Fun Fact

Every time somebody at the Byrne Robotics forum links to me, I get more hits than any other comic-related referrer with the exception of LITG.

I would assume that this means that there are a lot of people who read that forum.

My questions:

If there are that many dedicated JB fans, and apparently many want superhero comics that are not cynical and gory, do they constitute a big and loyal enough fanbase that maybe there should be more comics targeted to them? Are they being alienated by today's crop of books?

Is this the market that supposedly the comics industry was playing towards -- only, maybe the industry isn't really doing that anymore? Is what we see now, with more violent and cynical books, a reaction to these fans -- distancing itself from them? By embracing the "needs" of the mass market, is the result more violent books and ambiguous heroes? And is this truly the "need" of the mass market, or are their desires for entertainment being shaped with what is offered to them?

And is a whole new market being created within comics fandom for reprints and commissioned works, because the new material that this segment craves is not being produced? Honestly, I see this big-time with the Valiant Comics fanbase, and I think I'm seeing this with the Byrne fans as well.

400 Pages Of John Byrne

IDW is offering up for sale 400 pages of John Byrne's early 90s series Next Men in one big volume next week...

"Now, John Byrne's Next Men series is back, collected in thick, black-and-white volumes, the first one offering 400+ pages of fantastic story and art. The first, “honkin’ phonebook-sized”—so described by Byrne himself—of John Byrne’s Compleat Next Men will be in stores May 28.

In addition to the first 12-issues of Next Men, IDW Publishing’s collection of John Byrne’s Compleat Next Men, Volume 1 includes the series’ original story, the 64-page 2112 graphic novel, as well as the MIV back-up strips that ran in the original comics."

Does anybody know how much this is going to cost?

This is sort of like Byrne's renaissance over there at IDW...

John Byrne's Doctor Doom Redux

Lying in the Gutters points out John Byrne's own version of the infamous "Doom Whore" sequence in a recent issue of Mighty Avengers, complete with new dialog:


and the original:


Which one do you prefer?

(I have to say, Byrne drew a mighty fine Doctor Doom here.)

John Byrne: "Respect"

Flipping through Wizard Magazine #200 today (my commentary on which I will provide tomorrow), I came across their "Most Controversial Persons" sidebars. One was for John Byrne.

And that brought to mind what a comics professional told me recently.

This person said (and I'm paraphrasing):

"You know, everyone can make fun of John Byrne and say stories about him and his message board. But the man has made an extensive contribution to this industry over a long period of time. He deserves respect. Respect."

I agree. Say what you want about the man, he has really contributed a lot -- a lot of it really good.

A lot of people I know have "Byrne stories." I only have one personally. I had lunch with him and my co-workers in an editorial meeting thing about five years ago. Really brief -- about an hour. At the time, I was really physically ill, but I just sort of put a happy face on it and soldiered on.

John was goaded to "let loose" on some Claremont stories, etc., but he sort of demurred on it and "held back." He didn't seem bitter or caustic -- he was pretty good-natured and friendly. He told us some good stories about the biz and his work in general. It was just all-around pleasant.

And I was glad and appreciative, because had it been some sort of gossipy, angry type of conversation -- had that negativity entered -- I don't think I could have held on with how sick I felt that day. Instead, I limped out of the lunch feeling cool because I just had lunch with a legend in the industry and he seemed nice and it was awesome.

See? That's not a memorable story. But it's a true one.

Here are the questions: Is there a level of respect that has to be given to the man, considering his body of work as a whole? Can we separate out the anecdotes from the work? Are we appreciating John Byrne enough now while he is still around and continuing to contribute to the industry? Or are the critics justified?

Occasional Links: The Carbonite Affair Edition

Caption This

This image from NeedCoffee.com provides us with a number of topics from which to sprout out a variety of interesting punditry.

John Byrne opines on the raging "late artists" debate that many so-called professional comics today are "no more than fanzines":

"Do these guys have to break every five minutes so their nannies can massage their aching hands?"

