James Stokoe (born September 4, 1985) is a self-taught Canadian comic writer/author, one of the more enigmatic creators of recent years. He is best known for his work on the critically acclaimed series “Orc Stain” from Image Comics and “Wonton Soup” from Oni Press, not to mention the recent success of the Kickstarter-funded “Sullivan’s Sluggers” which he illustrated for writer Mark Andrew Smith. Currently, Stokoe is working on the five-issue miniseries “Godzilla: The Half-Century War” for IDW Publishing, which he writes, pencils and colors. Godzilla chronicles 50 years of atomic lizard mayhem, looking at what it would really be like to live with cinema’s most famous monster constantly returning to destroy Tokyo. Stokoe will be back to work on “Orc Stain” after “The Half-Century War” wraps up, but he appreciated the unique experience of working on a character with so much history. “A licensed property like this, I feel like you need to really think about it and try to take more care,” he said. “There’s been precedent established, so you can’t just wing it like it was your own. You need a respect for the material, and a desire to try and dissect what it is you like about it.” His style is characterized by the extreme level of detail placed into his drawings and an uncanny ability to create a whimsical feel while depicting even the most serious subject matter. His comics are a psychedelic assault of bright, saturated colors and incredible detail which range in topic from alien cook-offs, through monster-fighter baseball players, to safe-cracking orcs who use chopped-up penises for currency.
