From: Joshua Lynsen
Re: Marvel's suckiness
I soldiered through "Civil War." I tried to swallow your reimagined 2099 universe. I even defended "Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer" in public. But no more. I'm done with Marvel.
• Reason #1: You're bringing back the Clone Saga. For some reason, you've decided to revisit the darkest chapter of Spider-Man's colorful history. I was stupid enough to bear through that fiasco once. I shall not be party to its recollection.• Reason #2: You're resurrecting Steve Rogers. There is no good reason to bring back this tired character and there are, in fact, many good reasons for him to stay dead. You should have left well enough alone.
• Reason #3: You care only about event books. And you say so in as many words when you admit to premautrely ending artist Bryan Hitch's run on "Fantastic Four" so he can draw "Captain America: Reborn." Mark my words: Your short term gains will undermine your long term prospects.
• Reason #4: You punish rather than reward your readers. Your great experiment, the Ultimate line, ended in cataclysmic failure. You undid the marriage of Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson. The list goes on — but your punishment of me will not.
I grow weary of our on-again, off-again relationship, so let this be the end of it. I shall keep "Marvels," "1602" and the Mark Waid/Mike Wieringo run of "Fantastic Four." You can keep … the rest.
3 comments:
1. Yeah, I agree.
2. I'm bummed too. I like Bucky Cap, but Brubaker claims this was always in the cards, and each issue of Captain America he has done has been a fantastic read, so I'm looking forward to where this all goes next. They also plan on reintroducing the female Bucky from the Heroes Reborn universe as Nomad. That could be good too.
3. Name a company that doesn't bank on event books? And as someone who reads substantially more of the monthly books as you do, I can tell you that many of the monthlies had big events in them.
4. How has the Ultimate line failed? Its celebrating 10 years. How long did 2099 last? Have you read any of the post-One More Day? What is it about the new direction don't you like?
Where's your indignation for Battle for the Cowl or Final Crisis? Did you know that they recently brought back Superboy? Barry Allen's back too!
IMHO, this is an amazing time for comics. The talented writers, the unbelieveable art, and stories that (almost) always deliver.
ook I don't mean to pick at you, but I'm having a hard time figuring out exactly what you think Marvel, hell, all comics, should be? Whats the secret formula?
To respond, in no particular order, to your points:
1. The cute promotional phrase "In Brubaker we trust" has applied well to his 50-issue run, but I think there were so many stories yet to be told before Cap returns that he's not using the situation to its full potential.
2. There are good way to do events and there are bad ways to do events. Isolating them out and selling them as separate stories? Bad. Incorporating them as part of the larger, ongoing narrative? Good. "Sinestro Corps War" (Green Lantern) and "World War III" (G.I. Joe) did it right. Although I understand why, I feel companies over-use and have consequently diluted the value of the Issue #1 concept.
4. I say the Ultimate line failed because its recent conclusion, or wrapping up of what's now being called the first story arc, so utterly violated the line's founding principles, in my opinion. But a rant on that could comprise a whole other post.
5. And that dig on 2099? Ouch.
6. The only post-One More Day story I read was the Free Comic Book Day issue of Spider-Man featuring Jackpot. I know many said it wasn't the best example, but it was the one Marvel offered up for free. I didn't like it and wasn't tempted to go back for more.
7. Where's my indignation for DC books? Honestly, I'm not as invested in DC books because I'm a recent convert. I grew up with Marvel and as a result, I have far stronger opinions about that universe. Besides, Battle for the Cowl has echoes of Knightfall, which while far from perfect, was an engrossing read, and the return of Superboy is really just rectifying a mistake. I don't feel the character should have been killed in the first place.
I agree that, creatively speaking, we're in a pretty good time for comics. But I also fear that falling sales and spurring publishers to do some things that undermine their long-term prospects. Do I have a road map? No. Is might righteous indignation going to change anything? No. But sometimes I just need to vent. I'm sure you can relate. ;-)
We'll continue, over drinks. :)
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