PeterDavid.net

I'd ask if Captain Marvel's apparent winning of the "U-Decide" contest was a reason for the book's price hike, but I noticed the other "U-Decide" books are getting hiked as well.

We'd miss you if you left Marvel, Mr. David, but like I mentioned in my previous post, we'll follow your pen wherever it may lead.

(Personally, I'm looking forward to the third Apropos novel. Where am I gonna be able to go to ask you to sign that one when it comes out? You were kind enough to sign the first two for me in San Diego this past convention.)

Take care. And Happy New Year.

first of all i want to say that i find it ridiculous that joe apparently has decided to publicly give you what seems to amount to an ultimatum before talking to you privately first.

second of all, i have a question. and i apologize for this being extremely off topic but i figured you were the best person to ask. according to imdb.com the new hulk movie has both a bruce banner and a david banner. i was always under the impression that bruce banner was the hulk and for some reason they just called him david banner in the tv show. although according to imdb, he was called Dr. David Bruce Banner. so i am just very confused and was wondering if you could help straighten everything out. once again i apologize for the off-topicness. and i want to also say i love your books. thank you.

After all the negative things Queasy has done to the Marvel francise over the last 2-3 years, he's got a lot of nerve implying that he would fire you over negative comments. If he were a man of true character, he would also give you a bonus for every good thing you sat about Marvel.

Then again, it seems obvious to me that neither he nor Dumbass have any character.

I wouldn't call it a victory at all.

This was originally not about the

book surviving, but about the price

on the cover.

See:

http://www.newsarama.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t=000151

Are we to take it from you 'I don't do well with threats' comment that your days at Marvel are over, PAD? If so, this is a great shame, as Captain Marvel is going from strength to strength at the moment, and certainly couldn't exist without you. All I can do if this is the case is hope that your upcoming top secret projects work out much better for you (and us) than the batch that have just come to such untimely ends. All the best for 2003.

PAD,

I wish you and your now expanded family the best in 2003. I've been a fan for years and will continue to follow your work in comics and novels no matter where you go.

This latest thing with Quesada will pass. Everyone has had a boss that acts like a jerk.As my Grandfather always said, pick your fights. If this one is worth burning a bridge over, then call up Johnny Storm and "Flame On!"

PAD,

This is my first time posting here, but you may remember me from the Hulk message board at Comicboards. Anyway, your work on Captain Marvel proves that you have a great feel for cosmic stories and if Marvel fired you becase of Joe Q's opinion of your "team spirit", then Marvel will lose alot of my support. It is difficult to find a writer who will stick with a series as long as you have and who will put as much effort into revitalizing a comic that you put in. I sincerely hope you stay.

Joe Q theme for 2003 "We are going to take all the good things we have done and undo them! yah!"

:P

Peter, I look forward to picking up your future DC work. I'm not a big fan of DC. In fact, your Supergirl was the only DC title I pick up. So i guess that means something.

Wow, not only is America turning fascist now Marvel is. Mr. David, are you the new axis of evil? You, DC, and Image are threats to Marvel Security. Marvel Marvel Ubercomics.

Peter, I have no idea who you are, except through your online persona and your writing. We are not friends, and I would not presume to give you advice.

I have come to respect your writing, and consider myself a fan of work. I will always give your stuff a chance -- no matter what medium you choose.

My best thoughts are with you today. You deserve so much better than what you're getting at Marvel -- as a creator and as a professional.

I don't buy many comics, but I pledge to give every title you write a try no matter where you end up going -- even if you stay with Marvel.

Toe the line, or move on...you're still one of the best pros in comics -- and you've got a fan here.

Peter,

My jaw dropped when I read Quesada's threat, which basically consists of an assertion that he's your employer, you are his employee, and if you don't like the way Marvel is run, you should perhaps, and I'm paraphrasing here, "Get the hell out of the situation."

Frankly, Peter, you've never struck me as any kind of dissident. In fact, I shook my head when I read Joe's words, because of one simple fact: reading your various works, not just in comics, but your Star Trek novels, your Spider-Man movie novelization, and your TV work, I always got the impression that you felt you were employed by your FANS. Sure, Marvel cuts you a paycheck, but every statement you've made over the past 10 years I've always read as stemming from the fact that you recognized that you had fans, people who like your work. The whole U-Decide stunt developed because you made an attempt to keep Marvel from passing on a 25-cent increase (and a correlating decrease and eventual cancellation) to the fans of Captain Marvel. It made Marvel, and Joe Q. and Bill J. especially, look bad, like tyrannical businessment chasing the almighty dollar rather than a "House of Ideas." But you did what you did because of the fans. Joe Q. and Bill J. did what they did with U-Decide and continue to treat you as a liability because they've lost sight of the fans of Marvel Comics, and have become mired in office politics and the corporate bottom line.

