So…what do ya wanna know?

Posted By: Peter DavidPosted On:

It’s been a while since I’ve done an open Q&A. Actually, not since my back surgery. So…throwing it open to questions. Anything you guys want to ask about whatever?

A couple of stipulations:

1) One question per person.

2) Please don’t bother asking about the wing speed of an unladen swallow, the answer to life, the universe and everything, or similar questions. It was funny the first time. And second. By the tenth time, the charm has worn off.

3) I reserve the right not to answer.

PAD

448 comments on “So…what do ya wanna know?”

    1. More crossovers, since those are what sell. I keep waiting for various independent publishers to do intercompany crossovers.
      .
      Alan Moore will continue to resent DC.
      .
      Speaking of which…
      .
      Other publishers will likely be watching DC’s page cutback very carefully to see if it costs them sales.
      .
      Someone will finally land a Harry Potter comic book license.
      .
      PAD

  3. Timing could not be more perfect. I’m torn over what to ask, but I’ll go with the one that immediately popped into my head.

    X-Factor #214 was released today, and it was an awesome issue! (As always, but seriously. Awesome.) I did notice, however, that it doesn’t match the prior solicits for the issue. According to advanced solicits, #214 would feature the team investigating a suicide.

    If you’re at liberty to speak about it, I’m curious as to what happened there.

      1. I had a feeling that might be the case, but we got an amazing issue all the same. Thank you, as always, for taking the time to answer questions.

        If a replacement question is allowed (if it isn’t, I understand!):

        All potential jokes about Rahne aside, Team Pet: Dog or Cat? And how divided would the house be over that?

    1. I think it’s the job of a comedian to tackle the elephant in the room. To jump on the hot button issues that no one wants to address and wring laughs from them. In that respect, Gervais did exactly what he, as a comedian was supposed to do. Let’s face it: the jokes he made weren’t anything that anyone else hasn’t been saying on chat boards.
      .
      However, some of it felt horribly dated. Is Tom Cruise in the closet? “South Park” said it all a couple of years ago. Robert Downey’s drug issues? Long left behind (we hope). Charlie Sheen’s a bad boy? Stop the presses.
      .
      But more to the point, Gervais had to perform a balancing act. On the one hand, yes, he’s a comedian. As a comedian, he made the attendees really squirm. And you could say, “But they’re a bunch of rich actors; they can afford to take a little discomfort.” And that’s true as far as it goes, but that avoids the point. His other, more important job was: he was the host. That’s the name of his job. “Here’s your host for tonight.” And what’s a host supposed to do? Make the guests feel comfortable and at ease. The nominees were the guests. In that regard, he failed spectacularly. He made them feel incredibly uncomfortable. It wasn’t the good natured ribbing of a Billy Crystal; it was, as Downey said, mean-spirited. That’s not how a host should behave.
      .
      I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if Robert Downey were the host next year.
      .
      PAD

      1. I got the exact same reaction about the Downey joke. Three or four years ago, it would’ve worked. But now that he’s made a successful multi-genre comeback, “addict” is no longer the one line, shorthand caricature that people associate with him, so it didn’t work. By contrast, the Charlie Sheen joke worked well precisely because his most recent escapades. That and the fact that the joke itself was clever.
        .
        I think the Scientology joke was attributed to recent speculation about John Travolta.

  6. Any thoughts on the Hulk live-action TV show? How would you do it, and any chance that you might get in on any of the script-writing?

    1. I think what you do with it largely depends on the budget. How you’re going to present the Hulk on screen is going to dictate how you do the show.
      .
      Do I have thoughts on what I’d do? Sure. But I’d rather not put them out there for one simple reason: If they then do something along the lines of what I suggest, then I’m giving fans license to shout, “They ripped off Peter David!” even though the odds are slender to none that anyone involved would read this blog.
      .
      PAD

  8. Would you please comment on the mid-to-long-term plans for New Frontier? (Things I’m wondering about specifically include why the books are so few and far between, if you’ll be incorporating any of the post-Destiny/Typhon Pact developments, and if the series will ever have any kind of “ending.”)
    .
    Thanks in PADvance!

