Deadpool Creator Rob Liefeld Responds to Bill Maher’s Anti-Comic Book Insults

As comic book creators respond to disparaging comments made by Bill Maher on his HBO talk show Friday, where the Real Time host told superhero readers to “grow up,” Deadpool and X-Force creator Rob Liefeld reacted with adult-oriented comic book suggestions.

“Appreciate your point of view,” Liefeld tweeted, tagging Maher, “I’d like to suggest comics written by Alan Moore or Frank Miller. The writing and storytelling is outstanding.”

Alongside Swamp Thing, Liefeld suggests Miller’s acclaimed Daredevil run and The Dark Knight Returns as well as Moore’s Watchmen, samplings the longtime comic book writer-artist calls “gold standards of illustrated literature.”

Maher, who first came under fire for comments made in the wake of Marvel Comics visionary Stan Lee‘s death in November, said Friday the controversial blog posting was “in no way” an attack on Lee, but was instead Maher expressing “dismay at people who think comic books are literature and superhero movies are great cinema and who, in general, are stuck in an everlasting childhood.”

“Bragging that you’re all about the Marvel Universe,” Maher added, “is like boasting your mother still pins your mittens to your sleeves.”

In his targeted rant, Maher lambasted those who “like the exact same things you liked when you were ten,” instructing them to “grow up.”

“That was the point of my blog. I’m not glad Stan Lee is dead, I’m sad you’re alive. By the way, if someone says you’re being childish and you react by throwing a tantrum, you’re not Iron Man — you’re Irony Man,” Maher said.

“Let me tell you, people were pissed about this post. I wasn’t even aware I ruffled so many capes until I saw that forty thousand Twitter followers unfollowed me like that [snaps], to which I say ‘Good riddance, go follow Yogi Bear.’”

Comic book creators fired back at Maher in November, including Neil Gaiman, who tweeted at the time, “More people cared about Stan Lee’s death than care about Bill Maher alive.”

More industry creators have again come to defend the medium, including Bill Sienkiewicz (The New Mutants), who wrote on Facebook Maher is “still missing the point about comics & graphic novels.”

“They’re NOT all JUST about superheroes, not all about radioactive spiders or the hunt for glowy things. The medium itself is as valid and capable of depth as any other,” Sienkiewicz wrote.

“Maybe read Maus. Sandman. Preacher. Sex Criminals. Bitch Planet. Love and Rockets. The Divided States of America. For a start.”