Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.
Okay, someone's after my title for "Longest-Winded AICN Columnist," I think. WELL, BRING IT ON, BUDDY BOY!! Nobody takes my title and lives to tell... unless they're turning in really good work like this. First up, there's a report on a recent Marvel Press Conference...
Marvel Press Conference 9-5-01
Denny Haynes reporting for www.grayhavenmagazine.com with details about Marvel’s latest press conference. Read on.
On Wednesday, Marvel had their almost weekly press conference at 3 o’clock EST. In attendance were Bill Jemas and Joe Quesada. They did not have any major announcements – most had been given at the conventions – and they wanted to give their competitors a chance to make some news, which they didn’t, as shown by the “dry spell” of late. This was just a chance for them to get back together with the press and have a question and answer session.
They did announce that October shipping for Marvel was the biggest month they’ve had since December 1996. That month Marvel published 87 titles, Onslaught being the big event, as compared to only publishing 55 titles this month. This is in terms of bulk and dollars.
Also, this was the third month that Marvel had at least 20 of the top 25 selling titles. This month they had 21.
The first question Jemas & Quesada fielded dealt with simultaneous numbering. The person asking felt they should change the number in the indicia to the whole number instead of the volume number, for the collectors. You know, to keep track of their collections?
Jemas answered that they have been debating this, but have not reached a conclusive decision.
Bill Jemas stated that Origins shipped today. And that if we had any questions feel free to ask, except of course what Wolverine’s origin is.
Joe and Bill were next asked how long it would be before all the editorial concepts that they came up with to fix/change the Marvel titles would end and they could sit back and relax.
Jemas responded that this is an organic process and will continue to grow and evolve, they will never stop changing and looking to make their comics better.
Quesada said that they are “always looking to improve the product. If you are looking for the stability from the 60’s you won’t find it. It’s a different world now, whole different time, never going to see it again.”
Marvel was asked about the title of the silent month event in December. Quesada said it was a toss up between ‘Get the Word Out’ and ‘Nuff Said.’ They decided on going with the traditional ‘Nuff Said.’
Bill Jemas fielded a question in regards to him having expressed an interest in writing a title and if we would be seeing it anytime soon. Bill stated, “I’m going to write the damn thing.” He admitted he’s never gone full script, but he’s going to write it and if it gets published you know it will be good since Joe Quesada has the final word on that. It will be NYX. Jemas also informed us that he is in the final throes of the recharge game and after that product is out to the printer, in 3 weeks, he will begin to write it and would go from there.
Bill was then asked about Diamond’s just released comic shipment numbers, and it showed that DC’s market shares had a 6% swing compared to what was shipped and what was advanced ordered. Jemas commented he was “unaware of those numbers,” but to e-mail him and they can address it at the next conference call.
Bill not wanting to let this go and show that Marvel’s policy is good and true or whatever said, “We are absolutely, positively not going to overprint or reprint. We are increasing store traffic to comic stores every Wednesday.”
Bill, asked about doing a Shojo title at Marvel, confirmed that Marvel will be focusing on the teen girl market. Marvel will publish a Teen Soap Opera style of book with a top-notch creative team, not yet announced, to bring in female readers. Marvel has been looking into what attracts girls to the Japanese Comics – whether it was the storytelling or art approach and have found that American storytelling coupled with Japanese art style does not sell books and the art style is yet to be determined.
At the recent Dragon Con, Paul Jenkins and Georges Jeanty mentioned in a panel that Marvel characters were not allowed to be shown smoking. Asked why that was, Joe said, “We are told that smoking causes cancer.” This got the peanut gallery laughing. Joe continued, “It’s not any Marvel character, but the Marvel characters that kids identify with. It’s not a problem with a guy on the street, but I do have a problem with Wolverine smoking. But Nick Fury in a Max title, sure he can smoke, but I would rather him not in the FF comic.” He also used tragedies with family members or friends relatives who have had health problems due to smoking as an example of why they do not feel they should promote smoking.
