Another post from my old Marvel blog in which I respond to queries from the audience.
May 27, 2009 | 1:00 AM | By Tom_Brevoort | In General
Day Two of our snappy answers to your stupid questions. Or should that be the other way around?
>I’ve got problems with my MS Internet Explorer being able to pull up the older versions of Cup O’ Joe on the Marvel site. Is it my browser or does it have to do with dated material or that Joe used to post elsewhere for Cup O’ Joe and then it was linked to the Marvel site? How do we get the older blogs removed? There’s blogs mentioned all over the Marvel website, but only yours is ever up to date. And you need to take a bow on that sir. I check your blog daily at lunch, and in all sincerity, thanks for the effort. Out of all the people who have a blog on the Marvel website, I appreciate you taking the time to check in regularly with the readership. So who cracks the whip on removing the old Marvel website stuff, such as the blog entry for the Ghost Rider movie?
Posted by mouthbreather on 2009-05-22 16:31:32>
I’m not certain what’s causing the problem with accessing the older Cup O’ Joe columns, but on the subject of outdated blogs, I really don’t have any issue with leaving them up there. They may still be of interest to some, and they’re out of the way enough so that, if they’re not of interest to you, you’re not tripping over them all the time.
>1. I noticed that Marvel tends to put out a lot of free publications (i.e. Sagas, etc) and wondered about what kinds of considerations go into putting these out (pricing of other titles, who is working on them, the paper stock, etc). This question can also apply to the Free Comic Book Day Avengers title that came out as I imagine the size of the book played into that. >
Each one of our free publications is a little bit different, and is designed to meet different objectives. Most often, the Sagas are intended to help bring people up to date on recent events that are leading up to a major storyline across one or more titles. So they’re strictly promotional, and can help retailers key in customers who may be curious but not know where to begin (or who may feel lost because they’ve missed so much.) The FCBD books we do every year are slightly different, in that they’re all-new. We produce both a Marvel Adventures-style entry, aimed at the most mainsteram audience possible and typically keyed in around a media push of some kind (like the WOLVERINE one this year, just in time for the X-MEN :ORIGINS film). We’ve also done a Marvel Universe-centric entry for the last few years, in that case focusing on a character or a line that’s about to go through a signifigant change or enter into a new major storyline. These we also try to make as new reader friendly as we can, but they’re much more directly tied into our overall publishing program, whether that involves the single Spider-Man, the X-Men’s relocation to San Francisco, or the effect Dark Reign has had on the Avengers.
>2. I’d also like to know if there is any word on The Twelve and even newuniversal. Short and sweet answer is fine by me, but both titles were stellar and I would love to see where they were going to go.
Posted by causeitwasfunny on 2009-05-22 16:57:54>
I answered about THE TWELVE yesterday. And NEWUNIVERSAL is in the same kind of boat, waiting until such a time as Warren Ellis isn’t so jammed up with other assignments such as ASTONISHING X-MEN
>#1. Does Marvel have any plans to do monthly (or even bi-monthly) books for either Dr. Strange or Adam Warlock? >
Doc is presently being featured in NEW AVENGERS, and Warlock’s a major player in GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY, but there aren’t any plans right this second for either of them to headline a regular series in the immediate future. While they’re both great characters, these guys tend to be a tougher sell over the long haul, so we’d rather wait until we think we’ve got something really special to roll with.
>#2. What are the most enjoyable and least enjoyable aspects of your work as Executive Editor of Marvel Comics?
Posted by Mon Morn Lunatic on 2009-05-22 17:18:07>
Ahh, I dunno. This is almost too broad a question for me to really wrap my mind around. There are so many elements that go into this job, both good and bad, that it’s difficult to fasten on to one single one as the best or the worst. On the good side, I essentially get paid to read comics all day.
>1. Mutant Status. Can a mutant be repowered without having their X-gene activated, if so what about these guys? Whats the status of
A. Madelyne Pryor
B. Cecilia Reyes
C. Quicksilver (Repowered, but does he have his X-gene?)
D. Orphan-Maker and Nanny (Always wore battle suits, do they still have their X-genes?) >
I think I pretty well covered this yesterday, even though it was a non-answer answer. And speaking of those…
>I heard from an X-position thing that an X-men editor (Axel Alonso IIRC) has a list of all remaining mutants, so do I (the above were from my “maybes” section.) Any chance we can see this list, or does he want mine which was well received on the boards?
Posted by tobys on 2009-05-22 18:16:44>
I’m afraid you’d have to ask Axel. It’s not my place to give out one of his internal planing documents.
>How secure are books like Nova, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Iron Fist from being canceled? Are there factors beyond what we see on the sales charts that are (inaccurate, but to a point) released that allow these books to be published? Do the sales of the trades and subscriptions have an effect on these books success?
Posted by Rawnzilla on 2009-05-22 20:29:11>
It will come as no surprise, Rawnzilla, that no book is ever totally secure from being cancelled. And the most basic barometer (though not the only one) is how well said title is selling. The trades and subscriptions do factor in, yes, and that’s information that’s invisible to the average reader, and the sales figures you see posted online are never correct in the first place. But it’s pretty easy to figure out when a series is ailing. So if there’s a title like this that you really enjoy, do your part to spread the word and turn your fellow fans onto it.
>1: Are there any plans for Jeph Loeb’s Red Hulk to break out into the rest of the Marvel Universe in 2009 and or 2010 and pop up in titles outside of Hulk? I’d totally buy him as a Dark Avenger, after all, he may be red but there’s still some big Avengers history in the namesake he’s been fighting for against the original. >
Yes. This was one of the things that was discussed at our recent editorial retreat. I think I can safely say that we’ll see the Red Hulk appearing regularly in another non-Hulk title starting in 2010.
>2: There was talk of Carnage returning later in the year, can you give us any hints about that? I’m guessing you couldn’t give away whether it’s going to be in Amazing or not?
Posted by Dr. Chaos on 2009-05-22 21:00:00>
As it happens, I really can’t give it away, because our plans have changed somewhat, But rest assured, Carnage is coming–we’re just not as close as I once figured we’d be by this point in time.
More answers tomorrow.
Tom B
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