IMAGE COMICS: Robert, what surprised you most about Cory's work when he came back to the series for this arc?
ROBERT KIRKMAN: Cory has always, and will always be, at the tip top of the list of artists I love working with. Any time he's ready to collaborate on anything with me I always jump at the chance. I love how he interprets my scripts and I know I can always count on him to not only improve upon whatever I've written, but also keep me on my toes as I discuss upcoming things with him. Cory always has a well thought-out opinion and never hesitates to share it. He always makes my work better.
For this current run on INVINCIBLE, I knew to expect awesome, but I don't think I could have anticipated just how well he'd slip back into these characters. He hasn't really drawn Mark or Eve much since he left the regular monthly duties on the title. He's using Ryan's take on the characters as inspiration, but still putting his spin on it, which is cool. This arc is really very emotional and Cory has taken each one of these moments and given them their own look and feel. The range of emotions he's been able to portray has been really impressive. We're putting the characters through a lot in these six issues and he's handing each twist and turn expertly.
IC: Cory, you're back, after a little time away. You've done short bits for the series here and there, but this run is longer. What were you most excited about coming back to draw?
CORY WALKER: Aside from a few pages in the back of INVINCIBLE RETURNS #1, I hadn't drawn the core cast since my early run on the book. I had drawn secondary characters in side-stories out in space, which, don't get me wrong, were super important to the development of the main plot, but didn't really carry the weight of what was going on with the core cast on Earth. So it's really exciting to get back and draw Mark and Eve again, telling stories that are the main focus and getting a nice six-issue run under my belt, which, sadly, is something I haven't done since those first issues of INVINCIBLE. Feels good, man.
IC: Nathan, unless I missed something, this is your first time working with Cory, right? Can you talk a little bit about your approach to coloring his work?
NATHAN FAIRBAIRN: What I like about Cory is how amazingly solid all of his construction is, and how he is able to communicate form with both style and economy of line. Another artist might take a dozen brush strokes to do what Cory does in one. It's truly minimal work in that there's nothing extraneous or unnecessary. Most pencilers/inkers will use heavy blacks, hatching, feathering, ink washes, etc, to indicate light sources, volume, contrast, and mood, but Cory leaves all of that up to the colorist. He doesn't really do any of the colorist's work for him. If I didn't have a decade of experience, I imagine coloring these pages would be a daunting task. Fortunately, this isn't my first rodeo, so I think it's a treat. Cory's done all the hard work and heavy lifting of composition and construction, so it's easy and fun for me to drop in and add mood, depth, volume and focus to the pages with color.
INVINCIBLE is available in a variety of collected editions and ongoing single issues. INVINCIBLE #127, the first issue of Walker's six-issue run, is available now, and INVINCIBLE #129 releases this week.