Craig Rousseau
Encyclopedia
Craig Rousseau is an American
comic book artist
.
During his career Rousseau has worked for various comic book companies, but is best known for his work on DC Comics
titles like Harley Quinn
, Batman Beyond
and Impulse
. He also worked for Disney Adventures
(Kim Possible
), Beckett
(Ruule: Kiss and Tell, Ronin Hood of the 47 Samurai
, The Cobbler’s Monster), Image Comics
(Tellos: The Last Heist, Tales of Tellos, Invincible Handbook, Monster Pile-up) and Marvel Comics
' Creative Services.
He has additionally drawn, and co-created with Todd DeZago
, The Perhapanauts
for Dark Horse
and Image Comics
(Perhapanauts: First Blood and Perhapanauts: Second Chances). More recently, he has drawn Marvel's Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane
.
Rousseau began in comics in the mid 1990s while he was graduating from college with a double major in Painting/Illustration. His initial plan was to do freelance illustration and not comics, however he was hired to work at Marvel's Creative Service Department designing POGS and children's books and soon began illustrating comic books.
Rousseau's influences are varied. In a 1998 interview he stated, "There are lots of guys whose work I like and try to take something from and use it in my own way - Art Adams
, Mike Mignola
, Walt Simonson
, Teddy Kristianson, Mike Weiringo, and lots more." He has also drawn from non-comic book artists and has cited artists such as Norman Rockwell
, NC Wyeth, Aubrey Beardsley
, Egon Schiele
and Mucha
as being strong influences on his work.
and assigned the book Impulse
. "...after sending samples everywhere," says Rousseau, "I got a fill-in issue of IMPULSE (22) and was asked to do 21 as well...next thing I knew, I had a full-time gig (which surprised me, 'cause those books looked TERRIBLE)!" He spent the bulk of the 1990s at DC and soon became the regular artist on Impulse from issue #27 and remained until issue #48. He returned for fill-in issues after that.
After Impulse, DC assigned him as the semi-regular artist on Batman Beyond
and Harley Quinn
. He also worked on titles such as Young Justice
and Batman
titles, Gotham Adventures and Detective Comics
.
by drawing Tellos: The Last Heist, when he was paired with legendary inker Terry Austin
. During this time he branched out and worked for companies such as Beckett
(Ronin Hood of the 47 Samurai
) and Portal Productions Studio (BOTS
). He also began work at Marvel
, illustrating an issue of X-Men: First Class
, and Marvel Adventures Super Heroes. He also returned to DC to illustrate their children's safety book, Energy & Safety Adventures with the JLA. In 2008 he was the regular artist on the second series of Marvel's Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane
, a job that he relished for its change of pace. In a recent interview he stated, "It's a breath of fresh air since it's not so much costumes and superheroes. It's a lot of acting and facial expressions which can be a lot of fun. I'm at the point now where issue five is wrapping up and I'm going on to more mainstream superhero stuff, so it'll be nice to do more fight scenes and stuff like that. But the teenage girl stuff has been kinda fun."
. Rousseau and DeZago had previously worked together on DC's Impulse
title and DeZago pitched the initial idea for Perhapanauts. "When I first pitched The Perhapanauts to Craig," says DeZago, "I think I told him that it would be part X-Files, part Mission: Impossible
, and part Archie comic
. (I had imagined that it would be a Saturday morning cartoon of a comic book; a spooky Scooby Doo-type adventure, and then a few pages of Archie
-like jokes and gags.) As the first issues unfolded, however, with our concept still fairly ambiguous, we found that it was developing its own voice, its own 'flavor', and, like parents with a young child, we let it go and discover its own identity." Together the duo took the concept to Dark Horse Comics
where a mini-series
was published, after which DeZago and Rousseau moved to Image Comics
. The reasons for the move included a perception of apathy for the series on the part of Dark Horse. "Craig and I were feeling zero love from Dark Horse," said DeZago, "They did nothing at all to promote our second series, Second Chances, when it came out and were very slow at getting back to us with any sales or financial information. People would come up to our table and claim that they had never even heard of the book. Craig and I would go to shows/conventions and find that Dark Horse didn’t even have our book at their booth!" Once the title had moved from Dark Horse, Image Comics
subsequently discarded the mini-series concept and relaunched the title as an ongoing series
and it now appears as a quarterly title.