    1. The next book, “Blind Man’s Bluff,” will be in the stores in the spring. I honest to God have no idea what’s happening after that. It was the last book on my contract and Pocket hasn’t told me a thing as to what’s next.
      .
      PAD

      1. Thanks for the answer. I absolutely love those books (I enjoy a great deal of your work, but I *LOVE* those books). They’ve really meant a lot to me. I’m sorry to hear that there aren’t current plans to continue the series.

        And apologies for the awful closing phrase. It really did seem funny at the time…

  9. Given the recent success of the Marvel movies, after Iron Man 1 and 2 and it building up the universe on the big screen for the Avengers movie, do you think DC Comics can do the same sort of thing with Green Lantern being followed by a Flash movie and the next Batman installment? And if so, how would you do it?

    Yeah, I know, kind of two questions, but you know, it’s all relative 😉

    1. Could they? Sure. But you’d need one person in charge at Warners who can oversee that concept, rather than a variety of producers operating independently of each other.
      .
      How would I do it? That’s easy. I’d do it well.
      .
      PAD

  10. Which original novels do you have in the pipeline to be published that we may not have heard about? By original, I mean all original characters created by yourself.

    (Hope that didn’t sound too rude – I was trying to figure out how to phrase “do you have any” and “what are they” into one question.)

    Thanks.

    1. “Pulling Up Stakes,” my own take on vampire mythology, done in the same “Tale of Relenting Horror” style as “Howling Mad.” I’ll tell you more about that as I’m able to discuss it.
      .
      I have some other stuff completed that I can’t talk about yet.
      .
      PAD

    1. They wanted me to turn the Hulk into a mindless, rampaging brute, the antithesis of the stories I’d been writing. I told them that I thought that was a mistake and I wouldn’t write it. They told me not to let the door hit me on the way out.
      .
      These were the same editorial heads who killed my storyline about the Hulk having a son because they said that readers would never accept that concept.
      .
      PAD

    1. July of this year, come hëll or high water. Just for the record, I turned it in in June…of 2009. The book should have been out by now. The delay is entirely on Tor.
      .
      PAD

  13. Not really a question, but more of a personal overdue thanks for sticking with X-Factor. What is it now, 64 issues? I used to read the old X-Men books in the past, but your series is now the only comic I still follow. It’s nice to see the characters I used to read as a kid are now dealing with grown-up, existential issues that I can relate to as an adult. Great stuff. Thanks again.

    1. In an earlier Q&A thread, someone asked him, “In hindsight, what’s the worst thing you’ve ever written? What do you look back at and say, ‘What was I thinking?'”, and Peter responded; “Early issue of Web of Spider-Man. I forget which issue (#10, I think). I was brought in to write the second half of a story begun by another writer. I did it very badly.”

      1. What Luigi said for the worst. For the best? A few things. “The Atlantis Chronicles.” “Future Imperfect.” The entirety of “Fallen Angel.” Individual episodes of “X-Factor.” My last issue of “Hulk.”
        .
        PAD

      2. Looking at SpiderFan.org, it appears it was Web #12, which they gave a 4.5 review (out of 5)!

    2. Peter wrote ten issues of Web of Spider-Man (eleven if you include Annual #6). Another “early” issue that he wrote of the title is Web of Spider-Man #7. Could it have been that one?

      2. Neither of those is finishing the second half of someone else’s story, though. I’m with Lee; it’s almost certainly Web #12.

      3. You mean the one where Spidey fights the Hulk in the Nightmare realm? One of my favorite Spidey stories EVER? That was a great issue. “Cancel Christmas” indeed.

