Comic Book Companies VS The Readership

Recent action of a certain Marvel writer calls into question about our responsibility as the readership. Should we critical of their work? Should we just let things slide since it is just a comic book after all? Should you just sit back and not say anything when there an issue you may have with the story or characterization? Should writers or editor be treated different than everyone else that post at message board? Should we just shut up with our criticism about these things we see in the comics and with their behavior on the Internet? These questions have to be asked and have to be answer by the readership of this entertainment media.

Today’s comic book readers are more informed than those of past. Things change because as human beings we are constantly evolving forward. We have more information at our finger tips than any other time in history. We can research past works of literature of every kind. You can go Wikipedia and get a summation of the history of any comic book character if you wish. You can also find out about the works of Hemingway, Steinbeck, and Shakespeare on the Internet with a brief bio of those masters.  You can get all this information and use it to understand the characters that you are reading. This comes to the much of displeasure of those that work at Comic Book Companies. In an era of information, there is really no need to find back issues in order to get up to speed on the characters, and you don’t have to get those back issues for no other reason that you want to have those issues. In turn, we have become more critical of the current work being published today.

Critical of work, or getting your monies worth, is never a bad thing. Some see it as negative, but they are short of vision and not seeing the big picture here. If someone is being critical of something that seems to be constant theme in a story, they are telling you what is really wrong in the book. To use the “New Coke” analogy, Coca-cola didn’t have to go back to the old formula if they didn’t want to keep customers they have had for decades. They did because they were losing money because people didn’t like it the product. The customers were saying,” If I want to drink Pepsi, I would buy Pepsi and not Coke.” Coke could just have said they were being negative and ignore them. Instead they listen to these critics and change it back to what the customer have in their product now. For a period of time they produce two products that had Coke in the name, New Coke and Classic Coke, to see which one sells better. Classic Coke won. Comic Books could learn something from Coca-cola business example there with how they do things. “If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Yes, the readership of comic books tends to be very passionate about the characters they read about on monthly basis. They are invested in these universes not only in money, but they are invested emotionally with these characters they have read about, in a lot of cases, for decades. They have grown to understand the behavior and motivation of these characters in these ongoing series. When a company tries to do a serious shift in these universes that requires that these characters to behave in a way that the readers don’t understand, the criticism will increase depending on how it is done. The character of Hal Jordan is a perfect example of this because his motivation becoming Parallax was out of character with his history. In turn, there were people who dropped Green Lateran until he became a Green Lateran again in Rebirth. While there are some that didn’t like this move, Hal’s return has been seen as the correct way to fix a mistake in characterization.

Writers and editor have come to Internet message boards for a few reasons. One, to read what people are saying about their product they are presenting to the customer. Two, they promote upcoming story lines in these books. Three, they interact with the readership of these books or the company they work currently work at. Now, the first two very rarely causes any controversy, but that third on is one that causes a lot problem. This is an entertainment media and open to criticism. There a numerous comic book websites out there that publish promos about upcoming titles and very rarely are critical of stories that have come out of these companies. Why? Fear of losing those previews and interviews most likely are the reason. The Comic Book Industry is the only Industry that has complete control over what is being said about them on news outlets. Newsarama used to have Cup of Joe articles until they printed the JMS article about his take on One More Day. Now CBR has the Cup of Joe article, doesn’t that seem a little petty by Joe Quesada? It was a news story that readers of that site were interested in reading. People get upset when a government does this type of thing, but it is okay when a private sector does this type of thing.

Writers and editor come on message boards claiming to want to interact with the readers. Yet, there are some that don’t like what is being said about their work. Instead of looking through this with professional eyes and trying to understand what is being said, they act like it is a personally attack. They don’t seem to understand that it isn’t about them as a person, but it is about the customer. They act like we don’t understand. In truth, that maybe the case and clarification would have gone a long way to make a customer happy. A simple message of understanding and kindness goes a lot farther than one that is insulting. There have been a few cases where a writer has gone to the extent of trashing a person publically because they were critical of their work or own a site where that is allowed to happen. That is when ego has grown too big. They have forgotten what makes a reader into a comic book fan. The idea that we are in this together mentality has been lost. It isn’t about us. It has become an Us VS Them thing now.  That is really sad.

I personally have been very critical of Marvel Comics because I feel they don’t want me reading their product anymore. Why? I don’t know really why they feel that way. Maybe, it is because I remember too much from the “good old days” of comics. It could be that I stand up for myself even if it is just a comic book. It could be that pointed out how their arguments are baseless in the changes they have made with Spider-man. It could be the fact I am relentless about something I see is wrong in how they treat people. I am not afraid of tell people how I exactly feel. That may get the label of “crazy fanboy”, but that tells me that are not reading the whole thing. They do not understand the message that is being presented to them in my writing or my podcast. Just like those that didn’t like the Spider-man marriage, there are very few professional comic book writers and editors that behave in this manner. Most interaction I have had with professional writers and artist were friendly. They were humble and really appreciated that I wanted to talk to them even if it was just a simple hello. They understand that they got in these positions because they treated everyone, no matter what, with same attitude as the Legendary Writer Stan Lee.  Kill them with kindness is what they used no matter how rude some fans can be towards them. They never once used the line,” At the end of the day I write…”

What can we learn from all of this? We can learn that we have right to voice our opinion about comic books because it is more than a comic book. It is entertainment in a time where stress is at an all time high. We can learn that when someone pushes us, that we have the right to push back. We can learn that at the end of the day, they want our money. We have power to make a change by not buying their product. We can get rid of the “New Coke” age of comics and get back to the “Classic Coke” age of comics.

Burning Personal Views 9 Dan Slott Internet Behavior

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Preview: The Return from Walter Bonham on Vimeo.

Face the Comic Book Nation 12

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Breaking into Comics Episode 3: Gerard Delatour II

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Breaking into Comics Episode 2: Donovan Morgan Grant

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Burning Comics Promo from Walter Bonham on Vimeo.

 

   

Breaking into Comics Episode 1: Kevin Cushing

   

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Mary Jane Watson the Most Writer Abused Character

Excellent title isn’t it? It is excellent because it happens to be true. Writers have been smacking around Mary Jane Watson for so long that it comes as surprised that she is not drawn with black eyes. The main problem is the writers are afraid or don’t understand the character at all. The lack of research into this character is just mind boggling because this happens to be one of those characters with a rich history where there could numerous dramatic stories that can be told.

Mary Jane Watson could be seen as the one of the greatest creation by Stan and Steve. She was, on the surface, the polar opposite of Peter Parker. She was popular and looking to have fun all the time. That is how she was first presented when she was introduced in the world of Peter Parker. Peter by comparison was the outsider and looked on the dark side of life think there was nothing he could do right. Mary Jane Watson brought some light heartiness to the book that was needed because those early issue were pretty dark if you take in the context of how Peter felt about himself. Mary Jane brought some needed relief of the constant teenage angst that was going on the time when Pete was in High School.