Rousseau has stated his admiration for both writer DeZago and the series on more than one occasion. "We share the same sensibilities and wanted to do something that we wanted to read--crypto-zoological creatures, action, adventure, humor. The stories and characters have taken turns we hadn't planned on, and honestly, that's some of the fun of working on the book."
series titled Iron Man and the Armor Wars, which Marvel has described as being, "Cash, cars, boats, houses…Tony Stark has got it all. The only thing that could ruin his day? If every single one of his IRON MAN armors were stolen, and then turned against him. Join us for a nail-biting, strapped-to-your-seat adventure as Tony battles his greatest creations, and tries to discover who could (gasp) OUTSMART him!?!? He has also been announced as the artist for a new Marvel title focusing on an all-female team, Marvel Her-Oes.
People of the United States
The people of the United States, also known as simply Americans or American people, are the inhabitants or citizens of the United States. The United States is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds...
comic book artist
Comic Book Artist
Comic Book Artist was an American magazine founded by Jon B. Cooke devoted to anecdotal histories of American comic books, with emphasis on comics published since the 1960s...
.
During his career Rousseau has worked for various comic book companies, but is best known for his work on DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
titles like Harley Quinn
Harley Quinn
Harley Quinn was first introduced as a villain on September 11, 1992, in the animated series Batman: The Animated Series, later adapted into DC Comics' Batman comic books. As suggested by her name , she is clad in the manner of a traditional harlequin jester...
, Batman Beyond
Batman Beyond
Batman Beyond is an American animated television series created by Warner Bros. Animation in collaboration with DC Comics as a continuation of the Batman legacy...
and Impulse
Impulse (DC Comics)
Impulse is an identity shared by three comic book superheroes published by DC Comics.-Publication history:Kent Shakespeare was the first DC Comics superhero known as Impulse, he debuted in Legion of Super-Heroes vol. 4 #12 . Bart Allen is the second DC Comics superhero known as Impulse, he debuted...
. He also worked for Disney Adventures
Disney Adventures
Disney Adventures was a children's entertainment and educational magazine published ten times per year by The Walt Disney Company. It should not be confused with the Disney Magazine...
(Kim Possible
Kim Possible
Kim Possible is an American animated television series about a teenage crime fighter who has the task of dealing with worldwide, family, and school issues every day. The show is action-oriented, but also has a light-hearted atmosphere and often lampoons the conventions and clichés of the...
), Beckett
Beckett
- People :* Arthur William à Beckett , English journalist and man of letters* Barry Beckett , American musician* Billy Beckett , English footballer...
(Ruule: Kiss and Tell, Ronin Hood of the 47 Samurai
Ronin Hood of the 47 Samurai
Ronin Hood of the 47 Samurai is a graphic novel from Beckett Comics/Image Comics written by Jeff Amano and pencilled by Craig Rousseau...
, The Cobbler’s Monster), Image Comics
Image Comics
Image Comics is a United States comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties. It was immediately successful, and remains...
(Tellos: The Last Heist, Tales of Tellos, Invincible Handbook, Monster Pile-up) and 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...
' Creative Services.
He has additionally drawn, and co-created with Todd DeZago
Todd DeZago
Todd Dezago is an American comic book writer. He is best known for his collaborations with penciller Mike Wieringo on The Sensational Spider-Man and their creator-owned fantasy series Tellos, which premiered in 1999, as well as for co-creating Young Justice with artist Todd Nauck in the 1998...