  16. As the father of four daughters, what advise do you have for me, the father of newborn twin girls.

    1. Start saving for college now.
      .
      Also, when faced with certain problems–trouble potty training, for instance–and they just seem insurmountable, always ask yourself this question:
      .
      Will this be resolved by the time she walks down the aisle for her wedding?
      .
      If the answer is yes, then don’t let yourself get worked up about it.
      .
      PAD

  17. What do you feel is the best idea you have brought into a DC or Marvel character’s continuity?

    1. Well, it depends how you define “best.” If by having the biggest impact, then it was probably
      the off-hand comment I made at an X-writer’s meeting many years ago, when we were discussing the return of Magneto. The editor and writers of “X-Men” were speculating that they wanted to have a big fight with Magneto and Wolverine, and I said, “Y’know, if I’m Magneto, I don’t even bother with Wolverine. I just rip out his adamantium skeleton and be done with him.” And they all went, “Oh my God! What a great idea!” And it just took off from there.
      .
      Me, I thought it was a stupid idea, but it became huge.
      .
      In terms of ideas I actually liked, it was the merging of the diverse Hulk personalities into the single, merged Hulk. NOT the Professor Hulk, no matter what you may have read subsequently.
      .
      PAD

      1. I liked that your previous work wasn’t simply ignored, but “Professor” Hulk? An echo of what was, and not anymore substantial.

      2. I still remember Hulk #377 fondly – was never a huge Hulk fan, but remember being pretty blown away…

      3. Thanks – that’s actually my favorite thing you ever did as well – I could read the run of “Bobby” Banner and the Panteon to absolute tatters – and the introduction of “Banner Smash” at the end of that part of his saga was just beautiful.

  20. Not a question, but a commiseration:
    .
    Since Jerry Garcia died, i can no longer count on strangers telling me two or three times a week how much i look like him.
    .
    OTOH, the Santa Claus jokes have been wearing a tad thin for years.

    1. Well, you’re talking to the guy who, in the course of a single convention (NYC), was mistaken for Dan Slott, Joe Straczynski, and Chris Claremont.
      .
      PAD

      1. Love ’em both. I’m also partial to Rowlf; I’ve always seen him as the calm voice of reason that Kermit wishes he could be.

  24. THE LAST AVENGERS STORY is one my favorite stories you’ve wrritten. In it, you “reveals” the fates of many Avengers (and even the FF and Cannonball). I always wanted to know why you left Iron Man out, when so many other Avengers at least get a nod.

    1. I left him out? It’s been ages since I looked at the story, but I thought I blew him up when the Hulk went nuclear. I didn’t? Okay, well…then I’ve no idea. Sorry.
      .
      PAD

      1. You didn’t. 🙂
        .
        The Hulk thing involved Wonder Man, Tigra, Hawkeye, and Mockingbird only.

  25. I’m a fairly new comic fan, and it’s partially due to X-Factor that I stuck around, so thank you very much for that! I’ve been a fan of The Dark Tower for much longer and I was surprised to discover you’d written a bunch of comics to go along with the series.
    How’d you get that job? Had you read the books before you started writing for them? What’s your favorite book/character? (And because the Dark Tower universe definitely allows it, what are the chances of an X-Factor/Dark Tower crossover? :D)

    2. Joe Quesada literally called me out of the blue and asked if I would be interested in the gig. I got the impression that it was because I was both a comic book writer and also had extensive experience with both novel writing and adapting other material (such as screenplays.) I’d read some of the books, but hadn’t finished the series. But when I got the gig, I spent an entire month just reading all seven books. A favorite? Roland, I suppose. How could it not be?
      .
      As for a crossover: Actually, the issue of X-Factor currently on the stands was intended to be exactly that. But the legal hurdles were too involved, so it’s basically a crossover without actually being one.
      .
      PAD

      1. Ever since the solicit and cover for #214 was released, I’d gotten that idea, and when I sat down to read it this morning I caught that vibe instantly. Pity it couldn’t have been a full crossover; maybe Jamie would suddenly decide he’d rather live the life of a gunslinger rather than a detective!

