Interview: Alan Davis

Alan Davis is one of the most consistent artists in the business. More than five decades into his career, the English cartoonist has worked with some of the biggest names in comics, among them Alan Moore and Chris Claremont, and drawn some of the most beloved characters, from Batman to the X-Men. Radio Rackham’s Matthias Wivel caught up with him at the Copenhagen Comics Festival for a chat about his work and career. We discuss his beginnings on the British comics scene, notably his work with Moore and others on Captain Britain (1981-85), Dr & Quinch and Marvelman (1982-83). Davis brings to life that heady, innovative time of youthful enthusiasm and describes how much of it descended into ‘farce’ because of personality clashes. Among the highlights of Davis’s career in the United States, we have the story of how an editorial mandate over how to drawn Batman’s gun caused him to quit the lucrative Batman: Year 2 (1986) after one issue. We hear how Claremont is “the most creative person” Davis ever worked with and he is mystified by our report that their joint work,Excalibur (1988-93), has become a something of a cult classic for its queer undertones and general horniness. We also discuss series such as ClanDestine (1994-95) , JLA: The Nail (1998) and Fantastic Four: The End (2007), all high points in Davis’s career as a writer-artist. Overall, it is a portrait of a jobbing artist in the old school tradition, proud of his speed and ability to deliver on time, meek and drily humorous.