J. Michael Straczynski’s email to Newsarama detailing his conversation with Marvel about the extent of Mephisto’s role in “One More Day” appeared just yesterday, and already the key refrain — “It’s magic” — has spawned a line of products on CafePress.
“It’s Magic … We Don’t Have To Explain It” now appears on everything from T-shirts to track suits to coffee mugs. One dollar from every product sold reportedly goes to The Hero Initiative.
January 4th, 2008 at 11:05 am
Bwahahahaha!
January 4th, 2008 at 11:12 am
I’d have to get Joe Quesada’s signature on one of these bad boys.
January 4th, 2008 at 11:18 am
the shirt is already orded. no one but a few people will get it but atleast it will be a hit during convention season.
i just wish they has a men’s zip up hoodie.
January 4th, 2008 at 11:21 am
Those are mine.
I’ve already contacted the Hero Initiative and told them of the donation plans. While they’ve not had time to reply I do plan on making said donation.
Alas, no one’s actually BOUGHT any yet. (hint hint)
January 4th, 2008 at 11:22 am
I love the power of the Internets!
January 4th, 2008 at 11:23 am
I loooove how people are profiting from Marvel’s blatant stupidity!
I thought the Clone Saga was THE worst thing to ever happen to the Spidey mythos, good to see even that cluster F could be outdone…
January 4th, 2008 at 11:24 am
Do I detect a serious beef between Matt Brady and Newsarama against Joe Q and Marvel?
January 4th, 2008 at 11:32 am
Hilarious! Take that, Joephisto!
I haven’t chimed in with any comments until now, in part because I’m not a hardcore Spider-fan, but I gotta say that OMD will not make me more of one either. Quite the opposite. I’m done with ASM, at least until OMD is undone.
I thought the unmasking was brilliant (in the short term at least), and I was intrigued at the storytelling possibilities it held. I took Joephisto at his word that Spidey was going to stay unmasked for quite awhile, that there would be consequences, and that there wouldn’t just be some global mind wipe. But isn’t that exactly what happened?
He may not have to “explain it,” but I think he should own up to having lied to the readers. I won’t trust him again.
January 4th, 2008 at 11:36 am
To clarify, I mean that the “magical” version of a mind wipe happened, not that Spidey stayed unmasked long term (he didn’t) or that there were consequences (there weren’t any, since May is now OK, aside from the stupid ending of the marriage).
January 4th, 2008 at 11:43 am
Awesome…I can’t believe the audacity of Marvel/Joe Q in actually giving that as an explanation.
January 4th, 2008 at 11:45 am
>>Do I detect a serious beef between Matt Brady and Newsarama against Joe Q and Marvel?
January 4th, 2008 at 11:48 am
Arg - why didn’t it take my comment?
Anyway, not at all - we constantly are pulling up the more “newsy” stories caught by Blog@ to the right side, and frankly, OMD and fan reaction to it is the biggest story of the year (and yes, I know it’s only 4 days old, but other news all year will have a serious time beating this story in terms of buzz and talk - this is the benchmark for ‘08 in terms of superhero comics news). Blog@’s free to pick up anything that’s comics related or related to the culture of comics, or pop culture.
IIRC, we also pointed to similar Cap merch that showed up on Cafe Press back when he was killed.
January 4th, 2008 at 11:49 am
Back when I was in electronics tech school in the Air Force, sometimes someone would ask an instructor a complicated question that was over the instructor’s head. The instructor would just respond with, “Because it’s FM”.
That stood for “F’ing Magic”.
It means it was so complex that it was in a sense “magic”. Don’t worry about why it’s happening, just realize that it is happening. It’s magic.
It was lame then and it’s lame today. It usually meant the instructor was an idiot.
Some things don’t change.
January 4th, 2008 at 11:50 am
So you guys will believe a kid can get bitten by a radioactive spider, gain super powers and fight crime but not the fact that the magical and mystical can happen. Yeah it’s a lame excuse but it is one that will have ramifications in the end.
