The venue did not have any press passes for the event, but instead of ruminate on Krypton’s unpreparedness, I relished in the time it took to sit in the front of the store with the rest of the crowd, who were as absorbed as ever into their own families. So, rather than interjecting myself into small talk with people who would be be damned to pull up a chair and converse with me, I decided to dive into “Age of Apocalypse” as I waited for Krypton’s opening. A small comic book shop Krypton was, but somehow they found a way to turn the back of their store (you know the spot usually reserved for adult titles) into a space that could have taken up a tenth of a convention hall. Which was well enough, given the various other artists from the city of Omaha that were in attendance to show off their art and most importantly – make commissions.
There was only one guest of honor though, and I had the pleasure of running into him. The line was thick and encircled all the way to the front of the door, so I followed suit and snaked past the constricting line to find Rags Morales at his table already at work : drawing to his heart’s content. The venue did not have the courtesy enough to provide Rags with a sign for his flock to see the pricing’s attached to what fine art they could procure, so I got to witness the man in action, as he drew up his own sign on the fly like any graduate of the Joe Kubert School possibly could. Though don’t mention that to Rags, the man is as grassroots as ever, and having paid dues he is not one to look in the past of what got him to where he is. Though for my sake, he was happy as ever to recount tales of his evolution into becoming one of the modern era’s greatest to ever put pencil to panel. The man gave us “Identity Crisis” with Brad Meltzer, as well as one of the most storied runs of the “Justice League of America” alongside the late great Detroit legend Dwayne McDuffie. But Rags’ work at one of the Big Two may be considered a crowning achievement for some like myself, but is far from what defines Rags.
So when did your career begin ?
“I grew up as a Puerto Rican in a predominantly Caucasian suburb in the East Coast. It was an alienating experience and I turned to comic books and other forms of fine art for solace. I created my pen name when I was around 19 years of age, and after reading a book called “Rags To Riches”, I was inspired by the eponymous main character and repurposed his title for my pen name. My career then gained traction in ’81 with an indie book dubbed “TSR” – a book where my career was launched with many others who also attended the Kubert School; though I don’t want to give them too much shine, they already get enough press as it is !”
I’m just going to rip the band-aid off here : when and how did your career start at DC Comics ?
“Well I did a book with Tom Peyer on the classic JSA member Hourman. This was around the time that Jim Lee was overseeing Image but still pulling rank at DC. Eventually we were able to work together and years later reunite when Jim became in charge of the New 52 initiative and thought it was a good idea to put Morrison and I together on “Action”.
Oh, I enjoyed that run tremendously ! Who’s idea was it to have Supes in jeans and a T-shirt ?
“That was Jim with the every-man concept, he spearheaded all the re-designs for the initiative.”
“Black & White speaks to my spirit as a craftsman, but color is necessary. I especially have an affinity for the colors now devised through online graphic design programs, the advancement of technology just allows the craft to do so much more in a shorter time frame.”
Timing is everything in many professions, and yours is no stranger to the concept. Describe how long it takes for you to get a book out?
“Well, I’ll take you back to my run with Morrison in “Action”, Matt Idelson was the editor around that time when I was working on this book and I had just got done doing covers for “Flashpoint : Shazam!”. Due to my work on those covers, there was a miscommunication with the media that I would be working with (Geoff) Johns on the new series.
He and Gary (Frank) ended up working together on “Shazam!” and created something wonderful, but there was some false reports that I had been kicked off the book by different pop culture publications that had no idea what they were talking about. The real scoop was that I had been put to task to draw Superman in a run in the legendary book where the Kryptonian hero made his first appearance – with none other than one of the main scribes who put Vertigo Comics on the map : Grant Morrison.”
Oh what, I love Morrison’s work !
“Yeah he’s bat-shit crazy !”
