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Alias (comics)
Encyclopedia
Alias is a comic book
series
created by writer Brian Michael Bendis
and artist Michael Gaydos
. It was published by Marvel Comics
under Marvel's MAX
imprint
for a total of 28 issues from 2001
to 2004
.
The protagonist of Alias is Jessica Jones
, a former costumed superhero
named Jewel who left that avocation
to become a private investigator
. The running thread is Jessica's character development, as the layers of her past and personality are revealed to the reader while, simultaneously, she tries to come to terms with them herself.
Characters from the series moved to Brian Michael Bendis' subsequent series The Pulse
.
, with covers by David Mack
.
Alias was one of the titles that launched Marvel's "R-Rated" MAX imprint, and was reported to have been one of the reasons the imprint was created. Marvel Publishing President Bill Jemas
read a draft of the script for the first issue of Alias (which, characteristically, starts with the word "fuck") and exclaimed "Why couldn't we publish this?"
Being under the MAX imprint imposed certain other limitations on what the creators could do in the series. They were not allowed, for example, to use many of Marvel's most famous characters, such as Spider-Man
(with the exception of one cameo
). Bendis gave this as one reason in afterword to Alias #28 for ending the series and moving the characters to The Pulse
.
and the president of the United States
. Later, her friend Carol Danvers hooks her up with Scott Lang
, a.k.a. Ant-Man. Subsequently she is hired to find the recently missing Rick Jones
.
Other characters appearing in the arc include Daredevil
(as Jessica's attorney Matt Murdock), Captain America
, and second-tier villain Man Mountain Marko
.
in a small, prejudiced town.
asks Jessica to uncover Spider-Man's
identity. Later, Mattie Franklin, the latest Spider-Woman
, goes missing and Jessica is asked to find her. When she does, she discovers a criminal underworld that sells the drug known as the Mutant Growth Hormone. Along the way, Jones meets an unexpected ally in Jessica Drew, the original Spider-Woman, who is also investigating Franklin's disappearance.
:
Award for "Favorite Comic Series" in 2003, and the Harvey Award
for "Best New Series" in 2002.
The series was also nominated for two Eisner Awards in 2004: "Best Continuing Series" and "Best Serialized Story" (for "The Secret Origin of Jessica Jones" & "Purple" in Alias #22-28).
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
series
Ongoing series
The term "ongoing series" is used in contrast to limited series , a one shot , a graphic novel, or a trade paperback...
created by writer Brian Michael Bendis
Brian Michael Bendis
Brian Michael Bendis is an American comic book writer and erstwhile artist. He has won critical acclaim for his self-published, Image Comics and Marvel Comics work, and is one of the most successful writers working in mainstream comics, with his books selling consistently highly for over a...
and artist Michael Gaydos
Michael Gaydos
-Biography:At Marvel he has worked with Brian Michael Bendis on Alias and the last storyline of its follow up, The Pulse. He has also illustrated the mini-series Powerless and Daredevil Redemption,...
. It was published by Marvel Comics
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
under Marvel's MAX
MAX (comics)
MAX is an imprint of Marvel Comics aimed at a niche 'adults only' audience, launched in 2001 after Marvel broke with the Comics Code Authority and established its own rating system...
imprint
Imprint
In the publishing industry, an imprint can mean several different things:* As a piece of bibliographic information about a book, it refers to the name and address of the book's publisher and its date of publication as given at the foot or on the verso of its title page.* It can mean a trade name...
for a total of 28 issues from 2001
2001 in comics
-Year overall:* Marvel Comics withdraws from the Comics Code Authority and established its own rating system for its publications.- January :* January 23: Fred Ray, Superman's primary cover artist of the 1940s, passes away at age 80.- September :...
to 2004
2004 in comics
-February:*February 6: Marvel Enterprises and Electronic Arts announce a multi-year agreement in which EA will develop a new generation of fighting video games pitting Marvel superheroes against a new, original set of EA heroes....
.
