The Comics INactivist proudly presents:
PREVIEWS REVIEW: SHIPPING IN MARCH 2004
By Christopher Butcher and Patrick Neighly [and the Comics Inactivist]
Christopher: Yet another ‘out of date’ Previews Review we’re doing, only in so far as the pre-order deadline for the titles being recommended below has passed. Usually, this doesn’t mean a whole hell-of-a-lot as most of the books recommended are available for order for quite some time past the ‘on sale date’. Still, for several of the titles below chances are you just aren’t going to see them at your average comic book shop. So if a book below doesn’t look like something you’d normally see at your store, make sure to mention it to your retailer A.S.A.P. so that s/he can get it in for you. Sorry, but no item codes or page numbers this month. If you really need to look anything up, head over to Diamond's website: http://previews.diamondcomics.com/orderform/01_04/01_04_cof.txt
PATRICK: For those of you following along at home, the main text of the Review is written as above. Follow-up commentary (for this month alone) will follow in this format. Now, on with the review!
Christopher: It’s HELLBOY month at Dark Horse (and for most of the comics industry),
[Tokyopop has chosen not to observe Hellboy month, while AiT/PlanetLar has given employees a floating holiday they can either take next Friday or reserve for later]
as mostly-everyone rushes to hop on board for the newest comic book title to receive Hollywood’s blessing. The reaction to the whole endeavour has been interesting, primarily because HELLBOY has clear roots inside the Superhero sub-genre, but it’s sort of weird and alternative and it isn’t published by DC or Marvel. What are the strange new stirrings in fanboy loins, when they see a trailer that looks like X-MEN and sounds like X-MEN but is from one of those dumb publishers that bogs down the Previews catalogue with books that aren’t X-MEN? Are they cheating? Is fandom’s collective hard on leading them away from their one true love (corporate superhero comics)? Don’t worry baby, HELLBOY will make it alright. And when it’s all over, Marvel and DC will take you back because, honestly, they’re quite desperate and more than a little slutty themselves…
[in other words, I really, really hate Marvel and DC and will find any way to criticize them, even when talking about some other publisher’s book. DIARY OF A TEENAGE GIRL? Marvel and DC sure wouldn’t publish that, would they? HA! PERSEPOLIS? Not a chance, with those slutty fuckers! Hee-hee!]
So what marks HELLBOY month? A number of new titles. First and foremost is the 25 cent special edition HELLBOY: THE CORPSE. A short story that inspired a sequence in the upcoming film, this 25 cent introduction to the HELLBOY comic should be a perfect way to introduce the masses to the waiting library of graphic novels.
[All those masses have to do is find a comics shop, just like they’ve done for Free Comic Book Day the past couple years, leading to that massive surge in revenue the industry has been enjoying.]
The nice thing about HELLBOY (versus most of the big-screen superhero attempts) is that the library of available work all hits a decent standard of quality. The same artist on every book (or similarly talented artists in the spin-offs), stand-alone books, sort of a dream really. It looks like Dark Horse is putting themselves in a good position to take advantage of all of the hype surrounding the film, good stuff.
As for the book itself? I think HELLBOY is alright, really nice art. I just don’t really click with the stories at all. It’s just a bit… blah I guess. I dunno. Not for me.
[But, you know, a decent standard of blah, unlike the Marvel/DC corporate blah. This is CREATOR-OWNED, SAME ARTIST BLAH!]
But I’m happy for Mignola and Dark Horse, more quality creator-owned books getting attention (and the money that comes with it).
[I think Harvey Pekar was able to buy a couple pairs of pants with all that AMERICAN SPLENDOR do-re-mi]
PATRICK: HELLBOY is one of those books that suffers from the comics curse for me – i.e. “Comics cost too much and I can’t buy them all.”
[it’s my curse and I’m sticking to it. And he’s right, that HELLBOY is sure hard on the wallet, costing as much as $20 a year sometimes]
It’s just never had that one cover that shouts out BUY ME! when I’m browsing, but always just seems to be more of the same. I’m a terrible person, I know. Having said that, I think you’re spot on with your fanboy analysis here. There’s more crossover with the comics mainstream, especially for readers wondering when Mignola is going to return to Marvel or whatever
[Because that’s when he was really a fan-favorite, what with the runaway successes of ROCKET RACCOON and FAFHRD AND THE GREY MOUSER]
but some of the puzzlement brings to mind the impact of Ghost World and American Splendor on retailers like my local shop, for which HELLBOY represents the cutting edge of indie comics not to be gambled on.
[uh…yeah.]
Christopher: Also of note from Dark Horse’s creator-owned superhero line, it looks like they picked up Steve Rude’s THE MOTH one-shot. After some pretty dubious bullshit from Marvel’s legal department, and Image unwilling to go to bat on that front for Rude,
[Damn you, corporate comics!]
he’s back at Dark Horse with a 56 page one shot and a four-issue limited series starting next month. Nice looking stuff from Rude too. It’s not NEXUS (which may end up being a mark against it for some people) but it’s certainly decent looking.
[Remember, superheroes are fine, so long as it’s not Marvel or DC doing them.]
PATRICK: For added comedy value in this whole Moth/Marvel thing, check out the new designs for Cyclops in Joss Whedon’s ASTONISHING X-MEN.
Christopher: At no point could I be surprised by a depth to which Marvel might sink… But yeah, I do see your point…
[That’s just Marvel’s way, isn’t it, to rip off an unpopular artist’s design of an unproven superhero. It’s just like when they forced Darick Robertson to draw Wolverine more like Reid Fleming, World’s Toughest Milkman.]
Christopher: Also of note from Dark Horse, Linda Medley’s CASTLE WAITING moves to it’s third publisher with the Dark Horse edition of the first trade paperback. I like CASTLE WAITING, but it has the strangest and most irregular schedule I’ve ever seen (narrowly eclipsing
[How do you “narrowly eclipse” something? That’s like just barely obliterating it]
STRAY BULLETS, and I’ve got my fingers crossed that Lapham just hurries up and sells out on that front so we can get the collections back in print…). There’s a new What’s Michael collection, WHAT’S MICHAEL VOLUME 9 too.
[Let’s pause for a moment and reflect on the short shrift given these indie books, to be followed by the lengthy endorsement of a SUPERMAN GRAPHIC NOVEL…]
Moving along to DC/Vertigo, we’ve got a fairly interesting little
[130 page hardcover]
book. IT’S A BIRD is an original graphic novel from Steven Seagle and Teddy Kristiansen about Seagle’s difficulties writing the character Superman.
[to be followed by IT’S A MUTANT, about his difficulty writing X-Men, and IT’S JUST ME, about his difficulties writing anything anyone wants to read]
Seagle and Kristiansen were the team responsible for Vertigo’s HOUSE OF SECRETS ongoing series from a few years back. It was a compelling character-driven story that lost it’s way
[from the start]
, meandered a little until it was finally put to death at issue 25. With only 130 pages to tell a story (and not 550 or so) I’m tempted to believe that it’ll be a little tighter,
[one would hope]
a little more to the point (while still having enough room to breathe). Certainly the preview pages in the Previews catalogue (and elsewhere) are very good; an examination of Superman’s costume; his impact on society; and a ‘comic’ story page featuring a young Clark Kent learning the weight of his responsibility; it’s all very good. I was surprised, I didn’t have high hopes for this project when it was announced (it has the air of self-congratulation about how important Superman is that still gets under my skin),
[which still can’t cover the air of self-congratulation coming from Seagle himself. But hey, he really is wowing them on the monthly book, isn’t he? Isn’t he?]
but reading more about it and seeing the story pages I’m at least a little more optimistic. I guess my only real hesitation is that, being that it’s a Time/Warner book, publisher by The Superman People, the outcome of Seagle’s struggle with the Superman mythology seems just a little pre-ordained, y’know? Still, it could surprise me. I’m hoping it surprises me.
PATRICK: Whether it does surprise you or not, the book is something of a paradox. If Superman was still vital and relevant, we wouldn’t need this book in the first place, would we?
[Way to say in two lines the whole problem with this book]
Christopher: Well, not according to DC. You see, DC does it’s best to remind us all that Superman Is Vital And Relevant every couple of years. Last time around it was the SUPERMAN: DAY OF DOOM mini-series. In which Clark Kent wrote a piece on the death of Superman, and tons and tons of characters gave uncontested monologues about The Greatness Of Superman, and the only dissenting voice saw the light by the end. See? Even dissenters recognize His Majesty. Yeah, it’s disgusting. This time out rings just a little bit truer and a little bit more personal though, which is why I’m anticipating it a bit more.
Christopher: Also from DC, there’s the surprise hit FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE JUSTICE LEAGUE TPB. Featuring the very funny six-issue mini-series by Giffen, DeMatteis, and Maguire from last year. It sort of came out of left field with it’s success, and all-in-all it was a really surprisingly good book, and the collected edition is nice and inexpensive as well. Also keep a look out for THE MAXX BOOK TWO, the second in DC/Wildstorm’s complete reprinting of Sam Keith and William Messner-Loebs’ MAXX series. This issue collects issues 7-13 of The Maxx and the short-story from Darker Image #1. MAXX is a great series, and I’m glad to see the continuing collections.
LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN really opened up the industry to historical fiction (and historical science-fiction),
[FROM HELL was just a warm-up]
and while the results of this newfound creative and financial viability have been mixed at best, THE BLACK FOREST looks like a series expertly equipped to take advantage of the situation. Last year, Mike Oeming (Powers) and Neil Vokes put together a great little period piece last year, a graphic novella called PARLIAMENT OF JUSTICE. What I read of it (bad Chris) was good stuff, but the art was just bang-on excellent. THE BLACK FOREST is from the same artist, is similarly beautiful, and according to the five page preview I’ve read looks to be an exciting little romp. Nazis, Frankenstein, and a book that starts and ends in a go. Sounds excellent.
[And this is Nazis and Frankenstein from Alan Moore’s and Kevin O’Neil’s successor Neil Vokes, not that blah blah Nazi Frankenshit from Mike Mignola.]
Speaking of Oeming (who provides the cover to THE BLACK FOREST), Brian Bendis and Michael Oeming’s POWERS VOLUME 2 #1 drops in March. Following the unbelievable events of the end of volume one an entirely new status quo sets off the second series and ‘good jumping on point’ is about the meanest thing I can say about this new first issue. I can be a little bit hyperbolic, at times, but believe me when I say that POWERS is attempting things with comics that haven’t been attempted since… oh… MIRACLEMAN. It’s the clear difference between something cynical and derivative like WANTED and an outstanding, imaginative, take-no-prisoners comic. Seriously. If you’re on the fence about POWERS, if you (God Help You) liked WANTED and wanted to know what a similar comic that was actually successful looked like, hell, if you just want something good to read, take my word for it. Be there for POWERS V2 #1 in March.
[I am Christopher Butcher and I am unable to praise anything without criticizing something else. It’s what makes me great, your shittiness]
PATRICK: Is POWERS the best ongoing series published today? I think it just might be. It drives me nuts that Bendis can’t shift his Marvel numbers to this book.
Christopher: It used to drive me nuts, but since I’ve accepted that people suck, now I’m just happy that Bendis gets Any Readers At All for something that doesn’t have fucking SPIDER-MAN on the cover.
[RRRAGH…ARRHGHSS…BLBLLAHGHG!!!]
Whatever. I will say thought that with the… hubbub… surrounding Image right now, I think it’ll be interesting to see if the book comes out as scheduled…
[Because…Jim Valentino was the guy who stapled the comics? What’s the point here?]
Christopher: Also from Image, there’s a new original graphic novel about Heaven’s IPO called HEAVEN, LLC. It features are from Dave Crossland, who’s a little bit Mike Ploog and a little bit Jim Mahfood. It sounds sacrilicious. Robert Kirkman solicits the second trade paperback collection of his INVINCIBLE mini-series, INVINCIBLE: EIGHT IS ENOUGH. The eighth issue just shipped and it seems like a really weird place to break up the collection as the big cliffhanger-reveal came in issue #8…? Anyway, it’s a good (though Very Decompressed) superhero series with lovely art. Good twist in this one too. Finally, the first two issues of the long-delayed MINISTRY OF SPACE series are reprinted in the MINISTRY OF SPACE OMNIBUS in anticipation of the final issue next month. Far-and-away the most successful of Warren Ellis’ three-issue minis, I bet those people that were waiting for the trade are kicking themselves now huh? THREE YEARS, BUDDY. Note: I am mostly talking about myself here… :(
[Why would they be kicking themselves? Why even get the issues now, when it’s finally almost over and ready to collect. Not to mention that it’s a piece of shit]
PATRICK: And did anything else by Ellis come out in the past three years? Yes. At least his smug sanctimoniousness is tempered here by Image’s ill-considered decision to release a bumper edition of the first two issues rather than just cutting to the chase and publishing a MINISTRY OF SPACE trade paperback. Between delays that rival Kevin Smith’s and the recent announcement of ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR, does Ellis now categorize himself as Part of the Problem?
Christopher: Actually, funny thing. In his manifesto, he freely admits to being part of the problem. “Old Bastard’s Manifesto”. Who knows though, hm? I’m surprised someone didn’t drag that one out to hang him with when the ULTIMATE FANTASTIC FOUR news broke. Personally? Good on him. Comics Is Fucked. I hope he makes a lot of money with Ultimate Fantastic Four.
[Yeah, give those fucking Marvelheads some derivative Doctor Doom shit, take that money, and then pump out more vital creator-owned work like TOKYO STORM WARNING and STRANGER KILLINGS and MEK. That’s what comics needs.]
PATRICK: Well, yeah, I actually agree with this. I don’t have a problem with Ellis on Ultimate FF or whatever in itself. It’s just that maybe we don’t need to be lectured about principles by someone who can’t stick to his, you know?
Christopher: But anyway, I think the bumper-edition was the right way to go with this. The fucking LAST THING I needed to listen to was bitching from assholes about how they bought MINISTRY OF SPACE 1 and MINISTRY OF SPACE 2 and now had to buy A REALLY EXPENSIVE TRADE PAPERBACK TO GET THE END OF THE STORY. If they just released issue 3, orders would tank because it’s been two years since 2. They made the best decision available to them at the time, in my always-humble opinion.
[But the BUMPER EDITION has nothing to do with having to buy a TRADE PAPERBACK you CAPITALIZING IDIOT]
Christopher: Diamond is nice enough to remind us that March will see CEREBUS #300, the final issue of “The comic medium’s first-ever 6000-page graphic novel”. Maybe they mean exactly 6000 pages, cuz I could swear that the complete Dragonball saga runs over 7000 pages and was started later and finished earlier than Cerebus. Of course Dave Sim would likely write Dragonball off as “illiterate commuter trash” or some-such anyway. Which is why, say, Dave’s going away party is about %50 fond-farewell, and %50 sigh of relief. Not to take anything away from Sim or Gerhard
[No, not much, except “CEREBUS AIN’T DRAGONBALL, SHITHEAD!”]
, I doubt I’ll ever finish 6000 pages of anything.
PATRICK: Not even 6000 pages of CEREBUS?
Christopher: No, YOU’RE THE VOID. No, seriously, 6000 pages… It’s an impressive accomplishment. I had a friend who got me into Cerebus. He did mini-comics, and his art and stories had been heavily influenced by the book. I kind of wanted to see what all the fuss was, so one day (a Saturday between 10 in the morning and say, 8 in the evening) I read Cerebus. The first four volumes worth, anyway. I think that, honestly, HIGH SOCIETY, CHURCH & STATE VOLUME 1, and CHURCH & STATE VOLUME 2 are some of the best comics I’ve ever read. After that? I couldn’t get into JAKA’S STORY for some reason that I can’t put into words. I’m going to try again some day. And MELMOTH…? Anyway. Despite being put off by the post C&S stuff, I came back to the book with issue #200, the GUYS story arc. Cerebus/Dave Sim, Greg Hyland (creator of Lethargic Lad), Mick Jagger, Keef Richards, Bacchus, and a guy named “Bear” walk into a bar. And they don’t leave for 20+ issues. Was a funny read, good stuff. Then? Back to the grind… I flipped open the last trade paperback that came out, “Latter Days”, and it seemed to be about how Art Spiegelman’s wife ruined his life, somehow, so yeah… Fond farewell Dave, pardon me for letting out this sigh…
Christopher: Alternative Comics is printing a fascinating new travelogue of pre 9/11 Morocco by SHUCK UNMASKED cartoonist Rick Smith called BARAKA & BLACK MAGIC IN MORROCCO. I tend to find comics travelogues fascinating. I particularly liked last year’s travel-themed SPX anthology, and there was a 5 page sequence in the MONSIEUR JEAN story in DRAWN & QUARTERLY VOLUME 5 that was a brilliantly done depiction of arriving in New York for the first time, a chaotic whirlwind of sites
[www.nyc.com?]
and sounds and experiences. The preview pages at the Alternative Comics website look decent, though the language seems oddly stilted in places. Definitely one to check out in store.
[should be some fascinating stiltedness]
Slave Labor has a few very cool books out this month. The first is a trade paperback collection of FSc’s work, NIGHTMARES & FAIRYTALES VOL 1: ANNABELLE SPEAKS TP. In a series of short stories we get to see FSc’s gorgeous manga-meets-Vasquez artwork grace a number of ‘fractured fairytales’. NIGHTMARES is written by Gloom Cookie’s Serena Valentino and I gotta say, I don’t really care for what she brings to the book. I think the only story that I actually enjoyed from this run was their take on Snow White, and the rest were kind of… bleh. Still FSc’s art is a real treat on many of these stories, and the collected edition features a new 1-page comic from Jhonen Vasquez too.