I hope this doesn't mean you walk away from Captain Marvel, certainly some of the best work of your career. I understand, though, if it does. In my eyes, you've never lost sight of the fans, while Marvel has repeatedly dissed, ignored, or alienated a dwindling fanbase over the last 10 years.

I've read most of your mainstream superhero work, like Young Justice, Supergirl, Incredible Hulk, and Captain Marvel. I've stayed away from your more "off the beaten path" comic works, like Sachs and Violens and Soulsearchers and Company.

But, hey, in closing, all I can say upon hearing about this latest tantrum by Joe Quesada is this: I'm now adding Soulsearchers and Company to my pull list. You deserve that much respect at least. :-)

Take care. I wish you well. *sigh* Oh well...I guess I'll always have my back issues...

PAD,

You are my favorite writer, and that doesn't just mean comics. I love each of your novels (especially New Frontier), and have been a fan of yours ever since someone gave me a copy of X-Factor 74 for christmas ten or so years ago.

In fact, you are partially responsible for my relationship with my longtime girlfriend. I noticed she was reading a Star Trek book (Q-Squared...I didn't even know you wrote Star Trek at the time) in our Junior year of High School and started talking to her about it and you.

At the time, I didn't like Star Trek and she didn't like comics (we learned from each other), but we both thought you were brilliant. Seven years later, we are still together and working on wedding plans.

Each month, we look forward to Young Justice, Supergirl, and Captain Marvel, and we will be with you no matter where you go and what you write. Thank you for incountable hours of enjoyment.

Looking forward to your next work,

Michael Maillaro and Gina Altbuch

Pad,

I wish you nothing but success in your future endeavours. I have enjoyed your work before I even was aware that it was you doing the writing. Stunts like U-Decide and threats such as the one you have mentioned, are not IMO a viable method of employee relations. I have not seen what was written, (cant be bothered going to his site.) but it seems to me that JoeQ is a spiteful little man with nothing better to do than antagonize the readers of his magazines. After all this U-D nonsense, he still raises the price on 13 titles. 3 of which I read and only 2 of which I will keep. I will be honest I did not read CM before the relaunch. I did not have the money for another monthly at the time. I picked it up in part to support you, but also because I had dropped a number of other Marvels and was able to afford it. I will stay with it as long as you do, same as I did with Hulk. I have only read a few issues after you left and was no longer enjoying those stories. Time to maybe try Spy-Boy.

Companies all over the country (and in many other countries) are like this; it's not enough to give 110%; you have to sacrifice your soul for the greater good of the company. That means no complaints, unwarranted praise of your workplace, and basically being a shill in your spare time (if I had a dime for all the company logo-heavy coffee cups and trinkets I'm given to take home from my workplace, I could become a publisher myself). If I could see anything this year, I'd like to see a creator-based house based on talent and dedication to the craft (a smarter, more reliable version of the standard creator imprint).

Nothing like being kicked while you're down, hunh? First Young Justice, Supergirl and now this. I really detest Fat Boy and Little Man for this and many other acts. I hope you don't feel too bad though. I wouldn't want to work for a bunch of unprofessional cheats and swindlers myself.

You'd think Joe Q would love this kind of publicity. I mean, has he ever cared in the past that he looked like an idiot?

I'm ashamed to admit it, but I actually think you should quit Marvel. Maybe sign exclusive with DC. You'd be great writing on Superman or something like that.

Marvel just isn't giving you any respect, so maybe for your own sake you should tell Joe Q to shove it.

Hope to still see you in the Comics Biz. They need real Team Players like you around.

>I'm ashamed to admit it, but I >actually think you should quit >Marvel.

Better to quit before you're fired. I agree. I have a low tolerance for idiocy and incompetence like this, and if I were in PAD's position I would have turned my back on Marvel and never looked back a long time ago (at least as long as J&Q are in charge).

I'm sure PAD doesn't want to look like a quitter after everything he did to save Captain Marvel and the fan response. But I wouldn't blame him at all for quitting at this point. Marvel doesn't deserve PAD.