  27. .
    Can you tell us about your experience (how you got approached, prep for it, if you had fun with it, if you would do it again, etc.) doing Solution Unsatisfactory with the Atlanta Radio Theatre Company?

    1. Wasn’t that involved. They asked if I would participate, I said sure, they sent me the script, and we just did it. I don’t even recall if I had rehearsal.
      .
      PAD

      1. .
        Turned out amazingly well then. It’s one of the free podcasts on the ARTC podcast subscription on iTunes.

  28. Just curious…

    The original plan for Potato moon was that you and your daughter would write the final chapter together. Instead, it just dropped off after Sasha’s entry. Did you both just feel that it was a good place to end it?

    1. I just got frustrated spending a month going from one person to the next to the next on the list and no one stepped up to write the next installment. So I just kind of shrugged and thought people had lost interest.
      .
      PAD

      2. Let me add my vote for the Sasha/Peter finale.
        And if you ever put the call out for another round robin, count me in.
        No one ever picked up on the quest thread with the Potato Knight, Something, and company the way I hoped they would. (Chapter 79)

      3. I would also love to see the finale… and I’d be happy to write another chapter if it moves things along. I had a lot of fun with Potato Moon (both reading and writing it). Even the massive variations in style and quality from chapter to chapter were entertaining.

  29. Are you jazzed about the new Spider-flick?

    Personally speaking, Webb’s (500) Days was great and he has some fantastic music videos too (Coheed and Cambria’s Blood Red Summer, MCR’s Helena, Brand New’s Sic Transit Gloria), Garfield killed it in Social Network, and Emma Stone is super talented and super cute. I don’t think it’s that odd the property is being rebooted (rights issues aside so Sony can keep the franchise). Philosophically speaking, major heroes get revamped origins every decade or so, right? It’s like having a new creative team on a book. So to speak. Any new Spidey is good Spidey, if you ask me, especially with this level of talent involved.

    Also that organic/mechanical webshooter AICN talkback totally shoulda been about how good Stone looked at the Globes instead.

    1. I don’t really get jazzed about a film until I see a finished trailer and have at least some sense of what it’s going to be like. I certainly am hopeful that it will be entertaining, and I’m particularly pleased that Emma Stone is in the cast; I think she’s an amazing talent.
      .
      PAD

      1. Agreed on Stone. If you wanna check out a fantastic performance of hers, find Paper Man that hit DVD this week. Jeff Daniels is this isolated writer who strikes up a friendship with her and his only other friend is a depressive, imaginary superhero played by Ryan Reynolds. It’s a really wacky movie that bounces all over the place tonally but it holds together, especially the really powerful work by Stone which is unlike any other part she’s played but really emotional stuff.

      2. Didn’t think I’d say ever this, but based on what I’ve seen so far the Spidey reboot looks more appealing than the X-Men ‘prequel’.
        .
        Sony screwed up Spidey 3 up bad, but the initial images look like they’ve made some good casting choices with Peter, Mary Jane, and Gwen.
        .
        Fox with X-Men: First Class on the other hand… Well, it can’t be any worse than the Wolverine movie, right?

  30. Do you have a Kindle (or any other eReader) and do you have any thoughts about them in general as a published author?

      1. I resisted eReaders for a while. I just like the feel of a real book and I also thought I’d have the same problem you have with your eyes. But it got to the point where I just didn’t have any more room for books (and I mean that literally.) So for my birthday last year my husband got me a Nook. It’s my new best friend. I love it so much I gave him one for his birthday, too.

        The only disadvantage is that it makes it too easy for me to spend money. I hear about a book that sounds interesting and instead of having to go to a bookstore or get to a computer to order it from Amazon I can download it within minutes.

        I still like to go to bookstores though, just to fondle the books.

