Comics Interview — Issue #105

Daniels discusses his large-format history book Marvel: Five Fabulous Decades of the World's Greatest Comics, describing the nearly two years of research that went into it, including interviews with every Marvel editor-in-chief and dozens of creators from the 1930s through the present. He reflects on rediscovering overlooked figures such as wartime editor Vince Fago, and on his goal of making the book accessible to general readers beyond the direct-market audience.

David discusses taking on the all-new government-sponsored X-Factor lineup (Havok, Lorna Dane, Guido/Strong Guy, Multiple Man, Wolfsbane, and Quicksilver), explaining his approach to character-driven storytelling over large-scale plots and his rationale for Quicksilver's justified arrogance. He also reflects on his five-year run on The Incredible Hulk, tracing how Bill Mantlo's child-abuse premise became the foundation for the Banner multiple-personality arc that culminated in the personalities' reintegration.

Stroman talks about his unconventional working method of drawing the first and last pages before filling in the middle, his preference for plot scripts over full scripts, and his appreciation that the new X-Factor launch foregrounds character over action-set-pieces. He reflects on moving from science fiction (*Alien Legion*) to superhero work and expresses a long-term goal of eventually producing his own comics.

Full answers to the 100-question trivia quiz published in issue #100, covering comics history, characters, creators, and pop-culture connections.

(int. Darrel L. Boatz) — Interview with the winner of the Comics Interview #100 trivia quiz, a Waldenbooks retail assistant manager from Cincinnati who scored 78.5 points; he discusses his reading habits, favorite creators (Wally Wood, Walt Kelly, Kirby, Ditko), and his view that the industry produces too much mediocre filler.