Corey

As much as I would love to see PAD write Superman I would rather that he not get involved. The crossovers that they forced on Supergirl were bad enough. Can you imagine the hell he would have to go through if he wrote one of the Superman books? I just can't wish that on him. I would love to see him replace that hack Joe Kelly on JLA though. I've heard rumors that there will be an opening on The Flash around issue 200 so maybe PAD will be interested in that book.

Fazhoul

Nah, don't quit. Force him to make good on his threat and leave with your head held up high.

And in two years, when he's gone, they'll be crying for PAD to take over some forlorn title that no one loves any more and do something with it.

This isn't the first time. It won't be the last.

JSM

PAD, I said this before (under another thread), and I'll say it again:

Maybe it's time to resign as writer of Captain Marvel. I love the book, and think you're doing great work. But Quesada's remark was throwing gasoline on a grease fire, and if my boss wrote something like that on a public forum, I'd be out of here so fast my head would spin.

You can't be getting a huge paycheck off this book. You could put the time you spend on this on stuff that you actually own or would get paid more money on. Refresh yourself creatively, wait till Bill and Joe aren't in power anymore- and one day, that will happen, and I doubt it will take longer than 48 months given some of their statements- and go back with new verve and your audience intact.

The other alternatives just aren't that attractive- stay and say nothing, which will drive you nuts; say something and get fired, ruining your rep; stay and wait for Marvel to decide that Marville is the new hot book for 2003...

Whatever you do, I look forward to reading more of your work- whoever publishes it. Good luck, and my love to your family.

Ray aka wishlish

After reading his tirade, I say goto Crossgen's Code 6. You don't have to move to Tampa with Code 6.

Then you could have a balding homeless character named Joe that once worked for Sony Comics.

CrossGen's wanting to branch out ... they're publishing creator-owned work ... I wonder if Sir Apropos could find a home alongside R.A. Salvatore's fantasy book and Rodi's Crossovers family?

Mr. David,

Having read Mr. Quesada's latest comments, I would like you to put to rest something that has been bothering me since this whole U-Decide mess began.

1. Did anyone at Marvel try to notify you of the proposed price hike on CAPTAIN MARVEL before it was announced to the public?

2. Did anyone at Marvel try to talk with you about the declining sales on CM in the months before the announcement, and if so how much?

You may have answered these questions before, and I've assumed the answer to both of them is "no". But Mr. Quesada's emphasis on the public nature of your comments being the main point that aggravates him, puzzles me.

If you had been privately contacted about these matters and then took it public, Mr. Quesada would seem to have a decent point.

If as the writer of CAPTAIN MARVEL, however, Marvel left you out of the loop on this issue...Mr. Quesada's comments take on a self-deluded tinge, maintaining that Marvel has the right to treat its employees (or "independent contractors") poorly, but those who work for or with Marvel have no right to draw public attention to that treatment.

It may be anal retentive of me, but I always like to establish how these sort of things begin in figuring out how I view them.

Mike

can someone please link me to Queasda's comments?

Did I see here that you've been offered a job by CrossGen? I'd say go for it, you'll be a very valuble asset to them, PAD, and if to work at the big two, well, DC in the meantime looks like the best way to go, even if they did cancel Young Justice absurdly. I'm hoping you'll get to work on Green Lantern, which could surely benefit tremendously from your writing talents, and with any luck, they'll offer you the assignment of writing the Emerald Warrior's book...and returning it to cosmic greatness!

Can someone tell me where on Joe’s site that "ultimatum" is? I looked through the site (not easy, given that it seems to have some glitches), and couldn’t find it. A link, please? Thanks.

Dave Golbitz: I'd ask if Captain Marvel's apparent winning of the "U-Decide" contest was a reason for the book's price hike, but I noticed the other "U-Decide" books are getting hiked as well.

Luigi Novi: Actually, for all we know, maybe that’s just a smokescreen. Bill and Joe know that Marville and Ultimate Adventures aren’t going anywhere but cancellation, so they figure they have nothing to lose. They’re going to be cancelled anyway, so why not raise the prices on them as well, so that the price hike on Captain Marvel doesn’t look like an isolated case of bias?

Richard Franklin: I really detest Fat Boy and Little Man for this and many other acts.

Luigi Novi: Personally, I’ve always found epithets about the overweight to be cheap shots. Yeah, I know you didn’t mean anything by it, Richard, but given that Peter himself (and I as well) are a bit on the hefty side, the insult doesn’t seem to pertain to Joe specifically.

