If you edited the Spider-Man Books

[Dial Tone]

...have a superstar artist on at least two of the 3 books

I am only buying Sensational Spider-Man for the McFarlane-esque art of Angel Medina, and the story's pretty good, but I lost interest in following Spider-Man when he became an Aven...err...a "New" Avenger.

Dan Slott needs to write Spidey somewhere regularly. He'd be my regular writer on Sensational Spider-Man. I would really go hard for Greg Capullo to draw the book. It would sell and it would be Capullo doing McFarlane even better than Todd does himself sometimes. Slott and Capullo on Spider-man = Perfect in every way imaginable! This is the "old school" and "nostalgia" Spider-Man series.

I'm glad that Peter David is writing Spidey again, and I hope he can produce another story as legendary as The Death of Jean DeWolff, but I'm not a real big fan of Wieringo's stuff. I would want each Spider-Man book to have it's own flavor. This would be the street crime series. I would want an artist for the job. Steve Epting would do an incredible Spider-Man crime series, but he's not allowed to ever leave Captain America. Pablo Raimondi would be nice.

Amazing Spider-Man would continue to be the flagship title with JMS writing it. It would deal with the most supporting characters. Jonah would be a regular presence. Marc Silvestri would be my first choice as artist, though I'd prefer him on something like Fantastic Four even more. David Finch draws incredible Spider-Man stuff, especially his version of the Black Cat. Mercy! I would definitely sell some comics. :D

What would you do if you were editor?

[Uncensored]

What would you do if you were editor?

Put John Romita Jr. on one of the titles.

[Nick MB]

Capullo's a good artist, but his style would clash brutally with Dan Slott's stories. I actually think Wieringo has the perfect tone for Slott's stuff. In fact, if David leaves Friendly Neghbourhood, he'd be the choice for replacement, as that series was designed as the all-ages Spidey series.

[unkiedev]

I agree: SLOTT SLOTT SLOTT! And Capullo as well, though Nick MB has a good point: Don't put them both on the same book. Slott should have...Mike Allred on the book? His Untold Tales Annual was a gasser! Maybe Slott should have a heavily edited Chris Bachalo. He's still one of my favorite artists, although he is a slow mutha'.

[killerbass]

I would like Slott too, however I am not ready to lose Peter David.

How about Slott and David? Or how about Slott doing some Marvel Adventures Spider-Man for awhile? Or maybe Peter David on Sensational, and Slott on Friendly Neighborhood?

(And to be fair, I really need to let the writer on Sensational finish his first arc before I pass judgement...)

I dunno. I am just glad that I am not the editor.

--Tom

[Bullrog]

Ultimate would be eradicated. Hell, every ultimate title would be eradicated. I'd bring back some classic villains like Vermin, Swarm, Stegron, Hammerhead, Tombstone, Rhino. OH, and Morbius. Hes badass, son.

[Dial Tone]

Capullo's a good artist, but his style would clash brutally with Dan Slott's stories.

I don't think so. Slott isn't some one trick pony type of writer that his stories should be put in a box like that. I think they'd be an amazing team!

[Nick MB]

I don't think so. Slott isn't some one trick pony type of writer that his stories should be put in a box like that. I think they'd be an amazing team!

Well, I'm kinda imagining a Slott-Spidey being at least similar to the style of his Spider-Man/Human Torch mini-series, and I think the editor would have been mad to commission Capullo to draw that. It wouldn't have complemented the story at all.

[Joe Rice]

Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-man written and drawn by Adrian Tomine.

The Amazing Spider-man written by Bryan Vaughn and drawn by Mike Allred

The Sensational Spider-man written and drawn by Paul Pope.

BASK IN THE GLORY!

[Totoro Man]

I'd try to have Andi Watson write at least one Spiderman story. I think he could do it. Wouldn't say I'd necessarily want him drawing the story, too, but I think he's got an ear for dialogue that would serve Spidey well.

And Norman Osbourn would still be dead but that's one of those "too late for the change to mean anything " deals.

[BeastieRunner]

What would you do if you were editor?

I don't really care who the artist is as long as it's not a two-year-old. Millar for 616 Spidey!

[Mister Mets]

...have a superstar artist on at least two of the 3 books

I am only buying Sensational Spider-Man for the McFarlane-esque art of Angel Medina, and the story's pretty good, but I lost interest in following Spider-Man when he became an Aven...err...a "New" Avenger.

Dan Slott needs to write Spidey somewhere regularly. He'd be my regular writer on Sensational Spider-Man. I would really go hard for Greg Capullo to draw the book. It would sell and it would be Capullo doing McFarlane even better than Todd does himself sometimes. Slott and Capullo on Spider-man = Perfect in every way imaginable! This is the "old school" and "nostalgia" Spider-Man series.

I'm glad that Peter David is writing Spidey again, and I hope he can produce another story as legendary as The Death of Jean DeWolff, but I'm not a real big fan of Wieringo's stuff. I would want each Spider-Man book to have it's own flavor. This would be the street crime series. I would want an artist for the job. Steve Epting would do an incredible Spider-Man crime series, but he's not allowed to ever leave Captain America. Pablo Raimondi would be nice.

