35 comments on “OUT THIS WEEK: Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #19 and 1602 #1”
Haven’t gotten my shipment of this month’s comics yet, but I did just read X-Factor #10 and FNSM #11, and I got a kick out of both.
And not to be a noodge but… any sign of those questions I sent? I sent it four times so far, but I just don’t know if they’re getting through. My e-mail’s cylversaber@aol…. well you know the rest. Let me know the best way to get in contact.
FNSM #12 came out this week too. I was disappointed by 1602 FF, but liked MASM and FNSM.
1602 really missed the mark
I have to agree with Badstrong, 1602 was not good. Not at all like a PAD comic. After reading, I don’t think I will pick up further issues. Just felt off.
FNSM had both good and bad points:
The Good:
1. The banter between Pete and Roger (the principal).
2. Pete’s call home to see if MJ and May are ok.
3. Nurse Arrow looks like a good character, but isn’t her introduction a hint that Pete will change his mind and stay at Midtown high?
The Bad:
1. I haven’t figured on yet why there are three Mysterios.
2. Why were there so many illusions, and yet the monsters in the trap Flash feel into were apparently real.
PAD, what issues are you writing of Marvel Adventures Spider-Man? I heard you were doing 8 issues at least, but I see you’re not writing #21.
Corey
Hmmm. Unlike the previous posters, I really got a kick out of 1602. It was a lot of fun. I also enjoyed the art.
I also liked 1602. I don’t know if it helps, but I’ve read all the 1602’s up until now.
I just want to know how you have so many comics every month and manage to keep them mostly on schedule when other authors I like end up releasing an issue every two months or so.
Bravo.
I generally find people who dislike “1602” split into three camps:
1) They loved Neil’s “1602” and declare this is too different and isn’t remotely as good. (Of course, had I aped exactly Neil’s involved plot of political gamesmanship, I would have been accused of trying to be too much like Neil and thus not being remotely as good.)
2) They hated Neil’s “1602” and don’t understand why Marvel is putting out more.
3) I adopted a different, more leisurely form of storytelling because I didn’t want to transplant my typical style to such a radically different millieu, and they don’t understand why it reads unlike my other work, and since different=bad…
Perhaps it would have helped if, like Neil, I had thirty two pages of story to establish tone, setting and style, instead of twenty-two. Oh well. For those who stick around, you’re going to experience a really good story.
PAD
I didn’t read Neil’s 1602. I mainly didn’t feel the mix of winking humor and This Is Important worked well. Sometimes you pull it off, but sometimes you don’t, and this was one of the latter times.
Which is interesting considering I wasn’t trying to be funny. The sole exception was the conversation between Shakespeare and the King, and even that was actually steeped in my research–ranging from that James hadn’t liked some of the Bard’s previous work to the fact that he had an active interest in the supernatural and had written a book on demonology. So I thought it would be interest to posit that the modern producer attitude of “Does it HAVE to be such-and-such” or to suggest that writers insert subjects of interest to the producers–whether it serves the story or not–was actually an attitude that went back centuries.
Even then, I wasn’t going for funny. More ironic, I’d say. And, as noted, that was the only intended “winking humor” in the book.
PAD
Storywise, 1602 was okay. I enjoyed the Frightful Four and the banter with Shakespeare and the King was fun. Unfortunately I found the art underwhelming and frankly, the $3.50 price tag is makes it a harder sell for me. Yes, I know you don’t set the price and there were extra pages. I just have a limited comics budget and I needed this to be more rewarding to justify me continuing to buy it.
And just to drive you crazy over your feedback, let me say that the conversation with Shakespeare was far and away my favorite part of the issue. I did also like Spider-Man and Fin Fang Foom, though is this a new origin for him? I always thought he was a guardian of China or something suspiciously hazy and badly misremembered along those lines.
I liked 1602 well enough, I too liked the Shakespeare (Ben Grimm as a player was an inspired touch) I always wondered why Neil didn’t use or even reference Shakespeare in the original 1602, I suppose he didn’t have room, and he already used him extensively in Sandman. Still it would have been a great opportunity to see “Marvel Universe Shakespeare” as opposed to “DC Universe Shakespeare”. I for one, would enjoy a crossover.
I liked classic Peter David nods like “Giant Spiders” and “Good title”, straight out of “Shakespeare in Love” if I’m not mistaken.
PAD
That was a really fun take on Liz Allen. Really, really fun. You ought to use her more if you get the chance.
