[2] Coming from a fine arts background, Maleev made his first foray into comics in Bulgaria for Godan (Годън in Bulgarian) and Carthel of Dead published in Riko magazine since 1991 and 1992, respectively.

Upon arriving in the United States in 1995, he enrolled at The Kubert School where, within a month, he was promoted from first to second year status at the suggestion of instructor Alec Stevens.

Maleev left the school in early 1996, already securing professional comics work on James O'Barr's The Crow (Dead Time and Flesh and Blood) and subsequently storyboarding the "Lost in Space" film at Continuity Associates before entering a successful run at DC Comics on Batman: No Man's Land.

In 2006, Maleev finished his run with Bendis in Daredevil and planned a collaboration with the writer on a new ongoing Spider-Woman series.

Often blending photographic and digital effects with drawing in his comics art, as with his work on Daredevil,[citation needed] as well as watercolors and gouache, as on Spider-Woman.