Michael Reaves, a prolific writer in the world of Star Wars and animation, has died. Steve Perry, a longtime collaborator of the writer, confirmed the news with Multiversity, saying Reaves passed due to complications of Parkinson’s disease. He was 72.
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Though Reaves had writing credits on nearly every show ’90s kids grew up with, he was arguably best known for his award-winning work on Batman: The Animated Series. In addition to writing “Perchance to Dream,” an episode many rank along the show’s best outings, Reaves won an Emmy for his work in the writer’s room at the 1993 Daytime Emmy Awards. Furthermore, Reaves was nominated for an Annie Award in 1995 for his writing work on “Deadly Force,” the critically-acclaimed (and surprisingly dark) Gargoyles episode that deals with gun violence.
Other animated credits on Reaves’ resume included The Real Ghostbuster, He-Man, Dungeons and Dragons, Transformers, My Little Pony, Superman, and Batman: Mask of the Phantasm.
When it comes to prose, Reaves was also heavily involved in Lucasfilm’s publishing efforts in its Legends canon. Some of Reaves’ most popular Star Wars works include Darth Maul: Shadow Hunter, the MedStar duology, and Coruscant Nights.
The writer also dipped his toes into the world of live-action television, writing anything from episodes of The Secrets of Isis and Shazam! in the 1970s to The Twilight Zone, Star Trek: Swamp Thing, The Flash, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and Star Trek: New Voyages.
One of his last works was the InterWorld trilogy, a series of books he wrote with Neil Gaiman and his daughter Mallory. A graphic novel adaptation is currently in the works.