[One-page?! That’s sure worth mentioning. If you like one page of Jhonen, matched with bleh stories and gorgeous art, this one’s for you.]
Their second notable release is the somehow-controversial STREET ANGEL #1 by Jim Rugg and Brian Maruca. I don’t quite get it, a hundred books ‘similar’ to STREET ANGEL come out every year, appearing and disappearing with nary a peep. Slave Labor even publishes like, 15 of them. Somehow, some fanboy decided that the sheer existence of this book was worth getting upset about and just went to town predicting failure. So, of course, he created a ton of controversy which pretty much ensured a higher profile and higher pre-orders. Which is devilishly clever, I’d almost accuse SLG or the creators of manufacturing the whole thing if I didn’t think so little of comics fandom as to believe that some superhero fanboy would be offended by an SLG book daring to knock another story about Jim Lee from the top spot at Newsarama. Ah well. The preview looks Really Good, the cover is just awesome, and I think this three issue mini-series might be able to find its feet. Check it out for yourself, http://www.slavelabor.com/streetangel_prev/streetangel_prev.html
[where can I find the transcript of this whole controversy, or am I supposed to know what the fuck you’re talking about? At least you worked in some good anti-fanboy blather there]
…I fucking hate Previews, I just remembered. Fuck you Jim Balent, fuck you.
PATRICK: Just wait until the ad in next month’s issue…
Christopher: I can’t even tell who’s more cynical anymore…
[My guess is you]
Christopher: Meanwhile, It appears that Com.X’s CLASSWAR #4 is finally coming out after losing artist-after-artist on the title. I’ve heard really interesting things about their “Creator-Ownership Contracts” so I guess I’m not surprised that their artists keep fucking off. I’m just wondering if I should offer 2:1 odds that artist Travel Foreman will finish the series… ;)
[Probably has nothing to do with books needing to come out, so said artists can pay rent, and stuff like that. Must be the evil contracts]
My guilty pleasure for the month is clearly STREET FIGHTER VOLUME 1 TP, the collection of all of the Udon SF stuff to date. UDON is doing an amazing job on the STREET FIGHTER comics, the art is just spectacular, they really are the best at what they do. And for a comic based on a video game with no story beyond “Two characters fight!”, the book is surprisingly readable. A good action movie style plot that moves you briskly through the story, decent characterization and cleverly interweaving WHAT THEY WANT with something that very-clearly resembles a story. The most fully-realized nostalgia comic produced to date, STREET FIGHTER is a fantastic technical achievement and a wonderful pop confection. This collection includes the story from issue #0, as well as the main stories and back-ups from the first six issues.
[Jesus, get over yourself. No story, but clearly resembling a story? Certainly not a part of the reason Comics Is Fucked, I guess, since it’s manga.]
PATRICK: In related news, I have a complete run of X-TREME X-MEN.
Christopher: You fucker! You TOTAL FUCKER! You waited til the one time that I was incapable of properly responding to this to reveal it! You… clever… Will you marry me?
PATRICK: There’s nothing wrong with enjoying STREET FIGHTER for what it is. Books like this and the X-MEN have different goals to something like FROM HELL and don’t really need to be held up to it. They’re the comics equivalent of a Kylie Minogue record, and there’s a place for that. Nobody’s going to claim they’re great literature, but if the story keeps you occupied on the john and the art is pleasant to look at … hell, isn’t that the whole point of pop art?
Christopher: Fans of UZUMAKI and GYO creator Junji Ito, keep a look out for DH Publishing’s new line, “Hino Horror”. It’s a series of reprint volumes of 70’s and 80’s horror manga artist Hideshi Hino. Ito, whose creepy tales of Spirals and Fish With Legs have defined contemporary horror comics (with a nod to Steve Niles’ contributions)
[Well, when you’re one of the few people doing them, I guess you help define them. Mike “Blah” Mignola may have had a tiny hand in defining horror comics over the past DECADE as well.]
lists Hino as one of his major influences, and with over 400 volumes of manga in print it’s no wonder he’s been so influential. The first two releases from this line are THE RED SNAKE GN and THE BUG BOY, but they aren’t Hino’s first work to appear in English language editions. Hino’s HELL BABY and PANORAMA OF HELL, a set of disturbing graphic novels published by Blast Books have already offered those with iron resolve and iron constitutions a glimpse into Hino’s horrific stories. Those books can be a little tough to track down in most comic stores (though Amazon lists them both in stock…), so if you want an easy-to-acquire, cheap look at one of the masters of Japanese horror manga, grab either (or both!) of the $10 volumes when they hit the streets this month. The current plans are for two new Hino books to hit store shelves every month through at least June, so if you like these then there’s lots more coming down the line. Unlike the stingy release pace of Junji Ito’s work here in North America… :(
PATRICK: This is fantastic news for those of us into good horror books. My obsession with Junji Ito boarders on something that might be the subject of one of his stories, so I’ll definitely be checking these out.
Christopher: Here’s a fun thing I wrote about PEANUTS:
Christopher: A friend of mine and I were talking about the new PEANUTS HC design the other day. It wasn't such an odd conversation to have, we were at the comic book store and reading the news release. We both really like the cover a great deal actually. Somehow, the subject of 'new' Peanuts strips came up. Before you call blasphemy, it was a 'shooting the shit' sort of conversation and we all accept than anyone other than Schultz doing Peanuts is sacrilege yadda yadda yadda.
That said, I put forward Seth, because I think that if you stripped the 'morality' out of pissing on Schultz’s
[I can’t even fucking spell SCHULZ, so please take that in consideration of my learned opinion]
grave, I think it he'd have a blast doing it, and it would show on the page. My friend argued against it, he said that Seth would make it 'too serious'. Which I was a little surprised at, but then he put forward his own suggestion, James Kolchalka, and I immediately saw what he was getting at. I think Kolchalka's got that child-like quality to his work, while still having really come into his own as a creator over the past few years. His daily comics are even paced a little like PEANUTS episodes, and he draws a mean Snoopy.
[Grrr! Take that, Red Baron, you fucker! RATATATATATAT!]
The Fantagraphics PEANUTS cover design, by Seth, is a serious design. It has Seth's aesthetic and ideology
[?]
written all over it, and as Fantagraphics is marketing THE COMPLETE PEANUTS as a work of historical relevance, that makes a bunch of sense to me. I think it's a good choice, but certainly not the only one.
[or it wouldn’t be a “choice”, huh?]
Christopher: …so anyway, April (the book is advance-solicited) will see the publication of the first volume of THE COMPLETE PEANUTS: 1950-1952 HC. Which is pretty amazing, if you think about it. A genuine piece of comics history and even Americana (which I usually find distasteful),
[Give me some Greenlandiana or Botswanaiana any day!]
and this book will mark the first time that many of these strips have ever been reprinted. For all of the shit Fantagraphics gets for being a bunch of snobs and elitists, they have a commitment to comics history that’s pretty remarkable. Perhaps even unmatched. The PEANUTS collection is going to combine the remarkable production quality, design, and attention to detail of their gorgeous KRAZY KAT volumes with possibly the most commercial comic strip ever into an amazing and important series of books that are going to bring a lot of positive attention to the medium of comics.
PATRICK: Playing devil’s advocate for a moment … why is it okay for the PEANUTS to stick to a formula for decades and focus on costumed characters who never truly change or evolve, when we criticize superhero books for PRECISELY THE SAME REASON? Naked emperor or am I missing a crucial point? U decide.
Christopher: Assuming you aren’t being facetious? I’d personally put it down for Peanuts being a conveyance for ideas. I can’t really remember any Peanuts strips ABOUT Peanuts strips, but every Peanuts strip I’ve read seems to be about ‘the human condition’. Meaning, essentially, they aren’t up their own ass. Even Fantagraphics admits that superhero comics USED to be good, and even occasionally ARE good. They just generally aren’t… I don’t see an Emporer’s New Clothes situation here, simply that some works are worth of celebration and others… aren’t…
[Or in other words, if it’s still funny and real, it doesn’t have to grow.
Superheroes don’t have to grow if they continue to be just as fun and entertaining as they once were, and for the most part, they aren’t.]
Christopher: Speaking of Fantagraphics’ strip collections, they’re doing a new volume of Tony Millionaire’s always-enjoyable MAAKIES series in March, WHEN WE WERE VERY MAAKIES. The last collection was another really well-produced book, and the design of this book is pretty outstanding. MAAKIES is the mythical adventures of an alcoholic crow and an alcoholic monkey. Usually, they’re on a pirate ship… Um, to be honest, if you like that sort of thing it’s exactly what you’ll like.
The Xeric-Award nominated series LUMAKICK returns with LUMAKICK #2. LUMAKICK is the geometric dreams of mathematicians, delicate yet deliberate, patterns in stories that resonate outwards from a solid human core to create a work you don’t really see in comics very often.
[Marvel is going to sue Butcher for infringing on “dubious bullshit”]
Something about emotion and loneliness and wry humour and maybe even whimsy. Chester Brown called Lumakick #1 ‘impressive’, and I mean, that’s a pretty good pedigree. Check out series creator Richard Hahn’s excellent website at http://www.lumakick.com/.
PATRICK: The first Lumakick was great, but not for everyone. If your taste lies in the art comix direction, this is worth a pre-order.
Christopher: I don’t know if a book can be considered a “Guilty Pleasure” is it’s quantifiably excellent in a number of different ways. Guilty or not, I’m really, really looking forward to the long-awaited fourth volume in P. Craig Russell’s adaptation of THE FAIRY TALES OF OSCAR WILDE series. The third volume of this series came out years ago, and was a little skimpier than previous volumes as well. This one looks to be excellent though, with Russell’s brilliant skills at adaptation applied to Wilde’s The Devoted Friend and The Nightingale and the Rose. I’m… well, I’m completely in love with Russell’s work. I don’t think there is anyone better at adapting prose (or, you know, opera) into comics than he is. I hate to say this, but he’s so good at what he does that I’m kind of only glad he’s adapting artistic masterworks. It’d fucking kill me to see him wasting his time on X-MEN. Let him work exclusively with Neil Gaiman, with Oscar Wilde, with Wagner. Better than Chuck Austen…
[Never mind his inking Wonder Woman last year. No, no, I don’t want to hear about it! Never happened! Away with you!]
PATRICK: Bah. Russell’s just servicing trademarks. (For the humor-impaired, I don’t actually believe this.)
Christopher: Ingrate. (Also: Oscar Wilde’s work is public domain.)
Christopher: Meanwhile, Antony Johnston continues to innovate with his modernization of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, JULIUS. An original graphic novel featuring some top-notch art from Brett Weldele (SHOT CALLERZ), Johnston attempts to create an accurate and measured adaptation of the famous Shakespeare play (“Et tu, Brutus?”) setting it in the world of East-End London Gangsters. Relentlessly contemporary but still an accurate adaptation of the bard, JULIUS is already the ‘hottest’ property Oni has published with Hollywood sniffing around it in a major way weeks before its release. I don’t know what else to say, other than that this is going to be fucking huge. Check out the Preview in this interesting CBR interview at http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=3165.
[It could be as huge as O, or the Gwyneth Paltrow GREAT EXPECTATIONS, even! Soon, Johnston will “innovate” THE GREAT GATSBY; MOBY-DICK; and GOODNIGHT MOON! ]
Also from Oni Press this month is the fifth collection of QUEEN & COUNTRY, QUEEN & COUNTRY VOLUME 5: OPERATION STORMFRONT ( ). Though Q&C is pretty-much always enjoyable, this collection is particularly notable for the outstanding artwork of Finder’s Carla Speed McNeil and for turning the series on its head. McNeil’s work takes a few huge steps forward with this volume and her recent Finder issues show the benefits of having done 5 issues of intensive and slightly labourious work for hire. The book looks great, reads great, the whole book just sings. I wouldn’t recommend starting to read QUEEN & COUNTRY with this volume, but I would certainly say that when you finally do get to volume 5, you’ll have something to look forward to.
It’s kind of a light month for Tokyopop, with a number of popular new series that just don’t grab me at all. I mean, DNANGEL VOLUME 1 has nice art and a passable story, and it’ll be FUCKING HUGE. It has a massive cult following amongst teenage girls who’ve been salivating for its release here. It’s also very well-placed to do well here, it’s a much more attractively drawn YUGIOH type of story, with a stronger romantic subplot do draw the girls in. Massive. It’s just, you know, not to my taste.
The one that does grab me a little? ONE VOLUME ONE. Heh. It’s a new Korean romance graphic novel, along the lines of SNOW DROP VOLUME 1 (which I really enjoyed). This time out? A love triangle between a quiet music prodigy, a ‘nice girl’, and a popular singer, ostensibly about true identity. Really just a romance story with really nice-looking art, and hey, what’s wrong with that. Shame that the cover is so unforgivably ugly, but them’s the breaks. Anyway, it looks like another good ‘older teen’ romance graphic novel, in a sea of weird/bad stuff.
Viz fares a little better in the Hot! Manga! Sweepstakes! this month. In the HOT category, they’ve got the long-awaited ANGEL SANCTUARY manga, and the ULTIMATE MUSCLE manga tying into the popular Saturday morning cartoon show (plus it’s got wrestling, for the wrestling fans). ANGEL SANCTUARY is about generational relationships and pretty boys who are angels and shocking violence, it produced an immensely popular animated feature here in the states. The manga has the ‘complete’ story that the movie didn’t, and yeah, great built-in audience. Same with ULTIMATE MUSCLE, really, and it has the added bonus of being a SHONEN JUMP related title too.
Again, enh? I’m not really that interested. For me, it’s all about the new format re-releases of BANANA FISH VOLUME 1, and NEON GENESIS EVANGELION VOLUME 1, and the long-awaited (lot of ‘long-awaited’ books this month eh?) NEON GENESIS VOLUME 8. BANANA FISH originally started serialization in PULP magazine, it’s a mature-readers shoujo (girls’ romance) title about… New York City Gangsters. I’m serious. It’s a little incongruent at times, but it’s oddly captivating in a soap-opera sort of way. I’ll admit to owning the first six volumes anyway (and I’m quite happy that future volumes will be released in the cheap format). I wouldn’t call it ‘great stuff’, but like I said, compelling. EVANGELION on the other hand is the ‘reinterpretation’ of the same story that spawned the most popular anime of the past 10 years. It’s either right up there with GHOST IN THE SHELL and AKIRA or right behind them… The manga is different from the anime in a number of ways. For one thing, the art is better. Far, far better. Seriously. For another, the manga leaves far fewer gaps than the anime does in the story, and it’s much more character oriented than the ‘battle of the week’ style fights that were a necessity for much of the television show. It’s not Shakespeare or anything,
[so don’t expect to find Antony Johnston sniffing around it]
but it’s still some good stuff and holds up to the anime. Worth owning for anyone even remotely interested in the series, particularly in the new more-affordable format.
PATRICK: I’ll second the Evangelion recommendation. A good mix of character, action and thought there, and easily accessible for superhero fans interested in manga but unsure of where to start.
--
Thanks for reading! Feel free to e-mail us at general@previewsreview.com!
Best,
- Christopher & Patrick
[Love, the Comics INactivist]
Thursday, March 11, 2004
Wednesday, March 03, 2004
A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS
[But after reading mine, don’t blame the picture!]
Comics need more fun, dammit.
[Angry, profanity-laden fun! The kind the little shits like]
Sometimes it's easy to forget that comics are fun.
[And many of my recommendations make it even easier to forget]
There's a seemingly endless amount of white noise dedicated to attempting to suck all the enjoyment out of the comic industry.
[nothing worse than dedicated white noise]
"The direct market is dying," "The artform is ignored," "The speculators are returning," "Manga rules the world and no one seems to care," "The publishers are flooding the market," "Wolverine's back in his yellow spandex suit,"
[“The Comic Pimp sucks”] are all great topics of discussion and worth putting thought into. But this industry was built on the backs of enjoyment, entertainment and good old-fashioned fun.
[Seems a terrible way to treat enjoyment, entertainment and fun, huh?]
In the world of meaningful discussion,
[I’m the alien]
analytic analysis
[yikes!]
and complex discourse, it's easy to forget that the reason that we care so much about the funny books is because reading comic books is fun. Emphasis on that "fun" word (my other favorite "f" word).
[it sure doesn’t help if you read anything else—it makes most of the comics less fun, plus you realize how stupid “analytic analysis” sounds]
Emphasizing the fun is the extremely simple concept on which my comic lounge and everything I do within the comic industry is based.
[witness my fun suits!]
Sure, I want my business to be successful. Sure, I want to see the comic industry thrive, but you know what? I also want to have fun.
The entire reason I write this column, throw crazy ass events,
[events built upon the crazy asses of enthusiasm, ribaldry and joie de vivre]
do guerilla marketing, and get out of bed in the morning is because I have an insatiable appetite for having a damn good time. And anyone who is lucky enough to combine that which they love with that which they do for a living with that which they think is unbelievably fun is living the good life.
Regular readers of this column have heard me ranting about how excited I was about the Alternative Press Expo (APE) coming to my own stomping grounds in San Francisco.
