Worried about Marvel's well of writers?

[Will.S]

I sort of am.

I've been noticing that Marvel are buying up a ton of fantastic artistic talent, especially with the exclusive anouncement of of Pascual Ferry but art has never really been a problem for Marvel, it's the writing staff that has me a bit worried. Over at DC they've got an amazing amount of organization and synchronization going on and they've just filled the talent pool over there with a great group of writers.

Grant Morrison, Mark Waid, Geoffrey Johns, Judd Winick, Greg Rucka, Andy Diggle, Frank Miller and Keith Giffen....all great writers.

Marvel seems to me to be kind of drying up a bit. Bendis is still their biggest mainstay but Millar's output is decreasing as well as Warren Ellis. I'm also noticing Marvel bringing in alot of outside talent lately such as Joss Whedon (Astonishing X-Men), Allan Heinburg (Young Avengers), Bryan Singer (Ultimate X-Men) Lost co-creator and executive producer Damon Lindelof (Ultimate Hulk vs Wolverine), Charlie Huston (Moon Knight) and Bendis's protege Brian Reed (Ultimate Spider-Man game).

Two out of four of these have proven to be able to write some damn good stuff but the other four are unproven and who knows how long they'll stay. I'm mainly hoping for a good stable output by exclusive writers the way DC has been able to especially with such terrific stuff like Seven Soldiers and Countdown.

HoM I'm really enjoying at the moment but there's alot of cloudyness after that.

I'm guessing that Marvel is restructuring their writing talent so that they have a good amount of writers to bounce ideas back and forth to and to take over certain books. But I am happy to see that they have Jeph Loeb now as well as these writers still around doing their own excellent stories at Marvel such as:

Ed Brubaker - Captain America, Books of Doom, X-Men: Deadly Genesis
Peter David - X-Factor, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man
Dan Slott - She-Hulk, Thing
Fabian Nicieza - Thunderbolts
JMS - Amazing Spider-Man, Supreme Power
Brian Bendis - New Avengers, The Pulse, Spider-Woman, Ultimate Spider-Man, House of M
Robert Kirkman - Marvel Team-Up, Marvel Zombies (LOL)
Paul Jenkins - The Sentry
Brian K. Vaughn - The Runaways, Ultimate X-Men

So I hope they all stick around in the long run and keep up some really good creative stuff as well as Marvel adding new writing talent that have some good work coming up and can be exclusive to Marvel.

What do you guys think?

[Ivan Isaacs]

Geoff "Bring back DC to the Silver Age" Johns can stay at DC for all I care.

But Marvel has also the highlay talented Sean McKeever (Mary Jane, Sentinel, Gravity, Marvel Adventures, Inhumans, Mega Morphs) as well as Daniel Way (Gun Theory, Nighthawk, Wolverine).
Then they seem to give for work to John Layman (FF: HoM, Gambit) and David Hine (District X, DD: Redemption).

You also forgot Peter Milligan (who is mostly hit or miss).

Keith Giffen also writes for Marvel (Defenders, Howling Commandos, Drax).

And Geoff Johns came also from Hollywood and Judd Winick was also on MTV's The real World.

[Sentry]

i have to say that i think marvels pool at the moment is strongerthan dc's.

vaughn is amazing as is miller, kirkman, and then theres bendis who is better than the whole dc universe combined.

Waid is extremly inconsistent, johns imo average, morrision is average.

personally im a huge fan of jenkins as well and soooooooo pleased loeb is coming to our world.

[milhouse123321]

I think B.K. Vaughn is Marvel's best writer.

And I'd say Judd Winick is the best writer in comics today.. love these guys work.

[Cayman]

I'm not too worried, they have a pretty big pool of potential breakout writers that aren't exclusive to DC at this point, in addition to the marquee names. Sean McKeever, Daniel Way, Mike Carey, DiFillipis and Weir, Zeb Wells, etc.

Besides all the writers bounce back and forth between companies. Andy Diggle's writing an issue for Marvel, he might write more when his exclusivity ends.

Cay

[bosshog7169]

dc has a gang of amazing writers who are working together closely to form a cohesive and epic storyline. Marvel has Bendis and a bunch of guys who, while talented, don't seem to show any signs of interaction with one another. Marvel's continuity is very confused right now and I am extremely worried about the path they have chosen. If this pattern continues and dc keeps upping the ante like they have been, I will be fully converted from dc to marvel soon if i havent been already. Marvel needs to come together.

[bosshog7169]

yeah.........

[Doom Hammer]

I think Marvel has a great pool of talent to draw from, and I'm very comfortable with their current situation. I'm also excited for the newer writers coming in, like Whedon, Huston, Heinburg, and, um, Lost writer guy.

No, I definitely think Marvel is doing fine.

[StoneGold]

And then there are a couple of minor, incidental writers you forgot about like Garth Ennis, Mark Millar and Neil Gaiman. The occasional script from Orson Scott Card. And Diggle is doing at least a Punisher one-shot at Marvel. Joe Casey has a couple of minis on his plate. And again, that's not counting a couple of guys who really are on the virge of breaking out, like Daniel Way. His Bullseye mini was awesome, and he's doing a sequel to it, Nighthawk, and taking over for Wolverine and Hulk.

[marvelboy]

JMS on supreme power is awesome,Mark Millar is amazing,Bendis is doing wonders on New Avengers,Brubaker is saving captain america. I really can't complain. Joss Whedon is making one of the best x-men series in astonishing. Loeb has his moments,greg pak is an up and comer. Im gonna wait to see which king writer we are getting before declaring who is getting the most bang for their buck.

I agree with Ivan about Geoff Johns,after his stupid comment about wolverine when compared to hawkman he should permanently stay at DC.

[bosshog7169]

I agree all of these writers are awesome. But DC has put their writers on books that fit their style and they are working together to build a very cohesive universe that feels extremely real. All the books seem to be part of the same universe. Marvel on the other hand has some great books and maybe even a larger pool of talent, but i see no connection between the different areas of the marvel universe. Wolverine is in 18 titles as a good guy, but in his own book he is a terrorist for a while. Nobody even notices though. The Xorn thing was clumsily passed between writers. There's a lot of stuff like this going on. I read Marvel books for the individual titles, but not for the universe as a whole n i miss that. My favortie marvel books right now are probly astonishing xmen, punisher, HoM, and ultimate FF, but I treat them as if they exist in separate universes. DC is creating an epic that stretches across the entire universe, and it is working extremely well. The suspense i have for the enitre DC universe is killing me. The Marvel universe as a whole doesn't hold the same excitement for me as new writers keep showing up to retcon the last writers arc without actually moving anything in the universe forward. Sorry to ramble but this is frusrating me as I used to love marvel and hate DC, and now i feel almost completely the opposite way.

[tjarvis]

The thing about an epic is that it's plot driven, and thus can only last so long. Yeah, there's a higher thrill ratio that comes from such a storyline, but it does end when all is said and done.

Numbers for Infinite Crisis are going to spike a lot of issues, but if nobody really cares more or less by the time the story is done, than it's of little long term value.

Marvel may have some lack of cohesion, but telling strong individual stories is as much an asset as anything else. With the emphasis always on character, loyal readers know what they're getting. There's no end game per say.

