This weekend, I think a lot of comic book fans were surprised at NYCC ’09 during the Sunday conversation with Dan DiDio.
It’s no secret that the man gets a lot of hate mail on the World Wide Web, but in my mind, the man was nothing but a class act during this conversation, where he asked fans about what draws them into comics. By simply reaching out to the audience and acknowledging that he cared what they thought — “You’re spending hard money… the only thing we’ve got to do is make sure you guys are happy” — the comic book conversation became a little bit more civil and a lot more constructive.
And so I figured — why stop there? Let’s bring in all the Newsarama readers into the mix! Here are many of the questions DiDio asked readers (with a few added in from yours truly). Creators, feel free to add in your own questions — I’ll update this post a few times today to incorporate ‘em. Now readers, here’s the rules: Be civil. Be articulate about why you feel a certain way. And no answer is a wrong answer.
Are you ready? Then READ ON…
1) What was the first comic you ever read?
2) When did you know you were hooked on comics?
3) What do you look for in comics?
4) Do you want different artists for covers and interiors, or the same artist on both?
5) Do you want the cover to be representative of the story, or to be iconic?
6) What are the things that get you excited about comics?
7) Which Green Lantern or Flash do you like?
8 ) If you were the EiC of DC or Marvel for a day, what would you do?
9) VALENTINE’S WEEK SPECIAL BY YOURS TRULY: What comic did you use to get your spouse/significant other/child hooked into comics?
February 10th, 2009 at 11:30 am
1) What was the first comic you ever read?
A Flash with Barry Allen from the mid to late 70s, I think.
2) When did you know you were hooked on comics?
When I got really angry about a shipping delay for Justice Society.
3) What do you look for in comics?
Good stories and character development.
4) Do you want different artists for covers and interiors, or the same artist on both?
Totally doesn’t matter.
5) Do you want the cover to be representative of the story, or to be iconic?
Again, totally doesn’t matter.
6) What are the things that get you excited about comics?
A) They’re fun. B) They’re modern mythology. C) Good consistently triumphs over evil — much better than the real world.
7) Which Green Lantern or Flash do you like?
I enjoy all four human GLs. I love Wally but like Jay a lot, too. I’m both looking forward to and dreading the return of Barry.
8 ) If you were the EiC of DC or Marvel for a day, what would you do?
Mandates: No retcons. I’d make a couple on-going series about the villains. There would be a second Flash-oriented title, Green Lantern Corps-style.
9) VALENTINE’S WEEK SPECIAL BY YOURS TRULY: What comic did you use to get your spouse/significant other/child hooked into comics?
Buffy Season 8 and the Gail Simone Wonder Woman.
February 10th, 2009 at 11:34 am
1) What was the first comic you ever read?
Depending on what you count as a comic, Superman from the 30s to the 70s or Superman #384.
2) When did you know you were hooked on comics?
My addiction to Who’s Who
3) What do you look for in comics?
Emotional or intellectual engagement
4) Do you want different artists for covers and interiors, or the same artist on both?
Don’t care much, just good art everywhere!
5) Do you want the cover to be representative of the story, or to be iconic?
Would like variety.
6) What are the things that get you excited about comics?
The possibility of opening up a book and being flabbergasted and amazed all the way through. Wild ideas, risky moves… possibility of seeing some favorite, underused characters again. Changes to the status quo, however long they last.
7) Which Green Lantern or Flash do you like?
Hal and Barry most, but I like the others fine!
8 ) If you were the EiC of DC or Marvel for a day, what would you do?
Bring back Conner Kent and make Firestorm more active (as Jason, Ronny, Martin, whomever!). Release a Showcase of the original Who’s Who, plus updates! Give Alan Moore Earth-## and his own company to fool with it, if at all possible. Actually, I might try saying that each title has a separate continuity, if you see Batman in Superman, it’s the Superman title’s Batman, not Detective Comics’ Batman… if just for a few months, to see what it could be like.
9) VALENTINE’S WEEK SPECIAL BY YOURS TRULY: What comic did you use to get your spouse/significant other/child hooked into comics?
