So I was reading this interview on Marvel.com with Amazing Spider-Man writer Marc Guggenheim on his upcoming story featuring as least some mention of the controversial Spider-Clone known as Ben Reilly, and this really stood out:
“This will be my last arc on the book as a member of Spidey’s ‘Webheads,’” Guggenheim confirms. “I’d been thinking of an exit strategy for a while now because my workload has gotten so heavy, and the inter-coordination required to write Spider-Man was something I found myself having less and less time to devote to. I was going to write one more arc, but I was so happy with the way this one was turning out that I thought this should be my swan song. Hopefully, people will buy the book, read it and agree with me.
That said, Guggenheim said that he would work on Amazing Spider-Man Presents Jackpot, due out in January, and would return intermittently if possible.
It’s interesting, as the Eli Stone co-creator was one of the original members of the Spider-Man Brain Trust, when the series went thrice-a-month following the controversial One More Day storyline. During his tenure, Guggenheim worked on introducing a new Kraven in the Kraven’s First Hunt storyline, as well as revealed the mystery of Menace in Character Assassination. Thoughts?
September 14th, 2009 at 12:09 pm
Too bad, Guggenheim was definitely the best writer out of the first year’s team. He’s slid a bit this year, but only because Waid, Kelly and Van Lente are fantastic.
September 14th, 2009 at 12:39 pm
I think that Guggenheim is pretty much the weakest link. He’s not bad but he’s not great either. So long as they don’t bring back Bob Gale things’ll be okay. Really, they should just bring Stern a bit more closely into the heart of things.
September 14th, 2009 at 1:02 pm
Yo, Guggenheim, we’re really happy for you and all, we’re gonna let you finish, but EVERYBODY knows that BEYONCE had the BEST Spider-Man story of ALL TIME. Of ALL TIME! No disrespect.
September 14th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
Well that’s not too surprising. I am sure he is very busy with his new TV series Flashforward- ABC has really been pushing it. Sad though because I thought he was a good fit in there and a very smart person.
September 14th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
Back when this whole thing started, someone asked Tom Brevoort if sales could get low enough that they’d ever undo the current status quo.
Brevoort basically said, “No, but if the sales get low enough, we’ll just bring in a new writing crew.”
A little more than a year and a half later, Dan Slott is the only remaining member of the original “brain trust.”
Draw your own conclusions.
September 14th, 2009 at 1:47 pm
And Guggenheim being the weakest link in my mind isn’t necessary a bad thing when the other links are FVL, Kelly, Waid, and Slott. Don’t get me wrong. 90% of writers I can think of would be the weakest link when put against those four.
September 14th, 2009 at 2:07 pm
Mark Waid, you’re a kook. XD
But now it seems there’s only one original Spider-Man Braintrust writer in Slott. Guggenheim wasn’t my favorite, but I enjoyed his stories and will be sad to see him go.
September 14th, 2009 at 2:15 pm
OK, I will – my conclusion is that being part of a writing team for a book that ships thrice monthly is *very hard work*, especially for a writer who also works in TV and film, and that as a result, there’s bound to be a lot of changeover after a while.
…Or, y’know, it could all be a massive plot.
September 14th, 2009 at 2:19 pm
I wish him the best, and hope he brings us more quality comics in the future. I can’t say I’ll be following him to the Jackpot mini, but I’ll keep my eyes peeled for his next non-Spidey project.
September 14th, 2009 at 3:55 pm
No, Bob Gale is still one of the “Web Heads” he just doesn’t write regularly. Also Wells only ever did one arc. So that is now two that have moved on and three new ones that have joined.
My conclusions are that you can’t get over BND.
September 14th, 2009 at 4:40 pm
With Kelly, Waid, and Van Lente on board, I can’t say this bothers me much. Guggenheim’s work was good for the most part, but I find these recent additions to be much better overall.
Otherwise, Slott’s still on, so I can’t complain. Gale’s off the book and doing stories for Marvel’s Digital Comics, so I can’t complain. But Wells? I miss him, to be honest. He’s been mostly MIA ever since he started doing New Mutants, so I guess we’ll be seeing him rarely if ever anymore.
September 14th, 2009 at 5:11 pm
I don’t draw any conclusions – comic book creative teams are ever shifting. Good luck to Marc, I’ve enjoyed his stuff loads.
September 14th, 2009 at 5:14 pm
“A little more than a year and a half later, Dan Slott is the only remaining member of the original “brain trust.”
Actually, from the original Brain Trust, Bob Gale and Zeb Wells are still around too. And like my fellow “WebHeads”, Bob, Zeb, Joe, Mark, and Fred, I’m sad to see Marc go– but we’re all very excited for Marc’s new TV show– and all of his upcoming film work!
September 14th, 2009 at 8:44 pm
If Peter and Mary Jane are married again, then I’ll check it out. Otherwise, I have no interest. A shame since I’ve really enjoy Dan and Marc’s writing in the past.
September 14th, 2009 at 8:46 pm
As long as FlashForward is better than Eli Stone, that’s fine with me.
September 14th, 2009 at 10:41 pm
“Yo, Guggenheim, we’re really happy for you and all, we’re gonna let you finish, but EVERYBODY knows that BEYONCE had the BEST Spider-Man story of ALL TIME. Of ALL TIME! No disrespect.”
LOL @ Mark Waid. What of the fishsticks?
September 15th, 2009 at 9:09 am
This is the closest to hip that Waid has ever been.
Coincidentally Waid is on Leno tonight.
September 15th, 2009 at 10:25 am
I think Roger Stern should be upgraded to webhead status. His one-shot was great!