Tony Isabella

Tony Isabella (born December 22, 1951) is an American comic book writer, editor, artist, actor, and critic whose career in the medium stretches from the early 1970s through the present day. She writes under both the names Tony Isabella and Jenny Blake.

Isabella entered comics in 1973 and built an early reputation working across Marvel's roster, where she created the superhero Black Goliath. Her most enduring contribution, however, came at DC Comics with the creation of Black Lightning, the publisher's first major African-American superhero — a character whose cultural weight only grew over the decades and who eventually headlined a successful television adaptation.

Beyond her superhero work, Isabella racked up significant credits on titles including Ghost Rider, Supernatural Thrillers, and Justice Machine, demonstrating a facility for street-level action and darker genre material alike. She also maintained a long parallel career as a critic and columnist, contributing extensively to Comics Buyer's Guide — a publication that accounts for a notable portion of her 236 credited issues spanning more than five decades.

Isabella's legacy rests firmly on Black Lightning, a character whose introduction reflected a broader push for representation in mainstream superhero comics. Her willingness to write critically about the industry alongside her creative output gave her a distinctive dual role as both practitioner and thoughtful observer of the art form.