Please don't dock me any of my 500 words, but I just want to remind everyone that for complete behind the scenes coverage of the MES II, visit marveledsim.blogspot.com.

Game on!

Posted by Philip Schaeffer on 2007-05-15 11:23:21
I see the guys have already started discussing on their blog, and since I can't sign up for a gmail account in England (and since, for that matter, nothing I say here will be misconstrued as a move as it might in your case), I'll stick my thoughts here, and relish in the fact that I don't have to make any of the hard decisions (and that everything I say can be ignored). :)

What a plum set of titles you've been given! I can imagine that attracting top-level talent to any of those books would be pretty easy. I suppose your other task right here is to allocate the books: my suggestion would be that, rather than go the obvious path of keeping the X-titles and Spider-titles together, mix it up a bit - and secondly that you consider the creative teams you want to put on these titles - if you've got a writer on two books, perhaps it might be most efficient to match him with the same editor on both?

Posted by Fetsur on 2007-05-15 12:46:51
marveledsim.blogspot.com
Fetsur, a thousand pardons! I kept forgetting to enable anonymous comments on our behind the scenes blog. But I have now, so go nuts! Please visit it often and post away, as your reputation for insightful suggestions precedes you.

Posted by Philip Schaeffer on 2007-05-15 13:14:01
A thousand pardons, eh? Wouldn't that compromise two moves? ;)

Posted by Fetsur on 2007-05-15 14:37:27
Tom?
What's our deadline for today? I just remembered that there was a 30-minute warning last time around and Hugh didn't get to tell you his steps that day.

Posted by Michael Heide on 2007-05-15 15:44:19
That missed deadline was unusual as it was on a Sunday night and Tom had given us our instructions on the Friday. Usually he gave us until the following morning (when he arrives in work presumably around 9am New York time). Dunno if thats relevant to his go round though.

I think that commentators like myself might be able to involve ourselves in the simulation by not only remarking on the various moves but by stating which titles we would collect and amending that list as we go on (this is something I sugggested people do last time though no one took up the idea!).

At the moment Im buying Amazing Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, Uncanny X-Men, She-Hulk and Wolverine. We'll see if the various new creative teams entice me to check out more titles or make me abandon the ones Im already getting.

Hopefully others will do the same and this might be instructive to Sean and Tom in their various decisions -of course with the proviso that just as in reality the whinings of simulated online fans dont necessarily represent the views of the average buyer.

Huey

Posted by hueysheridan on 2007-05-15 16:37:16
That's a great idea and will probably be a great help, thanks a lot. Unless Tom decides to throw a few unknown factors in the mix. But he'll probably do that anyway. :)

Posted by Michael Heide on 2007-05-15 16:57:18
The other blog
Really digging watching you guys' collective train of thought on the other blog. Very interesting stuff and I appreciate you opening us all up to your process.

Posted by Ben Morse on 2007-05-15 17:14:01
Are there other Marvel books we have to compete with in this scenario? Without a Civil War or World War Hulk, and with our own Editor-in-Chief, one can never know, so I want to be sure. Specifically, is there a "Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man" book with Peter David and Todd Nauck on it? Is there an "Astonishing X-Men" (I guess Joss Whedon and John Cassaday will have finished their run when our issues appear)? The "X-Men" book by Mike Carey and Chris Bachalo?
Or is that up to Sean?

Posted by Michael Heide on 2007-05-15 18:47:57
what I'm buying
My pull list has Uncanny, Amazing, Wolverine. I am on the bubble on FF and Spectacular and have never been interested in She-Hulk. I am about to drop Wolverine.

Posted by bigdaddyhub2 on 2007-05-15 22:21:40
EIC Moves
First, I'm putting Mike on Uncanny and Wolverine, Pat on the 2 Spidey books, and Phil on FF and She-Hulk. We've talked on our blog and I've given the OK on what they'll be posting here, although we're still tweaking some of the story directions a bit. (I'm running with the assumption that all other existing books will continue more or less in their current directions with their current creative teams.)