, The Perhapanauts
The Perhapanauts
The Perhapanauts is an American comic book series created by writer Todd Dezago and artist Craig Rousseau in 2005.The first two mini-series, "First Blood" and "Second Chances," were published by Dark Horse Comics, although it was announced on October 31, 2007, that forthcoming Perhapanauts comics...
for Dark Horse
Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
and Image Comics
Image Comics
Image Comics is a United States comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties. It was immediately successful, and remains...
(Perhapanauts: First Blood and Perhapanauts: Second Chances). More recently, he has drawn Marvel's Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane
Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane
Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane is an American comic book series focusing on a teenage Mary Jane, the love interest of superhero Spider-Man. The series, published by Marvel Comics, is a teen drama set outside the regular Marvel continuity, and aimed at teenage girls, as opposed to the traditional male...
.
Early career
Growing up Craig Rousseau never saw comic books as a viable career option, instead wanting to explore a career as a commercial artist. "(I) wasn't planning on doing comics for a living. I grew up reading comics with a few of my good friends and never outgrew them. I always wanted to get into the art field and my parents were very supportive of that."Rousseau began in comics in the mid 1990s while he was graduating from college with a double major in Painting/Illustration. His initial plan was to do freelance illustration and not comics, however he was hired to work at Marvel's Creative Service Department designing POGS and children's books and soon began illustrating comic books.
Rousseau's influences are varied. In a 1998 interview he stated, "There are lots of guys whose work I like and try to take something from and use it in my own way - Art Adams
Art Adams
Arthur "Art" Adams is an American comic book artist and writer. He first broke into the American comic book industry with the 1985 Marvel Comics miniseries Longshot...
, Mike Mignola
Mike Mignola
Michael Joseph "Mike" Mignola is an American comic book artist and writer who created the comic book series Hellboy for Dark Horse Comics. He has worked for animation projects such as Atlantis: The Lost Empire and the adaptation of his one shot comic book, The Amazing Screw-On Head.-Career:Mignola...
, Walt Simonson
Walt Simonson
Walter "Walt" Simonson is an American comic book writer and artist. After studying geology at Amherst College, he transferred to the Rhode Island School of Design, graduating in 1972. His thesis project there was The Star Slammers, which was published as a black and white promotional comic book...
, Teddy Kristianson, Mike Weiringo, and lots more." He has also drawn from non-comic book artists and has cited artists such as Norman Rockwell
Norman Rockwell
Norman Percevel Rockwell was a 20th-century American painter and illustrator. His works enjoy a broad popular appeal in the United States for their reflection of American culture. Rockwell is most famous for the cover illustrations of everyday life scenarios he created for The Saturday Evening...
, NC Wyeth, Aubrey Beardsley
Aubrey Beardsley
Aubrey Vincent Beardsley was an English illustrator and author. His drawings, done in black ink and influenced by the style of Japanese woodcuts, emphasized the grotesque, the decadent, and the erotic. He was a leading figure in the Aesthetic movement which also included Oscar Wilde and James A....
, Egon Schiele
Egon Schiele
Egon Schiele was an Austrian painter. A protégé of Gustav Klimt, Schiele was a major figurative painter of the early 20th century. His work is noted for its intensity, and the many self-portraits the artist produced...
and Mucha
Mucha
Mucha:* Alfons Maria Mucha , Czech artist* Bob Moha, born: Robert Mucha , a Milwaukee-based middleweight boxer* Jan Mucha * Ján Mucha , Slovak footballer...
as being strong influences on his work.
1990s
After sending his portfolio to various editors, Rousseau was hired by DCDC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
and assigned the book Impulse
Impulse (DC Comics)
Impulse is an identity shared by three comic book superheroes published by DC Comics.-Publication history:Kent Shakespeare was the first DC Comics superhero known as Impulse, he debuted in Legion of Super-Heroes vol. 4 #12 . Bart Allen is the second DC Comics superhero known as Impulse, he debuted...