Oh, and what was John's comments regarding Wolverine and Hawkman?

[thik_3rd]

I agree with Ivan about Geoff Johns,after his stupid comment about wolverine when compared to hawkman he should permanently stay at DC.
what did he say about hawkman and wolverine?
i'd love nothing more than to have johns come write for marvel.

[tjarvis]

what did he say about hawkman and wolverine?
i'd love nothing more than to have johns come write for marvel.

I don't know, I do enjoy some of John's DC work (JSA for example), but I was really bored with his brief Avengers stint.

[marvelboy]

he made mention of it on newsarama when he was talking about his collaboration with allan heinberg. He said that Hawkman is not like Wolverine who hacks and slashes anything. Which is a very dumb comment to make because if people read Wolverine throughout his run. People will know his history and what makes him what he is. Some writers neglected his bushido code and just turned him into a walking chopomatic. Barry windsor smith depicted him well as did frank miller but some people took it that he just killed everyone non-stop. That kind of comment just sounds stupid because it sounds like someone who has never read wolverine before.

[thik_3rd]

I don't know, I do enjoy some of John's DC work (JSA for example), but I was really bored with his brief Avengers stint.
i liked his avengers a lot, in fact i liked it better than busiek's run. jsa is probably my second favorite book out these days.

[Cayman]

I hope Johns stays exclusive with DC FOREVER!



Cay

[Predator]

Although I do worry that Marvel caters all too often to their Big Three (Bendis, Millar, and JMS), as long as they still keep Brubaker, PAD, and Vaughn around (with an occassional project from Whedon), I think they will do ok.

And from the DC exclusive list, the only ones I miss are Waid and Morrison, and Winick on Exiles.

[The Shadow]

dc has a gang of amazing writers who are working together closely to form a cohesive and epic storyline. Marvel has Bendis and a bunch of guys who, while talented, don't seem to show any signs of interaction with one another. Marvel's continuity is very confused right now
How is Marvel's continuity confusing? ESPECIALLY when stacked up against DC's?!!?!??

Wolverine is in 18 titles as a good guy, but in his own book he is a terrorist for a while. Nobody even notices though.
Who says the books take place at the same time? Comics come out 1 day a week and only 4 times a month... who says Wolverine didn't go all rogue over 2 days? Or a week? There's still plenty of time for things to get straightened out... and Bendis made reference to it in New Avengers... and before that Claremont had Wolverine in the Savage Land in Uncanny X-Men which is where the Avengers found him in NA.

I think Marvel has a great pool of writers.

Brubaker is (IMO) the best at Marvel right now. He has made Captain America the best Marvel book (again IMO).

DC can have Geoff "bring back the silver age" Johns... or Judd "I'm sucessfully ruining Batman!" Winnick.

[The Shadow]

i liked his avengers a lot, in fact i liked it better than busiek's run. jsa is probably my second favorite book out these days.
It's my third... just after Birds of Prey and Captain America.

[Astonishing X-Fan]

EVERYONE here is forgetting another one of DCs great writers...

Gail Simone.

She's fantastic, and deserves a lot of credit, too.

[thik_3rd]

EVERYONE here is forgetting another one of DCs great writers...

Gail Simone.

She's fantastic, and deserves a lot of credit, too.
nope i mentioned gail.
I hope Johns stays exclusive with DC FOREVER!



Cay
i hope johns BUYS MARVEL, and writes EVERY BOOK!

[CURSD BLADE]

Marvel has a tremendous roster of exclusive or heavily marvel focused writers currently:
Dan Slott (She Hulk, The Thing)
Greg Pak (Pheonix-Endsong, 1602: New World)
Sean McKeever (Sentinel, Gravity)
Peter David (FN Spider-Man, X-Factor)
Joss Whedon (Astonishing X-Men)
Ed Brubaker (Captain America, Daredevil)
Robert Kirkman (Marvel Team-Up, Marvel: Zombies)
Warren Ellis (Ultimate Extinction, Next Wave)
Brian Michael Bendis (New Avengers, The Pulse)
Reginald Hudlin (Black Panther, MK Spider-Man)
JMS (Amazing Spider-Man, Book of Lost Souls)
Mark Millar (Ultimate Fantastic Four, Ultimates V2)
Paul Jenkins (The Sentry, Generation M)
Fabian Nicieza (New Thunderbolts, Cable & Deadpool)
Peter Milligan (X-Men)
Chris Claremont (Uncanny X-Men, New Excalibur)
Garth Ennis (Ghost Rider, The Punisher)
Kevin Smith (Spider-Man/Black Cat, DD: Target)
Orson Scott Card (Ultimate Iron Man)
Neil Gaiman (1602, unnamed next project)
Daniel Way (Wolverine, Incredible Hulk)
Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa (Nightcrawler, MK Fantastic Four)
Zeb Wells (New Warriors, FF/Iron Man: Big in Japan)
Michael Avon Oeming (Thor: Blood Omen, Stormbreakers)
Richard K. Morgan (Black Widow)
Tony Bedard (Exiles, Rogue)
Karl Kerschl (Amazing Fantasy, Fantastic Four)
David Hine (District X, Colossus: Bloodline)
Chris Yost & Craig Kyle (X-23/New X-Men)
Tom Defalco (Spider-Girl)
Fiona Avery (Arana, Amazing Spider-Man)
Frank Tieri (Weapon X, Wolverine)

All in all, Marvel is pretty good on the writers, let alone the freelancers such as Brian K. Vaughan.

By the way, Marvel is much more interested in developing new talents than just banking on established A-Listers.

[marvelboy]

nope i mentioned gail.

i hope johns BUYS MARVEL, and writes EVERY BOOK!




Oh and why? so he can make wolverine sensative and not kill people and then turn the clock back to the 50's where hero's told kids to take their vitamins? Sorry but I hear that enough from conservatives..don't want to see it in comics

[o1pickleboy]

I don't know, I do enjoy some of John's DC work (JSA for example), but I was really bored with his brief Avengers stint.


Yeah I wasn't impressed with John's Avengers either, but on almost everything else of his I like. I wouldn't mind him taking a crack at the X-Men.

Speaking of X-men I am surprise Chris Claremont wasn't brought up. I don't know his contract sit, but he is a good writer and definity brings something to the table. I know that he is out of X-Men ideas, but he still could do a excellence job writing the Avengers or maybe something new.

[Charagon]

Marvel seems to me to be kind of drying up a bit. Bendis is still their biggest mainstay (WOOT!) but Millar's output is decreasing (WOOT!) as well as Warren Ellis (WOOT!). I'm also noticing Marvel bringing in alot of outside talent lately such as Joss Whedon (Astonishing X-Men) (WOOT!), Allen Heinburg (Young Avengers) (WOOT!), Bryan Singer (Ultimate X-Men) (WOOT!), Lost co-creator and executive producer Damon Lindelof (Ultimate Hulk vs Wolverine) (WOOT!), Charlie Huston (Moon Knight) and Bendis's protege Brian Reed (Ultimate Spider-Man game) (WOOT!).

What's the problem?