Amazing Spider-Man would continue to be the flagship title with JMS writing it. It would deal with the most supporting characters. Jonah would be a regular presence. Marc Silvestri would be my first choice as artist, though I'd prefer him on something like Fantastic Four even more. David Finch draws incredible Spider-Man stuff, especially his version of the Black Cat. Mercy! I would definitely sell some comics. :D

What would you do if you were editor?


Keep in mind that there is a limited number of superstar artists. Although J Scott Campbell's upcoming Spider-Man work will probably make him one again.

Slott would be awesome on a Spider-Man book. But not as regular writer of Sensational, a book that's meant to have rotating casts.

If I were editor I'd have five monthly Spider-Man books.
Ultimate Spider-Man would be untouched. I want Bendis, and Bagley to top 300 issues.
Amazing Spider-Man would remain JMS's title, because while the man's not exceptional on the book, he's decent, and knows how to sell copies. He's doing everything to keep his claws on the book, but he's kept it a Top Ten seller.
Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man would stay in Peter David's hands. He's an uneven writer, so I'd want to approve each plot/ script in advance, just to maintain a high level of quality.
Sensational Spider-Man would keep it's rotating creators, although I'd want to make sure the creators have a great 6-12 issue plot, and scripts. I'd also want it to compliment the other books. For instance, if the other books don't feature the old villains/ supporting cast, this one would. I'm sure there would still be a long line of writers/ artists eager to work on this book.
Astonishing Spider-Man would be the flagship Spider-Man title. It's the book for a-list creators.

[sonicdescent]

I'd try to have them take the character to a dark place, maybe bring on Jeph Loeb or try to steal Whedon from the x-men. That would be the Sensational line. Friendly Neighborhood would be smaller story Arcs, and AMS remains the flagship title with the deeper storylines. I'd keep JMS on amazing and let Friendly be something of a showcase for people who aren't known for their Spider-Man work.

[tangiedwebs]

Finch draws one of the if not the worst Black Cat's ever. See Dodson or Cho for a tutorial.

[Citizen V]

There is already a thread like this.Click here (http://forums.comicbookresources.com/showthread.php?t=104798).

[Nonentity]

What would you do if you were editor?

Quit immediately.

I doubt anyone could run the Spider-books into the ground faster than me.

[elheffe]

Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-man written and drawn by Adrian Tomine.

The Amazing Spider-man written by Bryan Vaughn and drawn by Mike Allred

The Sensational Spider-man written and drawn by Paul Pope.

BASK IN THE GLORY!
If this line-up was actually in place, I would actually look forward to be reading Spider-man again.

[Joe Rice]

If this line-up was actually in place, I would actually look forward to be reading Spider-man again.

I'm just glad someone noticed I posted something.

[Totoro Man]

Don't agree with the part about Tomine writing but the drawing part would be interesting, so I half agree with that nomination.

[Mister Mets]

Bump, because of the immense power Steve Wacker currently has to shape the franchise.

[Mister Mets]

IGN had an interview with Steve Wacker- the upcoming editor of Amazing Spider-Man.
http://comics.ign.com/articles/840/840731p1.html

One Slightly Revealing thing about his process was the following....


With something like this… I mean I'm as inclined to wanting my books to sell before we do any work at all. I'd be lying if I didn't say my first thought was, "Oh my god! Can you get Millar or Bendis?" But at a certain point that's impractical. These guys have their own projects, stature and set stories to tell. It's not always a right fit at a certain time to be a part of a team, to have to subsume yourself to how the room is going. So you get some writers who are willing to throw out bad ideas along with good ideas. I could go down each of those guys and find something that they've written that I love, that shows that there's a capital "w" writer there. Zeb [Wells] was probably the most unknown writer there. But I read his Doctor Octopus mini-series and it blew my socks off. Clearly this guy is a good writer.

So we needed a good team of guys that could work together. All I care about is how people are in that room. I think that's important to creating a spirit of working together, getting these books done and out as well as keeping things exciting and fresh. All of the buzz words! But I really care about the energy in the room, because if you have one person there with one foot out of bed waiting for everything to fail, you're screwed.

So my question is this...If you were in Steve Wacker's shoes, how would you do things differently? Would Amazing Spider-Man have a different schedule? Would you have gone after different creators? Feel free to mention how you would deal with the aftermath of One More Day.

[Venom]

I'd have two writers, four feels too much and messy and I'd have two or three artists depending on how fast they can pencil.

[Cayman]

I would've gotten Fraction to do one.

[Mister Mets]

I think the biggest weakness of the upcoming books is the lack of an unambiguously A-list writer (or in the event that we can't find one willing to join the writing staff, an unambiguous fan favorite.) As a result, I would have replaced one of the Spider-Man writers (not Slott, possibly Guggenheim) with one of the following: Mark Millar, Warren Ellis, Brian Michael Bendis, Jeph Loeb, Ed Brubaker, Roger Stern or JM Dematteis.

Ed Brubaker, Grant Morrison, Gail Simone and Matt Fraction would also be at the top of the list for replacing the current writers (the moment Brubaker leaves one of his current titles, I'd nab him for Amazing Spider-Man.)

I liked Wacker's idea of getting artists who had downtime between bigger projects for three issue stints on the series and I'd have tried a similar approach with the big name writers.

