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World War Hulk - Behind The Scenes
2008-07-24 21:42:09
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Seems like enough time has passed at this point, so I thought I'd share one or two behind-the-scenes documents from last year's WORLD WAR HULK crossover with you. Since I only oversaw WWH, rather than editing it directly, I don't have quite as much material to share--but there are one or two things.
Below is the oldest outline for the story that became WWH that I can find. It's marked "third draft", so writer Greg Pak must have done two revisions directly with editor Mark Paniccia before even handing this my way. At this point in time, the whole structure of the event was different--it was going to run primarily in INCREDIBLE HULK, with tie-in Annuals being produced for other books in the Marvel line. And it wasn't yet called WORLD WAR HULK--a number of titles were being bandied around (My own favorite was HULKMAGEDDON.) As you'll see, while the basic idea of the story remained the same, the particulars changed a great deal:
PLANET HULK: EMPIRE
An overview of a Marvel Comics Event for Summer 2007
Written by Greg Pak
Third Draft - 06.23.2006
“PLANET HULK: EMPIRE,” the tale of the Hulk’s return to Earth, will be told in two parallel storylines (for collection in two separate trades). All of these titles would carry the “PLANET HULK: EMPIRE” logo.
The main story runs through the “Incredible Hulk” comic book series and is bookended by “PLANET HULK: EMPIRE” #1 and an “INCREDIBLE HULK” annual.
The second storyline runs through the various annuals in which Marvel heroes and teams grapple with the Hulk’s return.
MAIN STORYLINE
PLANET HULK: EMPIRE ONE SHOT
Open with a brief intro -- the Hulk’s furious eyes. The Voice of Legend captions fill us in on what’s happened -- he was exiled by his friends. Made a slave, a gladiator. Became a rebel. A leader. And then a king. Finally found his place. Found a home. But then they took it all away. Killed his love.
And now he’s coming for them.
Dr. Strange awakens in a cold sweat -- something’s coming. Tony gets a panicked call from his S.H.I.E.L.D. second in command. From Earth, the Marvel heroes see a plume of fire erupting from the side of the moon. The Hulk’s great stone flagship swallows up the S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier. The flagship descends over the American desert. The Hulk emerges holding the limp body of Black Bolt. Full of insane, controlled rage. Announces that the heroes killed millions. And they have 24 hours to evacuate Manhattan.
Thor leaves his stronghold in the Oklahoma desert, heads towards the Hulk. Korg is the one to meet him. Old adversaries. Korg tells Thor that the Hulk is right. Thor should stand down. Thor knocks him aside. The Hulk comes out. Great clash over the desert. Epic, earth-shattering battle. Ends with the Hulk making Thor drop his hammer -- and Korg picks it up. Korg actually picks up the Hulk’s hammer -- he’s worthy. Thor’s blow away by this. He and the Hulk have a moment. Thor withdraws, says he doesn’t understand this all. But he won’t fight these heroes.
And now Namor and his enormous sea monsters rise from the oceans around Manhattan. Namor’s helping the Hulk. He reveals the existence of the Illuminati. They sent Hulk away. Bombed his new people. Killed millions. Now they must do as the Hulk demands.
In New York, the other heroes meet. Anger, accusations, panic. The first many learn of the Illuminati and what they’ve done. Divisions within the ranks. But they start the seemingly impossible evacuation job -- teleporters like Cloak exhaust themselves, working overtime.
Hulk descends upon the city. Sentry rises to meet him, trying to claim old friendship. The Spikes surround the Sentry. Hold him. And then the Hulk balls up his great fist and smashes -- and breaks every bone in the Sentry’s body. Heroes are shocked -- they’ve never seen the Hulk so powerful.
