Who was the best writer to work with Mark Bagley?

[Scott Taylor]

Whatever the guy draws next in future, nothing will ever live up to his USM run. Having said that though he and Bendis are a real good team to work with but having said that, maybe Bagley needs to team up with someone else now. I haven't read Avengers Assessble or their other creator owned series but I've only read not so staller reviews for both of them.

According to wiki, its the longest artist-writer team up in Marvel Universe history. Thats hard to imagine, if true. I agree, its probably time for him to team with someone else. But I wouldn't mind him teaming up with Bendis again from time to time, either, for an untold story or two of Spider-Man.

[Ballard Blues]

Whatever the guy draws next in future, nothing will ever live up to his USM run. Having said that though he and Bendis are a real good team to work with but having said that, maybe Bagley needs to team up with someone else now. I haven't read Avengers Assessble or their other creator owned series but I've only read not so staller reviews for both of them.

Really? I think Marquez and Pichelli are doing a bang up job regards to quality and art direction; if anything I'd call all 3 of them the "gold standard" of quality artwork for the Ultimate Spider-Man, if not Ultimate Marvel on a whole (though that line of thinking may undercut other talented artists associated with UM). That aside, Bagley and Bendis were a great duo and I love the fact that Bagley always seemed to come back for the anniversary or special titles (or just when it mattered).

[whiteshark]

Bendis/Bagley by far.

Michelinie/ Bagley were a Ace creative team in Amazing Spider-Man.
But Bagley in Ultimate Spider-Man was a more estabilished Spider-Man artist,thus to see his illustrations in U.S.M. along the redefinition of the Spider-Man mythos in the Ultimate Spider-Man universe by Bendis made for a better duo.

[Shazam]

Bendy/Bags for me.

[Memphis Raines]

Wow. So not one person besides me likes Michelinie/Bagley the best, huh? I always thought Michelinie's Amazing run was fun and that Bags was at his Spidey drawing best with Michelinie on ASM; as proof, for many years, the bulk of Marvel's Spidey promotional art came from Bags's run with Micheline and became the definitive version of Spider-Man. I think he started getting a little burned out on drawing Spidey by the time DeMatteis came along, and as someone else pointed out, his style shifted way too much on USM to the point where heads were too big, hands looked weird, everybody had the face of 12 years olds regardless of age or sex, etc.

[Venomous Mask]

I voted Michelinie, but on second thought, it's DeMatteis. Stories like Shrieking and Power and Responsibility really stretched the limits of how deep a superhero comic could get. Also, Bagely's art was head and shoulders above what we see nowadays. Seriously, what happened to him?

[Memphis Raines]

Bagley's art was head and shoulders above what we see nowadays. Seriously, what happened to him?

1. He was 20 years younger
2. He had a much better inker back then in Randy Emberlin
3. He got so caught up in trying to make his USM characters look more youthful and fresh than his ASM characters that it drastically changed the style and tone of his art.

[Huree]

Wow. So not one person besides me likes Michelinie/Bagley the best, huh? I always thought Michelinie's Amazing run was fun and that Bags was at his Spidey drawing best with Michelinie on ASM; as proof, for many years, the bulk of Marvel's Spidey promotional art came from Bags's run with Micheline and became the definitive version of Spider-Man. I think he started getting a little burned out on drawing Spidey by the time DeMatteis came along, and as someone else pointed out, his style shifted way too much on USM to the point where heads were too big, hands looked weird, everybody had the face of 12 years olds regardless of age or sex, etc.

I have to agree. In one way the stories were better/more suspenseful and exciting in the Bendis Ultimate run, but Bagley's style was better on ASM back in the day.

Also Bendis stories tended to have pages and pages of boring dialogue panels of faces that weren't too exciting to look at (and the dialog tended to be annoying in the ultra sarcastic "modern" way, no one talks like that except people who like to pretend they're in a TV show). I do like USM i just have some issues with it, but anyway I digress.

Those earlier Bagley comics are all really iconic looking when you look at them today. Lot's of action, no BS. The way comics should be. No 4 issues of exposition to draw out one villian's story for the sake of selling a TPB later.

[Chris S.]

I think this thread needs an age requirement. I got into Spider-Man on the Michelinie/ Bagley run and it defined Spidey for me in a lot of ways.

I do think that the Bendis/Bagley run was incredible. Having said that nostalgia just kicks in with Michelinie.

This is also weird, but I just don't feel like USM can be talked about in the same breath as ASM. Michelinie had so much baggage to work with and editorial decisions to contend to. Bendis was just given an empty sleight and was told to have fun pretty much. Heck, no one at Marvel though USM would last. That is why it was so low print early on.

[Russell]

The Bendis/Bagley is the best work that Bagley has been involved with, but I think DeMatteis is the best writer to work with him - even if Bagley never got to illustrate DeMatteis' A game.

[Chuckles]

I much prefer Michelinie/Bagley and have always felt lukewarm regarding USM, although I did collect it entirely up to DoSM.