[Astonishing X-Fan]

"Oh and why? so he can make wolverine sensative and not kill people and then turn the clock back to the 50's where hero's told kids to take their vitamins? Sorry but I hear that enough from conservatives..don't want to see it in comics"

Obviosuly you don't even read his work, since there's nothing even close to this in JSA, JSA Classified, Teen Titans, JLA, Green Lantern, Flash, or the Infinite Crisis stuff.

[tigermagee]

IMO David Hine and Greg Pak are two of the best writers at Marvel at the moment. They just need to be put on ongoing titles that suit there style, and be given a chance to put there mark on the MU.

Also there are more writers at Marvel who books i would but because they are writing them, while at DC John and Morrison are the only writers i would buy a specific title because of.

[marvelboy]

"Oh and why? so he can make wolverine sensative and not kill people and then turn the clock back to the 50's where hero's told kids to take their vitamins? Sorry but I hear that enough from conservatives..don't want to see it in comics"

Obviosuly you don't even read his work, since there's nothing even close to this in JSA, JSA Classified, Teen Titans, JLA, Green Lantern, Flash, or the Infinite Crisis stuff.



I've read his JSA work and FLash work and his interviews. He is into silverage in terms of hero's and way of thinking. He is a good writer,he just is not suited to what Marvel does.

[Ryan de Joya]

Speaking of Warren Ellis, isn't he Marvel exclusive? How come he's still writing Jack Cross, Planetary and JLA: Classified? (not that I'm complaining, I'd love for him to continue working at DC)

[Sean Whitmore]

Speaking of Warren Ellis, isn't he Marvel exclusive? How come he's still writing Jack Cross, Planetary and JLA: Classified? (not that I'm complaining, I'd love for him to continue working at DC)


I'm fairly certain Ellis is never gonna be exclusive to either of the Big Two. He primarily wants to write his own comics...playing with the Justice League just keeps the lights on. :)


SEAN

[grendel824]

morrision is average.


That's the most insane thing I've seen all week.

Love him or hate him he's anything but average. I think they've both got solid stables, but I'm most excited about DC's potential at the moment. Every new Previews makes me giddy with excitement for both companies - it's a good time to be into comics.

[marvelboy]

warren ellis is exclsuive to marvel,his stories with jsa classified are years old and are only being published now so they were written before he became marvel exclusive. The other books are creator owned stuff

[BlackKnight]

Oh and why? so he can make wolverine sensative and not kill people and then turn the clock back to the 50's where hero's told kids to take their vitamins? Sorry but I hear that enough from conservatives..don't want to see it in comics

Sorry I find this so amusing. Johns writes superhero stories, that does not make them 50's, 60's or 70's, etc...

What you are thinking is he doesn't write angst ridden, dark stories. Lack a majority of Marvel is now. Johns is a far better writer of super-hero stories then Bendis or Millar will ever hope to be.

[Cayman]

Johns is a pretty dark writer. His Teen Titans stuff, for example, is really violent. One arc included a former heroine go insane and stab her own eye out with a knife. I think he could probably write Wolverine stories with the right tone. Granted, judging by his past work, they'd suck. But still, he could do that style.

Cay

[marvelboy]

Sorry I find this so amusing. Johns writes superhero stories, that does not make them 50's, 60's or 70's, etc...

What you are thinking is he doesn't write angst ridden, dark stories. Lack a majority of Marvel is now. Johns is a far better writer of super-hero stories then Bendis or Millar will ever hope to be.




Actually I commented on that later on in the thread that he doesn't write to the style marvel does. But he has stated in an interview that he has a strong preference for silverage. It's your opinion that he writes better superhero stories than bendis or millar but not everyone feels the same. Far as Im concerned Millar with ultimates has redefined the hero genre

[marvelboy]

Johns is a pretty dark writer. His Teen Titans stuff, for example, is really violent. One arc included a former heroine go insane and stab her own eye out with a knife. I think he could probably write Wolverine stories with the right tone. Granted, judging by his past work, they'd suck. But still, he could do that style.

Cay



What Wolverine need's is barry windsor smith,frank miller type of treatment to get him back to what he really used to be. With art by mike deodato jr.

[BlackKnight]

Actually I commented on that later on in the thread that he doesn't write to the style marvel does. But he has stated in an interview that he has a strong preference for silverage. It's your opinion that he writes better superhero stories than bendis or millar but not everyone feels the same. Far as Im concerned Millar with ultimates has redefined the hero genre

He prefer the silverage, does not mean he trying to return everything to the silverage. Big difference.

Hey I like ultimates, but it how it the heck did it redifine the hero genre?

And yes I know that my thinking Johns is better then Bendis or Millar(who I like) is just my opinion. OF course so is what you are saying.

[marvelboy]

Because Ultimates plays to such a realistic tone in tune with today's world that it is borderline scary. Alot of what he writes in ultimates isn't impossible to acheive in the real world when seen superpowers through purely applied science and it's applications. To me that is like looking through a crystal ball.........these days the difference between fantasy and science fiction is starting to blur given we can already clone live creatures.

[BlackKnight]

Because Ultimates plays to such a realistic tone in tune with today's world that it is borderline scary. Alot of what he writes in ultimates isn't impossible to acheive in the real world when seen superpowers through purely applied science and it's applications. To me that is like looking through a crystal ball.........these days the difference between fantasy and science fiction is starting to blur given we can already clone live creatures.


I will give you this, that is interesting, and you are correct the days between fantasy and science fiction are bluring. However in my opinion ultimates is nothing new to the comic world. Not saying it is not a great comic, cause it is, much better then its 616 counter part.
But much like what you said about what I think about Johns as a writer this is all just your opinion.

[ChildOfTheDarkholde]

Johns is a pretty dark writer. His Teen Titans stuff, for example, is really violent. One arc included a former heroine go insane and stab her own eye out with a knife.

Cay

Which former heroine did that , Cayman?

[BlackKnight]

Which former heroine did that , Cayman?

I believe that would be Slades daughter who stabs her own eye out to be more like her father, much to his horror. And as horrible as that was, it is not nearly as dark as some of the stuff marvel has been producing.

Correct me if I am wrong Cay.

[Cayman]

Which former heroine did that , Cayman?

Rose Wilson.

Cay

[moebius]

Marvel vs. DC: The Cola Wars for the 21st Century. :rolleyes:

[marvelboy]

I just personally don't like geoff Johns as a writer or his opinions on Wolverine. TO me in order to make the comment he did about wolverine would be of someone who did not read the previous writers material. You want to read real wolverine? Get the books done by Barry Windsor Smith and Larry Hama. That is real Wolverine

[Will.S]

I just personally don't like geoff Johns as a writer or his opinions on Wolverine. TO me in order to make the comment he did about wolverine would be of someone who did not read the previous writers material. You want to read real wolverine? Get the books done by Barry Windsor Smith and Larry Hama. That is real Wolverine
What did Geof say about Millar's Wolverine run?

[Alan2099]

Personally, I'm very worried that Marvel keeps their writers in a well. It's like that scene from Silence of the Lambs.

Althought that would explain the quality of some of the stories latley.

[marvelboy]

What did Geof say about Millar's Wolverine run?