One of the fundamental things to love about APE is the manic, creative energy. People who had never made a comic before in their life before attending last year were so inspired that they sat behind a table this year with hot, fresh comics. People who slaved alone through night after night to get their comics done in time got to hear some supportive feedback and grab themselves a little cash for their hard work at APE. And even people who have been in the industry for years are reinvigorated by the dynamic, creative energy that charges the convention year after year.
APE is all about creative people getting out there and doing shit, making comics, meeting people…and yes, having fun.
And so, in the interest of fun, I'm going to share with you some of the most fun I've had over the past couple of weeks, leading up to APE, and after it.
As comics fans, I know that you like your stories to be accompanied by pictures, and I've talked a lot already, so from here on out we're going to let my camera do most of the talking.
[WHEW!]
On Wednesday, February 18th, mere days before the official APE con kick off, Tom Beland, one of the most fun men in comics,
[except for the times he’s anything but]
took advantage of the Isotope's Permanent Art Installation's drafting table and brought the creative process to the people, making an issue of his "True Story Swear to God" comic while they watched. Tom took time out from the pencil, paper, and pen to talk art theory, creative process, and self-publishing with those in attendance. And also, Tom made sure to draw sketches in the front cover of his "True Story Swear to God" trade paperback and gave out pages of original artwork to enthusiastic fans.
[photos of Beland and others with Sime, thumbs up, smiling. Brian Wood admires his own DEMO]
As always, there was a flurry of activity around the city during APE this year. And, so, inevitably, hosting our own APE event meant that we missed out on some really fun panels and after parties, and even that we spent less time than we would've liked at the Con itself. But without a doubt our annual APE Aftermath event, is always one of the best times I have all year. This year, APE Aftermath kicked it up to eleven. The general consensus was that we saw between 350-400 people during the event and while the party was scheduled until 5am, the party kept rocking until 7:30am. This is a well-documented event and in the interest of sharing the fun, I'm going to share with you a massive collection of photos before moving on to other APE weekend events. But before we get there, indulge yourself in the pictures of the sexy nerds and nerdettes who came out to celebrate with us!
[nerds, nerdettes, 2 cute girls, Brian Wood drinking booze, frightening Sime suit]
Of course, the most important part of APE Aftermath is the awarding of the Isotope Award for Excellence in Mini-Comics. This year the award went to a great new talent from Kansas City, Missouri, Josh Cotter for his comic "Skyscrapers of the Midwest."
"Skyscrapers of the Midwest" is a collection of heart-wrenching stories of coming of age in a small midwestern atmosphere.
[?]
The blank eyes of Josh Cotter's almost cute characters creates a foreboding tone that the reader cannot shake even during a seemly innocuous story about a visit to Grandma's house.
[But then he plunks a big bad wolf down in that small Midwestern house, and uh-oh! Fangs o’ fun!]
Josh Cotter is obviously tremendously talented
[I mean, can’t you tell?]
and I expect to see amazing work from him the future. It wouldn't surprise me if he became a household name.
[perhaps with his own line of bolts? Cotter bolts?]
The award ceremony featuring myself, last year's winner Rob Osborne as well as the latest addition to the Isotope Award family Josh Cotter was one of the most fun events in recent memory. For me it was really a great moment when I got to see Rob Osborne handed over
[to the authorities]
the award to a grinning Josh Cotter at the end of his short speech. Josh received a howling ovation as the theme from 2001
[What was the theme from 2001? “Whoomp! There It Is”? Oh, he means that movie, the Space Odyssey one]
boomed loudly over the Isotope's sound system. The crowd was very vocal in their support of this year's winning entry, and I've got to say Mister Cotter carried that trophy like a true champion of champions.
[hanging it from a steel rod inserted through his scrotum. Hey, we pick champions of champions differently here in San Francisco!]
You can get copies of this fantastic mini from the Isotope and other fine comic purveyors, as well as from Josh himself at jwcotter@micro.com.
But that's not all that's happened in the last eight days…
Few comics appeal to people from as many backgrounds and walks of life as "The Couriers."
[without actually selling much]
Brian Wood's writing perfectly balances crazy action sequences and
[a non-existent story]
a gripping story while Rob G's art kicks you in the face, punches you in the gut, and leaves you motion sick and begging for more. It's simplicity itself to put a smile on a guest's face simply by putting a copy of Couriers in their hands.
[as long as there’s a line of coke balanced on top]
In fact, the love of "The Couriers" is so great that the anticipation for Couriers 2 had reached a fever pitch around the Isotope. And with its official release date a mere three days after the Alternative Press Expo, I knew that its impact would cause a virtual detonation of fun.
Last year, when Couriers was released, an impromptu Isotope tradition of expressing the Couriers love started. It was a little crazy and a lot fun, so you just know we had to do it all over again this year.
(To see the last year's Couriers adrenaline rush, visit the Isotope Virtual Lounge here.)
Just because my camera isn't out there capturing every crazy fun comic-related event doesn't mean that they aren't happening outside the Isotope's front door. Because I know they are.
Comics is a creative industry made up of creative people who are making art and entertainment for creative consumers. There is no question that comic fans know how to have the kind of fun that would stupefy or sterilize lesser men or women.
[that’s right, bitch—one night I had TWO TWO-LITERS OF PEPSI!]
With the legions of comic connoisseurs once again growing with each passing month, I'm looking forward to taking my enjoyment threshold to levels yet unheard of. Let's make 2004 our best year yet.
[And with more shit like Couriers 2, we can do it! Come on, people! Join with me! Warren Ellis—you got a book about an assassin with a penis made of gelignite—I’ll sell it! Mark Millar—chimpanzee junkies with giant robotic feet! I can sell the shit out of that!]
You know the routine. You can pontificate on industry issues, preach the gospel and pimp great comic books, or even discuss this article on the Comic Pimp Forum.
Lovingly yours,
THE COMICS INACTIVIST
[But after reading mine, don’t blame the picture!]
Comics need more fun, dammit.
[Angry, profanity-laden fun! The kind the little shits like]
Sometimes it's easy to forget that comics are fun.
[And many of my recommendations make it even easier to forget]
There's a seemingly endless amount of white noise dedicated to attempting to suck all the enjoyment out of the comic industry.
[nothing worse than dedicated white noise]
"The direct market is dying," "The artform is ignored," "The speculators are returning," "Manga rules the world and no one seems to care," "The publishers are flooding the market," "Wolverine's back in his yellow spandex suit,"
[“The Comic Pimp sucks”] are all great topics of discussion and worth putting thought into. But this industry was built on the backs of enjoyment, entertainment and good old-fashioned fun.
[Seems a terrible way to treat enjoyment, entertainment and fun, huh?]
In the world of meaningful discussion,
[I’m the alien]
analytic analysis
[yikes!]
and complex discourse, it's easy to forget that the reason that we care so much about the funny books is because reading comic books is fun. Emphasis on that "fun" word (my other favorite "f" word).
[it sure doesn’t help if you read anything else—it makes most of the comics less fun, plus you realize how stupid “analytic analysis” sounds]
Emphasizing the fun is the extremely simple concept on which my comic lounge and everything I do within the comic industry is based.
[witness my fun suits!]
Sure, I want my business to be successful. Sure, I want to see the comic industry thrive, but you know what? I also want to have fun.
The entire reason I write this column, throw crazy ass events,
[events built upon the crazy asses of enthusiasm, ribaldry and joie de vivre]
do guerilla marketing, and get out of bed in the morning is because I have an insatiable appetite for having a damn good time. And anyone who is lucky enough to combine that which they love with that which they do for a living with that which they think is unbelievably fun is living the good life.
Regular readers of this column have heard me ranting about how excited I was about the Alternative Press Expo (APE) coming to my own stomping grounds in San Francisco.
One of the fundamental things to love about APE is the manic, creative energy. People who had never made a comic before in their life before attending last year were so inspired that they sat behind a table this year with hot, fresh comics. People who slaved alone through night after night to get their comics done in time got to hear some supportive feedback and grab themselves a little cash for their hard work at APE. And even people who have been in the industry for years are reinvigorated by the dynamic, creative energy that charges the convention year after year.
APE is all about creative people getting out there and doing shit, making comics, meeting people…and yes, having fun.
And so, in the interest of fun, I'm going to share with you some of the most fun I've had over the past couple of weeks, leading up to APE, and after it.
As comics fans, I know that you like your stories to be accompanied by pictures, and I've talked a lot already, so from here on out we're going to let my camera do most of the talking.
[WHEW!]
On Wednesday, February 18th, mere days before the official APE con kick off, Tom Beland, one of the most fun men in comics,
[except for the times he’s anything but]
took advantage of the Isotope's Permanent Art Installation's drafting table and brought the creative process to the people, making an issue of his "True Story Swear to God" comic while they watched. Tom took time out from the pencil, paper, and pen to talk art theory, creative process, and self-publishing with those in attendance. And also, Tom made sure to draw sketches in the front cover of his "True Story Swear to God" trade paperback and gave out pages of original artwork to enthusiastic fans.
[photos of Beland and others with Sime, thumbs up, smiling. Brian Wood admires his own DEMO]
As always, there was a flurry of activity around the city during APE this year. And, so, inevitably, hosting our own APE event meant that we missed out on some really fun panels and after parties, and even that we spent less time than we would've liked at the Con itself. But without a doubt our annual APE Aftermath event, is always one of the best times I have all year. This year, APE Aftermath kicked it up to eleven. The general consensus was that we saw between 350-400 people during the event and while the party was scheduled until 5am, the party kept rocking until 7:30am. This is a well-documented event and in the interest of sharing the fun, I'm going to share with you a massive collection of photos before moving on to other APE weekend events. But before we get there, indulge yourself in the pictures of the sexy nerds and nerdettes who came out to celebrate with us!
[nerds, nerdettes, 2 cute girls, Brian Wood drinking booze, frightening Sime suit]
Of course, the most important part of APE Aftermath is the awarding of the Isotope Award for Excellence in Mini-Comics. This year the award went to a great new talent from Kansas City, Missouri, Josh Cotter for his comic "Skyscrapers of the Midwest."
"Skyscrapers of the Midwest" is a collection of heart-wrenching stories of coming of age in a small midwestern atmosphere.
[?]
The blank eyes of Josh Cotter's almost cute characters creates a foreboding tone that the reader cannot shake even during a seemly innocuous story about a visit to Grandma's house.
[But then he plunks a big bad wolf down in that small Midwestern house, and uh-oh! Fangs o’ fun!]
Josh Cotter is obviously tremendously talented
[I mean, can’t you tell?]
and I expect to see amazing work from him the future. It wouldn't surprise me if he became a household name.
[perhaps with his own line of bolts? Cotter bolts?]
The award ceremony featuring myself, last year's winner Rob Osborne as well as the latest addition to the Isotope Award family Josh Cotter was one of the most fun events in recent memory. For me it was really a great moment when I got to see Rob Osborne handed over
[to the authorities]
the award to a grinning Josh Cotter at the end of his short speech. Josh received a howling ovation as the theme from 2001
[What was the theme from 2001? “Whoomp! There It Is”? Oh, he means that movie, the Space Odyssey one]
boomed loudly over the Isotope's sound system. The crowd was very vocal in their support of this year's winning entry, and I've got to say Mister Cotter carried that trophy like a true champion of champions.
[hanging it from a steel rod inserted through his scrotum. Hey, we pick champions of champions differently here in San Francisco!]
You can get copies of this fantastic mini from the Isotope and other fine comic purveyors, as well as from Josh himself at jwcotter@micro.com.
But that's not all that's happened in the last eight days…
Few comics appeal to people from as many backgrounds and walks of life as "The Couriers."
[without actually selling much]
Brian Wood's writing perfectly balances crazy action sequences and
[a non-existent story]
a gripping story while Rob G's art kicks you in the face, punches you in the gut, and leaves you motion sick and begging for more. It's simplicity itself to put a smile on a guest's face simply by putting a copy of Couriers in their hands.
[as long as there’s a line of coke balanced on top]
In fact, the love of "The Couriers" is so great that the anticipation for Couriers 2 had reached a fever pitch around the Isotope. And with its official release date a mere three days after the Alternative Press Expo, I knew that its impact would cause a virtual detonation of fun.
Last year, when Couriers was released, an impromptu Isotope tradition of expressing the Couriers love started. It was a little crazy and a lot fun, so you just know we had to do it all over again this year.
(To see the last year's Couriers adrenaline rush, visit the Isotope Virtual Lounge here.)
Just because my camera isn't out there capturing every crazy fun comic-related event doesn't mean that they aren't happening outside the Isotope's front door. Because I know they are.
Comics is a creative industry made up of creative people who are making art and entertainment for creative consumers. There is no question that comic fans know how to have the kind of fun that would stupefy or sterilize lesser men or women.
[that’s right, bitch—one night I had TWO TWO-LITERS OF PEPSI!]
With the legions of comic connoisseurs once again growing with each passing month, I'm looking forward to taking my enjoyment threshold to levels yet unheard of. Let's make 2004 our best year yet.
[And with more shit like Couriers 2, we can do it! Come on, people! Join with me! Warren Ellis—you got a book about an assassin with a penis made of gelignite—I’ll sell it! Mark Millar—chimpanzee junkies with giant robotic feet! I can sell the shit out of that!]
You know the routine. You can pontificate on industry issues, preach the gospel and pimp great comic books, or even discuss this article on the Comic Pimp Forum.
Lovingly yours,
THE COMICS INACTIVIST
Tuesday, March 02, 2004
The Line
The internet is a harsh mistress. This wonderfully anonymous forum for the world to play in has a gift for bringing out out best. Information can be shared with people all over the planet, and our ability to become a truly global society expands every single day. It's awesome to be a part of it, and it's a huge responsibility to use it wisely and with good judgment.
And then there's the Bendis Board.
Comic fans are a peculiar breed, prone to raging fits of stupidity and immaturity at the drop of a hat. Brian Michael Bendis' forum has been around for a long time in varying forms, establishing itself early on as one of the best places for comics fans to meet, talk, and discuss comics, pop culture, relationships, the whole gamut. But as of late, this once proud forum has become a sad, pathetic joke, and I wonder why Bendis isn't standing up, applying the brakes, and putting a stop to the absolute fucking nonsense going on in his name. Let's take a look at some of the current topics, shall we?
"Which Superhero Has The Biggest Cock? Discuss." Gosh, that's a startlingly pressing question, isn't it? Apparently so, as it has now generated three pages worth of responses. I'm sure the creators and writers who venture to Bendy's board only on rare occasion are happy and satisfied that they can weigh in on the size of Luke Cage's dick. Yay.
"Fuck, Marry, Kill: Comic Book Women". Four pages discussing the sexual desirability of female comic book creators. I suppose it could have been worse- it could have been about comic book characters. But still...this offensive little ditty actually drags poor Jamie Rich into it, as his friend (and awesome creator) Chynna Clugston-Major is under discussion in the thread. And the presence of Colleen Doran as a topic is doubly disturbing, as she faced horrid sexual harrassment breaking into the business, and she was just a teenager at the time. Does anyone think that this topic was a good idea, or good for the rep of the board? Four pages, and no sign of the bald guy whose forum bears his name speaking up. Gail Simone, a board regular, manages to not be a topic of discussion in the thread- is this what passes for respecting her?
And finally: "How Is It We're Suddenly Besieged By Ladies?" Five pages of responses, but let's be real... this is what the above topics are really about. Comics are a notorious boys club, and any stride forward, like a Bendis writing comics that are actually appealing to women, not appalling, and having those women come to his forum... well that's a threat to the sad, juvenile nature of most of his posters. So you get topics reducing women to objects, and primo discussion on dick size. Because these morons don't want icky girls coming by who aren't strippers, or whom they can't wank to while watching on film. It violates the natural order of the comic book geek. And it's an embarrassment. An embarrassment to a good guy like Bendis, an embarrassment to women who want to be a part of our communities, and an embarrassment to anyone who has a shred of self-respect and love for the medium. We will never stop being a low-read, shame-ridden pop culture as long as this attitude prevails.
UPDATE: Late today, Bendis removed the "Fuck, Marry, Kill" thread from his board and admonished the posters. I tip my cap to Brian for doing the right thing at first opportunity. Unfortunately, even in the thread where Bendis discusses the removal, it is very clear that some people just don't get it. Oh, well.
Marc@MarcMason.com
The internet is a harsh mistress. This wonderfully anonymous forum for the world to play in has a gift for bringing out out best. Information can be shared with people all over the planet, and our ability to become a truly global society expands every single day. It's awesome to be a part of it, and it's a huge responsibility to use it wisely and with good judgment.
And then there's the Bendis Board.
Comic fans are a peculiar breed, prone to raging fits of stupidity and immaturity at the drop of a hat. Brian Michael Bendis' forum has been around for a long time in varying forms, establishing itself early on as one of the best places for comics fans to meet, talk, and discuss comics, pop culture, relationships, the whole gamut. But as of late, this once proud forum has become a sad, pathetic joke, and I wonder why Bendis isn't standing up, applying the brakes, and putting a stop to the absolute fucking nonsense going on in his name. Let's take a look at some of the current topics, shall we?
"Which Superhero Has The Biggest Cock? Discuss." Gosh, that's a startlingly pressing question, isn't it? Apparently so, as it has now generated three pages worth of responses. I'm sure the creators and writers who venture to Bendy's board only on rare occasion are happy and satisfied that they can weigh in on the size of Luke Cage's dick. Yay.