Surges, Corey Tacker & Ray Cornwall: I'm ashamed to admit it, but I actually think you should quit Marvel.

Luigi Novi: If he did, Joe could then say that Peter abandoned the book that was selling well, that his ultimatum was just a joke, or that he had no intention of firing Peter so long as Peter "didn’t say any more negative things about Marvel."

I don’t think Peter should quit. Ignore Joe. And if Joe does fire Peter, it will all be on Joe’s head, not Peter’s.

"Say something and get fired, ruining your rep."

As opposed to, say, John Byrne, who--whenever he didn't like the way things were going--walked off a project while loudly badmouthing all those involved. Thus garnering a rep as someone who didn't stick with projects.

I'd just as soon have a reputation as someone who doesn't quit as long as he thinks he's capable of getting the job done. "Aquaman" reached a creative impasse where I had no idea what the editor wanted (a claim which was later echoed by Erik Larsen). So I quit. "X-Factor" was an editorial nightmare. So I quit. And so on.

I have no impediment to writing "Captain Marvel" thus far. My editor continues to like my work, and my six month story arc was approved. I'm still capable of doing my job, and sales are strong. So to my mind, I've no reason to quit.

PAD

I don't get it. If sales are strong (Strong being relative to what can be expected in this day and age) then why the price increases? Why would any professional businessman want to derail a product that is making money? It seems in todays climate any profit is better then none at all. Isn't making money what running a succesful company is about?

This whole thing doesn't make sense. Has the whole world gone mad?

PAD,

This isn't really about Joe's comments, but I'm new to the site and didn't know where else to post this, so here it goes.

Honestly, I don't care what you and Joe think about each other, it doesn't matter to me. What I would like to say is that I'm really enjoying Captain Marvel right now. I had never read Captain Marvel before, but I decided to pick up the first issue of V.4 (Alex Ross cover, what a beauty!). So far, loving it. Easily accessbile, beautiful art, and great story. All I could ask for. I will be gladly paying $2.99 for it, because it is worth it to me. And I will keep reading it until it is no longer good (which, as long as you're writing it, I don't expect that to happen). So, here's a "thank you" from me personally, and keep up the good work.

>>1. Did anyone at Marvel try to notify you of the proposed price hike on CAPTAIN MARVEL before it was announced to the public?<<

Nope. No clue. Apparently a random fan who suggested the price increases, *him* they consulted. Me? No.

>>2. Did anyone at Marvel try to talk with you about the declining sales on CM in the months before the announcement, and if so how much?<<

No one had said boo. Now me, I'd been looking at the sales, hadn't been thrilled with them, and began developing the entire storyline that eventually launched the reboot. That's why I went ballistic when CM was publicly singled out as being in trouble and in danger. No one had said word one to me about it.

PAD

Hey, I don't know if this has been covered before, but we know that CM is clearly the U-Decide winner.. yet... Marville and UA are both solicited for a #7? WHY? WHY?

Mr. EIC's words can be seen here: http://www.joequesada.com/cgi-bin/ikonboard/ikonboard.cgi?s=3e14d57b3583ffff;act=ST;f=1;t=4451;st=0

You have to register to view his boards.

To see what Crossgen CEO Mark Alessi thinks of PAD go here:

http://www.cgforums.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=31;t=000169

17th post in the thread.

I don't know what is more sad about that forum; that everyone generally agrees with everything Joe says, or that people have more then 10 posts there. (let alone 200)

I don't know what is more sad about that forum; that everyone generally agrees with everything Joe says, or that people have more then 10 posts there. (let alone 200)

I have 62 but then I compared him to a third grader recently for his repeated calling DC AOLC. :)

"Hey, I don't know if this has been covered before, but we know that CM is clearly the U-Decide winner.. yet... Marville and UA are both solicited for a #7? WHY? WHY?" posted by woodstock

Because almost immediately after announcing U-Decide and claiming that only the best selling book would continue, Mr. Jemas backed off that statement (IIRC even claiming he had never said any of the titles would be at stake) and instead made it about him going into a dunk tank if he lost, Mr. Quesada getting pies throw at him if he lost (both at some con this year - Chicago maybe?) & then dared PAD to put something up. PAD declined to further involve himself. The survival of the books was to be based on sales, just like all books. (Although I don't see how Marville's sales justify even finishing the first six.) And latest spin, from the the very post that started this discussion, is the before even a single book was sold, Mr. Jemas & Mr. Quesada decided they'd go through with the dunktank/pie-in-face things for charity anyways. In other words it could be argued from Mr. Quesada's own post that he & Mr. Jemas conceded defeat to PAD before the whole U-Decide thing started. :)

