Comic Dictionary - The Progressive X-Men Era

Joe Rice came up with this term recently, and I really liked it, so I am offering it up to you folks here now. Rather than saying "Morrison's X-Men," the Progressive X-Men Era is expanded to include all the titles from the X-Line of the time, which marked a specific tendency to try new, progressive ideas.

The era started in May of 2001, with the launch of both Grant Morrison's New X-Men, but also Peter Milligan and Mike Allred's X-Force, plus Joe Casey's Uncanny X-Men and X's The Brotherhood. Not all of these projects worked out, of course (Casey and X's projects basically flopped), but this time marked an age when the X-Books were willing to at least TRY new things. Other examples include the X-Factor mini-series and the Dan Mishkin run on Cable.

The era officially ended with Morrison's last issue of New X-Men in March 2004, but really, it probably ended a few months earlier, in late 2003, with the capitulation of Marvel editorial regarding the Princess Diana storyline in X-Statix. That was a clear statement of a return to conservative thinking on the X-Books.

Ah well, at least we got almost three years of progressive comics!

And, thanks to Joe, we also have a term to refer to it.

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Amazing Joy Buzzards Vol. 2 #3 - More Fun Than You Can Shake A Mythical Mexican Wrestler At

Amazing Joy Buzzards Vol. 2 #3 is an interesting issue for an Image book, in that it is not fully drawn by regular artist Dan Hipp. It has three different stories by three different artists, plus a bunch of different short stories/pin-ups by different artists. However, instead of doing this as a "fill-in" story, Mark Smith and Dan Hipp got some really badass artists to work on the issue. Khary Randolph, Sean Galloway, Mark Englert and Rick Cortes are some serious artists, and they help to make this a very enjoyable issue, for an issue that is not done by the regular artist, Dan Hipp (although he draws some pages in it, as well).

One of the drawbacks of Amazing Joy Buzzards (and it is a minor one), is that there are not many people in the comic who do not seem to think that the Buzzards are the coolest bunch of guys ever. Which is not a BIG deal, because they ARE pretty obviously cool, but even during the midst of Beatle-mania, there were plenty of folks who did not like the Beatles, and it is nice to see someone give them a hard time, which we see in the person of Joe, the head of their fellow touring band. It is especially nice to see someone give El Campeon a hard time, because he is so cool (a mythical Mexican wrestler who shows up to help the guys out? Awesome!), but I can see someone possibly being deluded enough for a time to think that he is not. So even though Joe ends up being convinced of El Campeon's coolness by the end of the issue, his moments of doubt were quite fun.

As for the stories, each one of them was fun. The premise is that, while on the plane together, Joe is giving El Campeon a hard time, so they all tell stories about El Campeon.

The first one depicted the guys in Britain, doing their best Hard Days Night impression, only doing it with Joy Buzzard flair (which includes having El Campeon bail them out). I especially enjoy some of the banter like "You're fired - You're hired." or "You're forever hired." Oozing with cool charm.

The second story, with El Campeon versus his secret weakness, was SLIGTLY less fun, but it had super cool art. I also like how it shows how the Buzzards are sometimes there to pick up El Campeon, and it is not just him bailing them out of trouble. In addition, you have to love the sheer honesty and innoncence of El Campeon. All the time he is being mocked by Joe, he handles it like its nothing. He just tells it like it is. So he's afraid of something weird? He isn't ashamed. He is El Campeon. That's all he needs to know.

I also love the great scene where El Campeon goes through different stories and decides NOT to tell them. Very funny.

Finally, the hesitance of El Campeon to tell a story that he knows Joe will be hurt by is handled well. The story itself was pretty straightforward, though, but Joe learned his lesson. And when we learn how the Buzzards became connected to El Campeon? Creepy, but super cool at the same time.

So, yeah, fun issue, and I can't wait until the next one!

Ooooh....by the way, speaking of cool things, check out what Dan Hipp did for Joe Rice. That lucky bastard, Rice!!