Next, I'm going to send press releases out to comic media outlets announcing the new EIC and the three new editors and the books they'll be editing. It'll be the usual (I presume) folks like Wizard, Newsarama, The Beat, Fanboy Radio, etc. and I'd also like to hit some prominent podcasters/bloggers/fan site admins, if they don't get them already. Folks like Comic Geek Speak, Progressive Ruin, Invincible Super-Blog, whoever's running FFPlaza these days :) , etc. I'd like to talk with Marvel's PR and IT folks and see what kind of database(s) we have for contacts like that -- if there's not something already in place, see if we can get something automated to send out press releases and media kits to folks based on various criteria such as media outlet type and/or market.

As EIC, I also want to personally contact some folks to see if I can establish some direct, ongoing relationships with them. I'm thinking a Q&A thing like "Joe Fridays" over at Newsarama, semi-regular appearances on FBR and/or Comic Geek Speak, and an ongoing column (just a page, though, nothing too terribly long) in Back Issue and/or Wizard. Also, I'd like to move my Kleefeld on Comics blog over to Marvel.com and post more-or-less daily (as I already do).

More later.

Posted by SKleefeld on 2007-05-15 23:50:38
Patrick Cook's Spidey Moves, Day 1 - See the
(I post this on behalf of Patrick Cook. As always check out marveledsim.blogspot.com for a bigger picture)

With all due respect to the current teams on the Spider-books, I'm bringing in some new and old blood to stir up the Spiderverse for the next year.
Webhead is coming off record-setting box office weekends. I've been trolling message boards to see responses from folks who opine on the internet. It’s not everyone, but it is a vocal bunch not to be discounted.I'm hearing how fans don't like when the foundations of a character are meddled with. (Flint Marko plugging Ben Parker? Ouch!)So at the risk of an internet tar and feathering, how about a -shudder- back to basics approach with Spidey?Here we go: Let’s make Amazing Spider-Man Amazing again. Fans want to see John Romita Jr. back on Webhead, so let's give the people what they want. And how's this for a twofer? I'm asking his big daddy to supply variant covers for one year!So who would pen the tale to complement this titanic two? You sitting?Stephen King.You read that right. I'm making a pitch to the Maine Man to carry over the humongous success of his Dark Tower series and apply it to Mainstream Marvel. We know King has helped bring tons of new readers into the local comic stores in search of Dark Tower. I'm asking the Master of the Macabre for a one-year commitment to Marvel's flagship character. Everyone's got a Spider-Man story they're just waiting to tell. Let's hear SK's version!The cross pollination from King bringing new readers into our Marvel Universe is limitless. Obviously, I see a major media blitz coming with this, so let's get the folks in marketing buckled in. Comics sites, fanzines, giveaways, and of course - ugh - variant covers.Over in Spectacular, I'm bringing back a couple of familiar names, one of whom hasn't been seen around these parts in some time, and will surely ignite a fair amount of controversy.On Spectacular, I'm going for David Michelinie writing, with John Byrne returning to the House of Ideas on art. Love him/hate him, you can't deny Byrne's ability to draw. This pair could really tell some great tales of Spidey and his supporting cast, which of course, includes his cadre of villains.First up for David, I've asked for the consummate story of a villain he himself helped create: Venom. He made it to the big screen before the likes of the Lizard, Electro, and the Vulture. He's got wheels. Any kid glomming Venom via the movie is looking for Eddie Brock in the regular titles. David, you've got a year to get Eddie and his symbiote up close and personal again.
Oh, like Romita Sr. on Amazing covers, I'm shooting for another biggie for Spectacular, who also had a hand in Venom's debut. Still sitting? Good. I've placed a call to Todd McFarlane and asked him for a one-year commitment to covers. You all loved his USM 100 variant, right? Think 12 more.