Some schmuck then asked about a possible Mary Jane mini-series or story. Bill and Joe stated that there has been no discussion about a M.J. comic but Paul would be telling a story about Mary Jane in an upcoming Peter Parker storyline.
When asked about the Worldwide merchandising agreement and Toy Biz/Worldwide LTD, Bill Jemas responded that he’d have to look into FCC compliance and probably have lawyers present, so he would rather not address this issue.
Joe, Miracleman? “Anything is possible esp. with a character like Miracleman. There will be some news one way or another regarding Miracleman in the next couple of weeks. I’m not the person to talk about it at this point in time.”
Joe, Harry Potter? “Nothing to report.”
When asked who would be the new writer/artist team on Fantastic Four, Joe said, “Tom has an artist who has signed on, but we’re not ready to report it, no writer has been assigned yet.”
Joe then fielded a question about what areas he would focus on in year two as EEK
“Basically this year we are going to look at the MAX titles. We are happy with sales on those books. Also we’ll look at the creator-owned stuff we’ve been pitched. Obviously the creator-owned titles would not just sprout up overnight. Realistically, this can’t happen. It should be coming, but very delicately and slowly over the next year. Marvel had to deal with some trust issues such as how long this great period was going to last? A year into it, people are realizing there isn’t another shoe. Creators are expressing more confidence in Marvel and allowing creators to do what they do best in the main titles.”
Quesada did say there wasn’t going to be a separate imprint, “If it’s an all-ages title, it will be under the Marvel imprint while a mature title would be under the MAX imprint.” He feels the Marvel brand would help these titles sales.
As far as the Young Readers line of books, Joe said, “It’s in the works. This is the toughest single thing they have had to do here.” X-Men Evolution will be the start of the Young Readers line for Marvel. This title will see higher production values then previously seen in young reader’s books. Like the creator-owned titles, Marvel is approaching the Young Readers line delicately and slowly to make sure projects are appealing and commercially viable.
Marvel also has done some heavy promotional programs to the bookseller accounts to break into that market, which has paid off by the fact that the #1 and 3 selling trades are Ultimate X-Men and Ultimate Spider-Man, respectively. “Matt Ragone is focused 100% on bookstores, Roger Fletcher is working on the EDI system so that there will be an automatic resell place. There is a long way to go to get the systems in place, though,” stated Bill Jemas.
Marvel was also asked if they were going to rethink their stance on licensing products after G.I. Joe #1 broke into the top 25 in sales this past month. Joe asked, “What was our stance?” When told it was that Marvel didn’t do that anymore, Joe pointed out that this “doesn’t relate to the present administration and we are looking at some big licenses right now. We looked at G.I. Joe, but it had already been bought.” Joe did state that there would be some big news on this front in the future.
The final question dealt with the new Apache Skies book coming out with the questioner wondering if this would lead to a Blaze of Glory collected edition. “It is not on the schedule right now, but we will look into it.”
And with that I bid adieu.
Okay, I was the schmuck who asked the Mary Jane question! Give me a break guys, I think it was a decent question, better then asking about Ben Reilly, ahem Mr. Editor.
Next up is Gray Haven's personal thoughts as we head into the weekend. I'm telling you, he's full of piss and vinegar this week, all worked up with tons to say. Give him you kind attention... won't you?
CORRECTIONS, CONTESTS and BOYCOTTS!?!
Hey folks. Andrew from www.grayhavenmagazine.com here with a couple of important things to say.
First off, I need to make a correction regarding last week’s review of Worlds Finest: Our Worlds at War. In that review, I erroneously referred to this storyline as being the first appearance of the Black Racer. As it was pointed out to me, the Black Racer is a creation of the legendary Jack Kirby. I apologize for running the review without double-checking the facts about the character’s origin.