He didn't say anything,he just charactorized WOlverine in general

[o1pickleboy]

He didn't say anything,he just charactorized WOlverine in general


I take it you would be a fan of Johns writing the X-Men then. Because I would love Johns taking a crack at our favorite mutants.

[Lurker]

i have to say that i think marvels pool at the moment is strongerthan dc's.

vaughn is amazing as is miller, kirkman, and then theres bendis who is better than the whole dc universe combined.

Waid is extremly inconsistent, johns imo average, morrision is average.

personally im a huge fan of jenkins as well and soooooooo pleased loeb is coming to our world.

I find Bendis to be an excellent crime drama writer with a gift for dialogue, but sorely out of his depth when it comes to superhero epics like Avengers and the House. Read Morrison's JLA, then read We3. You might re-consider your opinion concerning Morrison especially in comparison to Bendis.

If you're digging on Vaughn, you need to check out Ex Machina and Y: The last Man; Two out of three of the best books being published by any company.

Waid falls into the same category as Bendis in that he needs to write a Superman book. Just as Bendis got Daredevil, Waid really knows how to write good Superman yarns and the comic industry needs that as a whole.

[marvelboy]

I take it you would be a fan of Johns writing the X-Men then. Because I would love Johns taking a crack at our favorite mutants.



I want him as far from Marvel as possible. His style of writing is more suited to pure hero's over at DC.

[thik_3rd]

I take it you would be a fan of Johns writing the X-Men then. Because I would love Johns taking a crack at our favorite mutants.
i would resume buying either uncanny or adjectiveless if he wrote one.

[Jessica Drew]

Personally, I'm very worried that Marvel keeps their writers in a well. It's like that scene from Silence of the Lambs.

Althought that would explain the quality of some of the stories latley.

That's fantastic. Woo!

[handOFfate]

I don't want to see Johns write any Marvel projects anytime soon. His DC work (especially JSA) is really good, and he's a busy guy as it is. Waid on a Superman title would be great! He's already written the ultimate Superman graphic novel (Kingdom Come). I'd like to see what he could do over a long period of time.
As for Bendis. Well...his New Avengers is hit and miss, and House of M is disappointing so far. Ultimate Spider-Man started off great, then really fell off around the Venom storyline. However, I recently read the entire run of ALIAS and thought it was awesome. Mark Millar is my favorite Marvel writer right now. Ultimates kicks ass, and I liked his arc on MK Spider-Man. His first run on Ultimate X-Men was pretty good, too.

[Babylon23]

I personally couldn't care less which company has the best writers. I know the writers whose work I like, and I'll read their stuff regardless of which company they're at.

At the moment, most of my favourite writers (Johns, Rucka, Morrison, Simone, Waid, Miller) are writing for DC, so I'm buying more DC books. At the same time, I'm not at all impressed with Whedon's X-work, or Bendis' NA.

However, I'm a big fan of Claremont, PAD and Brubaker, so I'm buying Uncanny, Excalibur, X-Factor and Cap. If these writers were to change companies, I'd check out whatever new title they were working on.

Both companies have their big names, their workhorses, and their newcomers. They always have. Both seem to be positioned exactly where they want to be at the moment. Personal taste will dictate which companies books you prefer.

[Frank]

I actually think that with the move in bringing new upstart writers to add to their big four I think Marvel has the edge in term of writers. AND artists. In fact i`m one of those who wish Bendis and Millar would give some more rooms to guys like Dan Slott, Brubaker and so forth. And I would be surprised if Diggle doesn`t work for Marvel in 2006.

[Twigglet]

I believe that would be Slades daughter who stabs her own eye out to be more like her father, much to his horror. And as horrible as that was, it is not nearly as dark as some of the stuff marvel has been producing.

Correct me if I am wrong Cay.

DC is being much more dark than Marvel at the minute I think!

1,000,000 OMAC'S?

Mindwiping superheroes?

Rape of Sue Dibny?

All Star Batman is really dark.

Heroes dying left right and centre on the way to Infinite Crisis.

I really think DC is about 10 times darker than Marvel at the moment.

[UniqueFrequency]

i think the DC might have a slightly stronger writer pool in Winick, Rucka, Johns, Diggle, Morrison etcetc, but Brubaker, Vaughan, McKeever, Slott etc pretty much make it a very close fight

[Frank]

i think the DC might have a slightly stronger writer pool in Winick, Rucka, Johns, Diggle, Morrison etcetc, but Brubaker, Vaughan, McKeever, Slott etc pretty much make it a very close fight

And JMS, and Whedon and Millar and Ellis, Ennis, Bendis. DC gets creamed badly.

[UniqueFrequency]

And JMS, and Whedon and Millar and Ellis, Ennis, Bendis. DC gets creamed badly.

i didn't mention JMS and Bendis for a reason, and that is they're sorta inconsistent. Sins Past and Avengers Disassembled being 2 examples.

Ellis also isn't marvel exclusive

[Alistair]

And I would be surprised if Diggle doesn`t work for Marvel in 2006.

He'll be working for them in 2005!

PUNISHER: RED CHRISTMAS, out in December, a one-shot by Diggle and Kyle Hotz.

[The Shadow]

i didn't mention JMS and Bendis for a reason, and that is they're sorta inconsistent. Sins Past and Avengers Disassembled being 2 examples.
But you did mention Winnick who ruined Green Lantren (cancelled and Hal Jordan was brought back), Green Arrow and has somehow brought back Jason Todd! Talk about inconsistent! Sure Barry Ween and Pedro were good... great even... but his superhero stuff sucks and that's all he's writing at the moment.

I'll take Bendis and JMS thanks.

[tricksterpup]

Here is a picture of Marvels latest writers working together on a project.
http://www.primates.com/chimps/chimpdress.jpg

[DDM]

Here is a picture of Marvels latest writers working together on a project.
http://www.primates.com/chimps/chimpdress.jpg

Are you certain these two are not Marvel editors? I'm sure they listen to George Michael's "Monkey" while trying desperately to pretend they are comedians on the Uncanny X-Men letters page.

[BlackKnight]

But you did mention Winnick who ruined Green Lantren (cancelled and Hal Jordan was brought back), Green Arrow and has somehow brought back Jason Todd! Talk about inconsistent! Sure Barry Ween and Pedro were good... great even... but his superhero stuff sucks and that's all he's writing at the moment.

I'll take Bendis and JMS thanks.

Winnick did not ruin GL, Jordan was slated for return so they canceld the current run. That was all a part of your reboot idea.

Winicks GA rocked, and Jason Todd is at least as interesting as bucky coming back in Cap. I don't here you complaining about Brubaker.

Bendis can't write super-hero stories, simple as that, Great at crime-noir though. (Alias, DD)

JMS is hit and miss.

[Will.S]

i didn't mention JMS and Bendis for a reason, and that is they're sorta inconsistent. Sins Past and Avengers Disassembled being 2 examples.

Ellis also isn't marvel exclusive
Well JMS and Bendis's respective stint on those titles are the only arcs that they have been panned for (I personally liked them despite the flaws) and have been the most controversial but all the other stuff they are putting out have been solid to excellent.

