A Memoriam In Four Colours – Gerry Conway
“Gerry Conway was a gifted writer. Deeply attuned to the emotional and moral core of story telling. His writing has inspired us all at Marvel.” – Dan Buckley on X
From a personal reading point of view, I don’t have a lot of first-hand experience with Conway’s work. He does have a 28-issue run on Daredevil to his name, of which I own two. I do have a tendency to hoard the issues under #100, of which his fall (#72-98). He did make the creative choice in #81 of making Black Widow an ongoing co-star. This is a relationship that has stood the test of time and been visited time and time again by every generation after. I did pick up #1 of Jack Kirby’s Nightglider at last year’s FCBD. It is a very fun issue, a throwback to the feel-good days of the Silver Age. I certainly could have read more! However, since reading a number of articles since his passing, when you name the big stories and the characters created, they are all instantly recognisable. I seem to say every time I write a memoriam that the work speaks for itself, and the work of Gerry Conway lives up to that billing.
After attending New York University and having the prerequisite of having a letter published in Fantastic Four #50, before breaking into comics. My maths from this information makes him aged 16 when he had his first work published by DC in House of Secrets #81. The early stages of his career were spent submitting work mainly for anthology work at both DC and Marvel. More consistent ongoing work would follow, first at DC on Phantom Stranger. At Marvel, after partaking in a writing test, he landed on Ka-Zar after gaining the approval of Roy Thomas, if not Stan Lee! It may seem like a backhanded compliment to say that Gerry Conway was a safe pair of hands when the work speaks for itself. There was a time when he was having work published simultaneously at DC and Marvel because he was on top of his game, and the editors, publishing couldn’t keep up. His career is a map of single issues, short runs and long runs on all the established characters. 12 issues on Action Comics, over 50 issues of JLA, and he ended Jack Kirby’s Kamandi at DC. Over at Marvel, he launched Tomb of Dracula, writing the first two issues. As well as having spells on Iron Man, Hulk and Thor. Power Girl. As well as all this, Conway has a huge footprint in TV screenwriting. He continued to influence the younger audience, writing episodes of GI Joe, Transformers and Dino Riders. Moving into live action, we are talking Law and Order, Matlock and The Huntress. There are people out there who are as passionate about those shows and other such TV dramas as we are about comics. There is probably a fan out there who can recall the Conway episodes of Hercules, as well as a comic fan can wax lyrical about his Spider-Man run.
“He had the most tremendous warmth, a great sense of humour and an unmatched love for the industry and its characters.” – Mark Millar on X
I have left the best till last. It is no coincidence that Gerry Conway had long runs on both Spider-Man and Batman, the two leading lights of each company. These two respective runs contain stories that have stood the test of time. Stories that fans still recall with great fondness, and new audiences get to discover. Lastly, they are stories that inspired the next generation and are still revisited today across all forms of media. On Spider-Man, Conway is the lynch pin between the beginnings of the titles under Stan Lee through to the modern era. I think it is fair to say his work has more influence on cinematic interpretations and probably something like the original Ultimate Spider-Man more than any other writer. His connection to Spider-Man and thus his stories connecting with the fans can be linked to the fact that he was 19 when he wrote his first issue (#111) in 1972. It would go on to be a 38-issue run where he created The Punisher, The Jackal and killed Gwen Stacy. Nearly ten years later, he took over the double duty of Batman and Detective Comics. Across the two titles he amassed over fifty issues. His work on Batman is best remembered for creating Jason Todd, Killer Croc, whilst further establishing the history of the Lazarus Pit and fleshing out Lucius Fox. Again, it is so easy to say the work speaks for itself, but look at what I just wrote! Without his original creations, we don’t get Punisher Max, and he added to the legacy of the Robin character. As I mentioned earlier, these two runs represent a master class in both short and long storytelling. Something that has been lost in today’s era. Amazing Spider-Man #129 is a one-shot introduction to a character who has endured. The machinations of The Jackal were played out in the background across many issues, without which we never get the Clone Saga. This best highlights the difference in the calibre of writers in different eras. Conway could spin plates and deliver. His Batman work was scattered with a number of standalone issues, with Detective Comics #497 being a fan favourite. Conway’s contributions at both DC and Marvel have rightfully cemented his legacy as one of the best to do it. My thoughts are with his family and friends at this time.