January 4th, 2008 at 11:51 am
“IIRC, we also pointed to similar Cap merch that showed up on Cafe Press back when he was killed.”
Plus there were the “Dan DiDio Must Die” T-shirts …
January 4th, 2008 at 11:53 am
“Awesome…I can’t believe the audacity of Marvel/Joe Q in actually giving that as an explanation.”
Keep in mind, that wasn’t an explanation that he was offering to the comic reading masses. That was from the middle of a conversation. Conversations between two people who like each other often aren’t completely serious, explaining every point in rigorous detail. Plus, they had been talking about this stuff for awhile, so there was some context between them that we don’t see in that two word summary.
Not that JMS wasn’t illustrating a valid point by showing us that exchange. We just shouldn’t treat it as if Joe Q was talking to us and expecting us to know what he meant with such a simple statement.
January 4th, 2008 at 11:57 am
““IIRC, we also pointed to similar Cap merch that showed up on Cafe Press back when he was killed.”
Plus there were the “Dan DiDio Must Die” T-shirts … ”
That too - we pointed at those, and were the first (only?) to get the image of them online.
Such proud moments, all of them.
January 4th, 2008 at 12:02 pm
No matter what’s said and done, at the end of the day JMS’ name is on this turd-fest and he (and JQ) will take the blame for all time…
January 4th, 2008 at 12:17 pm
Dr.Phil Moment
Joe Q.related his and his parents marriage issues during the CBR interview, to justify his thought process for disolving the MJ and Peter marriage.
….WAY TOO PERSONAL for a comics forum. Sounds like JQ is having a mid-life crisis
Ranger
January 4th, 2008 at 12:22 pm
“Is ‘It’s magic’ the ‘Don’t taze me, bro’ of comics?”
U-Decide!
January 4th, 2008 at 12:26 pm
People should remember that this is a phrase that Quesada was alleged to have said and it’s all hearsay. We have no proof that JMS is accurately quoting what Quesada said.
January 4th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
Peter… I read that stuff in the CBR interview too. I’m sorry to hear about what happened, and I wouldn’t wish such tragedy on anyone, but you’re right. What on earth did any of that have to do with creating this crappy storyline? Does he wish he could’ve retconned his mother’s decision? Understandable, but it has no bearing on OMD.
Michael… Of course JMS may have been simply paraphrasing Joephisto. Who really knows? But the quote, accurate or not, has taken on a life of its own in comic circles.
January 4th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
Wow, the first t-shirt to profit from an internet pissing match.
January 4th, 2008 at 1:37 pm
“It’s magic” is the “Don’t taze me, bro” of comics?
Maybe we should combine the two into…
“Don’t OMD me, Joe!”
January 4th, 2008 at 1:46 pm
I like the other one that I saw on their site
“F*ck Joe Q”
January 4th, 2008 at 1:51 pm
“… y’knooooow!”
Funny sh*t.
January 4th, 2008 at 1:55 pm
This is the first clothing product on the internet that I’ve seen that actually makes me want it.
Awesomeness.
January 4th, 2008 at 2:19 pm
Wear it to parties!
Bore your friends!
January 4th, 2008 at 2:21 pm
Even though people are pointing out that Joe Q never said this publically, it is basically a parapharse of his interviews. I find it interesting that to put his two “genies” back in their “bottles” Joe used magic both time, first with the Scarlet Witch and the mutants, and now with Mephisto and MJ. And both times the stories were crappy with little explanation of far-reaching repercussions that weren’t obvious side effects of the spell. I expect very little resolution of weird issues of OMD like Harry’s resurrection and the web spinners based on House of M and every mutant losing their powers but conviently those who live in Salem Center.
