History Creator / GrantMorrison

** His attempt to turn ''{{Magneto}}'', Marvel's poster child for the WellIntentionedExtremist trope, into a CardCarryingVillain, though? Not well-received. The writers that can after him couldn't retcon it away fast enough.

* GentlemanThief: Fantomex from his ''New {{X-Men}}'' run is based on Italian comic book thief {{Diabolik}} and the French crime fiction character that inspired him, Literature/{{Fantomas}}.

* DeconstructorFleet: Most of Morrison's work revolves around deconstructing, subverting, and mashing together as many tropes and genres as possible. Sometimes this covers a staggering variety of things (see ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles''), and sometimes his focus is narrowed to merely the entirety of the {{DC Comics}} universe (see ''FinalCrisis'') or the history and mythos surrounding a particular character (see ''{{All Star Superman}}'', his run on {{Batman}}), but he's pretty much always doing it in one form or another.

* CorruptCorporateExecutive: {{Seaguy}} is pursued by an evil corporation.

* AuthorGuestSpot: Famously in ''AnimalMan''. Hilariously, fellow DC writer JohnOstrander realized a not long after that by writing himself into a comic Grant Morrison had put himself ''in continuity'', and made "the Writer" a member of the SuicideSquad for a few issues.

* AllThereInTheManual - ''Anarchy for the Masses'' for one thing offers a mighty effort at deciphering ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles''. Most notably insightful are the numerous interviews with Morrison and crew. Otherwise tends to give away tons of more or less required information about his work in interviews, which usually end up unread on obscure corners of the Internet.

* AncientConspiracy - ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles'' revolves around them.

* AuthorGuestSpot - Famously in ''AnimalMan''. Hilariously, fellow DC writer JohnOstrander realized a not long after that by writing himself into a comic Grant Morrison had put himself ''in continuity'', and made "the Writer" a member of the SuicideSquad for a few issues.

* AuthorTract - Morrison pretty much likes to either add himself, or characters who act as him, in a large amount of his stories.

* BittersweetEnding - If you don't cry with ''{{We3}}'' you have no soul.
* BlueAndOrangeMorality - ''Kill Your Boyfriend!''
* BombThrowingAnarchists - {{Deconstructed}} in a lot of his work, especially ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles''. Unsurprising since Morrison himself is also an anarchist.
* BunnyEarsLawyer - He may be insane but he's also undoubtedly brilliant at what he does.
* CardCarryingVillain - Morrison seems to have a liking for villains who are openly and exultantly evil: Darkseid in ''JLA'' and ''FinalCrisis'', Black Glove in ''BatmanRIP'', Luthor in ''All-Star Superman'', etc.
* CloudcuckooLander - To say the least.
* ContinuityPorn - Morrison is known for bringing back obscure (and even unpopular) ideas. Some dislike this and believe these ideas are best forgotten, while others think he makes these concepts work much better than before.

* CorruptCorporateExecutive - {{Seaguy}} is pursued by an evil corporation.
* CosmicDeadline - ''ComicBook/TheFilth'', ''ComicBook/TheInvisibles'', ''SevenSoldiers'', ''FinalCrisis''. It's practically his style.
* DeconstructorFleet - Most of Morrison's work revolves around deconstructing, subverting, and mashing together as many tropes and genres as possible. Sometimes this covers a staggering variety of things (see ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles''), and sometimes his focus is narrowed to merely the entirety of the {{DC Comics}} universe (see ''FinalCrisis'') or the history and mythos surrounding a particular character (see ''{{All Star Superman}}'', his run on {{Batman}}), but he's pretty much always doing it in one form or another.
* DeusExMachina - He basically handwaves [[strike:his entire run]] most of his run in ''Comcbook/AnimalMan'' himself.
* GainaxEnding - As of this writing, there are six entries in the "Comic Books" section of this page and four of them are about comics he wrote.
* GenreSavvy - Both Grant himself and his characters know how death works in comics. He made no attempt to convince people Batman wouldn't return from the dead. When ComicBook/{{Metamorpho}} died, the implication was that he was most likely going to come back. Even Jean Grey's tombstone states "She will rise again."
* GentlemanThief - Fantomex from his ''New {{X-Men}}'' run is based on Italian comic book thief {{Diabolik}} and the French crime fiction character that inspired him, Literature/{{Fantomas}}.
* GentlemanWizard - Grant himself. He may have accepted female fans taking him dancing once in a while, to make them a little happier, but unlike lots of other celebrities, never takes advantage of them.
* AGodIsYou - ''ComicBook/TheInvisibles'', ''ComicBook/TheFilth'' and his [[Creator/DCComics DC]] superhero writing all contain examples of unique, bizarre or transcendent self-empowerment.
* GovernmentConspiracy - Again, from ''ComicBook/TheInvisibles''.
* KindHeartedCatLover - the death of his pet cat impacted his writing of ComicBook/AnimalMan, and he discusses it in his appearance during the final issue.
* LostTechnology - Maggedon from his ''JLA'' run is an ancient, universe-ending weapon.
* MindScrew - At least one per issue.
* NoFourthWall - Some creators like to break the FourthWall. Morrison likes to use a grenade launcher on it.
* OldShame - Never, ever mention his time on the UK ''{{Zoids}}'' comic. It tends to be "conveniently forgotten" by his biographers and fandom, and he seems to prefer that it remains obscure.

