Keith Ian Giffen was an American comic book illustrator and writer. He is possibly best-known for his long runs illustrating, and later writing the Legion of Super-Heroes title in the 1980s and 1990s. He also created the alien mercenary character Lobo (with Roger Slifer), and the irreverent "want-to-be" hero, Ambush Bug. Giffen is known for having an unorthodox writing style, often using characters in ways not seen before. His dialogue is usually characterized by a biting wit that is seen as much less zany than dialogue provided by longtime collaborators DeMatteis and Robert Loren Fleming. That approach has brought him both criticism and admiration, as perhaps best illustrated by the mixed (although commercially successful) response to his work in DC Comics' Justice League International (1987-1992). He also plotted and was breakdown artist for an Aquaman limited series and one-shot special in 1989 with writer Robert Loren Fleming and artist Curt Swan for DC Comics. Giffen's first published work was "The Sword and The Star", a black-and-white series featured in Marvel Preview, with writer Bill Mantlo. He has worked on titles (owned by several different companies) including Woodgod, All Star Comics, Doctor Fate, Drax the Destroyer, Heckler, Nick Fury's Howling Commandos, Reign of the Zodiac, Suicide Squad, Trencher (to be re-released in a collected edition by Boom! Studios)., T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, and Vext. He was also responsible for the English adaptation of the Battle Royale and Ikki Tousen manga, as well as creating "I Luv Halloween" for Tokyopop. He also worked for Dark Horse from 1994-95 on their Comics Greatest World/Dark Horse Heroes line, as the writer of two short lived series, Division 13 and co-author, with Lovern Kindzierski, of Agents of Law. For Valiant Comics, Giffen wrote XO-Manowar, Magnus, Robot Fighter, Punx and the final issue of Solar, Man of the Atom. He took a break from the comic industry for several years, working on storyboards for television and film, including shows such as The Real Ghostbusters and Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy. He is also the lead writer for Marvel Comics' Annihilation event, having written the one-shot prologue, the lead-in stories in Thanos and Drax, the Silver Surfer as well as the main six issues mini-series. He also wrote the Star-Lord mini-series for the follow-up story Annihilation: Conquest. He currently writes Doom Patrol for DC, and is also completing an abandoned Grant Morrison plot in The Authority: the Lost Year for Wildstorm.

As a child growing up in Bellingham, Washington and Albion, California, Erik Larsen created seveal comic books featuring versions of a character named 'Dragon.' He eventually published a fanzine, which led to his doing professional work on a comic book called Megaton for creator Gary Carlson. It was here that he introduced the Dragon, a super powered superhero, to the comic-reading masses. After a multitude of mailings, showing his work, Erik became aquainted with Jim Shooter, who was, at that point, Marvel's Editor-in-Chief. Erik eventually met Jim at a convention in Chicago and Jim was impressed enough with Erik's work that he consented to co-plot a story with him on the spot. That story was a battle between Marvel Comics characters Hulk & Thor. Although it wasn't actually published until years later, it did impress a variety of Editors enough to get Larsen some more high-profile work in the funnybook field. Erik jumped around various books in this part of his career. He did an Amazing Spider-Man fill-in story at Marvel, a few issues of DNAgents for Eclipse, and he eventually took over the art chores on DC's Doom Patrol. Soon afterwards, he left DC and moved on to the Punisher for Marvel. Five issues of that book was about as much pain as that poor Minnesota boy could stand. Erik wanted to write and when a Nova serial was given the thumbs up to run in Marvel Comics Presents with Erik as the writer/artist, he gladly left the Punisher. But it was not to be! The powers that be had other plans for Nova and Erik's yarn didn't fit in with the impending New Warriors series. Editor Terry Kavanaugh gave Larsen an Excalibur serial to draw for Marvel Comics Presents while the poor bastard waited for his big break. When ever-popular artist Todd McFarlane left his artistic duties on Amazing Spider-Man, Larsen was chosen to be his successor. That run was astoundingly well-recieved, and included popular stories like 'The Return of the Sinister Six', 'The Cosmic Spider-Man', and 'The Powerless Spider-Man'. Although he was comfortable with his position as Amazing Spider-Man penciller, he was frustrated drawing other people's stories. Larsen found that his ravenous desire to write had only gotten stronger. He left Amazing Spider-Man, quite pooped. By this time, the New Warriors was going full tilt and Erik tossed together a proposal for a Nova ongoing series. While he waited for it to get the nod, Todd McFarlane left the new Spider-Man title that he had launched. Erik was called upon once again picked up the torch - and he ran with it. Larsen created a memorable albeit brief run on that title, despite a traumatic event in his personal life - his house burned to the ground, destroying all of his childhood drawings and comic books. After this period, creator Rob Liefeld invited Larsen to help found a new comic book imprint called 'Image' at Malibu comics, alongside notorious creators Todd McFarlane, Rob Liefeld, Jim Lee, Marc Silvestri, and Jim Valentino. Erik's flagship comic book at Image (which soon left Malibu and became the third lagest comic book publisher in the United States) was an updated version of his childhood creation — 'The Savage Dragon.' Larsen has been succeeding with his ideas ever since, through his creations Freak Force, Star, SuperPatriot and the Deadly Duo as well as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles which he helped revitalize and bring to Image. As of 2004, Erik Larsen became the Publisher of Image Comics and shows no sign of slowing down.