Also, did anyone else pick up on Joe Q pointing out in a interview that Wizard did a “very revealing” interview with creators who thought that the Spider-Marriage was a mistake. Seriously, you want to point to Wizard as fair and unbiased? In a hype article, would it make sense for people to condemn the actions of a potential or current Editor in Chief? I especially love where he’s like “Even Sam Rami thinks it’s a mistake!” Like we should blindly follow Sam Rami’s ideas for Spider-Man even though he has never worked in comics. Why isn’t Peter dancing around with organic web shooters then and fighting the Green Goblin on a snowboard? I feel this is just further proof that he is too far removed from the fans and surrounded by “Yes” Men.
http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=12681
January 4th, 2008 at 2:32 pm
better order these for overnight delivery, the jokes already growing tiresome…
January 4th, 2008 at 3:57 pm
Shame whoever did it didn’t find an actual graphic designer to make them look, you know, good.
January 4th, 2008 at 4:23 pm
LOL… it looks like JOEPHISTO t-shirts are now making the rounds.
http://www.cafepress.com/truefanboy
This is priceless! I just bought one for myself and can’t wait to wear it at the cons.
January 4th, 2008 at 5:07 pm
It would be funny if Joe Q owned the CafePress shop.
January 4th, 2008 at 6:00 pm
Hey F**K Joe Q. was my shirt design on CafePress
January 4th, 2008 at 6:08 pm
Maybe in a few years when the Joe Q’s Boys’ Club is gone we can magic the marriage back. People can say that DC did the same thing with”Superboy Punches” but a symbol of love and stability being destroyed for no reason is not the same as resurrecting Elasti-Girl.
January 4th, 2008 at 6:54 pm
Imagine an upcoming con Marvel panel with a ton of people wearing those shirts.
Works for DC (Infinite Crisis), too!
January 4th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
Whoever buys that shirt should buy this one next;
http://dogtoe.com/weblog/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/arguing_on_the_internet.jpg
January 4th, 2008 at 8:28 pm
Can I get one that says something along the lines of missing Venom, since he doesn’t exist anymore?
January 4th, 2008 at 10:03 pm
No More Magic.
January 4th, 2008 at 10:50 pm
I purchased my mug! Who can say the same? Rise up, rise up I say.
January 4th, 2008 at 10:57 pm
That TrueFanboy website connected to the Joephisto shirt store is funny as hell!
January 4th, 2008 at 11:48 pm
#21—Michael Ridd said:
“People should remember that this is a phrase that Quesada was alleged to have said and it’s all hearsay. We have no proof that JMS is accurately quoting what Quesada said.”
=====
I agree with your point that we may not know if JMS quoted exactly, but it is not hearsay if JMS tells us that is what was said, or if Quesada tells us what was said. They were both the only witnesses, unless one or both were on speaker phone with others present.
January 5th, 2008 at 12:30 am
Everyone dissed it at the time, but Superboy Prime punch ain’t looking too bad now, is it?
January 5th, 2008 at 12:35 am
Actually it is. Just because OMD is MONUMENTALLY stupid doesn’t make “Superboy Smash Timeline” any less so.
January 5th, 2008 at 6:50 am
i can just see it now… the next BIG thing…
omd spidey/timeline-smashing superboy crossover!!!
it’ll sell millions!
alternate covers!
lenticular michael turner variants!
silver foil dynamic forces signed variants!
and it’s all drawn by rob liefeld.
c’mon joe, make it happen. the fans so obviously demand it.
January 5th, 2008 at 1:31 pm
“Keep in mind, that wasn’t an explanation that he was offering to the comic reading masses. That was from the middle of a conversation.”
But the man Quesada was talking with was a professional writer, not a fan.
As Straczynski went on to explain, magic users aren’t all supposed to be omnipotent. The writer has to define limits, say what his characters can and cannot do, and then have them work within those limits. That enables a writer to plot intelligently and allows the reader to appreciate the writer’s artistry and, if he’s surprised by a plot twist, to see how the writer misdirected him. Those responses by the reader, and the potential interplay between the writer and reader, are far, far different from the interplay (?) between a writer who ends a story with a deus ex machina because he can’t think of any way to resolve the situation, because he’s in a hurry, or because he’s a fool, and hopes that the reader won’t realize he’s being cheated.
