Marvel: C-C-C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER!!!!

So this week Marvel did a live announcement concerning Secret War and I'd just like to say one thing:

I was right.

Marvel is kind of sort of pushing the reset button on their universe.  They are breaking the long history combo with a reboot counter.  And I think this might potentially be a pretty good thing, but that's not what this is about.

Some people (read: ridiculous amounts of people) compared this to DC's Crisis on Infinite Earths when it's really a lot more like DC's Flashpoint.  Why?  Read on before you start flinging your poop at your monitor.

The event basically spells the end of several universes, two of which are definitely the standard 616 regular Marvel Universe and the 1610 Ultimate Marvel Universe.  Following the line of stories Jonathan Hickman has been writing, Earth will enter an Incursion and those two Earth's will definitely collide and sort of meld creating a new permanent Marvel Universe.  Of course several other universes will be part of this new "Battleworld" and most likely some of their histories will get tied up into this as well.  While I don't expect this hodgepodge world to exist as a puzzle, I do think it will most likely meld into one cohesive history like Nu52 (NuMarvel? Post-Flashpoint Marvel?) and become it's own world.  Now, if you followed the live feed you'd see some people just being dicks (like me) who kept claiming things about this being a reboot (like I did), and while they were right they represented the worst of the commenting crowd with most others either being wary or okay with the reveal.  Okay, about half.  But then Tom Brevoort said something, "If someone wanted to bring back Gwen Stacey, this would be the time to do it," or something to that effect about ressurecting Gwen Stacey.  

Twitter lost it's shit.

People who were simply posting along with updates became hostile, paranoid, sad, and/or angry.  Some decried the entire event. Some felt the event was irrevocably ruined.  Some felt the event was originally a great idea but now felt betrayed (which is funny since Marvel is on nobody's side).  In short, people actually turned against the event, but that wasn't the worst part.  People in a hope to establish some sort of normalcy began to turn on each other.  Some people were beyond furious their history of comics was possibly going to pot for what may potentially be a disaster, some were striking out in fear of losing ongoing books (which all ongoing books will be cancelled temporarily for the event), many were afraid of the Gwen example being evidence this event might just return comics to a state of horror.  

It was insane.  

Some poured their hearts out, some tried for calm, and everybody was so pitched it didn't matter since all sides could only field the extremes while trying to make sense of everything.  People followed and unfollowed.  People raged against walls they or others put up.  In one particular battle of names who won't be posted, one person tried to appeal for calm but did it in the worst comic fan position possible: Since he has read comics longer than the other person, the other person should get with the program and calm down.  While it's not what he meant (sort of) it's what he said, and that sent the other person into a furor because gee golly, she was definitely a comic book veteran at 12 years of collecting and with that much investment she was definitely entitled to her feelings.  Shocker, I know.  Others had similar experiences.  As an aside, I understand what the guy sort of meant because as one becomes older in any community they become dulled to the reality of that world like doctors and bill collectors and these things just don't effect them and the guy probably just wanted to share that (I hope).  If that is what he meant, he just shouldn't have been so crap about it and pull the, "MY POWER LEVEL IS HIGHER THAN YOURS!!" card, and probably should just realize the wounds were too raw to close right away. Discretion is the better part of valor and such. Some people didn't want to be told how to feel (valid), and some people felt that other opinions were the ones we should aspire to (touchy subject).  I honestly stayed out of it or just joked around by telling one particular poster "Look at it this way, maybe they bring back Gwen as Ultimate Carnage/Gwen."  Even though the person humored me with a witty "Lalalala Can't hear you!" I'm sure they were dreading this might be possible.  In fact, people were really worried the characters they've grown to love will be perverted in such a fashion.  One person claimed Peter would be outright replaced, and while he might, I think it'll most likely he'll be replaced with a MJ married Peter who is otherwise the same.  This leads me to a thought other than comic fans are the worst in any fandom.