Posted by Philip Schaeffer on 2007-05-16 00:03:11
X-Offices. Day One. 500 Words.
Uncanny X-Men

We start with Emma and Scott’s wedding. All X-Men and ex-X-Men are present. If Astonishing and the adjectiveless X-Men book are still around, those characters will be away on a mission. Before the two are wed, a huge energy portal swallows almost everyone present. Trevor Fitzroy has taken them away to another time. Why? Where? That will be one of the two main subplots.

Nightcrawler gets saved by Belasco (the other subplot), other mutants were too much for Fitzroy’s portal (he has to kill somebody for every person he wants to transport and underestimated the number of guests? Something like that). Those are the last X-Men left – until the missing members reappear in the timestream somewhere down the road. If readers like this direction, later. If not, sooner.

With both time travel and Belasco in the X-Men’s future, Robert Weinberg seems to be the best writer for this run.

Before another publisher snatches Adrian Alphona away, it’s time to put him on a big Marvel title. He’s the next big thing, so let him be that at Marvel. Let him be that on Uncanny X-Men.

Marko Djurdjevic is my first choice for the cover art.

I offered Ben Morse a Wizard-exclusive First Look at the new lineup and costumes (pending your approval) , with a couple of cryptic words by the writer for each team member. This, along with the Summers/Frost wedding should lure in a couple of readers. And then we hook them with Fitzroy and Belasco.


Wolverine

For people who want classic superhero Wolverine, there's New Avengers. For the scruffy mutant, there's Uncanny X-Men. For his dirty past, there's Wolverine: Origins. So what to do with Wolverine? Put him out of costume.

After losing so many friends in Uncanny X-Men, we play Logan as a Charles Bukowski kind of character. Drinking alone in a bar. (Is the no-smoking rule still active?)
Add a few Femmes Fatales (Madame Hydra? Yukio?), a damsel in distress or two (Amiko?) and more bad guys than you can shake your claws at, and you’ve got the perfect Noir book set in a superhero world. That being said, I’d like to have Ed Brubaker as the writer. With his track record, I can’t think of a writer better suited for this direction. And he just ended his run on Uncanny X-Men, so this assignment would replace that.

Ed has a great chemistry with Mike Perkins, so he should be the artist. For the first four or five months, we’ll have done-in-one standalone stories with a subplot setting up a larger arc. They set the mood, but readers can always join the ride. Then, the larger storyline sends Logan around the world (Japan, Madripoor, Genosha…).

Dave Johnson is my first choice for the cover art.
Could we have in-house ads for this on other books (X-Factor, Criminal, New Avengers) so readers will be reminded of the new approach? Oh, and a Newsarama interview would be nice once the creative team is approved/signed.

Mike

Posted by Michael Heide on 2007-05-16 00:03:55
FF OFFICE DAY 1
***I posted this and it didn't show up after a few minutes, so I've reposted it; I apologize if this is on here twice***


(Note: The designated creator is my number one pick. If they’re not available, please continue through the alternates until you find someone who is, and if you still say no to all those, Mr. Brevoort, you’re meaner than I thought).

THE FANTASTIC FOUR
Writer: McDuffie (alt. Slott, alt. Pak)
Pencils: Pelletier (an upcoming arc by Deodato Jr., alt. Epting, alt. Pelletier)
Covers: McGuinness (alt. Turner, alt. Land)

First 2 issues are part of a 4-part crossover with She-Hulk (6-part if with Black Panther): She-Hulk, Black Panther, Storm and the original FF chase a newly returned Doom through time, space and alternate dimensions to prevent him from creating what Reed assumes is a Doomsday Device, but is actually free life-saving tech for third world countries. T’Challa and Storm leave the FF on bad terms, frustrated by Reed’s compulsive distrust of Doom. She-Hulk leaves for L.A. (see below) with a desire to start fresh, and Johnny indicates he may follow her there later, since things have gotten grim on the East Coast.

