Tagged: Marv Wolfman

Mike Gold: What Goes Around Inevitably Comes Around

DC Entertainment Co-Publisher and Editorial Big Kahuna Dan DiDio let the cat out of the bag on Facebook last week. In referring to Countdown To Infinite Crisis, he said “Definitely one of the highlights of my time at DC, but it gets me thinking, has it really been almost ten years since then, and maybe its time to do it one better.”

Dan, I’m sorry to say this, but your average seven year old could do it one better; two if you gave him a bigger box of Crayolas.

Look, we haven’t even finished Future’s End, a.k.a. Crisis on Infinite Angst. That means we haven’t even seen its trans-universe gangbang follow-up (pictured above, WordPress willing), Blood Moon. And now you’re “teasing” us with still another Crisis?

No, you are not. I know the difference between a tease and threat. A tease involves taking off almost all of your clothes. A threat is Vladimir Putin taking on Darkseid.

I really liked the original Crisis On Infinite Earths. It was a great series in and of itself. But immediately thereafter DC relaunched Superman and Wonder Woman, which sort of pulled the rug out from under the linear reboot. Then DC launched into a whole mess of predictable game-changers: The Death of Superman, followed by The Death or Disappearance of Almost Everybody Else One At A Time. It wasn’t too long before all the cool stuff in Crisis On Infinite Earths was invalidated or contradicted or ret-conned into oblivion. I can’t count the number of Crisis sequels that followed the one that set the DC Universe straight for the first and still-only time.

Indeed, over the past 30 years the DC fans have learned one and only one thing: we cannot trust DC to sustain a thought.

Like most of your readers and ostensibly many of your staff (hard to tell with the big move to Los Angeles), we all love and revere the DC characters. I know you share these feelings because you’ve said so yourself many times. Some of us were inspired to read because of DC’s output. Some of us got a nice slice of our morality from the doings of these characters. They may be entertainment, but entertainment can be enlightening and DC has spent the best part of 79 years doing just that.

Dan, I am not picking on you, nor am I picking on the talented writers and artists you employ, many of whom I count among my friends. If you want to do a sequel of something, base it upon one of the most innovative, daring and worthy projects in American comic book history. Maybe you can call it Thursday Comics.

You wanna do another Crisis? Do another Crisis. I can’t stop you. But, please do one thing: do not call it “Crisis.” Show some originality.

Besides, Marv Wolfman and George Pérez deserve better.

 

Mike Gold: 52 Original Future Crises Of Sin

original-sin-9386592Now that the Big Two are deep into their mandatory summer crossovers – as opposed to their mandatory winter crossovers, their mandatory spring crossovers, and their mandatory fall crossovers – I can’t tell the players without a scorecard.

At the core of both series is the same plot: all or most of the sundry parallel universes are going to collide into one, if, indeed, that many. This does not envelop either series in an aura of originality, particularly when Marv Wolfman and George Pérez did this 29 years ago. You may not think they did it better way back in the early days of the Gilded Age of Comics (and you’d be wrong about that), but at the very least you could understand that story. Original Sin and Future’s End… not so much.

At least Marvel’s Original Sin is built around a clever plot point: somebody offed The Watcher and stole one or both of his eyes… and then, one eye exploded implanting various deep dark secrets held by various characters into the brainpans of those who were within the blast radius of the eyeball.

No, I don’t know how big the blast radius of a Watcher eyeball is. And I’m a bit pissed off at offing the big bald guy anyway, but it’s comic books, where death has no meaning whatsoever. If they ever kill Aunt May off, she’ll be back in a few months with a bionic bustle.

DC’s Future’s End simply makes no sense. Batman Beyond is sent back in time to prevent the end of the world as we know it, but he misses his mark and arrives later than he was supposed to. Well, fine. That’s it. The hero blew it and it’s over, right?

No such luck. All the characters wander around slapping their foreheads and mumbling woe is me a lot. It doesn’t help that this series features the New 52 version of the DC Universe, which really hasn’t been very well-defined or thought out, but has been compromised after-the-fact by bureaucrats who wouldn’t know a good comics story if they bothered to read one.

