How did you first become involved with
2099?
James:
I was freelancing for White Wolf Games doing illustration
for their Vampire RPG's, and some smaller comic book
publishers, while also working full time at a Kinko's in
Green Bay, Wisconsin. My agent at the time asked me to do a
test image based on Ashley Wood's work for an opportunity to
be his inker. My memory is not perfect, but I think Ash
called me at Kinko's expressing he liked my test piece. Joey
Cavalieri, the editor on Ghost Rider 2099, called me at work
soon after and offered me the job. It was really exciting
for me.
What recollections do you have about
working with editor Joey Cavalieiri?
James:
Joey was great. He took care of us, Ashley and I, For me it
was my first mainstream comics job. I would consider him a
mentor in many ways. Years later I got to visit him when he
was at DC which was really nice. Joe was always great to me.
What do you recall about working with
Ashley Wood? Was he a tough artist to ink for?
James:
Ashley is hilarious, and we formed a fast friendship during
our time on GR2099. He was in Perth, Australia and I was in
Green Bay, Wi, so to save time he would fax me pencils and
more often just his layouts which I would lightbox and do
finishes/ ink on the board. I maybe inked 4-5 pages of real,
physical pencils of his and a cover. It was a challenge to
ink him, but I learned a lot from Ashley and I grateful for
the experience. My phone bills were hilariously expensive,
but I thought it was worth every penny to build a solid
relationship with Ash.
Do you have a favorite issue or cover?
James:
I actually did pencils and inks for the last issue, so since
it was my first gig doing pencils, that might be my
favorite, but issue 16 was the only time I got to ink the
cover, so that issue was really special for me. Truthfully,
since it was my first job at Marvel, I really enjoyed it as
a whole experience.
What do you recall about the
cancellation?
James:
I remember that the sales were dropping and that around that
time Ash decided to leave the book. I was asked to finish
the series doing pencils and inks, so I stayed on. It was an
opportunity to graduate from just doing ink work for me, so
I took it. Sadly, It was not long after in 1996 that Marvel
filed for bankruptcy. I left the comics industry full time
to work in concept art for video games, with only one break
to do Bad Planet for RAW Studios.