My roommate has read Buffy Season 8 and Manhunter, and she liked both, but hasn’t caught the bug. Haven’t tried to indoctrinate any boyfriends yet.
Another knife in the spine for us single guys! Thanks!
February 10th, 2009 at 11:38 am
1. some spiderman comic that offered a free bike
2. when i read extinction agenda part 8 and x-force #1- i’ve been a an x-fan ever since. all the characters at the time amazed me, even if i had no idea who they were. lol i thought the beast was some blue form of wolverine.
3. Action, combined with good storytelling, that also fits the character well. for example a ted kord blue beetle series, should never be just about action, but comedy. thor should never just have people talking but alot of him smashing crap with his hammer.
i also appreciate characters that grow, have kids, move on, etc. in essence legacies. but more in the since of what happened in the dragonball series where by the end of it, goku was a grandfather (and still looked young, thanks to comic book tom-foolery) his biggest enemy was now one of his best-friends and had kids himself, and now their kids were handling most of the threats to earth. they only showed up when things got out of hand. which i thnk would work great with characters like superman and batman.
4. the same artist on both. makes the book cohesive, and you know what you’re getting on the insides
5. representative of the story. that’s why old covers are so fun.
6. HIGH ACTION. i’m still waiting for the mainstream to embrace the high power-levels exuded in manga. there shouldn’t be limits on how zany things can get. that’s why i loved all star- superman and final crisis, Superman was actually a bad-ass and didn’t falter or question his actions. PLEASE NO MORE WHINY SUPERMAN. (i think geoff johns is a great writer, but i’m totally not into anything new krypton, cause supes is too much of a pushover. i wish you guys read dragonball and so how goku dealt with his militaristic kindred. he claimed earth as his homeland, and not a planet of people who think completely different than him.
7. Flash- Wally all the way, with barry as a mentor, and bart and the kids as sidekicks.
8. try my best to match books with the right creators. like when you try a new book out, like blue beetle, put the best guys on it, until it get strong enough to stand on it’s own.
embrace legacies and families, it’s ok to age these guys slowly as long as the costume stays iconic, these characters will never lose public marketability.
try real hard to see why shonen comics (the eastern cousin of superhero comics) are doing so well with adolescents around the world. and bring that epicness to super-hero comics.
realize that we need more than a just a lil kids line to bring in new readers, we need something that appeals to all fanbases to be successful.
Please let dick grayson stay batman for longer than a year, lol.
9. it didn’t matter what comic i chose. some people just aren’t into them.
February 10th, 2009 at 11:39 am
1) I started reading comics when I was so little that there’s no way I could remember which one it was. I have memories of a Daredevil issue with Ghost Rider in it, of an Invaders comic, of a JLA comic with Despero, of that weird Batman comic that’s sort of in the future and he fights an organization called SPECTRUM, of the Brave and Bold comic where the Atom drives Batman’s body around town by kicking his brain. But I know there were many others and I have no idea what might have been first.
2) Hooked? Probably 2002, or thereabouts, when I experienced the Legion jones of all time and went out to the first comic shop I could find and bought up all the Legion comics in sight.
3) In comics, I look for attractive and technically competent art that tells a funny or inspiring or intriguing or maddening or clever story that contains elements I haven’t seen before. It’ll appeal to me even more if these comics are about superheroes in general or the Legion of Super-Heroes in specific, although this is certainly not a requirement. Not enthusiastic about comics that suggest a worldview of sordidity or depravity to me, be they never so well-executed in any other way.
4) I don’t care if different artists draw the covers and interiors. I mean, if it’s somebody really good on the cover, I’d like them to draw the interior too, but then again, it might be someone equally good on the interior.
5) I’d like the cover to represent the story enough so that when I look at it again in four years I can tell which story it is.
6) An intriguing premise, especially when combined with some plausible hope that the premise can be converted from a potentially good story to an actually good story.
7) I like all Green Lanterns and Flashes about the same.
8 ) If I were EiC of DC for a day, I would secretly abolish continuity. I mean, the other editors and writers would know. But the fans would have to figure it out on their own.