* OrderVersusChaos - A common theme in his work.

* TheUnintelligible - According to the notes included by other members of the ''ComicBook/FiftyTwo'' writing staff in one of the [=TPBs=], Morrison himself.

* ViewersAreGeniuses - Morrison writes believing this wholeheartedly. Of course, your opinion, as stated below, may vary.

* WellIntentionedExtremist - Comicbook/TheInvisibles as a group are that.
* WhatCouldHaveBeen - Supposedly, MyChemicalRomance wanted him to make an appearance in the music video for [[TheBlackParade "Mama"]] that never got made, where he would have played Satan opposite Liza Minnelli (who would have played the Virgin Mary). Though the "Mama" video never came to be, fans later got a consolation prize when he played the CorruptCorporateExecutive Korse in the videos from ''DangerDaysTheTrueLivesOfTheFabulousKilljoys''.
* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic - Some of his stories could be considered as that. Sometimes a flying, cigar-smoking fish is just a flying, cigar-smoking fish.
* [[WhatDoYouMeanItWasntMadeOnDrugs What Do You Mean, It Wasn't Made On Drugs?]] - [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] with Comicbook/TheInvisibles. It absolutely was made on drugs - specifically hallucinogens. Played straight with most of his other works, though.
* WritingForTheTrade - Morrison has stated that his run on Batman is to be divided up into "separate books" that all go together. This makes some of the more unusual issues make more sense. Final Crisis also becomes much more comprehensible when reading it as a trade rather than individual issues being released each month (which has contributed much of the FanDumb against Final Crisis itself).

* AllThereInTheManual - ''Anarchy for the Masses'' for one thing offers a mighty effort at deciphering ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles''. Most notably insightful are the numerous interviews with Morrison and crew. Otherwise tends to give away tons of more or less required information about his work in interviews, which usually end up unread on obscure corners of the Internet.

* AncientConspiracy - ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles'' revolves around them.

* AuthorGuestSpot - Famously in ''AnimalMan''. Hilariously, fellow DC writer JohnOstrander realized a not long after that by writing himself into a comic Grant Morrison had put himself ''in continuity'', and made "the Writer" a member of the SuicideSquad for a few issues.

* AuthorTract - Morrison pretty much likes to either add himself, or characters who act as him, in a large amount of his stories.

* BittersweetEnding - If you don't cry with ''{{We3}}'' you have no soul.
* BlueAndOrangeMorality - ''Kill Your Boyfriend!''
* BombThrowingAnarchists - {{Deconstructed}} in a lot of his work, especially ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles''. Unsurprising since Morrison himself is also an anarchist.
* BunnyEarsLawyer - He may be insane but he's also undoubtedly brilliant at what he does.
* CardCarryingVillain - Morrison seems to have a liking for villains who are openly and exultantly evil: Darkseid in ''JLA'' and ''FinalCrisis'', Black Glove in ''BatmanRIP'', Luthor in ''All-Star Superman'', etc.
* CloudcuckooLander - To say the least.
* ContinuityPorn - Morrison is known for bringing back obscure (and even unpopular) ideas. Some dislike this and believe these ideas are best forgotten, while others think he makes these concepts work much better than before.

