There are several celebrities who have tried their hands at comic books, and some of them turned out some really good comics. These creators aren’t trying to compete with the top names in Marvel Comics and DC Comics. They are, instead, mainly fans of the medium who want to tell stories based on their love of the art form. What is best about these celebrities is that they are telling stories that are often very different from what the main publishers are putting out, although in some rare cases, there are some celebrities who have gotten a chance to write for the big two and have done so at a relatively high level.
Here is a look at five celebrities who tried their hands at comic book creation, and did so on a high level, creating some great stories along the way.
5) Tom Morello – Orchid
Image Courtesy of Dark Horse
Most people know Tom Morello from his music career as the lead guitarist for Rage Against the Machine. He also has a weekly talk show on satellite radio where he plays his favorite songs and often discusses social issues he finds important. When it comes to his comic book series, Orchid, it was the latter point that he focused on as he told his story. Teaming with Dark Horse Comics, Morello created an epic fantasy in a dystopian future.
This comic came out all the way back in 2011, and it told the story of a street prostitute who learns her fate is much bigger than what society has determined she deserves. The wealthy live on the high grounds, and the poor live in human settlements where a dangerous new animal species hunts them. It is up to this one young woman to help fight a deadly class war, and Morello tells a brilliant story of the fight for social justice.
4) Keanu Reeves – BRZRKR
Image Courtesy of Boom! Studios
Keanu Reeves also wrote his own comic book series, BRZRKR, and it is very different from Tom Morello’s story of social justice. Instead, Reeves’ book was a story for people who love John Wick and action-packed storylines. The main character in this story, illustrated by Ron Garney, is B, which is short for Berzerker. He is an immortal who is half-God warrior and half-human.
The comic has shown that he has been alive for over 80,000 years and has fought and killed through all ages. He now works for the U.S. government on missions too dangerous for mere mortals. The 12-issue series was published through Boom! Studios after raising money to make it on Kickstarter. There has been talk of both a live-action and animated series based on the books, and some spinoff comics have also been released from the BRZRKR world.
3) Kevin Smith – Daredevil: Guardian Devil
Image Courtesy of Marvel
Kevin Smith has written quite a few comic books over his career. He has written comics based on the View Askewniverse, but he has also worked for Marvel Comics and DC. He has some very polarizing works, with Spider-Man/Black Cat: The Evil That Men Do as one that received a lot of criticism, while Batman: Cacophony also received lackluster reviews. He also received praise for his work on Green Arrow (for DC) and Green Hornet (for Dynamite).
However, Kevin Smith’s best work came in the pages of Daredevil, and he has written two different storylines for the character. While his work on Daredevil/Bullseye: The Target was good, it was his work on Guardian Devil that proved to be his comic book masterpiece. The series had a woman deliver a baby who might be the Messiah or Antichrist, and Daredevil has to figure out what to do, which is a problem with his Catholic upbringing. Joe Quesada and Jimmy Palmiotti provided the art, and it was a fantastic story.
2) Brian Posehn – Deadpool
Image Courtesy of Marvel
When it comes to comedian Brian Posehn, his work in comics wasn’t a one-shot or a limited-time affair. Instead, he set out as a regular writer and wrote a lot of issues for one of Marvel’s best characters. When Marvel Comics began its Marvel NOW! initiative, Posehn and Gerry Duggan teamed up to write Deadpool, with Tony Moore as the original artist.
As mentioned, this wasn’t a short-term deal. Posehn worked on Deadpool for 45 issues, starting in 2012. This was enough comics that it was collected into eight trades. Posehn’s sense of humor was perfect for Deadpool, and this line of comics featured some of the character’s best writing. It also included tie-ins to Axis and Original Sin.
1) Gerard Way – The Umbrella Academy
Image Courtesy of Dark Horse
The most successful celebrity comic book creator has to be Gerard Way. The lead singer of My Chemical Romance wrote the Dark Horse Comics series The Umbrella Academy with artist Gabriel Ba. The comics told the story of a world where 43 babies were born to random women who were not pregnant before giving birth, and all the children had superpowers. A man named Sir Reginald Hargreeves adopted seven of the babies and raised them to be a superhero team.
The story, though, takes place when the kids are all adults, except for one who died, and they are all estranged. However, when Reginald dies, they get back together to figure out what happened and realize they have an apocalypse to stop, if they can. Way wrote 21 issues and seven spin-offs, and it was so popular that it ended up as a Netflix series.
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