Stage set for a darker 4-issue arc (Deodato Jr. or Epting for pencils, but Pelletier can handle it if not): We’ll split focus between the FF having a difficult time making amends with one another, and Doom courting T’Challa, Magneto and Namor with this goal: to defeat the overzealous, registered American Initiative and make the entire world a paradise as The Defenders. This paves the way for… not yet authorized to say.

Marketing’s relatively straight forward for the crossover, usual channels, Newsarama interview, and FF will likely be boosted by marketing for…

SHE-HULK
Writer: Slott (alt. McDuffie, longshot Heinberg, longershot Simone)
Pencils: Amanda Conner (alt. Steven Cummings, alt. Land, alt. Burchett, longshot alt. Cho, longestshotofall alt. Byrne)

2-issue crossover with FF in which Jen, in addition to chasing Doom and fighting dinosaurs, really examines her life and realizes she’s out of control and needs the stability of a FF-style family atmosphere. So her book is re-titled something along the lines of:

FANTASTIC FOUR: L.A.

(But not that specifically; it’s been vetoed by the EIC; we’ll have specifics tomorrow.)

I will assure She-Hulk fans this is still HER book, and with Slott staying on (hopefully), it’ll be a new chapter of the same story, not another Exiles Concept-Bastardization.

Who will compose this West Coast branch? Will it even be a branch? Will they be Fantastic, or number Four? Possible members include Sharon Ventura, Crystal, Nova (the chick who dated Silver Surfer) and Lyja. Eventually Johnny Storm moves to L.A. to join the new team and play the acting game, and Jen will return to practicing law (so she’ll actually be closer to her original hook).

The team will be women (except Johnny), and we’ll target female readers. The book will read like a comedic Grey’s Anatomy, except instead of practicing medicine, our gals lay the smackdown on folk like the Mole Man’s California cousins.

We’ll employ a more aggressive marketing campaign, including Newsarama interviews, die-cut She-Hulk bookmark CSN inserts, a fake ‘Cosmo Quiz,’ in which a personality test determines which team you belong on, the overall benefit hopefully being an increased awareness and prominence of the FF in the Marvel Universe.


Posted by Philip Schaeffer on 2007-05-16 01:11:01
Just putting it out there!
X-Men: Chris Claremont and Alex Ross
First of all take of Mike Carey off the x-men! Why not have the x-men title with a retro feel bring back Claremont and getting Alex Ross to work the pencils and color.

Wolverine: Charlie Huston and Gabrielle Del Otto
You put Gabrielle Del Otto onto a wolverine he’ll really bring out the darkness in wolverine. Charlie Huston’s knows how to tell a tale about a guy who’s been tortured so I think both these creators would complement each other.

She Hulk: Marc Silvestri and Frank Miller
Marc’s women are amazing he’s really taken his women characters over at top cow to new heights; he knows how to make them shine, and let’s take advantage of that. Frank can give marc a run for his money by telling a serious side of She hulk, lets take this characters from funny hot chick into a position of 100% pure women power. Let’s get in touch with the women readers out there.

Amazing Spiderman: Michael Turner and Brad Meltzer
They look like they could tell a good story

Spectacular Spiderman: Jim Lee and Brian Bendas
It would be nice to see Jim Lee working at marvel again doing a Spiderman only in his Black Costume; I think Jim would pull off Spidey in his black suit really well. Jim right now has a 3 year contract with DC so if you can’t get him to do it pull in a rookie who has some potential right now like Stefano Caselli, he’s good.

Fantastic Four: David Finch and Jim Krueger
Let’s see the fantastic 4 in a more serious light; they’ve done everything from the space thing to the underground thing to the moon and back. Let’s see them against impossible odds. Like what about the fantastic 4 comes face to face with god?

