Spiderman & Black Cat (ASM 15)

It was the early fall of 2007 and Alex had just completed an art purchase from me. He had bought quite a few of Mike’s pieces over the past couple of years, and we had gotten to know each other pretty well. He really enjoyed Mike’s rendition of his favorite Marvel and DC characters, and owning the originals was something he was quite keen on. Alex would hit me up every couple of months, asking what was new or on the way, just making sure he was up to date on everything we had on the horizon.

Now, even though Mike had the opportunity to illustrate a lot of great characters during our time at DC and Marvel, there were always a few that people had hoped he would have drawn a lot more of! Everyone (well, most everyone) really loved his Batman, and of course whatever popular female character he drew, he always knocked out of the park (Supergirl anyone?!?). But Alex had a few favorites of his own, and if you’ve ever spent a few minutes perusing through his gallery, you’ll notice that Spiderman and Iron Man are two of them. However, those were two of the many characters that for some reason, Mike just didn’t get to draw often enough. Something had to be done to correct this, so Alex inquired about a commission.

Commissions for Mike were a tricky thing. Not that he didn’t like doing them, it was just with his reoccurring health issues, finding time outside of his normal work schedule to get them finished up was a tough endeavor. But Mike, being who he was, always tried to make time for everyone. In this case, our friend Alex wanted a cool commission, so who was he to say no? I asked Alex what he wanted, and I received back a wish list of several pair-ups, versus battles, location sets, you name it. Obviously, he had been thinking about this for a while. Ultimately, he came to a decision...but the holidays had arrived as well. I remember receiving an email from Alex in mid December wishing us a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. In that email he also said, “I hope this coming year is even better than the past one and that you’re both healthy and happy.” A great sentiment, but one that just couldn’t be followed through on.

Mike had fallen ill again in early 2008 and was doing everything he could to get better. All I could do was help him out with anything and everything possible, try to keep his spirits up, and just be there for him. Maneuvering through work assignments at that time was a slow crawl at best. We were already supposed to be well into our big Marvel project by then, but Mike was only able to do a random cover here or there. Plus, he was still yearning to finish up Soulfire somehow, so he’d try to get through a page bit by bit and turn one in as often as he could. Alex knew of Mike’s situation and was always kind in checking in on him and seeing how he was doing. Not once did he ever ask about the commission we had talked about.

The first annual New York Comic Con was coming up and I knew I’d be seeing Alex there. Mike couldn’t go since he was still hurting, but he had slowly been working on the commission for me to bring for Alex. He appreciated greatly how good Alex was to us over the years, and he really wanted to surprise him with something special. The piece you see here is what Mike did. I brought it to the con for Alex to pick up. I had shown it to him beforehand in an email, but seeing this in person is a much different story than looking at a small jpg. Needless to say, he was a very happy camper :) We talked about doing another commission. Mike was getting better and was up for it. We were getting ready to plan it out and get things rolling. But god had other plans.

Even though on the surface, you see Spidey and Black Cat in this piece, I also see a heart that beat stronger than any other, a soul that burned brighter than the stars, and the perseverance of a person that loved life and lived to create what you’re looking at. I’m so proud Alex is the owner of Mike’s last commission. I know he’ll cherish it forever and I hope you all enjoy it as well.

2016 UPDATE: This will be used as the cover to Amazing Spiderman 15