I'd also approach Tom Beland, Paul Jenkins and Matt Fraction for occasional single issue stories. It's something the three of them do very well.

In addition I'd try to launch a Spider-Man (Almost) Monthly....
Astonishing Spider-Man

The basic idea would be a high profile accessible Spider-Man book, which hits the Top five every time it comes out, with creators on par with Whedon/Cassady, Miller/Lee, and Morrison/Quitely. I'd use this book to establish an Astonishing franchise, on par with DC's All-Star franchise, getting A-list creators doing what they want on an accessible book, free from the continuity of the other books (this would be the book for writers and artists who shouldn’t be put on books that impact the schedules of other books). As Loeb/ Campbell have been working on their story for years, it would make sense to have that be the one that launches the title. Say what you will about their talents as storytellers, their project is going to sell very well and is likely to introduce elements that future writers will incorporate into their own work.

When Loeb/ Campbell are done, appropriate writers for the series would include Roger Stern (considered second only to Lee), Kevin Smith, Joss Whedon , Michael Chabon (one of the screenwriters for Spider-Man 2), Brian Michael Bendis (this would demonstrate the differences between the regular Spider-Man and the ultimate one), Neil Gaiman , Grant Morrison , Frank Miller (he may decide to remind DC that he can always play with another company's superheroes), Warren Ellis and Grant Morrison. J Michael Straczynski might also be an appropriate writer, using this series to tie up any loose ends from his run on Amazing Spider-Man, a precedent established by Warren Ellis on Astonishing X-Men (no one could also accuse JMS's early Amazing Spider-Man of relying too much of reader's knowledge of the characters).

I’d want Marvel to also aim high with the artists, going after guys like Bryan Hitch, Jae Lee, Greg Land, Tim Sale, The Kubert brothers, JH Williams, George Perez or Neal Adams . If Todd Mcfarlane or Steve Ditko were to ever return to the Spider-Man books, this is probably the one they would go to.

With Amazing Spider-Man coming out three times a month, Marvel has more of a use than ever for an accessible entry-level Marvel Universe book, so an Astonishing Spider-Man (almost) monthly is more essential than than ever. While Marvel would have a difficult time providing artists who are more impressive than the ones currently announced for Amazing Spider-Man, this could become a showcase book for extended runs by less reliable artists (and writers), who shouldn’t be trusted on a book that can’t be late. There might be a little confusion as it shares the title of a British reprint series, but there are too many benefits for Marvel in setting up an "Astonishing" brand, in terms of being able to promote two of the best-selling books (and therefore the X-Men and Spider-Man franchises) at a time, for them to consider a different title.


I would try to convince the readers that there is the possibility that the undoing of the marriage may be temporary (assuming that happens.) Perhaps I'll announce the establishment a special vote after one year of the new schedule to see which status quo the readers prefer (the ballot would be included in Amazing Spider-Man #578 and the sixth or so volume of the new TPB series.)


I'd have two writers, four feels too much and messy and I'd have two or three artists depending on how fast they can pencil.
Which artists would you have gone after?
Which two writers would you not chosen?

[Joe Acro]

I think the biggest weakness of the upcoming books is the lack of an unambiguously A-list writer (or in the event that we can't find one willing to join the writing staff, an unambiguous fan favorite.)
I think an equally-good option would've been to get an A-list artist/collaborator that can draw fast enough to handle the first few arcs by himself. JRJR is good for that, but a few others could probably handle it as well.

[1WEBHEAD]

I'd have two writers, four feels too much and messy and I'd have two or three artists depending on how fast they can pencil.


I would've gotten Fraction to do one.

^^^Same here.

I agree that a big name writer totally needs to be on board. Sure Dan Slott is great and Bob Gale is only known for his Back to the Future movies but I doubt any of them melt as many comicbook fans as say, Millar or Morrison.

I would kill for BKV to be on the list even if it contradicts my "2 writers" wish.

I say Fraction, Millar, and BKV.

Eh, I guess 3 writers is asking too muuh so I'll throw in Slott or Gage. I love both of them. :)

And jeez, CyberMan!

You are not going to let your dream book die on you, huh?

[Monty_Cristo]

i'd have Eric O'Grady work at the Daily Bugle and be a semi-constant thorn in Parker's side a la Eddie Brock jr.

[jwd]

Get really great creative teams. :)

[Mister Mets]

I think an equally-good option would've been to get an A-list artist/collaborator that can draw fast enough to handle the first few arcs by himself. JRJR is good for that, but a few others could probably handle it as well.
Romita Jr's fast, but he's not three issues a month fast. He'd still need a few months of lead time to draw every comic in the first four or so months. This would've meant that Marvel would have had to find another artist for World War Hulk, and it would've delayed Romita Jr's Icon project with Mark Millar.

In addition, that approach has the disadvantage of making an artist seem less special if twelve issues of their work come out in a four month period.

There would be the advantage of the books having a sense of creative unity, especially if Romita Jr draws a story arc by each of the writers.


Get really great creative teams. :)
Do you have any specifics in mind?

[jwd]

Do you have any specifics in mind?

Not particularly since everyone's tastes varies. I know what types of stories I'd like. I wouldn't want to dictate to the writers what to write though. My job I think would he more coordinating the stories, making sure they flowed well and didn't have continuity errors in them. I'd also probably make the book published every 2 weeks instead of 3 times a month.