9) I’ve been feeding my son a controlled diet of LSH, Tiny Titans, Scooby-Doo and other Johnny DC titles.
February 10th, 2009 at 12:12 pm
1) What was the first comic you ever read?
The two earliest comics that I remember having to a certainty are Marvel’s “Star Wars” #1 and “Super Friends” #10.
2) When did you know you were hooked on comics?
Probably then.
3) What do you look for in comics?
Something that connects to me on some level. It could be pure fun, entertainment, or serious art, but I want that connection.
4) Do you want different artists for covers and interiors, or the same artist on both?
I actually prefer the same artist.
5) Do you want the cover to be representative of the story, or to be iconic?
Representative, though I’d let iconic slide on anniversary issues.
6) What are the things that get you excited about comics?
Right now, I like seeing what things that my oldest son responds to. He likes DC’s present Super Friends book because they look like characters he knows and understands.
7) Which Green Lantern or Flash do you like?
I grew up with Hal and Barry, but I really like Kyle and Wally because I got to see their formative experiences.
8 ) If you were the EiC of DC or Marvel for a day, what would you do? I’ll choose one action for each. EIC of Marvel: Put out an Essentials collection of Vampire Tales. EIC of DC: Buy the rights to Elementals and let Willingham write his offical final chapter.
9) VALENTINE’S WEEK SPECIAL BY YOURS TRULY: What comic did you use to get your spouse/significant other/child hooked into comics? My oldest showed interest in comics based on cartoons, and his first two comics that he chose at the comic shop were a Star Wars issue with Darth Vader on the cover and the recent Scooby-Doo X-Mas issue that had a cover populated by villains that he knew.
February 10th, 2009 at 12:39 pm
Nice idea, David.
1. No idea. I only dabbled lightly in comics as a kid, and I didn’t like most of those that I read. The perpetual status quo of most superhero comics got boring very, very quickly to me. I had absolutely no patience for the typical “has the secret identity been revealed?” plots that resolve with convenient twists to restore the status quo or Silver Age gibberish sci-fi. Consequently, though it’s not technically the “first,” I always claim the Death of Superman trade as the first, because it was the first book that prompted me to come back the following week.
2. When I found out that Lois knew Clark’s identity during Death. That love triangle always pissed me off as a kid. I was very excited by their engagement.
3. Good story, good art, something that surprises me, makes me rethink things. There’s no formula for it. In superhero comics (which I’m not a huge fan of, but that’s what most people here are really talking about and several of the questions are limited that way), I like Superman (when his comics don’t suck horribly) and generally treat the character’s stories as comfort food, though still a thrilling and surprising comfort food. For most other superheroes, it’s a little harder. Reinvent the concept, create a new concept, have a lot of fun with it. Examples of each would be Moore’s Swamp Thing or Miller’s Daredevil; Robinson’s Starman or Ennis’s Hitman; JLI or Kesel’s Superboy. But doing something fun, smart and good to look at. I have extremely little patience for nostalgic superhero comics.
Outside of superheros, good cartooning and smart stories are really my only requirement. Love & Rockets, Age of Bronze, Berlin, Scud, Usagi, Mage, Maus, just smart, engaging, heart-filled stuff.
4. It really doesn’t matter to me. Both should be solid, professional artists, however.
5. How about an iconic cover that thematically represents the story? This is not an either/or question.
6. The good ones that have the things I look for.;)
7. I don’t have much preference. On some fundamental level, I find GLs and Flashs redundant. So long as Superman exists, those two franchises – at least as solo heroes (I can see the sci-fi epic appeal of the GLC) – seem pointless. Superman already satisfies my need for a (in simplified terms) morally vanilla, square-jawed, sci-fi-based hero. GLs, who typically have their ring do all the work, lack that visceral quality that good escapist literature provides. Flash — my suspension of disbelief has issues with speed-based powers. (And, yeah, Superman has speed powers, but they’re a minor part of his arsenal – though tactically, speed should probably be the biggest.)
All that said, I liked Guy for his obnoxiousness and entertaining value. I liked Bart when he was still Impulse and was funny as hell. At least Guy and Bart gave me radically different characters than anything else out there, which is what I really want. Outside of those two, I pretty much don’t care for any of them.
