Punisher Epic Collection: The Punisher Strikes

Gerry Conway wrote Daredevil, Incredible Hulk, Iron Man and others. He was instrumental in Marvel’s 1970s horror boom with work on Man-Thing, Tomb of Dracula and Werewolf by Night. His years on Amazing Spider-Man yielded such historic highlights as the groundbreaking death of Gwen Stacy and the debut of the Punisher. He also wrote DC’s Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and Legion of Super-Heroes. For TV, he has written and produced episodes of Diagnosis: Murder, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Huntress and Matlock.

An award-winning writer since 1973, Marv Wolfman succeeded mentor Roy Thomas as Marvel’s editor in chief. Well-remembered for his Tomb of Dracula scripts, he also enjoyed runs on Dr. Strange, Fantastic Four and Nova, among other titles. New Teen Titans, his 1980s collaboration with George Pérez, became DC Comics’ biggest hit in years. Wolfman and Pérez literally rewrote DC history with Crisis on Infinite Earths. He subsequently penned episodes for such animated TV series as G.I. Joe, Transformers and others.

Multiple Eisner Award-winner Frank Miller broke into the comics business during the late 1970s, landing a choice assignment on the series Daredevil. His work quickly made the title one of Marvel’s best-selling series, as well as establishing Miller as a fan-favorite superstar. During his tenure on Daredevil, he introduced the assassin Elektra, who became a major Marvel character in her own right. After completing his initial run, Miller returned to Daredevil as writer of the acclaimed “Born Again” run with artist David Mazzucchelli; he then collaborated with John Romita Jr. for the Daredevil: Man Without Fear limited series. Miller has also had monumental success with his work on other iconic characters. In 1986, he made a splash at DC with the wildly popular and hugely influential Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, which told the tale of an older Batman still fighting crime decades after his prime. The following year, Miller reteamed with David Mazzucchelli for Batman: Year One, putting a modern spin on Batman’s classic origin story. Miller writes All Star Batman & Robin with artist Jim Lee, continuing to put his distinctive mark on the Dark Knight. Miller has parlayed his talents as a comic-book creator to major success in Hollywood. In 2005, Miller collaborated with Robert Rodriquez to co-direct Sin City, a film that was widely praised by both fans and critics. Two years later, Miller’s 300 met with similar success, breaking multiple box-office records. Miller wrote and directed The Spirit, based on Will Eisner’s classic hero.

Bill Mantlo began his Marvel career on Deadly Hands of Kung Fu, in which he introduced White Tiger, one of the industry’s earliest Hispanic super heroes. Eventually writing stories for almost every Marvel title, he did some of his most fondly remembered work on Incredible Hulk and Spectacular Spider-Man. He also created Rocket Raccoon, launched Cloak & Dagger in a pair of miniseries and guided Alpha Flight through some of its most harrowing ordeals. Mantlo excelled at integrating licensed properties into the Marvel Universe, as demonstrated by Micronauts and Rom, both of which he wrote from start to finish. At DC, he wrote the Invasion miniseries for one of the company’s biggest crossover events.

As both writer and artist, Archie Goodwin (d. 1998) got his start in comic strips and cartoons before moving to Warren Publishing’s Vampirella — and from there to Marvel, where he eventually succeeded Gerry Conway as editor in chief. He has been credited with saving Marvel from financial ruin, with Roy Thomas, by securing adaptation rights to the legendary Star Wars franchise, perceiving its potential long before later merchandisers. He also wrote comic-book adaptations of Alien, Blade Runner and other hit films. He created both Marvel’s Graphic Novel line and its Epic Comics imprint — where, as editor, he occasionally appeared in caricature as alien, elf or other. He also edited early English translations of the Akira series and the works of Moebius. At DC Comics, he guided the destinies of Batman and Starman; one of his most memorable bodies of work was his collaboration with Walter Simonson on the “Manhunter” backup feature in Detective Comics, which won five Shazam Awards.

In 1976, Ross Andru (1927-1993) made comic-book history by penciling the first large-scale intercompany crossover, Superman vs. the Amazing Spider-Man, having spent years illustrating both characters in various titles. He also made Marvel history in Marvel Feature, drawing the Defenders’ first appearance. At DC, he spent nine years collaborating with Bob Kanigher on Wonder Woman. With Marv Wolfman and Mike Esposito, he co-created Vigilante (Adrian Chase).

Keith Pollard drew simultaneous runs on three of Marvel’s longest-running titles: Amazing Spider-Man, Fantastic Four and Thor, including Roy Thomas and Mark Gruenwald’s “Eternals Saga.” During the 1990s, he singlehandedly penciled hundreds of characters for the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe: Master Edition.

Multiple Eisner Award-winner Frank Miller broke into the comics business during the late 1970s, landing a choice assignment on the series Daredevil. His work quickly made the title one of Marvel’s best-selling series, as well as establishing Miller as a fan-favorite superstar. During his tenure on Daredevil, he introduced the assassin Elektra, who became a major Marvel character in her own right. After completing his initial run, Miller returned to Daredevil as writer of the acclaimed “Born Again” run with artist David Mazzucchelli; he then collaborated with John Romita Jr. for the Daredevil: Man Without Fear limited series. Miller has also had monumental success with his work on other iconic characters. In 1986, he made a splash at DC with the wildly popular and hugely influential Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, which told the tale of an older Batman still fighting crime decades after his prime. The following year, Miller reteamed with David Mazzucchelli for Batman: Year One, putting a modern spin on Batman’s classic origin story. Miller writes All Star Batman & Robin with artist Jim Lee, continuing to put his distinctive mark on the Dark Knight. Miller has parlayed his talents as a comic-book creator to major success in Hollywood. In 2005, Miller collaborated with Robert Rodriquez to co-direct Sin City, a film that was widely praised by both fans and critics. Two years later, Miller’s 300 met with similar success, breaking multiple box-office records. Miller wrote and directed The Spirit, based on Will Eisner’s classic hero.

Frank Springer (1929-2009) provided artwork for multiple Dell Comics series before joining the Marvel Bullpen. He illustrated several stories for the black-and-white magazines of the 1970s, and then moved from title to title to pencil Avengers, Captain America, Spider-Woman and others. He later worked on Marvel tie-in properties Conan the Barbarian, G.I. Joe and Transformers. At DC, he co-created the Secret Six in House of Mystery, later returning to the concept in Action Comics Weekly. Springer also drew several comic strips, including Adventures of Hedley Kase, Rex Morgan MD, The Virtue of Hedley Kase and Marvel’s own Incredible Hulk.

Al Milgrom, A.K.A. “Editori-Al,” is renowned as writer, editor, penciler and inker — and held most of those positions on Spectacular Spider-Man. He also contributed to SSM’s sibling Amazing Spider-Man. He penciled West Coast Avengers for four years and inked X-Factor for eight. His artwork has also appeared in Avengers, Captain America, Thor and most X-titles, including the classic Kitty Pryde and Wolverine. As editor, he oversaw Marvel’s Epic imprint and the sixty-issue run of Marvel Fanfare, where his satirical self-portraits made his face as recognizable as any super hero’s mask. At DC, he co-created Firestorm the Nuclear Man with Gerry Conway.

Artist Greg LaRocque is best known for his DC Comics work on titles including Legion of Super-Heroes and Flash. At Marvel, he helped bring the long-running Marvel Team-Up to a close and launched the replacement series Web of Spider-Man. His other credits include Avengers and Power Man and Iron Fist.