The following is an interview with Mike Deodato Jr. (Wonder Woman, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Incredible Hulk) and Eisner Award-winning creator Joe Pruett (The Art of Brian Bolland) regarding the recent Kickstarter campaign launch for The Book of Deodato Jr., a deluxe hardcover collecting Deodato’s extensive catalog of illustrated work. In this interview, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief Barbra Dillon chats with Deodato and Pruett about their shared creative process in bringing this collection to life, the incredible bonus features to be available for backers, and more!
Barbra Dillon, Fanbase Press Editor-in-Chief: Mike, as you look ahead to the combined collection, what has been your experience in revisiting your body of work?
Mike Deodato Jr.: Revisiting my work made me realize just how much I’ve produced over the last 40 years. There are so many covers, pages, and illustrations that I honestly surprised myself. It’s not something I’ve ever kept track of—I’ve just been doing what I love, one job after another.
Seeing it all together is a strange feeling. Some pieces I don’t even remember creating. It really hits you that this has been a full life in comics. And looking at it now, I feel proud—of the consistency, the evolution, and the fact that I’ve been able to do this for so long.
BD: What can you tell us about your shared creative process in curating and producing this new collection?
MD: My main focus was selecting work that felt truly worthy of being in the book. I wanted it to be as diverse as possible—not just material from Marvel and DC, but from all the different companies I’ve worked with over the years.
That part wasn’t difficult, because I’ve had the chance to work with so many publishers—Continuity, Eclipse, Malibu, Harris, Image, Dark Horse, Fantagraphics, Titan, and many others. The challenge was really narrowing it down.
In the end, I tried to balance two things: the pieces I consider my best work in terms of quality, and the ones that mean the most to me personally and professionally. This book is not just a “greatest hits”—it’s also a reflection of my journey.
Joe Pruett: I echo what Mike said. This book is celebration of his ENTIRE career, not just his “mainstream” work, but the work he’s done across different publishers, private commissions, internationally, and elsewhere. The idea is to showcase iconic images that you love, but also offer you pieces that you might never have seen before. It’s truly a collection that will satisfy all of his countless fans and admirers.
BD: Mike, your work has spanned the most well-known comic book universes, tackling its most beloved characters, including Wonder Woman, Spider-Man, and the Incredible Hulk. Was there anything in particular about the sequential art medium that attracted you more than other artistic media?
MD: Comics have always been part of my life. My father dreamed of making a living from comics, but at his time in Brazil that wasn’t really possible. Even so, he was a pioneer—he created the first daily comic strip in newspapers in our region in the 1950s, and later the first comic book there in the 1960s. Eventually, we worked together—him writing, me drawing. So for me, comics were never just a career choice. They were my environment, my refuge, my happy place.
I didn’t grow up analyzing why I loved comics—I just did. I was an avid reader and collector. But looking at it now, I think what attracted me most was the freedom. With just paper and pencil, you could create entire universes. There were no producers, no interference—just you and the page.
That kind of control and creative freedom was incredibly powerful to me, and it still is.
BD: In revisiting some of your earlier work, was there anything new or intriguing that you took away from the imagery that you hadn’t anticipated when originally creating it?
MD: When I revisited Fallout 3000, which I did in 1983 when I was 20, it was a real revelation. At the time, I was still living with my parents, studying, working for newspapers, and basically only had weekends to draw. I was just trying to get the work done—I wasn’t thinking in terms of “style” or “voice.”
Looking at those pages now, I can clearly see the foundation of everything I would become as an artist. If you’re looking for the origins of my work today, they’re all there. You can spot the influence of Neal Adams, Esteban Maroto, Caza, Fernando Fernández, José Ortiz—along with the strong impact of the Spanish artists and the Heavy Metal generation, like Philippe Druillet and Moebius.
It’s all present—the dynamic layouts, the use of halftone dots, the approach to lighting and shading. What surprised me is how fully formed those influences already were, even back then.
In a way, that book feels like a turning point in my evolution. I’ve developed and refined my style over the years, of course, but the core was already there. It’s almost like looking at the DNA of my artistic roots, all captured in one place without me even realizing it at the time.
BD: Joe, what are you most excited for readers to experience with this deluxe edition?
JP: I’m excited for the readers and fans to see how versatile his work has been over the decades. From the energy and kinetic style of the ’90s to the realistic, shadowy style of the 2000s onward, Mike has developed and evolved has art, always getting better as he matures. He has never been one to stay static, always desiring to improve, which I think this volume will demonstrate.
BD: Lastly, in light of the Kickstarter campaign, are there any particular backer rewards that you would like to highlight for our readers?
JP: For this campaign, we’re offering an exclusive trading card set of six personally chosen images of some of our favorite pieces from the book.
In addition to the regular hardcover edition, we are offering two slipcase editions. The Deluxe Slipcase edition will give you the regular hardcover edition, but with a special tip in plate/page with an exclusive image that will be signed by Mike and limited to 500 copies. This which will perfectly slide into a beautifully designed slipcase adorned with art by Mike.
The second slipcase, our “Masterpiece Edition,” will have a special “virgin” cover, a signed (by Mike) and numbered tip in plate / page, and a wraparound cover with foil lettering on the back cover logo and spine. It is limited to only 300 copies.