* CorruptCorporateExecutive - {{Seaguy}} is pursued by an evil corporation.
* CosmicDeadline - ''ComicBook/TheFilth'', ''ComicBook/TheInvisibles'', ''SevenSoldiers'', ''FinalCrisis''. It's practically his style.
* DeconstructorFleet - Most of Morrison's work revolves around deconstructing, subverting, and mashing together as many tropes and genres as possible. Sometimes this covers a staggering variety of things (see ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles''), and sometimes his focus is narrowed to merely the entirety of the {{DC Comics}} universe (see ''FinalCrisis'') or the history and mythos surrounding a particular character (see ''{{All Star Superman}}'', his run on {{Batman}}), but he's pretty much always doing it in one form or another.
* DeusExMachina - He basically handwaves [[strike:his entire run]] most of his run in ''Comcbook/AnimalMan'' himself.
* GainaxEnding - As of this writing, there are six entries in the "Comic Books" section of this page and four of them are about comics he wrote.
* GenreSavvy - Both Grant himself and his characters know how death works in comics. He made no attempt to convince people Batman wouldn't return from the dead. When ComicBook/{{Metamorpho}} died, the implication was that he was most likely going to come back. Even Jean Grey's tombstone states "She will rise again."
* GentlemanThief - Fantomex from his ''New {{X-Men}}'' run is based on Italian comic book thief {{Diabolik}} and the French crime fiction character that inspired him, Literature/{{Fantomas}}.
* GentlemanWizard - Grant himself. He may have accepted female fans taking him dancing once in a while, to make them a little happier, but unlike lots of other celebrities, never takes advantage of them.
* AGodIsYou - ''ComicBook/TheInvisibles'', ''ComicBook/TheFilth'' and his [[Creator/DCComics DC]] superhero writing all contain examples of unique, bizarre or transcendent self-empowerment.
* GovernmentConspiracy - Again, from ''ComicBook/TheInvisibles''.
* KindHeartedCatLover - the death of his pet cat impacted his writing of ComicBook/AnimalMan, and he discusses it in his appearance during the final issue.
* LostTechnology - Maggedon from his ''JLA'' run is an ancient, universe-ending weapon.
* MindScrew - At least one per issue.
* NoFourthWall - Some creators like to break the FourthWall. Morrison likes to use a grenade launcher on it.
* OldShame - Never, ever mention his time on the UK ''{{Zoids}}'' comic. It tends to be "conveniently forgotten" by his biographers and fandom, and he seems to prefer that it remains obscure.

* OrderVersusChaos - A common theme in his work.

* TheUnintelligible - According to the notes included by other members of the ''ComicBook/FiftyTwo'' writing staff in one of the [=TPBs=], Morrison himself.

* ViewersAreGeniuses - Morrison writes believing this wholeheartedly. Of course, your opinion, as stated below, may vary.

* WellIntentionedExtremist - Comicbook/TheInvisibles as a group are that.
* WhatCouldHaveBeen - Supposedly, MyChemicalRomance wanted him to make an appearance in the music video for [[TheBlackParade "Mama"]] that never got made, where he would have played Satan opposite Liza Minnelli (who would have played the Virgin Mary). Though the "Mama" video never came to be, fans later got a consolation prize when he played the CorruptCorporateExecutive Korse in the videos from ''DangerDaysTheTrueLivesOfTheFabulousKilljoys''.
* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic - Some of his stories could be considered as that. Sometimes a flying, cigar-smoking fish is just a flying, cigar-smoking fish.
* [[WhatDoYouMeanItWasntMadeOnDrugs What Do You Mean, It Wasn't Made On Drugs?]] - [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] with Comicbook/TheInvisibles. It absolutely was made on drugs - specifically hallucinogens. Played straight with most of his other works, though.
* WritingForTheTrade - Morrison has stated that his run on Batman is to be divided up into "separate books" that all go together. This makes some of the more unusual issues make more sense. Final Crisis also becomes much more comprehensible when reading it as a trade rather than individual issues being released each month (which has contributed much of the FanDumb against Final Crisis itself).

