Official Super Jersey Comic Expo Announcement: Comic Legend John Romita Jr. is Confirmed!
- Amy Awes0me
- 15 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Super Jersey Comic Expo, the largest comic con located in New Jersey, has confirmed their first special guest as John Romita Jr., one of the most influential comic book artists of all time. Get ready to geek out, get your pile of his comics ready to be signed, and we'll see you there!
Co-Founder of Super Jersey Comic Expo Paul Brown traveled all the way to HeroesCon in South Carolina just to meet Romita and personally invite him to the show. He was nervous to speak to one of his comic book icons, but as soon as Paul shared his heartwarming story, Romita said yes, no questions asked. If it weren’t for him, Super Jersey Comic Expo wouldn’t exist.
In July of 1993 a very young Paul went to his local card shop to pick up a few packs, he stopped in his tracks when he saw a book with his favorite Saturday morning cartoon characters on the cover. It managed to catch his eye out of everything else in the store. He instantly bought his first comic book, Uncanny X-Men 300, penciled by Romita Jr., and a new fan of all things comics was born for life. Since the 70s, Romita’s striking artwork has been introducing people to the wonderful world of comics. Sometimes superheroes are just the regular, yet talented, creators behind the comics themselves.
John Romita Jr. is most recognized for his extensive work for both Marvel and DC Comics from his humble beginnings in the 1970s through today. As the son of legendary Spider-Man artist and character creator John Romita Sr., this man was born with raw talent that you can see in every comic cover and page he's had his hands on.
His heavy influence in the comic book industry knows no bounds. Romita paved the way for future pencilers, inkers, and colorists with his own gritty, street-level signature style. Of course his style evolved over the years, but one thing has remained the same - his uncanny ability to tell stories through his art.
His catalogue of work is massive and reaches fans far and wide. His first contribution to Marvel Comics, when he was just 13 years old, was the creation of the Prowler in The Amazing Spider-Man 78 (Nov. 1969). Romita Jr. began his career at Marvel UK, doing sketches for covers of reprints.
John Romita Jr.’s most notable works include:
His American debut was with a six-page story entitled "Chaos at the Coffee Bean!" in The Amazing Spider-Man Annual (1977).
His run on Iron Man with writer David Michelinie and artist Bob Layton that began in 1978.
His first regular run on The Amazing Spider-Man began in the early 80s, in which he co-created characters like Hobgoblin, Madame Web, Hydro-Man
His run on Uncanny X-Men in the late 80s only to return in the 90s
Romita collaborated with Frank Miller on the Daredevil origin story entitled Daredevil: The Man Without Fear in 1993, a revisiting of the character's origin, with Williamson again on inks. Romita received a screenplay from Miller first, then additional pages which he adapted into a five-issue limited series. This served as the main influence for Marvel's Daredevil TV series on Netflix that debuted in 2015.
In the 90s to the 2000s Romita Jr. worked on so many comic books it's impossible to list them all: The Punisher War Zone, Punisher/Batman Crossover, a return to Iron Man, a reboot of Thor, a Cable Miniseries, a reboot of Peter Parker: Spider-Man, he drew Wolverine for a 9/11 fundraiser, had his hands in Black Panther, made his return to The Amazing Spider-Man. I can go on forever!
Remember the movie Kick-Ass from 2010? Yeah, he did that too, working on the original creator-owned graphic novel, then co-producing the hit film.
I'm sure I missed a ton of his work, but I wanted to give you just a peak into what John Romita Jr. has contributed to the world of comics. What's your favorite Romita cover? I have to go with Daredevil: The Man Without Fear, a favorite book of mine. Let us know in the comments!
For more information and upcoming announcements about Super Jersey Comic Expo, keep your eyes peeled here. There is a lot more excitement to come!
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