The celebrated Mr. K pays a BIRTHDAY TRIBUTE…
By PAUL KUPPERBERG
I’ve written a lot of stuff and worked with a lot of artists in my comic-book writing career, some good, some bad, some either already acknowledged as greats, and others on their way to that recognition.
Among the last category was a young man named Denys Cowan (born January 31, 1961). It was 1985 and I was a grizzled vet of 10 years. Denys had turned professional half a decade after me, breaking in by penciling stories for DC and Marvel on titles such as Weird War Tales, Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man, Superman, The Flash, and Moon Knight before settling in for a yearlong run on Marvel’s Power Man and Iron Fist. Then he was back at DC, and nine of the first dozen jobs he was handed to draw were by me.
Lucky me!
Of course, I knew Denys and was aware of his work, but there’s nothing like having to stare at page after page of an artist’s output as you put words to their pictures to make you really appreciate some of their subtleties. And Denys’ work had subtleties from the very start.
Denys was a fan of superheroes from watching afternoon reruns of the George Reeves Adventures of Superman, but it wasn’t until the third grade, when he changed school districts to live with his grandmother after the death of his mother, that he was introduced both to comic books and lifelong friend Derk Dingle. Dingle showed Cowan his first comic book, an issue of Jack Kirby’s New Gods, and he was hooked.
Denys attended New York’s High School of Art and Design where he met someone who worked for artist and Deathlok creator Rich Buckler, and an after-school visit to Buckler’s studio led the artist to eventually hire the 14-year old as his assistant. Like a lot of artists of this era, Denys learned on the job, developing his own unique and energetic style that set him apart from many of his contemporaries.
My first time working with Denys was when I dialogued Vigilante #19 (June 1985) over character co-creator Marv Wolfman’s plot in what I at first thought was just a fill-in job; it wasn’t, after writing the next issue over Marv’s plot, I became the regular writer and stayed on the series until the bitter end of the 50th and last issue. I was blown away. His storytelling was spot on, and his pages were bursting with power, his characters leaping to life from the printed page. Putting words into the mouths of those characters was easy; Denys’ pictures told the writer exactly what they were saying.
When I took over writing Vigilante from Marv, I was disappointed that Denys wasn’t going to continue on as the regular penciler (no slam against the many fine artists I worked with on the title, especially Tod Smith and, later, Steve Erwin), but we were reunited on a few more Vig stories and a couple of other fill-ins and one-offs.
Denys’ career would take off with his work on The Question, written by Dennis O’Neil. The series, a reimagining of Steve Ditko’s classic 1960s Charlton Comics character, relied heavily on mood, pacing, and character psychology, and Cowan’s visual approach helped define its tone. Denys was also the artist of the Batman story arc “Blind Justice” in Detective Comics #598–600 (March–May 1989) with writer Sam Hamm; the 1993 Prince comic (Piranha Press) with writer Dwayne McDuffie; and a later run on Steel with writer Christopher J. Priest.
In 1993, Denys and his old friend Derek Dingle co-founded Milestone Media with Dwayne McDuffie and Michael Davis. Milestone was created to address the limited representation of Black creators and characters in mainstream comics while maintaining full ownership of its intellectual property. Through a publishing partnership with DC Comics, Milestone launched titles such as Static, Icon, Hardware, and Blood Syndicate. Later, Denys would serve as a producer on the animated series Static Shock (2000), and he would also hold positions as senior vice president of animation at BET (where, among other projects, he was involved in the development of The Boondocks), and, later, senior VP for Motown Animation and Filmworks, where he worked on developing shows for Nickelodeon, Disney, ABC, and Fox.
Here then, MY 13 FAVORITE DENYS COWAN STORIES (MOSTLY) WRITTEN BY ME:
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Vigilante #19 (June 1985). The story opened with a bang and never slowed down, making “Ups… and Downs,” inked by Rick Magyar, a great introduction to working with Denys.
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Vigilante #24 (December 1985). “That Night…” was a back-up story that featured a little less action and a lot more acting on the part of its characters, a situation ably handled by Cowan in a story inked by Alfredo Alcala.