Hulk drops from the sky. Tears apart the Avengers Tower as he descends. Korg tears apart the Baxter Building. Hiroim smashes Dr. Strange’s mansion. Precision strikes -- utter devastation in those specific places. And now the Hulk and his crew step forward to face the remaining bruisers -- Thing, Colossus, Hercules, She-Hulk, Doc Samson. Monumental battle. The Marvel heroes are crushed. The Hulk has never been stronger or smarter. Almost heartbreaking moment with She-Hulk -- Hulk stares at her as if he doesn’t even know her, then sets the Spikes on her. They drain away her strength and power, leave her there as Jen Walters.
Hulk seizes the airwaves. Tells the world to give him Reed Richards, Tony Stark, Dr. Strange, and Nick Fury. And then the shocker -- he offers help to anyone whom this world has rejected. Anyone whom the “heroes” have forgotten or ignored. If they come to his fortress in the desert, he will give them a home.
In the desert, we see the Hulk’s army building a great fortress/city. And in the middle of the fortress? A great gladiatorial arena.
INCREDIBLE HULK #106
Pilgrimages begin -- thousands of people begin moving across the country towards the desert -- introduce some of the characters who will be part of the “Marvel Renegades” team -- the Marvel heroes who side with the Hulk. Miek moves among the pilgrims -- and he’s moved by them. He and the Brood help them.
Hulk negotiates directly with other nations, isolating the U.S. Hulk and his army do the huge things to help his foreign allies -- stopping hurricanes, lifting Venice, crazy, huge stuff like that. A big Hulk/Storm moment -- Hulk helps her stop a tidal wave threatening the African coast. Hiroim, tapping into the Old Power, stops an earthquake. Storm and the Panther say they won’t fight the Hulk.
Iron Man leads a battalion of U.S. army tanks and helicopters out into the desert, only to discover at the last minute that the Hulk has negotiated a deal with the U.S. government. The tanks blow Iron Man out of the sky.
INCREDIBLE HULK #107
Tony wakes up in the arena. Stripped of his armor. Sword and shield on the ground before him. And an obedience disk hammered into his chest. Forced to fight other captured heroes. (This story is continued in the MIGHTY AVENGERS ANNUAL.)
Strange and Emma Frost try to attack Hulk’s mind. Inside his mind, they meet the Caiera, Hulk’s slain Shadow Warrior love, who’s fighting alongside Hulk. Is it the soul of the real Caiera? Or just his memory of her? Who knows -- but it’s simultaneously exhilarating and heartbreaking -- even melts Frost. They see why the Hulk is fighting.
Strange finds Banner inside there. Tries to get him to help, to take over. But Banner understands. He’s accepted the Hulk -- he sees that the Hulk is the hero, and that Banner is the monster.
Hulk fights back, defeats Strange. And with Hiroim’s help, exiles Strange to the Crossroads. (This story is continued in the NEW AVENGERS ANNUAL).
INCREDIBLE HULK #108
The Hulk’s fury continues. He’s gotten Black Bolt, Tony, and Strange, but Reed and Fury still remain on the loose. He demands they show their faces. Reed is missing -- the Marvel heroes have no idea where he is. The Hulk’s people are searching.
Meanwhile, there’s a crisis in the desert -- Hercules has arrived, along with some others. They’re fighting the Renegades, who are trying to defend the refugees. The Hulk charges in to smash. And now the Hulk gets a surprise -- in a kind of reversal of Peter David’s Champions story from “Giant Size Hulk,” now it’s the Hulk who sees that he’s the one who struck without asking. Hercules is here to help. And the Hulk begins to see what people see in him -- he begins to understand that these rejected people believe in him.
Meanwhile, Captain America and Nick Fury are assembling the remaining heroes. They may be the underground heroes -- the ones the United States has decided were criminals during the Civil War. But they’re still Americans. And they still believe in freedom and democracy. They don’t want to see the world ruled by the Hulk -- they’re ready to fight.
INCREDIBLE HULK #109
Preparing for a great battle. Captain America strategizing brilliantly. He’s recently been shot -- maybe he’s not in the fight directly. So he’s in the Patton role -- the general calling the shots. They send in Wolverine to reconnoiter. To kill. [This story is fleshed out in the WOLVERINE ANNUAL]. But the bomb Wolverine sets off just makes the Hulk stronger.
