Research For The Called (Utah Initiative) Fan Webcomic

[fmarvel]

Although I am not a believer in any religion, I like this idea quite a bit. It's always nice when you find characters with whom you relate to and I can't think of a single mormon comic hero off the top of my head. I also gotta say I love your artwork. I do think you'd be better off making it its own thing and not related to marvel, so as you could make it your own. Maybe making it family based, or at least have part of the team being related or a family (like a mom, dad and their two sons) along with a few non-family members in the team. You could infuse all the positivity you get from your faith with the hight action of comics and personal stories that make the characters feel 'real'. Like I said, I'm not a mormon, but I think this is a great idea that could really find an audience. Comics have christian, jewish and catholic characters to appeal to fans of those faiths and have even started bringing gay characters to the forefront, yet I can't think of a single mormon or islamic faith based character.

Yeah, it seems Marvel and DC are anti-marriage and family unless it's a gay couple getting married (Northstar). The Incredibles is awesome because it's about a family of superheroes, which is a dynamic that hasn't really been explored that well in comics. There used to be superheroes with families like the Flash (Wally West) and even Green Arrow, but with the DC reboot taking that away except for Animal Man, I think it limits the kind of stories you can tell with a character. Taking away Peter Parkers marriage to Mary Jane was a big misstep. They should kill of Aunt May so Peter isn't bound to protecting that rackity ol' coot of an aunt anymore. His aunt has been around for 50 years, it's time to bury her and start a family and move on. Everyone says Marvel is much more relatable and Spider-man in particular because he needs to figure out how to pay the bills etc. Well, how much more does he need to sacrifice to pay the bills for himself, a wife, and a kid or 2? That kind of story hasn't been told as far as I know.

Also, as an active LDS member, I was raised in Illinois and was the ONLY LDS kid in my high school. While I lived a pretty squeaky clean lifestyle, my friends partied and did drugs and drank all the time and one was openly homosexual, which was hard enough for him living in a small town because everyone knows everyone. I refrained from those lifestyles because I don't believe that is how I should live my life. The LDS lifestyle may seem old and outdated to many, but living by a higher standard of moral and physical cleanliness isn't easy in a world that no longer values such a lifestyle. Being able to resist pornography in any form is hard when it is EVERYWHERE. And having friends that, although still good people, lived a different lifestyle than me. It was hard not to give in to those activities that they enjoyed.

So there are tons and tons of stories a good writer could tell as long as they don't make the characters some stereotype that is more derogatory than accurate.

[1derer]

Yeah, it seems Marvel and DC are anti-marriage and family unless it's a gay couple getting married (Northstar).

What an ignorant statement. X-Factor just featured a heterosexual marriage, and the Fantastic Four is about a family. The one "happy part" to ASM's ending was when Jonah accepted his father back. I could go on but I have no idea where you draw the line at satisfactory "familyness" But still, there's plenty of emphasis in the MU on the sort of family values that are seen as traditional by people such as yourself. It's a superhero universe though, not "Relationships Weekly." But still...Hell, you can't talk about family without mentioning the importance Peter Parker places on his Aunt Ma—

Taking away Peter Parkers marriage to Mary Jane was a big misstep. They should kill of Aunt May so Peter isn't bound to protecting that rackity ol' coot of an aunt anymore. His aunt has been around for 50 years, it's time to bury her and start a family and move on.

Just to be clear. Mother-figures < Wives in your assessment of "Pro-Family"? Seriously?

This is just weak.

[Dawncaller]

Wow, lots of replies! I'm going to try to reply to everything as best as I can...

Hypestyle, I'm not planning on pitching this to Marvel in any way shape or form, or even sell it. As far as I can tell, the original concept was a throwaway mention by the writer(s), and they've moved on from the Initiative anyway. Like I said, I'm just doing it myself. It's sparked some creative inspiration in me, and I'd like to see it realized, even if I have to do it myself. :)

More good points, Generic Poster. Yes, at least at the outset, I would make them all Mormon. It seems like a smart way to get a majority of the state's population to support the new institution. An eventual storyline where someone gets assigned to the team and has no idea what they're getting into would be an interesting one...

Michael P, that's a really good question. I planned to tie it into the Marvel universe mostly because of the inspiration; the mentions in Civil War and Avengers: Initiative seem like a good framework in which to explore the idea. Things like World War Hulk and the Skrull Invasion seem like good hooks between which I can string some interesting side stories. There's a part of me that enjoys that: being creative within the confines of what is already established. I also take some comfort in using a world where I can drop in elements that readers may be familiar with. But as I develop the project I may decide to take it in another direction and depart from the Marvel setting entirely. There isn't much mention of Marvel properties in the script as I have it so far, and it might not take much to just phase it out.

1derer, thanks for the compliment on my artwork! I don't plan on doing the whole thing in that style, but I've played with the idea of doing flashbacks to that old group in that classic "Jack Kirby" style, just to give it a fun flavor.

Glad to see another member poking around the forum, fmarvel! I agree that the comics wouldn't sell very well. Good thing I'm not trying to sell them. :) As with most such projects, I mostly do it for myself but if other people enjoy it too, so much the better!

Great ideas from Thorngren as well! Your vote for moving forward with a non-Marvel setting is noted as well as Michael P's. The idea of the family story is one I've considered, as I mentioned in the second post of this thread. In fact, in that same post I talked about two directions I could go with the "family" theme: one with them banded together against the forces of evil, and another with the family split on the different sides of the conflict (with others on the team, of course). I'm not really sure which way I want to go with it, though the script I've prepared up to this point uses the split, more dysfunctional family, I'm still early enough in the project that I could change directions rather easily. Does anyone have any preferences/input on that point?

Thanks for the feedback, everyone! Let's keep conversation going this positive direction!

[fmarvel]

What an ignorant statement. X-Factor just featured a heterosexual marriage, and the Fantastic Four is about a family. The one "happy part" to ASM's ending was when Jonah accepted his father back. I could go on but I have no idea where you draw the line at satisfactory "familyness" But still, there's plenty of emphasis in the MU on the sort of family values that are seen as traditional by people such as yourself. It's a superhero universe though, not "Relationships Weekly." But still...Hell, you can't talk about family without mentioning the importance Peter Parker places on his Aunt Ma—



Just to be clear. Mother-figures < Wives in your assessment of "Pro-Family"? Seriously?

This is just weak.

I forgot about Fantastic Four. I don't read them. And I certainly do t read the X-books because they are so convoluted and 40 years + continuity heavy. Until Marvel has a true reboot like DC I won't e reading much of marvel.

[Dawncaller]

Hey all, long time since I've been able to get on here.

If I put a draft of the script I have for the first issue up, would I be able to get some constructive criticism?

[HXHAlex]

I'm Mormon as well. What exactly is this thread about?