There is so, so much goodness in this Mark Waid interview with Tucker Stone, but let’s quote this part, shall we?
I’ve been carrying this banner for a long time: how to craft a first issue that makes people want to come back rather than feel like they’re punished for not coming back because they only got a little bit of a story, or because you’re not giving them the basics of storytelling. That stuff just makes me insane. I think some of the best work I’ve ever done has been first issue stuff–the Fantastic Four launch I did with ‘Ringo, or the Legion #1 I did with Barry Kitson. Whether you like the stories or not, the craftsmanship is something I’m proud of. Here is a story. Here’s what the characters want, what they’re interested in, what they’re after and what’s in their way, and what they have to overcome in interesting, visual ways that you can only do in comic books. How hard is that, for christsakes?
And yet I feel like a voice in the wilderness when I say that. Again, this is why I’m heartened by the response to Daredevil #1. It really feels like I’ve been doing these kinds of first issues for a long time. Clean slates, where I’m giving you what you need. And people got it! I feel like one of those guys who tops the charts with a number one single, and then you find out he’s been around for ten years and you just never knew. That’s heartening, that feeling that my personal taste and the market’s taste have finally lined up for a brief second.
Earlier in the interview, Waid and Stone make some comments along the lines of wishing that Daredevil was getting more attention in general, to which I wholeheartedly concur. People, if you like superhero comics and you’ve not sampled the new Daredevil series yet, you are missing out to a degree you can’t even imagine. It’s just great comics. End of free plug. Now go read the rest of the interview, because it’s filled with good stuff.
November 18th, 2011 at 1:31 pm
Great character, got too dark over the years but there was always potential… Have even thought Daredevil would work perfectly as a TV series… lawyer by day, vigilante by night… get the guy from Blind Justice for Matt Murdock.
November 18th, 2011 at 1:45 pm
Interesting interview, but I didn’t get the impression that Stone or Waid have read ALL the New 52 – but were quite happy to jump to conclusions based on a few examples.
November 19th, 2011 at 9:39 am
I think I’m part of the minority when saying that I did read the first two issues of Waid’s Daredevil and really not caring for it. This being after not really following the title after it was getting a bit too dark and depressing for my tastes. When reading it I was getting more of the impression of someone going through the motions and I just didn’t find it interesting.
Not saying anyone is wrong in liking or really loving it, but it just wasn’t for me.
November 19th, 2011 at 9:41 am
Though forgot to mention, I thought Marcos Martin was knocking it clear out of the park with the artwork and I almost continued to reading the book just to see more of it.