They take the attack directly to the Hulk. Hulk and his warriors take out the heroes. In the big twist -- the vanguard of Cap’s army consists of hundreds of Nick Fury LMDs. The Hulk is surrounded by Fury -- and he smashes each and every one of them.
The Hulk wins. Finally faces Cap. One on one. Only to discover it’s Rick Jones in Cap’s uniform. The real Cap’s been shot -- he’s in a wheelchair, directing the battle from behind the lines. Rick pleads. For the life of Tony and Black Bolt and the other heroes who he’s captured. He’s won. Have mercy. And Miek concurs.
And in a final gesture -- is it mercy? Or contempt? -- the Hulk releases Tony and the others. Drops Tony at Cap’s feet, stripped of his armor. And sends them away.
Cliffhanger -- Tony, haggard and desperate, forms an alliance with Doom.
INCREDIBLE HULK #110
Hulk has won. He could take over the whole planet if he chooses. And now we get a glimpse of what he would do, how he would rule. And, amazingly enough, it would be a utopia. A monarchy, to be sure, but with a genuinely just ruler. And here this new incarnation of the Hulk comes to full bloom -- he’s the Righteous Hulk. Unfathomable physical power combined with incredible heart and vision. It’s the opposite of the Maestro. Something we’ve never seen.
Storm and the Hulk talk. She asks what he will do next. He could stay. Rule the world. But he says no. He’s leaving. He’s taking all these people who helped him, all these people who wanted to join him. And they’re going to go to the planet Reed said he was going to go to. The peaceful, lush planet. Where they can be left alone.
And then the other shoe drops -- Doom and Tony.
INCREDIBLE HULK ANNUAL
Wall to wall action. The Hulk fights Dark Strange. Teams up with the heroes. Leads the heroes. Brilliant tactician and incredible powerhouse. The Hulk fulfilling his greatest potential. Brutal, terrible series of battles.
The outcome is far from certain -- the threat is terrible and huge. But the Hulk looks at the refugees and renegades who surround him. And he begins to realize he’s become their savior. This planet’s Sakaarson. There are still millions who fear and hate him, who blame him for the chaos. But millions of others see him as their hero. They are all Warbound now. He turns to face the final battle. Win or lose, he has already won -- he has found himself and his place on this earth.
But now, finally, he discovers the terrible truth -- it was Miek who destroyed the Crown City of Sakaar. Who killed Caiera. And the Hulk stares at him. And the rage begins to build. Insane, white-eyed fury. And the Hulk strikes.
But he doesn’t kill Miek. Instead, he launches into the battle against the enemy. Destroys him. Crushes him. Creates some monumental destruction. Maybe triggers the terrible explosion which creates GammaWorld. Destroys the refugees’ chances of escaping.
And the Hulk looks at the shambles around him. And he sees that this is his fault. He was the father figure in Miek’s life -- and all he showed him was rage. He’s not the Sakaarson. He’s the Worldbreaker.
The Hulk stares at Miek. Closes his eyes. And goes away. Turns into Banner. Who sits there, catatonic. Far, far away.
Inside Banner’s mind, we see the Hulk. It’s a memory/fantasy. The Hulk stands with Caiera on the planet Sakaar. Staring up as the explosions begin -- the explosions that in reality killed her and led to the events of this arc. He gazes into her eyes. Tells her he he refuses. He won’t be the Worldbreaker. Not now. Not ever again. He holds her close. And they both die, in each others’ arms, as the fire envelops them.
End with images of Sakaar -- the real Sakaar, post destruction. The radioactive oceans. And in that fiery soup, something stirs -- that embryonic thing which is the Son of Hulk. And the Voice of Legend tells us the Worldbreaker never dies.