Lets have two versions of each title on the stands one in color and the other rough cut, these are not crossover stories but the artists and just there pencil work will tap into an entirely different market. These are the hottest talents to date making comics. Timing is everything lets have all the books put on the stands at once with months ahead of advertising.


Posted by terciera on 2007-05-16 07:02:55
EIC Moves, Part 2
Also, I don't know if any of this goes without saying, or is beyond the scope of the sim, but as EIC, I want to go around the offices and personally introducce myself to everyone. Then, maybe at the end of the first week in charge, have a "Meet All the New Guys" pizza party for lunch.

Posted by SKleefeld on 2007-05-16 07:54:42
OUR MOVES HAVE VANISHED
***At 1 am Eastern all our moves were posted. They're not currently on the boards and I'm panicky. I'm reposting everything I have access to, which doesn't include our EIC Sean's Post. Please Disregard this if our posts pop back up--there's no unique information here. As, always, check marveledsim.blogspot.com for the whole story***

Mike: X Office
Uncanny X-Men

We start with Emma and Scott’s wedding. All X-Men and ex-X-Men are present. If Astonishing and the adjectiveless X-Men book are still around, those characters will be away on a mission. Before the two are wed, a huge energy portal swallows almost everyone present. Trevor Fitzroy has taken them away to another time. Why? Where? That will be one of the two main subplots.

Nightcrawler gets saved by Belasco (the other subplot), other mutants were too much for Fitzroy’s portal (he has to kill somebody for every person he wants to transport and underestimated the number of guests? Something like that). Those are the last X-Men left – until the missing members reappear in the timestream somewhere down the road. If readers like this direction, later. If not, sooner.

With both time travel and Belasco in the X-Men’s future, Robert Weinberg seems to be the best writer for this run.

Before another publisher snatches Adrian Alphona away, it’s time to put him on a big Marvel title. He’s the next big thing, so let him be that at Marvel. Let him be that on Uncanny X-Men.

Marko Djurdjevic is my first choice for the cover art.

I offered Ben Morse a Wizard-exclusive First Look at the new lineup and costumes (pending your approval) , with a couple of cryptic words by the writer for each team member. This, along with the Summers/Frost wedding should lure in a couple of readers. And then we hook them with Fitzroy and Belasco.


Wolverine

For people who want classic superhero Wolverine, there's New Avengers. For the scruffy mutant, there's Uncanny X-Men. For his dirty past, there's Wolverine: Origins. So what to do with Wolverine? Put him out of costume.

After losing so many friends in Uncanny X-Men, we play Logan as a Charles Bukowski kind of character. Drinking alone in a bar. (Is the no-smoking rule still active?)
Add a few Femmes Fatales (Madame Hydra? Yukio?), a damsel in distress or two (Amiko?) and more bad guys than you can shake your claws at, and you’ve got the perfect Noir book set in a superhero world. That being said, I’d like to have Ed Brubaker as the writer. With his track record, I can’t think of a writer better suited for this direction. And he just ended his run on Uncanny X-Men, so this assignment would replace that.

Ed has a great chemistry with Mike Perkins, so he should be the artist. For the first four or five months, we’ll have done-in-one standalone stories with a subplot setting up a larger arc. They set the mood, but readers can always join the ride. Then, the larger storyline sends Logan around the world (Japan, Madripoor, Genosha…).

Dave Johnson is my first choice for the cover art.
Could we have in-house ads for this on other books (X-Factor, Criminal, New Avengers) so readers will be reminded of the new approach? Oh, and a Newsarama interview would be nice once the creative team is approved/signed.


