Our resident head honcho brought you news of the upcoming Ultimate Origins event Marvel has planned to coincide with the Ultimatum series that promises to alter the Ultimate line for the foreseeable future.
Some would say the whole line is pointless now. The line was originally conceived as a way to attract new readers to the industry. Since the books were starting from scratch, they would not have a backlog of continuity for these new readers to keep track of. The problem is that as we near the decade mark on the Ultimate Universe, it now has its own continuity. Ultimate Spider-man especially has a great deal of story invested in itself and while it tends to do an excellent job in using this history well, it somewhat defeats the purpose of the line.
So Marvel has a few options on its hands. They can continue things as normal and lose more readers as the Ultimate books slip lower down the sales charts. They can cancel the whole line outright, which seems unlikely given that they do still sell (for now), especially Ultimate Spider-Man. Trim the fat by canceling a book or two (Ultimate Fantastic Four, I'm looking at you) and continuing the line in a series of limited series such as Ultimate Iron Man.
Most likely though, Marvel will use Ultimate Origins and Ultimatum to reshift the focus of the books into a tighter, more cohesive universe. The books have been mostly stand-alone with only some crossover up to this point. Given that these two series focus on several Ultimate books, this is a definite possibility.
So all that meandering was to eventually say that Major Spoilers has three of the four covers for Ultimate Origins #1. There is a 50/50 split for the Simone Bianchi and Gabrielle Dell'Otto covers with two variants provided by Michael Turner (one a sketch variant). Check out the gallery below to see more Wolverine than you can shake a stick at.
We all know that there are several gay characters among the Big Two. When discussing homosexuals in comics, the same characters are trotted out ad infinitum: Northstar, Batwoman, Midnighter & Apollo, Ultimate Colussus, Renee Montoya and a few others. There are other gay characters as well, but they're either relegated to the third string (whether they were there before the outing or not) or the storyline where their homosexuality is discussed is more or less removed from the canon.
We all remember the debacle Marvel had on their hands with the Rawhide Kid a few years ago. His stint with being gay didn't even last to the end of the selfsame limited series! At this point the Marvel MAX series about the Kid's being gay has become more of a joke than anything. Even at the time, there was more discussion about why Marvel made this 50 year old character gay than people who actually bought the book.
Obviously, Rawhide Kid's sexuality was a publicity stunt. It didn't work then, but that doesn't stop companies from trying again. I think most people would agree that DC tried a similar tactic with Batwoman. it was certainly nowhere near as egregious as Marvel's attempt years previous, it was a media ploy nonetheless. The fact that good stories have come from it is a step in the right direction, but her sexuality was a reason for DC to get in the papers and little else.
Should a character's sexuality be a focal point of an ad campaign? Should it be the focal point of a book? If it doesn't take center stage, will it invariably fall to the wayside and simply be a footnote in that character's Wikipedia article?
There are characters who have had it done right. The New X-Men's Anole is gay and deals with it from time to time, but it is hardly referenced every time he is on panel. Mystique has preyed on both men and women and reveled in it, using sex as more of a end to her means than anything (though she did seem to have a relationship with the precog Destiny as they were raising a young Rogue). Even John Constantine of Hellblazer has admitted to a "a boy friend or two."
I realize I've only mentioned characters from and DC and this time it's a good thing. Smaller publishers tend to have no problem in centering homosexual characters in their books and spotlighting their lifestyles without making it propaganda. Strangers in Paradise is a perfect example of this, allowing homosexual characters to exist without propping up that soapbox.
So the question this week is this:
Do Marvel and DC do enough to promote legitimate homosexual characters and relationships? Should they be used as publicity stunts until there is wider acceptance? Or does a character's sexuality, be it straight, gay or otherwise, not factor into this in the first place?
BAM! ... The Fortress of Fortitude has a great article up about creator's rights and how they relate to the corporate world of the Big Two.
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BAM! ... The ever lovin' blue-eyed Heidi MacDonald talks up the next generation of New York's School of Visual Arts and the interesting statistics about their comic art program.
If you're a regular reader 'round these parts you've no doubt heard me proclaim the greatness that is Comic Foundry magazine. it's a well rounded magazine that is as much about superheros and tights as it is about Manga and indie books. The new issue will be out in June and while I'm still excited about it, the cover story is definitely NOT the reason I am.
Why an interview with G4's Blair Butler is a good thing is beyond me. She is the most boring and awkward personality on the network and it pains me to see her get all the comic related presentations. She's as wooden as Johnny is a homicidal maniac and she just sucks the life out of every interview she conducts.
While I'll be gladly waiting for the issue to arrive in my mailbox this June, i will most definitely be skipping that particular article.
Your usual host for our Thursday morning quarterbacking is currently incapacitated (maybe if he had a Mac instead of Vista, ha!) so it's up to your intrepid sociopath to pumpkin bomb some reviews on your bad selves.
The name of the game this week is undoubtedly Secret Invasion. The first two issues have met with resounding success in the blogosphere and even satellite books such as New Avengers and Mighty Avengers are sharing in the basking warmth of those damn, dirty Skrulls. But let's not count out the Whedonverse as both Buffy and Angel: After the Fall have new issues out this week (from different publishers, strangely enough).