Let's be perfectly honest:  In ten years, all the characters we know now will be different anyway.  I know people don't want bad change, but comics thrive on change.  I know I just said people's feelings are valid, but fans know this sort of thing is inevitable and this isn't at fans who are facing drastic change and are worried about their books.  This is pointed at the Gee Wun fans I also saw who probably believe comics went bad the moment Jim Hammond the Human Torch and Namor went toe to toe.  This is a chance for Marvel to spice up and shake up their roster and make changes they want but couldn't feasibly do without breaking a story ala Brand New Day. And let's face the facts that Marvel can't have Dan Slott write every freaking book to smooth things over with the fans.  People are really worried characters who just got their start will just go away.  But let's be honest:  The big examples of Ms. Marvel, Captain Marvel, and Squirrel Girl are here to stay.  You think they won't?  Ratings and sales (and the newness of Ms. Marvel and SQ) say otherwise.  Marvel is sly to the game and those three books represent some of their best writing currently.  The crowds they're attracting won't be forgotten.  Captain America (I wish was named Captain Falcon with an energy punch) and the new Thor will stay.  All recently changed characters get to stay, almost guaranteed.  Who might go?  Spidey, like I said, but will most likely be replaced with a similar Spider-Man.  Iron Man might be changed to a non-Extremis or just more jokey, less dickish Iron Man.  I'll bet thirty bucks vampire Jubliee is replaced by '92 X-Men Jubilee with the yellow jacket.  Hank Pym might get replaced/changed because he ALWAYS gets screwed in Big Events.  Maybe Scott Lang will.  The Fantastic Four are primed for it.

You know what might also happen?  A bunch of characters might get Power Girl'd, and not in the way you're thinking.  They might simply get added on to the universe.  Miles Morales I bet sticks around on the new world (Nu616?) as someone with a modified history to fit if Marvel goes full Flashpoint.  Spider-Gwen might stick around (ARGH!! HOW CAN I BETRAY PEOPLE BY SUGGESTING THIS?!?!?!)  Other long time dead characters, or minor characters, or really just anybody in need of a restart might get this treatment.  Alright, I'm joking about Spider-Gwen.  If she sticks around, she sticks to the shadows of L.A. and becomes ultra sparse.  The chance for Marvel to adapt characters actually becomes pretty unique and might potentially be good.

Clearly the next day everything more or less calmed down with some people feeling bad for their behavior, some feeling that their worlds were a little smaller from the fighting, some feeling better just simply for venting and thinking things out.  As always with comic fans life just sort of goes on until the next reboot or cash grab.  But really, we should argue and such but we shouldn't be terrible fans because of this sort of stuff.  Not when there's so much worse things happening to real people.

Did you know Dan Slott was put on Jury Duty this week?  Seriously.  And Slott had to explain what comics he worked on and a DA told him the DA knew what Slott did to Spider-Man implying possibly villainous undertones.  But that and Marvel's problem pales in comparison to Peter Simeti's cat who had to go to the vet.  Seriously, there is almost nothing more sad than a cat in a crate who needs shots. 

Do these look like happy cats?  No, they do not.  THESE look like happy cats:

Okay, so maybe cats always sort of look displeased with us humans in some way.

Don't be the reason these animals look down on us.  I'm sure they ponder why we got opposable thumbs when they're clearly more deserving.

The Comic Bubble

Good day.  I hope everything is doing good for you.

Anyways last post I was talking about Variant Covers and how it was helping to inflate the Comic Bubble and potentially may be hastening the bubble burst. I didn't?  Well, it is.  But just what is the comic bubble, and what are my worries?  I guess I should somewhat explain what I be talkin' bout.

Not this sort of bubble

More like this sort of bubble, the fragile kind that when you "KAPOW" it, it just pops

See, the comic industry like any industry which relies on speculative value and work to expand influence.  Basically the comic industry like all industries will grow and deflate over time, and when it happens with comics it tends to be extreme.  But it's not because that's just how people are (though it has something to do with it) it's because how some in the comic industry are looking to turn a very quick buck.  In my previous post I talked about variant covers and market glut, and this is a huge part of it.  However there are other factors such as saturation of product, visualization, outlets, publicity and so on and so forth.  

Let me try to organize my thoughts into a slightly more coherent view and start at the bottom.