  31. So I guess you’re not going to go back and answer the questions from the Q&A thread of June of last year that was cut short, I assume, because of your back, huh? 🙂
    .
    (That’s not my question, mind you.)
    .
    My question is, you said in regards to “One More Day” that it wasn’t the way you would’ve done, IIRC. How would you have done it?

    1. I wouldn’t have. I didn’t feel any driving need to break up Peter and Mary Jane. If readers wanted stories where they weren’t a couple, there were plenty of venues for that. If I did need to break them up, I would have had them get divorced. Sure, from that point on, Peter Parker is always going to be a divorced guy, but so what? Comics are generational. Five, ten years down the road, if you didn’t keep harping on it, many readers wouldn’t even know he’d been married.
      .
      PAD

      1. My way would have been that Peter calls Loki to cash in the favor Loki owes him from ASM 503-504, Peter asks Loki to save Aunt May, and then, also asks for Loki to give everybody Amnesia re:public revelation, he grants that too and then Tells Peter he’s taking away the marriage (there would have been a set-up to this) because Peter was owed one favor , and now a Price has to be paid. Boom! Brand New Day

    1. Didn’t see it, unless you’re referring to the Hulk TV show riff, which I did see. I thought it was amusing for what it was, but simply sticking Stewie into Bill Bixby’s place and otherwise doing a shot for shot re-creation…I dunno. I didn’t see the point of it when they did it with “Psycho” and I’m not sure I see it here.
      .
      PAD

      1. THANK YOU. For a while it seemed that I was the only one who thought that mere references to pop culture staples, without any kind of commentary, analysis or insight like the kind seen on Saturday Night Live and Family Guy, doesn’t constitute satire or comedy, and is just a cheat, and a way to fill up time.

  34. Some suggestions of other authors’ books you’ve read this year and liked? I’m heading to the library and making a list.

    1. I’ve been on a detective novel kick recently. I read “The Watchman” and “The First Rule” by Robert Crais and just picked up his newest, “The Sentry.” Also read the most recent “Spenser” novel by (sadly, the late) Robert Parker. Also enjoyed “Dexter is Delicious” (which helps to make the atrocious “Dexter in the Dark” an even more distant memory.)
      .
      On the non-fiction front, I enjoyed “Bowling Across America” (about a guy who goes around the country bowling in every state) and “The Audacity to Win” about Obama’s election campaign. I am currently reading, “The Great Typo Hunt,” about two guys traveling the country correcting typos on signs.
      .
      PAD

      1. I’ve heard about those guys (the typo correctors, that is), but I didn’t know they’d written a book. I’ll have to look for it.

      2. Always delighted to see another Crais reader. I got into him independently (taught his daughter), but I then went back and noticed you referencing him in Hulk. He’s a lot of fun, both as a writer and as a public speaker.

  35. Where do you feel Rahne currently stands in terms of her religious beliefs? It’s been made pretty clear that she has shaken loose of the intensely conservative, repressive upbringing to some degree— but her explanation of why she lied to Ric about the baby’s father tends to suggest that she still harbors some fairly intense ingrained beliefs. How does she (rather— how do you, the guy writing her) reconcile her upbringing and background with the fantastic events of her recent life?
    (related, but not an attempt to cheat the rules: how long to you think it has been “comic time” since the original New Mutants got together? Rahne was 13 then, so presumably it’s been at least five years? Longer?)