I think DC is suffering a bit from artists now since Marvel have many of them exclusive. Teen Titans in particular hasn't been that good art wise ever since Mike McKone left to do JMS's Fantastic Four (which has been really good).

I find Bendis to be an excellent crime drama writer with a gift for dialogue, but sorely out of his depth when it comes to superhero epics like Avengers and the House.
I don't think he's out of his depth, he's just approaching superheroics in a new way people are unaccustomed to. New Avengers, Secret War and Daredevil, and Ultimate Spider-Man are definitely prime examples with DD being among his best work as well as the book's best creative team since Frank Miller.

[tricksterpup]

Are you certain these two are not Marvel editors? I'm sure they listen to George Michael's "Monkey" while trying desperately to pretend they are comedians on the Uncanny X-Men letters page.
You're right, Here is one of new writers right here, I hear Bendis is getting nervous at this up coming talent, who could possibly replace him as #1 writer.
http://www.leedsmedia.co.uk/_g/writer.jpg

[Will.S]

You're right, Here is one of new writers right here, I hear Bendis is getting nervous at this up coming talent, who could possibly replace him as #1 writer.
http://www.leedsmedia.co.uk/_g/writer.jpg
He looks so pensive too.

[Harold of the Rocks]

Are you certain these two are not Marvel editors? I'm sure they listen to George Michael's "Monkey" while trying desperately to pretend they are comedians on the Uncanny X-Men letters page.

...for restoring my faith that you do have a sense of humor! I was starting to doubt it. I was nearly blind-sided when you made a funny.

Trickster, you naughty puppy, pickin' on my boy Bendis. Just for that, I'm not gonna preen you and eat insects out of your hair tonight! ;)

[The Shadow]

Winnick did not ruin GL, Jordan was slated for return so they canceld the current run.
So you're telling me that if Kyle was selling like he was BEFORE Winnick came onboard they would have brought Hal back? Cummon... Kyle';s series started to tank when Winnick brought all the social relevance stuff in.... I didn't have a problem with Terry being gay... but I was reading to see GL... not Kyle beat himself up because Terry was attacked.

Winicks GA rocked
In YOUR opinion of course. When I want to read GA I will read Long Bow Hunters and the Grell stuff. Again, when Winnick brought the socially relevant stuff into the comics when Mia was diagnosed with HIV the sales started to fall. Again, I diidn't care that she was HIV positive... BUT I read comics for entertainment... not for someone to use the book as a platform to their own beliefs and attitudes. It worked on Pedro but I thought it failed in GA and GL. I don't mind socially relevant issues in my comics... but Winnick doesn't write stuff I like.

and Jason Todd is at least as interesting as bucky coming back in Cap. I don't here you complaining about Brubaker.
A) Brubaker has given a semi-plausable reason for Bucky to be back... he has also explained how he hasn't been seen since Cap came back. Winnick hasn't given us ANY reason for Todd's return... OTHER than he said he voted to save Jason in 1988 and always felt he shouldn't have died... again using a book to fufill his own agenda.

And as for me not complaining about or to Ed... read the early replies to Cap 1-5. I was veheimently against Bucky coming back. always have been. I have also not replied to the issues where Bucky has been seen (except the Nomad issue because I loved it).

And are you reading Batman? Winninck came up with the completely awesomly original idea of having a Punisher type guy in the DCU! Very original... except that Marvel did it in 1975 with the Punisher.

Bendis can't write super-hero stories, simple as that, Great at crime-noir though. (Alias, DD)

JMS is hit and miss.
JMS has only really written Spidey and Supreme Power at Marvel. When you write a title for a long time you will get the good, the bad and the ugly. Busiek did awesome with his early issues on his Avengers run... but his Ultron story was mostly universally panned. He's still a good writer though and I don't think many consider him "hit or miss".

I think it has a lot to do with people's perceptions on what they like and don't like.

I like the fact that Bendis and JMS have done new and different things. JMS (because he's been on Spidey for a long time) has done UN-traditional stories and introduced new villains and had odd team-ups (Spidey and Loki!) instead of *SURPRISE* relying on Norman (again). Morlun was great... the spider totum stuff was alright but it had the aspect of having never been done before. I'd rather read that than ANOTHER Vulture bank robbery story.

As for Bendis not being able to write superhero stories... again, OPINION. His Avengers have been pretty action packed and his Sentry arc is great! He did stuff that was unexpected and it worked. There were fights, origin stories, and people seem to say Marvel isn't very cohesive lately but he uses characters NOT because he has to... but because it makes sense. Using Emma Frost in such a prominent Avengers story was a great idea and not likely to have been done by a more traditional writer. Not dissing Busiek but I doubt he would have done it.

Bendis's Ultimate Sppidey is awesome with lots of superhero action. 'Nuff said.

[Kid Kamikaze10]

Shadow, if you're worried about Kyle, read Green Lantern Corps, it really good, and Batman makes a joke.

When HoM is done, Marvel will be fine, no need to worry.

DC is doing great with IC, but they still won't get to Marvel's level (unless Superman Returns is really great).

Don't worry about either company, worry about Todd McFarlene! :p

Hopefully, Spawn gets good again!

[Astonishing X-Fan]

Um...the reason Todd doesn't have a "good reason" for coming back is because there hasn't been a reason revealed AT ALL yet. It's still a mystery. For all you know they could have found a good way to bring him back.

And I love how people say Judd is a bad writer because a character came back from the dead, instead of actually judging, you know, the WRITING ITSELF...which has been high quality throughout the Jason Todd arc.

[The Shadow]

Shadow, if you're worried about Kyle, read Green Lantern Corps, it really good, and Batman makes a joke.I've heard... I'm gonna grab it on wednesday.

[The Shadow]

Um...the reason Todd doesn't have a "good reason" for coming back is because there hasn't been a reason revealed AT ALL yet. It's still a mystery. For all you know they could have found a good way to bring him back.
Fair enough... but I doubt it. Just my opinion of course.

And I love how people say Judd is a bad writer because a character came back from the dead, instead of actually judging, you know, the WRITING ITSELF...which has been high quality throughout the Jason Todd arc.
I AM judging the writing. A Scarecrow "monster"? Cummon. You'd think a "great" writer would have a cool story for his first arc... instead we get a poor debut with a crappy monster.

As I said in another thread... "I think I'm a pretty good person to judge Batman comics. I have a 22+ year run of Batman and a 21+ year run on Detective as well as almost every mini series, one shot and graphic novel published since 1985 (and I've also gone back and got things like The Untold Legend of Batman etc. from before '85) I've read some brilliant stuff... some crap stuff and Winnicks stuff. Winnicks stuff is in the latter."

Edit from Mod: Nice try, but no.

[BlackKnight]

So you're telling me that if Kyle was selling like he was BEFORE Winnick came onboard they would have brought Hal back? Cummon... Kyle';s series started to tank when Winnick brought all the social relevance stuff in.... I didn't have a problem with Terry being gay... but I was reading to see GL... not Kyle beat himself up because Terry was attacked.

I have to agree with you here, I don't care for social or political soap boxs. That is the reason I don't care for Ellis's Iron Man.


