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Ethan Van Sciver

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Ethan Van Sciver
Van Sciver in October 2010
BornEthan Daniel Van Sciver
(1974-09-03)September 3, 1974(age 49)
Utah,U.S.
Area(s)Writer,Penciller,Inker
Notable works
The Flash: Rebirth
Green Lantern: Rebirth
Sinestro Corps War
New X-Men
Cyberfrog
Official website
In this article, thesurnameisVan Sciver,notSciver.

Ethan Daniel Van Sciver[1](/vænˈskaɪvər/;[2]born September 3, 1974[3]) is an Americancomics artist.He illustrated and drew covers for a number of superhero titles in the 2000s, primarily forDC Comics,includingGreen LanternandThe Flash: Rebirth,andNew X-MenforMarvel Comics.

In the late 2010s, his "ComicArtistPro Secrets" channel onYouTubefocused on right-wing social commentary, through which he became a central figure inComicsgate.

Early life

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Ethan Van Sciver was born September 3, 1974[3]inUtah.He and his younger brother,alternative cartoonistNoah Van Sciver,[4]grew up inMerchantvilleinsouthern New Jersey,[1]and he graduated fromPennsauken High Schoolin 1992.[5]

Van Sciver decided on a career in the comic-book field after seeing the 1978 movieSupermanas a child, but only began to read comics intently withJohn Byrne'sThe Man of Steelin 1986. He citesChris ClaremontandJon Bogdanove'sFantastic Four vs. the X-Men(1987) as a strong influence.[6]

Career

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While in high school, Van Sciver did various art-related jobs, which included painting murals of Native Americans, drawing caricatures for mall customers, illustrating children's books, and airbrushing t-shirts.[1][5]

Van Sciver's first comics work was published in 1994, writing and drawing what he later called "a horrible little character called Cyberfrog",[6]published byHall of Heroesand laterHarris Comics.[1][7]

Mainstream publishers

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His first work forDC Comicswas in 1998,[7]which led to him being hired in 1999 as the artist on the seriesImpulse,with writerTodd Dezago.[7]This was followed in 2001 by the first of what would become several collaborations with writerGeoff Johns,on the superhero-horror one-shotThe Flash: Iron Heights.[6]

Ethan Van Sciver drawing at Comicon fest, Athens, 2008

Van Sciver was hired by Marvel Comics in 2001 to work onNew X-Men,a retitled and revamped series (beginning with #114) written byGrant Morrison.[7]The series' primary artistFrank Quitelywas not expected to illustrate the necessary twelve issues per year, so Van Sciver was scheduled to illustrate two issues per year, which expanded to more issues asIgor Kordeywas also hired as a semi-regular artist.[6]Van Sciver drew a total of four issues. In issue #133 of this series, Morrison and Van Sciver co-created the characterDust,aSunni Muslimmutantwho can transform into sand.[8]

Returning to work primarily for DC, Van Sciver worked with Johns on the six-issue miniseriesGreen Lantern: Rebirth(2004) which restored theSilver AgecharacterHal Jordanas the publisher's primaryGreen Lantern.They then worked together on an ongoing series featuring the character.[9]During this time Van Sciver was one of the artists who contributed to a series of instructional books for amateur comics artists, published byWizardmagazine.[10][11][12][13]

In 2006, Van Sciver penciled the cover art for metal bandWinger'sfourth studio album.The cover art was also sold as a poster called "Guardian of Freedom".[14]

Johns, Van Sciver,Dave Gibbons,Ivan Reis,and others produced "Sinestro Corps War",a high-profile 11-issue story appearing in DC's two Green Lantern monthly series in 2007.[15][16]Van Sciver and Johns produced the six-issue mini-seriesThe Flash: Rebirth(2009) which – like the earlier Green Lantern mini-series – reintroduced the Silver Age characterBarry Allen as the Flash.[17]The same year, he drew variant covers for DC'scrossover storylineBlackest Night.[7]In 2011, as part of DC's "New 52"initiative, he was the artist – and co-writer withGail Simone– ofThe Fury of Firestorm: The Nuclear Men.[7]Starting in 2016, as part of the "DC Rebirth"relaunch of DC's titles, Van Sciver drew issues of theHal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corpsseries.[18]