Some things I'd like to see.

1. New supporting cast and old ones involved.
2. Villains new and old
3. Spend more time with Peter and MJ out with friends either together or seperately sometimes.
4. Get MJ out of the actress/modeling gig - I know its been done before but an easy way would be to have another producer become obsessed with her and blacklist her when she doesn't want to be with him.
5. Maybe give Peter and MJ early start of their careers like they have in Spider-Girl. Peter starts an intern ship at the police department forsenics lab. Being an intern means the pay is horrible so he has to supplement by working at the Bugle too. This would give Peter some insight into crime in the city as well and setup some stories.
6. MJ starts working at designing clothes but isn't a big success to start with. Perhaps even working with Liz or a few new characters.
7. Most stories would be shorter from 1 to 4 issues. Subplots would run through the book though involving Peter's personal problems with friends and enemies along with them having some.
8. Rarely do an issue from another character's perspective. I remember one from JJJ's perspective that was a lot of fun.
9. Maybe do a big mystery for several months - A new villain perhaps ala the Hobgoblin or something showing up every so often to torment Spidey and some people he knows.
10. Eventually maybe after the first year of stories if they're successful let MJ get pregnant and have a baby eventually.

[Tobias Drake]

A constant ongoing plotline broken up into various 6-issue segments which, in turn, are broken up into 6 1-issue segment. Something akin to what Brubaker's been doing with the latest volume of Captain America from issue 1.

An ongoing story should be an ongoing story, I think, rather than various mini-stories that just happen to feature the same main character.

[Joe Acro]

Romita Jr's fast, but he's not three issues a month fast. He'd still need a few months of lead time to draw every comic in the first four or so months. This would've meant that Marvel would have had to find another artist for World War Hulk, and it would've delayed Romita Jr's Icon project with Mark Millar.

In addition, that approach has the disadvantage of making an artist seem less special if twelve issues of their work come out in a four month period.

There would be the advantage of the books having a sense of creative unity, especially if Romita Jr draws a story arc by each of the writers.
Yeah, JRJR was clearly unavailable for such a thing. Bagley could've done it if it hadn't left (he's already lined up to do an entire weekly series for DC by himself). Yu might be able able to handle it, but that would take him away from New Avengers. I'm sure there's some others I'm not thinking of at the moment.

[Venom]

Which artists would you have gone after?
Which two writers would you not chosen?

I'd keep Dan Slott, Mark Gunneingham, Steve McNiven and Salvador Larroca. But after you said we could handle it anyway we want if we became editors, I'd go for this method instead.

I'd have Dan Slott, Brian Michael Bendis, Ed Brubaker and Mark Millar as the writers and I'd have Steve McNiven, Mark Bagley, John Romita Jr. and Greg Land as the artists.

[Mister Mets]

If you guys were in charge of the Spider-Man books, what schedule would you use? I doubt everyone here believes the (almost) weekly schedule represents the best idea.

There are a few alternatives to the upcoming (almost) weekly schedule. These include a weekly schedule (52 issues an year), a weekly schedule with a several month intermission (30-40 issues an year) and the traditional form of Amazing Spider-Man being monthly with one to two side titles (if you want to go that route, what side titles would you have and how would they be different?).

And how would you deal with the fan reaction to One More Day?

[Phil Hunn]

And how would you deal with the fan reaction to One More Day?

I'd say "Shit, Joe, everyone thinks that that was a stupid idea. We better change it back!"

And then I'd be picking up my Social Security cheque five minutes later, because I questioned the will of High Overlord Quesada...

[jadrax]

One, I would have quit after OMD. ;o)

But assuming that didn't happen, I would make the book weekly rather than the middle of the rod solution of 3 a month, and would probably add an 8 page backup to the mix to test out new talent, while allowing for a smaller team on the main story for consistency.

I would not adopt a TV style head writer approach like Countdown, that does not seem to have worked at all.

That being said, its spiderman, sales are guaranteed, you could do almost anything and it will sell ok.

[ZT4]

I'd give Peter and MJ two children, have May on the verge of death, but (and this would likely be my "Quesada moment", because EVERY editor screws up eventually), I'd make all those jokes in "What If.." come to fruition, have Galactus save her life and make her a "consciense" to teach him the meaning of life so as to ration his use of planetary energy and not pick randomly, devouring civilisations.

This would allow May to be there for Peter if he needed her, but keep her out of the storylines for longer periods of time. May shouldnt be killed off, and never will be

[desanth]

I'd either clone May or cryogenicly freeze her. The latter is probably best so that a writer can someday use her and Peter can have that last seen where he looks all sad in regular street clothes looking through the glass at Aunt May's face.

[Sion]

Ultimate
I generally like where this is headed. I'm loving how we will see Flama and Iceman.
I would definitely have kept Peter and Kitty together though (and Kitty at Xavier's!).
I would've also avoided the Clone Saga--I thought it was underwhelming at best. Also, I don't want Aunt May to know Pete's secret identity--as opposed tot eh 616 version, she is a strong character and interesting just by herself.
As far as Norman and Harry's death--I'm fine with them (Ultimate Harry was boring). I would've Norman leave Oscorp to Peter in his will though (or at least some secret that SHIELD would have an interest on). Now that Peter doesn't trust SHIELD, he would not be very cooperative.