The protagonist of Alias is Jessica Jones
Jessica Jones
Jessica Campbell Jones Cage is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe, created by writer Brian Michael Bendis and artist Michael Gaydos. Jones debuted in the series Alias as an embittered former superheroine who had used the aliases Jewel, Knightress, and currently Power Woman...
, a former costumed superhero
Superhero
A superhero is a type of stock character, possessing "extraordinary or superhuman powers", dedicated to protecting the public. Since the debut of the prototypical superhero Superman in 1938, stories of superheroes — ranging from brief episodic adventures to continuing years-long sagas —...
named Jewel who left that avocation
Avocation
An avocation is an activity that one engages in as a hobby outside one's main occupation. There are many examples of people whose professions were the ways that they made their livings, but for whom their activities outside of their workplaces were their true passions in life...
to become a private investigator
Private investigator
A private investigator , private detective or inquiry agent, is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private detectives/investigators often work for attorneys in civil cases. Many work for insurance companies to investigate suspicious claims...
. The running thread is Jessica's character development, as the layers of her past and personality are revealed to the reader while, simultaneously, she tries to come to terms with them herself.
Characters from the series moved to Brian Michael Bendis' subsequent series The Pulse
The Pulse (comics)
The Pulse is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics, written by Brian Michael Bendis, about the people who work on "The Pulse", a weekly section in the fictional Daily Bugle newspaper, focusing on superheroes....
.
Publication history
Alias was written by Bendis and illustrated for most of its run by Michael GaydosMichael Gaydos
-Biography:At Marvel he has worked with Brian Michael Bendis on Alias and the last storyline of its follow up, The Pulse. He has also illustrated the mini-series Powerless and Daredevil Redemption,...
, with covers by David Mack
David Mack
David Mack may refer to:*David W. Mack, American comic book artist and writer*David Alan Mack, American television scriptwriter and novelist*David Mack , one of the central figures in the Los Angeles Police Department Rampart corruption scandal*David S. Mack, American businessman...
.
Alias was one of the titles that launched Marvel's "R-Rated" MAX imprint, and was reported to have been one of the reasons the imprint was created. Marvel Publishing President Bill Jemas
Bill Jemas
Bill Jemas is an American media entrepreneur, writer and editor. He is a former vice president of Marvel Comics, and a founding partner at 360ep, a media management firm.-Early life:...
read a draft of the script for the first issue of Alias (which, characteristically, starts with the word "fuck") and exclaimed "Why couldn't we publish this?"
Being under the MAX imprint imposed certain other limitations on what the creators could do in the series. They were not allowed, for example, to use many of Marvel's most famous characters, such as Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
(with the exception of one cameo
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
). Bendis gave this as one reason in afterword to Alias #28 for ending the series and moving the characters to The Pulse
The Pulse (comics)
The Pulse is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics, written by Brian Michael Bendis, about the people who work on "The Pulse", a weekly section in the fictional Daily Bugle newspaper, focusing on superheroes....
.
Alias (#1-9)
Asked to look for a missing woman, Jessica finds herself caught in a conspiracy involving Captain AmericaCaptain America
Captain America is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...
and the president of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
. Later, her friend Carol Danvers hooks her up with Scott Lang
Scott Lang
Scott Lang is a fictional character featured in the American comic books published by Marvel Comics. He is the second superhero character to use the name Ant-Man in the Marvel Universe, following the original, Dr. Henry Pym...
, a.k.a. Ant-Man. Subsequently she is hired to find the recently missing Rick Jones
Rick Jones (comics)
Richard Milhouse "Rick" Jones is a fictional comic book character in the .-Publication history:Rick Jones first appeared in The Incredible Hulk #1, as a sidekick to the Incredible Hulk...
.
Other characters appearing in the arc include Daredevil
Daredevil (Marvel Comics)
Daredevil is a fictional character, a superhero in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Bill Everett, with an unspecified amount of input from Jack Kirby, and first appeared in Daredevil #1 .Living in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood...