How cool is THAT?!?

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Nightwing Edit Surprise

Comic customers this week may have been surprised to see Nightwing #115, as it featured the following cover:



This would be surprising because the book was initially solicited with THIS cover:



In addition, the solicitation for #115 were as follows:

Nightwing's long and winding road has landed him under Deathstroke's thumb in the most vicious collection of villains ever assembled! Now, it's time for Dick Grayson to take matters into his own hands. But if he's trading Deathstroke's loyalty for Lex Luthor's, is his life getting any better?

Well, suffice to say, that solicitation did not match the actual plot of Nightwing #115 at ALL. Lex Luthor was not even IN the comic book. In addition, #115 really did not match the ending of #114 at all, either.

What Nightwing #115 DID do was rather abruptly cut Devin Grayson's storyline short by two issues, resolving everything in #115 rather than her obviously larger story, as detailed by the following solicitations for #116 and #117:

#116 -

The full scope of Deathstroke's fury is revealed! Dick Grayson has been "on the inside" for a long time, but to what end? Who's watching whom? And who will pay the price when lives are on the line? You simply can't miss the explosive secrets revealed in this issue!

#117 -

Deathstroke's endgame is in play, and not everyone will make it out in one piece! On the run from the deadly Society, Nightwing is in for the fight of his life. Guest-starring Oracle and a whole mess of villains as we wrap up one of the biggest Dick Grayson stories ever!

Essentially, these solicitations do not match what actually occured in #115, which was a wrap-up to the crime problem in Bludhaven, and an end to Nightwing's undercover journey with Deathstroke.

So...what the heck happened?

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What I bought - 15 December 2005

I'm sick. Really. I bought another 13 comic books this week. I need help.

"My name is Greg, and I'm a comics junkie."

"Hi, Greg."

Where the hell do you go for this kind of counseling? Where????

You know what, though? Lots o' good books this week, including a surprise nomination for best single issue of the year (trust me, you'll never guess) and a pseudo-theme that could be the theme of pretty much every comic: what the hell is going on with all the breasts? You'll see. To our vast female readership: please forgive me. This is serious sociological stuff!

Atomika #5 by Andrew Dabb and Sal Abbinanti
$2.99, Mercury Comics

Atomika's quest continues, as we arrive in 1972 and our "hero"(?) goes north to destroy "the eldest of the gods ... the father of us all" - Leshi. He knows that Atomika is going to kill him, but he doesn't care, and he asks to tell a story before Atomika does the deed. He tells a story about gods and men, a cautionary tale about how men outgrew the gods and then created one of their own - Atomika. He tells Atomika that he serves man, not the other way around, and our hero would do well to remember that. Atomika says he understands, but he doesn't really. How can he? He's a god, after all. So he kills Leshi and moves on. But the machinations go on behind his back.

This is still a nice book - the art on this issue is truly spectacular, with plenty of grandiose double-paged spreads. It's awfully late - check out Guy's interesting article about independent comics, Speakeasy in particular, and what's going on with them - but it's not with Speakeasy anymore, so maybe the scheduling problems will get ironed out. I don't know - this is why I leave to people like Guy to tell us about the industry - but I do know that it's neat. Neat book. The trade of the first six issues should be out soon (one presumes after the sixth issue actually hits the stands), so you might want to check it out.

Bad Planet #1 by Thomas Jane, Steve Niles, Lewis Larosa, and Tim Bradstreet
$2.99, Image

Is that the Thomas Jane who is kind of a younger and low-rent Christopher Lambert?

Anyway, this is a pretty cool initial issue. The premise is simple: there's some weird thing that travels through space with something evil inside it. If it arrives on your planet, look out: you're SOL. At the beginning of the book, it's being towed across space by some aliens, but the tow line breaks. 400 years later, and it's heading straight for earth. Astronomers debate about it for some pages. Then it lands and, as the next issue box promises, alien deathspiders come out! (Yes, that's one word.) Would I lie to you?

