the artwork of British artist
Colin WilsonColin Henry Wilson , a prolific British writer, first came to prominence as a philosopher and novelist. Wilson has since written widely on true crime, mysticism, and other topics.-Biography:...
. The series took existing concepts from the Wildstorm universe, such as
GrifterGrifter is a fictional comic book character from Wildstorm Universe. He is best known as a member of Jim Lee's WildC.A.T.S.-Early youth:There are various accounts of Cole's early youth: in Gen 12 his father died while he was still young and Cole and his brother Max were raised by their mother and...
(the star of the series),
John LynchJohn Lynch is a fictional comic book character, published by Wildstorm. He is the head of Internal Operations. He has starred in Gen¹³, Team 7, Sleeper, and Wildcats.John Lynch is an homage to Nick Fury, the one-eyed head of Marvel Comics' S.H.I.E.L.D....
and
TaoTao is a fictional character in the Wildstorm universe.-History:The Tactical Augmented Organism was created by Optigen, a subsidiary of the Halo Corporation, on behalf of International Operations. As a child, he grew at an amazing rate...
and used them to set up his
Sleeper series which debuted later that year.
A collaboration between artist
Sean PhillipsSean Phillips is a British comic book artist, inker, and penciller.He is best known in the American comic industry for his work on DC Comics' Sleeper, WildC.A.T.s, Batman and Hellblazer.-Biography:...
and Brubaker,
Sleeper, featured a secret agent protagonist ("Holden Carver") who goes undercover in a super villain’s powerful organisation, only to have the only contact he has in law enforcement fall in to a coma. With the authorities believing him a dangerous criminal, Carver is caught between the two warring sides with unclear allegiances.
In December 2003, in a unique publicity stunt conceived to help promote the first trade paperback collection of
Sleeper, Brubaker organized an "arm-wrestling competition" at San Francisco's "Isotope - the comic book lounge" comic book shop. If participants were able to beat Brubaker at arm wrestling they were awarded free signed comic books. According to Brubaker, the writer wrestled 40-50 people and won most of the fights, losing only eight or nine times.
Although
Sleeper was a success with critics and fans on the Internet, the series underperformed commercially, and so it was canceled after its 12th issue, only to be relaunched in 2004 with the same creators as
Sleeper: Season Two.
Season Two also ended with its twelfth issue, the story apparently concluded.
Brubaker's other work for Wildstorm during this period was the third volume of
The Authority. Brubaker first tackled the characters with artist
Jim LeeJim Lee is a Korean-American comic book artist, creator and publisher. Lee is currently one of the most successful artists in American comics...
on the one issue special
Coup D’état: Sleeper which showed how a series of events led the Authority (a powerful team of super-humans) to take over the United States. Later that year and throughout 2005 Brubaker and artist
Dustin NguyenDustin Nguyen is a comic book artist who has worked for DC Comics and WildStorm since 2000. He has since worked on such titles as Jet with Dan Abnett, Wildcats v3.0 with Joe Casey, Batman with Judd Winick, Manifest Eternity with Scott Lobdell, and the latest revamp of The Authority, The Authority:...
produced the 12 issue
The Authority: Revolution which explored the ramifications of the team's actions.
Marvel Comics
In late 2004 Brubaker, no longer exclusive to DC, began to work for their main competitor
Marvel ComicsMarvel Publishing, Inc., a company doing business as Marvel Comics, produces American comic books and related media. It forms a subsidiary of Marvel Entertainment, Inc....
. His first major work for the publisher was the fifth relaunch of the
Captain AmericaCaptain America is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...
series. Paired with artist
Steve EptingStephen "Steve" Epting is an American comic book artist and penciller. His eclectic list of influences has resulted in a distinctive style...
, Brubaker's
Captain America introduced new villains and resurrected the long dead character
BuckyBucky is the name of several fictional characters, masked superheroes in the Marvel Comics universe. The original, James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby as a sidekick character in Captain America Comics #1 , published by Marvel's 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics...
as "The Winter Soldier". The series was a sales and critical success from its first issue.
