CBR: Venom Variants Infect Marvel in January

**CBR News** · 11-21-2011, 12:26 PM

In anticipation of February's weekly Venom-themed crossover series, "Venom: Circle of four," Marvel is covering January's releases with Venom variants, including "Secret Avengers, "X-Men" and more.

Full article here.

**AXL** · 11-21-2011, 12:30 PM

This is exactly what the 90s had: oversaturation of Venom. It's good that he has a cool series, but to "expand" his popularity like this with a crossover event across two cancelled titles along with these silly (albeit, great covers) variants that only reinforces the low creativity at Marvel at this point.

Sorry, folks, but that's how I feel.

Now even Carnage is stepping up: just like the 90s with Carnage and Carnage U.S.A. It's a low point.

**Desaad** · 11-21-2011, 12:35 PM

Initiatives like this show Marvel's dedication to creating sustainable, long lasting increases in readership.

They're saving the industry, one gimmick variant at a time.

Thanks, Marvel Comics! We salute you!

**BrotherUnitNo_4** · 11-21-2011, 12:36 PM

Talk about wasting their talent. This definitely seems like one of the more pointless variant initiatives.

**AXL** · 11-21-2011, 12:38 PM

Huh. I thought I posted here.

Anyway, for those who have seen it, I've said my piece.
I like Venom and all, but BrotherUnitNo_4 is right: this is a waste.

**AXL** · 11-21-2011, 12:39 PM

Originally Posted by Desaad

Initiatives like this show Marvel's dedication to creating sustainable, long lasting increases in readership.

They're saving the industry, one gimmick variant at a time.

Thanks, Marvel Comics! We salute you!

...

Is this a joke?

**BrotherUnitNo_4** · 11-21-2011, 12:40 PM

Originally Posted by AXL

...

Is this a joke?

It's definitely sarcasm.

**BrotherUnitNo_4** · 11-21-2011, 12:41 PM

I'm not going to say that Marvel's at a creative low. They have great creators, but they really need to shake up their publishing line.

The thing that gets me is that the actual art of the covers is pretty solid, but shouldn't these guys actually be doing interiors?

**Specimen 297** · 11-21-2011, 12:43 PM

To be fair... you've got to hand it to them for REALLY putting effort behind the Venom series. At least it's the one new series to come out of Marvel that they seem to really want to succeed. Assuming they don't axe it for how poorly the "crossover" performs.

**AXL** · 11-21-2011, 12:46 PM

Originally Posted by Specimen 297

To be fair... you've got to hand it to them for REALLY putting effort behind the Venom series. At least it's the one new series to come out of Marvel that they seem to really want to succeed. Assuming they don't axe it for how poorly the "crossover" performs.

Yeah really. They could've handled it better, you know, with connecting it to two cancelled books (and probably a third one on the way).

**AXL** · 11-21-2011, 12:47 PM

Originally Posted by BrotherUnitNo_4

I'm not going to say that Marvel's at a creative low. They have great creators, but they really need to shake up their publishing line.

The thing that gets me is that the actual art of the covers is pretty solid, but shouldn't these guys actually be doing interiors?

The shake-up is needed, and the guys doing this should be doing interiors, I agree.

And yes, Marvel does have great creators, like Rick Remender. But he and others, like Dan Slott, get overlooked by the Architects.

**Desaad** · 11-21-2011, 12:49 PM

Originally Posted by BrotherUnitNo_4

I'm not going to say that Marvel's at a creative low. They have great creators, but they really need to shake up their publishing line.

The thing that gets me is that the actual art of the covers is pretty solid, but shouldn't these guys actually be doing interiors?

The problem isn't that they don't have good creative personnel, I agree. Guys like Jason Aaron, John Hickman, Ed Brubaker, Kieren Gillen, Jeff Parker, etc are all great. Books like Daredevil, X Force, Journey Into Mystery, Wolverine and the X Men, etc are all quite good, even great.

It's a problem of editorial and management. Certain creators aren't put on the types of books they should be put on. And there is no effort to diversify the line -- not in terms of color or gender or whatever, but in terms of genre, in terms of character. A bunch of great creators given really similar parameters are still going to be putting out a body of work that feels homogenized.

I understand, there is a bottom line to consider, but there is the short term and the long term, and Marvel is only looking at the short term. I'm not interested in another Spiderman book, or another X Men book. I want something that tries to do something different. Those are the books that are remembered, the Animal Mans and Doom Patrols and Swamp Things and Starmans, because there is a lot of really different, unexplored ground to cover, and a lot of latitude. And those are my favorite books at Marvel and DC, at the moment (Animal Man, Journey Into Mystery, Swamp Thing, OMAC, I, Vampire, etc).