Launching today is Sparkshooter, a new webcomic by ‘Rama alum Troy Brownfield and Sarah Vaughn about friendship, music and doing what you have to, because it’s what you love. In case today’s first episode isn’t enough to whet your appetite, I talked to Troy about what to expect from the story as it unfolds, where it comes from, and why now is the time for Sarah Vaughan. (more…)

Nick Spencer, writer of THUNDER Agents, Ultimate X-Men, Morning Glories and the just-launched Thief of Thieves, did an Ask Me Anything session on Reddit yesterday, taking on questions about projects that never happened (Sadly, NDAs seem to have put paid to any details on what happened to his Victor Von Doom series with Becky Cloonan), double shipping books, his influences and just what’s going on with Morning Glories in terms of readership:

On trade numbers, Morning Glories is massive– it’s like The Walking Dead, Batman, and us, people don’t realize that. Our singles numbers are very good for an indie book, but nothing like that. So we have to keep it in mind. I’d like to see more people reading the monthly personally, but even more than that, I’d prefer they were enjoying it however works for them. There was a point (right around 12, actually), where you could feel people getting impatient. Now we don’t hear that as much at all, because a lot of those people either dropped it or moved to trade. What we have now is a readership that’s along for the ride. I’d prefer that to higher monthly numbers, if I had to choose. I expect trade people will come back when they decide they can’t wait to find out what happens next once they finish a volume.

If you’re a Spencer fan, there’s all manner of good stuff at the link. It’d be nice to see more creators do this kind of thing on Reddit, to be honest.

The new Marvel’s The Avengers (Or, if you live in certain countries, Marvel’s Avengers Assemble) trailer is live on the homepage; lots of new footage, Loki and Nick Fury makin’ with the stand-off and the sense that maybe Earth’s Mightiest Heroes are fighting Michael Bay’s Transformers movies. Go see.

Seriously, if all of Avengers vs. X-Men looked like this, I can’t tell you how excited I would be.

This is Skottie Young’s variant cover for Midtown Comics, as discovered on Agent M’s Tumblr blog yesterday. Even if you’re not a fan of seeing your favorite characters turned into babies, just look at the energy in that image; it’s really kind of awesome.

Archie has responded to the ridiculous and shameful protest being organized by the American Family Association organization against Toys R Us for selling Archie comics featuring the character Kevin Keller (The problem being that the AFA is upset that “children are now being exposed to same-sex marriage in a toy store”). In a statement released to Robot 6, Archie CEO Jon Goldwater said,

We stand by Life with Archie #16. As I’ve said before, Riverdale is a safe, welcoming place that does not judge anyone. It’s an idealized version of America that will hopefully become reality someday.

We’re sorry the American Family Association/OneMillionMoms.com feels so negatively about our product, but they have every right to their opinion, just like we have the right to stand by ours. Kevin Keller will forever be a part of Riverdale, and he will live a happy, long life free of prejudice, hate and narrow-minded people.

That’s much classier than the AFA deserves, in my opinion, and also crystalizes the appeal of Archie in general; an idealized version of America free of prejudice, hate and narrow-minded people. Now I can’t wait to see what the reaction to Occupy Riverdale is going to be.

As February draws to a close, so does this series of entirely random choices of things about comics that I happen to find entirely awesome. For the final selection, then, how could I resist one of the greatest comic staples of all?

The secret identity concept is one that’s sadly been somewhat abandoned in recent years, beaten back by thoughts of realism and fear of seeming ridiculous or the such, and it’s a shame. Yes, the idea that a pair of glasses or domino mask could make your dual identity impossible to uncover by anyone with a pair of eyes and the ability to recognize voices is ridiculous, but that is a large part of its charm, for me; the secret identity is a massive portion of the wish fulfillment aspect of superheroes (It’s the “if only they knew the real me” thought process made concrete), and also something that’s become oddly real in the internet age where it’s easy to make up a name and post commentary online behind a digital mask of anonymity. We all have secret identities now, to an extent; I just wish that today’s superhero comics played up that aspect of modern life some more to reflect it.

