MARVEL MASTERWORKS: THE INCREDIBLE HULK VOL. 17

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 launched Cloak and 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: Spaceknight, 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.

After a start as inker to his older brother John, Sal Buscema penciled Captain America, Defenders, Incredible Hulk and more. Famed for his ability to meet tight deadlines, he spread his talents across multiple genres. His 1970s work ranged from Ms. Marvel and Nova to Sub-Mariner and Spider-Woman’s first appearance in Marvel Spotlight. He was the uninterrupted artist on Spectacular Spider-Man for more than one hundred issues and penciled the web-slinger’s adventures in Marvel Team-Up, in which he and writer Bill Mantlo introduced Captain Jean DeWolff. After handling more team-ups in the Thing’s Marvel Two-in-One, he reunited with brother John on Steve Englehart’s Fantastic Four. He later provided inks for Tom DeFalco’s Spider-Girl titles and Thunderstrike miniseries.

John Romita Jr. is a modern-day comic-art master, following in his legendary father’s footsteps. Timeless runs on Iron Man, Uncanny X-Men, Amazing Spider-Man and Daredevil established him as his own man artistically, and his work on Wolverine and World War Hulk is among the most explosive comic art of the 21st century. In addition to Eternals with writer Neil Gaiman, JRJR teamed with Mark Millar on the creator-owned Kick-Ass, later developed into a blockbuster feature film starring Nicolas Cage. Spidey fans rejoiced at the artist’s return to Amazing Spider-Man with the “Brand New Day” storylines “New Ways To Die” and “Character Assassination.” He later helped relaunch Avengers with writer Brian Michael Bendis and Captain America with Rick Remender, and contributed to the blockbuster crossover Avengers vs. X-Men. For DC Comics, he has drawn big-name characters such as Superman, Batman and the Suicide Squad.

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.