| Type | Comic publisher |
|---|---|
| Industry | Comics |
| Founded | 1994 |
| Founder(s) | Jimmy Palmiotti, Joe Quesada |
| Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois |
Event Comics was an American independent comic book publisher founded by veteran artists Jimmy Palmiotti and Joe Quesada. The company published during the years 1994 to 1998, at which point it was contracted to form the Marvel Knights imprint for Marvel Comics.
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Penciller Quesada and inker Palmiotti, after working well together on various projects such as Valiant Comics' X-O Manowar, and following the creation of their first joint project in Kid Death & Fluffy for a Creators Universe card series, decided to create their own studio with their own original characters. They spent two weeks in the Florida Keys developing Ash, their flagship character. Ash #1 (1994) was met with great reader response, and Event hit the ground running.
Event published several series starring Ash, as well as stand-alone crossovers with another Event title, 22 Brides. The initial series, simply titled Ash, ran for a total of seven issues, with issue #6 leading directly into issue #0. The second series, Ash: The Fire Within ran for three issues. The final series to focus on the title character was Ash: Cinder & Smoke, which ran for a total of six issues. Ash also co-starred in the intercompany crossover Azrael/Ash, co-published with DC Comics in 1997.
Another popular Event character was Painkiller Jane, who made her first appearance in 22 Brides #1 (1995). Originally a five-issue mini-series, Painkiller Jane went on to star in numerous crossover books with the likes of The Darkness, Darkchylde, Vampirella, and Hellboy.
In 1997, Event launched Crimson Plague, the first creator-owned comic by popular veteran cartoonist George Pérez. Originally intended as a six-issue mini-series about an alien with ultra-toxic blood, Pérez produced only one issue. (He later temporarily revived the title with Image Comics in 2000.)
Other Event Comics titles included Thrax (1996), the Kid Death & Fluffy Spring Break Special (1996), the Kid Death & Fluffy Halloween Special (1997), Legends of Kid Death & Fluffy (1997), and Here Come the Big People (1997).
In 1998, the Event Comics team was contracted by Marvel Comics to breathe new life into some of their second-tier characters. Under the designation of "Marvel Knights," Palmiotti and Quesada were given creative control of Black Panther, Daredevil, The Punisher and The Inhumans. Event hired the creative teams for the line while Marvel published them, and in September 1998 the Marvel Knights imprint was born.
As Marvel Knights editor, Quesada encouraged experimentation and used his contacts in the indie comics world to bring in new creators such as David W. Mack, Michael Avon Oeming, Brian Michael Bendis, Garth Ennis, and Steve Dillon. The Event Comics creative teams eventually produced popular, well-regarded Knights runs like Kevin Smith & Quesada's Daredevil and Christopher Priest's Black Panther.
Once Marvel Knights was implemented back into Marvel proper, Quesada and Palmiotti returned to the Marvel fold, and Event Comics ceased publishing. In 2000, Quesada ascended to the role of Marvel's editor-in-chief.