Here’s some more comics kindness: The Forbidden Planet blog celebrates the career of Brett Ewins in the wake of both his recent personal problems and 2000AD‘s 35th birthday. The tributes – both in words and pictures – from all manner of British comic professionals past and present highlight the impressive body of work Ewins has, something that is often overlooked by a lot of people, entirely unfairly. Even though the retrospective concentrates on Ewins’ 2000AD work, I’d argue that his biggest contributions are outside of that title, with the co-creation of Deadline magazine (with Steve Dillon, another artist who deserves some kind of critical reconsideration; I feel like these days, he’s known for Preacher and Punisher, and his earlier career is forgotten – He’s been doing amazing stuff for decades, including Laser Eraser and Pressbutton and editing Deadline) and books like Strange Days and Johnny Nemo. Go, look at the tributes. If nothing else, you’ll come away with a new appreciation for a constantly, unfairly underrated creator.

Hey, look! It’s a new poster for Marvel’s The Avengers, as debuted on Marvel.com.

Notable for actually featuring the Hulk (as opposed to earlier teaser images, which featured Mark Ruffalo’s Bruce Banner), my favorite thing about this poster is Captain America, just standing around, looking a little out-of-it, while everyone else seems on high alert for incoming disaster from each and every angle. Snap out of it, Cap! The world needs you!

When Peter Parker swings back onto TV screens in April in Ultimate Spider-Man, he won’t be alone; Marvel.com has revealed that he’ll be accompanied by other teen heroes in the series, but we’re not given any names just yet. Instead, Joe Quesada is teasing their identities…:

Of the four team members, one has a youthfulness but internal maturity beyond his years; another is conscientious and an overachiever; the third has a tremendous earnestness and sense of responsibility; and the last is brash and boastful.

Guesses, anyone? I can’t help but wonder if that last one is Johnny Storm, with the first being Iceman, a la Ultimate Comics: Spider-Man‘s “Amazing Friends” set-up…

Retailer Brian Hibbs considers some problems with double-shipping that might not have struck you just yet:

One primary consideration is that every book, every where, (nearly) every time, suffers from what we generally refer to as “standard attrition” — that is to say that virtually every comic shows a slightly decreasing audience each and every month as readership walks away, or gets sidetracked. There are certainly ways to get bunches of new eyes looking at a book (crossovers used to do it… not so much any longer), and spike those numbers up again… but the general rule is a slow steady leak in all serialized entertainment.

What happens when you produce your comics twice a month is that the decreasing demand curve does nothing but accelerate because you’re giving readers more opportunities each month to “jump off”; and, in fact, you’re making it considerably easier TO jump off, because it is that much easier to get behind.

He also addresses the way in which an accelerated release schedule could penalize casual fans, the problem it presents for retailers looking to rack new releases, and a suggestion for why the idea that fans only buy comics “that count” may be the result of over-extending franchises in the first place. Well worth reading for anyone wondering about the shape of the current industry and the dangers of the future industry.

You know what’s awesome about comics? That a character’s entire appeal can be summed up in five panels like this:

There’s so much to love about All Star Superman, but this page may be my favorite of the entire series, for the kindness it shows in its main character. It’s not that he stops Regan from jumping, it’s the way that he does it, and the fact that he silently holds her afterwards. We need more kindness in comics, I think.

The official DCU blog, The Source, is previewing characters from the upcoming Earth Two and Worlds’ Finest this week, starting with an oddly familiar Batman who’s described thusly:

“Who will Batman kill to save his own daughter?” asks EARTH 2 editor Pat McCallum. “Right out of the gate that should tell you we’re dealing with a different kind of Dark Knight here. More ruthless, dangerous…the costume is familiar and yeah, there is a Wayne under the mask, but we’re looking at a man desperate to save the only family he has left. EARTH 2 is about to become a very bad place to be a bad guy.”

Firstly: This isn’t the old Earth-2, obviously. Secondly: “There is a Wayne under the mask, but we’re looking at a man desperate to save the only family he has left.” Doesn’t this describe Flashpoint‘s Thomas Wayne Batman pretty well? Suddenly the preview cover looking not unlike Flashpoint‘s alternate Earth makes me wonder whether or not the new Earth-2 is going to have a lot more in common with the Flashpoint Earth of last summer than we’d first thought…

What is Brian Michael Bendis doing once he leaves the Avengers books later this year? A rumor that he was about to take over the X-Men books has prompted this response from the man himself:

You can take that as me sitting back and laughing my ass off. What I am doing after avx is so much more than this…

Guesses – answered, of course – later in the same Bendis Board thread include Marvelman and taking on some kind of editorial position. One of the more interesting reactions, though, was the suggestion that he is taking over the X-Books, but the “so much more” refers to what he’s doing: Either a full-scale reboot, or a Disassembled-esque linewide relaunch, both of which could be considered “so much more” than just taking over the books as-is. But, considering the X-Men books have already been relaunched less than six months ago, would it be smart to relaunch the entire line again so soon…?

