Avengers West Coast Epic Collection: Ultron Unbound

Roy Thomas joined the Marvel Bullpen as a writer and editor under Stan Lee, scripting key runs of nearly every title of the time: Amazing Spider-Man, Avengers, Daredevil, Doctor Strange, Sub-Mariner, Thor, X-Men and more. He wrote the first 10 years of Marvel’s Conan the Barbarian and Savage Sword of Conan; and launched such series as Defenders, Iron Fist, Invaders and Warlock. At DC, he developed All-Star Squadron, Infinity Inc. and related titles, proving instrumental in reviving the Golden Age Justice Society of America. Thomas later became editor of Alter Ego, a magazine devoted to comic-book history, and co-scripted the sword-and-sorcery films Fire and Ice and Conan the Destroyer.

Dann Thomas has written or co-written stories in multiple Avengers titles. At DC, she collaborated with husband Roy to create Infinity Inc., Jonni Thunder, Young All-Stars, and other Golden Age character tie-ins. 

From a start at short-lived Atlas/Seaboard, Danny Fingeroth moved to Marvel to edit multiple Spider-Man titles; and write for Avengers, Dazzler and What If? During the 1990s, he scripted all fifty issues of Darkhawk, as well as Spider-Man’s Deadly Foes and Lethal Foes miniseries. Leaving Marvel in 1995, he became Virtual Comics’ editor in chief, and then Visionary Media’s senior vice president for creative production; he has also taught comic-book writing courses at select universities. In the prose field, he has written several nonfiction books about the comic-book field, as well as children’s books on noted actors.

Beginning as Stan Lee’s production assistant, Herb Trimpe (1939-2015) went on to pencil a seven-year run on Marvel mainstay Incredible Hulk — during which he debuted the future X-Man, Wolverine — as well as 1970s classics Marvel Team-Up, Shogun Warriors and Godzilla. He was equally prolific during the 1980s on Nick Fury, The ’Nam and G.I. Joe; the 1990s saw him illustrate Marvel’s First Family on Fantastic Four Unlimited. Trimpe’s war-story credits also include the introduction of the Phantom Eagle, the WWI aviator hero whose adventures were later chronicled by Garth Ennis.

The unique, shadowy style of Gene Colan (1926-2011) most memorably appeared in long stints on Captain America and Daredevil, and all 70 issues of Tomb of Dracula — among the dozens of other Marvel titles he has drawn. His DC work on Detective Comics and Night Force is equally well remembered. During the Golden Age, he drew multiple war stories for Marvel and DC alike. Colan has earned several Eagle Awards and had professional art showings in New York City. His work on Ed Brubaker’s Captain America at the age of 82 drew well-deserved raves.