8. Obviously, nothing that would sell.
My biggest pet peeve is restoring status quos from comics that existed before I was born. I’d probably simply ask that creators consider if they’re doing something because it’s a great story or if they’re doing it because of a nostalgic affection for things from their childhood. There were some cool elements in comics of virtually all eras, but I’d like the comics of today to have their own cool elements, not a previous generation’s cool sh*t.
9. My fiancee really loved Rumiko Takashi’s Maison Ikkoku. She’s still not hooked on the medium, but she read all fifteen volumes of that series. Mostly, she just likes to page through them to appreciate the art. I just took Jimbo’s Inferno from the library, and she loves Panter’s pages. She’s no interest in reading it, but she’ll happily flip through the the book for a while.
February 10th, 2009 at 12:41 pm
Great showing thus far! I’ll play the game, as well:
1) I actually received four at the same time. Amazing Spider-Man #346, Captain America #384, Incredible Hulk #364, and Silver Surfer #47. They were great presents.
2) Upon receiving my next comic — Infinity War #2. Seeing all the Marvel heroes in one room, even if I didn’t know who they all were, just sealed the deal for me. Wolverine in a trenchcoat struck me as odd, though.
3) I’m big on character work, balanced out by awesome fight sequences.
4) I like having the interior and cover artist be the same person, just so I know what I’m getting myself into art-wise.
5) I’m a story guy myself, for the reasons described in #4. That said, if it really knocks my socks off, I’ll go iconic.
6) If there is an awesome action sequence that looks good and just makes sense to the story (Erik Larsen’s Spider-Man), I am in geek heaven.
7) I’m a Wally West man all the way. That said, I was very pro-Kyle Rayner, and Geoff Johns convinced me to like Hal with his run on GL. Let’s see if he can work his magic again with Barry Allen.
8 ) If I was at DC, I’d bring back Blue Beetle. If I was at Marvel, I’d schedule an Iron Man/Thor team-up, now that Tony is on the lam. And at any company, I’d try to put out at least one book a month as consistently entertaining yet kid-friendly (not even fake swearing) as the old David Micheline/Mark Bagley Amazing Spider-Man books.
9) I started my girlfriend out on J. Michael Stracyznski’s Amazing Spider-Man, and moved her through Grant Morrison’s New X-Men, Judd Winick’s Exiles, and Geoff John’s Teen Titans. Now she digs Invincible, Ex Machina, and Y: The Last Man. My brother, meanwhile, I got hooked on Avengers: The Initiative, Aquaman, and Green Lantern. (The other brother, always looking to be subversive, will only read Simpsons comics.)
February 10th, 2009 at 2:13 pm
1) What was the first comic you ever read?
I don’t recall specifically, because I have always read comics in some capacity, lots of Hulk, House of Mystery/Secrets, Weird War, etc. The one that got me hooked on collecting them was Alpha Flight #10.
2) When did you know you were hooked on comics?
Please see above. The cover of AF #10 alone is worth the price of admission.
3) What do you look for in comics?
I look for good stories, well-told with endings that are, in fact, endings but are still intriguing enough to get me to want to come back next month. Perfect recent example would be Fabian Nicieza’s recent run on Thunderbolts.
4) Do you want different artists for covers and interiors, or the same artist on both?
I’m indifferent on this one.
5) Do you want the cover to be representative of the story, or to be iconic?
I would say about 80/20, representative to iconic. There’s a place for both.
6) What are the things that get you excited about comics?
Twists that make your jaw drop, characterization that is so strong that you couldn’t imagine the characters behaving differently.
7) Which Green Lantern or Flash do you like?
Most of my experience on Flash(es) is with Wally West, so I’m leaning there. For GLs, I’d go with Guy Gardner. He’s a massive jerk who is more than a massive jerk.
8 ) If you were the EiC of DC or Marvel for a day, what would you do?