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Vigilante #25 (January 1986). I still hadn’t learned to write less so I didn’t cover up so much of the pretty pictures. “Family Honor,” inked by Alcala.
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Vigilante Annual #1 (1985). “Guilty Until Proven…” was loosely based on my own weekend journey through the New York City justice system (I was innocent, see! I It wasn’t me, I tells ya! OK, it was a weed thing in Washington Square Park; I got time served and an ACD, or Adjournment in Contemplation of Dismissal, meaning the case was automatically dismissed after 6 months if I stayed out of trouble, and I did.). Denys got the craziness of that ride into the story, assisted by Joe Brozowski and inked by Magyar and Carlos Garzon.
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Vigilante #26 (February 1986). “The Session” was another back-up story in the series, this one focused on Vigilante’s girlfriend’s psychiatrist. We went deep in this book, people. Inked by Magyar.
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DC Comics Presents #90 (February 1986). Big fat juicy superhero action as you like it! “Let’s do a Superman and Captain Atom team-up,” I said to DCCP editor Julie Schwartz. “Who the hell cares about Captain Atom?” the legendary editor growled. “Throw in Firestorm and you’ve got a deal!” “Escape From Solitude,” cover inked by Bob Smith.
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Vigilante #27 (March 1986). Denys returned for a fill-in on “Insanity’s End,” inked by Dick Giordano and Arne Starr. And, no, Adrian and Vigilante were not caught dogging by Electrocutioner.
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V #17 (June 1986). Based on the Kenneth Johnson-created TV series about Earth’s resistance to an alien invasion, I was handed the final two issues to close out the now cancelled DC Comics series. “For Old Time’s Sake” was inked by Giordano and Starr.
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V #18 (July 1986). Now that I think about it, over the years I was handed a number of series down to their final two or three issues and told, “This is dying anyway! Finish ‘em off!” Aquaman, Dragonlance, The Crusaders, V…I guess it goes with being a comic book serial killer (Aquababy, the Thinker, various members of the Doom Patrol, Vigilante, Ms. Grundy, and Archie… am I missing anyone?). “End Game” was inked by Giordano.
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Vigilante #36 (December 1986). This issue brought Denys back for the bloodthirsty craziness with the introduction into the series of Peacemaker… which, 40 years later, is paying dividends with both characters (I wouldn’t call either a “hero”) becoming unlikely stars in the extended DC media universe. “Mask of Death” was inked by Kyle Baker.
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The Question #1 (February 1987). If you’ve never read this series, you’re missing some of the best comic books not just of the decade but of all comics! “The Bad News” was inked by Magyar. (Written by Denny O’Neil)
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Hardware #1 (April 1993). A milestone Milestone comic! “Angry Black Man,” inked by Jimmy Palmiotti. (Written by Dwayne McDuffie.)
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Steel #49 (April 1998). I don’t know if this issue, and the next, count as official collaborations with Denys, but I ghostwrote the first draft of “Heart” (inked by Tom Palmer) for the time-crunched writer of record, Priest. I’m a passable mimic (you’d be surprised at some of the people I’ve ghosted for) but of course Priest revised and rewrote it to make it his own. I was just happy to see my words, whoever got the credit, once again being interpreted by Denys Cowan.
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MORE
— 13 COVERS: A DENYS COWAN Birthday Celebration — BATMAN. Click here.
— 13 COVERS: A DENYS COWAN Birthday Celebration — THE QUESTION. Click here.
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PAUL KUPPERBERG was a Silver Age fan who grew up to become a Bronze Age comic book creator, writer of Superman, the Doom Patrol, and Green Lantern, creator of Arion Lord of Atlantis, Checkmate, and Takion, and slayer of Aquababy, Archie, and Vigilante. He is the Harvey and Eisner Award nominated writer of Archie Comics’ Life with Archie, and his YA novel Kevin was nominated for a GLAAD media award and won a Scribe Award from the IAMTW. Check out his memoir, Panel by Panel: My Comic Book Life.
Website: https://www.paulkupperberg.net/
Shop: https://www.paulkupperberg.net/shop-1