"Fuck, Marry, Kill: Comic Book Women". Four pages discussing the sexual desirability of female comic book creators. I suppose it could have been worse- it could have been about comic book characters. But still...this offensive little ditty actually drags poor Jamie Rich into it, as his friend (and awesome creator) Chynna Clugston-Major is under discussion in the thread. And the presence of Colleen Doran as a topic is doubly disturbing, as she faced horrid sexual harrassment breaking into the business, and she was just a teenager at the time. Does anyone think that this topic was a good idea, or good for the rep of the board? Four pages, and no sign of the bald guy whose forum bears his name speaking up. Gail Simone, a board regular, manages to not be a topic of discussion in the thread- is this what passes for respecting her?
And finally: "How Is It We're Suddenly Besieged By Ladies?" Five pages of responses, but let's be real... this is what the above topics are really about. Comics are a notorious boys club, and any stride forward, like a Bendis writing comics that are actually appealing to women, not appalling, and having those women come to his forum... well that's a threat to the sad, juvenile nature of most of his posters. So you get topics reducing women to objects, and primo discussion on dick size. Because these morons don't want icky girls coming by who aren't strippers, or whom they can't wank to while watching on film. It violates the natural order of the comic book geek. And it's an embarrassment. An embarrassment to a good guy like Bendis, an embarrassment to women who want to be a part of our communities, and an embarrassment to anyone who has a shred of self-respect and love for the medium. We will never stop being a low-read, shame-ridden pop culture as long as this attitude prevails.
UPDATE: Late today, Bendis removed the "Fuck, Marry, Kill" thread from his board and admonished the posters. I tip my cap to Brian for doing the right thing at first opportunity. Unfortunately, even in the thread where Bendis discusses the removal, it is very clear that some people just don't get it. Oh, well.
Marc@MarcMason.com
Thursday, February 19, 2004
Big Deal
The big news of the week seems to be that the Marvel solicitations for May have leaked, and they are no longer able to deny that “Buffy” creator Joss Whedon will be writing an X-Men title for the House Of Recycled Ideas. This, of course, has set fanboys a’panting, and there was much orgasming in still-zipped trousers. Hooray.
Look, I like Whedon. A lot. Hell, the only property that I have ever reached true fanboy status for is the Buffy/Angel combination of shows. I know a scary amount of minutiae and trivia when it comes to the Whedonverse, and it’s sort of embarrassing. But I can’t sit here and get excited that he’s writing an X-Men comic. Because I’ve been watching Whedon write X-Men for years.
What was Buffy, if not a deeply X-Men homaged show? A group of super-powered young adults, led by their mentor and trainer, fighting evil. Red-headed witch Willow Rosenberg didn’t take long as the show passed to become Joss’ Jean Grey. She first began working on magic, learning telekinesis first, then working her way to telepathy, and eventually becoming so powerful that she corrupted and tried to destroy the world. Only the love of her lifelong crush/best friend Xander (a ready Cyclops substitute) grounded her and stopped her. Angel was established early on as Whedon’s Wolverine. A man with a literal demon inside of him, the vampire with a soul evoked Claremont and Miller’s limited series that balanced out Wolverine’s berserker rage with his samurai soul. At least he let Angel be from Ireland and not Canada.
Flip-siding Xander’s non-powered Cyclops, Buffy herself was the powered version, even sharing the last name of Summers. Stubborn, pained, and responsible to a deadly fault, the titular heroine shook off the early doldrums to become the hero who always stood her ground. Buffy, though many deny it, was written to be more than a bit of a prig through her seven-year run. Indeed, much like comics fans with the character if Cyclops, I always felt like she was the least interesting character on the show, even though she was the focus and the leader. It was telling, I think, that they allowed Xander to save the day in season six, knowing that the character of Buffy herself had nothing to offer to stop Willow’s dark rampage. Her relationship with her Watcher, Giles, also consistently paralleled Scott Summers’ relationship with Professor X.
Following the path of similar storylines again, season seven saw Buffy’s former vampire lover and nemesis Spike regain his soul as well, setting up her own “Madeline Pryor” scenario. Swapping the character roles a bit, Angel and Spike become Jean and Madeline, forcing her to navigate her heart gently, because much like Cyclops when he learned (while still married to Madeline) Jean was still alive, it was a pretty slippery slope when it came to choosing what was best for her heart, even if it was none of the above.
This entire column sounds kind of scary, doesn’t it, that I can even write this shit down. Bleah. I’m sort of appalled. But I guess what I’m trying to say is, why get excited for something that’s been happening for years, but for which Whedon is getting paid a lot less money for this time? I suspect that it might actually be good, as his “Fray” was, but there’s no way in Hell I’m gonna lay out the $3.00 an issue for it. Besides, it’ll probably be consistently late, to boot.
So being an absolute hypocrite, I’ll just buy the trade.
Marc@MarcMason.com
The big news of the week seems to be that the Marvel solicitations for May have leaked, and they are no longer able to deny that “Buffy” creator Joss Whedon will be writing an X-Men title for the House Of Recycled Ideas. This, of course, has set fanboys a’panting, and there was much orgasming in still-zipped trousers. Hooray.
Look, I like Whedon. A lot. Hell, the only property that I have ever reached true fanboy status for is the Buffy/Angel combination of shows. I know a scary amount of minutiae and trivia when it comes to the Whedonverse, and it’s sort of embarrassing. But I can’t sit here and get excited that he’s writing an X-Men comic. Because I’ve been watching Whedon write X-Men for years.
What was Buffy, if not a deeply X-Men homaged show? A group of super-powered young adults, led by their mentor and trainer, fighting evil. Red-headed witch Willow Rosenberg didn’t take long as the show passed to become Joss’ Jean Grey. She first began working on magic, learning telekinesis first, then working her way to telepathy, and eventually becoming so powerful that she corrupted and tried to destroy the world. Only the love of her lifelong crush/best friend Xander (a ready Cyclops substitute) grounded her and stopped her. Angel was established early on as Whedon’s Wolverine. A man with a literal demon inside of him, the vampire with a soul evoked Claremont and Miller’s limited series that balanced out Wolverine’s berserker rage with his samurai soul. At least he let Angel be from Ireland and not Canada.
Flip-siding Xander’s non-powered Cyclops, Buffy herself was the powered version, even sharing the last name of Summers. Stubborn, pained, and responsible to a deadly fault, the titular heroine shook off the early doldrums to become the hero who always stood her ground. Buffy, though many deny it, was written to be more than a bit of a prig through her seven-year run. Indeed, much like comics fans with the character if Cyclops, I always felt like she was the least interesting character on the show, even though she was the focus and the leader. It was telling, I think, that they allowed Xander to save the day in season six, knowing that the character of Buffy herself had nothing to offer to stop Willow’s dark rampage. Her relationship with her Watcher, Giles, also consistently paralleled Scott Summers’ relationship with Professor X.
Following the path of similar storylines again, season seven saw Buffy’s former vampire lover and nemesis Spike regain his soul as well, setting up her own “Madeline Pryor” scenario. Swapping the character roles a bit, Angel and Spike become Jean and Madeline, forcing her to navigate her heart gently, because much like Cyclops when he learned (while still married to Madeline) Jean was still alive, it was a pretty slippery slope when it came to choosing what was best for her heart, even if it was none of the above.
This entire column sounds kind of scary, doesn’t it, that I can even write this shit down. Bleah. I’m sort of appalled. But I guess what I’m trying to say is, why get excited for something that’s been happening for years, but for which Whedon is getting paid a lot less money for this time? I suspect that it might actually be good, as his “Fray” was, but there’s no way in Hell I’m gonna lay out the $3.00 an issue for it. Besides, it’ll probably be consistently late, to boot.
So being an absolute hypocrite, I’ll just buy the trade.
Marc@MarcMason.com
Tuesday, February 10, 2004
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
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
Saturday, February 07, 2004
Same Old Story…
…same old song and dance. Another small press book bit the dust this week, and it, like most, will be mostly unnoticed, much like it was while it was being published.
I started reading SHADES OF BLUE back when I worked for ComicBook Galaxy. They were self-publishing through AMP Comics at that time, and a review package showed up in my mail slot out of the, well, blue. The book was a charming little ditty, a real rarity; it focused on a young girl with super powers, and it wasn’t in color. It featured some sharp dialogue, and the wonderful art of an unknown named Cal Slayton, whom I predicted big things for. The first series lasted nine issues, and then it moved to Digital Webbing, where it has run another five. Unfortunately, issue five is a screeching halt ending.
There’s a sad, but understandable from writer and publisher Jim Harris that opens the book, as he explains that financially the book cannot continue. Even in black and white, apparently they’re losing money every issue. That’s just fucking wrong. Here you had a wonderful all-ages book with a strong young girl appeal and it never found a large enough audience or niche. Harris discusses the idea that not having color killed some of their chances, but considering the cost of printing in color, you can hardly blame him.
I think the real shite of it all is that Jim won’t get to finish telling his story. It was obvious that the underlying meta-plot of the book was getting stronger play, and that answers the longtime readers were curious for were right around the corner. You could feel the creative team’s excitement growing with each issue, even as they were watching sales fall into the toilet. And this is not a localized phenomenon. How many books over the past decade have disappeared like this? Where are Martin Wagner and B.C. Boyer, for instance?
As we draw near to seeing Dave Sim finish one of the most remarkable achievements in the history of the medium, I think it would behoove us to step back and think about those whose dreams were perhaps not as lofty, but just as legitimate. To them, I offer my condolences, and the thought that I appreciate that they tried. And I hope that someday, somehow, those stories find their way into the world of the waking. Lucien’s library is already too full.
Marc@MarcMason.com
…same old song and dance. Another small press book bit the dust this week, and it, like most, will be mostly unnoticed, much like it was while it was being published.
I started reading SHADES OF BLUE back when I worked for ComicBook Galaxy. They were self-publishing through AMP Comics at that time, and a review package showed up in my mail slot out of the, well, blue. The book was a charming little ditty, a real rarity; it focused on a young girl with super powers, and it wasn’t in color. It featured some sharp dialogue, and the wonderful art of an unknown named Cal Slayton, whom I predicted big things for. The first series lasted nine issues, and then it moved to Digital Webbing, where it has run another five. Unfortunately, issue five is a screeching halt ending.
There’s a sad, but understandable from writer and publisher Jim Harris that opens the book, as he explains that financially the book cannot continue. Even in black and white, apparently they’re losing money every issue. That’s just fucking wrong. Here you had a wonderful all-ages book with a strong young girl appeal and it never found a large enough audience or niche. Harris discusses the idea that not having color killed some of their chances, but considering the cost of printing in color, you can hardly blame him.
I think the real shite of it all is that Jim won’t get to finish telling his story. It was obvious that the underlying meta-plot of the book was getting stronger play, and that answers the longtime readers were curious for were right around the corner. You could feel the creative team’s excitement growing with each issue, even as they were watching sales fall into the toilet. And this is not a localized phenomenon. How many books over the past decade have disappeared like this? Where are Martin Wagner and B.C. Boyer, for instance?
As we draw near to seeing Dave Sim finish one of the most remarkable achievements in the history of the medium, I think it would behoove us to step back and think about those whose dreams were perhaps not as lofty, but just as legitimate. To them, I offer my condolences, and the thought that I appreciate that they tried. And I hope that someday, somehow, those stories find their way into the world of the waking. Lucien’s library is already too full.
Marc@MarcMason.com
Tuesday, February 03, 2004
Comics news pundits were appalled at the shocking events of the latest Marvel news conference, which climaxed in Editor-in-Chief Joe Quesada's right breast being accidentally revealed when President Dan Buckley accidentally leaned over the large editor and undid his shirt. Accidentally.
Discussing the new Daredevil mini-series, Father, Quesada was in the middle of detailing his new take on the character when Buckley interrupted by telling him that he would, according to onlookers, "get [Quesada] naked by the end of this conference". When Quesada continued unabashed, Buckley then apparently reached over and unbuttoned Quesada's shirt revealing a ninja star, much like one that Daredevil-villain Bullseye would use, pierced through his nipple.
Matt Brady, of popular internet comics newsarama Newsarama, commented that at that point, when the room went silent, all eyes fixed on Quesada clutching his chest and Buckley just looking kind of odd and frowning, it was all he could do to stop himself from muttering, "This never would have happened if Mike [Doran] was still working at the company."
All parties involved have since issued statements that this was in no way a publicity ploy to try and re-establish Marvel as the shocking comic company where anything can happen despite the company's recent devolution into rehashes of old comics by creators who were popular ten years ago. Nonetheless, this may be the most shocking comics moment since Mark Millar and Chris Claremont french-kissed in front of an audience of stunned fans at last year's SDCC.
Discussing the new Daredevil mini-series, Father, Quesada was in the middle of detailing his new take on the character when Buckley interrupted by telling him that he would, according to onlookers, "get [Quesada] naked by the end of this conference". When Quesada continued unabashed, Buckley then apparently reached over and unbuttoned Quesada's shirt revealing a ninja star, much like one that Daredevil-villain Bullseye would use, pierced through his nipple.
Matt Brady, of popular internet comics newsarama Newsarama, commented that at that point, when the room went silent, all eyes fixed on Quesada clutching his chest and Buckley just looking kind of odd and frowning, it was all he could do to stop himself from muttering, "This never would have happened if Mike [Doran] was still working at the company."
All parties involved have since issued statements that this was in no way a publicity ploy to try and re-establish Marvel as the shocking comic company where anything can happen despite the company's recent devolution into rehashes of old comics by creators who were popular ten years ago. Nonetheless, this may be the most shocking comics moment since Mark Millar and Chris Claremont french-kissed in front of an audience of stunned fans at last year's SDCC.
Wednesday, January 28, 2004
Crumb: TNG
Just finished reading BELLY BUTTON COMIX, the new effort from Sophie Crumb. Published in the U.S. by Fantagraphics, this is a pretty nifty effort that proves that even if an apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, it can still taste pretty different.
Artistically, Sophie has a somewhat calmer and sharper style than her father. Pieces like “Cell’Amour” demonstrate more of R. Crumb’s influence, but when she gets away from that, the book gets stronger. There are two stories featuring a character named “Sally La Frite” that still show a bit of familial style yet find a way to distance themselves in tone that go down much smoother. However, when Sophie sets her eye to herself (hence “belly button” comics) the book takes off.
The series of strips titled “Sophie & Cecile” is a real standout for many reasons. First, we begin to see a better picture of the author and her personal point of view that draws you in. Secondly, they’re almost uncomfortable to read to a fault. Sophie and Cecile are friends, but they’re that set of friends we’ve all met whom you can’t figure out why they hang out together. There’s obviously a sort of underlying need to have someone around that the other can abuse and feel superior to. It’s destructive on a quiet and subtle level, and it makes you feel like you’re sitting at the table with them and can’t get away. Great, great work. On the flip side, the book’s other highlight is a true story about how she fell for a young man who was selling postcards on her corner, and how she approached him in a humorous and very real way. It hits multiple high notes, and you get a sense of Sophie’s anxieties and how she battles to get through them and begin leaving him a series of notes with the hopes of asking him out. It’s likely to be the most romantic comic of the year not drawn by Tom Beland, and it works well.
Like any book with multiple stories, there are also a couple of misses, but overall, this is a strong book; well-drawn, interesting, and full of characters I enjoyed spending time with. It’s definitely worth your dollars.
It presents a really important question, though: why aren’t there more Sophie Crumbs?
Comics are an art form that inspire a great deal of love and passion for the medium, both in creators and the readers. It is an artistic endeavor that allows for an enormous creativity and freedom when done well. But what it doesn’t do is inspire many second generation creators.
Sure, we have a Sophie. John Romita Jr. The Kuberts. But why isn’t there a stronger next gen? Shouldn’t, logically, a kid see their parent staying home to work and doodling and think, “Wow, I wish I could do that? I want to make comics for a living.”
Let’s run down some reasoning here:
The guys working in the 50s were busting their humps in brutal conditions that were more sweatshop than funshop, and they were likely not receiving any credit for their work. Not something you’d encourage your kid to do. Then you see guys like Kirby and Simon, or more modern, Len Wein and Tony Isabella, and they don’t inspire anyone to get into the field either.
I have a difficult time imagining how that conversation would go. How would you ever encourage your child to take a job where the odds are that you’ll own none of your ideas, make very little money, be seen as disposable by your editor and publisher, and receive very little to no support from readers when you want to try and get your creations back from the corporate beast? Any kid who was encouraged to do that would instead be smarter to call Child Protective Services and ask to be removed from the home.
Look, you’re as disposable at any other job, true. But at least at General Motors you can join the union and get some protection. Most companies offer a health and dental plan these days. You have to be fortunate enough to sign an exclusive contract with a publisher to get that as a guarantee these days, or you’re gonna pay a lot more for it out of your own pocket. There’s always self-publishing, but then that’s a huge financial risk, no benefits that you don’t pay for yourself, lower sales because comic shops ignore you if you aren’t Marvel or DC, and lower profit. You’d better be praying for a movie deal or a video game. God forbid you wanted to make a romance comic.
I dunno. Maybe the industry will change. Sophie published in Europe first, where the rules (and the sales) are a lot different. But I can’t honestly see what the comics industry has to offer a sane next generation talent, let alone a sane talent, period. Yet in the end, it won’t matter, because the suckers who read and love the books will always develop new dreamers who believe that their idea is the next big thing, and that their experience will be different because they’re different. To them I say, “Good luck.” And to the publishers I say, “I have a proposal sitting here I’d like for you to take a look at.”
