Finding a second wind in the Kirkman era
The Wildstorm imprint was also home to Stormwatch, The Authority,
Gen 13 (Caitlin Fairchild, Sarah Rainmaker, Freefall, Grunge, and Burnout were the poster gals/boys of the 1990s), and, of course, Team 7, which served as the nexus within the original Wildstorm universe.
Team 7 members were the “founding fathers” that genetically proliferated titles such as the
WildC.A.T.s , Wetworks, Gen 13, D.V.8 , Backlash, Grifter, and Deathblow.
Youngblood
Liefeld has explained that the idea for Youn gblood ’s team of young heroes was based on an idea he had for DC’s Teen Titan s, which was never used. Youn gblood #1 was Image’s first ever publication, but although it did well initially, it was critically panned.
Liefeld was the man behind Image’s implosion in 1996, when he was accused of using his position as CEO to support Maximum Press, a company that he set up outside of Image, and poaching talent from the other Image partners. Liefeld resigned from Image in September 1996, giving up his share of the company.
When Liefeld left Image in 1996, he took Youn gblood with him.
The Walking Dead
Most people may know The Walkin g Dead as the hit TV series, but even before Rick Grimes and his gang of motley zombie-apocalypse survivors hit the small screen, Robert Kirkman’s comic book was already making waves in the comics industry.
According to Stephenson in that The Washin gton Postinterview, it was The Walkin g Dead that opened the door for some of Image’s most popular series, as it showed comic book creators just how big something they created could become.
The success of the title, as well as In vin cible, convinced the company to make Kirkman a partner in 2008 , its first since the founding of the company.
Invincible
If you look at the logo on Invincible’s costume carefully, you’ll notice that it is actually the Image Comics logo, designed by writer Hank Kanalz when the company was formed in 1992.
It’s apt that a high-flying young superhero should bear the hopes of the company on his chest, especially since it was created by Kirkman, the man who helped give Image its second wind.
The In vin cible title, about young Mark Grayson who discovers that his father is actually a superhero, and that he has inherited those powers as well, has been running for 15 years now, and is due to end in late 2017 with issue #144.
Saga
Imagine a comic book that combines the space-faring adventure of Star Wars, the political intrigue of Gam e OfThron es, the epic fantasy of The Lord OfThe Rin gs, and the romance of Rom eo & Juliet, and you’ve got Saga.
Written by Brian K. Vaughan and beautifully illustrated by Fiona Staples, this epic space opera has won almost every award imaginable, and despite running for five years now, still manages to retain a sense of wonderment and originality with every single issue.
Wanted
Before Kick-Ass and Kin gsm an , Mark Millar got his first shot at over-the-top storytelling via Wanted, a six-issue limited series dubbed “The Watchmen for super villains”, published via Top Cow in 2003.
The success of the title led Millar to continue working on creator-owned comics that included Kick-Ass, The SecretService (better known as Kin gsm an ), and a few others that were published by Image, including Jupiter’s Circle, Ju piter’s Legacy, and H uck.
Witchblade
If the Image Universe had a queen, she would be Sara Pezzini, NYPD homicide detective who finds a mystical gauntlet called the Witchblade, which gives her special powers and enables her to fight evil supernatural forces. Co-created by Marc Silvestri under his Top Cow studio, the Witchblade was so popular in the mid 1990s that she even got her own anime and TV series.
Also, check out The Darkn ess ,featuring Mafia hit man Jackie Estacado, Top Cow’s answer to Marvel’s Punisher and Venom, combined! This Witchblad e spin-off by Garth Ennis and Silvestri even made inter-dimensional demons look fantabulous.