. "...after sending samples everywhere," says Rousseau, "I got a fill-in issue of IMPULSE (22) and was asked to do 21 as well...next thing I knew, I had a full-time gig (which surprised me, 'cause those books looked TERRIBLE)!" He spent the bulk of the 1990s at DC and soon became the regular artist on Impulse from issue #27 and remained until issue #48. He returned for fill-in issues after that.
After Impulse, DC assigned him as the semi-regular artist on Batman Beyond
Batman Beyond
Batman Beyond is an American animated television series created by Warner Bros. Animation in collaboration with DC Comics as a continuation of the Batman legacy...
and Harley Quinn
Harley Quinn
Harley Quinn was first introduced as a villain on September 11, 1992, in the animated series Batman: The Animated Series, later adapted into DC Comics' Batman comic books. As suggested by her name , she is clad in the manner of a traditional harlequin jester...
. He also worked on titles such as Young Justice
Young Justice
Young Justice is a fictional DC Comics superhero team consisting of teenaged heroes. The team first appeared in Young Justice: The Secret , before graduating to their ongoing monthly series...
and Batman
Batman (comic book)
Batman is an ongoing comic book series featuring the DC Comics hero of the same name. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #27, published in May 1939. Batman proved to be so popular that a self-titled ongoing comic book series began publication in the spring of 1940...
titles, Gotham Adventures and Detective Comics
Detective Comics
Detective Comics is an American comic book series published monthly by DC Comics since 1937, best known for introducing the iconic superhero Batman in Detective Comics #27 . It is, along with Action Comics, the book that launched with the debut of Superman, one of the medium's signature series, and...
.
2000s
In 2001 Rousseau began work at Image ComicsImage Comics
Image Comics is a United States comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties. It was immediately successful, and remains...
by drawing Tellos: The Last Heist, when he was paired with legendary inker Terry Austin
Terry Austin (comics)
Terry Austin is an American comic book artist, working primarily as an inker. He is best known for his work embellishing John Byrne's pencils on The Uncanny X-Men from 1977–1981.-Early life and career:...
. During this time he branched out and worked for companies such as Beckett
Beckett
- People :* Arthur William à Beckett , English journalist and man of letters* Barry Beckett , American musician* Billy Beckett , English footballer...
(Ronin Hood of the 47 Samurai
Ronin Hood of the 47 Samurai
Ronin Hood of the 47 Samurai is a graphic novel from Beckett Comics/Image Comics written by Jeff Amano and pencilled by Craig Rousseau...
) and Portal Productions Studio (BOTS
Bots
Bots may refer to:* BOTS!!, a massively multiplayer online game distributed by Acclaim Games* Bots , open source EDI translator * Bots , a Dutch language folk rock group* British overseas territories...
). He also began work at Marvel
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...
, illustrating an issue of X-Men: First Class
X-Men: First Class
X-Men: First Class is a comic book series published by Marvel Comics starring the X-Men.-Publication history:The original series was an eight-issue limited series. It began in September 2006 and ended in April 2007. It was written by Jeff Parker and penciled by Roger Cruz...
, and Marvel Adventures Super Heroes. He also returned to DC to illustrate their children's safety book, Energy & Safety Adventures with the JLA. In 2008 he was the regular artist on the second series of Marvel's Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane
Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane
Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane is an American comic book series focusing on a teenage Mary Jane, the love interest of superhero Spider-Man. The series, published by Marvel Comics, is a teen drama set outside the regular Marvel continuity, and aimed at teenage girls, as opposed to the traditional male...
, a job that he relished for its change of pace. In a recent interview he stated, "It's a breath of fresh air since it's not so much costumes and superheroes. It's a lot of acting and facial expressions which can be a lot of fun. I'm at the point now where issue five is wrapping up and I'm going on to more mainstream superhero stuff, so it'll be nice to do more fight scenes and stuff like that. But the teenage girl stuff has been kinda fun."