616
No unmasking--that killed the High School teacher Peter, which was a very interesting facet of the character. Peter would've been with Cap from the start.
I would keep organic webshooters, but I'd have them run out when Peter doesn't eat and such...
I would have something like Back in Black (it was great), but have Aunt May die in the end. And, surprise, when her heart stops beating, the disguise comes off and she is a skrull!
Peter goes to Loki and asks for his favor, which is to reveal every Skrull!

More supporting chast (more Flash) and, especially, Human Torch!

[darksaint124]

I would remember the rules that Marvel has already set up when it comes to someone changing an event in the past. What usually happen is a divergent reality is branched off from the original continuity. So while the 616 reality does not change, this other reality( which I choose to call,"Damn you Queseda") would be the reality that the effects of damning PP's soul to make the stupidest decision he's ever made, would be realised. So what would you do when you make a deal with the devil to save the life of an elderly woman who's still going to die in ONE MORE DAY.

[George Berryman]

Ed Brubaker, Grant Morrison, Gail Simone and Matt Fraction would also be at the top of the list for replacing the current writers (the moment Brubaker leaves one of his current titles, I'd nab him for Amazing Spider-Man.)

Grant Morrison would turn Spider-Man into an Indian deity and give him a magical elephant.

[Mister Mets]

Grant Morrison would turn Spider-Man into an Indian deity and give him a magical elephant.
He's done great work with Batman, Superman, the Justice League of America, the Fantastic Four and the X-Men without turning any of them into Indian deities, so I don't see why he shouldn't be allowed to take on the biggest franchise he has never worked on.

[Kirayoshi]

Grant Morrison would turn Spider-Man into an Indian deity and give him a magical elephant.
There already was a Spider-Man: India. IIRC Green Goblin, Dr. Octopus and Venom were incarnations of evil Indian gods/demons. Actually it was a fairly entertaining mini.

[ZT4]

Morrison would actually have Osborn use microbe nanobots to control The Thunderbolts and reduce whole cities to ruins. Spidey stops him, he decapitates himself on his own glider or something...then Joe retcons it and says it was Xorn's brother going loopy after being depowered.

The level of wasted potential with Osborn is staggering

[IRONY...]

IGN had an interview with Steve Wacker- the upcoming editor of Amazing Spider-Man.
http://comics.ign.com/articles/840/840731p1.html

One Slightly Revealing thing about his process was the following....



So my question is this...If you were in Steve Wacker's shoes, how would you do things differently? Would Amazing Spider-Man have a different schedule? Would you have gone after different creators? Feel free to mention how you would deal with the aftermath of One More Day.

Quit the job and get famous for quitting Marvel the time they did their worst mistake.

[Mister Mets]

Question for those who would assume they'd get fired or quit.

Let's say Quesada approves a reunion for the Parkers and reveals to you (as editor of the Spider-Man books) that the break-up is meant to be temporary (unless you decide otherwise) and that he has no objection to a reunion.

When would you want it to happen?

Would it occur immediately, or would you take advantage of the new status quo, and build up to a later reunion (perhaps around Amazing Spider-Man #600?)

[ZT4]

Would it occur immediately, or would you take advantage of the new status quo, and build up to a later reunion (perhaps around Amazing Spider-Man #600?)

I think they already are, and have always been intending that. When was the last time you saw a BIG event culminate in an anniversary issue, but started with, for argument's sake, "435" leading to "500"?

[Mister Mets]

I think they already are, and have always been intending that. When was the last time you saw a BIG event culminate in an anniversary issue, but started with, for argument's sake, "435" leading to "500"?
Keep in mind that the difference between 435 and 500 is less than two years thanks to the new schedule and there are many times when a big event is set up two years earlier, and it culminates in an anniversary issue.

Best example I can think of is the reunion of Peter and Mary Jane in Amazing Spider-Man Volume 2 # 50.

[Noronha]

I would cancel Amazing Spider-Man for good and make Ultimate Spidey the only one.

Spider-Man from 616 is finished,it´s a dry and squeezed lemon,he´s like an old star that no matter what you do you can´t bring him back to his glory days and is living in denial.
And with each try the results are even more humiliating and denegrating to his legacy.
Just put him out of his misery.

Ultimate Spidey rules!

[projectnrm]

I'd keep Dan Slott, Mark Gunneingham, Steve McNiven and Salvador Larroca. But after you said we could handle it anyway we want if we became editors, I'd go for this method instead.

I'd have Dan Slott, Brian Michael Bendis, Ed Brubaker and Mark Millar as the writers and I'd have Steve McNiven, Mark Bagley, John Romita Jr. and Greg Land as the artists.

I think the problem with that is that none of those writers would probably be willing to take a backseat to any of the others. Everyone has their own ideas, and A-list writers actually have the clout to make those ideas happen. There'd be too many cooks in that kitchen.

Maybe one of those guys could come in as a main story architect, and the writers who are still paying their dues could just flesh things out. So then there's one cohesive vision from a proven big-name writer.

As for artists, JRJR and Bagley alternating every two weeks. They're two of the most renowned Spidey artists and have proven that they can handle the faster pace of such a schedule.