As Peter’s character evolved, Mary Jane’s character also evolved beyond that of “Party Girl”. We learned that Mary Jane came from a home that had an abusive father. She put on a brave face in front of her friend with the whole “let's have fun” attitude because it was an escape for her home life. She ran from the dark aspect of life. Anytime one of her friends was going through a personal crisis, she would just go party and have fun. That was her stander operating procedure until Gwen’s death. That was first time she stops and faces a dark crisis because of what Peter meant to her. That was a major shift for the character. She went from the Party Girl to Peter’s best friend that was there for him because she knows his secret.

Mary Jane disappeared for a time, but she return to let Peter know that she knows he is Spider-man. Once again, another major shift in the character. Peter found someone that he could talk to about Spider-man openly and not feel like he was alone in the world. Peter was dating Felicia Hardy, Black Cat, at the time which made the relationship with Mary Jane complex. Mary Jane was the friend that had feelings for Peter beyond that typical “just friends”. He would come to her with problems about Felicia and about being Spider-man. They grew closer to the point where during the many breaks with Peter’s relationship with Felicia that they kiss during a fight about Felicia causing a thought bubble from Mary Jane,” That was like we were boyfriend and girlfriend.”

Peter asked Mary Jane once to marry him, and she turned him down. She didn’t want to deal with the whole Spider-man aspect of his life. When she did say yes to his marriage proposal, things got worse for the character because she was portray wrong by the writer. She became a supermodel. That turned some of the fans off because they thought it did not fit in Peter’s world. Then she became an actress, which also did not fit in Peter’s world. Then she was killed, that fit in Peter’s world. Yet, it did not work because many readers could not see Peter with someone else now because Mary Jane was the girl. She came back and they separated because, once again, Mary Jane didn’t want deal with Peter being Spider-man. Sensing a theme here? Mary Jane, after seeing Peter selfless actions as Spider-man, that it was something Peter needed to do and has to do in order for her to love him. That led to some the best stories with the marriage in years.

Now, that the history lesson is over we can look at the mistakes with the character. The biggest mistake that the writers make with Mary Jane; with Peter too, is trying to keep them stuck in the past. There has to be growth or the characters will become stale. Sure, you can say that they have to stay the exactly the same as they were first written, but you will kill the book fast because it will become boring. There were many stories that could have done within Spider-man that would have change how the readers look at Mary Jane. Some examples:

-Mary Jane could have decided to choose to help Peter by joining the Police force.
-Mary Jane could have become an activist for Hero’s Right during Civil War.
-Mary Jane could have gotten a degree in Criminal Psychology and tried to help Peter.
-Mary Jane could have become an Investigating reporter and covered why Spider-man is seen as a menace.

: There were many stories that could have made the character stronger beyond turning into a model or actress.

There is whole, “I can’t be with you because you’re Spider-man,” theme that writers love to use to the point where the readers want to puke. That was fine for the first couple of years of the marriage, but it should have stopped after that because they were not going to get a divorce. It is worn out theme that is used by writers that have no imagination and hate the character of Mary Jane. They rather slap her around so the reader won’t like her, and they can start to write Peter fucking everyone that will spread her legs in the Marvel Universe. This is where the writers come off like prepubescent fanboys. They can’t wrap their minds around the fact that the readership have changed and so have the character. They want their old Peter back damn it and nothing is going to stop that from happening. It is magic and the readers need to shut up about already is their thinking. The problem they have is that Mary Jane is popular character that people want to read about over and over again because that is what they want. Do they need reminding who pays for those checks they cash from Marvel? The readership’s money is where that money comes from in order that check to be any good.

Mary Jane could be seen as the abusive wife for the writers to smack around as they please because the readership allows it to happen. Yes, the writers have screwed Mary Jane so many times that she is the perfect metaphor for a ten cent hooker. The readership allowed this to happen because we did not say anything when it happens except when they get rid of the marriage. It is time to fight for Mary Jane too. The marriage coming back is important, but we must watch how Mary Jane is being used as a character because that causes some problems too. One main goal should be that a woman writes for Spider-man and not bunch of men that are going through a mid-life crisis.

Sales Numbers or the Greatest Con by Comic Companies

Those that follow the drama that is Brand New Day knows that people point to sales number to either say, “It is doing great,” or ,” It is going downhill fast.” That is the real drama here, sales number that is posted by sites that follow that sort of thing. The truth of the matter these mean nothing. Absolutely nothing, in regards, to the Local Comic Shops, readers, and many other outlets these numbers are just a pipe dream. These numbers are just for the companies to fool themselves with to believe that they are doing well.

The so-call “sale numbers” are not sales at all. They are distribution number that tell us how many issue are being sent out to stores. These numbers show how confident the outlets are about selling an issue of comic. As an example, a store orders 20 copies of a book expecting to sell 10 to regular customer and 5 to new customers leaving 5 for back issues. If a store over order or an issue doesn’t sell well, they could end up with 15 in back issue bin. This causes those outlets to lose money because they now have to sell those issues at a discount to break even, they hope. In truth, these outlets lose money on a lot of issues because they have to sell them at a greater discounted price they the pay for. In turn, they lose the money they put out for the book and lost of any chance of a profit.

If you look at these numbers as future sales, you are partly correct. These future sales decrease in value as time goes on because of the actions of the companies. To put this in way that makes thing clear, variant covers are killing the industry because it floods the market because they want a quick buck. The reasons for comics like Amazing Fantasy 15 being high valued and treasured is because how rare they are in the market place. The only way to fix this type of thing is to fix how the companies treat outlets for their products.

The comic industry is the only industry that doesn’t allow stores to return unsold products. Why are Local Comic Shops losing money? That is reason number one right they because they are stuck with product they have to move at a lost to them and not the companies. You want to see an example of greed that is out of control, Comic Companies are the best example of this type of thing. They keep all the money from LCS and basically stick them with bill of the cost of printing material that doesn’t sell.

How to fix this whole thing? One, companies must be allow to return product that doesn’t sell. This would be a benefit to both the companies and the outlets. One, the company would get a very clear idea what is working and what isn’t. Secondly the outlets would not be stuck with an overstock of product that they will have sell at a lost. Two, create a real sales number chart for people to follow. BND is being distributed typically at the 60,000 mark, but the real question is how many of those are going into customer’s hands? It isn’t 60,000 that is for sure because you can find ten to twenty issues of ASM on the racks, in back stock bins, and in the fifty cent bins. This is causing shops to lose money. Allowing shops to return the majority of unsold product would help bring a greater sense of what is needed to keep the industry moving forward, and, more importantly, what the readers like. Marvel is really guilty of this because they were once in touch with the readers, but they have lost that touch due to the enormous egos and plain pig headiness of the people working there.