Realistically, that’s a complex question. I would like to think that I would try to steer the talent towards more done-in-one style stories that would appeal to kids and adults. I would research the idea of consolidating titles (a la manga) in an effort to keep the price point-to-content ratio worthwhile. or possibly going back to non-glossy, cheaper paper, perhaps a slightly smaller size, or printing two books in one, with one story on the odd number pages, then you flip it, and the other story is on the odd number pages going the other way. Does that make sense. Don’t know that would work, though (hence “research”). I would ask writers to experiment with omniscient captions and thought balloons. And I would give Alpha Flight the much-due love the team deserves. Of course, that’s in a perfect world.
9) VALENTINE’S WEEK SPECIAL BY YOURS TRULY: What comic did you use to get your spouse/significant other/child hooked into comics?
Pass.
February 10th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
1) What was the first comic you ever read? It was Claremont’s Uncanny X-Men or Wolfman’s New Teen Titans
2) When did you know you were hooked on comics? When I started eschewing nighttime TV to read them
3) What do you look for in comics? To be entertained whether it be action or comedy
4) Do you want different artists for covers and interiors, or the same artist on both? Same usually
5) Do you want the cover to be representative of the story, or to be iconic? Doesn’t really matter
6) What are the things that get you excited about comics? Holding the book in my hand, knowing that for the next 5-10 minutes i will be lost in an exciting world of adventure, fun, etc.
7) Which Green Lantern or Flash do you like? Sue me I liked Wally West and John Stewart…but also gimme back Ch’p and Jesse Quick (pre liberty belle powers)
8 ) If you were the EiC of DC or Marvel for a day, what would you do? O this is easy put in motion some old series to be trade paperbacked such as the original Booster Gold, New Warriors, Quasar, Blue Beetle and the like.
9) VALENTINE’S WEEK SPECIAL BY YOURS TRULY: What comic did you use to get your spouse/significant other/child hooked into comics? Oh this is easy, BOTH of my ex girlfriends are hooked onto Strangers In Paradise and my sister loves it also. Surprised that it wasn’t a capes and tights book, it hooked them instantly. My Sister actually now goes on her own to pick up ECHO beating me to the Terry Moore goodness.
February 10th, 2009 at 5:07 pm
1) What was the first comic you ever read?
*** It was either Vampire Tales or The Incredible Hulk. The first comics I “collected” where Capt. America and The Avengers.***
2) When did you know you were hooked on comics?
*** The first time I threw a tantrum in a store because I had to to have a new comic.***
3) What do you look for in comics?
***Heroes. Fantasy. Adventure. Nostalgia.***
4) Do you want different artists for covers and interiors, or the same artist on both?
*** My favorite era of comics was when Gil Kane and John Romita didi all the covers for the entire line of Marvel comics in the 70′s. I would like to see something like that again. So differnat artists is my vote.***
5) Do you want the cover to be representative of the story, or to be iconic?
*** Absolutely and most definitely, about the story. Pin up covers are dull.***
6) What are the things that get you excited about comics?
*** Good stories about characters I like.***
7) Which Green Lantern or Flash do you like?
*** Hal Jordan and Barry Allen. My two favorite DC characters of all time.***
8 ) If you were the EiC of DC or Marvel for a day, what would you do?
***Minimize the production value of standard comics, ie: no computer coloring, fancy paper, cardstock covers etc… to bring the cost down to somewhere around $2 each. I’d save the higher production value for the collected editions which would make them a little more special for the more discerning reader.***
9) VALENTINE’S WEEK SPECIAL BY YOURS TRULY: What comic did you use to get your spouse/significant other/child hooked into comics?
*** My wife liked Excalibur with Alan Davis and She-Hulk with Byrne. My 19 year old daughter LOVES the Scarlet Witch and has read the Avengers for years. My 13 year old daughter reads Umbrella Academy.***
February 10th, 2009 at 5:33 pm
1) What was the first comic you ever read?
It was a Batman comic published by a Brazilian publisher called Ebal. It featured a story about Batman againts the Man Bat. I remember being frustrated because Robin wasn´t on it.
2) When did you know you were hooked on comics?
When I started spending all my pocket money on comics, posters, figures, t-shirts, etc.