I think the problem is respect. Jemas and Quesada don't have any. They don't respect the creators, they don't respect the retailers and worst of all, they have zero respect for the people who buy Marvel comics. This is bad on many levels but there is one good thing about it. Eventually it'll catch up with Bill and Joe and their asses will be out on the street. Think I'm wrong? Seen Jim Shooter running any comic companies lately?

Dear PAD-

"I'm still capable of doing my job, and sales are strong. So to my mind, I've no reason to quit."

I'm glad you feel that way. I took the earlier comment- "I'm not good with threats"- as a potential reason. I happen to really enjoy this book, not just because you write it (and you write it well) but also because I've been following ChrisCross since, well, Blood Syndicate, and it's amazing to see his progression as an artist.

Having said that, if my boss's boss (which to me is a semi-valid way of looking at Joe Q's role) said about me what Quesada said about you, in a public forum, for all to see, I'd have taken that as a reason to quit. I might still keep my job, but make no bones about it- Joe Q and Bill J have given you plenty of reasons to quit.

You're just not taking them, and we all thank you for it. Thanks for the great work so far, and best wishes to you and your family.

Ray aka wishlish

Frankly, I don't know how to feel. I actually like much of what Joe and Bill have done. Under Joe, Spider-Man became good again, X-Men got a new jolt of creative juice (I know continuity has taken a beeting, but not terminally), and the Ultimate line came into being.

On the other hand, I despise what J and B have done in the U-Decide stunt. Peter, I am ashamed to say that I do not currently read Captain Marvel. I read up until issue 30, but afterward gave it up. This was not due to lack of quality, but because where I live the only place to get comics is either Waldenbooks or a comic shop an hour and a half away. Be that as it may, I hope you stay on at Marvel. The Marvel Universe needs the creativity and humor that you bring to your projects.

I must say that I greatly respect the maturity you are showing in dealing with this matter. You have great character, and I hope thay you have continued success.

These things have a tendency to go in cycles. Editors in Chief and writers just don't always get along. In the 70s, Gerry Conway and Steve Gerber butted heads, and then went to court. Steve Englehart and Tom DeFalco clashed notably as well. And of course, Jim Shooter pissed off everybody. Editorial reigns end, and bridges can be mended. Both Gerber and Englehart eventually came back, however, ironically while Joe was in the big chair.

Happy New Year and best wishes to your newly expanded family.

Ben Hunt

My first thoughts are... what a double standard. Joe Q. is upset that PAD is writing criticisms about Marvel publicly instead of coming to him privately. So naturally, he tells PAD that he'll fire him if he does it again by coming to him privately on the WORLD WIDE WEB.

And please, no "PAD started it," because Marvel was the first ones to start talking trash publicly about everyone from the fans to retailers to columnists to the competition to... Quesada just comes across as someone who can dish it out but can't take it.

PAD, I'm glad to hear you're planning on sticking through it. I say MAKE him fire you off the book.

Along those lines, I was talking with Richard Frankln and another friend of ours about it today, and they came up with some great ideas on where this should all go from here:

* PAD can't release the results of the retailer survey without getting fired? No problem... give 'em to Harlan Ellison, and let him publish the results in CBG. I'd pay good money to hear his commentary on that...

* Marville is a parody of the comic industry that isn't funny. PAD can write funny comics and also happens to make biting, witty commentary on the industry. Joe needs to say "You want to pick apart Marvel in public? Okay, here you go-- you're taking over Marville."

Well, the ideas had the three of us laughing...

-Fer

The thing that has made me curious from the beginning - I work in retail, and when something isn't selling well, we usually LOWER the price to attract shoppers. Why would you raise the price on something that isn't selling well to begin with? Isn't this Business 101?

Richard Franklin: I really detest Fat Boy and Little Man for this and many other acts.

Luigi Novi: Personally, I’ve always found epithets about the overweight to be cheap shots. Yeah, I know you didn’t mean anything by it, Richard, but given that Peter himself (and I as well) are a bit on the hefty side, the insult doesn’t seem to pertain to Joe specifically.

