Every day this month I will share with you the first (at least as far as I know) U.S. professional work by a notable comic book creator. Here is an archive of the creators who have been featured so far.

Today's featured creator is Jason Aaron!

Enjoy!

Jason Aaron is currently one of the most acclaimed writers working in comics today. From his award-winning work on the Vertigo title, Scalped, to all of his great Marvel work (including somehow managing to write Punisher MAX as good as Garth Ennis, which I believe is against the law in many states), Aaron is tops. I would read a Care Bears comic if Aaron wrote it.

Aaron had an interesting debut in American comics. He won a Marvel writing contest and was given an eight-page story in the back of 2001's Wolverine #175.

Drawn by Udon Studios (whose work, while I enjoy it in general, probably did not match Aaron's story particularly well), the story involves Wolverine on the run from some bad guys chasing him with guns and dogs. He then comes across a woman whose car has broken down. Knowing that if the bad guys catch up to her, they'll likely kill her, Wolverine feverishly works to fix her car so that they can both escape. As he works on her car, the two talk (she not knowing what trouble is about to come upon them) about life and the storm that her knees tell her is about to come. She is a religious woman, and she asks if Wolverine prays...

Man, imagine this story with art by RM Guera, Laurence Campbell, CP Smith or someone like that? It'd be a lot cooler. It's still an impressive first work from Aaron, and certainly prepares you for the themes and approach that he'd be using in Scalped years later.