As someone who has a degree in Shakespearean studies, and has studied a ton of Jacobian history and drama, I got a total kick out of the scene with James and Shakespeare. I could see the research, and enjoyed it. I also liked Ben in Falstaff’s garb. I really enjoyed the issue as a whole, and that scene in particular.
They loved Neil’s “1602” and declare this is too different and isn’t remotely as good. (Of course, had I aped exactly Neil’s involved plot of political gamesmanship, I would have been accused of trying to be too much like Neil and thus not being remotely as good.)
I like your stuff, PAD, but just once it would be nice to read your reaction to negativity/criticism without a “well I’m dámņëd if I do and dámņëd if I don’t…” response from you. Yeah, some people are never happy. We get it. Constantly harping on it comes across as self-pitying.
1602 didn’t work for me because, unlike Neil Gaiman’s work (which is actually one of my all time favorite books) it didn’t have the tone of a 17th century novel or 17th century psychosis rather it felt like a traditional comic book set in the year 1602 (cliffhanger and all…)
Thought FNSM was quite good this week. The book has been really good since coming of “the other” storyline. 1602 was ok… it was missing a bit of the PAD humor we find in titles like x-factor, but i’ll stick with it
regarding FNSM #12. Would I be right in thinking that one of the characters involved has, unbeknowest to the readers, appeared in FNSM before?
On a completely different note, I really liked Falen Angel #8 (did not see a specific blog entry for it).
I don’t care too much for Sachs and Violens, but I do think that a relationship built on adrenaline might get tiring/stale over 20 years in the “does time even pass here” city of Bete Noire. So seeing their relationship slightly unravel seemed natural.
I think one of the more interesting themes in this title will be seeing Jude try to change the city. Forcing the denizens to go to church? Unreal.
Heck, this was an issue with no Lee at all and I still loved it. That’s the sign of a great supporting cast.
I enjoyed the 1602 story, interested to see how it goes. I hadn’t read any of the 1602 stuff before, so it’s all new, but fairly easy to pick up. Loved the airchair “directing” that occurred.
Oops-commented on this too early–anyway, here’s what I wrote before:
I’d like to say I wish you’d thought of a new monicker for “Paste Pot Pete” (“Pete whose paste is potted?”) instead of going with Trapster again. That poor guy is stuck with a lame name no matter what he does…
Great, fun issue all around. Looking forward to the rest of them!
I’d also like to add that I enjoyed the “city on the edge of forever” reference (I really wanted to see where that was going by the way…).
Tastes vary. I don’t “hate” the 1602 storylines, I’m just not into such historical fantasy.
On a side note, I just found out the news that, as of yesterday, Marvel Comics has bought Dabel Bros. Productions, one of the more popular indies out there.
DBPro has had their issues: from losing the Dragonlance license part-way through their Legend of Huma series, to suffering massive delays on other popular books like Feist’s Magician: Apprentice.
The company is supposed to stay the same (for now), but have access to Marvel’s editors, artists, and writers, and continue to remain an imprint for non-superhero stuff.
1
I like SPIDER-MAN. I really enjoyed all 3 mysterios showing up. This is a good ol’ fashion fan story.
I actually liked 1602. I thought I wouldn’t, but I did. I thought Ben dressed up was a slight nod to FF # 3? or 4? The one where he’s Black Beard. Also, Trapster should look different. More like a Fur trapster….OR..should have called him PETE and we’d know who he was! And if Sandman was an albino, then his hair should have been white , not brownish, but that was my dislike in the first series, the “designs” were to similar to the Marvel Look. I thought they should have taken more of a chance and been more creative.
I really enjoyed both 1602 and FNSM.
The only thing that disappointed me about 1602 is something I’ve said on other threads. I really wanted to see the Wizard revealed to be Prospero, the Duke of Milan. That really would have tied in the Shakespeare lore. The other characters of the Tempest needn’t have been linked in, but could have been. Caliban could have been used as the Sandman. And didn’t Prospero have a daughter? She could have been Medusa.
Second, to answer a question above, the reason for three Mysterios (or is it Mysterioes?) is this:
1. One is Quentin Beck who shot himself in Kevin Smith’s Daredevil.
2. One is Danny Berkhart who took over for Mysterio when Beck died.
3. One is the guy from Kevin Smith’s Black Cat book who decides to become Mysterio at the end.
I’ll be honest, it took me a couple of reads to figure out the 3rd one. I couldn’t understand why Mysterio was teleporting until I remembered the Smith Black Cat book. I think I was trying to repress my memories of it. Thanks for making me remember a terrible book PAD!