It possibly says a lot about me to reveal that the Marvel characters that appeal to me aren’t the angst-ridden characters so caught up in their own soap operas that they can forget about the supervillain on the loose, nor the mysterious antihero who solves every problem begrudgingly with one of several teams even though they pretend to be a loner. Instead, give me the characters that have a good attitude, friendly and the ability to play well with others. Like this guy, in fact:

Henry McCoy, the blushing, blue-eyed (and blue-furred) Beast is definitely one of my favorite Marvel characters; I actually discovered him as an Avenger, and so the discovery that he has also been an X-Man – and later, a Defender – came as a surprise: Characters that work well in multiple teams? Without bickering or thought balloons about how they don’t fit in? Characters that other characters seem to like? What was this insanity? (Ben Grimm, interestingly enough, has the same appeal for me.) I’ve always appreciated the upbeat, unapologetically smart, nature of Hank, and found him to be a constantly under-used character, and one that could easily carry his own series if given the chance. Maybe we’ll get to see one post-Avengers vs. X-Men, if we’re lucky.

If this report is to be believed, Marvel’s big Avengers vs. X-Men push will pay off in a big way:

It looks like Justice League is about to lose its streak of number one sales. Not only is Jim Lee away from the book for a few issues, but Avengers Vs X-Men #1 is coming through, and I hear from reliable industry sources that its orders are expected to top 200,000 this weekend. I can’t see any way that it won’t be a number one best selling issue, can you?

That is a great, great number for the book, giving Marvel its biggest hit since… Civil War, I think? If this keeps up for all twelve issues – and the interest is spread across the tie-in books – then it’s definitely the boost Marvel fans have been hoping for for awhile, in terms of sales, and a sign that the horse race for market supremacy is fully back on after a couple of slow months – not to mention a strong start to something that the publisher is saying will lead to “the most seismic shift at Marvel in a decade”…

In case you haven’t already seen this, critic and Variety writer Tom McLean explains why he has left his weekly comics habit behind after decades:

After more than a quarter century, I found reading the last big stack of Marvel and DC books I brought home at tremendous expense to be the last thing I wanted to do. Trying to read the last few of them was incredibly difficult — the art was detailed but unclear, the scripting was clever but not informative, and the stories inched along at so slow a pace, with so little happening on any given page or in any given issue, that nothing registered as being remotely interesting. Six weeks later, or however long it’s been, I not only do not miss my weekly comics shop visit but I feel somewhat relieved. I no longer have to keep track of what I have and don’t have, what the big crossover of the moment is, or how much it’s going to cost and whether I can still afford it.

None of which means I stopped reading comics or have no more interest in comics. I’ve been focusing on artwork of late, and have found myself interested in the recent bounty of classic comic strip reprints. I’m well into the first volume of IDW’s The Complete Terry and the Pirates, by Milton Caniff, and digging the hell out of it. I also have a bunch of vintage graphic novels I plan to catch up on, including digging into the rest of Alan Moore’s run on Swamp Thing and an Al Williamson Flash Gordon volume I picked up a while back but never got around to reading. I also want to dig into the Williamson and Archie Goodwin strip Secret Agent X-9, and I  still have a few holes in my run of 1960s X-Men comics to fill.

There’s a lot more in the link, but there’s something at the core of this post that makes me think of this unrelated message board thread at the CBR boards about buying comics that you don’t really want, just to keep up with everything:

I took a look at my pull list, which is stupid long, the other day and realized I am reading books I don’t even really like… just so I know everything that is happening in the MU.

One example of this is the Avengers. Frankly… I don’t like any of the current Avengers really and the story right now is freaking awful. Yet, I continue to buy it because it feels like I am missing something huge that is going on in the MU.