THE ANNUALS
ILLUMINATI ANNUAL
A prequel in which we see the Illuminati tear each other apart in the lead-up to the Hulk’s return. The Illuminati meet to discuss Strange’s visions from “Incredible Hulk” #100 -- they sent the Hulk to the wrong planet -- where he’s building an army. Tony knows that when the Hulk returns, he’ll try to find allies. And so Tony tries to get Namor to pledge support. Namor refuses. Tony wages preemptive war on Atlantis -- in the effort to capture and neutralize Namor. Black Bolt is outraged -- will he be next? But by that point, it’s too late -- big climax as the Hulk smashes Black Bolt on the moon.
MIGHTY AVENGERS ANNUAL
The Mighty Avengers are forced to fight the Inhumans in the Arena the Hulk has constructed in the desert. Tony Stark and Black Bolt are the key players here. A bit of a mini-“Planet Hulk: Exile” story, with the various players forming new alliances, experiencing new horrors, learning new lessons.
NEW AVENGERS ANNUAL
The Hulk captures Dr. Strange and, with the help of Hiroim and the Shadow Elders, sends him to the Crossroads. Strange experiences horrors like those the Hulk encountered when he was exiled years before -- meanwhile, the New Avengers strive to free him. Ends on a cliffhanger -- with Strange being driven mad by his experiences, setting him up for a dangerous return.
WOLVERINE ANNUAL
Fury, deep underground, sends Wolverine as an assassin to kill the Hulk. A kind of “Heart of Darkness”/”Apocalypse Now” story. With Wolverine gradually coming to respect the Hulk. In the end, he calls in the air strike. But the twist is that he knows it’ll just make the Hulk stronger. End with the even more powerful Hulk and Wolverine sharing a grim grin, then Wolverine slipping back out into the darkness.
POST-EMPIRE STORIES
SON OF HULK
A storyline which begins right after “Planet Hulk” ends. Could be a miniseries. Or it could be the story arc which happens in “Incredible Hulk” while the Hulk-smashes-Earth event is going on in a separate miniseries.
At the end of “Planet Hulk,” the Lieutenant, Hulk’s lover/wife/Queen, is killed along with thousands of others when the shuttle which brought Hulk to the planet explodes. This, of course, precipitates Hulk’s return to Earth to wreak his vengeance. But what Hulk doesn’t know is that the Lieutenant was carrying his child. And the fetus, being half-Hulk, not only survived the blast, but thrived in it. The Son of Hulk swims through the sea of radioactive primordial soup at the center of the blast area. Grows from fetus to child, battling, killing and eating other surviving monsters. STUFF CUT HERE TO AVOID SPOILERS FOR SKAAR, SON OF HULK.
More later.
Tom B
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Wizard Awards Update
2008-07-23 16:09:49
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Ever since I hired Jeanine Schaefer, my office has been unofficially nicknamed “DC South”. And for her first day, we created a “DC South” sign and posted it in the area where both she and Steve Wacker sit.
Unfortunately, this little gag prevented you from being able to see the video we shot for you two days ago, as there was some trepidation about the legality of us displaying the DC bullet on our site, even modified as it had been.
The video in question concerned Steve’s Wizard Award for Favorite Editor, which we’d blogged about a week or two back. At the top of the week, Steve received a package from Mike Cotton containing the actual award, which he hadn’t received previously.
Steve did a whole extemporaneous skit in which he wore the statue like bling, proclaimed “DC Rules!”, and generally acted like cock-of-the-walk. But because he prominently held the DC South sign above his head as he did so, we cannot show you the video. However, at the left, you’ll hopefully find one or two still shots I was able to isolate from it with the sign obscured. This little taste will have to suffice, I’m afraid.
On a related note, Wizard’s Joe Yanarella left me a message after the earlier blog entry went up, saying that he was the one who decided to stop doing the Wizard Awards presentations in Chicago, and that this was motivated entirely by the fact that the event was becoming stale, and attendance for it had dropped way off. So now you know.
More later.
Tom B
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More Numbers
2008-07-22 15:44:23
Had a problem with the video I was going to put up today, so instead let's look at some more vintage sales numbers.