Perhapanauts
In 2001 Rousseau helped develop and co-create the series Perhapanauts with writer Todd DeZagoTodd DeZago
Todd Dezago is an American comic book writer. He is best known for his collaborations with penciller Mike Wieringo on The Sensational Spider-Man and their creator-owned fantasy series Tellos, which premiered in 1999, as well as for co-creating Young Justice with artist Todd Nauck in the 1998...
. Rousseau and DeZago had previously worked together on DC's Impulse
Impulse (DC Comics)
Impulse is an identity shared by three comic book superheroes published by DC Comics.-Publication history:Kent Shakespeare was the first DC Comics superhero known as Impulse, he debuted in Legion of Super-Heroes vol. 4 #12 . Bart Allen is the second DC Comics superhero known as Impulse, he debuted...
title and DeZago pitched the initial idea for Perhapanauts. "When I first pitched The Perhapanauts to Craig," says DeZago, "I think I told him that it would be part X-Files, part Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible
Mission: Impossible is an American television series which was created and initially produced by Bruce Geller. It chronicled the missions of a team of secret American government agents known as the Impossible Missions Force . The leader of the team was Jim Phelps, played by Peter Graves, except in...
, and part Archie comic
Archie Comics
Archie Comics is an American comic book publisher headquartered in the Village of Mamaroneck, Town of Mamaroneck, New York, known for its many series featuring the fictional teenagers Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge, Reggie Mantle and Jughead Jones. The characters were created by...
. (I had imagined that it would be a Saturday morning cartoon of a comic book; a spooky Scooby Doo-type adventure, and then a few pages of Archie
Archie
-People:* Archie Karas , a Greek gambler known for turning $50 into $40 million before losing it all* Archie Brown , a British political scientist and historian* Archie Macpherson, Scottish sports broadcaster* Archie Thompson, Australian footballer...
-like jokes and gags.) As the first issues unfolded, however, with our concept still fairly ambiguous, we found that it was developing its own voice, its own 'flavor', and, like parents with a young child, we let it go and discover its own identity." Together the duo took the concept to Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
where a mini-series
Limited series
A limited series is a comic book series with a set number of installments. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is determined before production and it differs from a one shot in that it is composed of multiple issues....
was published, after which DeZago and Rousseau moved to Image Comics
Image Comics
Image Comics is a United States comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties. It was immediately successful, and remains...
. The reasons for the move included a perception of apathy for the series on the part of Dark Horse. "Craig and I were feeling zero love from Dark Horse," said DeZago, "They did nothing at all to promote our second series, Second Chances, when it came out and were very slow at getting back to us with any sales or financial information. People would come up to our table and claim that they had never even heard of the book. Craig and I would go to shows/conventions and find that Dark Horse didn’t even have our book at their booth!" Once the title had moved from Dark Horse, Image Comics
Image Comics
Image Comics is a United States comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties. It was immediately successful, and remains...
subsequently discarded the mini-series concept and relaunched the title as an ongoing series
Ongoing series
The term "ongoing series" is used in contrast to limited series , a one shot , a graphic novel, or a trade paperback...
and it now appears as a quarterly title.
Rousseau has stated his admiration for both writer DeZago and the series on more than one occasion. "We share the same sensibilities and wanted to do something that we wanted to read--crypto-zoological creatures, action, adventure, humor. The stories and characters have taken turns we hadn't planned on, and honestly, that's some of the fun of working on the book."
Further career
Roussea remains active in comic books and also produces commissions when available. His recent comic book work includes a four part Marvel ComicsMarvel 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...
series titled Iron Man and the Armor Wars, which Marvel has described as being, "Cash, cars, boats, houses…Tony Stark has got it all. The only thing that could ruin his day? If every single one of his IRON MAN armors were stolen, and then turned against him. Join us for a nail-biting, strapped-to-your-seat adventure as Tony battles his greatest creations, and tries to discover who could (gasp) OUTSMART him!?!? He has also been announced as the artist for a new Marvel title focusing on an all-female team, Marvel Her-Oes.
External links
- Perhapanauts official web-site
- Craig Rousseau at Comic Art House
- Craig Rousseau at Video Surf