MARVEL-VERSE: KANG

Roger Stern enjoyed well-regarded runs on Amazing Spider-Man, in which he introduced Captain Marvel (Monica Rambeau) and the Hobgoblin; Avengers; and Captain America. He launched West Coast Avengers and wrote numerous tie-in miniseries starring Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. At DC, he relaunched Atom and co-created Starman (Will Payton) before participating in one of comics’ most shocking events: the 1992 “Death of Superman.” He later returned to Marvel to write Amazing Spider-Man and related titles.

Jeff Parker began his career as a comic artist and Hollywood storyboard artist. In 2003, he self-published the acclaimed graphic novel The Interman and began writing regularly, notably launching Marvel Adventures: The Avengers. Though the series was aimed at younger readers, Parker’s use of offbeat characters such as MODOK and Ego the Living Planet quickly developed a vocal and passionate following among all ages. Parker next revived a classic group of 1950s-era Marvel characters in Agents of Atlas, which quickly became the sleeper hit of 2006. Parker is one of Marvel’s most prolific writers; his credits also include X-Men: First Class and Thunderbolts.

Writer Ryan North went the self-publishing route to launch his comics career with Dinosaur Comics, which has run for more than 2,000 web-based strips. He describes it as basically the best job ever. In 2012, he was tapped by BOOM! Studios to write its new Adventure Time series based on the popular cartoon. His Marvel debut came in 2014 when he penned the Young Avengers chapters of Original Sins. North propelled an unlikely character to solo title success with the Eisner Award-winning series The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl and took Lockjaw solo in the pages of Inhumans: Once and Future Kings. He rewrote the Shakespeare rulebook with Romeo and/or Juliet: A Chooseable-Path Adventure.

John Buscema (1927-2002) literally wrote the book on being a Marvel artist — namely, How To Draw Comics the Marvel Way — and few were better qualified. His career dated back to the Timely/Atlas era of the late ’40s and early ’50s. Soon after beginning the Marvel Age of Comics, Stan Lee recruited Buscema from the advertising field to the Marvel Bullpen. Buscema followed a long run on Avengers with the long-anticipated first Silver Surfer series. He subsequently succeeded Jack Kirby on Fantastic Four, Thor and other titles. By the time of his retirement in 1996, Buscema had penciled nearly every Marvel title — including his personal favorite, Conan the Barbarian.

The cult hit Agents of Atlas helped artist Leonard Kirk cultivate a rabid fan base, but he was guaranteed pop-culture immortality following years of work on multiple Star Trek tie-ins. His collaboration with industry legend Peter David in a years-long stint on Supergirl and his role as penciler on Detective Comics during DC’s One Year Later initiative further cemented his reputation in the industry, leading to a critically acclaimed run on Captain Britain and MI13. His other Marvel credits include another collaboration with David on X-Factor, as well as runs on Fantastic Four, Squadron Supreme and All-New Wolverine.

Erica Henderson is a freelance illustrator and independent comics creator hailing from New York City. She is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, and was the lead artist on the Zynga game Indiana Jones: Adventure World. Henderson's credits include Atomic Robo Presents Real Science Adventures for Red 5 Comics, Subatomic Party Girls for MonkeyBrain Comics, Quantum and Woody! for Valiant and The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl for Marvel Comics.