This batch comes from a couple months later than the ones I posted yesterday, November 1998, and track a wider assortment of titles. By this point, the "Heroes Return" books had been running for about a year, and the Marvel Knights launch titles had begun to come out. The two Spider-Man books post so high here because this happened to have been the month where they relaunched with new #1 issues--typically, they were a little bit lower down the charts.
It's a pretty good field of numbers, comparable to what we're doing these days (and possibly just a hair better...)
1 Unc. X-Men 140111
2 X-Men 135585
3 Amazing Spidey 125871
4 Peter Parker 116545
5 Wolverine 106244
6 Avengers 101777
7 Daredevil 85668
8 Fantastic Four 84003
9 Capt. America 77267
10 Mutant X 76392
11 Avengers Forever 76189
12 Spidey Chapter One 75435
13 Webspinners 75338
14 Iron Man 72993
15 Thor 72757
16 Generation X 57623
17 Spider-Girl 56497
18 X-Force 56195
19 X-Men Liberators 53593
20 X-Man 52202
21 Iron Man/Cap Annual 51384
22 Thunderbolts 50570
23 Cable 50568
24 Cap Sentinel Of Liberty 50405
25 Inhumans 49301
26 Black Panther 49191
27 Cap/Citizen V Annual 48028
28 Punisher 47992
29 Hulk 47986
30 A-Next 46503
31 Slingers 46323
32 Deadpool 40226
33 J2 37416
34 Alpha Flight 36696
35 FF Fireworks 31632
36 Rampaging Hulk 28841
37 Heroes For Hire 27731
38 Warlock 21144
39 Union Jack 18787
More later.
Tom B
The Numbers of Yesteryear
2008-07-21 16:45:07
It seems like, more and more often now that the internet has diminished the dividing line between the average fan and the behind-the-curtain business aspects of the world of comics, every reader is incredibly interested in the sales numbers. Not a day seems to go by without me receiving an e-mail of some sort from a fan, bolstering his points using the rough sales data he's collected online.
Now, first off, that sales information is rarely if ever 100% accurate, and it only accounts for the direct market and not any other revenue stream that might exist. But in a much larger global sense, I don't know how much the average fan shoudl really be worried about the overall numbers (outside of on those occasions when the sales on a beloved title slip to the point of cancellation.) But the sales numbers aren't really anything that affects the lives of the readers directly, and those of us whose lives they do affect directly have a much better idea of the overall picture, of Marvel's corporate goals and initiatives, and financial reasons for doing something we might be doing. In other words, throwing sales information (incomplete sales information at that) at us isn't likely to sway anybody on a particular course of action.
That all having been said, let's look at some hopefully-interesting information from days gone by.
Below I've dug out some sales data from July 1998, ten years ago. This was right at the tail end of the Heroes Reborn experiment, and just before Marvel Knights, so none of those titles are accounted for. As you can see, for the most part, the field is about the same--we've got more better-selling titles today, but not that many (and some of them are among the titles that were part of the afforementioned publishing initiatives.) Also, bear in mind that, yet again, this information only covers the Direct Market. Still, it's rather amazing that the top three titles were selling practically twice as well as the next books in the queve. Our midlist is in much healthier shape these days.
Title July98
Unc. X-Men 137282
X-Men 131487
Wolverine 102160
Hulk 63968
Generation X 63450
Amazing Spidey 62869
X-Force 60876
X-Factor 59615
Peter Parker 58781
X-Man 57708
Spec. Spidey 56942
Cable 55510
Sensational Spi. 54122
Excalibur 47222
Thunderbolts 46220
Deadpool 40184
Alpha Flight 39725
Quicksilver 35003
What If 33368
Spidey Unltd. 33167
Heroes For Hire 28337
Silver Surfer 28160
Daredevil 25459
Ka-Zar 25130
Maverick 22799
Conan 14807
Marvel Advent. 6496
Spidey Manga 5765
It's also a pretty telling look at just what books we were putting out a decade ago.
More later.
Tom B
Timeline
2008-07-21 08:07:29
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No matter how long I’ve been doing this job, I still can’t seem to predict what things are going to bother or upset the fans.