Van Sciver received a "special thanks" credit in the filmsJustice League,Zack Snyder's Justice League,andThe Suicide Squad.[19][20][21]

Independent work

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In 2017, Van Sciver penciled illustrations for12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos,aself-helpbook by Canadian psychologist and social activistJordan Peterson.[22]No longer employed by DC, in 2018 Van Sciver announced that he would instead produce his own comics,[23]and in 2019 he publishedCyberfrog: Bloodhoneyfeaturing his early character Cyberfrog, for which he had raised over $500,000 through crowdfunding.[24]A campaign in 2020 raised over $1 million for a follow-upCyberfrog: Rekt Planet,promised to ship in 2021.[25]

Political commentary

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In 2017, Van Sciver began aYouTube channelcalledComicArtistPro Secrets,which originally featured demonstrations of illustration tools and techniques, but which later focused on commentary about comics, other comics creators, and fan culture.[26][27]Through that channel, Van Sciver became a central figure inComicsgate,a movement whose members oppose what they see as forced political themes and anti-consumer practices in current mainstream superhero comics,[28][29]such as cultural diversity and progressive politics. The movement has been criticized for harassment tactics in online campaigns against those who produce these comics and work in the industry.[30][31][32]Van Sciver faced criticism over an announced collaboration with cartoonistDave Sim,whose views about women have been described by critics as misogynistic. Van Sciver initially defended Sim's past relationship with a 14-year-old girl, likening it to that ofElvisandPriscilla Presley,until he learned more details about Sim's relationship with her, and cancelled the project.[33]

Van Sciver has also been a prominent figure in the Fandom Menace, aStar Warsfan movement with similar goals and methods to Comicsgate.[34][35]In 2018, Van Sciver expressed his displeasure at the direction that the franchise had taken by producing a video of himself opening and destroying action figures ofThe Last JedicharacterRose Tico.[36]

Following the2021 Atlanta spa shootings,in which eight people, including six Asian women, were killed,[37]Van Sciver referenced the incident during a livestream group discussion on film directorZack Snyder,commenting, "He'll never stop me from killing Chinese people, ever. I don't care how many movies he makes. Give me aTommy Gunand line them up against the wall, as the greatStan Leeonce said. "[35][38]

In March 2023, Van Sciver publicly criticized actorPedro Pascalfor not having defended hisMandalorianco-starGina Carano[39][40]whenLucasfilmfired her from that series in 2021[41]for comments that were interpreted as a comparison of treatment ofAmerican conservativestoJews in Nazi Germany.[42][43][44]During the March 12, 2023 telecast of the95th Academy Awards,Van Sciver reacted to the appearance of Pascal, who is Chilean-American, presenting an award with actressElizabeth Olsen,by tweeting a screenshot of them with the caption "Oh, it’s this asshole. Thanks for standing behind Gina, you flabby coward."[39][40][45]The tweet drew backlash from Chilean Twitter users, resulting in thousands of comments critical of Van Sciver's original tweet. Van Sciver responded to this by posting recipes and other phrases in Spanish, and tweeting the following day, "I seem to have pissed off Chile last night. Lmfao. My bad."[39][40][46]

Personal life

[edit]

As of August 2005, Van Sciver resided in Orlando, Florida,[1]where he lived for several years. As of May 2015 he lived in North Carolina, but was in the process of moving back to New Jersey to be with his girlfriend Andrea, whom he met when he was 18.[5]

He is aRepublican[47]and a formerMormon.[48][49][50]

Awards and recognition

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Bibliography

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As artist unless otherwise noted.

