by Kyle Funderburk

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The comic book world has lost another legend. Artist Steve Ditko, co-creator of many of your favorite characters, passed away recently at the age of 90.

Many in the comic book world took time to share their thoughts about Ditko. Many of which owed their career to his work and the stories he helped tell in a career that spanned nearly 50 years.

Ditko started working at Marvel in the mid-1950, and he spent a lot of time working with Stan Lee. In 1961 the duo created Spider-Man together with Ditko designing Spider-man’s iconic red and blue suit. Two years later, Ditko helped create Doctor Strange. He also helped start the rouges gallery for both heroes. He later left Marvel because of disagreements with Lee. He never expressed what those disagreement’s were, but many have speculated that his issues with Lee were similar to the issues that Jack Kirby had with him.

Even after leaving Marvel initially, Ditko continued creating characters including Hawk and Dove, Captain Atom, and the Question. As a creator and artist, Ditko helped define the silver-age of comics and transition into the bronze-age. His work did more than just add pictures to a story, it became the story.

He drew action scenes in a way that you could easily image them in live action. His backgrounds presented these fantastic settings that made you want to see more of the world he was building. Ditko is one of those classic artists that inspired everyone who came after. Much of his work still holds up to today’s standards.

If you are a fan of comics in 2018, you owe much of your fandom to Ditko. Who knows how popular Spider-Man could have been with a bland costume and passable art. Same goes for Doctor Strange, and all of their villains.