(as Jessica's attorney Matt Murdock), Captain America
Captain America
Captain America is a fictional character, a superhero that appears in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character first appeared in Captain America Comics #1 , from Marvel Comics' 1940s predecessor, Timely Comics, and was created by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby...
, and second-tier villain Man Mountain Marko
Man Mountain Marko
Man Mountain Marko is a Marvel Comics supervillain. Marko was and remains an affiliate of numerous organized-crime entities in the Marvel universe, including the Maggia...
.
Come Home (#11-15)
Jessica Jones is assigned to look for a missing girl rumoured to be a mutantMutant (Marvel Comics)
In comic books published by Marvel Comics, a mutant is an organism who possesses a genetic trait called an X-gene that allows the mutant to naturally develop superhuman powers and abilities...
in a small, prejudiced town.
The Underneath (#10, 16-21)
J. Jonah JamesonJ. Jonah Jameson
John Jonah Jameson Junior is a supporting character of Spider-Man in the .Jameson is usually the publisher or editor-in-chief of the Daily Bugle, a fictional New York newspaper and now serves as the mayor of New York City...
asks Jessica to uncover Spider-Man's
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
identity. Later, Mattie Franklin, the latest Spider-Woman
Spider-Woman
Spider-Woman is the codename of several fictional characters in comic books published by Marvel Comics.-Publication history:Marvel Comics' then-publisher Stan Lee, said in 1978, shortly after Spider-Woman's debut in Marvel Spotlight #32 Spider-Woman is the codename of several fictional characters...
, goes missing and Jessica is asked to find her. When she does, she discovers a criminal underworld that sells the drug known as the Mutant Growth Hormone. Along the way, Jones meets an unexpected ally in Jessica Drew, the original Spider-Woman, who is also investigating Franklin's disappearance.
The Secret Origins of Jessica Jones (#22-28)
Jessica's origins, including her source of powers, how she became a superhero, and why she quit are revealed.Collected editions
The series was collected into a number of trade paperbacksTrade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
:
- Alias:
- Volume 1 (collects Alias #1-9, ISBN 0-7851-1141-7)
- Volume 2: Come Home (collects Alias #11-15, ISBN 0-7851-1123-9)
- Volume 3: The Underneath (collects Alias #10, 16-21, ISBN 0-7851-1165-4)
- Volume 4: The Secret Origins of Jessica Jones (collects Alias #22-28, ISBN 0-7851-1167-0)
- Alias OmnibusMarvel OmnibusMarvel Omnibus is a line of comic book series collections published by Marvel Comics. These collections provide full color compilations of several comics, aiming at complete runs...
(collects Alias #1-28 and What If? Jessica Jones had Joined the Avengers, ISBN 0-7851-2121-8)
- Alias Ultimate Collection:
- Volume 1 (collects Alias #1-15, ISBN 0-7851-3732-7)
- Volume 2 (collects Alias #16-28, ISBN 978-0-7851-4490-8)
Awards
The series won the Comics Buyer's GuideComics Buyer's Guide
Comics Buyer's Guide , established in 1971, is the longest-running English-language periodical reporting on the American comic book industry...
Award for "Favorite Comic Series" in 2003, and the Harvey Award
Harvey Award
The Harvey Awards, named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman and founded by Gary Groth, President of the publisher Fantagraphics, are given for achievement in comic books. The Harveys were created as part of a successor to the Kirby Awards which were discontinued after 1987.The Harvey Awards are...
for "Best New Series" in 2002.
The series was also nominated for two Eisner Awards in 2004: "Best Continuing Series" and "Best Serialized Story" (for "The Secret Origin of Jessica Jones" & "Purple" in Alias #22-28).
External links
- Looking Back at Bendis' Alias, NewsaramaNewsaramaNewsarama is an American website that publishes news, interviews and essays about the American comic book industry.-History:Newsarama began in Summer 1995 as a series of Internet forum postings on the Prodigy comic-book message boards by fan Mike Doran. In these short messages. Doran shared...
- Looking Back at Bendis' Alias Pt.2, Newsarama
- Michael Gaydos Interview, PopImage, September 2001