Marc@MarcMason.com
Just finished reading BELLY BUTTON COMIX, the new effort from Sophie Crumb. Published in the U.S. by Fantagraphics, this is a pretty nifty effort that proves that even if an apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, it can still taste pretty different.
Artistically, Sophie has a somewhat calmer and sharper style than her father. Pieces like “Cell’Amour” demonstrate more of R. Crumb’s influence, but when she gets away from that, the book gets stronger. There are two stories featuring a character named “Sally La Frite” that still show a bit of familial style yet find a way to distance themselves in tone that go down much smoother. However, when Sophie sets her eye to herself (hence “belly button” comics) the book takes off.
The series of strips titled “Sophie & Cecile” is a real standout for many reasons. First, we begin to see a better picture of the author and her personal point of view that draws you in. Secondly, they’re almost uncomfortable to read to a fault. Sophie and Cecile are friends, but they’re that set of friends we’ve all met whom you can’t figure out why they hang out together. There’s obviously a sort of underlying need to have someone around that the other can abuse and feel superior to. It’s destructive on a quiet and subtle level, and it makes you feel like you’re sitting at the table with them and can’t get away. Great, great work. On the flip side, the book’s other highlight is a true story about how she fell for a young man who was selling postcards on her corner, and how she approached him in a humorous and very real way. It hits multiple high notes, and you get a sense of Sophie’s anxieties and how she battles to get through them and begin leaving him a series of notes with the hopes of asking him out. It’s likely to be the most romantic comic of the year not drawn by Tom Beland, and it works well.
Like any book with multiple stories, there are also a couple of misses, but overall, this is a strong book; well-drawn, interesting, and full of characters I enjoyed spending time with. It’s definitely worth your dollars.
It presents a really important question, though: why aren’t there more Sophie Crumbs?
Comics are an art form that inspire a great deal of love and passion for the medium, both in creators and the readers. It is an artistic endeavor that allows for an enormous creativity and freedom when done well. But what it doesn’t do is inspire many second generation creators.
Sure, we have a Sophie. John Romita Jr. The Kuberts. But why isn’t there a stronger next gen? Shouldn’t, logically, a kid see their parent staying home to work and doodling and think, “Wow, I wish I could do that? I want to make comics for a living.”
Let’s run down some reasoning here:
- Are comic creators just too ugly to procreate? I don’t think that’s it. Plenty of comics folks have kids. Even the writers, and I know how difficult that can be. So, we’ll grant that the folks putting the books out aren’t so hopeless that they can’t get an opportunity to make a baby here and there.
- Is the next generation just too lazy to bother? I don’t buy this one, either. Long before there were video games, cable TV, and internet porn, there were a whole bunch of guys making comics. Some real giants. And outside of Joe Kubert, I can’t think of one who really sent in a son or daughter to take their place on the team. So while I wouldn’t expect J. Scott Campbell the 2nd thanks to the modern distractions of time that already distract Daddy, the absence of Stan Lee Junior is sort of glaring.
- Comics as the system works are more of a pain in the ass than they’re worth, and parents let their kids know this. Well, yeah. Gotta think this is right.
The guys working in the 50s were busting their humps in brutal conditions that were more sweatshop than funshop, and they were likely not receiving any credit for their work. Not something you’d encourage your kid to do. Then you see guys like Kirby and Simon, or more modern, Len Wein and Tony Isabella, and they don’t inspire anyone to get into the field either.
I have a difficult time imagining how that conversation would go. How would you ever encourage your child to take a job where the odds are that you’ll own none of your ideas, make very little money, be seen as disposable by your editor and publisher, and receive very little to no support from readers when you want to try and get your creations back from the corporate beast? Any kid who was encouraged to do that would instead be smarter to call Child Protective Services and ask to be removed from the home.
Look, you’re as disposable at any other job, true. But at least at General Motors you can join the union and get some protection. Most companies offer a health and dental plan these days. You have to be fortunate enough to sign an exclusive contract with a publisher to get that as a guarantee these days, or you’re gonna pay a lot more for it out of your own pocket. There’s always self-publishing, but then that’s a huge financial risk, no benefits that you don’t pay for yourself, lower sales because comic shops ignore you if you aren’t Marvel or DC, and lower profit. You’d better be praying for a movie deal or a video game. God forbid you wanted to make a romance comic.
I dunno. Maybe the industry will change. Sophie published in Europe first, where the rules (and the sales) are a lot different. But I can’t honestly see what the comics industry has to offer a sane next generation talent, let alone a sane talent, period. Yet in the end, it won’t matter, because the suckers who read and love the books will always develop new dreamers who believe that their idea is the next big thing, and that their experience will be different because they’re different. To them I say, “Good luck.” And to the publishers I say, “I have a proposal sitting here I’d like for you to take a look at.”
Marc@MarcMason.com
Monday, January 26, 2004
Cherries 2
So....just fininshed Battle Royale volume two, and I enjoyed it immensely. The book took a nice turn, as it turned its focus to the relationships the kids had before they were thrown into the program, lending greater weight to the tragedy of it all. From gangs turning upon each other, to lovers committing suicide rather than facing being murdered or having to kill one another in the end, this series of books has a depth and pathos that has caught me off guard. I'm still sucked in by the deeply disturbing premise, but I'm damned grateful that there's more to it than that.
As soon as I finish the complete series or at least get caught up with what's been released, I'll definitely be reading more manga. This has turned out to be a smashing idea.
Marc@MarcMason.com
So....just fininshed Battle Royale volume two, and I enjoyed it immensely. The book took a nice turn, as it turned its focus to the relationships the kids had before they were thrown into the program, lending greater weight to the tragedy of it all. From gangs turning upon each other, to lovers committing suicide rather than facing being murdered or having to kill one another in the end, this series of books has a depth and pathos that has caught me off guard. I'm still sucked in by the deeply disturbing premise, but I'm damned grateful that there's more to it than that.
As soon as I finish the complete series or at least get caught up with what's been released, I'll definitely be reading more manga. This has turned out to be a smashing idea.
Marc@MarcMason.com
Friday, January 23, 2004
MARVILLE #7
Intro (Page 1):
Welcome to EPIC Comics
For hundreds of creators who deserve the opportunity to see their work in print, for hundreds of thousands of readers listening for new creative voices, EPIC Comics is for you.
EPIC Comics is a new Marvel imprint under which we will publish comics written and illustrated by YOU. Anybody will have the opportunity to submit work for consideration by EPIC's submissions editor.
EPIC enjoys more favorable economic parameters than Marvel (and other publishers for that matter) so we can publish books that others can't.
EPIC strives for a broader creative scope than Marvel (and other publishers for that matter) so we can publish a wider array of stories than others would.
By freeing writers and artists from many of the economic and content restrictions of traditional comic publishing, EPIC hopes to provide a forum for a new generation of comic creators to reach the next generation of readers.
An old comic creator lament goes something like, "I don't have fans, just people who want my job." Well, people, here is your application. The following pages tell you what you need to know to get started with EPIC.
Good luck,
Bill Jemas
Section Divider (Pages 2-3):
REACHING NEW READERS
Kinds of Stories EPIC Is Likely to Publish
You can increase your chances of getting published by reading the following criteria that EPIC will use to judge submissions.
LetÃs start with EPICÃs mission statement.
1. Tell Great Stories
2. Reach New Readers
If you can do these two things, EPIC will publish your work. ItÃs that simple.
EPIC will publish books that speak to new readers in ways that MarvelÃs current books do not. This means that EPIC will not publish books that duplicate MarvelÃs current lineup.
The bad news is that MarvelÃs current lineup is already filled with all of the easy stuff. Marvel makes half a dozen Spider-Man books every month, a dozen X-Men titles and one or two more for every major character.
The good news is that EPIC will take greater creative chances and business risks that Marvel does.
If you have an interesting and story in you, we want to read it. If you have a unique and powerful artistic style, we want to see it. We want you to win.
A script you submit to EPIC will fall into one of four categories, and each category has its own criteria by which submissions will be judged. The following section explains how these categories and their associated criteria break down.
Pages 4-5:
1. Marvel characters with monthly books
Clearly, the EPIC books with the best initial sales potential will feature the major Marvel heroes and teams. EPIC books about Marvel heroes with the largest existing reader bases will be:
(a) the most likely to be bestsellers, but (b) the least likely to reach new readers.
Take Spider-Man, for example: Marvel limits the number of monthly Spidey titles, but constantly diversifies the line to reach a wider reader base. Thus, each monthly title claims a unique creative bent: Ultimate Spider-Man targets younger readers, Amazing Spider-Man maintains the characterÃs action-adventure tradition, and Peter Parker: Spider-Man focuses on the man behind the mask.
Marvel would love to publish a Spider-Man book under the EPIC imprint, but the creative team would have to come up with knock-Ãem-dead content different from the books in MarvelÃs current line. So please donÃt show up with, ìHey, Spider-Man hasnÃt fought Rhino in a long time.î Marvel can publish a book like that any time in our regular line. EPIC writers should strive to strike a clean, crisp note to a clearly identifiable target audience of new potential readers.
PULL QUOTE: ìEPIC writers should strive to strike a clean, crisp note to a clearly identifiable target audience of new potential readers.î
This is hard, but it can be done ñ the Ultimate line found a large, mostly unique teen audience for Ultimate Spider-Man, and repeated the trick with Ultimate X-Men and The Ultimates.
PULL QUOTE: ìEach monthly title claims a unique creative bent: Ultimate Spider-Man targets younger readers, Amazing Spider-Man maintains the characterÃs action-adventure tradition, and Peter Parker: Spider-Man focuses on the man behind the mask.î
Page 6-7:
2. Classic Marvel super heroes with no monthly books
The EPIC books with the next-best sales potential will be those that revive classic Marvel characters or teams. Moreover, these are relatively easy to approve, because they wonÃt cannibalize a current Marvel title. Unfortunately, this kind of book seems to bring out the worst in even the best writers. If you start with the question, ìHey, whatever happened to the Silver Surfer?î youÃre sure to get the answer, ìPretty close to nobody cares.î
But Marvel would love to publish a new Silver Surfer book under the EPIC imprint. The trick is to preserve the essence of the classic character while repositioning and updating the characterization so it resonates to a clearly identifiable target audience of new readers.
This is hard, but it can be done ñ Marvel Knights nailed it like nobodyÃs business, taking Punisher and Daredevil from the brink of cancellation to solid footing among the worldÃs most popular books.
PULL QUOTE: ìThis is hard, but it can be done ñ Marvel Knights nailed it like nobodyÃs business, taking Punisher and Daredevil from the brink of cancellation to solid footing among the worldÃs most popular books.î
Pages 8-9:
3. New Characters
Subtitle: New Characters for the Marvel Universe
The bad news is that weÃre talking about characters with absolutely no existing fan base; the good news is that there is significant upside for brand new characters that become popular. The folks at Marvel Studios in particular are always eager to hear about a new Marvel character that isnÃt attached to any existing Marvel character family.
Marvel would love to publish books that add great new characters to our Universe. We are especially interested in expanding into new literary genres. Super heroes are great, but there are readers who prefer the undies-on-the-inside kinda characters. EPIC intends to explore every graphic storytelling opportunity from romance to comedy to murder mystery and crime fiction.
PULL QUOTE: ìSuper heroes are great, but there are readers who prefer the undies-on-the-inside kinda characters.î
This is hard, but it can be done ñ Alias is a detective story, right in the tradition of noir mystery fiction, that is set convincingly in the world of Marvel super heroes.
So please feel free to stretch your creative wings with works that reach beyond the current comic audience. Marvel and EPIC will be right there with you, marketing and distributing the books to new readers and helping to expand the comic book community and industry.
Subtitle: New Creator-Owned Characters Outside the Marvel Universe
Look at Diamond Distributorsà monthly list of the top 300 comics: one or two creator-owned books may find their way into the top 100 for a month or two, but the bulk of these titles dwell at the bottom of the list, selling a few thousand copies, and losing a few thousand dollars, per issue.
PULL QUOTE: ìHaving Marvel produce your creator-owned concept means that your chances of breaking the top 100 are greater than with any other publisher.î
Moreover, from MarvelÃs point of view, these books donÃt have much value, because most of the long-term upside opportunity for ancillary revenues belongs to you, not us.
Having said that, I must add that EPIC is determined to tell great stories for new readers. If you can do that, we would love to be your publisher. And having Marvel produce your creator-owned concept means that your chances of breaking the top 100 are greater than with any other publisher.
Sidebar: New Marvel Characters and Entertainment Licensing
Many of MarvelÃs classic characters, and most of those who spring from existing titles, may be included automatically in existing movie, TV, electronic game and other licensing deals. But brand new characters are virtually unencumbered, even if they do dwell in the Marvel Universe.
There are legal complexities at work, but the basic principle is simple. For example, in New X-Men, Grant Morrison created a new character named Cassandra Nova (Professor XÃs sister). Before there can be a Cassandra Nova movie, video game or TV show, Marvel must navigate complex legal provisions of its TV, movie and merchandising contracts. In contrast, a brand new character, created independently from an existing family, would be free from most existing Marvel deals.
Section Divider (Pages 10-11):
TELLING GREAT STORIES
How To Write Stories EPIC Will Publish
Many great writers have done some of their best work for Marvel. To them, the Marvel Universe is the ultimate authorÃs sandbox, filled with wonderful characters and settings for wild fantasy, stark reality, and everything in between.
But many equally talented people have turned in some of their worst work for Marvel. They got the chance to play in that same sandbox and spent their time scooping up theÖ never mind. If I had a nickel for every comic script IÃve rejected in the past three years, IÃd have like twelve dollars. Okay, thatÃs not a lot of money, but itÃs a ton of wasted effort.
These writers all seem to have the same kinds of problems at Marvel U. The following list of ìrulesî should help you through your own creative process by steering you clear of the traps into which others have fallen.
Pages 12-13:
Rule #1: If your work isnÃt clear, donÃt bring it here.
As President of Marvel Publishing, IÃm embarrassed to admit that I canÃt understand more than half of our monthly comics. WeÃre oozing irony here, fans. In law school, I chose Tax Law, because the Internal Revenue Code made perfect sense to me. Now, after three years at the helm of Marvel, I find most of our comics to be unintelligible.
The greatest impediment to gaining new readers is lack of clarity in stories. If a potential new reader picks up a comic and isnÃt immediately drawn into the story because it is too difficult to tell whatÃs going on, then we lose that potential new reader, pure and simple.
Having said that, I should add that this is not an accident or a mistake. At least half of MarvelÃs titles are written for readers who have been reading our books for years and who want stories that are fully woven into the fabric of the Marvel Universe. Old fans understand and love the kind of book that is completely inaccessible to new Marvel fans (and new presidents).
But ñ EPIC does not need to publish that kind of book. Mainline Marvel writers have that covered.
CAPTION: Bruce Jones does a great job of making Incredible Hulk #34 both accessible to new readers and enjoyable for old fans.
Pages 14-15:
Rule #2: Character introductions are the foundation of your story.
HereÃs a sad phenomenon that plagues the comic book creative process: great-reading scripts make for bad-reading comics. For this plague, the cure is character introduction.
Comic book writers tend to do what novelists do: they write paragraph-long descriptions of each character as he or she enters the story. The writer may type that a character is divorced, or that she is a single mother, or that she escaped from the Weapon X program. The writer may type that a character is thinking she misses her kids, or that she would like to strangle their deadbeat father, or that her kneecaps could not possibly be adamantium because they are beginning to rust.
All that typing ñ with the writer knowing that almost none of it will find its way onto the final page. But any writer knows that character introduction is the skeleton that supports the plot. So rather than leave introductions out entirely, he writes them as little love notes to the editor and artist.
CAPTION: DonÃt assume your reader is familiar with your characters ñ even in the case of household names like Wolverine.
ThereÃs only one good way to introduce a character in comics: you have to let the character show the reader who she is by the things she chooses to do. Not by the things she says in long-winded narration captions, or in the things other characters say about her. And actions take time ñ you may need to spend four or five pages on a good character introduction. Do the math: if character introduction is the skeleton that supports the plot, and you are introducing more than four important characters in a 22-page comic, you are going to get literary osteoporosis.
PULL QUOTE: ìYou have to let the character show the reader who she is by the things she chooses to do.î
And donÃt even think about skimping on intros when youÃre bringing existing Marvel characters to your party. Treat every character like a new character that readers are meeting for the first time. Even in the case of household names like Spider-Man, Wolverine, and the Hulk, your character introductions should take some time to let the reader know how and why they are important to your story.
Of course, this is not to say that every character needs to be Hamlet. Quite the opposite; the Marvel Universe has more character actors than Hollywood. You are welcome to let the reader take MarvelÃs ìtypecastî characters at face value. You need to call the Feds to check on a military secret? Go ahead and ring Nick Fury; the shoulder holster and eye patch say all that needs saying. You need somebody to bust up a crap game? Go ahead and hire the Rhino to charge in; the nose hair says it all. But donÃt even think about using Rhino because he carries a grudge against Spider-Man due to that fight they had in Amazing Spider-Man #127.
The days of editorial ìfootnotesî are over ñ if you need one for readers to understand whatÃs going on, youÃre doing something wrong. For the sake of clarity and tradecraft, whether you are introducing a central, three-dimensional character or a bit player, you should put everything the reader needs to know right there ON THE PAGE as part of the action that drives the story forward. And donÃt cop out with lengthy captions or clunky ìIt is I, Iron Man, the Man of Ironî dialogue ñ your readers will see right through you.