These companies say they stand behind their products. They need to prove that to everyone by allowing shops to return unsold product at the price that was paid for. Then they can say they are listening to the shop because this is one thing that has been requested by many LCS. It will also tell the companies if the moves they have done to create readers have been worth it. Many people working at these companies are living in a dream world and need to wake up. They need to wake up not just for the good of the business, but they need to come to realize they could be hurting this industry more than helping it. Trades are nice to get a complete arc, but the single issue is the life blood of this industry because it is their hype machine. Reader talks to friends and other readers, which in turn, increases the sales of Trades. It is time for these companies to realize that the readers are in control and own the sandbox…lock, stock, and barrel.

Why Spider-man Needs to Get a Life

Peter Parker, what has change with the character since he become Spider-man. Well here is the list of what has change about the character after Uncle Ben died:

1. ….he wore a black costume for a little while….

Yep, that is it. Nothing about the character direction has change since that fateful night. I am not downplaying the Death of Gwen Stacy, but it wasn’t exactly something new in Peter’s life. Comparative speaking Gwen’s Death just add more guilt. That’s about it. We have a character that hasn’t grown beyond being a teenager. Still have the same job, same problems, and same experiences. In other words, the character is in stasis. We have all experience the times when writer went outside of the box, and it was fun for the most part. The character must grow beyond that little box that Stan Lee and others wrote in because the character will die due to being reparative. Those that worked at DC need to remember what happen to Superman after there was no change. That character became a joke. The same can be said of Peter Parker. Make no mistake, Peter Parker and not Spider-man is the interesting focus that kept us reading the book.

Peter Parker life hasn’t change since getting his degree (unless that has been Mephisto out too). We feel that Peter Parker needs to move beyond that little box that Stan started with in the 60’s. Let the character grow (I don’t mean age so shut up about that) and be organic. Peter needs to move on with his life and not stay the same forever. That is what used to be Marvel’s promise to the readers. This character will not be the same old thing all the time. We need to be honest here; is keeping the character mired in the past ideas really the best thing to draw more readers in?

People over the years have changes. They are more informed and more knowledgeable about what is going on. If the Braintrust was honest with themselves, they would admit this about their readers. People that are interested in Spider-man are going to go on the Internet. They will see what is being said about Amazing Spider-man. They will also see how vocal the people are about this current direction in the book. Some may decide to pick up the book or they may not. They will be informed about the direction and all that has been done.
Back to the characters, Peter should be trying to better his future. Why you ask? That is the core of the character. He has a desire to be better every day of his life or he wouldn’t be Spider-man in the first place. The writer’s mistake is that we want the same old Peter until the book is cancelled forever. To put this basically we need this to happen in order for more readers to be drawn to the book:

1. Peter gets a job that uses his degree.
2. Peter gets a life beyond being Spider-man.
3. Peter really needs be on his own.
4. Peter needs to grow up.

: Now before One More Day, that is the direction we were moving. Most of it was done to undo the marriage, but they found something the draw readers to the book. We like seeing Peter happy for a while. We liked that this was covering new ground beyond the same old stories. While the marriage was used a lot, the marriage was used correctly in the book. Some may not like the Other, Sins of the Past, or other things that happen in JMS run; it had a lot more people taking positive about the book. We debated what happen with rancor about certain stories compare to what is currently being offered by the Braintrust. This is what I mean by they lack style and the touch to tell good Spider-man stories.

In the last 2 years, the writers flatly refused to explain the effects of the deal. Why? Seriously why? I really don’t get the concept of keeping the reading in the dark this long about the effects of the deal or what happen to all the characters. We just get this little things that make no sense or effects that hurt the character. Face facts, Norman Osborn is most powerful man in Marvel Universe right now and Spider-man’s world barely has been touched. I thought Norman was Spider-man villain. It would have been a better story if Norman knew Peter’s secret identity. Now, that is the Parker Luck.

We seen too many hit and miss with the writing of Amazing Spider-man to be called anything beyond failure. It is a failure to bring new reader. Hello, it has been 2 years and the numbers haven’t changed if you want to use the distbution numbers. I know for a fact where I live that Amazing Spider-man is going more in the 50 cent bin than out the door when it is released. We know there are some that like the book, which is good for them, but this current direction of the character, has damaged the character for those that have read the book for the characters and not to read stories that have been done before a long time ago. The execution of the character development has been nil. There has been absolutely zero character development since One More Day. We have seen little beyond a few snippets of this character reason for being the way they are and that is bad writing. Example; the drunken hook up would have made a better story if Michelle had more depth beyond just being a bitch. Why is she like that? Why didn’t she kick Peter out when they first met? What was her reasoning? What is her background beyond being a lawyer? If there was a little more depth to the character, it could have a different reaction than the current direction.

I do give the writers a hard time because I wanted better stories from them. I wanted to like Amazing Spider-man or I wouldn’t have given it 60 issues. The writers failed. To use the words of friend of mine, this is an epic fail. Oh sure, this will picked apart to just a negative post about Amazing Spider-man, but it isn’t really. It is a clue for those writers that come here to snicker and point at the Deltas. It is clue to how you can possibly bring some of the reader that left to the book. Stop hammering the Parker Luck to death. Start allowing Peter and all the character to grow beyond the sophomoric versions you have now. Stop sticking to the Deltas. Start listening to the complaints about what is happening in the book. You may find out that we are right about a lot of things if you are really honest about it.

Change, Lies, and Spider-man

There are those that have said that the people against Brand New Day Spider-man don’t like change. That isn’t the case because we welcome change when it makes sense to the characters and not for selfish editors. Face the fact that is what Brand New Day Spider-man is all about in the end. It was to make Joe Quesada happy and not the readers. Writers have chosen to embrace this mess and compare themselves to legends in this business. It is really hard to understand that concept due to fact they act like spoiled children being threaten that their favorite toy is being taken away.

It is fact Brand New Day Spider-man sales haven’t match JMS, Stern, or Delfaco’s run in any titles they have written for when they helm the flagship character. You can make the case for JMS being part of One More Day, but I think he understands trying to relive the past is always mistake. You honor it, you refer to it, and you use it to make the stories better and not try to think you can outshine it in people’s minds. The one thing these writers have in common is they respected the fans, even those fans that don’t like their work. Sure, some of them didn’t have deal with the Internet and just have deal with these people face to face. You tell me which is harder? Some words on a screen or a person facing you that didn’t like what you did in whatever issue of Spider-man? These men acted like professionals and talked to these people like they are adults and move on. Compare to the current crew who have chosen to act like fanboys with their panties in a bunch on the ‘Net.

I picked up 612 at my LCS and tried to Bryne Steal it, but I end up setting it down after Electro’s speech. Mark Waid has the subtly of a sledgehammer. That brings a major problem with current version of Spider-man writers. They lack style. The lack the ability to not hit things over the head of the readers like the Parker Luck, Sex, and their personal political stance in every issue of Amazing Spider-man. You want political opinions that are informed and have some basis on fact? Turn on FOX, MSNBC, CNN, or search the ‘Net because you get better view point then those writing Amazing Spider-man. Stan Lee, Ditko, and many others did a story about a current situation happening in America, but they did it with style. They had a light touch of a feather and not a sledgehammer hitting you right between the eyes.

