Based on something Reptisaurus mentioned in another thread, I started thinking about who my choices would be for "most important creators to me" i.e. my personal Pantheon. You can intepret this any way you want: your favorite, the creators whose work you seek out above all others, the creators who most shaped the way you view comics, the creators whose work you enjoy the most whatever (or any combination of the above or some criteria you choose).

Repti went with a top 5, but I chose Pantheon for it's mystical connotations and will use a number with mystical cache too, and am going with 7

My seven in no particiular order...

1. Will Eisner
2. Joe Kubert
3. Jack Kirby
4. Jean Giraud (a.k.a Moebius)
5. Jeff Smith
6. Mike Mignola
7. Bernie Wrightson

and the following are a handful of creators with demi-god status, i.e. those receiving some consideration, but not making the list...

Darwyn Cooke
Jim Starlin
Phillipe Druillet
Milton Caniff
Alex Raymond
Charles Schultz
Berkeley Breathed
Colleen Doran
Linda Medley
Steve Ditko
Gil Kane
Jim Steranko
Richard Corben
Warren Ellis
Ed Brubaker
Terry Moore
George Perez
Scott McCloud
Howard Chaykin
Walt Simonson
Michael Kaluta

There are obviously other creators whose work I enjoy, but those 7 hold a special place for me. Those on the demi-god list, either once held a place in the list of the seven before being supplanted as I experienced new things or had my tastes change, or did something significant to change those perceptions and tastes in comics but not quite on the same level as those who made the list. There's a host of others I enjoy as well (The Buscemas,Colans, Morrows, Brunners, etc. of the comic world) but whose work didn't have the impact of shaping my comics world the way those listed did. The hardest choice was between Cooke and Wrightson for the last of the 7, I ended up going with Wrightson because he has been a part of my comic life longer.

I am curious to see what some of the folks here choose.

-M