* BunnyEarsLawyer: He may be insane but he's also undoubtedly brilliant at what he does.

* GentlemanWizard: Grant himself. He may have accepted female fans taking him dancing once in a while, to make them a little happier, but unlike lots of other celebrities, never takes advantage of them.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: Supposedly, MyChemicalRomance wanted him to make an appearance in the music video for [[TheBlackParade "Mama"]] that never got made, where he would have played Satan opposite Liza Minnelli (who would have played the Virgin Mary). Though the "Mama" video never came to be, fans later got a consolation prize when he played the CorruptCorporateExecutive Korse in the videos from ''DangerDaysTheTrueLivesOfTheFabulousKilljoys''.

** As ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles'' are collected without the letter columns from the single issues, one deeply odd fact about Morrison has been mostly lost to memory. After his representation in the comic, Kirk Morrison/Gideon Stargrave/King Mob, spent a few issues slowly dying of a gunshot wound to the stomach, Morrison himself nearly died from a collapsed lung. Morrison draws a straight line between what happened to King Mob and what happened to him, which may explain why King Mob spends most of volume 2 balls deep in Robin...

* GentlemanThief - Fantomex from his ''New {{X-Men}}'' run is based on Italian comic book thief {{Diabolik}} and the French crime fiction character that inspired him, [[{{Fantomas}} Fantômas]].

* AuthorGuestSpot

Recognizable in real life by his shaved head and his already difficult to follow topics being uttered in a nearly incomprehensible accent. In an anecdote in the first volume of ''[[FiftyTwo 52]]'', his conversation with the other writers and editor goes like this:

* TheUnintelligible - According to the notes included by other members of the ''[[FiftyTwo 52]]'' writing staff in one of the [=TPBs=], Morrison himself.

* GainaxEnding: As of this writing, there are six entries in the "Comic Books" section of this page and four of them are about comics he wrote.

-->-- '''GRANT MORRISON''' to Comicbook/AnimalMan, ''Animal Man #26''

After those critical successes, he wrote ''ArkhamAsylumASeriousHouseOnSeriousEarth'', which became the best selling graphic novel up to that point, and featured selected members of Batman's rogues gallery - as well as the Dark Knight himself - as different aspects of non-comic book, medical insanity, such as schizophrenia and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. He then wrote several miniseries in Britain and for VertigoComics, and rose to stardom with the relaunch of ''JusticeLeagueOfAmerica'', which featured DC's big superheroes together again for the first time in years. Besides being aptly described elsewhere on this website as "made up of back-to-back Crowning Moments of Awesome", Morrison's JLA also served as inspiration for the {{DCAU}}'s ''JusticeLeague'', usually made of made up of back-to-back Crowning Moments of Awesome itself. At the time he was writing JLA, he was working in Vertigo's ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles'', his most personal world, which he described as information given to him by Aliens during an abduction in Kathmandu.

Since then, he has worked with {{Marvel}}, writing the controversial ''Comicbook/{{New X-Men}}'' run, and the ''Marvel Boy'' and ''{{Fantastic Four}}: 1234'' miniseries. He returned to DC, and wrote ''TheFilth'', ''{{Seaguy}}'', ''Vinamarama'' and ''{{We3}}'' for Vertigo before cutting loose in {{the DC U}}niverse with the seven SevenSoldiers miniseries and the universally beloved ''AllStarSuperman''. He proceeded to yet again redefine the mindscrew in his ''[[Comicbook/GrantMorrisonsBatman Batman]]'' run, attempting to reconcile the character's 70 years' worth of interpretations, and finally realized his life long dream of somehow making the DC Universe a sentient being in ''FinalCrisis''. He's now working on the new ''Batman Incorporated'' and ''[[{{Superman}} Action Comics]]''.

* CosmicDeadline - ''TheFilth'', ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles'', ''SevenSoldiers'', ''FinalCrisis''. It's practically his style.