I intended it to be a cheap shot actually but not against anyone but Joe Quesada and Bill Jemas. I know it was petty and childish but I couldn't help myself. No offense was meant to anyone else and just so you know, I'm about 70 pounds overweight myself.

You outlived Shooter and others at Marvel. You can outlive Quesada. Stay the course.

I just got the news about Marvel raising their prices through the roof and I realized that we as readers had an interesting opportunity to show our displeasure. We've never had such a great opportunity to directly effect the executives who make such stupid decisions. All we have to do is find the 12 guys who are reading Ultimate Adventures and Marville and get them to drop the books in protest. Let Bill and Joe's books be the first to be cancelled due to their own poor management skills.

>>The thing that has made me curious from the beginning - I work in retail, and when something isn't selling well, we usually LOWER the price to attract shoppers. Why would you raise the price on something that isn't selling well to begin with? Isn't this Business 101?<<

I was trying to reason this out myself, and this is what I came up with:

If your product isn't selling well, and your desires as the producer are to make it sell well, then yes, lowering the price and increasing the publicity is the smarter course.

If, however, your product isn't selling well, and your desire is merely to keep it on the market until it becomes financially unfeasable, then a price increase to cover the cost of production (and the cost incurred by estimated readership loss under the price increase) is the preferred course of action.

You would hope that the former would be Marvel's position on all its titles; sadly, however, they seem to be more inclined towards the latter.

* Marville is a parody of the comic industry that isn't funny. PAD can write funny comics and also happens to make biting, witty commentary on the industry. Joe needs to say "You want to pick apart Marvel in public? Okay, here you go-- you're taking over Marville."<<

You kidding? The first genuine Marvel parody book since...what? Not Brand Echh? I'd write that in a heartbeat. I'd have a field day.

PAD

Hmm. I can't find Mark Alessi's comments at the link posted above, and I can't read Joe Quesada's comments without registering for his forum. At this point, the thought of signing up for his forum makes my skin crawl. Almost literally. Could someone please reprint the relevant comments here?

Thanks,

Daniel

Isn't PAD a freelance employee of Marvel? I doubt he would have written "But I Digress" if he were still in sales or if he were a full-time editorial staffer, but he's not. He doesn't even have an exclusive contract. This has to grant him a certain freedom to speak his mind.

PAD's responsibility should be to turn in quality work on time ("on time" being less important to the brass at Marvel, with its "growing roses" mentality, than in keeping your trap shut). And it's not like PAD has ever entered into the realm of libel or tacky personal attacks. It's all been about the work. An EIC who would gladly fire an excellent writer because of statements he's made (and not in the press but in his own opinion column)cares more about how polished his apple is than in the quality of the product he turns out.

But why am I not surprised?

As requested, here's what Mark Alessi says:

Icon 1 posted 12-26-2002 05:58 PM Profile for Mark Alessi Send New Private Message Edit/Delete Post Reply With Quote

Just a brief note to say that I have read many of Mr. Davids novels and I find him to be an excellent writer. After meeting him in San Diego I also found him to be a exceptionallly nice man. I don't know if he will ever work with CG but I hope he wouldn't be restricted because of his high moral values, I'd like to think that's what we are all about. With great respect for Mr. David. Mark

PAD,

Just some observations here:

(1)As a freelance employee of Marvel Peter David's opinions can't

be censored - unless he signed an

agreement covering confidentiality.

This only applies to printed matter, however - not the internet.

(2)PAD should tread very carefully

in his internet comments because

several persons have had their butts hauled off to jail for speaking out against their employers on the web. Free speech

apparantly does not apply to the web, at least not when you criticize your employer (both past

or present).

(3)Mr Jemas and Mr Quesada represent Marvel's Management, and to make the remarks that they have

made publicly is well, bad management. I say this as someone who has spent the past 10 years in

management at the retail level. In

most companies, if a member of their management staff said what these guys have said publicly, they would be gone.

(4) For those who keep telling PAD

to write for Code 6, they should be

aware that Crossgen requires all creators to give up 75% of the ownership rights to their creations. I don't blame PAD for

not working for them, neither would

I under those terms

(5) Say what you want about Shooter, but for all his faults he

was a much better manager than Quesada will ever be. Under Shooter Marvel got 90% of their books out on time, and golly gee whiz, they even made a profit doing so.

(6) Finally, I think the comics industry has gotten away from the basics, and that's why it's suffering the way it is today, and that's why second rate artists turned editors get mad at writers

whose books out sell their own.