I would like to point out, however, that since it appears as if I wasn’t the only one who knew this about the Racer, perhaps someone in editorial could have done a better job at bringing newer readers (or readers without a huge historical background in obscure characters) up to speed with who’s who in their stories. If a comic reader of 20+ years like myself got confused, I can’t imagine many others fairing much better. It also still doesn’t change the fact that save for a few of the Loeb written earlier issues and the Batman Special, the Worlds at War storyline was an exercise in poor execution and less than average storytelling.
Which leads into my next big announcement. In October, DC is doing another crossover event. The Joker: Last Laugh is a 6 part weekly mini-series featuring, who else, the Joker. But that’s not all. The storyline also leads into 26 other core DC titles such as the Batman and Superman titles, JSA, The Spectre, Orion, Flash and more. That’s 32 titles in the month of October alone. Though the company line in these situations is always, ‘fans don’t need to buy every title to appreciate the story’, you know that’s not the case. The complete story is 32 titles, along with 3 other ‘wrap up’ issues the next month.
This bothers me for a number of reasons. First of all, readers were just subjected to a 3-month interconnecting storyline over the summer and now they’re subjected to another one. This time, though, it’s worse, since even more titles are affected. The terribly underrated (and now canceled) Orion has to have one of its final issues enveloped by this storyline. Greg Rucka and Ed Brubaker’s wonderful Batman stories must give way to another company crossover. The Flash, JSA, and Spectre…all great DC books that are left with what amounts to as a ‘fill in’ for the month of October. There’s an adage that goes, ‘every issue is someone’s first’. How do you suppose a new reader will react as they go into a comic store, and check out the latest Batman title, since it’s the most recognizable, and find that it’s one segment in some epic storyline? Maybe they’ll buy it and enjoy it anyway, but odds are that they’ll be overwhelmed by the idea, put the book back, go spend their money on a magazine and never go back into the comic shop again.
I'm not prejudging the quality of the books. Maybe Rucka's Detective or Brubaker’s Batman installment of Last Laugh will be fantastic. I’m opposed to the idea of the storyline itself. Opposed the concept of another needless crossover.
So what’s my solution? Skip them. Skip them all. I’m the biggest Detective Comics fan in the world (it’s the second best superhero title on the market) but I’ll be passing on it in October. Remember: The Joker: Last Laugh. 26 core DC titles. And a 6 issue miniseries. And then 3 more wrap up issues the next month. Don’t buy them. You don’t need them. Buying them will only give them a reason to do it again and again and again. Yes, they’ve been ordered already, but let them sit on the shelves. Let them overflow off the racks until retailers have to give them away, and end up writing into DC to tell them to stop these crossovers.
Lest I be misquoted or misinterpreted, this is not actually a boycott against DC Comics or the creators of these comics. This is not a unilateral effort by the entire staff of GHM. I don’t claim to speak for anyone but myself, though I do encourage the rest of my staff, as well as fans from all over to speak out and join this effort. This is a plea for fans of this industry. A plea to readers in an industry that’s been struggling for so long, and finally has seen the lights at the end of the tunnel in recent months. This is a request, for one month, to say ‘no’ to the idea of forcing a crossover down the throats of fans who support titles each and every month because they’re quality. We don’t want Walt Simonson, Greg Rucka, Ed Brubaker, Geoff Johns, Mark Waid and other great creators forced to write a Joker mess into their books. We want them to tell the stories they want to tell. So for October, I ask you all again: skip The Joker: Last Laugh. Because if not, you’ll only have yourselves to blame when DC or any other company does this again in a few months.
Finally, and most important of all, we do not want to hurt the retailers. I’ve spent the last 10 days speaking with many retailers. Some supported us from the days of when Gray Haven was a print magazine, and others I’ve known just a short time. We talked about how these types of ‘events’ do more harm than good in the long run and to help them out, as well as broaden your own horizons, we’ve come up with an alternative.