3) What do you look for in comics? elaborated and intelligent stories, with well developed characters, enviroment and time space. The “hero finds the villain robbing a bank, fights him and puts him in jail” doens´t work for me. I have a preference for stories that changes status quo.
4) Do you want different artists for covers and interiors, or the same artist on both?
I prefer the same artisti on both.
5) Do you want the cover to be representative of the story, or to be iconic?
To be iconic.
6) What are the things that get you excited about comics?
Change of status quo, awesome art.
7) Which Green Lantern or Flash do you like?
Kyle is my favorite GL and Wally my favorite Flash.
8 ) If you were the EiC of DC or Marvel for a day, what would you do?
One day wouldn´t be enough to make the changes I think are needed, but I would at least try to stabilish a coherent continuity and representation of the characters. I would try to put more racial and sexual orientation diference in comics too.
9) VALENTINE’S WEEK SPECIAL BY YOURS TRULY: What comic did you use to get your spouse/significant other/child hooked into comics?
My boyfriend doesn´t like comics…
February 11th, 2009 at 7:56 am
1) What was the first comic you ever read?
God, there’s no way I can remember that. Some random issue of Spider-Man or X-Men, probably. I remember having the Jean Grey/ Scott Summers wedding issue, and some kind of Spider-Man Annual with Mark Bagley art. (It was the issue where it was revealed Spidey’s parents were really robots or something.) The first comics I ever bought regulraly were Sonic the Hedgehog, I had a two year subscription, I think. But when I started to really get into comcis, the first books I bought were Robin and Ultimate Spider-Man. The biggest books of my collection.
2) When did you know you were hooked on comics?
When I started spending my entire allowance on them!
3) What do you look for in comics?
I like really strong art. I’ve always drawn so if a comic has art I don’t like, it’s virtually unreadable to me. But it needs a great story with charm, wit and action. I don’t like it when my cape books take themselves too seriously, either.
4) Do you want different artists for covers and interiors, or the same artist on both?
Different cover artists don’t bother me. I liek when the cover has SOMETHING to do with what’s inside though.
5) Do you want the cover to be representative of the story, or to be iconic?
Oh, I answered that. I usually prefer it to be representative, but I don’t mind an iconic cover either now and then, so long as it isn’t misleading.
6) What are the things that get you excited about comics?
I love crossovers, so I love seeing heroes team up! Haha. But I don’t know, really good story ideas get me jazzed.
7) Which Green Lantern or Flash do you like?
I’m a Wally fan for the Flash. As far as Green Lantern, I like Hal and Kyle about equally. I skipped over the Silver Age, and Kyle’s tenure as GL almost completely, but I’ve read up on some old stories and I do like both. Guy is cool too. John Stewart, outside of the DCAU though is probably the least interesting to me.
8 ) If you were the EiC of DC or Marvel for a day, what would you do?
UnBONG BONG. And also make Teen Titans happy again, and return the Young Justice-ers to life, and unmope them!
February 11th, 2009 at 9:38 am
1) Detective Comics #817. Yes at the start of One Year Later. Someone’s gotta start somewhere. :p
2) When I was spending over $20 a week and I hardly ever spend that much money on anything else, except gorceries.
3) Good story telling but above all, great characterization. DC is the best in that category, hands down.
4) Doesn’t matter to me.
5) Doesn’t matter, as long as the characters aren’t looking passed out/dead on the scene. It’s SO cliched.
6) Blackest Night, what else? And anything concerning Batman… except his death. >:(
7) I love them all.
9) VALENTINE’S WEEK SPECIAL BY YOURS TRULY: I’m single.
(FYI: Nobody got me into comics, I got into comics on my own.)
February 11th, 2009 at 11:42 am
1) What was the first comic you ever read?
The oversized ‘Superman vs Spiderman’ from the 1970′s.
2) When did you know you were hooked on comics?
When I realized this was a shared universe and so mucb bigger than I had initially imagined. My first Marvel Comic was Secret Wars #2, and my God, I had no idea these superheroes actually knew each other! It was a mindblowing and life-altering realization for me.
3) What do you look for in comics?