In February 2005 Brubaker signed his first exclusive contract with Marvel, the deal allowing the writer to finish out his prior commitments for DC on
Gotham Central and
Sleeper. In an interview with
NewsaramaNewsarama is an American website that publishes news, interviews and essays about the American comic book industry. In addition, the site hosts an Internet forum for comic-book fans.-History:...
Brubaker attributed his shift of employer to the publishers' good treatment of him, the quality and high profile of the work Marvel was offering him and his lack of involvement in DC's "big plans" (DC's large intercompany crossover
Infinite CrisisInfinite Crisis is a seven-issue limited series of comic books written by Geoff Johns and illustrated by Phil Jimenez, George Pérez, Ivan Reis, and Jerry Ordway. The series was published by DC Comics, beginning in October of 2005...
was in the final planning stages at the time). Brubaker's Marvel exclusive contract was extended and expanded in April 2006.
In early 2006 Brubaker wrote two limited series for Marvel; with artist Pablo Raimondi, he wrote
Books of Doom, which retold and expanded on the origin of
Doctor DoomVictor von Doom is a fictional character that appears in publications published by Marvel Comics. Created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in Fantastic Four #5 ....
; and with artist
Trevor HairsineTrevor Hairsine is a British comics artist, whose detailed style has been compared with that of Bryan Hitch.In August 2005 Marvel Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada named him as one of Marvel Comics's "Young Guns", a group of artists who have the qualities that make "a future superstar...
, he wrote
X-Men: Deadly GenesisX-Men: Deadly Genesis is a comic book limited series published by Marvel Comics in late 2005 and early 2006. The series was written by Ed Brubaker with interior art by Trevor Hairsine and covers by Marc Silvestri. Starring the X-Men, this series celebrates the 30th anniversary of Giant-Size X-Men #1...
, ret-conning information about the origins of the "
All New, All-Different X-MenX-Men is a superhero team in the . They were created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, and first appeared in The X-Men #1 . Under a cloud of increasing anti-mutant sentiment, Professor Xavier creates a haven at his Westchester mansion to train young mutants to use their powers for the...
" who first debuted in 1975.
In addition, that year Brubaker started on
DaredevilDaredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City, Matt Murdock is...
, having already planned his run with Bendis. Once again teamed with artist Michael Lark, Brubaker followed Brian Michael Bendis' acclaimed stint on the title, exploring the ramifications of the character's imprisonment, which occurred at the close of Bendis' run.
He became the regular writer of
Uncanny X-MenUncanny X-Men, first published as simply The X-Men, is the flagship Marvel Comics comic book series for the X-Men franchise. Being the official canon, it features the adventures of the eponymous group of mutant superheroes. While hugely successful now, it took a number of years since the X-Men's...
, working with artist
Billy TanBilly Tan Mung Khoy, commonly known as Billy Tan, is a Malaysian comic book artist.-Biography:Billy Tan grew up in Malaysia and moved to the United States in 1989 to study business at the University of Kentucky. He began working as a penciler for Image Comics in the 1990s. Tan became the regular...
and
Clayton HenryClayton Henry is a comic book artist, known mostly for his work for Marvel Comics. His first known works were providing the art on Nine Rings Of Wu-Tang and Area 52, and has since worked on such series as Exiles, Alpha Flight, New X-Men :Hellions, X-Men: Apocalypse vs...
, in July 2006.
A new creator-owned crime comic with
Sean PhillipsSean Phillips is a British comic book artist, inker, and penciller.He is best known in the American comic industry for his work on DC Comics' Sleeper, WildC.A.T.s, Batman and Hellblazer.-Biography:...
,
CriminalCriminal is an ongoing American creator-owned crime comic book series by writer Ed Brubaker with artist Sean Phillips published by Marvel Comics' Icon imprint....
