Posted By Dan Greenfield on Oct 11, 2023 | 3 comments

The fan-fave creator has died at the age of 70…

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UPDATED 10/11/23: Comics mainstay Keith Giffen has died at the age of 70. His frequent collaborator, Paul Levitz, said tonight on Facebook: “The sad news is now official: Keith Giffen has gone off to create new worlds that are beyond our living reach. Keith was probably the most fertile creative mind of our generation in comics. He had an infinite number of ideas, pouring constantly out. Many, thankfully, never saw print as wholly insane or inappropriate. But the ones that did! We did over 60 stories together. Many of them he made far better than they might have been with any other collaborator, because of his ideas and contributions to character moments and drama.” We re-present this slightly altered piece from Nov. 2021, when Giffen turned 69. More Giffen links can be found below. — Dan

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Keith Giffen was one of comics’ most respected creators. Legion? Check. JLI? Check? Lobo? Check. And much, much more, obviously.

For this year’s 13 COVERS salute, though, it’s all Ambush Bug all the time. Why? Because he’s awesome.

Ambush Bug, a Giffen creation, debuted in 1982’s DC Comics Presents #52, by our pal Paul Kupperberg, Giffen and Sal Trapani. He didn’t make the cover, but here’s his first appearance:

Kupperberg script, Giffen pencils, Trapani inks

Rad.

So dig these 13 COVERS by Giffen and a coterie of inkers:

Bob Oksner inks

Al Milgrom inks

Oksner inks

The image on those piled-up covers is by Darwyn Cooke, for the never-released Ambush Bug: Year None #6.

Al Gordon inks

Oksner inks

Dick Giordano inks

Oksner inks

Oksner inks

Oksner inks

Oksner inks

Oksner inks

Oksner inks

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MORE

— PAUL KUPPERBERG: My 13 Favorite Pieces of KEITH GIFFEN Original Art. Click here.

— LEVITZ AND GIFFEN: When the LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES Was at Its Best. Click here.