Case in point: there was a lot of chatter a couple of weeks ago about a seeming discontinuity between NEW AVENGERS #42 and MIGHTY AVENGERS #15, both of which shipped on the same day. There was a timing element concerning Hank Pym seemingly being in two places at around the same time that bothered a number of fans, but once the idea of it spread onto the internet, it seemed like a number of other fans jumped onto the bandwagon, blowing the whole thing way out of proportion and seemingly not actually looking back into the printed books to see how everything could all fit together.
Believe it or not, the two sequences with Hank Pym do actually time out correctly. What some people seem to have missed is the passage of time within the first NEW AVENGERS story itself. That story takes place over what must be at the very least a number of days’ time, and it’s within those gaps that the scenes in NEW and MIGHTY fit.
I’ve actually been keeping a detailed timeline indicating where all of the events of SECRET INVASION fall. Here’s a portion of that timeline, covering the period in question:
AVENGERS DISASSEMBLED – AVENGERS #500-503
Elektra Skrull takes over Hand, mentions Avengers are no more – MIGHTY #16
Nick Fury found by Contessa Skrull – MIGHTY #12
Nick Fury kills Contessa Skrull – MIGHTY #12
Nick Fury becomes aware of Skrull conspiracy – MIGHTY #12
Nick Fury warns Maria Hill on Helicarrier – MIGHTY #12
Nick Fury tells Spider-Woman about the Skrulls, not realizing she’s a Skrull – MIGHTY #12
Real Hank lectures at U of Oxford – MIGHTY #15
Real Hank and Jan separate – MIGHTY #15
Skrull Elektra hires Electro for Raft breakout – MIGHTY #16
RAFT BREAKOUT – NEW AVENGERS #1-3
Real Hank and Skrull “Gwen” canoodle, see news of press conference – MIGHTY #15
Hank replaced by Skrull “Gwen” – MIGHTY #15
NEW AVENGERS FORM – NEW AVENGERS #3-4
Skrull Jessica and Skrull Hank discuss the Raft breakout and her joining New Avengers– NEW #42
Ka-Zar and Shanna discover Skrulls among SHIELD in Savage Land, including Contessa – NEW #41 – (This would be the 2nd Contessa Skrull)
So hopefully, this’ll give some people the answers they’re looking for. And on at least one of the other big seeming-conundrums vexing SECRET INVASION readers, the answer is coming in one of the books next month.
More later.
Tom B
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Mister Fish Says Goodbye
2008-07-10 20:30:00
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I'm away on vacation, so no new updates here until the end of next week.
More later.
Tom B
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Flo
2008-07-08 08:05:39
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Flo Steinberg gave me her Stan Lee Slurpee cup.
Flo’s cleaning out her apartment, so she’s trying t hand off as much stuff to interested parties as she can, so that it doesn’t just all get turned over to the trashman.
I’ve already got multiple copies of BIG APPLE COMIX, the one-shot underground comic book that Flo edited and published back in the 1970s. Just about everyone around here has got one at this point, as she continues to unburden herself of possessions.
For those that don’t know, Flo is our greatest living link to the Marvel-that-was, the Marvel of posterity. Back in the early 1960s, Flo was Stan Lee’s gal Friday, one of maybe two or three people (along with production man Sol Brodsky) who worked in the Marvel offices at close to the very beginning.
She became beloved to a whole generation of fans as Marvel’s corresponding secretary, charged with filling out and mailing out the postcards that used to be sent out to every person who sent in a letter of comment. Eventually, the task became too daunting, and the postcards were discontinued in favor of the Merry Marvel Marching Society.
(I recently lost out on an ebay bid for one of those postcards. I wanted to return it to Flo and get her to sign it again.)
These days, and for the last decade or so, Flo has been our head proofreader. She’s an always-entertaining, fiery little pixie of a woman, and we’re glad to have her around.
(That’s not a photograph of Flo’s Stan Lee Slurpee cup, though—it’s an image I stole off of the Internet. The cape and gloves are actually yellow on the real thing, which sits on my desk.)