This is an interesting book, with rough but very nice art. It also begins our pseudo-theme for the week. One of the astronomers - the one who discovered the object, in fact, although she gives credit to her superior, the oh-so-cleverly-named Fred Wertham - is a chesty young woman. She doesn't even get a name - let's call her Ms. Busty. Here's her first appearance:


In case you're not getting the full effect, your eyes are, not surprisingly, drawn to the objects almost directly in the center of the page:


Okay, that's fine - she just happens to be a woman with large breasts who works for an astronomer and wears low-cut sweaters. Larosa and Bradstreet give us more, too:

This time her chest is stretched strangely out. I guess she's shocked because everyone just learned the strange object in space is on a collision course with Earth. That's fine. Later on, however, she's at home watching the news. This is the outfit she chooses to lie around on the sofa in:


Because I'm puerile, let's zoom in:

She's wearing a sweater that is unbuttoned almost to her navel. Do comic book artists ever hang out with women when they're trying to be comfortable? Because they don't dress like this.

Anyway, it's a good book. Creepy and fun. Alien deathspiders, people!

Batman: Gotham County Line #3 by Steve Niles and Scott Hampton
$5.99, DC

The final page of this comic book features Batman flying away with his jet pack on. I'm just saying.

I wanted to like this more than I did. It's an interesting story, and Bruce has to overcome some demons (like he often does) but in an interesting and not necessarily overdone way. He fights without fighting - it's all very Zen.

The problem I had with it is that the first issue and, from what I remember, the solicitations, set this up as something different. Now, I know it's Niles, so I knew we were getting a horror story, but I mentioned this in my review of the first issue - there's so much horror in the suburbs that is untapped in comics, because they usually take place in cities. Batman goes into the suburbs, but this book isn't about "Gotham County" any more than it's about Gotham City. It could easily take place in Gotham City and it would be the same thing. I was hoping for more about what twisted things go on behind the perfectly manicured lawns of Anytown, U.S.A. Like American Beauty, you know. That I didn't get that doesn't invalidate the story, and it's a good enough book, but I felt it could have been much more. Scarier, creepier, more disturbing. Oh well.

And not to make too big a deal of it, but it's 18 dollars for the three issues. Yes, they look nice and they're longer than your average book, but that's a lot of coin.

DMZ #2 by Brian Wood and Riccardo Burchielli
$2.99, DC/Vertigo

Escape From New York continues! In this issue, Adrienne Barbeau takes Kurt Russell around town to show him how things work. Oh, that wacky Ernest Borgnine, flirting with that girl in New Jersey! He's quite the scamp!

Okay, I'll stop with the Escape From New York jokes. I'm sure the editors at DC already made them all to Wood, and they still green-lighted the project anyway. There's a lot that's interesting in this issue. The art is very nice, and although Wood beats us over the head with the kids losing the limbs section, it's pretty quick and doesn't bother me too much. There's really no way to show the horrors of war without making it seem like you're beating us over the head with it. I enjoyed the fact that the denizens of Manhattan have adapted somewhat easily to their situation, and although it's still a lousy way to live, they have to live somehow. Yes, some of them may seem crazy, but how can Matt judge when he hasn't lived with the possibility that he could be killed at any moment? How would any of us react?

I also liked the fact that the networks don't necessarily want his reports because he's only an intern. It's stupid, but then so is bureaucracy.

I'm not sure how long Wood can make this series last (it's an ongoing, right?), but it's off to an intriguing start.

Fables #44 by Bill Willingham, Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, and Andrew Pepoy
$2.75, DC/Vertigo

I actually don't like that cover. James Jean, what have you wrought???

The djinn is loose, and things look bleak for our friends in Fabletown. Ah, but they have a plan - don't they always?

