Wouldn't It Be Great If...

[heavysoul]

Marvel took their really good ideas and stuck to them. I grew up reading Marvel characters, I love them. I'm not a huge fan of 20 titles each month featuring the same character. To be sure, Marvel isn't the only publisher guilty of the multi-title character disease. DC has done their fair share of that with the Superman and Bat-titles. Here's the way I'd love to see Marvel set up within the structures they have now.

Marvel (proper) = Continuity-based all ages titles. These are the books that put Marvel on the map for most of us. These books would have a connected feel without impeding the writers too much:
Amazing Spider-Man (on-going)
Peter Parker Spider-Man (maxi series)
Mary Jane (maxi series)
FF (on-going)
Captain America (maxi series)
The Avengers minus Thor (on-going)
The Incredible Hulk (maxi series)
Uncanny X-Men (on-going)
X-Men (on-going)
The Defenders (maxi series)
Wolverine (on-going)
Runaways (on-going)
Marvel Team-ups (on-going)

Marvel Knights (teen to adult)= Loose continuity and tie with Marvel (proper) titles. Theses are characters that need the extra push to carry their own series. This could be the line that gives lots of creative freedom on a stylistic level:
Daredevil (on-going)
Namor (maxi series)
Silver Surfer (maxi series)
The Sentry (on-going)
Black Panther (maxi series)
Cloak & Dagger (maxi series)
Arachnid (on-going)
X-23 (maxi series)
Inhumans (maxi series)
NYX (on-going)
The New Warriors (maxi series)
The Crew (on-going)
Deapool/Cable (on-going)
Marvel Knights (on-going)

Marvel Max (adults only)= Titles and characters completely ripped away from regular continuity. The books in this line would be maxi and/or mini series with a few exceptions. It would also be used to tell stories about other long forgotten Marvel characters:

Punisher (maxi series)
Ghost Rider (mini series)
Thor (maxi series)
Supreme Power (on-going)
Marvel Boy (mini series)
Moon Knight (mini series)
Dr. Strange (mini series)
Black Widow (mini series)
The Ultimates (on-going)
Venom (mini series)
Iron Fist & Shang Chi (maxi series)
The Pulse/Alias (on-going)
MAXimum Marvel (on-going)

Marvel Managaverse (all ages)

Icon

Now that comes out to a heap of titles without beating a good thing to death. It's a dream. What do you think?

[frankiedetroit]

There was a time when I used to get 30 comics a month. Of course, there was a time when comics cost just 60 cents after a discount. Nowadays, I can't keep up with all the Spider-Man/X-Men/Superman/Batman, etc., so therefore, don't read any of them.

But these companies are out to make a buck. They will milk their most popular characters as long as people will buy them.

An idea I would like to see implemented and kept: Characters age, develop new relationships, get over issues eventually, retire, die, and stay that way. New characters 'pick up the mantle' or, even better, make their own mark. But readers rarely go for it, and even when they do, like when Wally West becomes Flash, writers still include Barry Allen every other month.

[Shellhead]

An idea I would like to see implemented and kept: Characters age, develop new relationships, get over issues eventually, retire, die, and stay that way. New characters 'pick up the mantle' or, even better, make their own mark. But readers rarely go for it, and even when they do, like when Wally West becomes Flash, writers still include Barry Allen every other month.

DC was able to do this, because their heroes tended to be more iconic and had less personality than the Marvel heroes. That made it easier to introduce new characters to pick up the mantle, because those new characters usually had more personality than the originals. But many Marvel characters have always been more than just a costume and a set of powers. Peter Parker *is* Spider-man, and it's really difficult to imagine somebody successfully replacing him. Steve Rogers *is* Captain America, Logan *is* Wolverine, and Ben Grimm absolutely *is* the Thing. Even Iron Man, with all of his powers built into a suit that could be (and has been) worn by others, is definitely Tony Stark.

[BoosterBronze]

Eh. I don't know it would be great at all. Seems kind of arbitrary to me.

I think if a character is selling five books a month, what's it to me? If people buy the book they must be enjoying it. Marvel isn't 'milking' a character, they're making the comics they think the market wants. Wolverine isn't in every comic because Marvel likes him, he's in evry comic because people want to read about him.