"It's not that I want Peter to keep his mouth shut, it's that if you're working for me and you're on my team, then I consider you on my team. If you don't like the policies of the team then you're not. Complain all you want, but do it in private, call me on the phone and tell me about it, don't go on public forums. I get tons of advice and complaints from freelancers on issues of deadlines, rates, policies, what have you. They call me up personally and discuss it and we resolve it. Peter goes public and that's where the problem lies. "

So what about it Peter? Have you called and talked to Joe about the things that you take issue with? I'm just wondering, because some of what the man says makes sense. I do think that it's a big distortion to say that you're badmouthing him in the press. I mean, the only people who read your column are going to be people who read your work or people who dislike you and want to take potshots, right? So it can't be too many outsiders. I guess I'm just wondering what kind of communication you've had outside of what you say here. I think it would behoove Joe to listen to you if you were to call and make suggestions, or to try to work things out. Can't say I see him listening in any case though.

Anyhoo, Genis-Vell is kicking our collective butt, so keep it up man. Best, and Happy New Year.

Just a quick note to wish Peter, Peter's family, and all the other posters here a happy 2003.

Peter: I'm sad to see Supergirl ending, and will be even sadder if Captain Marvel ends. I enjoy your writing, and can imagine many comics that I'd love to read if you were writing. I'm looking forward to "Fallen Angel", and whatever else you wind up writing this year.

Here's something no one has suggested (as far as I know). This is pure fantasy, mind you. But Peter has been in sales, he's been in writing, he knows a lot about the business, he has a lot of opinions on how it's run, and he seems to have a pretty good attitude to the other people in the comics field -- fans, retailers, fellow creators, even editors and other management folks. Can you imagine Peter as EIC of Marvel...

>>Just a brief note to say that I have read many of Mr. Davids novels and I find him to be an excellent writer. After meeting him in San Diego I also found him to be a exceptionallly nice man. I don't know if he will ever work with CG but I hope he wouldn't be restricted because of his high moral values, I'd like to think that's what we are all about. With great respect for Mr. David. Mark<<

I'm not sure what that means. Did CrossGen say or do anything that's immoral? If they did, I missed it.

Someone sent me one of their Code Six contracts complaining that it was out of line. I read it over. Seemed pretty routine. Not the world's most lucrative deal, but certainly nothing unethical.

Nor have I ever considered it amoral that they want people located in Florida. If that's a condition of hiring, then that's a condition. You know that going in.

I think Mark Waid isn't happy with them, but I've no idea what that's about and wouldn't presume to judge.

So I feel like there's something I'm not getting here....

PAD

For those of you not wanting to sign up for Joe's board-0 i highly recomend it. The Peter David thread is a hoot.

Joe is really really silly. From what I read peter- all you have to do is call him and talk to him about your concerns before your rant becasue thats waht Kevin Smith does.

"As for Kevin, nothing he’s said in a public forum has come as a surprise since we’ve discussed it several times over the phone."

So call him, tell him whats bad- then write about it here!

Hey Peter -

Just a thought- since he is saying all this stuff on his forum- why don't you reply there? Thats one way to talk to him about it, and he cann't get mad since its a topic he started.

Just a thought....

So I feel like there's something I'm not getting here....

PAD

You need to see the whole thread. Someone else posted that they were under the impression that you did not want to leave the Boston area because of your family. I think that's what he was talking about.

Let me try the link again with html code: click here

Hopefully that will work. If I remember the code right. Probably not.

My mistake. Long Island.

I thought I read you lived in Boston. Oh well.

Having read Capt. Marvel #4, I'm going to try to finger (just had flashback to first page of CM#4) why it is that Joe Q may have it in for Peter David.

Peter David is a stone cold madman.

I mean that in a good way. I believe Joe Stracynski and Harlan Ellison are considered exemplars of those who funnel personality damage into creative writing.

But Bre'r David, you take the cake and eat it too. Clearly, the hopelessly grounded Joe Q can't cope with this.

Cryptic allusions to spoilers that won't do much to cushion the blow of palm against forehead when the think-they're-wary pick up CM # 4:

Are 'Ep' and 'Ent' related to a Dr. Strange character? Is this character a hermaphrodite?

Is Genis' grumbling about disorderly events related to why No-One has it in for him?

Will Mordecai P. Boggs dare enter the Microverse?

I'll pay the cover price to know, and a couple of bucks more besides. This story is _fun_.