In YOUR opinion of course. When I want to read GA I will read Long Bow Hunters and the Grell stuff. Again, when Winnick brought the socially relevant stuff into the comics when Mia was diagnosed with HIV the sales started to fall. Again, I diidn't care that she was HIV positive... BUT I read comics for entertainment... not for someone to use the book as a platform to their own beliefs and attitudes. It worked on Pedro but I thought it failed in GA and GL. I don't mind socially relevant issues in my comics... but Winnick doesn't write stuff I like.

I just like the GA action and stuff. The HIV was just a side note to me, obvious not to you.


A) Brubaker has given a semi-plausable reason for Bucky to be back... he has also explained how he hasn't been seen since Cap came back. Winnick hasn't given us ANY reason for Todd's return... OTHER than he said he voted to save Jason in 1988 and always felt he shouldn't have died... again using a book to fufill his own agenda.

And as for me not complaining about or to Ed... read the early replies to Cap 1-5. I was veheimently against Bucky coming back. always have been. I have also not replied to the issues where Bucky has been seen (except the Nomad issue because I loved it).

And are you reading Batman? Winninck came up with the completely awesomly original idea of having a Punisher type guy in the DCU! Very original... except that Marvel did it in 1975 with the Punisher.


wow, you are comparing the Red Hood to the Punisher. I almost fell out of my chair laughing after reading that.

Also whatever happened to your vaulted what and see that you keep spewing at me about NA in regards to batman and the Jason Todd thing. Look in the mirror and see hypocrite on this one. :rolleyes:
Since the Jason Todd storyline is not over yet.


JMS has only really written Spidey and Supreme Power at Marvel. When you write a title for a long time you will get the good, the bad and the ugly. Busiek did awesome with his early issues on his Avengers run... but his Ultron story was mostly universally panned. He's still a good writer though and I don't think many consider him "hit or miss".

Well all those people who hate sins of the past and strange will disagree with you.
Personally I loved strange and didn't even read sins of the past *shrugs*


I think it has a lot to do with people's perceptions on what they like and don't like.

Amazing, you finally figgered out that your opinion isn't the only one and people like different things congrats on that.


I like the fact that Bendis and JMS have done new and different things. JMS (because he's been on Spidey for a long time) has done UN-traditional stories and introduced new villains and had odd team-ups (Spidey and Loki!) instead of *SURPRISE* relying on Norman (again). Morlun was great... the spider totum stuff was alright but it had the aspect of having never been done before. I'd rather read that than ANOTHER Vulture bank robbery story.

As for Bendis not being able to write superhero stories... again, OPINION. His Avengers have been pretty action packed and his Sentry arc is great! He did stuff that was unexpected and it worked. There were fights, origin stories, and people seem to say Marvel isn't very cohesive lately but he uses characters NOT because he has to... but because it makes sense. Using Emma Frost in such a prominent Avengers story was a great idea and not likely to have been done by a more traditional writer. Not dissing Busiek but I doubt he would have done it.

Bendis's Ultimate Sppidey is awesome with lots of superhero action. 'Nuff said.

First off I don't think about two issues worth of action in 10 issue of NA is a lot, but hey maybe I am crazy.

As for ultimate spidey, I don't read it because I don't care to see the same old MU stories rehashed for the ADD generation. My opinion on that.

Bendis's stuff is anything but cohesive since the NA is about 4 or 5 months in front of all other comics in MU time. And hey if you enjoy Emma Frost Guest staring the NA in the last couple issuse more power to you, I will say they made more sense then the first 6 issues of NA.

As for you saying all I say is opinion, guess what so are yours. Amazing....

[BlackKnight]

Fair enough... but I doubt it. Just my opinion of course.

Fair enough and your are welcome to it. :D


I AM judging the writing. A Scarecrow "monster"? Cummon. You'd think a "great" writer would have a cool story for his first arc... instead we get a poor debut with a crappy monster.

As I said in another thread... "I think I'm a pretty good person to judge Batman comics. I have a 22+ year run of Batman and a 21+ year run on Detective as well as almost every mini series, one shot and graphic novel published since 1985 (and I've also gone back and got things like The Untold Legend of Batman etc. from before '85) I've read some brilliant stuff... some crap stuff and Winnicks stuff. Winnicks stuff is in the latter."

I also have over 25 years of both. So does that mean when I say Winnicks stuff is good that I know as much as you.. HMMMM

[tricksterpup]

I've heard... I'm gonna grab it on wednesday.
Shadow do it, it is a fantastic read, I was really surprised by it and turned out to be my favorite read so far this month.

[The Shadow]

That is the reason I don't care for Ellis's Iron Man.
When it shows you mean. Honestly I forget what the story even is at this point.

wow, you are comparing the Red Hood to the Punisher. I almost fell out of my chair laughing after reading that.
So you aren't reading Batman then. Jason gunned down a group of villains because he knew they wouldn't get the justice they deserve going through the courts. Like Punisher he does stuff Batman and Spidey won't. He's on a mission and will kill to accomplish it. Seems quite similar to me. You sure you've been reading comics for 20+ years? Maybe you missed The Punisher stuff. Who knows.

Also whatever happened to your vaulted what and see that you keep spewing at me about NA in regards to batman and the Jason Todd thing. Look in the mirror and see hypocrite on this one. Since the Jason Todd storyline is not over yet.
I never say "wait and see"... I say if you don't like it don't read it. You might be confusing me with someone else... but I've always said that.

Amazing, you finally figgered out that your opinion isn't the only one and people like different things congrats on that.
Don't be an asshole. :evilangry



Wait... too late. :rolleyes:

First off I don't think about two issues worth of action in 10 issue of NA is a lot, but hey maybe I am crazy.
Yes... 8 issues of mindless fighting is MUCH better than understanding what the fights about, who's involved and why! Who needs that... what's it called...? STORY anymore! Just straight to the fights I say!

As for ultimate spidey, I don't read it because I don't care to see the same old MU stories rehashed for the ADD generation. My opinion on that.
I felt the same way actually... but a friend gave me the first 2 trades and on a quiet week I read them... now I have 9 of em. They really are good.

Bendis's stuff is anything but cohesive since the NA is about 4 or 5 months in front of all other comics in MU time.
Well... comics are non-linear. That's how retroactive stories can be inserted. And I think not having NA tie into House of M gives readers that don't want an to read it an alternative. Sorry you have such a narrow view on Bendis and NA that you can't think others might want something different.

And hey if you enjoy Emma Frost Guest staring the NA in the last couple issuse more power to you, I will say they made more sense then the first 6 issues of NA.
You had trouble following a prision breakout and the capture of the people responsible?

As for you saying all I say is opinion, guess what so are yours. Amazing....
I have no idea what that means.
So... thanks (I think)

[The Shadow]

Shadow do it, it is a fantastic read, I was really surprised by it and turned out to be my favorite read so far this month.
I will... thanks.

It's a mini right?

[The Shadow]

I also have over 25 years of both. So does that mean when I say Winnicks stuff is good that I know as much as you.. HMMMM
No it just means you have no taste

[StoneGold]

Actually, the only book NA is in front of is Captain America. Maybe Iron Man, but who the hell knows with that book right now. Everything else has pretty much caught up. Gone ahead of, in a couple of cases.