Not being against change of a character, but what is up with Electro’s new look? Really, tattoo faced? Is that the best these guys could come up with to modernize this character? I bet they would try to modernize a classic piece of Americana literature like “Call of Wild” with Buck being a pug dog. While complaining the whole time people don’t get their vision of the character or story. That it is hip and fresh. The problem is that the readers look at them after they make their arsine comments thinking they don’t get them as readers. You don’t have to change a look of a character to make them more appealing to the readers. You can change their reasons for acting like psycho or go back to basics with the character. Back to basic, meaning, you don’t reboot them to making a deal with the devil. You got back to the driving force of their behavior of being a criminal and their hatred of Spider-man. You don’t have them as your mouth piece for a political rant. Get a blog if you want to do that, and you can contact me if you don’t know how to create a blog. Just make a decent, was going to say good but that is asking a lot out of this crew, Spider-man story.

These characters have a rich history that plot thread by the score dangling around them if people just do some research. That is asking a lot from these writers because they would be required to care about these character beyond the stupid version that Joe Quesada has created. Max could be seen as a villain that is trying to get his life in order and takes a job to take out Spider-man for the Karvens for money. You play the human card and keep the overall story going by getting the reader interested in all the characters. This is something the writers of Spider-man have failed to do time and time again. They are not bringing the A game to the title. Hell, they are not even bringing the B game to the title. They don’t have the balls to do a story that fans what to read because they would have to go head to head with their God, Joe Quesada.

Change is good when it is natural and makes sense to everyone that reads these characters. You just do not make false statements or go toe to toe with the readers. This is the real deal here. The readers pay for everything. The art, the writer, the EIC, the Inker, the Publisher, and even the paper which a book is printed on and to say they don’t is an insult to the readers. The Amazing Spider-man title for pervious 10 years was a main stay in the top ten in comic sales. Now, it is barely holding its own in top 20. What does that tell you about the writers of Amazing Spider-man? It should say they are the wrong people writing the book. It should also say that this experiment of changing writers every arc is a mistake. It time for some young blood to get at this character and do something to bring reader back to Spider-man. Spider-man is about responsibility and not youth. Spider-man is about trying to do the right thing even when you are wrong. It is about trying to find hope when there is no hope. It is about progression in Peter Parkers life and not repeating or acting like a teenager. It is not about writers living vacuously through Peter Parker and his sexual mistakes. It is not about writers trying to think they are better legends. Change the writers for Amazing Spider-man that really understand the character and the sales will go up because they will do what is best for the character, readers, and not the EIC.

Spider-man has become a joke. Marvel has become DC of the 80s trying to hip and fresh instead of printing stories that are worthy of the characters’ history. Marvel has become a platform for political rants and calling New Yorkers sheep. Marvel has become a place where writers and the EIC think the readers are stupid. The fact is those readers that have left are more intelligent then anyone at Marvel right now. Those readers know these characters far better than people working at Marvel because they understand the history. These readers have the ability to go to back issues and see what a great story that were written. These readers are not like the ones in 60s, 70s, or the 80s because they have access to more information now. It is time for writers and the EIC at Marvel to start wising up to that fact because they are insulting these readers’ intelligence.

The question was asked, “What can be done about this?” You can write letters to Marvel and Disney and not just one. Keep writing until the change happens because that is only way they will get the message. Flood their boxes with letters and e-mails telling them about your experiences with the writers via the ‘Net and their unprofessional behavior. You link to sites and message boards. You get your friends to help you and those that feel the same as you do about it. You start a blog and rant. You express yourself at your LCS about your view points. It does work over time because nothing is forever in comics especially arsine changes.

In the beginning....comic book related

I didn't have a chance to write anything today. I was a little busy. Here enjoy this repeat rant:

(Clears his throat) Uhm…ccccrrrr….spit

Time for a rant:

There are some that think this place is high point of negativity because there are people that criticize Amazing Spider-man, Brand New Day, and One More Day. They look for the most extreme post that can find and point to it going, “SEE! SEE! NEGATIVE COMMENT TO TENTH LEVEL!” They ignore all the other comments that tend to have some positive comment from the Deltas due to it would ruin their glass world. They also tend to ignore the fact there are some major valid points that Deltas have about current stories. *GASP* They also ignore the fact that some here have been reading Spiderman longer than they have been alive and may know the characters a hell a lot better than they do.

Got your attention yet? No? Let me expound upon this thought.

Putting aside a moment the whole One More Day and all the other things that have happen since the Mephisto deal, are these good stories? No because they have ignored the history of the characters for the most part or used just one aspect of the characters to constantly bash the readers over the head. That is pure and simple bad writing. These characters have become ½ dimensional because they aren’t even 1 dimensional anymore. They have been show to be one note characters that are even interesting to know. Can you honestly say these characters are remotely acting in a way that would be supported by their history?

There are a few people here that have read Spider-man before he was married to Mary Jane. I look upon those times with fondness and hold them in high regard. I really don’t want to live them now because the characters have more beyond those constraints placed upon them by writers that were/are too fearful to explore. Oh Dear God, no one can relate to Spider-man now that is his married….it is uncool. Give me a break. Either you understand it was a natural step for the characters or you don’t. The marriage wasn’t rushed contrary to popular belief. Stan Lee understood this because the guy knows the character a hell a lot better than anyone else. It works if you except it and not worry about making it interesting. Let it happen on its own. It wasn’t a requirement for it to be in every issue nor should it be a requirement for it to be reference in every issue. That was writers mistake to think the readers want it there in every issue.

Now, here we are in a revamped world that is created out personal bias and fear. DC is laughing at Marvel right now because they have more balls to keep Superman married than Marvel has with Spider-man. Instead of doing something that DC is afraid of doing, Marvel tucked their tales and ran over 20 years of story like DC does every once in a while. Bravo Marvel Bravo. You just became DC in that point. While DC is trying to make their stories more interesting to reader by doing stories that go in new places, Marvel is in a stasis of stories stuck in the 70’s with their flagship character. Comparing the two, DC beats Marvel hands down because they have guts to try to do something new instead of reliving the past over and over again with their flagship character.

I enjoy reading a good Spider-man comic. I will admit since Brand New Day there were about six I enjoyed reading, but there were many more that I wanted to toss on the grill to burn. I don’t argue sales numbers because Marvel doesn’t allow LCS to return the unsold copies anymore because that would give a real good indication of how the customers view their product. It must be nice to live in a world where there nothing but sunshine and roses. It is sad to think that writers used Com Cons as point to look at for positive feedback. “Hey, I just spent 1,000 dollars to come here. Let’s go bitch out the Spider-man panel because they really care about what I think!” Right. I really want to ruin my good time with delusions of grandeur that they get two cents about any negative feedback from the fans. Never mind it could help them to write better stories about Spider-man. We just need sit here with a silly smile and chant,”Spider-man is great. Spider-man is great. Spider-man is great.” Like that would be helpful to make the character better.