Another example… Generation Hope and New Mutants. Both of those books suck in my opinion but I keep reading them just because they connect to the rest of the X-men books and I want to know what is going on at all times.

Am I the only idiot that does this? I really need to stop supporting crap books just because they are “main” titles.

There’s something to this, I think, but I can’t quite put my finger on it; an idea that people who’ve been buying comics out of habit or inertia or something other than actual desire to read their purchases are, for whatever reason, realizing how much time, effort and money they’re investing in something that they don’t actually want to do, and changing their actions accordingly. This kind of thing is always happening, of course, but with both of the Big Two seemingly doubling down on line-wide pushes lately, I feel that the added pressure to pay attention and collect ‘em all – not to mention the increased frequency and price of releases – has increased the likelihood of fans saying “You know what? I’m just not liking this anymore.” Am I imagining this, or is this going to becoming a growing problem for publishers throughout the next year?

Neal Adams considers the origin of Spider-Man, and what it meant to comics at the time:

A weakling kid is bitten by a radioactive spider and decides to become…a circus performer? Yes, that’s right, Peter Parker is more interested in using his “gift” to find a paycheck, not a damsel in distress.Until, with all his power, his weaknesses cause him to fail to save his Uncle Ben. Soft monsters as superheroes. Not sparkly-toothed-born heroes…but flawed monster heroes. Then came the incredible Steve Ditko. Was this man born to draw Spider-Man? A multitude will say “Yes.” Marvel had found a third creator who got it, who totally understood the concept: Flawed monster heroes. It was a new idea, born out of a touch of coincidence, a touch of history, a massive amount of brilliance of some of the greatest comic book creators since Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.

The idea of Spider-Man as a “flawed monster hero” is one that’s particularly resonant, reminding us that – no matter how mainstream and cuddly that the character has become, Spider-Man started out not only as an outsider, but as a horror story made good. It’s a shame that that aspect of the character has become lost through familiarity, I think.

One of the occasionally frustrating things about modern superhero comics is the idea that it’s all happening despite the readers; that, as events follow events and creative teams change willy and nilly, readers are merely powerless spectators that have no voice or say in what they’re purchasing week in and week out. But, once, there was a comic that tried to give the audience some say in what was on the page. Ladies and gentlemen, comicsdemocracy in action:

The era of Dial H for Hero when the superheroes were all reader-created was a weird experiment in improvisation, with whoever was creating the stories (Bob Rozakis and Carmine Infantino, I seem to remember, for much of the time, although I may be wrong) stuck with whatever ended up being the best of that month’s ideas, most of which tended towards the terrible. Each month, the choices would seem a little more underwhelming, a little more clearly demonstrating how difficult it was to create well-designed, well-named, super-characters, but somehow that was part of its charm. The 1980s revival of Dial H predated “crowdsourcing” as a term, “interactivity” as a trend, but it was the personification of both, the kind of “amateur becomes pro just for a second” idea that would later breed American Idol, The X-Factor and The Voice. Except with less crying, of course.

This is just lovely; CBR has Bryan Hitch’s introduction to a screening of Superman: The Movie in Glasgow yesterday, in which he describes why he loves the movie so much:

I’ve been drawing comics for a quarter of a century and this movie is the DNA of that career. Not just as a choice but in how I approach it. I’ve had labels such as ‘cinematic’ or ‘widescreen’ given to my work in past years and if such labels fit it’s because I learned them here first. The design, the environments, the big ideas are all here but so are characters you care about. The big picture, yes but the eye for storytelling detail, all rendered with absolute conviction.

Awe and Wonder certainly but heart and truth in equal measure with a John Williams fanfare to herald it.

Much more at the link, including Hitch’s early crossdressing experiences and a brief history of the movie. Go read.

Want to see something great? Yesterday, the Nerdist unveiled one minute of an upcoming Plastic Man short that’ll be part of Cartoon Network’s DC Nation block next month, and it is pretty great – Very much in tune with Kyle Baker’s Plastic Man series from, oh God, about a decade ago (I am so old), so fans of old school cartoons and gags should be very happy indeed.

Between this, Tom Peyer’s Doom Patrol and Lauren Faust’s Super Best Friends Forever, I find myself really looking forward to DC Nation. If only I had more interest in either Green Lantern: The Animated Series or Young Justice…