* AGodIsYou - ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles'', ''TheFilth'' and his [[DCComics DC]] superhero writing all contain examples of unique, bizarre or transcendent self-empowerment.
* GovernmentConspiracy - Again, from ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles''.
* KindHeartedCatLover - the death of his pet cat impacted his writing of Comicbook/AnimalMan, and he discusses it in his appearance during the final issue.

After those critical successes, he wrote ''ArkhamAsylumASeriousHouseOnSeriousEarth'', which became the best selling graphic novel up to that point, and featured selected members of Batman's rogues gallery - as well as the Dark Knight himself - as different aspects of non-comic book, medical insanity, such as Schizophrenia, Mass Hallucinations and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. He then wrote several miniseries in Britain and for VertigoComics, and rose to stardom with the relaunch of ''JusticeLeagueOfAmerica'', which featured DC's big superheroes together again for the first time in years. Besides being aptly described elsewhere on this website as "made up of back-to-back Crowning Moments of Awesome", Morrison's JLA also served as inspiration for the {{DCAU}}'s ''JusticeLeague'', usually made of made up of back-to-back Crowning Moments of Awesome itself. At the time he was writing JLA, he was working in Vertigo's ''Comicbook/TheInvisibles'', his most personal world, which he described as information given to him by Aliens during an abduction in Kathmandu.

His latest comic, ComicBook/DinosaursVsAliens is to be released in the Summer of 2012.

Grant Morrison is a Scottish writer, best known for the complex use of meta-fiction within his stories.

Since then, he has worked with {{Marvel}}, writing the controversial ''New {{X-Men}}'' run, and the ''Marvel Boy'' and ''{{Fantastic Four}}: 1234'' miniseries. He returned to DC, and wrote ''TheFilth'', ''{{Seaguy}}'', ''Vinamarama'' and ''{{We3}}'' for Vertigo before cutting loose in {{the DC U}}niverse with the seven SevenSoldiers miniseries and the universally beloved ''AllStarSuperman''. He proceeded to yet again redefine the mindscrew in his ''[[Comicbook/GrantMorrisonsBatman Batman]]'' run, attempting to reconcile the character's 70 years' worth of interpretations, and finally realized his life long dream of somehow making the DC Universe a sentient being in ''FinalCrisis''. He's now working on the new ''Batman Incorporated'' and ''[[{{Superman}} Action Comics]]''.

Morrison's first published comic book work was Gideon Stargrave in 1978. After a few attempts at Marvel UK, he started writing {{Zenith}} for Britain's ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' magazine. Like pretty much every superhero comic by English/Scottish/Irish writers during the eighties, it was both a superhero deconstruction and an excuse to take shots at MargaretThatcher. It was because of Zenith that Morrison was hired to do a comic about Comicbook/AnimalMan, a character few knew and nobody cared about, and started his long tradition of taking total losers and transforming them into something completely awesome. Next was the ''Comicbook/DoomPatrol'', turning them into the greatest constant MindScrew ever put into Four Colored pages.

* AncientConspiracy - ''TheInvisibles'' revolves around them.

* BombThrowingAnarchists - {{Deconstructed}} in a lot of his work, especially ''The Invisibles''. Unsurprising since Morrison himself is also an anarchist.

* DeconstructorFleet - Most of Morrison's work revolves around deconstructing, subverting, and mashing together as many tropes and genres as possible. Sometimes this covers a staggering variety of things (see ''TheInvisibles''), and sometimes his focus is narrowed to merely the entirety of the {{DC Comics}} universe (see ''FinalCrisis'') or the history and mythos surrounding a particular character (see ''{{All Star Superman}}'', his run on {{Batman}}), but he's pretty much always doing it in one form or another.

-->-- '''GRANT MORRISON''' to AnimalMan, ''Animal Man #26''

Morrison's first published comic book work was Gideon Stargrave in 1978. After a few attempts at Marvel UK, he started writing {{Zenith}} for Britain's ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' magazine. Like pretty much every superhero comic by English/Scottish/Irish writers during the eighties, it was both a superhero deconstruction and an excuse to take shots at MargaretThatcher. It was because of Zenith that Morrison was hired to do a comic about AnimalMan, a character few knew and nobody cared about, and started his long tradition of taking total losers and transforming them into something completely awesome. Next was the ''Comicbook/DoomPatrol'', turning them into the greatest constant MindScrew ever put into Four Colored pages.