    1. Great question. Having Rahne back in X-Factor is great, and has been very emotional and unexpected so far.

    2. I think that Rahne has broken free of the fundamentalist, judgmental aspects of her upbringing, but still clings to such core, uplifting notions as loving thy neighbor and the eternal hope for salvation. It’s not remotely unusual for people to cherry pick the aspects of religion that best serve their needs. That’s what Rahne’s doing. She’s trying to rediscover and embrace the core of compassion that religion can and should be.
      .
      As for comic time, it would have to be at least five years, maybe even six or seven.
      .
      PAD

    1. I subscribe to the notion that whoever your first Doctor is remains your favorite. On that basis, it would be Tom Baker. He was “my Doctor,” as the Tenth Doctor put it when addressing the Fifth (although now he’ll be his Doctor-in-Law, I guess. God, please let “Doctor Who” be on the air twenty-five years from now so he can be played by the child of the Tenth and grandchild of the Fifth.)
      .
      Of the modern era, definitely the 10th.
      .
      PAD

  37. I recently completed reading your entire run on Captain Marvel. I got the books while interning at Marvel when they moved offices during the fall and I fell in love with that series all over again.

    What did you enjoy the most about writing Genis-Vell in Captain Marvel and would you ever want to return to the character in the future? I know he’s dead but it’s not uncommon for the cosmic heroes to find a way back from death. I saw you at the Marvel Holiday Lunch but I didn’t get to introduce myself.

    1. Boy, so much interest in Genis all of a sudden.
      .
      What I loved was writing about a guy who was on a learning curve with Cosmic Awareness. The underpinning was, If great power brings with it great responsibility, then too much power brings too much responsibility. And how does someone who has been an underachiever and slacker his whole life cope with that?
      .
      It saddens me that the ultimate answer to that was, He doesn’t. He dies. Seems kind of a waste of potential to me.
      .
      PAD

  38. Hi Peter,
    Just wondering if you have ever written a story that involved any of HP Lovecraft’s monsters?

      1. Say my name and I shall appear. I can’t think of any Lovecraft references in PAD’s stories. Then again, everything I know about Lovecraft comes from Harlan Ellison’s Scooby Doo episode and Alan Moore’s Neonomicon.

  39. The recent Fallen Angel: Return of the Son was the first Fallen Angel comic to hit the stands in quite some time. Given that so much time has passed, and given your statements in the past about difficulties in getting word out to the general reading public about the series when it was a monthly, my question is this: What are the challenges in getting people either interested in or reacquainted with Lee and her world?
    .
    Rick

    1. Actually, it’s easier getting word out. Every time a new limited series comes out, I get interview requests. The people who were already fans are thrilled to read about her, and the PR bump brings in new readers.
      .
      PAD

  40. One question, huh? Tricky.

    Who is your favorite Klingon and why? (I think I know the answer, but I always like hearing you talk about this guy)

    1. I still have a fondness for Kor. John Colicos set the standard for the entire race. How can you not love a guy who says “I would hate to see you turned into a vegetable” (enunciating every syllable of the word) and he looks so sad about the prospect when you know that actually he’d like nothing better.
      .
      One of my greatest regrets was when we were doing “Space Cases,” and we were casting an episode called “The Impossible Dram” that was basically a Don Quixote riff. And Colicos was available to play the elderly knight. I desperately wanted him and begged them to cast him, but they wouldn’t do it. He would have been brilliant. We wound up casting a local Montreal actor, who was perfectly good, but he wasn’t Colicos.)
      .
      PAD

  42. You’ve recently released original stories set in the Halo and Fable universes. What other established ‘verses (movies, TV shows or tabletop/video games) would you be interested in writing for?

    2. Wait, do you mean the Fables universe? Peter wrote for that? Didn’t he one say, when asked if he would write for Fables, that the chance was “very unlikely”?
      .
      Are we talking about Fractured Fables? Is that part of the Fables universe?

  43. Hi, Peter. Do you think answering questions interferes with your writing or helps you while doing so? You post online fairly regularly and you respond to posters often. Paint me interested in the writer’s life…

    1. I answer questions on line usually while I’m doing something else, such as catching up on stuff at the DVR. While I’m writing this I’m watching an episode of “Brothers and Sisters” from two weeks ago.
      .
      PAD

  44. Hi, Peter! Currently reading and enjoying Howling Mad for the first time!

    Do you have any thoughts on this summer’s batch of comic book movies?

