Darick Robertson

This story is found collected in Best of Marvel 1995.

Robertson would also add additional writing credits working on Spectacular Spider-Man Super Special #1 and Spider-Man Team-Up #5.

Robertson's career continued as a key creator on Malibu Comics's Ultraverse comic line.

It was also his first foray into creating new characters for an existing business.

At Malibu Robertson co-created and designed the character Nightman, and both wrote and created the character Ripfire.

This brought about some frustration, however, as Malibu promised Robertson the rights in Nightman only to renege and sell the character to Marvel.

Nightman eventually produced toys and a TV show, and Robertson later described the experience as “a sore spot.” However, while still at Malibu, Robertson met future DC and Wildstorm editor Hank Kanalz as well as a then obscure British comic writer, Warren Ellis.

Darick W. Robertson is an American artist best known for his work as a comic book illustrator on series he co-created, notably Transmetropolitan (1997–2002) and The Boys (2006–2012; 2020).

Robertson has illustrated hundreds of comics in his twenty-plus years in the industry.

His body of work ranges from science fiction characters of his own creation to work on renowned classic characters from Marvel and DC Comics.

Robertson was introduced to comics at an early age.

He read Gold Key Comics found at the local barbershop and before long his father drove him to Palo Alto where young Robertson could buy weekly comics such as Flash and Spider-Man.

By fifth grade the young artist was already stapling together homemade comics to show to his friends.

Darick Robertson cites Paul Smith, George Pérez, José Luis García-López, Neal Adams, Joe Kubert and Bernie Wrightson as early formative influences on his craft, and states it was Brian Bolland's work on Camelot 3000 that defined for him what a comic artist could aspire to.

Robertson also cites Frank Miller as a hero, and hopes to eventually emulate Miller's success as both an artist and a writer.

Robertson created his first comic book at the age of 17 while still in school and also working as a bill collector.

Many small-press black and white books featuring anthropomorphic heroes were seeing sudden critical and commercial success in the wake of Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Robertson had "always loved this idea of stuffed animals fighting [so] they bleed and stuff comes out of them when they die."

As a result, he created Space Beaver, “a cute Little Beaver…running around shooting people."

Robertson showed his new work, drawn on typing paper in ball-point pen, to Michio Okamura, an inker working as a security guard in the same building as the collection agency.

Okamura inked Reggie Byers's Shuriken for Victory Comics, and introduced Darick to the use of Bristol Board, ink pens, and zip-a-tone.

Okamura sent Robertson's pages to Victory Comics, who agreed to publish Space Beaver, but not to compensate Robertson.

Robertson then took the finished pages to Tibor Sardy, owner of Peninsula Comics in San Mateo California.

After seeing Robertson's work, the comic store owner agreed to pay Robertson and publish Space Beaver under the name Ten-Buck Comics.

Robertson would now spend every day after work and school drawing the book, which would run for 11 issues.

Years after the series ended people still ask Robertson to confirm he was the creator of Space Beaver.

Robertson's father carried a worn copy of Space Beaver #1 folded into his coat pocket to show his friends what his son had created.

In 2000 Larry Young acquired permission to publishSpace Beaver and AiT/Planet Lar released two trades collecting the entire run.

After Robertson launched his career with Space Beaver, he began to regularly attend comic conventions seeking advice and professional connections.

As a result, by age 21, Robertson landed his first work for a major publisher illustrating Justice League Quarterly #4 at DC Comics.

He would then illustrate a run of Justice League Europe working alongside writer J. M. DeMatteis and artist/writer Keith Giffen.

Over time Robertson would develop his craft finishing Giffen's panel breakdowns on a JLE/JLA crossover entitled "Breakdowns".

Robertson worked on JLE issues 26, and 30–35.

Later in his career Robertson would return to the Justice League to work with Mark Waid on Justice League: A Midsummer's Nightmare.

After breaking in at DC, Robertson's first work at Marvel was Wolverine (volume 1) issue #54.

Robertson would then have his first extended monthly run working with Fabian Nicieza on Marvel's New Warriors after Mark Bagley departed the book, a run Robertson recalls with pride.

According to Nicieza, readers immediately took to Robertson's art despite its sharp stylistic differences from Bagley's. Robertson worked on New Warriors for two years, from issue 26 until issue 50, including writing for New Warriors Annual #3 and #4.

While at Marvel, Robertson would also have a chance to work on his first iconic character – Spider-Man.

Robertson illustrated Deadpool #50 and 51, which featured the first appearance of Kid Deadpool (aka Poolboy).

Robertson illustrated "Spider-man: the Power of Terror", "Spider-Man: The Final Adventure" and a Spider-Man story written by Stan Lee and inked by George Pérez.