I don't like anybody--but I like Flo Steinberg.
More later.
Tom B
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The Rules
2008-07-03 16:05:15
It seems like the responses to this Blog in recent weeks have become a bit more contentious, even accusatory. And I know that’s just people reacting emotionally to what’s said here. But I just want to outline the ground rules once again, so that everybody’s on the same page about what goes on here.
I’m not at all a big fan of censorship, so if it’s at all possible I won’t ever delete a response to one of my Blog posts. This should be a forum for the free exchange of ideas. But there are a few things that will make me take steps:
1) Use of inappropriate language. Marvel.com is a PG website, so if you post something and curse a lot, it’s going to get taken down.
2) Hate-Speak of any kind. Pretty much a no-brainer
3) Posts that are really advertisements for other websites or products. These typically get posted by web-bots, and they always come down once I see them.
4) Anything else that’s in violation of Marvel.com’s policies about posting.
Beyond that, you’re pretty much free to say what you like here. And all I ask is that you think about what you’re saying before you commit it to print. Also, be careful about reacting vehemently if a post of yours disappears suddenly. Because of the way this site is set up, any reader can flag any post as being offensive for any reason, and it’ll get taken down temporarily until somebody can approve it. I only check those posts maybe once a day, so almost everything goes offline for a little while, as malicious people seem to mark every response as offensive. But as you’ll see if you wait a few hours rather than lashing out angrily about censorship, your post will in all likelihood return once I find it (assuming you haven’t violated one of the rules above.)
Okay, everybody clear? Great! Then on to July 4th!
More later.
Tom B
Wizard Awards Ceremony No More!
2008-07-02 16:30:39
There was no Wizard Awards Ceremony at the Wizard World Convention this year—and I’m told that me and mine are responsible for that.
You see, last year, editor Steve Wacker won the award for Best Editor, primarily for his work on the weekly series 52. By the time the awards were being given out, Steve had switched companies, and was working down here at Marvel. Neither he nor I were slated to be in Chicago for the convention, but Marvel had begun dabbling with doing online videos. So we hit upon the idea of filming Steve’s acceptance speech, and having the Wizard folks play it during the ceremony.
The video we sent is embedded below. And we didn’t hear anything about it at the time, but apparently there were some people over at Steve’s former company who didn’t find it funny (I’m told they actually walked out of the awards ceremony after it played) and who made a big stink about it afterwards. Large enough of a stink that the Wizard folks decided to forego the awards ceremony entirely this year.
Me, I don’t think it’s so bad (but then, I’m not someone like poor Scott Allie, who may feel differently.) Anyway, I’ve asked our skilled technical staff to include it below.
Also, Steve Wacker wanted to express his actual appreciation in receiving the award in question. He writes:
The only reason I got that award was because Jeph….er..Jef..umm…Geoff Johns and “Greg” Rucka pitched the idea of me editing the weekly 52 book to Dan Didio who went along with it (a decision he possibly regrets). I really appreciated the faith from all three of those guys, though.
That got my funny sounding name in front of a lot of the book’s publicity which apparently helped with Wizard readers who like voting for names that sound vaguely dirty.
Unfortunately, my plan to tank the book by leaving halfway through fell apart when Michael Siglain took over the book and practically no one noticed I left. (Thanks a lot, Mike.)
Anyway when the results of the Wizard voting came in Tom and I did this video and I thought it was kinda funny poking fun at both him and me. I had no idea until last week that they even showed the thing or that anyone even watched it. Personally, given Tom’s performance I can see why folks may have gotten mad. I haven’t seen anyone sway on camera so much outside of Eddie Murphy’s Stevie Wonder impression.
More later.
Tom B
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About this blog:
Ramblings and musings from the mind of Tom Brevoort. "It won’t be clean. It won’t be fun. It mostly won’t be coherent."
 | About the author:
Tom Brevoort is Executive Editor for Marvel Comics, and oversees such titles as New Avengers, Civil War, and Fantastic Four. |
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