I mean what I said about Smith’s Black Cat, but I’m still enjoying FNSM. It’s nice to see some of the classic villains get dusted off and used again. It just goes to show that there’s still some life left in them. I wish JMS would do the same.
I liked Marvel Adventures. How many issues is PAD writing because I saw in the new Previews that 2 months from now the issue is written by someone else.
1602, I’ll admit that I thought the original 1602 was just pure crap. I don’t know why Marvel is putting out more. However, with PAD attached I’m always willing to give the benefit of the doubt. I didn’t hate the first issue, but it took a while before I could really get into it. However, I am staying for the whole mini so I’m bound to change my opinion.
I liked Neil’s 1602 a lot. I hated the recent sequel they did as I found it just dragged a bunch of characters that didn’t work into it. Some characters work in a 1602 setting, some need to stay out of it.
Having said that, I really enjoyed your 1602. I got all fanboy excited as soon as I realized it was the Frightful Four. Including Medusa with real snakes was a really nice touch. I also loved Grimm’s disguise, that really took me back to the early FF days.
Blah, Les Dabel, president of Dabel Bros, has now said (which is what Marvel’s website says) that DBPro has entered into an agreement with Marvel; they’ve not been acquired.
Les tells me they will update their website. 🙂
Still, it looks like Marvel was busy over the weekend with all sorts of project announcements.
PAD,
Haven’t read your “1602” yet, but I have fallen in love with your “Marvel Adventures: Spider-Man”. While I enjoy FNSM, part of me likes “Marvel Adventures: Spider-Man” even better.It is just good, clen old-fashioned FUN and the dialogue is classic.
I love it.
I’m completely enjoying your Marvel Adventures Spider-man run. It’s nice to read stories unfettered by crossovers for a change.
What I’d like to know is why Reed Richards looks more like Dr. Strange on the cover.
Neil’s 1602 was good (nothing great IMO). PAD’s first issue seems descent so far, though I hope to see a little more intensity later on. Pak’s version was just bad.
Off topic, I know, but I thought I’d mention how excited I am that DC is putting out a second Fallen Angel TPB.
• 
Haven’t gotten my shipment of this month’s comics yet, but I did just read X-Factor #10 and FNSM #11, and I got a kick out of both.
And not to be a noodge but… any sign of those questions I sent? I sent it four times so far, but I just don’t know if they’re getting through. My e-mail’s cylversaber@aol…. well you know the rest. Let me know the best way to get in contact.
FNSM #12 came out this week too. I was disappointed by 1602 FF, but liked MASM and FNSM.
1602 really missed the mark
I have to agree with Badstrong, 1602 was not good. Not at all like a PAD comic. After reading, I don’t think I will pick up further issues. Just felt off.
FNSM had both good and bad points:
The Good:
1. The banter between Pete and Roger (the principal).
2. Pete’s call home to see if MJ and May are ok.
3. Nurse Arrow looks like a good character, but isn’t her introduction a hint that Pete will change his mind and stay at Midtown high?
The Bad:
1. I haven’t figured on yet why there are three Mysterios.
2. Why were there so many illusions, and yet the monsters in the trap Flash feel into were apparently real.
PAD, what issues are you writing of Marvel Adventures Spider-Man? I heard you were doing 8 issues at least, but I see you’re not writing #21.
Corey
Hmmm. Unlike the previous posters, I really got a kick out of 1602. It was a lot of fun. I also enjoyed the art.
I also liked 1602. I don’t know if it helps, but I’ve read all the 1602’s up until now.
I just want to know how you have so many comics every month and manage to keep them mostly on schedule when other authors I like end up releasing an issue every two months or so.
Bravo.
I generally find people who dislike “1602” split into three camps:
1) They loved Neil’s “1602” and declare this is too different and isn’t remotely as good. (Of course, had I aped exactly Neil’s involved plot of political gamesmanship, I would have been accused of trying to be too much like Neil and thus not being remotely as good.)
2) They hated Neil’s “1602” and don’t understand why Marvel is putting out more.
3) I adopted a different, more leisurely form of storytelling because I didn’t want to transplant my typical style to such a radically different millieu, and they don’t understand why it reads unlike my other work, and since different=bad…
Perhaps it would have helped if, like Neil, I had thirty two pages of story to establish tone, setting and style, instead of twenty-two. Oh well. For those who stick around, you’re going to experience a really good story.