The basic market for all comic book companies are the primary comic book fandom.  These are people who generally buy comics and will spend more and take risks on different series and stories as they grow as fans and collectors.  From here comic companies test their products and see how dyed in the wool fans respond.  Then comic companies reach out to kids with toys and cartoons, and more recently the public at large with movies and tie in deals and food company advertisements and all sorts of stuff.  The merchandising aspect of comic book characters is insane and even the movies make far more money than comic books because movies are easier to get into and don't require a monthly investment.  Comic books do.  And that's where comic companies are having a hard time right now with converting movie watchers and other fans into comic purchasing fans.  This is reflected with how comic books actually begin to reflect their cinematic counterparts, such as Iron Man getting the Robert Downey Jr. effect in Keiron Gillen's relaunch of Iron Man (pre Guardians of the Galaxy which was pre Superior Iron Man).  Cap's new costume, the entire lineup of the Avengers, the Chituari becoming a Skrull subspecies as opposed to being alternate universe Skrulls, the entire Guardians of the Galaxy being changed from a cosmic horror team into a more lighthearted space adventure, the prominence of DC teams and characters who are getting movies (though it could be argued DC is simply trying hard to generate interest in these characters from two fronts).  Okay, so Marvel's a little worse about it.  But let's face it, Marvel is happy to whore it out to whomever pays up.  That's the Disney/Marvel way.  And not that this is particularly bad in some ways, but it is bad in the whole "Bubble" aspect, and here's why: Comic Character Movies are a fad.  

Sure, comic movies have been popular to some degrees since the 70's with a few successful and critical Superman films, the first couple Batman films, the first two Raimi Spider-Man/Singer X-Men films, and the Nolan Dark Knight Trilogy.  These were far from the only comic films as several were rolled out during the 2000's, but none of them really managed to catch on like the Nolan Trilogy which truly changed everything in 2005.  When Batman Begins hit, the movie going public and greater public in general began to more seriously contemplate and pay for superhero movies.  This was a big change in the industry after X3, Spider-Man 3, and Batman & Robin pretty much kept shoving superhero movies back down into the gutter.  But Batman Begins proved that the public was ready to embrace comic book characters as action heroes and Batman Begins launched them to the big time.  After Batman Begins, superhero movies were the big thing.  And not to say all superhero movies were as well received as the very next year with Superman Begins, the public wasn't as receptive.  However, Marvel found unexpected success (from many fan's at least) with Iron Man.  And from Iron Man, we all know how prevalent the superhero movie is every year now.  So for a decade starting next year, superhero films will have dominated cinema releases alongside YA movie adaptations for a decade.  It will not last.  And the comic industry is going to crash again when the movies fold?

"I don't see why the movie industry folding will crush comics, Mak.  You just said the industry has a hard time making readers out of viewers, and the readers should remain so stop being a bitch."

Wrong.  Why?  Because readers will ditch for the same reason viewers will: Burnout.

In the 90's, comics crashed due to things like oversaturation of covers, terribly written sensational stories, fatigue, and the fact you couldn't turn around without superheros trying to insert themselves into something.  Also Rob Liefeld should get some personal blame since Image (and his work in Marvel) were pinnacles of what was wrong.  And we see this now repeating with modern times with companies re-employing heavy usage of variant covers, TWISTS!! TURNS!! EXTREME RETELLINGS!!, redrilling into terrible 90's ideas, ridiculous changes to characterization, and the fact they have an Earth shattering big event every single year, sometimes more than one a year.  This is not to say comics are ONLY doing this.  When the burst happens this time, it won't be as bad as companies are doing their best (through pressure of the public) to branch out and try to appeal on levels that aren't simply extension of movie fun.  With women and minorities getting an expanded role, comic companies will not hurt as bad when they crash.  But crash they most likely will, because riding a boom on the very edge of it for a quick buck ensure that when the bubble bursts, the fall is just that much further down. I do want to talk more on this and explain why these herald a dark time, but maybe not.  We'll see.

The man who drew this, Rob Liefeld, was the highest paid comic writer and artist of the 90's.  'Nuff said.  We're also sort of returning to this mentality. 'Nuff said...?

Is This The Best Time For A "Jumping On" Point In Mainstream Comics?

As the title asks, "Is this the best time for a jumping on point in mainstream comics?"  Clearly not verbatim.