[DDM]

You're right, Here is one of new writers right here, I hear Bendis is getting nervous at this up coming talent, who could possibly replace him as #1 writer.
http://www.leedsmedia.co.uk/_g/writer.jpg

He can't be Bendis. Bendis don't have too much hair on top of his head. Maybe he's a Bendis stunt double?

[Mister Mets]

I sort of am.

I've been noticing that Marvel are buying up a ton of fantastic artistic talent, especially with the exclusive anouncement of of Pascual Ferry but art has never really been a problem for Marvel, it's the writing staff that has me a bit worried. Over at DC they've got an amazing amount of organization and synchronization going on and they've just filled the talent pool over there with a great group of writers.

Grant Morrison, Mark Waid, Geoffrey Johns, Judd Winick, Greg Rucka, Andy Diggle, Frank Miller and Keith Giffen....all great writers.

Marvel seems to me to be kind of drying up a bit. Bendis is still their biggest mainstay but Millar's output is decreasing as well as Warren Ellis. I'm also noticing Marvel bringing in alot of outside talent lately such as Joss Whedon (Astonishing X-Men), Allan Heinburg (Young Avengers), Bryan Singer (Ultimate X-Men) Lost co-creator and executive producer Damon Lindelof (Ultimate Hulk vs Wolverine), Charlie Huston (Moon Knight) and Bendis's protege Brian Reed (Ultimate Spider-Man game).

Two out of four of these have proven to be able to write some damn good stuff but the other four are unproven and who knows how long they'll stay. I'm mainly hoping for a good stable output by exclusive writers the way DC has been able to especially with such terrific stuff like Seven Soldiers and Countdown.

HoM I'm really enjoying at the moment but there's alot of cloudyness after that.

I'm guessing that Marvel is restructuring their writing talent so that they have a good amount of writers to bounce ideas back and forth to and to take over certain books. But I am happy to see that they have Jeph Loeb now as well as these writers still around doing their own excellent stories at Marvel such as:

Ed Brubaker - Captain America, Books of Doom, X-Men: Deadly Genesis
Peter David - X-Factor, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man
Dan Slott - She-Hulk, Thing
Fabian Nicieza - Thunderbolts
JMS - Amazing Spider-Man, Supreme Power
Brian Bendis - New Avengers, The Pulse, Spider-Woman, Ultimate Spider-Man, House of M
Robert Kirkman - Marvel Team-Up, Marvel Zombies (LOL)
Paul Jenkins - The Sentry
Brian K. Vaughn - The Runaways, Ultimate X-Men

So I hope they all stick around in the long run and keep up some really good creative stuff as well as Marvel adding new writing talent that have some good work coming up and can be exclusive to Marvel.

What do you guys think?



I have no problems with Marvel's writing staff at the moment, and believe it is better than DC's to be honest. And you forgot a few titles/ A-list writers.

Orson Scott Card (Ultimate Iron Man
Daneil Knauf (Iron Man)
Warren Ellis (Ultimate Extinction, Iron Man, and he has two more books coming out.)
Mark Millar (The Ultimates, Ultimate Fantastic Four, and God knows what he'll do when he returns from his break)
JMS's Fantastic Four
Brubkaer's Captain America
Gaiman's Eternals
Garth Ennis (Punisher, Ghost Rider)
"King"

[tricksterpup]

"King"
There is no proof on who this is or what project that are associated with this "name". Unless Joe Q found Elvis and dug him up so he will write stories on Zombies and replace Kirkman as the leading Zombie writer.

[Sean Whitmore]

There is no proof on who this is or what project that are associated with this "name". Unless Joe Q found Elvis and dug him up so he will write stories on Zombies and replace Kirkman as the leading Zombie writer.


I personally think Jesus came back and signed an exclusive with Marvel. He is the King of Kings, after all.


SEAN

[BobC]

I cannot, for the life of me, understand why Bendis is popular. I just don't get it.

Mark Millar is God, but I have to confess that the Ultimates is kind of plodding along of late. I want more action and I want to see characters like Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch explored as only Millar can. I LOVED that tiny bit about Wanda checking out the Vision--and Pietro getting angry. That was stellar--a perfect Millar take on these classic characters but then suddenly nothing. I also don't understand why we have all these Giant men and super heroes from other nations that nobody cares about--it's almost like we're flooding the Ultimates with tons of characters we don't need.

Anyway--yeah I agree Marvel seems all over the place in the last couple of years. I have a friend who works for them and his take is that Marvel is pushing movies and the characters who will or already are appearing in the movies--and that is what drives everything these days. This is why Spiderman and Wolverine are in the Avengers. While I can understand the business side of things, it's no way to run a comics universe!

Or maybe it is...

[Will.S]

I have no problems with Marvel's writing staff at the moment, and believe it is better than DC's to be honest. And you forgot a few titles/ A-list writers.

Orson Scott Card (Ultimate Iron Man
Daneil Knauf (Iron Man)
Warren Ellis (Ultimate Extinction, Iron Man, and he has two more books coming out.)
Mark Millar (The Ultimates, Ultimate Fantastic Four, and God knows what he'll do when he returns from his break)
JMS's Fantastic Four
Brubkaer's Captain America
Gaiman's Eternals
Garth Ennis (Punisher, Ghost Rider)
"King"
No I did mention Warren, Mark, John, and Ed. I was just saying Mark Millar and Warren Ellis's output will probably dwindle outside of Ultimates and Nextwave/Ultimate Extinction.

BTW now that Marvel signed another tv writer talent onto Iron Man (even if it's only for 6 issues), it's much more apparent that they're willing to gamble a bit and bring in talent from shows. Here's hoping Daniel Knauf and whatever artist comes aboard keeps Iron Man rolling well.

[bosshog7169]

Does anybody else think Johns is in a class by himself? I would have to say that overall i like more marvel writers than dc writers. But at the same time Johns is writing so many different books and also making the writers around him better. He's like the Michael Jordan of comic book writing. I would definately say Greg Rucka is his Scottie Pippen. A guy who i didn't think was that great by himself, but once he started workin with Johns, wow, his writing has been on point lately. Johns is creating this massive epic while writing like 50 books at once. I dare to say he is the closest thing to stan lee we have had since stan the man himself. Anybody else concur?

[thik_3rd]

geoff isn't spelled jeff for the same reason jeph (loeb) isn't spelled jeff.
but yeah, i think johns is pretty much the best out now, or at least neck and neck with vaughan.

[bosshog7169]

thanks for the support. i still don't get whats so great about vaughn though. i really tried to like him because of all the praise he gets but i tried to read ultimate x men and runaways and they bored me to death. Maybe he's just bad at superhero comics or something. Everybody else seems to like him though. I feel like i'm taking crazy pills

[thik_3rd]

damn really? ultimate x-men has been my favorite comic since he took over. runaways is probably the worst of his stuff, it's getting better though. y and ex machina are cool too, y is probably in my own top 10 right now.