, has been published by Marvel's
Icon ComicsIcon Comics is an imprint of Marvel Comics for creator-owned titles. It was launched in 2004 with Michael Avon Oeming and Brian Michael Bendis' superhero/detective series Powers, and David Mack's Kabuki moving to the imprint, both from Image Comics. In June 2005 the imprint's third title, J...
imprint. It has generally received positive reviews. In 2007,
Criminal won the
Eisner AwardThe Will Eisner Comic Industry Award, commonly shortened to the Eisner Award, is a prize given for creative achievement in American comic books. It is named in honor of the pioneering writer and artist Will Eisner, who was a regular participant in the award ceremony until his death in 2005, and...
for Best New Series for its first arc, "Coward." He and Phillips are now working on a new Icon series called
IncognitoIncognito is a six-issue comic book limited series written by Ed Brubaker with art by Sean Phillips, It was published by the Icon Comics imprint of Marvel Comics.-Publication history:...
, which Brubaker says is "about a completely amoral guy with super-powers forced to pretend he's a normal law-abiding citizen, because he's in Witness Protection, and how that shapes what he becomes. It's also a brutal noir twist on the super-hero/super-villain genre that delves more into their roots in the pulps, and it's going to be pretty over-the-top and action-packed."
Brubaker, together with
Matt FractionMatt Fraction is an Eisner Award winning American comic book writer, known for his work for Marvel Comics as the writer for The Invincible Iron Man and Uncanny X-Men.-Career:...
, co-wrote the new Iron Fist ongoing series,
The Immortal Iron Fist, which started in November 2006 and quickly became one of Marvel's most popular books.
Recently, Brubaker has been pushed into the media spotlight for writing the
Captain AmericaCaptain America is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...
issue involving the death of Steve Rogers. Brubaker has taken credit for conceiving the idea. He also wrote the mini-series that saw his return:
Captain America: RebornCaptain America: Reborn is a five-issue monthly comic book limited series published by Marvel Comics between July and November 2009. Written by Ed Brubaker, and illustrated by Bryan Hitch with inking by Butch Guice, the series promises to reveal the "truth" regarding the death of original Captain...
. He will also be writing a eight issue limited series titles
The Marvels ProjectThe Marvels Project is a 2009 eight-issue comic book limited series written by Ed Brubaker with art by Steve Epting and published by Marvel Comics....
.
Angel of Death
In March 2009 Brubaker premiered his web series
Angel of DeathAngel of Death is a web series of eight to ten minute episodes created by Ed Brubaker. The series stars Zoë Bell as Eve, an assassin taking revenge on her former employers, and costars Lucy Lawless. Angel of Death was produced by White Rock Lake Production and distributed by Sony Pictures Television...
on
CrackleCrackle is country-limited multi-platform web television network and studio, administrated by Sony Pictures Entertainment and formerly known as Grouper...
.
Writing style
Brubaker first early comics work was primarily in the
crime fictionCrime fiction is the genre of fiction that deals with crimes, their detection, criminals and their motives. It is usually distinguished from mainstream fiction and other genres such as science fiction or historical fiction, but boundaries can be, and indeed are, blurred...
genre with works such as
Lowlife,
The Fall,
Sandman Presents: Dead Boy Detectives and
Scene of the Crime. His initial super-hero comics work tended to incorporate some aspects of the crime genre - examples of this include
Batman (detective stories),
Catwoman (whose star is a cat burglar) and
Sleeper (which featured a protagonist who goes undercover as a super-powered criminal).
This has continued with his work at Marvel Comics, such as
Daredevil (the first issues of his run are largely set in a prison) and
Criminal. However, he has also worked on more mainstream super-hero series for Marvel, such as
Captain America (which features elements of the
espionageEspionage or spying involves an individual obtaining information that is considered secret or confidential without the permission of the holder of the information. Espionage is inherently clandestine, as the legitimate holder of the information may change plans or take other countermeasures once it...
genre of fiction),
Iron Fist (pulp and kung fu) and
Uncanny X-Men.