I'm not sure what that means. Did CrossGen say or do anything that's immoral? If they did, I missed it.

Just guessing, but maybe your criticism of his saying he'd "destroy Marvel"? In any event, he seems to be taking it in generally good humor.

The moral comment was a response to a poster who said something along the lines of PAD would not work for CG because of his high moral values...

I didn't quite get it either...

Just want to throw something out here that Warren Ellis posted on his mailing list, regarding the Marvel price-hike:

"Retailers have to order a rather large

dollar amount of Marvel comics

before qualifying for a better

discount level. Banging seventy-four

cents on to these books, many of

which have a devoted fanbase, will

actually make it easier for a lot of

retailers to hit that discount plateau

while ordering much the same

number of books. I haven't run

hard numbers, and it'll obviously

vary from shop to shop, but there's

a distinct possibility that some

retailers will be better off."

(I took out his rants about how stupid all internet posters are for not realizing this)

So it may make more sense from a retailer standpoint, although the fans will still have to eat the cost.

Well, actually someone suggested that Peter's outspokeness might sway Marak against from wanting to work with him. A second person commenting on it somehow decided outspokeness meant high moral values, and that's what Mark then responded to saying that high morals is what Crossgen is all about. Basically it was a game of message board telephone.

No logic whatsoever behind price increase is better for retailers because the, "Banging seventy-four

cents on to these books, many of which have a devoted fan base, will actually make it easier for a lot of retailers to hit that discount plateau while ordering much the same number of books."

All retailers will purchase their comic books at discount in order to compete with other comic stores in the area. If they cannot keep up with the minimum amount needed for the discount they won't stay in business for the simple reason that the their profit margins or even the amount the can discount a book is lessened because they have to essentially buy the product at a higher cost then their competitors. Any store (comics or otherwise) that cannot afford to purchase enough product to get it at discount will soon go out business. In any form of retail you will find large buying groups that give smaller businesses the same kind of discount purchasing power as the larger chains. Even very small retail outlets normally purchase product at prices very close to the of the larger chain stores. The large profit that these large stores make is normally because of the bulk of product that is sold, not because of a larger profit margin per individual product.

They may qualify for the discount more easily (that they have to qualify for anyway) but are left with fewer titles in their store at higher prices. Maybe Marvel shouldn't be hiring "artists" to do their "business" strategies.

Well, our shop is primarily an anime shop, but we've also been selling mainstream comics over the last year or two. It's been an uphill struggle and we're still trying to expand our selection without losing money on it. As a result we still order relatively small numbers, and always get the lowest possible discount from Marvel. (Although I'd like to go on record as saying we believe in and follow the policy of "if it sells out one month, order more next month!")

If the new rates earn us a higher discount, that's all well and good and I'll be happy. But if the books don't sell because my customers are scared off by the higher cover price then the extra discount does me no good.

Of course, manga comics have had cover prices of $2.99 for a long time now, and some of them, specificly from Viz and lately Dark Horse, are $3.25, $3.50 or even $3.99 each month. So some of our customers may already be acclimated to the new price. But I doubt it; oddly enough we have very little crossover. The customers who come to our shop for mainstream titles buy very little or no manga, and vice versa.

I've always had the mentality that I'd rather sell a lot of something at a lower price then only a few at a higher price, but that's probably part of why I never pass those pesky IQ tests!

-Fer

Well, in a static universe with just one publisher, Ellis' comments might make a little sense.

But there is always some fall-off in sales and resistance to higher prices (74 cents here, 74 cents there - pretty soon you're talking about real money), and Marvel is not the be-all and end-all in comics; Marvel retailer orders do not exist in a vacuum. There are lots of other publishers and lots of new titles coming out all the time - some customers drop one title to jump onto a new one - these (and similar) factors must also be taken into account each and every month when placing orders.

Plus, I'd be willing to lay a substantial sum that Marvel will shortly change their terms for reaching specific discount levels, justifying it by saying that the higher prices mean that too many retailers are getting a better discount, cutting into Marvel's and Diamond's intake, and probably after receiving some pressure from larger-ordering retailers that Marvel is making it too easy for the little stores to approach their discount levels.

It is high time the powers that be realize that, at this point in time, many, many comics retailers have shops located in smaller towns and cities, with a finite audience (not that that audience cannot be expanded - but that is a question for another day), and cannot be expected to automatically bump up orders when the result would likely be increased non-selling copies.