What's on deck this week?
1. Secret Invasion #2
2. Mighty Avengers #13
3. Iron Man: Viva Las Vegas #1
4. Buffy: Season Eight #14
5. Nova #13
6. X-Factor: The Quick and the Dead
7. Invincible Iron Man #1
8. The Boys #18
9. Thunderbolts: Reason in Madness
10. Angel: After the Fall #7
11. Logan #3
12. Cable #3
13. Midnighter #18
Did we make the right calls? Check out the reviews and let us know!
CBR has the first look at the Steve McNiven variant cover for next month's Secret Invasion #3. It's very much a cool image and I may pass up the painted cover for it, even though I hate mixing covers for this sort of collection.
Has the Thing ever looked so forlorn before?
Hit the thumbnail below for the fullsize image of Fury in all his gun-totin' glory.
While no contracts have been signed either eay (and we're still a ways away from that), it seems that writer/director Jon Favreau may not be coming back to work on the nxt Iron Man as everyone had assumed. He's been saying for some time now that he would love to come back and complete what he saw as a trilogy.
In Favreau's story arc, the second film would have Tony turning 40 and deal with his mid-life crisis by turning to the sauce. The second film was always supposed to be a reworking of the seminal Demon in a Bottle storyline. It's a defining work for the character and speaks to who Tony Stark is (both losing and regaining control).
The only problem is that the first IM film was TOO successful. it seems that Marvel is eying Iron Man as a family franchise. Makes sense given the children's bed sheets and inflatable bath toys being advertised with Iron Man on them. Of course, a film dealing with alcoholism isn't exactly going to be hauling the nine year olds in by the truck load. As adept as Favreau is at making kids movies (he directed both Elf and Zathura), he always stated that he saw Iron Man as an adult film, just with a few fight scenes thrown in. Tony's battlr with the drink certainly fits that mold, but what if both he and Marvel Studios are unwilling to budge? It's ultimately Marvel's call, but if Favreau was so integral to the first Iron Man (and he was), what would a sequel out of his hands look like?
Not a terribly big surprise, but the Invincible Iron Man #1 has sold out at Diamond. While some stores may still have a copy or two left, they can no longer order more copies from the distributor. Something of a surprise though - Marvel has announced they have no plans to go back to press on the issue. I guess six variant covers are enough.
Invincible Iron Man #1 is the opening gambit in a new Iron Man ongoing book aimed at a more movie-friendly, superhero audience as opposed to the more secret agent vibe of Iron Man: Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Don't worry, I'm not going to go into a big political thing here. Though the urge to bring up Hillary vs. Obama is tempting, I'd prefer to not break the comments section (though I would love to see them get some more use!).
Instead, out friendly neighborhood Library of Congress has added an invaluable asset to their already extensive collection of American literature by unveiling original pages from Amazing Fantasy #15! An anonymous donor gave up these priceless pieces to our four color pastime tot he LoC for prosperity and while I admire this donor very much, I don't know if I could ever part with such a treasure.
Just a taste from the Library of Congress blog(okay, when the LoC has it's own blog, I'm fairly certain the whole concept of the blog has hit its zenith:
A couple of colleagues and I got the opportunity yesterday afternoon the see the pages in person. (Don't worry, we made sure to keep our drool far away from the art.) They do indeed appear to be in very good condition, especially considering their age. The Library's Prints and Photographs Division (P&P) provided me with a scan of one of the pages and a detail section, which you'll see here at right. (They are, in actuality, even a bit less yellow than the scans appear.)
This is a very interesting addition to the LoC and is just another notch in the belt for comic's legitimacy. I just may hit up the LoC computer banks next time I'm in D.C. and take a look at the scans. Or I'll go all Nic Cage and attempt to steal the Declaration of IndependanceSpider-Man pages from the archives. Who wants to be my adorkable and wiseass sidekick?
Hit the jump for the official word from the LoC blog and a gallery of images from the pencil-and-ink pages.
Remember a few weeks ago we showed you the downright gorgeous new poster by Adam Hughes spotlighting the women of the DC universe? Well, Comics Worth Reading is a blog after my own heart as they're currently running a contest looking for the male equivalent or what they call the Men of the DC Universe.
There are are only three entries posted thus far, so I encourage all of you artistically gifted PK readers to enter for the nice greenback reward. The deadline for submission is May 15th so get a move on and send those entries in! Don't forget to give a little shout-out to your favorite blog that told you about the contest too.
If you need some inspiration, check out the gallery below for previous submissions (including quite possibly the cutest Batman ever).
I'm going to let you in on a little industry secret - sometimes, just sometimes, comics are used to sell products other than just comics!
I know, I know. It's surprising, but I'll give you a moment to steel yourself again.
Back? Okay, good. Now, in a neat little article, Brian Heiler from Topless Robot looks at the best and worst comics hat were created for no other reason than to sell toys. Crazy, I know.
But don't forget, both Transformers and G.I. Joe both started out as toys and the comics and TV series that so many love were just designed as 30 minute commercials to sell toys. So let's not see that high horse!
Think you know which good comics make the list? I bet you can't guess all of the worst toy adaptations. There are some pretty terrible ones.
Frater Mine by Sean McGrath and Juan Romera