[jadrax]

Question for those who would assume they'd get fired or quit.

Let's say Quesada approves a reunion for the Parkers and reveals to you (as editor of the Spider-Man books) that the break-up is meant to be temporary (unless you decide otherwise) and that he has no objection to a reunion.

When would you want it to happen?

Would it occur immediately, or would you take advantage of the new status quo, and build up to a later reunion (perhaps around Amazing Spider-Man #600?)

That's the main reason I would Quit tbh, there is no good time to re-establish the marriage. Everything you do leading up to that point is essentially redundant and is basically going to be seen as delaying the inevitable. Or indeed even worse rubbing salt into the wound, (I pity whoever makes the mistake of writing peter dating someone else in this current climate.)

On the other hand, if I took over tomorrow and made the whole of OMD a Bad Dream, all it does is solidify it as the worst storyline ever and damage the brand further.

Essentially there is no way of producing quality stories now that will make fans happy now for several years. Its an utter lose/lose situation, and top of that you have to cope with it being almost weekly, meaning you have next to no time to take feedback into account as everything being run right up to the line.

[ZT4]

The God-Like being that visited in "Sensational" was probably to give ASM a jumping off point saying Peter and MJ would survive every hardship. He knew what Mephisto was about to do.

So yeah, they WILL have that daughter, they WILL be married again, it's just you'll never see it so long as Joe is in charge.

Spidey's story has come to an end, everything else in between is all shits and giggles.

[Mister Mets]

Bump.


I would cancel Amazing Spider-Man for good and make Ultimate Spidey the only one.

Spider-Man from 616 is finished,it´s a dry and squeezed lemon,he´s like an old star that no matter what you do you can´t bring him back to his glory days and is living in denial.
And with each try the results are even more humiliating and denegrating to his legacy.
Just put him out of his misery.

Ultimate Spidey rules!Considering the editor of the Marvel Universe Spider-Man books doesn't edit Ultimate Spider-Man, you'd soon be out of a job. :biggrin:

What do you mean by canceling Amazing Spider-Man for good? Will you just stop commissioning new stories? Will you not publish any new issues even if you have material for them? Or would you commission a final Spider-Man story? If so, how long would it be and what creators would you try to get for it?

[cpahl2000]

I would have three titles, Amazing Spider-man with Geoff Johns and Marcus Matin, Spectacular Spider-Man with Judd Winick and Patrick Gleason and Spider-Man with Matt Fractin and Phil Jimenez. First I´d do a 4 part mini-series cleaning up the whole OMD and bringing back the marriage then, i´d give the three writers all freedon to work and using the classic rogues and support characters they want and little by little adding new elements and characters to Spidey´s universe and banish, once an for all any kind of retcons.

It may be stupid but it´s the way i´d edit Spider-Man.

[ZT4]

I'd keep ASM around, maybe even keep it the way it is, but I'd relegate it to "out of continuity" so writers can "experiment". I'd test new writers on a four times a year "Unlimited" relaunch with a "short stories" format, and pick the winners to work on a Spidey title reserved only for them, or material for Amazing Spider-Man Family if that title falls through

I'd revive titles that would allow things to be told from a supporting cast's POV every issue. Sort of a "Marvel Team-up" Spidey style...one issue it's the relationship with Peter and Flash, then Peter and Betty, then Peter and MJ, then Peter and Johnny, then Peter and Jameson

Several ASM one-shots that retcon some of the dopier mandates and replace them in continuity

[Cyclopsj316]

Feel free to mention how you would deal with the aftermath of One More Day.



I'd say " april fools!! " and get right back to writing spidey 616, ditching the 666 BND farce before it even began.

the, something like this would happen to me...




I'd say "Shit, Joe, everyone thinks that that was a stupid idea. We better change it back!"

And then I'd be picking up my Social Security cheque five minutes later, because I questioned the will of High Overlord Quesada...

[Mister Mets]

I merged two older threads on editing Spider-Man comics together, and decided to bump them as a companion to the "you are the Spider-Man writer" thread. (http://forums.comicbookresources.com/showthread.php?t=228839&highlight=write%2A)


The God-Like being that visited in "Sensational" was probably to give ASM a jumping off point saying Peter and MJ would survive every hardship. He knew what Mephisto was about to do.

So yeah, they WILL have that daughter, they WILL be married again, it's just you'll never see it so long as Joe is in charge.

Spidey's story has come to an end, everything else in between is all shits and giggles.What creative team would you get to handle that story? Or would you just do it as a flashback in Spider-Girl?



I would have three titles, Amazing Spider-man with Geoff Johns and Marcus Matin, Spectacular Spider-Man with Judd Winick and Patrick Gleason and Spider-Man with Matt Fractin and Phil Jimenez. First I´d do a 4 part mini-series cleaning up the whole OMD and bringing back the marriage then, i´d give the three writers all freedon to work and using the classic rogues and support characters they want and little by little adding new elements and characters to Spidey´s universe and banish, once an for all any kind of retcons.

It may be stupid but it´s the way i´d edit Spider-Man.Would you want the individual books to have any specific direction/ identity? What creative team would you hire for the four part mini series?