CAPTION: ItÃs okay to use character ìtypesî. In the case of Nick Fury, the shoulder holster and eye patch say all that needs saying.
Pages 16-17:
Rule #3: Keep your metaphors at your fingertips.
Chapter One, Page One, Super Heroes 101. Super-powers should be used as metaphors for real-world characterization and story points ñ in Ultimate Spider-Man, for example, spider-powers are simply a metaphor for puberty.
Back in the early 1990s, Marvel writers forgot Peter was supposed to stand for teen boys everywhere and made him do things torn from the pages of their own lives. He aged, he got married, he got boring. Then we all looked surprised when teens stopped reading Spider-Man books.
PULL QUOTE: ìGet down to the essence of what made your character popular in the past so you can write new stories that will make that character popular in the present.î
Super-powers are just gobbledygook unless they have an underlying meaning. Johnny Storm has fire powers ñ ìWouldnÃt it be cool if Reed Richards built him an infrared power booster?î NO. Doc Ock has metal arms ñ ìWouldnÃt it be cool if they were adamantium?î NO. The Incredible Hulk is brutish and green ñ ìWouldnÃt it be cool if he turned intelligent and gray?î NO. We call those kinds of stories ìwriting a comic book about a comic book.î
CAPTION: The powers of Dark Phoenix are potent metaphors, which is why they make a great classic story.
But think about Jean Grey transforming into the Dark Phoenix with the power and yearning to destroy Earth. Jean is a mutant, a Homo sapiens superior, the natural evolutionary replacement of human beings ñ ìWouldnÃt it be cool if her powers got out of control, and readers caught a glimpse of what it would be like to actually be replaced by a new species?î Hell yes, it would be cool, and haunting ñ and that is why the Dark Phoenix Saga is a Marvel classic.
If you want to revive a classic Marvel character, you have to look past the spandex and stories that have been written by your predecessors. You need to get down to the essence of what made your character popular in the past so you can write new stories that will make that character popular in the present. HereÃs a good rule of thumb: if it didnÃt take place within the pages of the comic youÃre writing, leave it out ñ itÃs not relevant to the story youÃre telling right now. You donÃt have to discard the characterÃs past to do this ñ you just have to focus on the aspects of the character that have been consistent since the beginning, that make them who they are.
PULL QUOTE: ìWhile the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was preaching integration and Malcolm X was espousing separation, Professor Xavier was teaching his mutants how to live among humans and Magneto was intent on building a separate nation.î
MarvelÃs mainline authors do this every day. Think about the X-Men as a metaphor for minorities in America. The classic stories were pulled from the pages of contemporary American history books: in the 1960s, while the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was preaching integration and Malcolm X was espousing separation, Professor Xavier was teaching his mutants how to live among humans and Magneto was intent on building a separate nation of Homo sapien superiors. Today, in New X-Men, Grant Morrison is taking that central idea of the X-Men and recasting it in terms of the contemporary state of minority politics. He is telling stories in which Xavier has not abandoned his basic mission of integration, but has thrown open the doors of his academy in an overt declaration of mutant pride; he is showing the world the wonders of mutant science and culture.
Is this a rejection of those classic stories from the 1960s? Of course not. Does it depend on our having read those old stories? Not at all. A good EPIC script will remain faithful to the central concept of an existing Marvel creation without depending on the stories that have gone before it.
Pages 18-19:
Rule #4: Start your story at the beginning.
Marvel receives hundreds of story springboards, beat sheets and scripts every year. Ninety-five percent of them start right in the middle of a story; one hundred percent of that group are rejected.
Everyone else on Earth writes, ìA man was born, he lived and died.î
Comic guys write, ìA man died ñ no, he didnÃt, that was really his clone.î
Just about every kind of comic book writer seems to fall into that same trap.
PULL QUOTE: ìWriters who have been telling Marvel stories for decades already know all about the Marvel Universe and seem to assume their readers do, as well.î
When I was plotting the first issue of Namor, I got to the end, read it over and realized I had written the second issue instead. IÃd written an issue in which a young Namor meets a land girl at the beach, then encounters her years later at the same beach and agrees to go to a dance with her. My plan was to set up NamorÃs conflict between his responsibility to Atlantis and his attraction to the world above water. What I forgot to do, however, was establish his relationship to Atlantis. All this business with the girl wouldnÃt mean much unless we had first seen Namor in his natural setting. So I had to go back and start at the beginning, and write issue one instead of issue two.
Writers who have been telling Marvel stories for decades already know all about the Marvel Universe and seem to assume their readers do, as well. These writers tend to pick up characters where they were left off in old Marvel comics. They feel like they can skip the beginning ñ which is the crucial part of the story during which the writer must make the reader care about the characters. They tend to start their new stories at the ends of old ones. All the pitches to ìbring backî Jubilee and Generation X have started where the Generation X books ended. ThatÃs not a beginning ñ thatÃs a story trying to borrow the work another writer has done in order to avoid the challenge of writing a beginning. EPIC is not going to publish that kind of book.
When new writers are trying to break into Marvel, they study up on the Marvel Universe. Unfortunately, exposure to the great works that went before frequently overwhelms them. They tend to write between the cracks of past stories. We receive pitches all the time that start like this: ìThe following events take place between issues #137 and #138 of Uncanny X-Men.î EPIC is not going to publish that kind of book.
And howÃs this for strange? New writers who bring their entirely new characters and universes to be published as creator-owned properties also fall into this trap. They expend huge mental energy building their own universes in their minds, on index cards and on reams of typed paper. Then they tend to pick some point in time and space, smack in the middle of their new universe, and start telling the story right there. These pitches generally start with an unidentified character on a mysterious mission, the nature and meaning of which is ìto be revealed.î What they donÃt do is give us a reason why we should care enough ñ and keep reading long enough ñ to find out. EPIC is not going to publish that kind of book.
LetÃs make this simple: begin your story by engaging the reader in the life of your main character and/or in the essential events of the story.
PULL QUOTE: ìBegin your story by engaging the reader in the life of your main character and/or in the essential events of the story.î
Page 20:
Rule #5: Think big, act small.
If you have ever been up close and personal in a street fight ñ scrapping or watching ó you know a punch in the nose is a major event. But now suppose that just before the street fight, you had seen the Hulk pick up a bus and toss it at a building, or watched Magneto stop the EarthÃs rotation with a thought and a theatrical gesture. Then, instead of the street fight being one of the most significant images you carry for the rest of your life, it becomes a big yawn.
There is a comic tradition of starting every book with a big action scene, but big action scenes are showstoppers and should be saved for climactic moments. Little actions are the lifeblood of graphic storytelling. Little actions establish your characters; little actions move the plot forward.
One of the most chilling and memorable scenes in Origin is the scene in which Dog kills JamesÃs puppy. It has all the firepower it needs: one little puppy, one very bad boy. Nobody tossing tanks into oil tankers.
CAPTION: Origin didnÃt need big action scenes to be memorable, just one little puppy and one very bad boy.
Page 21:
Rule #6: Write in ìarcs.î
Gone are the days of yearlong story lines, dangling plot threads and dense continuity. If clear, accessible content is the best way to attract new readers, next in line are graphic novels ñ widely distributed, highly successful collections of single issues that together comprise complete story arcs. More and more, Marvel has been structuring stories with this market in mind, and EPIC should follow suit. The ideal length for a graphic novel is six issues ñ preferably two three-issue story arcs, but any combination is acceptable. After six issues, the price point tends to become prohibitive, and the gap between books too long.
Graphic novels underscore the usefulness of recap pages in monthly comic books. Not only do recap pages allow readers to play catch up on a monthly basis, they can be pulled from the subsequent collection ñ leaving a satisfying, complete story devoid of unnecessary exposition.
PULL QUOTE: ìA great first issue will have a clearly-defined ending, but will itself function as one big beginning for your six-issue story.î
When you write your issue #1, keep this six-issue story structure in mind. No need to sacrifice your beginning, middle and end. A great first issue will have a clearly-defined ending, but will itself function as one big beginning for your six-issue story.
CAPTION: Each Marvel trade paperback collects a complete, self-contained story arc.
Page 22-23:
Rule #7: Pilots vs. Origins
A good first issue is frequently an origin story. This kind of story provides a convenient way to introduce readers to your character, because readers actually watch the formation of those essential traits that make the character what he or she is. This is how we wrote Ultimate Spider-Man ñ the first seven issues of that series constitute an origin story. This is truly starting at the beginning ñ the beginning of the formative events that shape the characterÃs life.
PULL QUOTE: ìThe key to a long career in comics is not writing a good first issue. It is the ability to sustain a story line over the long haul.î
EPIC editors will be happy to get your origin stories, and I expect EPICÃs early years will include a bunch of them. But keep in mind the key to a long career in comics is not writing a good first issue. It is the ability to sustain a story line over the long haul.
Think about it this way: an origin story is like a movie in that the essential nature of the lead characters change. The boy comes of age (Star Wars, Spider-Man) ; the girl becomes a woman (Titanic, My Big Fat Greek Wedding). On the other hand, an ongoing comic series is like an ongoing TV series in that characters are established in the opening scenes, but donÃt change during the show. What they do is explore the world from their own perspective.
PULLQUOTE: ìA great first issue will immerse readers in the lives of the characters immediately ñ without leaving readers feeling like theyÃve walked into the theater halfway through the movie.î
When TV programmers ask producers to make a ìpilotî episode, they donÃt ask for the ìoriginî of the characters. Instead, programmers want to see a ìtypicalî episode. They want to see that the audience enjoys episode #3 before they commit to the entire series. Programmers know that the best first episode in the world is useless if the producers canÃt generate a weekly show with a beginning, a middle and an end.
Whether itÃs an origin story or a ìpilot,î a great first issue will immerse readers in the lives of the characters immediately ñ while still taking the time to properly introduce those characters, and without leaving readers feeling like theyÃve walked into the theater halfway through the movie.
In the long haul, Marvel needs books that do what JMS is doing on Amazing Spider-Man. Each story arc works for people who have been reading Spider-Man for forty years, and for people who saw the movie and found their way into a comic book shop hungry for more.
If you want to knock the socks off EPICÃs acquisition editors, submit a pilot issue in lieu of, or in addition to, an origin story.
Page 24-25:
Rule #8: Take charge, be brave; fight the Fanboys, and win their hearts.
If you can understand the difference between a creator and a fan, you have a fighting chance at writing for EPIC for a living.
Marvel has a way of announcing new creative initiatives to our fans: ìAt long last, Marvel will reveal the origin of Wolverine.î Part of the fun of being a Marvel fan is being a ìTrue Believerî in MarvelÃs mythology. Comics are more fun to read if you suspend your disbelief and think of the Marvel characters, stories and universe as real.
PULL QUOTE: ìI did not reveal the origin of Wolverine. I made it up.î
Unfortunately, many Marvel creators ñ and a number of our editors ñ take that notion too much to heart. Right from the horseÃs mouth: I did not ìrevealî the origin of Wolverine. I made it up. And I made it up twice, once in Origin and again in Marville #5.
Your readers are supposed to immerse themselves in the Marvel fantasy world. They are the passive observers permitted to roam among the authentic Marvel heroes ñ able to see and feel everything, but unable to touch and affect it.
PULL QUOTE: ìYour readers are supposed to immerse themselves in the Marvel fantasy world. That is not your job.î
That is not your job. You are not an apparition watching reality unfold around you. Your job is to take control, stand up, be counted and be creative.
During the past three years, Marvel has announced a number of publishing initiatives that have been criticized viciously by Fanboys and the fan press:
Ultimate Spider-Man
Ultimate X-Men
X-Force revamp
The Ultimates
Origin
Truth: Red, White & Black
Incredible Hulk, X-Men family and Spider-Man family relaunches
This roster reads like an honor roll of the best and brightest creative pushes the industry has had to offer for the past three years.
Why the criticism?
Have you been paying attention?
Many Marvel fans are True Believers who immerse themselves in our comics and suspend their disbelief; they think of the Marvel characters, stories and universe as real.
Many editors were afraid to tell the origin of Wolverine, because they were afraid of fan backlash. Please realize what IÃm saying: Marvel was afraid to tell a story about the most courageous character in our universe.
More importantly, please understand why Origin worked: MarvelÃs True Believers embraced Origin because it stayed true to the essence of MarvelÃs most courageous character.
PULL QUOTE: ìMarvel was afraid to tell a story about the most courageous character in our universe.î
Page 26-27:
Rule #9: Conclusion: Break the freakinà rules.
Creativity and rules donÃt mix, so donÃt feel bound to comply with everything you just read. In other words, these are not ìrulesî so much as they are principles developed during the past three years to address serious problems with comic book tradecraft. The only thing that ultimately matters is that you tell a good story ñ we donÃt care how you do it.
To summarize:
Start Slowly [SMALLER HEADLINE STYLE]
Establish your characters. Make your main character both likable and believable. For great fantasy to work, you need to do your job in establishing credibility. Jurassic Park starts with a lot of simple science and ends up with credible, cloned dinos. Star Wars starts with a kid on a desert planet and ends up with the Force battling the Empire for the control of the universe. Die Hard starts with a New York City cop on an airplane going to visit his estranged wife in Los Angeles, and ends up with a super hero flying, dodging bullets, and making guns materialize out of the back of his neck.
Create [SMALLER HEADLINE STYLE]
To write good fiction, you must immerse yourself in your creation, in the world of your characters. You walk among them; you feel they are real. The great thing about writing for Marvel is that accessing our Universe is easy and fun.
But to write great Marvel fiction, you also have to rise mentally above our fictional world and be willing to command the characters to do what you need them to do in your story. I know this sounds strange, but many new Marvel writers fail because they are so intimidated by the Marvel Universe that they turn off their creative talents and write tiny little stories that fit between the cracks of what went before them. DonÃt lock step with our characters, get out there and lead them.
Edit [SMALLER HEADLINE STYLE]
The editorÃs main function is to be the readerÃs advocate in the creative process ñ making sure the books are understandable and enjoyable. But Marvel will not edit EPIC books, you will. This means that, sometimes, you have to think like a reader, not just like a writer. You have to step back from the creative process from time to time and give your work a very objective reading ñ or just ask your friends and family to read your work and give you honest input.
Section Divider (Pages 28-29):
How to Submit Your Work to EPIC
EPIC books will be written, drawn, colored, lettered and composited by YOU. No editor will be working with you, calling to bug you for materials, or checking for mistakes. When it comes to your EPIC book, you will be running the show. In order to get to that point, though, you must go through the process of submitting your work for approval.
To submit your work to EPIC, there are a few steps you must follow:
If you are a writer, you must mail EPIC a full script for a 22-page comic book (single issues only, please; no series proposals), enclosed with a set of legal documents that are described below. If your script meets our guidelines and is approved by the submissions editor, you will receive a letter of acceptance as well as check for $500.00, and the green light to form a creative team of approved EPIC artists and designers to create your comic.
If you are an artist or a designer, you must mail EPIC five sample pages of your work, accompanied by a set of legal documents that are described below. If your work meets our guidelines and is approved by the submissions editor, we will send you a letter advising you that these samples will be posted on the EPIC web site so that approved EPIC writers can recruit you for a creative team.
Please read further for full instructions.
Page 30:
Submission Rules for Writers
How to get started in comics with a typewriter
1) The first thing you need to do is write a script. We do NOT want springboards, synopses, character descriptions or partial scripts. We need to see the whole thing from beginning to end, for a 22-page comic. Please submit your scripts typed on paper; we will not be accepting disks or handwritten scripts. For an example of how to format your script, please visit http://www.epiccomics.com/blahblah.html.
2) Go to the EPIC web site and download the following forms: Idea Submission Form, Writersà Work For Hire Agreement, and W-9 Tax Form. If the script you are submitting is set in the Marvel Universe but includes new characters, you must also download the New Character Agreement. If the script you are submitting is NOT set in the Marvel Universe and does NOT use any Marvel characters, you must also download the Creator-Owned Agreement. PLEASE READ THESE DOCUMENTS CAREFULLY. These documents set forth the rights Marvel Enterprises, Inc. (ìMarvelî) will have in your work. By signing these documents, you will be agreeing that Marvel owns all rights to the work submitted by you and that you are performing the work on a work made for hire basis. The agreements become effective when we return copies to you also signed by Marvel.
3) After you review and sign these forms, please put them in an envelope with your script. PLEASE INCLUDE EVERY PAGE OF EVERY FORM. Mail us your script and legal forms along with a self addressed stamped envelope (so we can send you a response). Do not include sample artwork, or any other materials not listed here. Please send everything at once. We canÃt accept any script that doesnÃt come with the proper paperwork.
4) EPIC will then review your work. If it is accepted, EPIC will mail you a written response and a check for $500.00 in the envelope you enclosed. If it is not accepted, EPIC will mail you a written rejection letter and return to you your rejected script and legal forms. All acceptances and rejections are in EPICÃs sole discretion. There will be a lot of submissions, so we wonÃt be able to give feedback on any rejected script. ItÃs going to be yes or no. PLEASE DO NOT CALL, E-MAIL OR VISIT TO INQUIRE INTO THE STATUS OF YOUR SUBMISSION.