In other corners, he's thought of as the wacky guy who can't write a story without severe AuthorOnBoard and whose constant forays into ThisIsYourPremiseOnDrugs end up dominating his books to the detriment of plot and character. He did once state in the letters page of ''TheInvisibles'' that his protagonist, King Mob, a TuxedoAndMartini ObiWan AuthorAvatar only got laid all the time because the comic book was a magic spell Morrison was casting, and so [[SympatheticMagic making his main character get laid would get him laid]]. And if you think he's joking, you haven't read ''Supergods''...

* AllThereInTheManual - ''Anarchy for the Masses'' for one thing offers a mighty effort at deciphering The Invisibles. Most notably insightful are the numerous interviews with Morrison and crew. Otherwise tends to give away tons of more or less required information about his work in interviews, which usually end up unread on obscure corners of the Internet.

** The later chapters of ''Supergods'' also contain a fair amount of WordOfGod, especially regarding the genesis and intended meaning of TheInvisibles and FinalCrisis.

** As ''The Invisibles'' are collected without the letter columns from the single issues, one deeply odd fact about Morrison has been mostly lost to memory. After his representation in the comic, Kirk Morrison/Gideon Stargrave/King Mob, spent a few issues slowly dying of a gunshot wound to the stomach, Morrison himself nearly died from a collapsed lung. Morrison draws a straight line between what happened to King Mob and what happened to him, which may explain why King Mob spends most of volume 2 balls deep in Robin...

* CosmicDeadline - ''TheFilth'', ''TheInvisibles'', ''SevenSoldiers'', ''FinalCrisis''. It's practically his style.

* DeusExMachina - He basically handwaves [[strike:his entire run]] most of his run in ''AnimalMan'' himself.

* AGodIsYou - ''TheInvisibles'', ''TheFilth'' and his [[DCComics DC]] superhero writing all contain examples of unique, bizarre or transcendent self-empowerment.
* GovernmentConspiracy - Again, from ''TheInvisibles''.
* KindHeartedCatLover - the death of his pet cat impacted his writing of AnimalMan, and he discusses it in his appearance during the final issue.

* WellIntentionedExtremist - TheInvisibles as a group are that.

* [[WhatDoYouMeanItWasntMadeOnDrugs What Do You Mean, It Wasn't Made On Drugs?]] - [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]] with TheInvisibles. It absolutely was made on drugs - specifically hallucinogens. Played straight with most of his other works, though.

His latest comic, DinosaursVsAliens is to be released in the Summer of 2012.

Morrison's first published comic book work was Gideon Stargrave in 1978. After a few attempts at Marvel UK, he started writing {{Zenith}} for Britain's ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' magazine. Like pretty much every superhero comic by English/Scottish/Irish writers during the eighties, it was both a superhero deconstruction and an excuse to take shots at MargaretThatcher. It was because of Zenith that Morrison was hired to do a comic about AnimalMan, a character few knew and nobody cared about, and started his long tradition of taking total losers and transforming them into something completely awesome. Next was the ''DoomPatrol'', turning them into the greatest constant MindScrew ever put into Four Colored pages.

After those critical successes, he wrote ''ArkhamAsylumASeriousHouseOnSeriousEarth'', which became the best selling graphic novel up to that point, and featured selected members of Batman's rogues gallery - as well as the Dark Knight himself - as different aspects of non-comic book, medical insanity, such as Schizophrenia, Mass Hallucinations and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. He then wrote several miniseries in Britain and for VertigoComics, and rose to stardom with the relaunch of ''JusticeLeagueOfAmerica'', which featured DC's big superheroes together again for the first time in years. Besides being aptly described elsewhere on this website as "made up of back-to-back Crowning Moments of Awesome", Morrison's JLA also served as inspiration for the {{DCAU}}'s ''JusticeLeague'', usually made of made up of back-to-back Crowning Moments of Awesome itself. At the time he was writing JLA, he was working in Vertigo's ''TheInvisibles'', his most personal world, which he described as information given to him by Aliens during an abduction in Kathmandu.