It was time to retire the mega-event crossover before we started worrying about Y2K. But these puppies make money, so the Big Two are going to keep on hitting the event button like a crack whore with new kneepads.

It’s easy to understand why comics fans like the Marvel movies. They exist in a comparatively small universe with clear roadmaps. DC doesn’t have that goodwill going for them, and Man Of Steel offered little hope.

But we continue to hope. These are great characters. We love them, and we hope that someday the powers at Warners and Disney start to trust those characters as much as we do, before the core audience is all on catheters and people start to view Superman and Wolverine the way we view The Lone Ranger and Buck Rogers.

Before time runs out. 

MICHAEL DAVIS: Shit And The Comic Book Industry

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Please take a moment to look at the graphic that accompanies this article. Chances are you seen it before on the net or right here on ComicMix when Glenn posted it a few days ago.

Shit.

I’ll admit it’s clever as shit. It’s interesting as shit. It’s thought provoking as shit.

I came across this on Facebook and I must admit I was mad as shit when I read it. I was even madder when I saw it was a marketing ploy. Don’t get me wrong. It’s a great marketing ploy and I freely admit that shit.

I went to the website and the Facebook page of the person who put it up. After reading some of the stuff on the Facebook page I was disappointed that I was so upset. Why? Because this is the sort of person I should like. We share a great many thing with regards to politics and he seems like a great guy.

Really.

But I know a wee bit about the comic book industry and I know a wee bit more about building franchises and a wee bit more about mentoring talent.

I also know you do not do any of that shit with fear.

In any and I mean any part of the entertainment business you will find incredible success and dismal failure. That’s not the industry’s fault.  The industry was not set up for you to be either an incredible success or a dismal failure.

That shit is on you.

Are there barriers to entry?

Yes. Tell me, what profession does not have barriers to entry? There are barriers to entry for everything.

That’s what school is for. That’s what working on your craft is for. That’s what life experience is for. That’s what you go to comic conventions for.

If you want to work in comics, you go to comic book conventions to learn the industry not to hang out with your 20 friends in one hotel room with the sole intention of going to the Twilight panel to kiss the ass of the movie company so they will give you a glimpse of that bullshit movie which is the same movie as the previous 15 but “this time it’s personal.”

Yeah, I called the Twilight movies bullshit. That’s my opinion.

The Twilight franchise?

Brilliant.

I don’t have to love a thing to respect a thing and I respect the shit out of the Twilight franchise. When it comes to how they run that shit I’m Team Edward all the way.

Instead of going to a portfolio review or a small press panel the young creators who will fall for that “call me” ploy from the comic industry poster spend their time trying to catch a glimpse of Jim Lee at the DC Comics panel. Jim is not there to talk to you about getting into DC he’s there to sell you the books you are already buying.

So, how does any of the above help your career?

It doesn’t.

The graphic depicts the comic book industry as an industry of people who will try and stab you in the back. Really? You think Jim Lee wants to stab you in the back so he can steal your idea? That great idea that you drew with a ballpoint pen, inked with a magic marker, colored with Photoshop 0.1 in tones of nothing but blue?

No.

You know why Jim Lee does not want your great idea, which all your family and friends have convinced you will be bigger than Superman?

I’ll tell you why, because if you have been reading comics and using that as your only education and attending Twilight like and not career oriented panels at comics conventions then most likely your idea is shit.

Why would all your family and friends tell you had created the greatest thing since Star Wars? I’ll tell you why; your family and friends love you. They are bias as shit.

Think of what you say to that fat ass 300-pound girlfriend when she’s asking you if she looks fat in that dress.

Fat 300-pound girlfriend: Do I look fat in this dress?

You: No.

You lie. You lie because you want to tap some of that fat ass. Guess what? She knows you are lying. She’s 300 pounds, dude. She would look fat in stranded in the middle of the ocean.

Your family and friends are your family and friends; they are supposed to lie to you.  Your family and friends they don’t know shit about what makes a concept a good idea.