[Matt Linton]

I can't remember who first mentioned it (maybe Jim Thompson?), but I like the bi-weekly Amazing, third week with Marvel Team-Up idea. For creative teams:

Amazing: Dan Slott and Matt Fraction, art by rotating teams of artists like we have now (folks like Martin, Bachalo, Jimenez, etc).

Marvel Team-Up: Rotating writers to allow for big names like Bendis, Vaughan, Millar, Brubaker, etc. Art by John Romita Jr. to draw in readers. Plus, it'd be a way for Romita to draw a lot of different characters. Story length would be up to the writers. Also, stories could occasionally spin directly out of Amazing, allowing for cross-pollination between the two books.

[ronnieramone]

Amazing: Dan Slott and Matt Fraction, art by rotating teams of artists like we have now (folks like Martin, Bachalo, Jimenez, etc).


Dan Slott is growing on me. He is far and away the best of the BND writers. If BND were all Slott all the time, it would far better than what it is now. I definitely want to see what Matt Fraction can do with Spider-man, after his Sensational Annual. He clearly understands and conveys Peter's core character traits better than most of the modern era Spider-man writers. I definitely could live with those two on the book.

I'm not crazy about the rotating artists, though. I would really like more consistency in the book's appearance. Seeing the preview art by JR Jr. is like seeing an old friend you haven't seen in years and realizing all at once just how much you've missed them. He's not my favorite artist by a long shot, but I'm "comfortable" with him on Spider-man. Sure, there are some fantastic artists out there like McNiven and such, but they remind me of staying at a 5 star resort; no matter how fancy they are, sooner or later you just want to go home. I think of JR, Jr. as "home" for the Amazing Spider-man.

[Matt Linton]

Dan Slott is growing on me. He is far and away the best of the BND writers. If BND were all Slott all the time, it would far better than what it is now. I definitely want to see what Matt Fraction can do with Spider-man, after his Sensational Annual. He clearly understands and conveys Peter's core character traits better than most of the modern era Spider-man writers. I definitely could live with those two on the book.

I'm not crazy about the rotating artists, though. I would really like more consistency in the book's appearance. Seeing the preview art by JR Jr. is like seeing an old friend you haven't seen in years and realizing all at once just how much you've missed them. He's not my favorite artist by a long shot, but I'm "comfortable" with him on Spider-man. Sure, there are some fantastic artists out there like McNiven and such, but they remind me of staying at a 5 star resort; no matter how fancy they are, sooner or later you just want to go home. I think of JR, Jr. as "home" for the Amazing Spider-man.

Oh, I agree completely about JRjr. He's my second favorite artist after Paul Smith, and my favorite Spider-Man artist, period. The only reason I'd go with rotating artists on Amazing is to keep a bi-weekly schedule, and JRjr is probably the only artist big enough to do a monthly Marvel Team-Up book that would draw in readers who might otherwise skip it (and he could hit that schedule pretty easily). I think Amazing is a big enough book on its own that it wouldn't be hurt (saleswise) by rotating artists.

Plus, I just love the idea of a Spider-Man/DD team up by Bendis/JRjr, Spider-Man/Captain America by Brubaker/JRjr, Wolverine/Spider-Man by Millar/JRjr, etc.

And I think putting JRjr in a permanent role on MTU would help to make it seem like less of an ancillary title, and more of an equal to Amazing.

[Mister Mets]

Dan Slott is growing on me. He is far and away the best of the BND writers. If BND were all Slott all the time, it would far better than what it is now. I definitely want to see what Matt Fraction can do with Spider-man, after his Sensational Annual. He clearly understands and conveys Peter's core character traits better than most of the modern era Spider-man writers. I definitely could live with those two on the book.

I'm not crazy about the rotating artists, though. I would really like more consistency in the book's appearance. Seeing the preview art by JR Jr. is like seeing an old friend you haven't seen in years and realizing all at once just how much you've missed them. He's not my favorite artist by a long shot, but I'm "comfortable" with him on Spider-man. Sure, there are some fantastic artists out there like McNiven and such, but they remind me of staying at a 5 star resort; no matter how fancy they are, sooner or later you just want to go home. I think of JR, Jr. as "home" for the Amazing Spider-man.Assuming that you want John Romita Jr to do as many issues as he can per year (which I believe is about 20 or so) what would you do with the other 16 issues (assuming you'd want to keep the three times a month schedule)?


Oh, I agree completely about JRjr. He's my second favorite artist after Paul Smith, and my favorite Spider-Man artist, period. The only reason I'd go with rotating artists on Amazing is to keep a bi-weekly schedule, and JRjr is probably the only artist big enough to do a monthly Marvel Team-Up book that would draw in readers who might otherwise skip it (and he could hit that schedule pretty easily). I think Amazing is a big enough book on its own that it wouldn't be hurt (saleswise) by rotating artists.

Plus, I just love the idea of a Spider-Man/DD team up by Bendis/JRjr, Spider-Man/Captain America by Brubaker/JRjr, Wolverine/Spider-Man by Millar/JRjr, etc.

And I think putting JRjr in a permanent role on MTU would help to make it seem like less of an ancillary title, and more of an equal to Amazing.At least five incarnations of the Spider-Man team up book haven't worked out the best, but your strategy is an intriguing one. There is the likelihood that the writers may use their one arc to work on a character they're already familiar with, and possibly just move their plots from those books forward (or write stuff that'll please fans of older creative runs, while confusing newer readers).