[jade_nova]

The thing that has bothered me about Marvel's writers is that they have been hiring alot of novelists, scriptwriters, and directors lately. They have been hiring people who are more used to writing stories that at least a couple hundred pages long. This might be why there is so much decompression nowadays.

[Babylon23]

Does anybody else think Johns is in a class by himself? I would have to say that overall i like more marvel writers than dc writers. But at the same time Johns is writing so many different books and also making the writers around him better. He's like the Michael Jordan of comic book writing. I would definately say Greg Rucka is his Scottie Pippen. A guy who i didn't think was that great by himself, but once he started workin with Johns, wow, his writing has been on point lately. Johns is creating this massive epic while writing like 50 books at once. I dare to say he is the closest thing to stan lee we have had since stan the man himself. Anybody else concur?

There's a lot of people attacking Johns at the moment, but for straight superhero fare, he's my favourite writer at the moment. I love JSA, Flash, Titans and GL. I'm excited about Infinite Crisis.

However, Johns is, I think, a classic comic book writer, in the same vain as writers like Mark Waid, Kurt Busiek, Roger Stern, Marv Wolfman and Gail Simone. He writes stories with a decent level of respect for continuity and history. For the most part, he writes compressed adventure stories.

It's a style of writing I grew up on, and so I appreciate his style more. A lot of people prefer the Bendis/Millar/Ellis decompressed method of storytelling, and Marvel seems to be adopting this style more and more. There are exceptions, or course. More seems to happen in a single issue of Uncanny X-Men than in 6 issues of Astonishing. However, the decompressed books are some of Marvel's best-selling titles, so I doubt Marvel will change their approach anytime soon.

[thik_3rd]

There's a lot of people attacking Johns at the moment, but for straight superhero fare, he's my favourite writer at the moment. I love JSA, Flash, Titans and GL. I'm excited about Infinite Crisis.

However, Johns is, I think, a classic comic book writer, in the same vain as writers like Mark Waid, Kurt Busiek, Roger Stern, Marv Wolfman and Gail Simone. He writes stories with a decent level of respect for continuity and history. For the most part, he writes compressed adventure stories.

It's a style of writing I grew up on, and so I appreciate his style more. A lot of people prefer the Bendis/Millar/Ellis decompressed method of storytelling, and Marvel seems to be adopting this style more and more. There are exceptions, or course. More seems to happen in a single issue of Uncanny X-Men than in 6 issues of Astonishing. However, the decompressed books are some of Marvel's best-selling titles, so I doubt Marvel will change their approach anytime soon.
for what it's worth it seems marvel is somewhat moving away from its decompression. remember, just a year and a half ago, EVERY story arc, EVERY mini was 6 issue? now, even in new avengers written by the decompression king himself, you have a 4 issue arc, a 3 issue arc, and a 2 issue arc all in a row. in general, it seems like 5 is the new 6, and 2-4 issue story arcs are somewhat commonplace. i'd be hardpressed to name 5 comics out now by marvel that are in the middle of a 6 issue arc.

[tricksterpup]

I personally think Jesus came back and signed an exclusive with Marvel. He is the King of Kings, after all.


SEAN
You know, that sounds like a robot chicken episode.

[Babylon23]

for what it's worth it seems marvel is somewhat moving away from its decompression. remember, just a year and a half ago, EVERY story arc, EVERY mini was 6 issue? now, even in new avengers written by the decompression king himself, you have a 4 issue arc, a 3 issue arc, and a 2 issue arc all in a row. in general, it seems like 5 is the new 6, and 2-4 issue story arcs are somewhat commonplace. i'd be hardpressed to name 5 comics out now by marvel that are in the middle of a 6 issue arc.

To be honest with you, I've dropped a lot of Marvel books over the past year or two (Astonishing, Iron Man, Avengers, Hulk), so I haven't seen everything they've been putting out. If they are moving away from the decompression model, I'm glad.

[thik_3rd]

To be honest with you, I've dropped a lot of Marvel books over the past year or two (Astonishing, Iron Man, Avengers, Hulk), so I haven't seen everything they've been putting out. If they are moving away from the decompression model, I'm glad.
out of the 9 marvel books i bought today, only one was in a 6 issue arc (fantastic four).

[grendel824]

However, Johns is, I think, a classic comic book writer, in the same vain as writers like Mark Waid, Kurt Busiek, Roger Stern, Marv Wolfman and Gail Simone. He writes stories with a decent level of respect for continuity and history. For the most part, he writes compressed adventure stories.

It's a style of writing I grew up on, and so I appreciate his style more. A lot of people prefer the Bendis/Millar/Ellis decompressed method of storytelling, and Marvel seems to be adopting this style more and more. There are exceptions, or course. More seems to happen in a single issue of Uncanny X-Men than in 6 issues of Astonishing. However, the decompressed books are some of Marvel's best-selling titles, so I doubt Marvel will change their approach anytime soon.

It's comics, man - the beauty is we can have both (and I couldn't be happier, as I love all of the writers you've mentioned and pretty much buy their stuff sight unseen) styles. I don't mind the "decompressed" books as long as they're written well (and I think they are) - I just wish they'd come out more often so we could have more "happen." And they seem to be doing that with several books - I mean, just last month I was saying how I wish New Avengers would come out twice a month so the action could keep pace with other monthlies, and lo and behold we get two in two weeks. I should've asked the genie for something more ambitious, I guess...

[Babylon23]

Hey, I'm not dissing either style of writing. Both have their merits and their appeal.

I'm glad Marvel is moving away from the "write for the trade" mentality. I'd prefer stories to just run their length, whether it is 1, 2, 10 or 12 issues. Maybe I should check out some Marvel books to see where they're at.

[o1pickleboy]

To many poster to quote, so I will just say

1) I personaly thought the point of Green Arrow was the social revelent stuff.

2) I wonder if Dc and Marvel will start trading contracts. Writers for Artist kinda stuff. When Dc realizes they have great storys, but no one decent to draw and Marvel relizes that they can draw, but have no story.

3) On decompression of comics, I don't mind a little. But with Bendis I always end the comic with "Is that all" feeling. I pick up a issue and can't believe the number on it becuase I don't feel like I have gotten that much of a story.

On Bendis(for me) it always has been to much

1) Too much decompression. He has taken comics from 55mph to 25mph. From too fast to too slow

2) Too many risks, Yes he is new and different, but the risks he has taken are too great. He totally trashed the Classic Avengers to bulit his New Avengers.

3) Too different, He has taken Comic A and turn it into Comic B. A sometimes is good, but changing the nature and the character in a comics is a little to much.

Right now I do mind Bendis, becuase he ruin my favorite comic and given me a lesser verson of it(In my Opinion) but I would not mind have him on a leash. Someone to take him from the comic left and pull him to the comic right. Hopefully they meet in the middle. To create something new and different the is a little slower than normal., but still respectifull, and high quality.

[thik_3rd]

2) I wonder if Dc and Marvel will start trading contracts. Writers for Artist kinda stuff. When Dc realizes they have great storys, but no one decent to draw and Marvel relizes that they can draw, but have no story.

i wonder how much dc is really going to hurt from the lack of freelance artists and dc-exclusive artists out there. have you seen the latest issue of flash? the art in it wouldn't have been printed in '93.