Make no mistake about it. I think all the characters belong to us, the readers, and not the writers or EIC. We allow them to play in our sandbox. Sure it has a Marvel tag on it, but without us there is no Marvel. Without us these people would not be writing right now for Marvel. We always have the power to change things to how we want them. The people have always had the bigger stick. It is call money. Unless 605 knock me off my feet, I will stop buying Spider-man after 35 years. Thirty Five years is a long time to support a company. One time we were family, but I have also cut off my family when they did something terribly wrong. Marvel mistake, more to the point, the Braintrust mistake was forget the mantra that we are all in this together.

The Spider-man Marriage

I am going to repost some of my rants that I did on Crawlspace because it will lead some place...eventually. :D

Today is going to be the Spider-man marriage which ties into the first post on this blog:




Ladies and Gentlemen, I bring you my rant about the marriage. It is going to be goodie.

I have really thought long and hard about this particular rant because there are a lot of misconceptions about the marriage made by writers, EIC and fans. Here are the biggest complaints about the marriage:

1. It is unrelateable to younger readers.
2. It takes something away from the story.
3. Writers don’t want write for a married Spider-man.
4. You can tell only so many stories about married Spider-man.
5. I don’t want Mary Jane in every issue.
6. Peter is a loser and the marriage takes that away.
7. Marriage takes away from the fun of the book.
8. What is the difference in a marriage and a committed relationship? It is the same thing.
9. The marriage was forced and rushed.
10. The marriage sucked! The stories sucked!

Those are the ones I see and hear the most often on the web and my LCS. I have argued my points about the marriage over and over again. Let me prefaced with this by saying if the marriage was ended in a story that made sense then I wouldn’t I have problem. The fact, and it is a fact, One More Day was a flying shitfest of a story. It was insulting to the fans and the writers that have worked on the Spider-man titles for last 20 years. That is fact contrary to what Marvel’s Webhead say it did change the makeup of the Marvel Universe and affected the whole Universe. That is another rant for another time.

It is unrelateable to younger readers.

I guess all the younger readers in the world don’t have parents that weren’t/aren’t married. Bastards! Yes, it is that stupid. Just saying that is showing how out touch Joe Quesada is with the readership of Marvel Comics. I guess young readers can relate to drunken hooks ups and sex without love better. That Joe Quesada approved the fact Peter has unprotected sex and that something that should be pushed on young readers. Thank you Joe for making my job as parent real easy, no Spider-man comics will be read in my house. That is real. That is irresponsible to put in a book with high children interest and don’t give this Marvel Adventure crap either. I am not an idiot or a fool. Don’t ever make that mistake about me. In other words, you want to live in a world of sunshine and roses. Fine. I will live in a world that deals with reality.

It takes something away from the story.
Writers don’t want write for a married Spider-man.
You can tell only so many stories about married Spider-man.
I don’t want Mary Jane in every issue.
Peter is a loser and the marriage takes that away.
Marriage takes away from the fun of the book.
The marriage sucked! The stories sucked!

With an exception of last on, those are writer’s and EIC’s complaints. The last one is an result of wrong people writing the book. This is really simple. Don’t want to write for married Spider-man? Then you can’t write for the character! Last thing that the flagship character needs is a professional acting like a whiny fanboy because their stories suck due to lack of caring. It wasn’t the fact the marriage was in the book that caused these problems; it was due to writers and EIC not be able to deal with the situation and taking advantage of it to help make these stories better. Marriage adds drama. Marriage is fun (in a warped kind of way). The only difference between a married Peter Parker and a single one is that he can’t fuck anything that moves. That’s it. Nothing else is different. The real mistake by the writers is having the marriage in every issue. For the love of God, it didn’t have to be part of the story nor did Mary Jane have to be in every issue. Use it when need and do not just throw in there for unknown reasons. Get writers that can draw from their marriage and have them write for the book, or writers that understand what marriage is and let them take care of it.

Peter is not a loser. I hate when they say that. Ranks up there with the cousin story for being one the dumbest things ever said in an interview. Peter is every man. Every man is looking for the right person to share their life with and for them to part of that person’s life. I seriously doubt those that said this has ever read a Spider-man comic book or understand the overall ground work that was done by Stan Lee and company. Peter is the ultimate winner because he does the right thing no matter what the cost. He fights the no-win situations (Firelord). He comes out victorious sometime and like every man he loses sometimes. However, he will eventually win the war. The marriage gave hope to Peter. It gave something to fight for beyond his motto. Time to grow up readers and writers because we do things to help those we love. At least, I hope that is why you do things because you want to be able to help those you love now and in the future.


What is the difference in a marriage and a committed relationship? It is the same thing.


BULLSHIT! A committed relationship is nothing like a marriage because it has an easy out. You can just pack your shit up and leave. No legal ramifications. No proclamation of love in the paper. No committed relationship license is needed. No special ceremony with friends declaring your committed relationship in a committed relationship ceremony. Tell what, for those that are married. Go tell you wife that you just want a committed relationship. Just have an ice bag ready because you will need it after she kicks your balls to your throat. I have nothing against people living together before they get married. In fact, I highly recommend it because that could be seen as a test run for the relationship. Marriage is a legal and public announcement to forsake all others for this one person because they are just that damn special to you. You can say it is the ultimate test of your love for each other to take that step. One more thing, saying something like tells a lot about the person who says it. One, they either are not married or not married a long time. Two, they are a child and don’t know that what women want in a relationship. A married man saying that also tells me that their marriage is doomed because it tells me that they aren’t taking their situation seriously. That fact is that saying is an insult to people who take their marriage seriously and want it to last until death do us part. What I am trying say here is that some people need to get a clue before they open their mouth about things that they don’t have enough experience to say anything about to begin with. Come back to after 16 years marriage, we will talk then about how a committed relationship is the same as marriage.


The marriage was forced and rushed.

Umm..hello? Did you people read any issues before Annual 21? Peter asked Mary Jane to marry him before and she said no. It wasn’t rushed. In fact, there were a couple issues done before the Annual happened that explained why Mary Jane said yes to Peter. Stan wanted this to happen because he knew it was time to move on in the story. We could have the discussion on who really wrote Spider-man, but Stan was a major player in the direction and creation of the core character of Peter Parker. It was time for Peter Parker to grow beyond just being a loner. There were no more stories to be told about Peter’s personal relationships while he is single that hasn’t been told. That is fact. What you are reading now isn’t new or “refreshing”. It is retread territory that has done by better people in the past that cared more about the character and its future. Marriage offered something that Peter being single couldn’t do, and that is hope. Hope for a future without Spider-man. Hope for normalcy. Hope for family. In other words, every man’s dream.