When working on licensed characters with extensive established histories at both Marvel and DC, Brubaker has consistently changed aspects of those characters' back-stories. Examples of this include the return of
HollyHolly Robinson is a fictional character in the DC Comics universe. She was introduced in Batman #404 during Frank Miller's Batman: Year One story arc.Holly is a frequent ally and sidekick of Catwoman...
in
Catwoman, the return of
BuckyBucky is the name of several fictional characters, masked superheroes in the Marvel Comics universe. The original, James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby as a sidekick character in Captain America Comics #1 , published by Marvel's 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics...
in
Captain America, and the introduction of the character Vulcan in
X-Men: Deadly Genesis. Brubaker has defended himself against criticism of this aspect of his work by stating that the emergence of an unrevealed "secret from the past" is "one of the main tropes of all mystery and suspense fiction, as well as one of the oldest stories in the world - just look at
OedipusOedipus the King is an Athenian tragedy by Sophocles that was first performed c. 429 BC. It was the second of Sophocles's three Theban plays to be produced, but it comes first in the internal chronology, followed by Oedipus at Colonus and then Antigone...
, for example".
Nominations
- 1993 Eisner Award
The Will Eisner Comic Industry Award, commonly shortened to the Eisner Award, is a prize given for creative achievement in American comic books. It is named in honor of the pioneering writer and artist Will Eisner, who was a regular participant in the award ceremony until his death in 2005, and...
nominee - Best Writer-Artist Team ("An Accidental Death")
- 1997 Ignatz Award nominee - Outstanding Graphic Novel or Collection (At the Seams)
- 1999 Eisner Award
The Will Eisner Comic Industry Award, commonly shortened to the Eisner Award, is a prize given for creative achievement in American comic books. It is named in honor of the pioneering writer and artist Will Eisner, who was a regular participant in the award ceremony until his death in 2005, and...
nominee - Best Writer (Scene of the Crime) and Best Mini-Series (Scene of the Crime)
- 2007 Eisner Award
The Will Eisner Comic Industry Award, commonly shortened to the Eisner Award, is a prize given for creative achievement in American comic books. It is named in honor of the pioneering writer and artist Will Eisner, who was a regular participant in the award ceremony until his death in 2005, and...
nominee - Best Continuing Series (Daredevil with Michael Lark and Stefano Gaudiano, Captain America with Steve EptingStephen "Steve" Epting is an American comic book artist and penciller. His eclectic list of influences has resulted in a distinctive style...
)
Awards
- 2000 Prism Award ("Disguises" from Catwoman #17-19)
- 2004 GLAAD Media Awards
The GLAAD Media Awards were created in 1990 by the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation to "recognize and honor media for their fair, accurate and inclusive representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community and the issues that affect their lives."-Davidson/Valentini...
- Outstanding Comic Book (Catwoman by Ed Brubaker)
- 2006 Harvey Award
The Harvey Awards, named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman and coordinated by the publisher Fantagraphics are given for achievement in comic books. The Harveys were created as part of a successor to the Kirby Awards which were discontinued after 1987.The Harvey Awards are nominated by an open vote...
Winner - Best Writer (Captain America)
- 2007 Eisner Award - Best Writer (Daredevil, Captain America, Criminal), Best New Series (Criminal with Sean Phillips
Sean Phillips is a British comic book artist, inker, and penciller.He is best known in the American comic industry for his work on DC Comics' Sleeper, WildC.A.T.s, Batman and Hellblazer.-Biography:...
)
- 2007 Harvey Award
The Harvey Awards, named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman and coordinated by the publisher Fantagraphics are given for achievement in comic books. The Harveys were created as part of a successor to the Kirby Awards which were discontinued after 1987.The Harvey Awards are nominated by an open vote...
- Best Writer (Daredevil)
- 2008 Eisner Award - Best Writer (Captain America
Captain America is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...