Good and entertaining stories. I love cliffhangers and use of past continuity (all hail Geoff Johns!). Keep me coming back month after month, not out of habit but because I want to.
4) Do you want different artists for covers and interiors, or the same artist on both?
Doesn’t really matter.
5) Do you want the cover to be representative of the story, or to be iconic?
50/50. Some covers can be spoilers, so it depends.
6) What are the things that get you excited about comics?
A good comic is truly unexpected in terms of ‘what happens next’. I don’t watch alot of movies anymore because I can predict the ending 5 minutes in, most of the time. A good comic can draw me into a better and more interesting world, even if only for a few minutes at at time.
7) Which Green Lantern or Flash do you like?
GL: Kyle Rayner. I was there since Day One with him, and his personality really appealed to me.
Flash: Wally West. Again, I was there since Crisis #12 and haven’t missed an issue since. As I’ve grown and matured, so has Wally.
8 ) If you were the EiC of DC or Marvel for a day, what would you do?
Put the focus more on creators that are good at what they do AND get work in on time. Less hype and more substance.
9) VALENTINE’S WEEK SPECIAL BY YOURS TRULY: What comic did you use to get your spouse/significant other/child hooked into comics?
My wife tolerates my comic hobby…but absolutely LOVED Preacher. Thank you, Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon!
February 11th, 2009 at 9:20 pm
Okay, I’ll bite:
1) What was the first comic you ever read?
ALF #4.
Stop laughing.
2) When did you know you were hooked on comics?
The first time I read Watchmen. Many years after ALF #4.
3) What do you look for in comics?
Good story & characters.
4) Do you want different artists for covers and interiors, or the same artist on both?
Meh, either works for me.
5) Do you want the cover to be representative of the story, or to be iconic?
A mixture of both.
6) What are the things that get you excited about comics?
Something fantastic happening that wouldn’t ever work in another medium.
7) Which Green Lantern or Flash do you like?
Kyle & Wally, and Alan & Jay.
8 ) If you were the EiC of DC or Marvel for a day, what would you do?
DC: Uncancel Blue Beetle.
Marvel: Let Alan Moore write whatever the hell he wants to.
9) VALENTINE’S WEEK SPECIAL BY YOURS TRULY: What comic did you use to get your spouse/significant other/child hooked into comics?
I have none of these, but if I did, it’d be Fables for the first two, and Bone for the kid.
February 17th, 2009 at 6:21 pm
1) What was the first comic you ever read?
The Death of Superman series when I was 7
2) When did you know you were hooked on comics?
Maybe when I read all of the Batman No Man’s Land trade paperbacks in a day
3) What do you look for in comics?
Epic, Fun, “Superhero Poetry” a la Grant Morrison, ‘that classic feel’, non-white characters
4) Do you want different artists for covers and interiors, or the same artist on both?
I go both ways. I really liked those Alex Ross covers for JSA a while back esp. the one with Stargirl and STRIPE and I was okay with that he didn’t paint the story. But multiple covers are a waste of everyone’s time and money.
5) Do you want the cover to be representative of the story, or to be iconic?
See above.
6) What are the things that get you excited about comics?
When a Silver Age concept is renovated and refurbished really well. When something new really works. When publishers take a chance on a racially or sexually diverse crew. When artists don’t draw boobs too big.
7) Which Green Lantern or Flash do you like?
John Stewart a la “Green Lantern: Mosaic” and Wally West (though, I’d note he’s literally been the Flash since before I was alive)
8 ) If you were the EiC of DC or Marvel for a day, what would you do?
DC: Hire Gerard Jones to write something. Take a chance and launch an Icon and Rocket title that ties into Justice League so that folks will read it. Rocket is just too cool for words. (And this is for the kid in me) bring Steel back into the new refurbished Superman universe and situate him in Metropolis–just imagine, Mon-El and Steel! Relaunch all the Charleton heroes as Latin@–oh wait…
Marvel: Make more of my books have the classic fun of Amazing Spider-Man and Fantastic Four
9) VALENTINE’S WEEK SPECIAL BY YOURS TRULY: What comic did you use to get your spouse/significant other/child hooked into comics?
Yeah, that still hasn’t worked