It's a good question.  The answer is no.  That would've been the early 2000's when the Big Two (Marvel and DC) decided to pull the nearly dead body of good comics out of the financial gutter and breathe life back into quality and sales.  So unless you have a time machine you will have to settle for this point in your life.

But this is a good time to jump into the big two superhero factory comic companies, and that's because of the hair width, finely tuned, sweet spot planet aligned placement the two companies are in right now.  Let's start with Marvel.

With Marvel, as I've talked about two posts back, we see they're gearing up for some huge multiversal event which promises to bring out many of the most well known Big Events and somehow have that lead up into what seems to be (from the art provided by Alex Ross) multiversal fight between the current timeline and possibly their past counterparts and even other universal counterparts.  And while I'm not sure, I am sure about one thing: Continuity of only the most important parts will come to light.  With all of these Big Events possibly being revisited, which really only reinforce how I feel about modern Big Events and how they mean nothing, new readers will be treated to a rare conglomeration of points in important moments of a character's life.  See the photo below for reference:

See the two Iron Men there?  One all white, and one all retro?  One of them isn't Tony Stark.  Well, at least in the original Secret Wars.  This would be a very interesting conflict as Jim Rhodes is actually acting as Iron Man as his Tony is lost in the pit of alcoholism and had recently relinquished his role and responsibility as Iron Man to Rhodes.  Rhodes would see Stark is back in a fantastically futuristic armor and only 40 times the dick he was when Rhodes knew him.  Cap is fighting his protege who has taken his place.  Heck, Iron Man 2020 and Miles Morales the Ultimate Spider-Man are even in there.  Thor fighting new female Thor, etc.  With all these characters converging on one point, and all these Big Events being teased up to it in a single year, Marvel will have to be working in overdrive to get important character points (especially points in time) about the differences between characters.  If a new reader ever needed a synopsis and comparison about a character's past, this would be it.  And like I said, it seems Marvel is looking toward some sort of reboot and so maybe this would be good to get a taste of what might be coming.  I'm pretty sure I see Earth X in there as well, MC2, and definitely Marvel 2099.

For DC.  If Marvel ever had a reason to not reboot their universe, DC is that reason.  While the House of Ideas isn't exactly ashamed to copy what DC does, it at least tries to not make it so obvious (though both do steal and both fail at subtlety).  DC has this history about rebooting their universe both hard and soft.  They've done it quite a few times actually. And while each time is met with groans, it seems everybody forgets and adapts to the new universe with positive reactions.  Such is also the case with their Post-Flashpoint New 52 universe.  Not to be confused with their New 52 post Infinite Crisis where Superboy Prime retcon punched the universe until it changed history in the fallout.  This New 52 is much more severe in that it completely reset the entire universe and merged DC's other imprints (which were their own dimensions) into the fold.  Superman got a new start and was no longer married, the Justice Society was now Earth 2 specific, etc.  DC just basically pressed the reset button on their universe so they can tell similar stories, but in new and potentially exciting ways.  While you may think, "Well Mak, shouldn't the jumping on point have been three years ago when they actually pulled this stunt?" I'd say the answer is, "No."  Why?  Simple.  DC has had three years to put this new universe together, which means that you get to jump in AFTER the confusion of the reset.  You don't have to wonder why Tim Drake wasn't the Robin, but is Red Robin, or why certain characters behave as they do now.  You can read a few issues knowing they're still fairly recent, and if you like them you don't have a gigantic several hundred issue backlog to look up.  You can just go and pick from the previous few dozen issues which exist in their print line.  Granted the New 52 isn't a completely hard reboot, but is just mostly a hard reboot.  Just shy of Crisis on Infinite Earths, which means that some of the stories prior to Flashpoint are still relevant and you can search those out as you desire.  So long as they have nothing to do with Power Girl or any of the JSA.  So with only a few back issues and most of the wrinkles iron out of the Post-Flashpoint universe, you can jump in and have yourself a good ol' time in the Big Two publishers.  I'd talk about Image, Avatar Press, and all the rest, but I'm sure if you're new to reading you've probably watched DC and Marvel movies and want to start there.