Secondly, your “bigger than Superman” concept was drawn with a ball point pen, inked with a magic marker, colored with Photoshop 0.1 in tones of nothing but blue and your can’t spell so your lettering sucks also.

Is the comic book industry fair?

No.

Does some projects that suck get published?

Yes.

Is there an “old boy” network at many publishers?

Yes.

Are there people who don’t want you to succeed?

Yes.

Welcome to Earth, motherfucker. Or more specifically, welcome to the real world of grown-up business.

In every single business on the planet there are unfair policies, projects that suck that get green lit, cliques of people who won’t let you in and people who do not want you to succeed.

Fuck that shit and fuck them.

Learn the game before you hook up with somebody who claims he can help you with your “franchise.”

Franchise?

Give me a fucking break. Learn to write, learn to draw. Ask Jim Lee for advice not an autograph. Stand in line to hear Marv Wolfman or Harlan Ellison talk about writing. Stop standing in line to see clips from a movie you are going to see anyway.

Comic creators like giving advice. You will be surprised to see how much you can learn from an conversation about that creators craft.  Set realistic goals for yourself. Seek criticism from people that know what they are talking about.

Here’s a hint. Make appointments with people you would like to talk to. All they can say is “no” but would not a “yes” make your day and help you?

Take classes, go to school make an effort to learn the industry.

Yes, think about your own Franchise!

Yes, build, your own Franchise!

But before you call someone to help you do something that they have not done, do the work that’s needed to achieve your goal. Yours – not someone else’s.

When you do all of that and more, when you have gotten to a place of excellence in your craft and still don’t succeed, try again and again and then again.

Frankly, if you are that good you won’t have to keep trying because you will succeed.

Anything less, anything quick, anything that does not involve the kind of commitment to your the craft is just bullshit.

WEDNESDAY: Mike Gold Gets Sentimental

Some Thoughts on DC’s New World Order

dcspin-std-bl-jpg-2In 1986, as the Crisis on Infinite Earths was winding down, Marv Wolfman made the radical suggestion that DC indicate the universe had truly changed by altering the numbering on all the titles and restart everything with a #1. For a number of reasons, it was a great idea but the timing couldn’t allow the move. Years later, Dick Giordano indicated it as one of his greatest editorial regrets. However, he can’t be blamed since the Crisis was wrapping up while DC was still negotiating to relaunch its flagship heroes. At that time, only Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli had been lined up for Batman: Year One while John Byrne was still being wooed for Superman, and very late in the process, Greg Potter and George Perez were circling Wonder Woman.

Had the stars aligned, it could have avoided two decades of constant revisions to the reality.

It now seems DC’s executive team has spent the last year moving the stars around. Today’s bombshell announcement indicates the rebooted line will kick off in September, with Justice League #1 previewing the new order on August 31.

I can only hope that DC has its house in order and can avoid embarrassing fill-ins and radical creative team changes early in a title’s run – problems which have plagued the core titles for the last few years.  The worst example may well be Batman: The Dark Knight, written and drawn by David Finch. After debuting in November, the fifth issue of this monthly series is not coming out until August and only then with a fill-in artist.

That aforementioned new Justice League book is coming from DC’s two busiest executives: Geoff Johns and Jim Lee. Sure, it’ll read well and look great, but will it be a monthly and for how long will the talent remain intact? At minimum, these new titles, all 50 of them, need consistent talent on board for at least the first six issues and fill-ins need to be carefully integrated. (more…)

DC Comics July Releases – Covers & Solicitation Copy

  • News
  • April 11, 2011

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We’ve received all the covers for DC Comics July solicitations, including the long awaited Games, the New Teen Titans graphic novel from Marv Wolfman and George Pérez. And when I say long awaited, I mean two decades long– which kinda ties in with all the DC Retroactive titles coming out, including our favorite, Green Lantern reuniting the team of ComicMix contributors Dennis O’Neil and Mike Grell.

Take a look.