Patrick: Spidey Office

With all due respect to the current teams on the Spider-books, I'm bringing in some new and old blood to stir up the Spiderverse for the next year.
Webhead is coming off record-setting box office weekends. I've been trolling message boards to see responses from folks who opine on the internet. It’s not everyone, but it is a vocal bunch not to be discounted.I'm hearing how fans don't like when the foundations of a character are meddled with. (Flint Marko plugging Ben Parker? Ouch!)So at the risk of an internet tar and feathering, how about a -shudder- back to basics approach with Spidey?Here we go: Let’s make Amazing Spider-Man Amazing again. Fans want to see John Romita Jr. back on Webhead, so let's give the people what they want. And how's this for a twofer? I'm asking his big daddy to supply variant covers for one year!So who would pen the tale to complement this titanic two? You sitting?Stephen King.You read that right. I'm making a pitch to the Maine Man to carry over the humongous success of his Dark Tower series and apply it to Mainstream Marvel. We know King has helped bring tons of new readers into the local comic stores in search of Dark Tower. I'm asking the Master of the Macabre for a one-year commitment to Marvel's flagship character. Everyone's got a Spider-Man story they're just waiting to tell. Let's hear SK's version!The cross pollination from King bringing new readers into our Marvel Universe is limitless. Obviously, I see a major media blitz coming with this, so let's get the folks in marketing buckled in. Comics sites, fanzines, giveaways, and of course - ugh - variant covers.Over in Spectacular, I'm bringing back a couple of familiar names, one of whom hasn't been seen around these parts in some time, and will surely ignite a fair amount of controversy.On Spectacular, I'm going for David Michelinie writing, with John Byrne returning to the House of Ideas on art. Love him/hate him, you can't deny Byrne's ability to draw. This pair could really tell some great tales of Spidey and his supporting cast, which of course, includes his cadre of villains.First up for David, I've asked for the consummate story of a villain he himself helped create: Venom. He made it to the big screen before the likes of the Lizard, Electro, and the Vulture. He's got wheels. Any kid glomming Venom via the movie is looking for Eddie Brock in the regular titles. David, you've got a year to get Eddie and his symbiote up close and personal again.
Oh, like Romita Sr. on Amazing covers, I'm shooting for another biggie for Spectacular, who also had a hand in Venom's debut. Still sitting? Good. I've placed a call to Todd McFarlane and asked him for a one-year commitment to covers. You all loved his USM 100 variant, right? Think 12 more.

Philip: FF Office

(Note: The designated creator is my number one pick. If they’re not available, please continue through the alternates until you find someone who is, and if you still say no to all those, Mr. Brevoort, you’re meaner than I thought).

THE FANTASTIC FOUR
Writer: McDuffie (alt. Slott, alt. Pak)
Pencils: Pelletier (an upcoming arc by Deodato Jr., alt. Epting, alt. Pelletier)
Covers: McGuinness (alt. Turner, alt. Land)

First 2 issues are part of a 4-part crossover with She-Hulk (6-part if with Black Panther): She-Hulk, Black Panther, Storm and the original FF chase a newly returned Doom through time, space and alternate dimensions to prevent him from creating what Reed assumes is a Doomsday Device, but is actually free life-saving tech for third world countries. T’Challa and Storm leave the FF on bad terms, frustrated by Reed’s compulsive distrust of Doom. She-Hulk leaves for L.A. (see below) with a desire to start fresh, and Johnny indicates he may follow her there later, since things have gotten grim on the East Coast.

Stage set for a darker 4-issue arc (Deodato Jr. or Epting for pencils, but Pelletier can handle it if not): We’ll split focus between the FF having a difficult time making amends with one another, and Doom courting T’Challa, Magneto and Namor with this goal: to defeat the overzealous, registered American Initiative and make the entire world a paradise as The Defenders. This paves the way for… not yet authorized to say.

Marketing’s relatively straight forward for the crossover, usual channels, Newsarama interview, and FF will likely be boosted by marketing for…

SHE-HULK
Writer: Slott (alt. McDuffie, longshot Heinberg, longershot Simone)
Pencils: Amanda Conner (alt. Steven Cummings, alt. Land, alt. Burchett, longshot alt. Cho, longestshotofall alt. Byrne)

2-issue crossover with FF in which Jen, in addition to chasing Doom and fighting dinosaurs, really examines her life and realizes she’s out of control and needs the stability of a FF-style family atmosphere. So her book is re-titled something along the lines of:

SHE-HULK AND THE FANTASTIC FOUR: L.A.