You know, if this was a episode of "Gunsmoke," there would be a barroom brawl afterwards. Bryan Hitch would be throwing someone through a pre-broken bannister. It'd be awesome.



Marvel Editor Tom Breevort puts the question to the fans:

"So what could we be doing better? What frustrates you about Marvel Comics right now?"

My favorite of the responses:

"Better give Penance his own ongoing series after issue 5. Hugely under developed character as Speedball. Make up for it with his new persona. Lets face it... not many people can hand Wolvie his own a** and simply walk away."

Or handing Doctor Doom his own a**.

At any rate, Breevort is using on his blog (consciously or unconsciously) the recommended PR technique called Proactive Transparency (trademark 2007 Valerie D'Orazio), in which you ask for and address any gripes from the public right off the bat rather than pretending everything is always fine and the fans are just stupid. By using Proactive Transparency you ultimately get to control the flow of your PR before other pundits get their grubby hands on it, and promote good will by demonstrating that you are 1) Reasonable, 2) Personable, 3) A Regular Person Just Like Them, and 4) Caring Of What The Others (who purchase your products) Think.

Kudos to Mr. Breevort.




Things To Use Your Han Solo In Carbonite For

Chocolate Bar

A fit desk for a coporate despot

Mini-Fridge

Epiphany


Hey, call me crazy, but...

I know the "Slave Leia" has been the butt (pun) of constant criticism for its depiction of a strong female character in what is essentially a bondage outfit. But the Han Solo in Carbonite image has been used almost as much as Slave Leia in popular culture...and is essentially the image of a male in a bondage-type situation with a pained expression on his face. As such, are both examples simply evidence of George Lucas's love of the heroes-in-perilous-situations gimmick from the movie serials and comics of his youth, regardless of gender?

(ducks)


VIDEO: Three-Year-Old Girl Explains The Plot To Star Wars: Episode IV

The One Where Bruce Banner Was Almost Gang-Raped At The YMCA

There's a very interesting discussion over at the John Byrne boards regarding an old story Jim Shooter wrote for "Rampaging Hulk" in which Bruce Banner almost gets gang-raped at the YMCA.

You can see scans of the scene here, but here's some dialogue:

Two thugs confront a naked Bruce Banner in the shower of the local YMCA:

Bruce Banner (knocked against the shower stall wall): "Hey! W-what do you guys want?"

Thug #1: Umm! You're soft! And all pearly white -- and you've got the cutest little cheeks! Think he'll whine, Dewey?

Thug #2: Yeah, Luellen -- an' I like it when they whine!

Banner (sort of weirdly picked up and his face smacked): Look, I -- Hey! Leave me alone! I -- uhh!

Thug #2: Shush, sweetie! It's all right! We just wanna play!

Thug #1: You go first, Dewey! I'll stand guard outside! Fair's fair! I went first with that chubby cutie from Akron last week!

And so on.

Byrne posts "No comment" regarding whether he thinks Shooter's story was homophobic. But he does quibble with him on a different point:

"BTW --- one thing on which I will comment. Shooter described the YMCA scene to me before he did it, and stated that 'Banner is so scared, he does not become the Hulk!' Talk about forcing the character to serve your story!"

Was Shooter's story for "Rampaging Hulk" homophobic, especially in light of the supposed "no homosexuality" policy he was supposed to have in his books?

Or was the story a product of the time?

And if Shooter really had such a policy, was it because of homophobia or economic considerations?

One Byrne Board poster commented:

"But I imagine that, if Shooter did have a policy of no homosexual portrayals in comics, that there were plenty of economic reasons for that. It may have been a business decision, not a personal one. Lots of companies played it very conservative back in the 80's... and comics had even more a reputation as a children's medium than they do now."

