good 2 know
personally i wanna get a new x-men book

Posted by tarhaun on 2006-07-25 14:21:24
I have to admit
After being a loyalst to Marvel for so many years now (over 25), I have to admit that there have definitely been titles out there that I have wished to just fade away into the sunset. However, after becoming a parent of 2 boys and a "born-again" comic collector...I now find myself searching for these hard to find titles and enjoying what I once did not. I wish some title would rear their ugly little heads....(like New Universe's Starbrand!). So, until I find them all....KEEP MINE MARVEL!!

Posted by birdman on 2006-07-25 14:29:13
In closing
You didn't say "more later", is this really you Tom?

Posted by Brotherman on 2006-07-25 16:00:17
Wishing Cancellation
People actively wishing for the cancellation of a comic is another reflection of the tone of Internet e-mail, bulletin boards, blogs, etc. The anonymity provided by the Internet and a desire to out smart, out cute, out snide other writers leads people to say things online they wouldn't be caught dead saying face-to-face. Personally, I miss the old letter pages in comics and the only one close to being as thoughtful as the 1970s & 1980s letter pages is in Captain America (although those in Astro City and Godland are both good).

As Tom says, it makes no sense to wish cancellation. If you like a character or title but you don't like the way it's being handled, criticism is fair but criticism specific to why you don't like it not just snide comments. None of the writers who criticized New Avengers 21 in response to the last post said anything specific. At least the writer who said he didn't like introspective stories or thought them misplaced in this instance (NA #21) took a stab at it.

If you want to see an improvement or a change in NA or any title, you aren't helping the editor or the writer by being overly clever in your critique and if you're too snide in taking shots (I for one don't get the references to the UPS guy as artist), you're more likely to be dismissed than taken seriously. Worst case, if you don't like a book, don't buy it. The market is a pretty strong communicator to publishers and editors and they will either work with the writer and/or artist to make improvements or assemble a new team.

But given Tom's writing on this blog, I"m willing to bet he would take strong opinions of minority voices into account if those opinions aren't buried in the kind of online venom that passes for critique these days.

Posted by dds1981 on 2006-07-25 16:05:36
Yeah what is up with that?
I think people just say there feeling like I do not like this comic they should lose it, not realizing that other people may read the comic. We all have our different tastes in comics just like Ice cream. Just because you do not like vanilla ice cream does not mean we should get rid of it.

Posted by spidey0402 on 2006-07-25 16:35:48
I Mean, Seriously
You're incredibly right. Take me, for instance. I've never been that large of a fan when it comes to The Hulk. But I know there are people who do enjoy various Hulk comics, and it would anger me to know there are people lobbying for the cancellation of my favorite comic. Too many good comics have gone down the drain because of hiatus advocates, and that always just seemed unnecessary and not nice. But hey, Marvel, keep on doin' what you're doin'.

Posted by EnvoyOfDarkness on 2006-07-25 17:17:04
A sad state of affairs
I think the other sad thing about this sort of carrying on is that people often forget that the creative teams of these comics are not only pouring their hearts and souls into their projects, but they also have mouths to feed. By wishing a book to be cancelled, your wishing someone out of a job. That's just not cool... Writers, pencillers, inkers and everyone else involved are people too, and to wish misfortune on them just because your preferences lie somewhere else is just callous...

Posted by astrosapien on 2006-07-25 18:45:11
here I can totally agree with you Tom. and as someone said in an earlier post i wish we had letter pages too. these days I've been trying to find a place to give marvel some feedback and letter pages used to be the place to do that. btw, it is definitely not all negative feedback I speak of. I wouldn't expect a creative team to cater to my every whim, definitely, but it's nice to have one's voice heard.

Posted by CypherHalo on 2006-07-25 22:11:40
Which Books?
Which books do people want to see cancelled? I haven't seen any of this on any board threads that I read?

That really sucks! What a stupid attitude to take.

Posted by NewChad on 2006-07-26 05:53:26
People are confused
While I agree wholeheartedly with what you have said Tom, in my experience people who want a book cancelled are often incapable of separating the creative team from the title. Most often what they want is the creative team off the book. This may not be any nicer but it can be justified more readily. Perhaps they believe that magical comic fairies produce the books, and when they see a title going in a direction they don't like, they can't express their opinion beyond "cancel it". These people need education, and if they still want the book cancelled without good reason, they need pity.

Posted by dingogary on 2006-07-26 12:20:00
response to dds1981
I agree with you that people say things online that they wouldn't say face to face. I never said that I wanted NA cancelled. I enjoy the book. I like NA as well as any non-Brubaker title out there right now. But I will come out and say that I didn't like New Avengers 21 because of the art first. I don't think that Mr. Chaykin can draw consistantly well enough to be given a book like NA. I liked him okay in Wolverine 40. Its not a good thing when two characters (Pym and Rogers) look so similar that you have to guess which one is which. I don't think the quality of this issue is there compared with any of the artists that have worked on the title.
Secondly, I reiterate that an Avenger book is not the place for these introverted side stories to Civil War. I don't want this title cancelled! I want it reinforced with incredible action and story.
Now, in defense of wishing the demise of a comic, I think that a person could be justified in that sentiment IF the characters were being handled in a way that completely destroyed or disrespected them. This is again a matter of preference, but someone might feel that the development of a character is destroying what they perceive to be the most important fabrics of that character and they feel that the best thing to do is to simply leave that character alone. Hence, cancel the title. For instance, someone might be a huge fan of Photon and they don't like Ellis' take on her. Is it too horrible for someone to hope that they Ellis would just stop it? (By the way, I don't have any dog in that fight, it is just an example.)
Thanks Tom for what you do

Posted by bigdaddyhub2 on 2006-07-26 18:50:57
I don't know why everyone says they want a book cancelled all the time, but I would hazard they have an emotional stake in something related to it and it's not filling the bill for them.

I quite honestly want NA to be cancelled because I don't think it has anything to do with the Avengers and its existance (in my mind, at least) keeps me from reading a book that is about the real, classic Avengers.

On the other hand, I don't read any of the Spider-titles or the FF because I'm not interested. I don't care if they're cancelled or not, though, because they have no impact on characters I do care about.

Posted by motteditor on 2006-07-26 22:29:14
Instead of calling for a cancelation...
Instead, how about simply lobbying FOR a title that fits the bill you're after? Prove to Marvel that there is a significant enough fan-base to BUY the book and make it profitable (coz let's face it, it comes down to $$$).

It worked for Spider-Girl.

Loads of people don't like Chris Claremont on X-Men these days, which is why it's great that Marvel gave him X-treme (and now Excalbur) to tell HIS type of stories for his fanbase.

Sorry, but calling for a title to be cancelled just so you can satisfy your jilted fanboy life is really sad and selfish.

Posted by NewChad on 2006-07-27 07:05:46
Why...
There are two books right now I wish were cancelled (one Marvel and one DC, but I'm not saying any more than that on which titles they are). Why? Because they're books that I had an emotional investment in, but are now (IMO) travesties of what they were when I liked them, bearing only a passing resemblance to what they were while being crap in what they are, but still feature the same characters I got invested in before.

It's be a kindness. Like a blind old incontinent sheepdog, they've had his day. Take them out to the barn with a double-barreled shot-gun and blow the mother away. And I'm only saying that because I was so fond of them. (place the slightly-altered quote, anyone?)

Posted by RebootSoM on 2006-08-01 19:09:18