Quesada, Brevoort, and the other people who approved the ending to “One More Day” blew their credibility as writers and editors all to hell, unless they publicly reverse themselves, say they were wrong, and promise that they won’t do such a thing again. The alternative is to allow situations in which a middling genie can make whatever alterations he wants to the universe, simply because he uses magic.
SRS
January 5th, 2008 at 2:19 pm
I just deleted a comment. Let’s not stoop to personal attacks.
January 5th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
…Whoops! Forgot to comment on this one:
#21—Michael Ridd said:
“People should remember that this is a phrase that Quesada was alleged to have said and it’s all hearsay. We have no proof that JMS is accurately quoting what Quesada said.”
…To be honest, I’d trust something quoted by JMS far more reliably than I would some lame-assed spin doctoring The Q attempts to foist. Especially where this debacle is concerned, even Nixon was more honest by comparison.
January 5th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
Venom ceasing to exist? No retcon is ever done to take money out of Marvel’s pockets. Venom stays, not sure how, but he stays. I predict the big 2009 crossover event will be Return of the Hobgoblin Pocket Universe (no such universe exists, I know…yet…)
Can we have a thread where we stoop to personal compliments of Kevin Melrose? Let me start: Kevin you are a very good blogger. There, that wasn’t hard.
January 5th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
This reminds of something in a Beau Smith article (his Busted Knuckles column) a while back.
http://www.silverbulletcomicbooks.com/busted/116897831412677.htm
Some of the creators that contacted me told me of editorial talks that were basically summed up as “If we tell the readers it’s cool they’ll believe us. What else do they have?”.
They’ll tell readers what to think and they don’t need to explain. I think it’s condescending.
January 5th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
I’m not really defending the “It’s Magic” explanation, but wasn’t there an episode of the Simpsons where all the convention nerds were pestering Lucy Lawless about continuity gaffes in Xena and they were all just nitpicking and obnoxious so she just said “Whenever you see something like that, a wizard did it.”
On another note, no, it is not on the same level as “Don’t tase me, bro.”
January 5th, 2008 at 8:45 pm
You know, that T-shirt/coffee mug design almost made this whole OMD clusterfork worth it. What a great slogan; I’m buying ‘em both!
January 6th, 2008 at 12:18 am
Yeah!! We are all idiots isn’t it Joephisto??? I must now think that 445 comics that I read (I began at 5 and am now 40)never existed and that everything is OK because IT’S MAGIC ??? Worst thing to ever happen to Spidey,far worse than the debacle of the Clone Of the Clone who was the clone of the other clone storyline.But fear not THAT idiot remember some things that happened over the years! Do any of you remember what happened in 1984 when Spidey got his Black Costume??? Now it’s gone!!! The Clones??? All gone too!!! And what about the Iron Spider Costume??? They had so much faith in that move that they almost said immediately that it was not there for long.And now the Ultimate No-Prize :Mary-Jane married to Peter? No,no,no it NEVER happened!! What?? You say that you saw more than 245 comics where they WERE happily married together?? No,no,no it NEVER happened! WHY? Because….oh! Yeah!!! IT’S MAGIC!!! I know of a magic trick that might happen if Spidey’s sales goes down the drain (like most of his history).Just think about it. A T-Shirt where you would see Joephisto(Mephisto with Joe Q’s likeness on top of it)getting the boot and where it would say:Getting rid of bad decision makers?? Easy!! Why??? Because it’s MAGIC !!!! Nuff Said !!!!! Excelsior!!! Daniel
January 6th, 2008 at 12:29 am
It’s a shame because Joe did some MARVELOUS things with Marvel but somebody already said to me that sometimes even geniuses goes mad !!!! And even most hockey and baseball stars knows that they better retire before they spoil what they took years to achieve.Better getting out while they are still good than waiting for some no name to show them the door!!! Now Joe,you must probably have still some great years in you as EIC(at least a lifetime if you go back to artistic chores!!Yeah!!! I remember the first time I saw you in the mini serie of Batman and Azrael)but if you are a real man,confess on your mistakes,correct them and life will go on!!!