Presented here is a list of 35 other comic books that you should buy instead of the DC Joker's Last Laugh books. Most of the following titles are slated to come out in October as well, but the others should still be available, too. Put down the crossovers in October and pick up these fine books instead. Odds are, you’ll discover a truly wonderful title that you never would have purchased any other way and find yourself coming back for more the next month. Or at least, I hope you do.
Here are some wonderful alternatives to The Joker: Last Laugh issues:
Acme Novelty Library by Chris Ware (Fantagraphics)
Alias by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Gaydos (Marvel Max)
Ancient Joe by Scott Morse (Dark Horse)
Artbabe Presents: La Perdida by Jessica Abel (Fantagraphics)
Barry Ween by Judd Winick (Oni Press)
Black Panther by Christopher Priest and Sal Velluto
Blue Monday by Chynna Clugston-Major (Oni Press)
Bone by Jeff Smith (Cartoon Books)
Castle Waiting by Linda Medley (Olio Books)
Cerebus by Dave Sim and Gerhard (Aardvark/Vanaheim)
Colliers by David Collier (Drawn and Quarterly)
Daredevil by Brian Michael Bendis and Angel Medina (Marvel)
Dork by Evan Dorkin (Slave Labor Graphics/Amaze Ink)
Eightball by Daniel Clowes (Fantagraphics)
Electric Girl by Mike Brennan (Fantagraphics)
Felon by Greg Rucka and Matt Clark (Image)
Hammer of the Gods by Mike Oeming and Mark Wheatley (Insight Studios Group)
Herobear and the Kid by Mike Kunkel (Astonish Comics)
Hopeless Savages by Jen Van Meter and Christine Norrie (Oni Press)
Kane by Paul Grist (Dancing Elephant Press)
Kissing Chaos by Arthur Dela Cruz (Oni Press)
New X-Men by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely (Marvel)
Opposable Thumbs by Dean Haspiel (Alternative Comics)
Peanutbutter and Jeremy by James Kochalka (Alternative Comics)
Peepshow by Joe Matt (Drawn and Quarterly)
Private Beach by David Hahn (Slave Labor Graphics/Amaze Ink)
Queen and Country by Greg Rucka and Steve Rolsten (Oni Press)
Ruse by Mark Waid and Butch Guice (Crossgen)
Slow News Day by Andi Watson (Slave Labor Graphics/Amaze Ink)
Spider-Girl by Tom DeFalco and Pat Olliffe (Marvel)
Strangehaven by Gary Spencer Millidge's (Abiogenesis Press)
Stray Bullets by Dave Lapham (El Capitan)
True Story, Swear to God by Tom Beland (Clib’s Boy Comics)
Ultimate Spider-Man by Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley (Marvel)
The Waiting Place by Sean McKeever (Slave Labor Graphics/Amaze Ink)
As an added incentive (and just for something fun to do) we want to reward you for (a) being a fan of the site, (b) hearing us out, and (c) avoiding the crossover.
I’m asking anyone who is fed up with things like Our Worlds at War or the forthcoming Joker: Last Laugh to EMAIL ME a criticism of these types of crossovers. We’re not looking for a critique of the actual story (that would mean you’d have to buy the thing) but instead we want you to focus on why you don’t like interconnected, multi-layered crossovers in comics. Make your point in a few sentences or a few paragraphs. Please, no profanity laced diatribes or they will be ignored. Forward them to the editors of DC, too. They can be reached at: dcodcumail@aol.com
We’ll pick one letter (our favorite), and the winner will receive a copy of each of the 35 books we mentioned on the list. Don’t buy the books. Write us a letter why you think it’s stupid for companies like DC to continue with these crossovers and maybe you win 35 comics books. It’s as simple as just speaking your mind.
Wow. A lot to chew on this week. Thanks to all the guys over at Gray Haven for their continued good work.
"Moriarty" out.