I didn’t get into Mary Jane’s characterization because that is another rant, but I do want to say that Marvel dropped the ball big time with the character. They continued to drop the ball with the character because they are afraid of the character. One last thing, comic should never be like the movie. Movies should be like the comics. Keep that in mind because do we want another Back in Black story?

The Raw form of my rant about Dan Slott.

You wanna dance? Let’s dance!

I try very hard to be respectful in my rants about the subjects of writers and EIC at Marvel. I never ever attack who they are other than calling them fan boys. Yet, I am the negative motherfucker here. You want negativity. I give you some fucking negativity.

Amazing Spider-man sucked balls since issue 545. There are very few good single issues and almost every fucking arc is a clear fanfic. It show they lack the ability to do the one single requirement to be a fucking decent writer. Motherfucking research! Well, guess what? This motherfucking asshole did some God Damn research. I did this for one simple reason, to shove it in their faces! I am going single one single writer here because he choses to single me out. Well Dan Slot, LET’S PLAY!

From the CBR article: CCC09: Dan Slott Talks Spider-Man

Slott talked a bit about why the man behind the Spider mask doesn’t usually drink alcohol, but how it usually means bad things for the hero. "We’ve seen it once or twice over the years, and it’s led to bad things happening.” That fallibility is part of what fascinates him with the character, though, and lies at the core of what he and his team wants to explore. "[Peter Parker] is a person with feet of clay. We call him an everyman."
The human mistakes he makes drive the subsequent story arcs, but also provide the questions that Slott says they try to answer. "It’s fun every now and then to see him goof up and to see him make mistakes and see him make the wrong choice," he said. "The thing is, what do you do after you’ve made the mistake? How do you live your life?"

Have you ever read more than a single issue of Spider-man Dan? How about researching the character? If you had, you would find out that Peter doesn't drink because he doesn’t want fail in being responsible. This is your mistake. This is your failure. Yep, I am being fucking negative!

From Cup of Joe via Myspace on 1-30-09:

DS: Yeah. If you’re doing a book in the Marvel Universe, everything you’re doing is built on continuity. You’re standing on the shoulders of Lee, Ditko, Kirby, Romita, Thomas, Mantlo, Frenz, and Stern, everybody up till now.And in this day and age, especially in the era of a Wikipedia or Marvel’s Digital Comics Unlimited, it’s easy to just take five minutes and do a quick check, and try to get your stuff right. You don’t have to have an encyclopedic knowledge of comics. The tools are there. Just do a quick check. And the continuity can be an asset to your story; it doesn’t have to be an obstacle. It’s not a lead weight around your neck, it’s a building block.

I’m a continuity maven, and I’ll be the first guy to say stories shouldn’t be about continuity. But why should stories knock continuity when they don’t have to? That said, you can spend hours and hours checking something and still goof up. I screw up all the time. We’re not perfect. That’s why Stan created No-Prizes! And that’s before you run into “personal continuities.”

Why don’t you start using those building blocks Dan? Is the fact you can’t live up to your own hype anymore? The stories should add to the fucking continuity and not fucking ignores it! Let me guess, that would cut into your promoting time or surfing the Web time. Please! Don’t do that! We may get a decent story for once!

From the CBR forum:
Originally Posted by erictheman9
Simply put, comics doesn't pay enough to attract a writer's "best work."
Gotcha.

DS:Money is obviously my only motivation in life. Good to know.

Quote:
Originally Posted by erictheman9
I assume that if the current brain trust spent 24/7 on ASM, they'd put out better work than what is out there, since more time thinking/researching stories can't hurt. But obviously that's not a choice they're willing to make.

DS:Obviously this is one of those times where someone is intending their statements to be ironic or over-the-top-rude-for-the-sake-of-being-funny and it's just not coming across in the text.

Quote:
Originally Posted by erictheman9
I'm sure they put out the best work they can given the circumstances they face--which for some of them, means juggling other, much more lucrative avenues. I wouldn't be surprised if ASM falls to the bottom of that list.

DS:Yes. Getting a once-in-a-lifetime chance to work on Amazing Spider-Man isn't a factor at all. For the love of--

I shouldn't read the internet. That should be my new mantra. I shouldn't read the internet.

Jesus.

This was the WORST use of a break I've taken in years.

I would have liked to spend some time with my friends and family this weekend-- or seen Watchmen (which, with my schedule, I'm probably not gonna get to see for weeks)-- but I'm here working on Spider-Man. It's-- *looks up at clock*- 4:42 AM on Sunday-- (Really? Oy.)-- and I'm about to jump back into my current script. And I'm doing this without ANY reservation, because IT'S SPIDER-MAN!

Seriously, what insight do you have into ANY of our PERSONAL priorities? I'd really like to know. I've gotten in serious trouble because, while working away on a number of all-nighters, a loved one said to me, "What's more important to you? Me or Spider-Man?" And I PAUSED! I paused WAY too long! I'm going to hear about that for the REST of my life. (And rightly so.)

There are so many things I would dearly love to type in response to a post like this. SO many. (Use your imagination).

But here's the thing... I'm shaking this off right now. You're just someone on the internet spouting off. And that's cool. That's part of what the internet's for. And taking posts like yours seriously shouldn't rank high on my list. You know what ranks high on my list-- right at the top? Writing Spider-Man.

I'm proud of the work I've done on this book. I'm proud of the whole damn team.
I look back on the first year of ASM and I can say earnestly and with all honesty that collaborating with artists like Phil Jimenez, Steve McNiven, Marcos Martin, John Romita Jr., Paulo Siquera, and Mike McKone has been one of the highlights of my LIFE!

If you think l didn't realize the pressure of working on the first BND story to come out of the gate... Or that I didn't understand the expectations that were resting on a storyline like New Ways to Die... Or that I didn't pour every ounce of love and craft I had into the Paper Doll story (which is probably going to be one of my FAVORITE things I've done in comics until the day I die)... Then you really, really, really don't get it.

Have your opinions about the material-- about the work-- and how it makes you feel. That's cool. I'm all for that. If you're not digging it, I understand. Hey, I read comics too. And I don't like EVERYTHING that's out there. And when I'm in private, talking to my friends, there are comics out there that I TOTALLY rip into. Not every comic is for every person.

But that's talking about the story, the characters, the art, the writing. At worst it's knocking a creator's craft.
But it is NEVER about that creator as a person, their sense of professionalism, or where their heart truly lies.

Phew. Okay. Got that off my chest.

I hope you guys understand where this is coming from. You go to a party or some social event, and someone introduces you-- and they say something like:
This is John, he's a high school science teacher. This is Sara, she works in real estate. This is Mike, he's a podiatrist. Maybe it's out of whack, but here in the West, what we DO is so much of who we ARE (or how people perceive us-- or how we perceive ourselves). And even though we're many things (members of families and members of communities tied together through race, creed, color, religion, sexual orientation, geography, and what have you)...

