Posted in: Comics | Tagged: rip, ryan bodehneim

Comic Folks Remember Ryan "Bode" Bodenheim, Who Died Last Week

Published Tue, 28 Dec 2021 06:18:10 -0600

Yesterday, Bleeding Cool shared the news about the passing of Ryan "Bode" Bodenheim at the age of 44. We had previously corresponded, managing to get an errant publisher in his past to pay up what was owed, and he always struck me as a decent guy, as well as a phenomenal comic book creator. That feeling was shared across the industry, as those who knew him and worked with him shared their memories of the man on social media.

He was best known for his work for Valiant such as Bloodshot, Ninjak, 4001AD and Eternal Warrior, he also worked for Marvel on Black Panther, Doctor Strange and Eternals. He co-created a number of projects with collaborator Jonathan Hickman, creator-owned comics published by Image, Secret, The Dying And The Dead, A Red Mass For Mars, and Halcyon with Marc Guggenheim. At the time of his death, he had just had a doctor Strange project published with Alex Paknadel, he was working on Eternals with writer Kieron Gillen for Marvel Comics, and on a project for Bad Idea Comics.

Kieron Gillen: Hearing about the sudden death of Ryan was just heartbreaking. I'd loved his clear line, worldbuilding and character design for years – his work with Hickman is great. I'd only just started working with him, and was amazed by his talent throughout.

Alex Paknadel: Working with Ryan will always be a highlight of my career. I'm devastated for his friends and family, and – selfishly – I'm so sad I won't get to thank him in person for the incredible work he did on our one shot.

Marc Guggenheim: What a gut-wrenching way to receive this gut-wrenching news. I am thrown and crushed and shocked. But mostly just devastated.

Danny Khazem: I don't know what to say. Ryan Bodenheim was a tremendous talent and human being; someone who I expected to see again and work with again for years to come. I can't imagine what his family is going through right now—sending my love to them and everyone else who knew him.

Shane M. Bailey: R.I.P. Ryan Bodenheim. He was one of the first professionals to really respond to my coloring when he commented on a work of his I did. His comments and the reaction I got from others really made me think I could actually make a go at this coloring thing.

Al Ewing: This is very grim news. I only got to work with Ryan once, but it was a good experience and I enjoyed his work elsewhere. Condolences to his friends and family.

Christos Gage: Just heard about the tragic passing of talented artist Ryan Bodenheim at the far too young age of 44. Deepest condolences to his family, loved ones and fans.

Ray-Anthony Height: Wow. Just heard about the sudden passing of Ryan Bodenheim. A bit shook. 44 is still too young and eerily the same age as Mike Wieringo. I worked with Ryan on Fear Itself: Fearsome Four and loved his work. My deepest condolences to his family and friends. RIP

Joshua Dysart: Oh no, I just saw that Ryan Bodenheim has passed away. 44 years old. Jesus, that's young. I never met him, but he did work at Valiant and was doing stuff at Bad Idea and I loved his line. I'm so sorry for his friends and family. Much love to you all.

Robert Venditti: The passing of Ryan Bodenheim is tragic and heartbreaking. His family and loved ones are in my prayers.

Dinesh Shamdasani: Will miss you man.

David Marquez: Just heard that @RyanBodenheim has passed away. I was – an am – a huge fan of his work. Kind of in shock. Deepest condolences to Ryan's family and friends.

Tom Brennan: Ryan Bodenheim made some awesome comics. RIP.

Joseph P. Illidge: During my short time at Valiant, I met Ryan at Heroes Con in Charlotte, NC. A genuinely cool and pleasant guy. He was quite generous. I came this close to getting him on a project for @HeavyMetalInk I'm sorry we'll never get to talk again. My deep condolences to his family.

Brandon Montclare: Ryan Bodenheim and I collaborated on, the mouthful of a title, FEAR ITSELF: FEARSOME FOUR. We were the same age, and the @Marvel gig was a big moment in both of our career paths. A lot of fun and a lot of great memories. Still shook by the news of his passing and very sad.

Mark Englert: RIP @RyanBodenheim it was an honor to work with you.

Nick Pitarra: Sad news about artist Ryan Bodenheim. When I had my 2nd kid (and was freaking out) he called & talked to me for a few hours about being a dad, offering great advice. He was a wonderful guy. Rest in piece, Ryan. From when we fessed up to how we had each other saved in our phones…

Valerio Schiti: I just heard about Ryan Bodenheim death. What a terrible, sad news. I'm not so good with words, so I'll share what Jonathan Hickman said about him.

Jonathan Hickman: I care very much about the creators I work with. For me, the collaborative process is intense and demanding in a way that a lot of people don't understand. It's hard to explain, but the short version is: I expect a lot of my partners, and they expect a lot of me. I feel personally responsible for the success and failure of a book and, often as a result, their individual success and growth as an artist. The ability to make things — to create — changed my life for the better and so I understand how important it is for the people I work with to feel enabled, encouraged, and to have authorship on our projects.

Ryan made the work better. It's why I loved working with him. I think that's the highest compliment you can pay a creative partner, and over the past decade it was such a joy to watch him also grow as an artist.

He got so good. And now it's just devastating that he's gone.

We fought a lot because we both had strong opinions about where a story should go. We laughed a lot because we had the same sense of humor. We were both perfectionist and we constantly screwed ourselves because of it. Honestly, we were too much alike for it to ever work perfectly, but too much alike not to want to work together. We even had the same birthday.

Ben Morse: At the end of every day, let's appreciate a great comic book artist. Today: @RyanBodenheim ! Sadly, we lost Ryan Bodenheim today, an incredible artist whose work I admired but whom I sadly didn't know personally. By all accounts, a great guy.

JohnParetti: One time before a Stereophonics concert @RyanBodenheim
was having a smoke and a guy asked if he could bum one. Ryan said, "They're menthol" and the guy said, "that's ok." Ryan frowned and pulled out his pack of Reds. "Shit, that usually works." It was awkward. I will miss him.

Josh Crews: Just got home and found out about the tragic passing of @RyanBodenheim. I'm absolutely gutted. Ryan was immensely talented and incredibly kind. Did this amazing Indiana Jones commission for me a few years back. Rest in peace, Ryan.

Warren Simons: @RyanBodenheim was a great talent and an incredibly nice guy as well. We had the opportunity to work with him a lot at @ValiantComics, and some at @badideahello , and his work was always exceptional. Our deepest condolences to his family.

Marvel Entertainment: We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of artist Ryan Bodenheim. His talent and passion for storytelling through art shined at Marvel and beyond. This is a tremendous loss, and our thoughts are with his family and loved ones.

Valiant Entertainment: We are saddened by the passing of Ryan Bodenheim, an incredibly talented member of the Valiant family. We will enjoy remembering his work on titles like BLOODSHOT, NINJAK, and X-O MANOWAR. Ryan will be truly missed and we extend our deepest condolences to his family and friends.

Image Comics: We are heartbroken to learn of Ryan Bodenheim's passing and his friends & family are in our thoughts during this difficult time.

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