Non-fiction

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Splatto Comics

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  • Jawbreakers: Lost SoulsTPB (2019), cover art
  • Jawbreakers: GØD-K1NGTPB (2019), cover art

ALL CAPS Comics

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  • Cyberfrog: Bloodhoney(2019), artist and writer
  • Cyberfrog: The Diary of Heather Swain(2019), artist and writer
  • Cyberfrog: Unfrogettable Tales #1–2(2020), artist and writer
  • Reignbow The Brute(2021), artist and writer
  • Cyberfrog #2: Rekt Planet(2023), artist and writer
  • Salamandroid: Death's Sting(2023), artist and writer
  • Cyberfrog: Red Extermination (2024)

DC Comics

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Hall of Heroes

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  • CyberFrog#1–2 (1994), writer/artist
  • Fuzzy Buzzard and Friends(April, 1995), writer/artist

Harris Comics

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  • CyberFrogVol 2 #0–4 (1996), writer/artist
    • CyberFrog: Censored#1 (1996) one-shot, writer/artist
    • CyberFrog: Reservoir Frog#1–2 (1996) miniseries, writer/artist
    • CyberFrog vs Creed#1 (1997); CyberFrog (co-writer/artist)
    • CyberFrog: 3rd Anniversary#1–2 (1997) Special miniseries, writer/artist
    • CyberFrog: The Origin - Ashcan Preview#1 (1997) one-shot, writer/artist
    • CyberFrog: Amphibionix#1 (1999) one-shot, writer/artist
  • Vampirella:Crossover Gallery#1 (1997)
  • Vampirella/Shadowhawk:Creatures of the Night(1995) #1

Marvel Comics

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Cover work

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  • Heroes Reborn Remnants#1
  • New X-MenTPB By Grant Morrison Ultimate Collection 2
  • New X-Men#124–125, 128, 130–131, 134, 146
  • Isom#2 Cover B by Rippaverse Comics

WildStorm

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  • Claw of the Conquered#1a, 1b (2006–2007) (cover artist)

Wizard

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  • Entertainment, Wizard (2005).Wizard How to Draw- TPB vol. 01 "The Best of Basic Training: Volume 1".Wizard Entertainment.ISBN0976287404.(co-writer)
  • Entertainment, Wizard (2005).Wizard How to Draw- TPB vol. 02 "Heroic Anatomy".Wizard Entertainment.ISBN0976287455.(co-writer)
  • Wizard How to Draw- TPB vol. 03 "Character Creation".Wizard. 2005.ISBN0976287471.(co-writer)
  • Wizard How to Draw- TPB vol. 04 "Storytelling".Wizard Entertainment. 2005.ISBN0977861309.(co-writer)