, Criminal, DaredevilDaredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in the . The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of New York City, Matt Murdock is...
and Immortal Iron Fist)
DC Comics
- 9-11 - The World's Finest Comic Book Writers & Artists Tell Stories to Remember #2 ("Still Life"; DC Comics, 2002)
- The Authority: Revolution #1-12 (Wildstorm; December, 2004 - December, 2005)
- Coup D’état: Sleeper #1 (Wildstorm; April, 2004)
- Batman #582-586, 591-607 (DC Comics; October, 2000 - November, 2002)
- Batman: Gotham Knights (DC Comics; Batman: Black and White back-up story "I'll Be Watching," July 2003)
- Batman: Gotham Noir (DC Comics; March 2001)
- Batman: The Man Who Laughs
Batman: The Man Who Laughs is a one-shot prestige format comic book by Ed Brubaker and Doug Mahnke, released in February 2005, and intended as a sequel to Batman: Year One....
(DC Comics; February, 2005)
- Batman: Our Worlds At War #1 (DC Comics; August, 2001)
- Batman: Turning Points
Batman: Turning Points is a five-issue Batman limited series, exploring the turning points of the relationship between Batman and Commissioner James Gordon. Written by Greg Rucka, Ed Brubaker, and Chuck Dixon, with art by Steve Lieber, Dick Giordano, Bob Smith, Brent Anderson, Paul Pope, and Claude...
#2-3 (DC Comics; January, 2001)
- Catwoman #1-37 (DC Comics; January, 2002 - January, 2005)
- Catwoman Secret Files and Origins #1 (DC Comics; November, 2002)
- Detective Comics #758 (DC Comics; back-up story "History Lesson"; July, 2001)
- Detective Comics #759-762 (DC Comics; back-up story "Trail of the Catwoman part 1-4", August - November, 2001)
- Detective Comics #777-786 (DC Comics; February, 2003 - November, 2003)
- Deadenders #1-16 (Vertigo; March 2000- June 2001)
- Gangland #3 (Vertigo, DC Comics; "Small Time"; August, 1998)
- Gotham Central #1-5 (DC Comics; #1-2 with Greg Rucka
Gregory "Greg" Rucka is an American comic book writer and novelist. He is married to fellow comic writer Jennnifer Van Meter...
; February - May 2003)
- Gotham Central #11 (DC Comics; November, 2003)
- Gotham Central #12-15 (DC Comics; with Greg Rucka; December, 2003 - March, 2004)
- Gotham Central #16 (DC Comics; April, 2004)
- Gotham Central #19-22 (DC Comics; July - October, 2004)
- Gotham Central #26-27 (DC Comics; February, 2005)
- Gotham Central #33-36 (DC Comics; with Greg Rucka; September, 2003 - December, 2004)
- Hawkman #27 (DC Comics; June, 2004)
- Point Blank
Point Blank was a five-issue comic book limited series written by Ed Brubaker with art by Colin Wilson. It was published by Wildstorm comics.It starred Grifter from the Wildcats investigating an attempted murder on his friend John Lynch.-Plot:...
#1-5 (Wildstorm; October, 2002 - February, 2003)
- Robin #86 (DC Comics; March, 2001)
- Sandman Presents: Dead Boy Detectives #1-4 (Vertigo; August - November 2001)
- Scene of the Crime #1-4 (Vertigo; May - August, 1999)
- Sleeper #1-12 (Wildstorm; March, 2003 - March, 2004)
- Sleeper: Season Two #1-12 (Wildstorm; August, 2004 - July, 2005)
- Tom Strong #29, 30 (America's Best Comics; December, 2004 - January, 2005)
- Vertigo Visions: Prez, Smells Like Teen President (Vertigo, 1995)
- Vertigo: Winter's Edge #2 (Vertigo; "God and Sinners", January, 1999)
- Vertigo: Winter's Edge #3 (Vertigo; "The Morning After", January, 2000)
Marvel Comics
- Books of Doom #1-6 (Marvel Comics; January - June, 2006)
- Captain America (vol. 5) #1-50 (Marvel Comics; January, 2005 - May, 2009)
- Captain America (vol. 1) #600- (Marvel Comics; June 2009 - present)
- Captain America 65th Anniversary Special #1 (Marvel Comics; May, 2006)
- Criminal
Criminal is an ongoing American creator-owned crime comic book series by writer Ed Brubaker with artist Sean Phillips published by Marvel Comics' Icon imprint....