When Byrne is asked on the same thread whether there should be gay characters in comics, he says:

"There need to be Gays in comics because there are Gays in real life. No other reason. Same reason, in fact, that there are Blacks in comics. Asians in comics. Women and children in comics! The population of the fictional world should represent the real world."

I'll say that reading the scans of that YMCA scene made me absolutely cringe, though a lot of stereotyped portrayals of homosexuals during the 70s (and heck - 80s & 90s!) make me cringe. Jack Tripper doing his exaggerated "gay" routine to fool his landlords in "Three's Company" makes me cringe now.

Glenn Greenberg posts on the thread that he recently interviewed Shooter about this topic for an upcoming issue of "Back Issue" magazine, which should be interesting.

I leave you with another quote from that same scene in "Rampaging Hulk," when Bruce Banner (too scared to turn into the Hulk), pushing himself away from the grasp of his would-be rapists, says:

"You know...that big green monster who can crush steel balls in his hands? You hurt me and I'll turn big and green and tear your...head off!"

The Problem With Comics These Days...

"Anal retentive fanboys are the problem."
-- John Byrne

Phone Call With A Legend and Other Stories

Phone Call With A Legend and Other Stories

Me: "Hello?"
Him (in fake Italian accent): "Yessa, may I-ah havah pizza-pie?"
Me: "Excuse me?"
Him: "Bonjourno! I would-ah like-ah pizza pie."
Me: "Who is this?"
Him: "I am-ah Italiano, just like you-ah!"

He wasn't Italiano, just like me-ah. Just an eccentric genre mega-legend who thought it was funny I had an Italian last name. When ever I hear that this guy has stepped into another pile of poo-poo I just roll my eyes and go, "yep!"

Not talking about John Byrne, by the way. Met Byrne once, had lunch with him. A gentleman. Though the editors I was with were a bit unfair, they would go, "Hey John, who was more responsible for the X-Men, you or Claremont?" This is what's known in the nomenclature as "a leading question."

Chris Claremont himself was a pretty cool guy. I had to rewrite a few balloons of a story he did for "Batman Black & White" and I was scared to death of his reaction, because I totally idolized him. And he was so zen about it, so cool. Which was great, because he's God.

Actually, there are many comic book gods. When you're a total geek like me and you finally have the chance to work in the industry you have to learn how to greet these gods. Slavish adoration will put most of them off -- though there are a few of such intense ego that such devotion is not only appreciated, it's required. Your boss will probably brief you beforehand who those bombastic few are and how to deal with them. But chances are, if you are a total geek like me, you won't mind. Unless they start talking to you like some bad Super Mario character because you are Italian.

Someone like Howard Chaykin is such a larger-than-life, impressive figure that you will look out the window when he arrives at the office to see the replica WWII bomber he heroically flew in on. On the flip-side, a guy like Frank Miller just sort of gets ushered in to see his editor and ushered out and you didn't even know he was there, you just hear about it after the fact. And an artist like Walt Simonson will hang out around the office, as down-to-earth as you can get, happy to discuss comics or sign a book.

Out of all the comic creators I have met or talked to on the phone, only one stands out as a total prick. He started out very friendly, then overly-friendly, then I had to avoid his phone calls, then he left a message that he "psychically sensed I was in trouble" and needed to speak to me immediately, then he did something like call the president of the company and try to have me fired. After something like this happens, you try to go back and enjoy some classic comic he worked on and it's really hard. But then you explain it away to yourself by figuring he was so damn talented that the sheer talent drove him completely insane -- and apparently gave him psychic abilities to boot.

However, most male comic creators have been pretty respectful to me, a good number with that chivalrous sort of "Ye fair maiden! Are those gorillas bothering you? I shall bean them on the head with this here Mjolnir!" attitude.

And yeah, I guess I'm sort of feminist but that sort of talk just turns me into a Wally Wood heroine with a Valkyrie helmet, a Smurfette smile, and a freshly-picked daisy pressed up against my nose.