...there's something to be said about the identities that we forge for ourselves through CHOICE-- the professions we actively pursue-- the things we STRIVE to be-- and the parts of our lives where we invest most of our days. Sometimes we do that thing in order to live. And sometimes if we're very, very lucky, we get to live in order to do that thing. I write Spider-Man.

I'm glad I vented a little here (at, now 4:54 AM on Sunday), because while this was a half an hour or so where I should have been scripting-- it was a half an hour that got me back to the place I needed to get to. Just a reminder that I've got THE job I want-- one that really makes me happy.

All right. Back to work. :)


I am the negative one? I must be fucking high. Dan, yoo hoo, Dan over here. You could have just ignored it and move on with the rest of your life. Then that would require you to stop think you are the greatest writer of Spider-man since Stan Lee.


From Ain’t it Cool Dan Slott said the following:

No. This book has, had, and will have continuity. It takes place in the Marvel Universe. I see a lot of online fans out there saying that 20 years of continuity have been wiped. And that's so not the case. This isn't a 'Crisis' or a reboot. This is Marvel, people.

I don't mean to get my geek on, but here goes… The "mind-wipe" is a comic book trope. Except for a few changes, everything happened. People are just remembering it wrong. This has been done before many times in the Marvel U. From Sentry to Iron Man to Doc Strange.

Back in '98, Kurt Busiek did an Iron Man/Captain America special where Iron Man used an A.I.M.-built brainwashing satellite to make EVERYONE on Earth forget that he was ever Iron Man. Once upon a time, Stephen Strange made EVERYONE in EXISTENCE forget he was Sorcerer Supreme, and then he adopted the new identity of Dr. Stephen Saunders.

And it didn't change or invalidate ANY of their past comics. Look, hardcore fans can figure this stuff out. They've got the skills. It's all a matter of taking off the blinders, putting on your
No-Prize hat, and getting creative.

There ARE solutions to ANY continuity problem you can come up with. Honest. WE know how they all work. But who wants to go on and on explaining it all? I mean, just look at how long THIS response is. See? Getting sleepy yet? Me? I'd rather use that time telling stories!


Hey Dan, you forgot to add all those were done away with eventually. You also tend to forget the fucking Unmasking. You do remember that story don’t you? You know the one were Peter Unmasked to whole fucking world? Lets not forgot all those stories where a MARRIED Peter Parker and Mary Jane were part of in the Marvel Universe. Let’s not forget all those heroes that knew that Peter was Spider-man and married to this girl call Mary Jane Parker! Naa…this isn’t a reboot. It is a major fucking reboot! It is a major fucking reboot because it affects the whole fucking universe! Don’t be a dumbass when you open your mouth Dan!

Just some random comment by Dan Slott on CBR:

BUT, this is throwaway one-shot so whatever.

DS:Seriously, you could NOT be more wrong. This is NOT a throwaway. The last DR: THE LIST one-shot has a BIG effect on the company wide DARK REIGN story line.

Originally Posted by Jim Thompson
That art is phenomenal. I might get a copy just to look at that art.
That's fair.

DS: Sometimes I skim over your posts just to admire CBR's lovely font.

Originally Posted by carabas
Doesn't fly.

DS:It flies if you want it to fly. If you don't want it to fly, it won't.

Quote:
Originally Posted by carabas
He used to have the experiences of being single and of being married. Now he just has lots of experience being single.

DS:The relationship and experiences Peter had with MJ would have been the longest relationship of his life. Are you saying that relationship (about 20 years in real time) would have had NO more impact on him that dating someone for a few months or his previous relationships?

Are you saying that people on this board who've had long term relationships have experienced LESS in their lives than people who have been married for that exact same duration of time?

Quote:
Originally Posted by carabas
The experience of not being married is something he's had since the sixties.
Not the specific experience of being in that long and committed of a relationship. That's something different. Peter has never experienced that with anyone else.

DS:So you really think Aunt May of all people was fine not hearing from Peter for 2 monnths with nothing more than a vague answering machine message? Really?
If you go back and re-read the story, he actually calls Aunt May before he goes and tells her that he doesn't know how long he'll be gone. The answering machine was for everyone else.

I pick some these mostly to show how out of touch Dan is with the fans. He is totally clueless that the fans are laughing at him and not with him anymore. He isn’t cute, have you seen a picture of him? Wieght-Watcher needs to call him ASAP before he can’t sit in a normal chair anymore. All this is Dan trying to be cute instead of being a decent writer and researching his characters. Don’t even get me started on how screwed up Mighty Avengers is!

From 2008 Wizard Con in LA:

* Gale on the question of "did this happen or not happen," "None of it happened. It's fiction." He brought up Iron Man's origin and and how it is tweaked to make it contemporary.
"If this stuff makes you crazy, it's like William Shatner said to that guy, 'Get a life.'"
Slott added, "there are answers, it's pretty cool, keep reading."

Hey Dan, tell me how is tell the fans to get a life a positive thing to do? I will wait for your reply. I should get that about the same time when the issue that explains those missing 100 days. I am going to check my health plan to see if it is paid up because this is going to be one long fucking wait.

From Newsarama interview:

NRAMA: From talking to Steve, we've gotten that "forward motion" is the name of the game for BND and Amazing - how are things set up for that to work? Is Amazing Spider-Man #546 basically a start point that, for better or worse, things won't look further back than for a set period of time?

DS: Spider-Man's whole life is open to us. There are no shut doors. But the most interesting moment in time is always going to be right now! And from where we pick Pete up in #546 to where he goes from here on out-- is gonna be a great ride! And with the stuff we've got planned, and this crazy (boy-we-gotta-work-insane-hours-to-pull-it-off) thrice weekly schedule we're doing-- that ride is gonna come at you fast!

BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBUUUUUUUUUUUUULLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There was no close door in the first place. The only thing that was close was that Peter couldn't fuck anything that moves. THAT’S IT! Granted, I am way more creative than you are Dan to see that because I have the fucking guts to go places that no else would be willing to go with a character.

From NYCC 09:

* Will Norman Osborn recognize Spider-Man when they meet in the post Secret Invasion/One More Day/Dark Reign world? Bendis called up the hiding Dan Slott to answer, and Slott said that Norman will in fact realize who is under Spidey’s mask there will be an important Norman/Spider-Man arc coming up with Joe Kelly’s “American Son” arc and Slott’s upcoming Spidey/Fantastic Four two-parter (in ASM #590 and #591) will bring up the fact that people really SHOULD know who’s under that mask.

Well, that is just a fucking lie. Nothing but lies from a lair that lie to get a job at Marvel taking away from a person that wanted to earn college credit. I bet you never said sorry that person did you Dan. I guess that is the new motto at Marvel. Fuck’em we do what we want.