And if not….well I am still thinking of my shirt!!! Friendly yours!!!!
Daniel
January 6th, 2008 at 9:01 am
The column by Beau Smith, referred to in comment #50, is interesting in that Smith describes the general age span for the superhero comics readership as being 20-55, approximately what I thought it was, based on plot content. In the CBR interview, Quesada, of course, focuses on kids (teens and preteens, presumably) as the readers of Spider-Man comics. In Quesada’s past interviews, has he routinely described “kids” as the predominant readers of Marvel’s comics, while knowing that’s probably not the case, or is his focus on kids in the CBR pieces something new?
SRS
January 6th, 2008 at 10:51 am
OK, this OMD thing has gone from silly to downright unprofessional on both Joe’s parts. They’re both wrong in letting this air publicly.
If anything the annoying “he said she said” part of this makes me want to buy BND way less.
Just my 2 cents.
January 6th, 2008 at 2:51 pm
Some of the creators that contacted me told me of editorial talks that were basically summed up as “If we tell the readers it’s cool they’ll believe us. What else do they have?”.
…Yup. Drug pusher mentality in action. Raise the price anc cut the quality, and then blame the suppliers. Where’s Tom Lehrer to sing about “The Old Comic Book Peddler” when we need him?
January 6th, 2008 at 6:25 pm
No one is mentioning Joe Q’s answer to bringing Dr. Strange and other magic-based characters back from one of the Joe Fridays columns here on Newsarama. When asked if the magic would be coming back he stated clearly that it would only come back if they “set the rules for magic. There’s nothing worse than magic without the rules”. Or something to that effect. He wanted it clear that magic usage would have explanations and reasoning and rules. I know I saw this. I am not crazy (maybe). Also I find it funny that DiDio has Wonder Woman commit murder, Dr. Light commit rape and yet no one was as mad at him.
January 6th, 2008 at 10:12 pm
Ohh, this is great! I’m getting one of these!
January 7th, 2008 at 6:04 am
I wonder what some people did before there was the internet, as it relates to their enjoyment of comic books. I’m sorry, but as time passes, I become less and less interested in what goes on behind the scenes.
January 7th, 2008 at 6:27 am
Michael: Far be it for me to reiterate points that’s been made a thousand times already, but…
1. If you think there was no public backlash after Dan DiDio’s poorer creative decisions, you must’ve been logged onto Bizarro-Newsarama.
2. It’s never a good idea to try and deflect blame from one company by pointing an accusing finger at the other. “Marvel did it, but DC did it too!” and vice-versa… any comparison between the companies is inherently pointless because a) just because they both do something stupid doesn’t make the thing less stupid, and b) to a very large extent, both DC and Marvel blindly follow trends, and there’s no point in holding one company as superior to the other at this stage because monkey see, monkey do.
January 7th, 2008 at 4:23 pm
Is it starting to feel like the 90’s again at Marvel?
January 7th, 2008 at 11:42 pm
It’s sad I won’t be reading Spider-man anymore, but that shirt is hilarious. I’d never put any ’sorcery’ in a story, because you don’t know what it is. Where does it come from and how much of it can you use.
As for kids, you want your kids reading the satanic Spider-man
Only JMS and Joey Q could come up with something that bad. They should of done this with House of M. Not great, but atleast we wouldn’t have to sit through two years of empty promises.
January 9th, 2008 at 6:35 am
I love it. I’m ordering a t-shirt, and it’ll be one more thing that I wear which my fiancee rolls her eyes at and tries not to think about too much.