Comic artist Carlos Pacheco revealed his last comic book illustration on Twitter following the announcement that he had been diagnosed with the neurodegenerative disease ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis).The cover, for Damage Control #2, shows a shrunken Ant-Man and Wasp running from the unsuspecting mouth of Gus, the series' goofy protagonist who resembles a character from The Office, but inserted into Marvel's superhero-filled world. Pacheco penciled the cover, which was inked by Rafael Fonteriz and colored by Rachelle Rosenberg. The issue hit comic book store shelves on Sept. 28.
Pacheco previously made an announcement on his Facebook page detailing his diagnosis that has since been deleted. The original announcement, translated from Spanish by CBR's Diane Darcy, reads as follows: "Well, it cannot be. The final diagnostic has made it clear: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s disease), aka ALS.It is what it is, and it is what needs to be dealt with. It’s true that this is an unexpected turn of events in my life, but this doesn’t make me feel less fortunate to have lived the life I have lived, for the experiences I’ve had, the achievements I’ve made, and the people I’ve been fortunate to cross paths with. In truth, it’s been a life that’s gone beyond my wildest childhood dreams. Thank you to everyone who has been here. Let’s keep going as always!"
In April, Pacheco announced he was taking a sabbatical from comics after undergoing spinal surgery. At that time, he tweeted, "As some of you probably know I suffered a paralysis of my right leg this past September. Since then I’ve been visiting neurologists trying to know what the heck was happening. After receiving the worst diagnosis possible they finally have discovered that the root of that is a compression of the nerves...[and] a little and hard to see fracture in that vertebra, so I will go to a hard dorsal spine surgery next Sunday morning. The doctors say that I will need to suffer a rehab that will last between 8 and 12 months... That was the reason why I couldn’t finish my commitment with Fantastic Four and now I’ll be out of order during all this year after the surgery. DON’T FORGET ME, PLEASE!!!! I’LL BE BACK!! (Hope so)."
Pachero is known for an extensive comic career that began with the Spanish-language editions of Marvel Comics published under the Cómics Forum imprint at Planeta De Agostini. He has gone on to contribute to a wide variety of Marvel books from Age of Ultron to Ultimate Avengers, and at DC he is known for his work on titles such as Absolute Final Crisis, Green Lantern, and JLA/JSA: Virtue and Vice.
Damage Control #2 and Pacheco's cover are on sale now from Marvel.
Source: Twitter