(But not that specifically; it’s been vetoed by the EIC; we’ll have specifics tomorrow.)

I will assure She-Hulk fans this is still HER book, and with Slott staying on (hopefully), it’ll be a new chapter of the same story, not another Exiles Concept-Bastardization.

Who will compose this West Coast branch? Will it even be a branch? Will they be Fantastic, or number Four? Possible members include Sharon Ventura, Crystal, Nova (the chick who dated Silver Surfer) and Lyja. Eventually Johnny Storm moves to L.A. to join the new team and play the acting game, and Jen will return to practicing law (so she’ll actually be closer to her original hook).

The team will be women (except Johnny), and we’ll target female readers. The book will read like a comedic Grey’s Anatomy, except instead of practicing medicine, our gals lay the smackdown on folk like the Mole Man’s California cousins.

We’ll employ an aggressive campaign, including Newsarama interviews, die-cut She-Hulk bookmark CSN inserts, a fake ‘Cosmo Quiz,’ in which a personality test determines which team you belong on, the overall benefit hopefully being an increased awareness and prominence of the FF in the Marvel Universe.


Posted by Philip Schaeffer on 2007-05-16 08:43:28
Wizard Response
We're in for the first look at the new X-Men lineup, but would also like to potentially get first dibs on preview art for the new direction of Wolverine. The second item could mean potentially making the cover of Wizard that month X-Men or Wolverine given Ed Brubaker's proven star power (we're a bit skeptical on Robert Weinberg's ability to draw though the new direction sounds interesting.

Posted by Ben Morse on 2007-05-16 09:22:23
hi everybody, it's notapotatoe but you can call me not.
I'd agree with Mike's point of view upon Wolverine,and I'd barely suggest as ideal team for the character Howard Chaykin as writer and Jock as artist.

As for Fantastic Four,no less than Josh Weshdon as writer.After his incredible run on X-Men I didn't had read yet, he's the guy for another team who needs some utterly changes ,new enemmies, new adventures.So call him just right now and grab me Sarah Michelle Gellar's phone number.

Posted by notapotatoe on 2007-05-16 09:38:52
This still has to be green-lighted by Tom. If we get all the creators involved, the Newsarama interview I had in mind for Wolverine could get replaced by a Wizard interview, since I haven't had contact with Matt Brady yet. And if there's a mention that Wolverine is so gloomy because of losing Rogue, Kitty, Jubilee and most of his friends in the first issue of Uncanny X-Men (with an optional sidebar spotlighting the issue), the book could benefit from this interview as well. Sounds great.

Posted by Michael Heide on 2007-05-16 09:46:08
Hey, not, I remember you from the last MES. Jock is a great idea. If Dave Johnson can't do the Wolverine covers, Jock should be asked.

Posted by Michael Heide on 2007-05-16 09:52:13
about Wolverine
I would like an Ed Brubaker to take a shot at Wolverine because somebody finally has to get his post-M day character right. Wolverine with all of his memories should be an infinitely sad, angry person. I mean, every single person he knew as a child died years and years ago. He is literally the last of his generation alive!
Also, I would maybe get Ed to take Wolverine back to some Nazi-busting Invaders action with a retcon that has Wolvie working alongside Cap, Namor, Torch and Buck. He has the chops to pull off a great story like that.

Posted by bigdaddyhub2 on 2007-05-16 10:03:36
Wait and see.

Posted by Michael Heide on 2007-05-16 10:05:18
thanks mike, that's why I suggested Chaykin as writer too.
To really make the character EVOLVE.

Posted by notapotatoe on 2007-05-16 10:14:05
as for Jock only as cover-artist; I really think it is spoiling talent.
I just remember I'm not here.

