Mike Deodato, Jr.

Deodato Borges Filho, more known to the American public as Mike Deodato, Jr., had been trying for a long time to break into the comics business. Although his self-publishing efforts were well-received by the Brazilian critics and he even got published by the German edition of Heavy Metal, the "big break" seemed to never happen, and this very nice chap had to shelve his pencils and work at unrelated jobs to earn his living.

It all changed, though, when Art & Comics decided to bring Brazilian artists into the American market in a big way. Contacted by Art & Comics and asked to send them a sample of his work, he stunned everyone: within one week, he delivered a ten-page, fully painted story for appreciation -- not bad for a guy who had just about no free time at all at the time. (I have seen that story, and it's gorgeous, by the way. Too bad that there are legal obstacles against it ever seeing print...)

Deodato soon broke into American comics, doing the fully painted Beauty and the Beast TV series adaptation for the now-defunct Innovation Comics. Although critics liked it, and he proved he could do painted stories as well as the best in the business, sales weren't great enough to draw attention to his name from the mainstream public.

That would happen with his now-classic stint on Wonder Woman. His new look for DC's Amazonian she-warrior, together with his dynamic and clear storytelling, would propel Deodato to superstardom.

From there, he went to doing some work for Rob Liefeld's Extreme Studios, like Glory, and ended up with a contract with Marvel for two monthly comics. At first, those were Avengers and Thor, but later he was moved to The Incredible Hulk and the new Elektra series.

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