As usual with the one of the best titles out there, I have little to say. It keeps humming along at its excellent level, and Willingham adds some nice depth to Prince Charming's character, references the war in Iraq (although, I'm sorry, would soldiers really allow someone as scantily-clad as the djinn wander away? I'm not saying they would molest her, but wouldn't they question the strangeness of it?), and gives us a nice little twist at the end. It ends abruptly, as usual these days with comic books, but it's still a fun read. The nicest thing about Fables is how it blends the fantastical with the real - well, as real as Fabletown can get. The inhabitants of Fabletown are concerned about things regular folk are concerned about - taxes, political scandal - you know, the fun stuff. Yet at the same time they're worried about Gepetto showing up and killing them all. Interesting dichotomy.

Free Fall #1 by Gianluca Piredda, Eric J, and Jimmy Palmiotti
$3.99, Narwain

Hey, it's another new publisher - well, maybe - it's from Italy, so Narwain could have been around forever for all I know - like I can keep track of Italian publishers! They're bringing out a bunch o' books, too, two of which came out this week (I didn't buy the other one). This is kind of a cool book.

First, of course, the boobs. They hit you right in the eyes when you're wondering if you should buy it. "Buy me ..." they seem to say. "You are hypnotized by my power ..." I mean, we can obscure the face of the girl on the cover with the logo, but certainly not her chest:

Boobs and a gun! What possible symbolism could that be???

This young lady is about to rob a bank, don't you know. Because an unbuttoned sweater (did she just come from Bad Planet?) is perfect bank-robbing attire!!!

I shouldn't pick on the cover too much, because this is a good comic. A bunch of thieves want to rob a bank, but they need a diversion. See that guy on the roof on the cover? Turns out he's a loser who wants to commit suicide. Sean (for that is his name) can't get a job and can't support his wife. Now, his wife, it must be said, is an ex-exotic dancer, so he can't be that big a loser, can he? She is, of course, pregnant, and when she tells him, he decides that a real man would commit suicide. The page in which he leaves his wife (her name's Emily, but you might be staring at her Catholic schoolgirl uniform too much to care) is actually very nicely done - it's a nine-panel grid with the two of them very small in the center and just a gray background. Sean actually gets smaller in each panel. Neat. Anyway, the thieves happen upon him before he can jump off a bridge and offer to give his family a cut of the money if he agrees to jump by the bank when they want to rob it and create a distraction. He agrees - he was going to kill himself anyway, right?

This is a four-issue mini-series (I think it's four), and it promises to be intriguing. I like Eric J's art from his time on Rex Mundi, so I liked seeing it here. Check it out if you can find it.

Hawaiian Dick: The Last Resort #3 by B. Clay Moore and Steven Griffin
$2.99, Image

Gaaakkk! It's an issue of Hawaiian Dick! What the hell????

I suppose I shouldn't be shocked. Issue #2 came out in November 2004, after all. It's not like it's Spider-Man and the Black Cat thing, right?

Anyway, I read it, but I'm not saying anything about it. I mean, if you bought the first two issues, you probably got this, and I won't convince you either way. If you didn't buy the first two, you won't buy this one. I will say this: the earlier mini-series and this one are worth a look. The first one has been collected, and this one will be too, so I would encourage you to find them. When issue #4 comes out I'll do a proper review. Everyone all right with that?

Local #2 by Brian Wood and Ryan Kelly
$2.95, Oni Press

Okay, here's another reason why Greg would never be in a horror movie:

I'm with Megan's co-worker. It's just creepy, this Polaroid swapping with a complete stranger. I have no interest in carrying on this kind of relationship. I also have no interest in seeing what's in the abandoned house at the end of the street. I also have no interest in repeating "Candyman" five times while facing a mirror (my best friend did, though - he's still with us, so Candyman must be a big wuss!). Yes, I'm boring. Poets will not write paeans to my passionate lusting after new experiences. I'm also not going to be eviscerated by a guy wearing other people's skin.

Oh, the book? Well, Megan should know better, shouldn't she? I mean, this is apparently a year after issue #1, when she ditched he lousy boyfriend in Portland and hit the road. Now she's having this weird relationship with this weird-looking dude? It's an interesting story on the surface, but at some point you want to grab Megan and scream, "What the fuck is up with you, chickie? What the fuck????"