  45. Hi,

    any plan of coming in Europe for a convention? More specifically in France or in Belgium?

    1. Plan? No. My plans are usually linked to people actually inviting me. I haven’t been to France in nine years and never been to Belgium.
      .
      PAD

  46. Why does Rictor speak to you as a character? I mean, what about him speaks to you, what part, if any, of yourself do you see in him and why? (always with the Rictor questions with me :D)

    *also, I’m now waiting to start paid work helping to write a comic book for a band from my home town. thank you for helping me garner the courage to accept the job*

    1. It’s not Rictor alone; they all speak to me in different ways. In fact, I should point out that before Shatterstar showed up, people claimed that Rictor was under-utilized. In the case of Rictor, the fact that he’s the only one without powers and he’s trying to find his way, both in terms of romance and how he fits into the world, is an easy set of emotions for a fundamentally neurotic, middle-aged Jew to identify with.
      .
      PAD

      1. Goes with what I said to someone last week, “It’s very hard not to identify with Rictor.”

        Thank you for your thoughtful answer. 🙂

        I do disagree with the under-utilized however. He got pleanty of spotlight concidering the fact that the cast has never really been all that small. People are hard to please though.

  47. How many more New Frontier books you have in you and are you tied to the current storyline that’s running through the Trek books right now?

    1. I have plenty more I’d like to do with the characters, although I don’t feel the need to tie in extensively to what’s happening in other novels beyond being aware of where we fit in to the timelines.
      .
      PAD

      1. I am starting the third Typhon Pact book and am wishing the books were on their own story lines like they used to. Looking forward to your next NF novel.

  48. Hi, Mr. David!

    I was going to ask about the daughter advice, but David Serchay beat me to it. Instead, I shall ask, what is the most common mistake that you see in the work of beginning writers?

    1. Bad writing. Simple bad writing. Overuse of adjectives, no comprehension of grammar, bad spelling, bad punctuation. They don’t possess the fundamental tools of the trade. It’s like watching a carpenter trying to drive a nail into the wall with a banana.
      .
      PAD

      2. A clarification request, not a question. 🙂

        So when you say “bad writing”, you’re not saying that the content/story is bad or that the telling of the story is bad, but that the syntax/grammar is bad, right?

      4. Sasha: Yes, that is exactly right. Someone may have a fantastic story to tell, but it’s buried under a plethora of fundamental mistakes. If a story is replete with impenetrable prose and inept dialogue, the “content” and “story” are irrelevant; you can’t get to them.
        .
        Same thing happens with movies. Sometimes I’ll see a movie and mentally strip away the bad acting and lousy direction and realize that there was a really good script buried in there, trying to get out but hopelessly buried under all the crap. By the same token, I’ll see shows where I realize that the script is lightweight, but the actors and director have elevated it. That can also happen in books: a writer can tell a story so skillfully that the story itself may be nothing particularly original, but it’s done with such style that it’s an enjoyable ride.
        .
        PAD

      1. Bobbie Chase was one of only two editors at Marvel to have ever run one of my letters. Man, did I love getting my copy of Hulk 407.

      2. Plus, she (or the AE) intentionally misspelled “editing” as “auditing” in my letter when I wrote “the editing on this mag is great!” I bet I laughed for five minutes. Of course, I was much younger then… 🙂

  50. “Someone will finally land a Harry Potter comic book license.”
    .
    I REALLY hope you’re right with this one. That would be the jolt – especially with new, younger readers comics and comic shops have been dreaming of and realy need.

      1. If you mean a Japanese company, possibly. If you mean an American company, I don’t think many of them have the money to pay the licensing for it, although if any of them could that company would then be set for life.

        I honestly think only one of the bigger comic companies would be able to secure the rights to it. Probably Marvel, but DC would jump at the chance to do it. Possibly Dark Horse, that sounds like something they’d put out.

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