About Downloading Comics via Bitorrets:

She-Hulk, while it gets good reviews and enjoys a pretty loyal and devoted following, is still a low-selling title. It needs EVERY sale it can get to stay in the game. When you circumvent the intended path of sales you hurt the incomes of a LOT of people. [...]
Your sale acts as a vote. When you download a comic without paying for it, no vote is cast. You’ve gotten all the benefits of My, Rick’s, Cliff’s, Dave Sharpe’s, and Dave Kemp’s work– and we didn’t get the benefit of your vote. That’s not fair. We work very hard to produce the best comic we can– and, in effect, you’ve stolen from us.
Please stop. You’re not just ripping off Marvel. You’re ripping off all the PEOPLE putting this book out– people trying to make a living and support their families.

I am using this because of the low sales figures for the so call flagship character at Marvel. You better pray they are downloading you books Dan because no one wants to pay for you to jack off to pictures of Black Cat anymore. Oh, by the way Dan, you ripped off people who PAID for last 20 years of comics by not have balls enough to say that One More Day was the wrong thing to do towards the customers. Dickhead…

From a Blog call SCHWAPP!!!:
(Dan Slott is replying to a person from Jinxworld on that person's blog. He choose to get this person banned from Jinxworld because of other things this person said on the Web and not at Jinxworld)

Kevin,

You got four posts from me here today. Three comments on a thread yesterday. In each case you started by taking shots at people I know– and have posted just as much back.

On my side, there really hasn’t been that many comments from me since my last post on Feb. 2nd on the same thread where you reported Marc Guggenheim to the WGA. In the meantime YOU have been making frequent and regular posts about ME. Most of which have accused me of doing something that I simply did NOT DO.

When you look at the amount of time you’ve dedicated to going after ME, versus my posts yesterday and today? I think I’ve shown remarkable restraint.
When you appeared to post on my message board AFTER reporting Marc, creating a regular column dedicated to slamming Val (over 10 times in 2 months), and making frequent accusations against me– as if that were perfectly fine, I requested that you be blocked from MY board and NOT the rest of Jinxworld. But when the mods took at your behavior around the net, THEY decided that ALL the Jinxworld boards were better off without you.

“Obi Gee Why Enn”

Val talking about her own history is one thing. Using it as a cheap shot to score points at the end of an argument is another. Kevin doesn’t think about these things or their resonance. All he cares about is their shock value.

In his own words he “regrets” making the comments he did about Devin Grayson. While that is admirable, what is more telling is when he says “But I regret MORE that Valerie decided to spin what I said into something worse…” That’s messed up.
To the person posting as my own Ego (Thanks that’s cute).

How would you feel if you saw someone going around the net saying lies about you? Things he’s not willing to back up. (BTW, Matt Brady has seen everything Kevin’s accused me of doing at Newsarama– and has equivocally said he KNOWS I didn’t do it). How would you feel if Kevin made accusations about your friends and coworkers? How would you feel if because– in his own words he “felt dismissed” and “agitated” over internet posts– he reported someone you know to their union? Seriously, how would you feel?

I think I’m allowed my 3 posts yesterday and these 4 today.

That person's reply just to give equal time for truth:

OK, Dan...let's go over this point by point, again, shall we?

* You have your own place to vent your feelings about me, Dan. Your own forum. Or you could answer my accusations here. But I don't see why you have to take every appearance by me on blogs across the 'net as the proper forum for you to vent about me. Really. You could get the same kind of effect by complaining about it on your own forum, couldn't you? So, no, I would not say that you've exhibited an incredible amount of restraint. I'd dare say you don't know the definition of the word.
* I had already told you that I'd have no problem staying out of your forum several times during our off-board discussion. I even invited you to delete all evidence of my ever posting on your forum, not that you'd need my permission. Given your propensity for lies and fantastical stories, I don't know that I'm going to buy your story here.
* I didn't take a cheap shot at Val with it. She accused me of trying to get famous by having an argument with you and Guggenheim. That it was the purpose of my dust-up with the two of you. I denied that and then held the mirror back to her so she could see the way she chose to get famous.
* I regret making the joke the way I did. I stand by the fact that dating someone established in the industry does help your pitches get looked at.
* Please don't try to drag Matt Brady into this. He isn't part of the discussion and any talks you two had were private. It does nothing to help your argument.

Update: Heidi took down several of the posts there. Including the quoted Slott one above and the one from Obi Gee Why Enn. Just a lesson, kids...it is always good to open a separate window when you want to see if there are any updates rather than refreshing a window and potentially losing some of the good stuff.

Obi Gee Why Enn said:

Dan, Valerie brought up her vagina first. If she didn't want people talking about her vagina, then why should she post on the INTERNET about her vagina. If Kevin Huxford mocked her for talking about her vagina, it's probably because she has a whole topic category about her vagina. If Val doesn't want anyone to talk about her vagina, she should keep it off the internet.


That makes it sound like I actually had substantive discussions about her vagina, when I only pointed out that she used stories about her ripped vagina to get internet fame. She didn't just tell the story of the injury, she teased it in the blogs proceeding it, stretched it out into at least three blogs, and then kept referring back to it for awhile. One of the biggest word of mouth bits from her site was about some unnamed DC Comics penciller with a large member managed to break Val's vagina.

Not that there's anything wrong with that. But when you attempted to get your notoriety through your "broken hoohah" (her "label" for those blogs) and (at the time) anonymously slinging dirt about DC Comics editorial without naming names (thus likely leading to the innocent being judged just as badly as the guilty), you really have no leg to stand on in criticizing others...especially when you're attributing motivations that just aren't true.

WAAAA! Love me Damnit! I am Dan Slott! You must love me! It must be such a bitch being you Dan. Everyone fucking hates you. The best part about this is how he runs to the Jinxworld mods and ask for him to be ban for things he done at other places. LOL Cry baby.


From Marvel.com:

Marvel.com: How do you feel they stack up against Spidey's classic rogues?

Dan Slott: A lot of the classic guys wear their hearts on their sleeves. You know who they are, what they want, and what they can do. These new guys know how to keep a secret. And as their stories unfold, and you find out more about them, I think their cool factor will grow exponentially.

That’s what we want Dan! No backstory! Please keep us in the dark for 2 fucking years!

From Newsarama Interview about New Ways To Die:

NRAMA: Will there be more...
DS: Yes!
NRAMA: ...developments with Mary Jane during this storyline?
DS: What?! No.

Finally, something that is still true today. Other than the fact you would like to fuck her Dan, you have no idea who Mary Jane is as a character.

That’s it Dan. At least, that is much as I could stomach of you kissing your own ass via the web. I am going to give a little insight into who I am really. I am a fucking asshole. I like I am this way because I can look at myself in the mirror and not give a shit if the world loves me. Sure, I like to think I am respected here on Internet because of my actions and my attitude, which to this point has been very respectful towards everyone except once. Dan Slott, you sit in you Ivory Tower and realize this one simple truth. I will be leading the charge to knock it down.