References

[edit]
  1. ^abcdeStorniolo, Mike (August 13, 2005)."Ethan Van Sciver: In Brightest Day..."Comics Bulletin.Archived fromthe originalon May 23, 2011.RetrievedOctober 2,2008.(No date on article; date appears in the website'sarticles listing.)
  2. ^"Interview with Ethan Van Sciver",YouTube,June 4, 2007,retrievedJuly 25,2022
  3. ^abMiller, John Jackson(June 10, 2005)."Comics Industry Birthdays".Comics Buyer's Guide.Archived fromthe originalon February 18, 2011.RetrievedDecember 12,2010.
  4. ^"Noah Van Sciver".Lambiek Comiclopedia.April 14, 2012.Archivedfrom the original on June 1, 2016.
  5. ^abcSinatra, Frank (May 8, 2015)."Homegrown Talent Van Sciver Draws Green Lantern, Batman, And More".All Around Pennsauken.Archived fromthe originalon February 12, 2022.RetrievedFebruary 12,2022.
  6. ^abcdCollins, Sean T. (July 21, 2008)."CCI: Spotlight on Ethan Van Sciver".Comic Book Resources.Archivedfrom the original on September 6, 2015.RetrievedJanuary 6,2015.
  7. ^abcdefEthan Van Sciverat theGrand Comics Database
  8. ^Strömberg, Fredrik (2014). "Race and Ethnicity". In Booker, M. Keith (ed.).Comics Through Time.Vol. 4. Santa Barbara, California: Greenwood. p. 1710.ISBN9780313397509.
  9. ^Cowsill, Alan (2010). "2000s". In Dolan, Hannah (ed.).DC Comics Year By Year A Visual Chronicle.London, United Kingdom:Dorling Kindersley.p. 315.ISBN978-0-7566-6742-9.Geoff Johns' story was beautifully brought to life by penciller Ethan Van Sciver.
  10. ^Wizard How to Draw- TPB vol. 01 "The Best of Basic Training: Volume 1".Los Angeles, California:Wizard Entertainment.2005.ISBN0976287404.
  11. ^Wizard How to Draw- TPB vol. 02 "Heroic Anatomy".Los Angeles, California: Wizard Entertainment. 2005.ISBN0976287455.
  12. ^Wizard How to Draw- TPB vol. 03 "Character Creation".Los Angeles, California: Wizard Entertainment. 2005.ISBN0976287471.
  13. ^Wizard How to Draw- TPB vol. 04 "Storytelling".Los Angeles, California: Wizard Entertainment. 2005.ISBN0977861309.
  14. ^"KIP WINGER Honored by United States Government And Military".BLABBERMOUTH.NET.February 16, 2009.RetrievedJanuary 25,2018.
  15. ^Cowsill "2000s" in Dolan, p. 330
  16. ^"Top 25 Comic Battles - #6 The Sinestro Corps War".Comic Book Resources. 2008.Archivedfrom the original on December 4, 2009.
  17. ^Cowsill "2000s" in Dolan, p. 337: "Writer Geoff Johns and artist Ethan Van Sciver...joined forces again to relaunch Barry Allen as the Flash."
  18. ^Marston, George (April 5, 2016)."Rebirth Brings Hal Back to the Green Lantern Corps".Newsarama.Archivedfrom the original on April 20, 2016.Hal Jordan will be flying with a familiar co-pilot as recent Green Lantern writer Robert Venditti will continue to write his adventures in the new ongoing series Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps. Also joining him is classic Green Lantern artist Ethan Van Sciver.
  19. ^Justice League.(2017) End Credits
  20. ^Zack Snyder's Justice League.(2021) End Credits
  21. ^The Suicide Squad.(2021) End Credits.
  22. ^Peterson, Jordan(2018).12 Rules for Life.Toronto, Ontario:Random House of Canada.p. iii.ISBN978-0-345-81602-3.
  23. ^Arrant, Chris (June 13, 2018)."Ethan Van Sciver Exits DC Comics".Newsarama.Archivedfrom the original on June 14, 2018.
  24. ^"Ethan Van Sciver's CYBERFROG:BLOODHONEY Comic Book".Indiegogo.RetrievedJuly 31,2020.
  25. ^"Ethan Van Sciver's CYBERFROG 2: REKT PLANET".Indiegogo.RetrievedJuly 31,2020.
  26. ^Krishna, Rachael (March 22, 2018)."There's An Online Harassment Campaign Underway Against People Advocating For Diversity In Comics".BuzzFeed.Archivedfrom the original on July 18, 2018.
  27. ^Elbein, Asher (April 2, 2018)."#Comicsgate: How an Anti-Diversity Harassment Campaign in Comics Got Ugly—and Profitable".The Daily Beast.Archivedfrom the original on June 17, 2018.
  28. ^Lacina, Bethany (March 15, 2019)."The smash success of 'Captain Marvel' shows us that conservatives are ignoring the alt-right".The Washington Post.Archived fromthe originalon March 16, 2019.RetrievedDecember 15,2022.
  29. ^"Ethan Van Sciver talks Comicsgate, the industry and his love of cybernetic amphibians".Culture of Gaming.September 13, 2018.RetrievedApril 20,2019.
  30. ^Ennis, Tricia (September 7, 2018)."Widespread creator outcry won't be enough to end Comicsgate".Syfy.Archived fromthe originalon September 9, 2018.RetrievedSeptember 9,2018.