Hell yeah, sounds about right for an artist …
“You know it ! Well the process of a book as big as “Action: with such a storied history has a large team attached to it. You got Morrison and his writing schedule, plus he doesn’t just design the script – he’s doing storyboards as well. Then you got myself, and he’s sending the storyboards to me and I draw it up as close to his vision as possible. Then it goes to lettering, editing … And remember at this stage of my career I was contracted to DC, but that doesn’t mean that I am not a freelance artist at heart; so you can I only imagine what it is like to draw for multiple books when these things are supposed to hit the shelves once a month. But I do it for the family.”
How what does that dynamic look like?
“I have four kids and currently I am seeing a doctor who is keeping me abreast of all the latest to keep me in good health during this time when society is being directed with so much misinformation.”
As an artist who has worked with so many writers of gravitas, who has been your favorite?
“Well I get my most of my recognition for working with Brad (Meltzer) on “Identity Crisis”, but I really enjoyed working with Dwayne McDuffie, godbless his soul. That man really let me just do what I wanted with the scripts and had faith that I would bring his vision to life. Alot of writers can be really commandeering when they write their script, but Dwayne (McDuffie) had a long leash with his words and gave simplistic description, and that is why I fondly recall the work that we did during our time together.
Comics are a touchstone in modern cinema, and McDuffie understood this : he assumed the role of screenwriter and treated me as the director. I couldn’t have asked for a better work relationship than that. But if I would have to narrow it down to three scribes other than McDuffie … I would say Meltzer (“Identity Crisis”), Peyer (“Hourman”) and Johns (“Hawkman”).”
“Well first off that book was intended for adults, you shouldn’t have been reading it !”
Hey man, a majority of my lessons came from the streets and the system; and of course comic books, what can I say ?
“Well still … the Comics Code Authority has been defunct for ages, so by the time that Brad came up with the idea, it wasn’t a hard pass – especially since we were not glorifying the debasement. Comics are an excellent way to show a reflection of the society that we live in, and sex crimes do happen. And we thought that our book would be an excellent way to shed light on the heinousness of sexual abuse and not shy away from it.”
Dr. Light was the perpetrator within that book, but you ended up writing a much different Dr. Light during your J.L.A. run. Who do you prefer writing : good or evil ?
“Well I enjoyed writing the evil Dr. Light. Evil characters in general [are who I enjoy drawing], because they are unabashedly honest. Whereas, the hero will always fall short to the ideals that they put up on themselves and the expectations that they have from the community they strive to protect, the “evil” characters have none of that baggage. All they carry is a license for chaos and destruction. And sometimes the inspirations for their actions are those that readers can relate to and empathize with more closely than gaining extraordinary abilities from genetics or a freak accident.”
“Hal Jordan. He’s an honest character. He makes mistakes, hot-headed decisions … but all in all, Hal never loses hope. A necessity of the human condition. ”
Oh what, I got to give that spot to Kyle Rayner !
“Well I can see how you feel that way as an artist, but Kyle is a complete waste of time ! He’s a bite off of a character that [Jim] Aparo made during his storied run on “The Brave & The Bold” where some artist was able to make his dreams come to life by drawing them.”
Guess your not a big fan of Harold and his purple crayon then ?
“Hahahaha!”
Big Two or Indie ?
“Indie. More creative control. Yes, I got more exposure with contracts from the Big Two, but with indie projects I am allotted to retain my artistic integrity and not be controlled by corporations. Didn’t a phone company just buy out DC Comics?”
Hahahaha ! Well … what was your favorite project that you worked on?
” I get the most sales from “Identity Crisis”, but my upcoming work TBD (“Seamless”) with T. Schoeman for Valiant is going to be something real special.”
Famous last words ?
“Well Jack Kirby said he’d “Rather have more questions than answers in life” … but as for myself : “Hope I die trying.” “
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“Rafael “Rags” Morales is a world-famous penciller/inker who has pushed his pen for the likes of DC Comics, Valiant, Nintendo, and many others. In his spare time he likes to sip Merlot, munch on a meal following a laissez-faire vegetarian diet, and make passes at waitresses while he watches passes being thrown during a Philly Jets game.
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