From The Vault : X-Men Trading Cards 2000

When I left New Jersey and moved to Colorado in early 1996 the color work I had done for Marvel all but dried up. I don't think it's that I moved as much as the industry was changing from fully painted airbrush work to digital color on the computer. And, in 1996, I wasn't quite ready to make that change.

I still did some airbrush work here and there for Marvel but nothing like the steady work I had done in the years before.

So, in 2000, I must have needed money because I made a few of those rare calls where you go through your address book and call anyone that is able to throw some work your way.

Luckily, Mike Thomas, an editor and all around great guy I had worked with years before, picked up the phone. Mike knew I had done a self published comic book in the years since I had left Marvel and offered me some inking work.

Given my circumstances, I'm sure I politely accepted, hung up the phone, and then did a victory dance around the room.

So, here are few of the pieces I inked for an X-Men trading card game that was being released to coincide with the new X-Men live action movie.

The penciler of the work, David Tata, did some really great tight pencil work so it made inking these pieces a breeze. We talked a bit over emails and he was really happy with the work I had done over him. He even wanted me to be his regular inker for the rest of the cards.

Unfortunately, it wasn't meant to be. Marvel was in a serious state of flux at the time (I think they were still fighting themselves out of bankruptcy) and Mike Thomas was let go while I was doing this project.

And the new guy must not have liked me at all because this is the last work I ever did for Marvel Comics. Out of the fifteen or so editors I had worked with at Marvel, Mike Thomas was the last guy I knew up there.

Now, he was gone, too.

But, it was a great run. So, thank you Mike, thank you Dave, and thank you Marvel. For a kid who grew up loving Spider-Man, to actually work at Marvel was a dream come true.

But, there are always other dreams...