5) Once you have a green light, itÃs up to you to build a creative team to create your book. You may only use artists and designers that have already been approved by EPIC, so encourage any artist friends you want to work with to submit their work by following the artistsà submission instructions below. You may find the list of approved artists and samples of their work at http://www.marvel.com/epic/blahblah.html.
Script Content Guidelines
1) Please keep all script content PG or below. This means no nudity, sex, swearing, drug use, or graphic violence on-panel.
2) Please do not use any characters copyrighted by an entity other than Marvel. This means no DC crossovers, no movie or TV characters, and no celebrity likenesses.
3) Titles will be subject to Marvel legal approval. There is a chance that you will be asked to provide an alternate title for your comic after your script is approved.
4) If you write double-page spreads (two facing pages that function as a single layout and cannot be separated) into your script, make sure each spread is separated by an even number of pages; for example, if pages 14 and 15 are a double-page spread, then pages 18 and 19 can be a spread as well, but not pages 19 and 20. This is to ensure that when your story is drawn, the artistÃs layouts remain intact when the story is collected in a trade paperback.
Page 31:
Submission Rules for Artists
How to get started in comics with a pencil, brush or Macintosh
1) The first thing you must do is photocopy 5 pages of your work ñ either pencils, inks, coloring, or lettering. Please make clean 8 1/2îx11î photocopies of your work. Make sure the reproduction quality is high, because if your work is approved, we will be scanning these photocopies for posting on the EPIC web site.
2) Go to the EPIC web site and download the following forms: Idea Submission Form and Artwork Release Form. PLEASE READ THESE DOCUMENTS CAREFULLY. These documents set forth the rights Marvel will have in your work, including the right to post your work on a web site.
3) After you review and sign these forms, please put them in an envelope with your photocopies. Mail us your sample work and legal forms along with a self addressed stamped envelope. Send everything at once. We canÃt accept any artwork that doesnÃt come with the proper paperwork.
4) EPIC will review your work. If it is approved, EPIC will mail you a written response and post your work on the EPIC web site, located at http://www.marvel.com/epic/blahblah.html. If it is not accepted, EPIC will mail you a written rejection letter. There will be a lot of submissions, so we wonÃt be able to give feedback on any rejected work. ItÃs going to be yes or no. PLEASE DO NOT CALL, E-MAIL OR VISIT TO INQUIRE INTO THE STATUS OF YOUR SUBMISSION.
5) Once your work has been posted to the EPIC web site, approved EPIC writers may see your work there and contact you to join a creative team. Marvel will provide approved EPIC writers with your contact information; however, Marvel cannot be held responsible for any unauthorized use of this information that may occur as a result.
What Happens Next?
After you get your script approved, the next step is to assemble a creative team. For the full story on assembling a team and creating your comic for EPIC, please visit the EPIC web site at http://www.marvel.com/blahblahblah.html.
Where to Send Stuff
All submission materials must be mailed to:
EPIC Submissions
Marvel Enterprises, Inc.
10 East 40th Street
New York, NY 10016
Where to Find More Information
To learn more about EPIC and download the legal forms you need, please visit the EPIC web site at http://www.marvel.com/blahblahblah.html.
Page 32:
[Idea Submission Form]
Intro (Page 1):
Welcome to EPIC Comics
For hundreds of creators who deserve the opportunity to see their work in print, for hundreds of thousands of readers listening for new creative voices, EPIC Comics is for you.
EPIC Comics is a new Marvel imprint under which we will publish comics written and illustrated by YOU. Anybody will have the opportunity to submit work for consideration by EPIC's submissions editor.
EPIC enjoys more favorable economic parameters than Marvel (and other publishers for that matter) so we can publish books that others can't.
EPIC strives for a broader creative scope than Marvel (and other publishers for that matter) so we can publish a wider array of stories than others would.
By freeing writers and artists from many of the economic and content restrictions of traditional comic publishing, EPIC hopes to provide a forum for a new generation of comic creators to reach the next generation of readers.
An old comic creator lament goes something like, "I don't have fans, just people who want my job." Well, people, here is your application. The following pages tell you what you need to know to get started with EPIC.
Good luck,
Bill Jemas
Section Divider (Pages 2-3):
REACHING NEW READERS
Kinds of Stories EPIC Is Likely to Publish
You can increase your chances of getting published by reading the following criteria that EPIC will use to judge submissions.
LetÃs start with EPICÃs mission statement.
1. Tell Great Stories
2. Reach New Readers
If you can do these two things, EPIC will publish your work. ItÃs that simple.
EPIC will publish books that speak to new readers in ways that MarvelÃs current books do not. This means that EPIC will not publish books that duplicate MarvelÃs current lineup.
The bad news is that MarvelÃs current lineup is already filled with all of the easy stuff. Marvel makes half a dozen Spider-Man books every month, a dozen X-Men titles and one or two more for every major character.
The good news is that EPIC will take greater creative chances and business risks that Marvel does.
If you have an interesting and story in you, we want to read it. If you have a unique and powerful artistic style, we want to see it. We want you to win.
A script you submit to EPIC will fall into one of four categories, and each category has its own criteria by which submissions will be judged. The following section explains how these categories and their associated criteria break down.
Pages 4-5:
1. Marvel characters with monthly books
Clearly, the EPIC books with the best initial sales potential will feature the major Marvel heroes and teams. EPIC books about Marvel heroes with the largest existing reader bases will be:
(a) the most likely to be bestsellers, but (b) the least likely to reach new readers.
Take Spider-Man, for example: Marvel limits the number of monthly Spidey titles, but constantly diversifies the line to reach a wider reader base. Thus, each monthly title claims a unique creative bent: Ultimate Spider-Man targets younger readers, Amazing Spider-Man maintains the characterÃs action-adventure tradition, and Peter Parker: Spider-Man focuses on the man behind the mask.
Marvel would love to publish a Spider-Man book under the EPIC imprint, but the creative team would have to come up with knock-Ãem-dead content different from the books in MarvelÃs current line. So please donÃt show up with, ìHey, Spider-Man hasnÃt fought Rhino in a long time.î Marvel can publish a book like that any time in our regular line. EPIC writers should strive to strike a clean, crisp note to a clearly identifiable target audience of new potential readers.
PULL QUOTE: ìEPIC writers should strive to strike a clean, crisp note to a clearly identifiable target audience of new potential readers.î
This is hard, but it can be done ñ the Ultimate line found a large, mostly unique teen audience for Ultimate Spider-Man, and repeated the trick with Ultimate X-Men and The Ultimates.
PULL QUOTE: ìEach monthly title claims a unique creative bent: Ultimate Spider-Man targets younger readers, Amazing Spider-Man maintains the characterÃs action-adventure tradition, and Peter Parker: Spider-Man focuses on the man behind the mask.î
Page 6-7:
2. Classic Marvel super heroes with no monthly books
The EPIC books with the next-best sales potential will be those that revive classic Marvel characters or teams. Moreover, these are relatively easy to approve, because they wonÃt cannibalize a current Marvel title. Unfortunately, this kind of book seems to bring out the worst in even the best writers. If you start with the question, ìHey, whatever happened to the Silver Surfer?î youÃre sure to get the answer, ìPretty close to nobody cares.î
But Marvel would love to publish a new Silver Surfer book under the EPIC imprint. The trick is to preserve the essence of the classic character while repositioning and updating the characterization so it resonates to a clearly identifiable target audience of new readers.
This is hard, but it can be done ñ Marvel Knights nailed it like nobodyÃs business, taking Punisher and Daredevil from the brink of cancellation to solid footing among the worldÃs most popular books.
PULL QUOTE: ìThis is hard, but it can be done ñ Marvel Knights nailed it like nobodyÃs business, taking Punisher and Daredevil from the brink of cancellation to solid footing among the worldÃs most popular books.î
Pages 8-9:
3. New Characters
Subtitle: New Characters for the Marvel Universe
The bad news is that weÃre talking about characters with absolutely no existing fan base; the good news is that there is significant upside for brand new characters that become popular. The folks at Marvel Studios in particular are always eager to hear about a new Marvel character that isnÃt attached to any existing Marvel character family.
Marvel would love to publish books that add great new characters to our Universe. We are especially interested in expanding into new literary genres. Super heroes are great, but there are readers who prefer the undies-on-the-inside kinda characters. EPIC intends to explore every graphic storytelling opportunity from romance to comedy to murder mystery and crime fiction.
PULL QUOTE: ìSuper heroes are great, but there are readers who prefer the undies-on-the-inside kinda characters.î
This is hard, but it can be done ñ Alias is a detective story, right in the tradition of noir mystery fiction, that is set convincingly in the world of Marvel super heroes.
So please feel free to stretch your creative wings with works that reach beyond the current comic audience. Marvel and EPIC will be right there with you, marketing and distributing the books to new readers and helping to expand the comic book community and industry.
Subtitle: New Creator-Owned Characters Outside the Marvel Universe
Look at Diamond Distributorsà monthly list of the top 300 comics: one or two creator-owned books may find their way into the top 100 for a month or two, but the bulk of these titles dwell at the bottom of the list, selling a few thousand copies, and losing a few thousand dollars, per issue.
PULL QUOTE: ìHaving Marvel produce your creator-owned concept means that your chances of breaking the top 100 are greater than with any other publisher.î
Moreover, from MarvelÃs point of view, these books donÃt have much value, because most of the long-term upside opportunity for ancillary revenues belongs to you, not us.
Having said that, I must add that EPIC is determined to tell great stories for new readers. If you can do that, we would love to be your publisher. And having Marvel produce your creator-owned concept means that your chances of breaking the top 100 are greater than with any other publisher.
Sidebar: New Marvel Characters and Entertainment Licensing
Many of MarvelÃs classic characters, and most of those who spring from existing titles, may be included automatically in existing movie, TV, electronic game and other licensing deals. But brand new characters are virtually unencumbered, even if they do dwell in the Marvel Universe.
There are legal complexities at work, but the basic principle is simple. For example, in New X-Men, Grant Morrison created a new character named Cassandra Nova (Professor XÃs sister). Before there can be a Cassandra Nova movie, video game or TV show, Marvel must navigate complex legal provisions of its TV, movie and merchandising contracts. In contrast, a brand new character, created independently from an existing family, would be free from most existing Marvel deals.
Section Divider (Pages 10-11):
TELLING GREAT STORIES
How To Write Stories EPIC Will Publish
Many great writers have done some of their best work for Marvel. To them, the Marvel Universe is the ultimate authorÃs sandbox, filled with wonderful characters and settings for wild fantasy, stark reality, and everything in between.
But many equally talented people have turned in some of their worst work for Marvel. They got the chance to play in that same sandbox and spent their time scooping up theÖ never mind. If I had a nickel for every comic script IÃve rejected in the past three years, IÃd have like twelve dollars. Okay, thatÃs not a lot of money, but itÃs a ton of wasted effort.
These writers all seem to have the same kinds of problems at Marvel U. The following list of ìrulesî should help you through your own creative process by steering you clear of the traps into which others have fallen.
Pages 12-13:
Rule #1: If your work isnÃt clear, donÃt bring it here.
As President of Marvel Publishing, IÃm embarrassed to admit that I canÃt understand more than half of our monthly comics. WeÃre oozing irony here, fans. In law school, I chose Tax Law, because the Internal Revenue Code made perfect sense to me. Now, after three years at the helm of Marvel, I find most of our comics to be unintelligible.
The greatest impediment to gaining new readers is lack of clarity in stories. If a potential new reader picks up a comic and isnÃt immediately drawn into the story because it is too difficult to tell whatÃs going on, then we lose that potential new reader, pure and simple.
Having said that, I should add that this is not an accident or a mistake. At least half of MarvelÃs titles are written for readers who have been reading our books for years and who want stories that are fully woven into the fabric of the Marvel Universe. Old fans understand and love the kind of book that is completely inaccessible to new Marvel fans (and new presidents).
But ñ EPIC does not need to publish that kind of book. Mainline Marvel writers have that covered.
CAPTION: Bruce Jones does a great job of making Incredible Hulk #34 both accessible to new readers and enjoyable for old fans.
Pages 14-15:
Rule #2: Character introductions are the foundation of your story.
HereÃs a sad phenomenon that plagues the comic book creative process: great-reading scripts make for bad-reading comics. For this plague, the cure is character introduction.
Comic book writers tend to do what novelists do: they write paragraph-long descriptions of each character as he or she enters the story. The writer may type that a character is divorced, or that she is a single mother, or that she escaped from the Weapon X program. The writer may type that a character is thinking she misses her kids, or that she would like to strangle their deadbeat father, or that her kneecaps could not possibly be adamantium because they are beginning to rust.
All that typing ñ with the writer knowing that almost none of it will find its way onto the final page. But any writer knows that character introduction is the skeleton that supports the plot. So rather than leave introductions out entirely, he writes them as little love notes to the editor and artist.
CAPTION: DonÃt assume your reader is familiar with your characters ñ even in the case of household names like Wolverine.
ThereÃs only one good way to introduce a character in comics: you have to let the character show the reader who she is by the things she chooses to do. Not by the things she says in long-winded narration captions, or in the things other characters say about her. And actions take time ñ you may need to spend four or five pages on a good character introduction. Do the math: if character introduction is the skeleton that supports the plot, and you are introducing more than four important characters in a 22-page comic, you are going to get literary osteoporosis.
PULL QUOTE: ìYou have to let the character show the reader who she is by the things she chooses to do.î
And donÃt even think about skimping on intros when youÃre bringing existing Marvel characters to your party. Treat every character like a new character that readers are meeting for the first time. Even in the case of household names like Spider-Man, Wolverine, and the Hulk, your character introductions should take some time to let the reader know how and why they are important to your story.
Of course, this is not to say that every character needs to be Hamlet. Quite the opposite; the Marvel Universe has more character actors than Hollywood. You are welcome to let the reader take MarvelÃs ìtypecastî characters at face value. You need to call the Feds to check on a military secret? Go ahead and ring Nick Fury; the shoulder holster and eye patch say all that needs saying. You need somebody to bust up a crap game? Go ahead and hire the Rhino to charge in; the nose hair says it all. But donÃt even think about using Rhino because he carries a grudge against Spider-Man due to that fight they had in Amazing Spider-Man #127.
The days of editorial ìfootnotesî are over ñ if you need one for readers to understand whatÃs going on, youÃre doing something wrong. For the sake of clarity and tradecraft, whether you are introducing a central, three-dimensional character or a bit player, you should put everything the reader needs to know right there ON THE PAGE as part of the action that drives the story forward. And donÃt cop out with lengthy captions or clunky ìIt is I, Iron Man, the Man of Ironî dialogue ñ your readers will see right through you.
CAPTION: ItÃs okay to use character ìtypesî. In the case of Nick Fury, the shoulder holster and eye patch say all that needs saying.
Pages 16-17:
Rule #3: Keep your metaphors at your fingertips.
Chapter One, Page One, Super Heroes 101. Super-powers should be used as metaphors for real-world characterization and story points ñ in Ultimate Spider-Man, for example, spider-powers are simply a metaphor for puberty.
Back in the early 1990s, Marvel writers forgot Peter was supposed to stand for teen boys everywhere and made him do things torn from the pages of their own lives. He aged, he got married, he got boring. Then we all looked surprised when teens stopped reading Spider-Man books.
PULL QUOTE: ìGet down to the essence of what made your character popular in the past so you can write new stories that will make that character popular in the present.î
Super-powers are just gobbledygook unless they have an underlying meaning. Johnny Storm has fire powers ñ ìWouldnÃt it be cool if Reed Richards built him an infrared power booster?î NO. Doc Ock has metal arms ñ ìWouldnÃt it be cool if they were adamantium?î NO. The Incredible Hulk is brutish and green ñ ìWouldnÃt it be cool if he turned intelligent and gray?î NO. We call those kinds of stories ìwriting a comic book about a comic book.î
CAPTION: The powers of Dark Phoenix are potent metaphors, which is why they make a great classic story.
But think about Jean Grey transforming into the Dark Phoenix with the power and yearning to destroy Earth. Jean is a mutant, a Homo sapiens superior, the natural evolutionary replacement of human beings ñ ìWouldnÃt it be cool if her powers got out of control, and readers caught a glimpse of what it would be like to actually be replaced by a new species?î Hell yes, it would be cool, and haunting ñ and that is why the Dark Phoenix Saga is a Marvel classic.
If you want to revive a classic Marvel character, you have to look past the spandex and stories that have been written by your predecessors. You need to get down to the essence of what made your character popular in the past so you can write new stories that will make that character popular in the present. HereÃs a good rule of thumb: if it didnÃt take place within the pages of the comic youÃre writing, leave it out ñ itÃs not relevant to the story youÃre telling right now. You donÃt have to discard the characterÃs past to do this ñ you just have to focus on the aspects of the character that have been consistent since the beginning, that make them who they are.
PULL QUOTE: ìWhile the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was preaching integration and Malcolm X was espousing separation, Professor Xavier was teaching his mutants how to live among humans and Magneto was intent on building a separate nation.î
MarvelÃs mainline authors do this every day. Think about the X-Men as a metaphor for minorities in America. The classic stories were pulled from the pages of contemporary American history books: in the 1960s, while the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was preaching integration and Malcolm X was espousing separation, Professor Xavier was teaching his mutants how to live among humans and Magneto was intent on building a separate nation of Homo sapien superiors. Today, in New X-Men, Grant Morrison is taking that central idea of the X-Men and recasting it in terms of the contemporary state of minority politics. He is telling stories in which Xavier has not abandoned his basic mission of integration, but has thrown open the doors of his academy in an overt declaration of mutant pride; he is showing the world the wonders of mutant science and culture.