(more…)

Happy Birthday: Marv Wolfman

homeland-1397145Born in Brooklyn, New York in 1946, Marvin A. “Marv” Wolfman got his start in comic book fandom before joining DC in 1968. In 1972, he moved to Marvel Comics under editor Roy Thomas.

After Thomas left, Wolfman’s friend Len Wein became editor-in-chief, but  a year later he passed the position on to Wolfman. Wolfman missed writing, however, and chose to step down as editor-in-chief a few years later so he could return to creating the comics himself.

While at Marvel, Wolfman wrote for Amazing Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, and Doctor Strange, but he is possibly best known for his work on Tomb of Dracula, including the creation of the vampire-hunter Blade.

In 1980, Wolfman returned to DC and created The New Teen Titans. He worked on Superman and Night Force, revived Dial H for Hero, and then launched the pivotal Crisis on Infinite Earths.

During the ’90s, Wolfman focused more on animation and television, and in the 2000s he has written a novel based on Crisis on Infinite Earths, the novelization of Superman Returns, and an animated movie, Condor, for Stan Lee’s Pow Entertainment. Wolfman recently took over the writing for DC’s Nightwing series.

In 2007, he wrote a nonfiction book, Homeland: The Illustrated History of the State of Israel, which won the National Jewish Book Award and the Moonbeam Children’s Book Award, among other honors.

Marv Wolfman wins National Jewish Book Award

  • News
  • January 9, 2008

This just in from Marv Wolfman:

I don’t know too many details or the specific category as I just got the phone call but my book, Homeland: The Illustrated History of the State of Israel has just won the National Jewish Book Award. This is supposed to be the most prestigious of all the Jewish organizations.  Once I learn more I’ll put it up on my website, but as I just got the call I thought I’d share it.

Homeland has previously won the Moonbeam Children’s Book Award for  non-fiction, the USAbooknews.com adult award for history/politics and  last week received a Notable Book for teenagers by the Sydney Taylor  Book Award for the Association of Jewish Libraries. That means the comic-based book, actually inspired by my old History of the DC  Universe book, has won non-comics acclaim for kids, teens and adults. As I say I don’t yet know the category for the National Jewish Book award but in that world this is the big one.

Homeland is drawn by Mario Ruiz and published by Nachshon Press.

Mazel tov, bubby.

Logan Gets Mr Bean’s Girl

wolverine-1776701Some important Wolverine casting news and our list of late comics end the year and ComicMix Radio covers it all!

Plus:

• Marv Wolfman comes back to The Titans – sort of

• Mark Waid splits from The Flash

• The Justice League director may not "get it"

And Sean McKeever shares what he enjoyed reading in 2007.

Press The Button now and we promise to save you from Zombie Dick Clark!

Overheard at San Diego, part 4

  • News
  • July 28, 2007

sdcc2007mystique-8078461Can we hear anything over this much hubbub? Of course we can… and our spies are everywhere.

Around aisle 2300: "I can prove the convention is too crowded. When a pretty girl walks by, and a second pretty girl walks by before you’re done staring at the first one, it’s too crowded."

Marv Wolfman: "The biggest celebrity here is Stan Lee. Everybody, young, old, knows who Stan Lee is, what he looks like, and what kind of personality he is. And of course everybody knows that Stan Lee created Superman."

At the "Writing About Comics" panel:

Tom Spurgeon: "I hope words continue to remain prominent in this field, becuase if we all go to video, I’m screwed."

Glenn Hauman: "Can I quote you?"

Tom: "Sure, and then I’ll link to you."

Douglas Wolk: "Good, and then Dirk can link to you linking to him."

 Douglas Wolk: "I’m a little tired of all these comics that want to a movie when they grow up."

Nisha Gopalan, EW: "Isn’t that Virgin Comics’ business model?"

Tom Spurgeon: "It’s a little amazing that Variety and Enterainment Weekly are covering comics, when distribution is so sporadic– it’s writing about this great book that you might be able to find on such and such a time and maybe in such and such a place."

In the audience at "The Black Panel":

"What is Marv Wolfman doing on this panel?"

"He’s a token."

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