#1-10 (Icon Comics; October, 2006 - November 2007)
- Criminal (vol. 2) #1-7 (Icon Comics; February 2008 - October 2008)
- Criminal: The Sinners #1- (Icon Comics; October 2009 - )
- Daredevil (vol. 2) #82-119, 500 (Marvel Comics; April, 2006 - July, 2009)
- Incognito
Incognito is a six-issue comic book limited series written by Ed Brubaker with art by Sean Phillips, It was published by the Icon Comics imprint of Marvel Comics.-Publication history:...
#1-6 (Icon Comics; December, 2008 - September, 2009)
- The Immortal Iron Fist (vol. 2) #1-14 and Annual #1 (Marvel Comics; November, 2006 - June, 2008)
- Uncanny X-Men #475-503 (Marvel Comics; September, 2006 - July 2008)
- What if Aunt May Had Died instead of Uncle Ben? #1 (Marvel Comics; February, 2005)
- Winter Soldier: Winter Kills #1 (Marvel Comics; December, 2006)
- X-Men: Deadly Genesis #1-6 (Marvel Comics; January - June, 2006)
Other
- Real Stuff #9 (Fantagraphics, 1992)
- At the Seams (Alternative Press, 1997)
- Dark Horse Presents #50, (Dark Horse Comics; "Burning Man", April, 1991)
- Dark Horse Presents #65-67 (Dark Horse Comics; "An Accidental Death", Sept - November, 1992)
- Dark Horse Presents #96-98 (Dark Horse Comics; "Here And Now", April - June 1995)
- Dark Horse Presents #100 (Dark Horse Comics; "Bird Dog", August, 1995)
- Dark Horse Presents #106 (Dark Horse Comics; "Godzilla's Day", February, 1996)
- Detour #1 (Alternative Comics; 1997)
- The Fall (Drawn & Quarterly; 2001)
- Lowlife
Lowlife is a semi-autobiographical comic book series written and drawn by Ed Brubaker, published by Slave Labor Graphics and later Caliber Comics...
#1-4 (Caliber & Black Eye Books)
- SPX '97 Comic #1 (Small Press Expo; "Mysteries?", September, 1997)
Collected editions
- A Complete Lowlife
Lowlife is a semi-autobiographical comic book series written and drawn by Ed Brubaker, published by Slave Labor Graphics and later Caliber Comics...
(Top ShelfTop Shelf Productions is an American publishing company started in 1997, owned and operated by Chris Staros and Brett Warnock. The company is based in Marietta, Georgia....
, ISBN 1-891830-20-1)
- Portable lowlife (excerpts from Lowlife #1-4, Aeon, ISBN B0006P51BW)
- An Accidental Death (collects "An Accidental Death" from Dark Horse Presents #65-67, Fantagraphics 1993)
- The Authority: Revolution Book One (collects The Authority: Revolution #1-6, Wildstorm, ISBN 1-4012-0623-9)
- The Authority: Revolution Book Two (collects The Authority: Revolution #7-12, Wildstorm, ISBN 1-4012-0947-5)
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Vol. 1 (collects Captain America (vol. 5) #1-7, Marvel Comics, ISBN 0-7851-1651-6)
- Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Vol. 2 (collects Captain America (vol. 5) #8-9 & 11-14, Marvel Comics, ISBN 0-7851-1921-3)
- Captain America: Red Menace, Vol. 1 (collects Captain America (vol. 5) #15-17 and Captain America 65th Anniversary Special, Marvel Comics, ISBN 0-7851-2321-0)
- Captain America: Red Menace, Vol. 2 (collects Captain America (vol. 5) #18-21, Marvel Comics, ISBN 0-7851-2225-7)