PAD
I didn’t read Neil’s 1602. I mainly didn’t feel the mix of winking humor and This Is Important worked well. Sometimes you pull it off, but sometimes you don’t, and this was one of the latter times.
Which is interesting considering I wasn’t trying to be funny. The sole exception was the conversation between Shakespeare and the King, and even that was actually steeped in my research–ranging from that James hadn’t liked some of the Bard’s previous work to the fact that he had an active interest in the supernatural and had written a book on demonology. So I thought it would be interest to posit that the modern producer attitude of “Does it HAVE to be such-and-such” or to suggest that writers insert subjects of interest to the producers–whether it serves the story or not–was actually an attitude that went back centuries.
Even then, I wasn’t going for funny. More ironic, I’d say. And, as noted, that was the only intended “winking humor” in the book.
PAD
Storywise, 1602 was okay. I enjoyed the Frightful Four and the banter with Shakespeare and the King was fun. Unfortunately I found the art underwhelming and frankly, the $3.50 price tag is makes it a harder sell for me. Yes, I know you don’t set the price and there were extra pages. I just have a limited comics budget and I needed this to be more rewarding to justify me continuing to buy it.
And just to drive you crazy over your feedback, let me say that the conversation with Shakespeare was far and away my favorite part of the issue. I did also like Spider-Man and Fin Fang Foom, though is this a new origin for him? I always thought he was a guardian of China or something suspiciously hazy and badly misremembered along those lines.
I liked 1602 well enough, I too liked the Shakespeare (Ben Grimm as a player was an inspired touch) I always wondered why Neil didn’t use or even reference Shakespeare in the original 1602, I suppose he didn’t have room, and he already used him extensively in Sandman. Still it would have been a great opportunity to see “Marvel Universe Shakespeare” as opposed to “DC Universe Shakespeare”. I for one, would enjoy a crossover.
I liked classic Peter David nods like “Giant Spiders” and “Good title”, straight out of “Shakespeare in Love” if I’m not mistaken.
PAD
That was a really fun take on Liz Allen. Really, really fun. You ought to use her more if you get the chance.
As someone who has a degree in Shakespearean studies, and has studied a ton of Jacobian history and drama, I got a total kick out of the scene with James and Shakespeare. I could see the research, and enjoyed it. I also liked Ben in Falstaff’s garb. I really enjoyed the issue as a whole, and that scene in particular.
They loved Neil’s “1602” and declare this is too different and isn’t remotely as good. (Of course, had I aped exactly Neil’s involved plot of political gamesmanship, I would have been accused of trying to be too much like Neil and thus not being remotely as good.)
I like your stuff, PAD, but just once it would be nice to read your reaction to negativity/criticism without a “well I’m dámņëd if I do and dámņëd if I don’t…” response from you. Yeah, some people are never happy. We get it. Constantly harping on it comes across as self-pitying.
1602 didn’t work for me because, unlike Neil Gaiman’s work (which is actually one of my all time favorite books) it didn’t have the tone of a 17th century novel or 17th century psychosis rather it felt like a traditional comic book set in the year 1602 (cliffhanger and all…)
Thought FNSM was quite good this week. The book has been really good since coming of “the other” storyline. 1602 was ok… it was missing a bit of the PAD humor we find in titles like x-factor, but i’ll stick with it
regarding FNSM #12. Would I be right in thinking that one of the characters involved has, unbeknowest to the readers, appeared in FNSM before?
On a completely different note, I really liked Falen Angel #8 (did not see a specific blog entry for it).
I don’t care too much for Sachs and Violens, but I do think that a relationship built on adrenaline might get tiring/stale over 20 years in the “does time even pass here” city of Bete Noire. So seeing their relationship slightly unravel seemed natural.
I think one of the more interesting themes in this title will be seeing Jude try to change the city. Forcing the denizens to go to church? Unreal.
Heck, this was an issue with no Lee at all and I still loved it. That’s the sign of a great supporting cast.
I enjoyed the 1602 story, interested to see how it goes. I hadn’t read any of the 1602 stuff before, so it’s all new, but fairly easy to pick up. Loved the airchair “directing” that occurred.
Oops-commented on this too early–anyway, here’s what I wrote before:
I’d like to say I wish you’d thought of a new monicker for “Paste Pot Pete” (“Pete whose paste is potted?”) instead of going with Trapster again. That poor guy is stuck with a lame name no matter what he does…
Great, fun issue all around. Looking forward to the rest of them!