Is this a rejection of those classic stories from the 1960s? Of course not. Does it depend on our having read those old stories? Not at all. A good EPIC script will remain faithful to the central concept of an existing Marvel creation without depending on the stories that have gone before it.
Pages 18-19:
Rule #4: Start your story at the beginning.
Marvel receives hundreds of story springboards, beat sheets and scripts every year. Ninety-five percent of them start right in the middle of a story; one hundred percent of that group are rejected.
Everyone else on Earth writes, ìA man was born, he lived and died.î
Comic guys write, ìA man died ñ no, he didnÃt, that was really his clone.î
Just about every kind of comic book writer seems to fall into that same trap.
PULL QUOTE: ìWriters who have been telling Marvel stories for decades already know all about the Marvel Universe and seem to assume their readers do, as well.î
When I was plotting the first issue of Namor, I got to the end, read it over and realized I had written the second issue instead. IÃd written an issue in which a young Namor meets a land girl at the beach, then encounters her years later at the same beach and agrees to go to a dance with her. My plan was to set up NamorÃs conflict between his responsibility to Atlantis and his attraction to the world above water. What I forgot to do, however, was establish his relationship to Atlantis. All this business with the girl wouldnÃt mean much unless we had first seen Namor in his natural setting. So I had to go back and start at the beginning, and write issue one instead of issue two.
Writers who have been telling Marvel stories for decades already know all about the Marvel Universe and seem to assume their readers do, as well. These writers tend to pick up characters where they were left off in old Marvel comics. They feel like they can skip the beginning ñ which is the crucial part of the story during which the writer must make the reader care about the characters. They tend to start their new stories at the ends of old ones. All the pitches to ìbring backî Jubilee and Generation X have started where the Generation X books ended. ThatÃs not a beginning ñ thatÃs a story trying to borrow the work another writer has done in order to avoid the challenge of writing a beginning. EPIC is not going to publish that kind of book.
When new writers are trying to break into Marvel, they study up on the Marvel Universe. Unfortunately, exposure to the great works that went before frequently overwhelms them. They tend to write between the cracks of past stories. We receive pitches all the time that start like this: ìThe following events take place between issues #137 and #138 of Uncanny X-Men.î EPIC is not going to publish that kind of book.
And howÃs this for strange? New writers who bring their entirely new characters and universes to be published as creator-owned properties also fall into this trap. They expend huge mental energy building their own universes in their minds, on index cards and on reams of typed paper. Then they tend to pick some point in time and space, smack in the middle of their new universe, and start telling the story right there. These pitches generally start with an unidentified character on a mysterious mission, the nature and meaning of which is ìto be revealed.î What they donÃt do is give us a reason why we should care enough ñ and keep reading long enough ñ to find out. EPIC is not going to publish that kind of book.
LetÃs make this simple: begin your story by engaging the reader in the life of your main character and/or in the essential events of the story.
PULL QUOTE: ìBegin your story by engaging the reader in the life of your main character and/or in the essential events of the story.î
Page 20:
Rule #5: Think big, act small.
If you have ever been up close and personal in a street fight ñ scrapping or watching ó you know a punch in the nose is a major event. But now suppose that just before the street fight, you had seen the Hulk pick up a bus and toss it at a building, or watched Magneto stop the EarthÃs rotation with a thought and a theatrical gesture. Then, instead of the street fight being one of the most significant images you carry for the rest of your life, it becomes a big yawn.
There is a comic tradition of starting every book with a big action scene, but big action scenes are showstoppers and should be saved for climactic moments. Little actions are the lifeblood of graphic storytelling. Little actions establish your characters; little actions move the plot forward.
One of the most chilling and memorable scenes in Origin is the scene in which Dog kills JamesÃs puppy. It has all the firepower it needs: one little puppy, one very bad boy. Nobody tossing tanks into oil tankers.
CAPTION: Origin didnÃt need big action scenes to be memorable, just one little puppy and one very bad boy.
Page 21:
Rule #6: Write in ìarcs.î
Gone are the days of yearlong story lines, dangling plot threads and dense continuity. If clear, accessible content is the best way to attract new readers, next in line are graphic novels ñ widely distributed, highly successful collections of single issues that together comprise complete story arcs. More and more, Marvel has been structuring stories with this market in mind, and EPIC should follow suit. The ideal length for a graphic novel is six issues ñ preferably two three-issue story arcs, but any combination is acceptable. After six issues, the price point tends to become prohibitive, and the gap between books too long.
Graphic novels underscore the usefulness of recap pages in monthly comic books. Not only do recap pages allow readers to play catch up on a monthly basis, they can be pulled from the subsequent collection ñ leaving a satisfying, complete story devoid of unnecessary exposition.
PULL QUOTE: ìA great first issue will have a clearly-defined ending, but will itself function as one big beginning for your six-issue story.î
When you write your issue #1, keep this six-issue story structure in mind. No need to sacrifice your beginning, middle and end. A great first issue will have a clearly-defined ending, but will itself function as one big beginning for your six-issue story.
CAPTION: Each Marvel trade paperback collects a complete, self-contained story arc.
Page 22-23:
Rule #7: Pilots vs. Origins
A good first issue is frequently an origin story. This kind of story provides a convenient way to introduce readers to your character, because readers actually watch the formation of those essential traits that make the character what he or she is. This is how we wrote Ultimate Spider-Man ñ the first seven issues of that series constitute an origin story. This is truly starting at the beginning ñ the beginning of the formative events that shape the characterÃs life.
PULL QUOTE: ìThe key to a long career in comics is not writing a good first issue. It is the ability to sustain a story line over the long haul.î
EPIC editors will be happy to get your origin stories, and I expect EPICÃs early years will include a bunch of them. But keep in mind the key to a long career in comics is not writing a good first issue. It is the ability to sustain a story line over the long haul.
Think about it this way: an origin story is like a movie in that the essential nature of the lead characters change. The boy comes of age (Star Wars, Spider-Man) ; the girl becomes a woman (Titanic, My Big Fat Greek Wedding). On the other hand, an ongoing comic series is like an ongoing TV series in that characters are established in the opening scenes, but donÃt change during the show. What they do is explore the world from their own perspective.
PULLQUOTE: ìA great first issue will immerse readers in the lives of the characters immediately ñ without leaving readers feeling like theyÃve walked into the theater halfway through the movie.î
When TV programmers ask producers to make a ìpilotî episode, they donÃt ask for the ìoriginî of the characters. Instead, programmers want to see a ìtypicalî episode. They want to see that the audience enjoys episode #3 before they commit to the entire series. Programmers know that the best first episode in the world is useless if the producers canÃt generate a weekly show with a beginning, a middle and an end.
Whether itÃs an origin story or a ìpilot,î a great first issue will immerse readers in the lives of the characters immediately ñ while still taking the time to properly introduce those characters, and without leaving readers feeling like theyÃve walked into the theater halfway through the movie.
In the long haul, Marvel needs books that do what JMS is doing on Amazing Spider-Man. Each story arc works for people who have been reading Spider-Man for forty years, and for people who saw the movie and found their way into a comic book shop hungry for more.
If you want to knock the socks off EPICÃs acquisition editors, submit a pilot issue in lieu of, or in addition to, an origin story.
Page 24-25:
Rule #8: Take charge, be brave; fight the Fanboys, and win their hearts.
If you can understand the difference between a creator and a fan, you have a fighting chance at writing for EPIC for a living.
Marvel has a way of announcing new creative initiatives to our fans: ìAt long last, Marvel will reveal the origin of Wolverine.î Part of the fun of being a Marvel fan is being a ìTrue Believerî in MarvelÃs mythology. Comics are more fun to read if you suspend your disbelief and think of the Marvel characters, stories and universe as real.
PULL QUOTE: ìI did not reveal the origin of Wolverine. I made it up.î
Unfortunately, many Marvel creators ñ and a number of our editors ñ take that notion too much to heart. Right from the horseÃs mouth: I did not ìrevealî the origin of Wolverine. I made it up. And I made it up twice, once in Origin and again in Marville #5.
Your readers are supposed to immerse themselves in the Marvel fantasy world. They are the passive observers permitted to roam among the authentic Marvel heroes ñ able to see and feel everything, but unable to touch and affect it.
PULL QUOTE: ìYour readers are supposed to immerse themselves in the Marvel fantasy world. That is not your job.î
That is not your job. You are not an apparition watching reality unfold around you. Your job is to take control, stand up, be counted and be creative.
During the past three years, Marvel has announced a number of publishing initiatives that have been criticized viciously by Fanboys and the fan press:
Ultimate Spider-Man
Ultimate X-Men
X-Force revamp
The Ultimates
Origin
Truth: Red, White & Black
Incredible Hulk, X-Men family and Spider-Man family relaunches
This roster reads like an honor roll of the best and brightest creative pushes the industry has had to offer for the past three years.
Why the criticism?
Have you been paying attention?
Many Marvel fans are True Believers who immerse themselves in our comics and suspend their disbelief; they think of the Marvel characters, stories and universe as real.
Many editors were afraid to tell the origin of Wolverine, because they were afraid of fan backlash. Please realize what IÃm saying: Marvel was afraid to tell a story about the most courageous character in our universe.
More importantly, please understand why Origin worked: MarvelÃs True Believers embraced Origin because it stayed true to the essence of MarvelÃs most courageous character.
PULL QUOTE: ìMarvel was afraid to tell a story about the most courageous character in our universe.î
Page 26-27:
Rule #9: Conclusion: Break the freakinà rules.
Creativity and rules donÃt mix, so donÃt feel bound to comply with everything you just read. In other words, these are not ìrulesî so much as they are principles developed during the past three years to address serious problems with comic book tradecraft. The only thing that ultimately matters is that you tell a good story ñ we donÃt care how you do it.
To summarize:
Start Slowly [SMALLER HEADLINE STYLE]
Establish your characters. Make your main character both likable and believable. For great fantasy to work, you need to do your job in establishing credibility. Jurassic Park starts with a lot of simple science and ends up with credible, cloned dinos. Star Wars starts with a kid on a desert planet and ends up with the Force battling the Empire for the control of the universe. Die Hard starts with a New York City cop on an airplane going to visit his estranged wife in Los Angeles, and ends up with a super hero flying, dodging bullets, and making guns materialize out of the back of his neck.
Create [SMALLER HEADLINE STYLE]
To write good fiction, you must immerse yourself in your creation, in the world of your characters. You walk among them; you feel they are real. The great thing about writing for Marvel is that accessing our Universe is easy and fun.
But to write great Marvel fiction, you also have to rise mentally above our fictional world and be willing to command the characters to do what you need them to do in your story. I know this sounds strange, but many new Marvel writers fail because they are so intimidated by the Marvel Universe that they turn off their creative talents and write tiny little stories that fit between the cracks of what went before them. DonÃt lock step with our characters, get out there and lead them.
Edit [SMALLER HEADLINE STYLE]
The editorÃs main function is to be the readerÃs advocate in the creative process ñ making sure the books are understandable and enjoyable. But Marvel will not edit EPIC books, you will. This means that, sometimes, you have to think like a reader, not just like a writer. You have to step back from the creative process from time to time and give your work a very objective reading ñ or just ask your friends and family to read your work and give you honest input.
Section Divider (Pages 28-29):
How to Submit Your Work to EPIC
EPIC books will be written, drawn, colored, lettered and composited by YOU. No editor will be working with you, calling to bug you for materials, or checking for mistakes. When it comes to your EPIC book, you will be running the show. In order to get to that point, though, you must go through the process of submitting your work for approval.
To submit your work to EPIC, there are a few steps you must follow:
If you are a writer, you must mail EPIC a full script for a 22-page comic book (single issues only, please; no series proposals), enclosed with a set of legal documents that are described below. If your script meets our guidelines and is approved by the submissions editor, you will receive a letter of acceptance as well as check for $500.00, and the green light to form a creative team of approved EPIC artists and designers to create your comic.
If you are an artist or a designer, you must mail EPIC five sample pages of your work, accompanied by a set of legal documents that are described below. If your work meets our guidelines and is approved by the submissions editor, we will send you a letter advising you that these samples will be posted on the EPIC web site so that approved EPIC writers can recruit you for a creative team.
Please read further for full instructions.
Page 30:
Submission Rules for Writers
How to get started in comics with a typewriter
1) The first thing you need to do is write a script. We do NOT want springboards, synopses, character descriptions or partial scripts. We need to see the whole thing from beginning to end, for a 22-page comic. Please submit your scripts typed on paper; we will not be accepting disks or handwritten scripts. For an example of how to format your script, please visit http://www.epiccomics.com/blahblah.html.
2) Go to the EPIC web site and download the following forms: Idea Submission Form, Writersà Work For Hire Agreement, and W-9 Tax Form. If the script you are submitting is set in the Marvel Universe but includes new characters, you must also download the New Character Agreement. If the script you are submitting is NOT set in the Marvel Universe and does NOT use any Marvel characters, you must also download the Creator-Owned Agreement. PLEASE READ THESE DOCUMENTS CAREFULLY. These documents set forth the rights Marvel Enterprises, Inc. (ìMarvelî) will have in your work. By signing these documents, you will be agreeing that Marvel owns all rights to the work submitted by you and that you are performing the work on a work made for hire basis. The agreements become effective when we return copies to you also signed by Marvel.
3) After you review and sign these forms, please put them in an envelope with your script. PLEASE INCLUDE EVERY PAGE OF EVERY FORM. Mail us your script and legal forms along with a self addressed stamped envelope (so we can send you a response). Do not include sample artwork, or any other materials not listed here. Please send everything at once. We canÃt accept any script that doesnÃt come with the proper paperwork.
4) EPIC will then review your work. If it is accepted, EPIC will mail you a written response and a check for $500.00 in the envelope you enclosed. If it is not accepted, EPIC will mail you a written rejection letter and return to you your rejected script and legal forms. All acceptances and rejections are in EPICÃs sole discretion. There will be a lot of submissions, so we wonÃt be able to give feedback on any rejected script. ItÃs going to be yes or no. PLEASE DO NOT CALL, E-MAIL OR VISIT TO INQUIRE INTO THE STATUS OF YOUR SUBMISSION.
5) Once you have a green light, itÃs up to you to build a creative team to create your book. You may only use artists and designers that have already been approved by EPIC, so encourage any artist friends you want to work with to submit their work by following the artistsà submission instructions below. You may find the list of approved artists and samples of their work at http://www.marvel.com/epic/blahblah.html.
Script Content Guidelines
1) Please keep all script content PG or below. This means no nudity, sex, swearing, drug use, or graphic violence on-panel.
2) Please do not use any characters copyrighted by an entity other than Marvel. This means no DC crossovers, no movie or TV characters, and no celebrity likenesses.
3) Titles will be subject to Marvel legal approval. There is a chance that you will be asked to provide an alternate title for your comic after your script is approved.
4) If you write double-page spreads (two facing pages that function as a single layout and cannot be separated) into your script, make sure each spread is separated by an even number of pages; for example, if pages 14 and 15 are a double-page spread, then pages 18 and 19 can be a spread as well, but not pages 19 and 20. This is to ensure that when your story is drawn, the artistÃs layouts remain intact when the story is collected in a trade paperback.
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Submission Rules for Artists
How to get started in comics with a pencil, brush or Macintosh
1) The first thing you must do is photocopy 5 pages of your work ñ either pencils, inks, coloring, or lettering. Please make clean 8 1/2îx11î photocopies of your work. Make sure the reproduction quality is high, because if your work is approved, we will be scanning these photocopies for posting on the EPIC web site.
2) Go to the EPIC web site and download the following forms: Idea Submission Form and Artwork Release Form. PLEASE READ THESE DOCUMENTS CAREFULLY. These documents set forth the rights Marvel will have in your work, including the right to post your work on a web site.
3) After you review and sign these forms, please put them in an envelope with your photocopies. Mail us your sample work and legal forms along with a self addressed stamped envelope. Send everything at once. We canÃt accept any artwork that doesnÃt come with the proper paperwork.
4) EPIC will review your work. If it is approved, EPIC will mail you a written response and post your work on the EPIC web site, located at http://www.marvel.com/epic/blahblah.html. If it is not accepted, EPIC will mail you a written rejection letter. There will be a lot of submissions, so we wonÃt be able to give feedback on any rejected work. ItÃs going to be yes or no. PLEASE DO NOT CALL, E-MAIL OR VISIT TO INQUIRE INTO THE STATUS OF YOUR SUBMISSION.
5) Once your work has been posted to the EPIC web site, approved EPIC writers may see your work there and contact you to join a creative team. Marvel will provide approved EPIC writers with your contact information; however, Marvel cannot be held responsible for any unauthorized use of this information that may occur as a result.
What Happens Next?
After you get your script approved, the next step is to assemble a creative team. For the full story on assembling a team and creating your comic for EPIC, please visit the EPIC web site at http://www.marvel.com/blahblahblah.html.
Where to Send Stuff
All submission materials must be mailed to:
EPIC Submissions
Marvel Enterprises, Inc.
10 East 40th Street
New York, NY 10016
Where to Find More Information
To learn more about EPIC and download the legal forms you need, please visit the EPIC web site at http://www.marvel.com/blahblahblah.html.
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[Idea Submission Form]
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