Posted by notapotatoe on 2007-05-16 10:17:58
Fantastic Four
As a huge fan of Fantastic Four, and it being the only comic I regularly pick up, I have to agree with "no" about it needing a shakeup. Joss would be a good "shakeup-type guy." Bendis might be tempting, but too obvious. Besides, no one needs him to write EVERY good book in existence. While I'm not a massive Slott fan, he does have a great sense of humor, and some honest humor in the FF might do them some good. So I might second the FF Office's, umm, second choice for Slott...

Posted by PseudoSherlock on 2007-05-16 10:18:08
Thanks for the secondry, Sherlock.

Besides, Whedon on FF is unrealistic.

Tell me, Sherlock, as an FF fan, how would you feel about a second book set on the west coast? My EIC (who's an FF expert) is okay with everything about the pitch for She-Hulk except the title, since he's a little hesitant to dilute the FF brand CSI Style (which is probably wise of him; I was thinking of following this up with FF: Akron and FF: Minsk).

As a loyal FF reader I'd appreciate your input.

Posted by Philip Schaeffer on 2007-05-16 10:24:32
Uncanny X-Men
As pointed out in Wizard, X-Men has since slipped from the top seller slot to make way for the New Avengers. I'm also not sure that the Marvel Universe needs any more weddings. They only seem to make the characters happy. Plus, I would be wary about cementing the Scott/Emma thing. Additionally, it seems that Joss' (not to bring him BACK up) Astonishing X-Men did well because of its heavy emphasis on characterization. I don't think a new time traveling plot is going to provide much chance for that, unless the writer is REALLY good. It's bound to just get more confusing. Not that I have a writer suggestion, but something more solid and character-driven would be nice (minus more weddings).

Posted by PseudoSherlock on 2007-05-16 10:26:27
FF West Coast
Well, I think that the way you seem to be going with She Hulk isn't too bad an idea. I would have never thought of it myself, so I was a bit too surprised to be immediately on board. But after a bit of thought I think it COULD work.

What you'll need to make sure to include is enough FF-history wrapped up in the new book as possible. If you just throw in Jennifer with three other random people, it won't feel like the FF. I would highly suggest some old FF members. My first choice would be the She Thing, as she has some history (well, animosity) with She Hulk that would be good to explore. Seeing as how Sharon has recently been shown in her rocky form again, its perfect timing. Personally, I think she deserves her own comic, but as a spin-off FF member she might work even better. Then throw in a couple more characters that have at least been FF allies (perhaps Wyatt Wingfoot, who has a connection to both She Hulk and She Thing), and you may have a good package. Otherwise, don't bother using the name Fantastic Four.

I think one of the - many - reasons Fantastic Force failed is that it was composed primarily of people no one had ever heard of or really cared for. So a new spin-off should do its best NOT to copy this poor example.

If you want to avoid a direct spin-off (so as not to dilute the original FF), you might want to slowly integrate other super-powered or resourceful people into She Hulk's cast. If you just throw her into a new team, and it doesn't have a recognizable FF-like name, you'll probably alienate most readers. But you could sort of trick them into accepting a new team if they get to watch it very slowly come together.

Posted by PseudoSherlock on 2007-05-16 10:36:32
marveledsim.blogspot.com
Thanks for the input, Sherlock. Check out some of my posts about this on marveledsim.blogspot.com.

I have every intention of only including previous FF members, and we're also considering canceling She-Hulk, launching a brief Mini-Series about Jen forming a team in Hollywood and living the L.A. life and then beginning with FF LA number one, bringing Johnny Storm over at least for the first few issues (he does fit in L.A. I think). This does exactly what you're saying; rather than just suddenly throwing She-Hulk into the FF West, we follow her building it via a bridge mini. Again, you can follow this in more detail over on our blog.

Posted by Philip Schaeffer on 2007-05-16 11:57:12