Awesome Fat Guy of the Week.

I am really looking forward to doing this post. Today I get to talk about a man who works in my favorite medium. I am an unabashed Comic Book fan. I don't refer to myself as a Nerd nor do I call comics Graphic Novels. Which means that I do not fall into the "Nerd" or "Hipster" categories. I just like to read comics. I love to read comics. I am a comic book fan. One of my favorites writers in the genre is Robert Kirkman. He is the Awesome Fat Guy of The Week.

Kirkman is an interesting man. He has become a titan of the Comic Book world while not working full-time for Marvel or DC. He has done this by sticking with Image comics. While Image is arguably the third largest publisher of Comics in America it isn't in the same league as the big two. As such seeing someone reach the level of popularity and prominence that Kirkman has, while remaining separate form the two largest publishers, is surprising the say the least.

Kirkman started his career in 2000 with the superhero parody Battle Pope. The series, which Kirkman co-created with Tony Moore, was self-published under the Funk-O-Tron label. Later Kirkman and artist Cory Walker were hired do a SuperPatriot miniseries after pitching a new series titled Science Dog. While working on that book Kirkman teamed with E.J. Su and created the series Tech Jacket, which ran for six issues.

In 2003, Kirkman and Cory Walker created Invincible for Image. This was when Kirkman really hit his stride. The series, which surrounded the life of the son of the worlds greatest hero, was an instant hit. In 2005, Paramount Pictures announced it had bought the rights to make an Invincible movie. They hired Kirkman to write the screenplay. The movie has yet to be made but considering the continuing success of the series it is only a matter of time.

A few months after the debut of Invincible Kirkman and Tony Moore debuted The Walking Dead. The series, which is a Zombie Apocalypse book, is probably Kirkman's greatest success. The Comic lead to the current TV series on AMC. Recently the show was renewed for a third season is one of the most popular and successful shows on Cable.

Along with the two major series Kirkman has helped to flesh out the Image universe with a number of other titles. He has created and written many shorter less successful series, among them are The Astounding Wolf-Man, Brit, Capes, Guardians of the Globe, and Super Dinosaur. While none of these series lasted as long as Invincible and The Walking Dead the characters in them have become mainstays of the Image universe.

I mentioned earlier that Kirkman has not consistently worked for Marvel or DC. That is true but he has done freelance work for Marvel sporadically over the years. During that time he has written Captain America, the Fantastic Four, Ultimate X-Men, and a few of the lesser known Marvel characters like Ant-Man and Destroyer.

Kirkman's commitment to Image has lead to him becoming one of the five partners of Image Comics. He is the only partner who isn't a co-founder of the company. Since then Kirkman has launched and is running the Image Comics Imprint known as Skybound. All of Kirkman's series have been joined under the the umbrella of the new Imprint. Future non-Kirkman series will be published under the Imprint in exchange for a partnership stake in the properties.

Not everything has gone perfectly for Kirkman. Recently he has been hit with a lawsuit by former collaborater Tony Moore. Moore claims that he was tricked into signing over his rights to the Walking Dead. The case is still in litigation but Kirkman has stated that both he and Moore had legal representation at the time and that Moore is misrepresenting things.

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I know what you're thinking. So a Comic Book writer has written Comics. What's the big deal about that? Well how many Comic Book guys do you know that have been on the View? Kirkman has. That is mainstream success. The guy is one of the biggest names in Comics and his work is making its way into other mediums. I'm not going to say that he is the next Stan Lee but the similarities are there. That is saying a lot. Stan Lee has been responsible for some of the greatest characters to ever see the light of day. Kirkman isn't there yet but I think he will be. He will be one of the greatest creative minds in the genre. Mark my words. That is why Robert Kirkman is the Awesome Fat Guy of the Week. 

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