And I still suspect that a Spider-Man/ DD team up by Bendis/ JRjr would sell better as a three part Amazing Spider-Man arc than a three part Marvel Team Up arc.

[Matt Linton]

Marvel Team-Up (the original) lasted 150 issues until it basically turned into Web of Spider-Man, and Ultimate MTU had rotating (and mostly indie/lesser known artists). Both Marvel Team-Up (vol 2) and Spider-Man Team-Up ran at a time when there were several other Spider-Man books, and neither featured top creative teams (plus, the former starred Ben Reilly for most of the issues, and the latter became, inexplicably, a Namor team-up book with issue #8). And the most recent series tried to do a rotating lead and long arcs.

It can be a tricky book to make work, but I don't think Marvel's really put a lot of effort into it since the original series ended.

[Mister Mets]

Marvel Team-Up (the original) lasted 150 issues until it basically turned into Web of Spider-Man, and Ultimate MTU had rotating (and mostly indie/lesser known artists). Both Marvel Team-Up (vol 2) and Spider-Man Team-Up ran at a time when there were several other Spider-Man books, and neither featured top creative teams (plus, the former starred Ben Reilly for most of the issues, and the latter became, inexplicably, a Namor team-up book with issue #8). And the most recent series tried to do a rotating lead and long arcs.

It can be a tricky book to make work, but I don't think Marvel's really put a lot of effort into it since the original series ended.Note that once Marvel realized that they could just make Marvel Team Up a generic satellite title (although Web did have a unique concept at first), they didn't really look back.

I similarly suspect that now that Marvel has realized they can have more than one issue of ASM a month, we're not going to see any more generic satellite books.

[Scott Taylor]

Its definitely looking like consolidation is the watchword here. Having no true satellite titles and just limiting the storyline to the main ASM title. Personally, I think its great to have just one Spider-Man 616 title. If there is a storyline I like, I can pick it up. If not, I don't have any other options so it ends up being cheaper for me. Also, its easier to follow the progress of the character, imho.

Creatively, its a little more restrictive of an idea. You have less exploration of different aspects of the character because everything is linear and there can't be as many parallel storylines. But that is appealing to me again because its less confusing. It was always a bit confusing to me to reconcile what was going on in SSM, ASM and FNSM.

[lou-bert vs. q-bert]

If I were the editor of Spider-Man comics, I'd be the Anti-Axel Alonso. Everything in Spider-Continuity would be used and referenced, including the marriage. I'd even allow inclusion of Spider-Man: Chapter One if only to goof on it.

[Mister Mets]

If I were the editor of Spider-Man comics, I'd be the Anti-Axel Alonso. Everything in Spider-Continuity would be used and referenced, including the marriage. I'd even allow inclusion of Spider-Man: Chapter One if only to goof on it.How would you pull that one off?


Its definitely looking like consolidation is the watchword here. Having no true satellite titles and just limiting the storyline to the main ASM title. Personally, I think its great to have just one Spider-Man 616 title. If there is a storyline I like, I can pick it up. If not, I don't have any other options so it ends up being cheaper for me. Also, its easier to follow the progress of the character, imho.

Creatively, its a little more restrictive of an idea. You have less exploration of different aspects of the character because everything is linear and there can't be as many parallel storylines. But that is appealing to me again because its less confusing. It was always a bit confusing to me to reconcile what was going on in SSM, ASM and FNSM.I'm not so sure it restricts writers to put everything in ASM. When the stories aren't linear, there are questions about continuity.

And if a satellite title has a distinguishing concept, that also restricts writers. For instance, a street-level book probably wouldn't be the place for the Spider-Man/ Warlock team-up you always wanted to do, while a team-up book isn't generally the place for a story in which Spider-Man tackles Carnage by himself.

[lou-bert vs. q-bert]

How would you pull that one off?There would at least have to be allusions to Spidey and Doc Ock's origins tied together. And since Norman is the big kahuna, Sandman, his "distant cousin" :rolleyes:would have to be brought into the picture. But Sandy a re-reformed Sandman yet opposes the Registration and is anti-Norman.

[David Walton]

I like the idea of having MTU around again. I think it's about time.

I'd also give MTU the freedom to have team-ups occur in the past. One way to link them from time to time would be to tell an "untold" story of a past team-up and then have a villain from the past or the events from that story flow into an ASM arc.

[David Walton]

And weighing in on JR, Jr.--I really wouldn't like him as the regular artist for MTU. His work is generally a darker tone, and I'd like to see some more lighthearted adventures in MTU as well.

[Scott Taylor]

I'm not so sure it restricts writers to put everything in ASM. When the stories aren't linear, there are questions about continuity.

And if a satellite title has a distinguishing concept, that also restricts writers. For instance, a street-level book probably wouldn't be the place for the Spider-Man/ Warlock team-up you always wanted to do, while a team-up book isn't generally the place for a story in which Spider-Man tackles Carnage by himself.

I should note that restrictions on writers isn't necessarily a bad thing. And it should have been termed as restrictions on stories, really. After all good writers are good no matter what.