  31. ^Riesman, Abraham."Comicsgate Is a Nightmare Tearing Comics Fandom Apart — So What Happens Next?".Vulture.Archivedfrom the original on September 9, 2018.RetrievedSeptember 9,2018.
  32. ^"There's An Online Harassment Campaign Underway Against People Advocating For Diversity In Comics Called #Comicsgate".BuzzFeed News.Archivedfrom the original on October 14, 2018.RetrievedOctober 31,2018.
  33. ^Johnston, Rich(January 11, 2019)."A New Year's Ballad of Dave Sim and Ethan Van Sciver".Bleeding Cool.Archivedfrom the original on February 9, 2022.RetrievedApril 20,2019.Van Sciver had no idea however, it seems. Initially, he compared the situation to that of Elvis and Priscilla Presley...Upon further review and investigation, I'm just going to write CYBERFROG REKT PLANET my damn self.
  34. ^Burwick, Kevin (July 17, 2019)."Daisy Ridley Doesn't Think Disgruntled 'Star Wars' Fans Need to Be So Vicious".Movieweb.Archivedfrom the original on February 9, 2022.RetrievedAugust 16,2022.
  35. ^abGoldberg, Matthew (March 3, 2021)."The Rise of the True Fan: Hate Groups, Radicalization, and Star Wars".The CTEC Newsletter.Archivedfrom the original on July 31, 2022.RetrievedJuly 28,2021.
  36. ^Orange, Alan B. (April 29, 2018)."Watch Disgruntled 'Star Wars' Fan Hilariously Unbox Unwanted Rose Tico Toys".Movieweb.Archived fromthe originalon January 23, 2022.RetrievedJuly 28,2021.
  37. ^Hollis, Henri; Abusaid, Shaddi; Stevens, Alexis (March 16, 2021)."'A crime against us all': Atlanta mayor condemns deadly spa shooting spree ".The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.Archivedfrom the original on June 22, 2022.RetrievedAugust 16,2022.
  38. ^"(Untitled)".Rewriting Ripley Pod. March 18, 2021.Archivedfrom the original on August 16, 2022.RetrievedAugust 16,2022– viaTwitter.
  39. ^abcCaipillán, Constanza Bello (March 14, 2023)."Adam Levine 2.0: Chilenos arremeten en masa contra Ethan Van Sciver tras burla hacia Pedro Pascal"(in Spanish). biobiochile.cl.Archivedfrom the original on March 14, 2023.RetrievedMarch 14,2023.
  40. ^abcBravo, Daniela (March 14, 2023)."'Consíganse un mejor héroe': Dibujante de Marvel y DC Comics desató la furia de los chilenos tras burlarse de Pedro Pascal "(in Spanish).Teletrece.Archivedfrom the original on March 14, 2023.RetrievedMarch 14,2023.
  41. ^D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 11, 2021)."Lucasfilm Calls Gina Carano Social Media Posts 'Abhorrent'; Actress No Longer Employed By 'Mandalorian' Studio".Deadline Hollywood.Archivedfrom the original on March 9, 2023.RetrievedMarch 14,2023.
  42. ^Lenker, Maureen Lee (February 10, 2021)."'The Mandalorian' star Gina Carano faces backlash for controversial Instagram posts ".Entertainment Weekly.Archivedfrom the original on February 11, 2021.RetrievedMarch 14,2023.
  43. ^D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 11, 2021)."'The Mandalorian' Actress Gina Carano & UTA Part Ways In Wake Of Social Media Controversy ".Deadline Hollywood.Archived fromthe originalon March 1, 2023.RetrievedMarch 14,2023.
  44. ^Gonzalez, Umberto (February 11, 2021)."Gina Carano Dropped by UTA After Uproar Over Social Media Posts".TheWrap.Archived fromthe originalon January 15, 2023.RetrievedMarch 14,2023.
  45. ^Van Sciver, Ethan (March 12, 2023)."(Untitled)".Twitter.Archivedfrom the original on March 14, 2023.RetrievedMarch 14,2023.
  46. ^Van Sciver, Ethan (March 13, 2023)."(Untitled)".Twitter.Archivedfrom the original on March 14, 2023.RetrievedMarch 14,2023.
  47. ^Johnston, Rich(August 14, 2017)."No, Ethan Van Sciver Is Not A Nazi".Bleeding Cool.Archivedfrom the original on June 27, 2018.
  48. ^Van Sciver, Ethan (January 12, 2019)."(Untitled)".Twitter.RetrievedAugust 17,2019.
  49. ^Van Sciver, Ethan (January 29, 2018)."(Untitled)".Twitter.RetrievedAugust 17,2019.
  50. ^Van Sciver, Ethan (October 27, 2016)."(Untitled)".Twitter.RetrievedAugust 17,2019.
  51. ^"Inkwell Awards Ambassadors".Inkwell Awards.March 22, 2011.
  52. ^"2008 Eisner Nominations Announced".Comic Book Resources. April 14, 2008.Archivedfrom the original on June 17, 2018.
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Interviews

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