Fleas

There’s been an interesting bit of uproar this week over the work (or lack thereof) of Mark Millar. It seems that the whole concept of “Mark Millar Month” was more than just a bust, thanks to late books- it was also a complete sham in at least one case. RUN, which was supposed to be drawn by the eclectic Ashley Wood, has been cancelled for now, because it turns out that Wood hasn’t provided a single page of art, for a book that was due two months ago. It is to laugh, I think.

You see, Mark, while a reasonably talented and pleasant fellow, would appear to have fallen into an ages old trap. To wit:

In the recent past, Millar decided to lend his words and creativity to the singularly strange Rob Liefeld. Liefeld’s sins against comics are multiple; not the least of which are soliciting books that haven’t been drawn yet, let alone written in some cases; making grandiose statements about his own personal ideas and having his reach exceed his grasp; and generally being likeably goofy enough to deflect the great deal of criticism that gets tossed his way. Hell, even though I loathe the product he tends to (eventually) produce, I still have a soft spot for Liefeld, because he seems to care more about the medium than 95% of the people working in it, and his enthusiasm can be contagious.

So now we have Millar soliciting books that have no art in hand. Grandiose statements about his ideas and the ways he’s going to get them out. Gushing enthusiasm for the work he’s doing on Spider-Man (in opposition to the actual product, from what I’ve read). And yet he’s so damned nice and enthusiastic, and he really does seem to love every single bit of what he’s doing. It’s freaky.

Yeah, Millar had some problems before, but they just seem a bit magnified as of late, and it just seems like there’s an uncanny correlation there. Because that’s what happens when you lay down with the dogs, right? Eventually, you’re gonna need a flea collar.

Marc@MarcMason.com