- Captain America: Civil War (collects Captain America (vol. 5) #22-24 and Winter Soldier: Winter Kills, Marvel Comics, ISBN 0-7851-2798-4)
- Captain America: The Death of Captain America, Vol. 1 (collects Captain America (vol. 5) #25-30, Marvel Comics, ISBN 0-7851-2849-2)
- Captain America: The Death of Captain America, Vol. 2, The Burden of Dreams (collects Captain America (vol. 5) #31-36, Marvel Comics, ISBN 0-7851-2424-5)
- Captain America by Ed Brubaker Omnibus Vol. 1 (collects Captain America (vol. 5) #1-25, Captain America 65th Anniversary Special and Winter Soldier: Winter Kills; Marvel; ISBN 0-7851-2866-2)
- Catwoman: The Dark End of the Street (collects "Trail of the Catwoman" from Detective Comics #759-762 and Catwoman (vol. 4) #1-4, DC Comics, ISBN 1-56389-908-6)
- Catwoman: Crooked Little Town (collects Catwoman (vol. 4) #5-10 and Catwoman Secret Files and Origins #1, DC Comics, ISBN 1-4012-0008-7)
- Catwoman: Relentless (collects Catwoman (vol. 4) #12-19,DC Comics, ISBN 1-4012-0218-7)
- Catwoman: Wild Ride (collects Catwoman (vol. 4) #20-24, DC Comics, ISBN 1-4012-0436-8)
- Daredevil: The Devil Inside and Out, Vol. 1 (collects Daredevil (vol. 2) #82-87, Marvel Comics, ISBN 0-7851-1988-3)
- Daredevil: The Devil Inside and Out, Vol. 2 (collects Daredevil (vol. 2) #88-93, Marvel Comics, ISBN 0-7851-2241-8)
- Daredevil: Hell to Pay, Vol. 1 (collects Daredevil (vol. 2) #94-99, Marvel Comics, ISBN 0-7851-2484-9)
- Daredevil: Hell to Pay, Vol. 2 (collects Daredevil (vol. 2) #100-105, Annual #1, Marvel Comics, ISBN 0-7851-2815-1)
- Daredevil: Cruel and Unusual (collects Daredevil (vol. 2) #106-110, Marvel Comics, ISBN 0-7851-2889-2)
- Deadenders: Stealing the Sun (collects Deadenders #1-4, Vertigo, ISBN 1-56389-706-7)
- Gotham Central: In the Line of Duty (collects Gotham Central #1-6, DC Comics, ISBN 1-4012-0199-7)
- Scene of the Crime: A Little Piece of Goodnight (collects Scene of the Crime #1-4, Vertigo, ISBN 1-56389-670-2)
- Point Blank (collects Point Blank #1-5, Wildstorm, ISBN 1-4012-0116-4)
- Sleeper: Out in the Cold (collects Sleeper #1-6, Wildstorm, ISBN 1-4012-0115-6)
- Sleeper: All False Moves (collects Sleeper #7-12, Wildstorm, ISBN 1-4012-0288-8)
- Sleeper: A Crooked Line (collects Sleeper: Season Two #1-6, 2005, Wildstorm, ISBN 1-4012-0618-2)
- Sleeper: The Long Way Home (collects Sleeper: Season Two #7-12, Wildstorm, ISBN 1-4012-0627-1)
- Criminal Vol. 1: Coward (collects Criminal #1-5, Marvel Icon, ISBN 1-8457-6610-5)
- Criminal Vol. 2: Lawless (collects Criminal #6-10, Marvel Icon, ISBN 978-0785128168)
- Criminal Vol. 3: The Dead and the Dying (collects Criminal (vol. 2) #1-3, Marvel Icon, ISBN 0785132279)
External links
- Complete work history at ComicBookRealm.com
- Ed Brubaker presented at Lambiek
Lambiek is a comic book store and art gallery in Amsterdam, founded in 1968 by Kees Kousemaker.It also hosts exhibitions of art by comic creators like Robert Crumb, Daniel Clowes, Erik Kriek, André Franquin, Tanino Liberatore and Chris Ware.-Overview:...
's Comiclopedia
Interviews