I’d also like to add that I enjoyed the “city on the edge of forever” reference (I really wanted to see where that was going by the way…).
Tastes vary. I don’t “hate” the 1602 storylines, I’m just not into such historical fantasy.
On a side note, I just found out the news that, as of yesterday, Marvel Comics has bought Dabel Bros. Productions, one of the more popular indies out there.
DBPro has had their issues: from losing the Dragonlance license part-way through their Legend of Huma series, to suffering massive delays on other popular books like Feist’s Magician: Apprentice.
The company is supposed to stay the same (for now), but have access to Marvel’s editors, artists, and writers, and continue to remain an imprint for non-superhero stuff.
1
I like SPIDER-MAN. I really enjoyed all 3 mysterios showing up. This is a good ol’ fashion fan story.
I actually liked 1602. I thought I wouldn’t, but I did. I thought Ben dressed up was a slight nod to FF # 3? or 4? The one where he’s Black Beard. Also, Trapster should look different. More like a Fur trapster….OR..should have called him PETE and we’d know who he was! And if Sandman was an albino, then his hair should have been white , not brownish, but that was my dislike in the first series, the “designs” were to similar to the Marvel Look. I thought they should have taken more of a chance and been more creative.
I really enjoyed both 1602 and FNSM.
The only thing that disappointed me about 1602 is something I’ve said on other threads. I really wanted to see the Wizard revealed to be Prospero, the Duke of Milan. That really would have tied in the Shakespeare lore. The other characters of the Tempest needn’t have been linked in, but could have been. Caliban could have been used as the Sandman. And didn’t Prospero have a daughter? She could have been Medusa.
Second, to answer a question above, the reason for three Mysterios (or is it Mysterioes?) is this:
1. One is Quentin Beck who shot himself in Kevin Smith’s Daredevil.
2. One is Danny Berkhart who took over for Mysterio when Beck died.
3. One is the guy from Kevin Smith’s Black Cat book who decides to become Mysterio at the end.
I’ll be honest, it took me a couple of reads to figure out the 3rd one. I couldn’t understand why Mysterio was teleporting until I remembered the Smith Black Cat book. I think I was trying to repress my memories of it. Thanks for making me remember a terrible book PAD!
I mean what I said about Smith’s Black Cat, but I’m still enjoying FNSM. It’s nice to see some of the classic villains get dusted off and used again. It just goes to show that there’s still some life left in them. I wish JMS would do the same.
I liked Marvel Adventures. How many issues is PAD writing because I saw in the new Previews that 2 months from now the issue is written by someone else.
1602, I’ll admit that I thought the original 1602 was just pure crap. I don’t know why Marvel is putting out more. However, with PAD attached I’m always willing to give the benefit of the doubt. I didn’t hate the first issue, but it took a while before I could really get into it. However, I am staying for the whole mini so I’m bound to change my opinion.
I liked Neil’s 1602 a lot. I hated the recent sequel they did as I found it just dragged a bunch of characters that didn’t work into it. Some characters work in a 1602 setting, some need to stay out of it.
Having said that, I really enjoyed your 1602. I got all fanboy excited as soon as I realized it was the Frightful Four. Including Medusa with real snakes was a really nice touch. I also loved Grimm’s disguise, that really took me back to the early FF days.
Blah, Les Dabel, president of Dabel Bros, has now said (which is what Marvel’s website says) that DBPro has entered into an agreement with Marvel; they’ve not been acquired.
Les tells me they will update their website. 🙂
Still, it looks like Marvel was busy over the weekend with all sorts of project announcements.
PAD,
Haven’t read your “1602” yet, but I have fallen in love with your “Marvel Adventures: Spider-Man”. While I enjoy FNSM, part of me likes “Marvel Adventures: Spider-Man” even better.It is just good, clen old-fashioned FUN and the dialogue is classic.
I love it.
I’m completely enjoying your Marvel Adventures Spider-man run. It’s nice to read stories unfettered by crossovers for a change.
What I’d like to know is why Reed Richards looks more like Dr. Strange on the cover.
Neil’s 1602 was good (nothing great IMO). PAD’s first issue seems descent so far, though I hope to see a little more intensity later on. Pak’s version was just bad.
Off topic, I know, but I thought I’d mention how excited I am that DC is putting out a second Fallen Angel TPB.
http://www.newsarama.com/dcnew/Dec06/solicitations.html