Just because I think Megan is acting idiotically doesn't mean I don't like the book. It invokes Minneapolis quite well, and the characters act realistically, if not smartly. Megan is still an idiot, though. Don't come crying to me when gloomy Polaroid guy takes a photo of you with your guts hanging out, Megan!

Noble Causes #15 by Jay Faerber, Fran Bueno, and Freddie E. Williams
$3.50, Image

Oh, sure, Invincible gets the press, the absolute collected edition, the great pull quotes from the comics professionals, but I still say Noble Causes is the best superhero book out there. You wanna make something 'bout it?

The Blackthorne plot continues, and Race finds out that Liz may just be a target. It's all very Shakespearean. Meanwhile, Faerber decides we haven't a lesbian scene in a few issues, so he gives us one. Good job, Jay! Frost steals something for Blackthorne, with Cosmic Rae's help, because the Blackthornes blackmail him. Those dastards! There is a lot of layers to this story, as the plot thickens. Frost and Rae have secrets, Celeste and Dawn Blackthorne have secrets - not the least of which is that they're engaging in a lifestyle that will surely send them to hellfire! - Rusty is getting a new body, and there's a package at the end that gets delivered to the Nobles! What a cliffhanger!

And, because it's been a while, we have a breast alert! Good ol' Zephyr Noble gets a tip that a robbery is going on, so she rushes to stop it, not knowing that Frost is the thief. She flies in heroically!


Why is she saying "Holy Crap!" I submit it's because of those breasts! She can light the whole city with those puppies:

Isn't her costume cloth? It's not metal, right? I understand that the light would reflect a little, but it wouldn't reflect like that off cloth, would it? Would it?

Samurai: Heaven and Earth #5 by Ron Marz and Luke Ross
$2.99, Dark Horse

Oh, Ron Marz. You are pure evil. Your testicles should be dipped in A-1 and you should be thrown to rabid poodles. You are a despicable, rat-bastardy person.

But haven't I been praising Samurai? Isn't it, according to me, one of the best mini-series of the year? Haven't I been gushing over the exquisite art and the fascinating mix of 18th-century Japanese culture with 18th-century European culture? Haven't I been swept away by the rollicking adventure and the heart-breaking romance of it all?

Well, yes. I have. I have been waiting since August for this series to conclude, and I read this with great anticipation. It was cruising along - Shiro reunites with Yoshiko, but has to fight the Musketeers to get out of Versailles, and of course he has to have a confrontation with the Spanish ambassador who set him up in the first place, so he does, and there is bloody swordplay and it's all very nice ... and then Marz gives us a "to be continued"! Bleep bleepin' bleepity-bleep-bleep bleep!

Shit. I may buy the next mini-series, if it ever actually shows up, because Ross now has that high-profile gig at DC on Jonah Hex, and who knows if they'll get a different artist or if Marz will ever write the damned thing. Burn in hell, Marz. You bastard.

Still a good read, by the way. If you don't mind the ending that makes you want to drive knitting needles into your ears and straight through your brain.

Now, the Marvel/mutant section of the reviews:

Uncanny X-Men #467 by Chris Claremont, Chris Bachalo, and a shitload of inkers
$2.50, Marvel

The last time I bought an issue of Uncanny X-Men was in March of 2004. Chuck Austen finally made me break my almost 200-issue run of buying the title. Another thing he has to answer for! However, I was intrigued by this issue, because when I flipped through it, it looked different. Unlike your regular comic book. So I thought, "What the hell," and dropped two dollars and sixteen cents (after my discount) on it.

Wow. This is a candidate for best single issue of the year. I bet you didn't see that one coming, did you?

Now, it has flaws. Bachalo's art, although clearer than when he drew Steampunk and Ultimate War, is still not back to where it was earlier in his career, when he was excellent. And the host of inkers make the pencils look downright ugly on some pages. Claremont drags out one of his hoary chestnuts - the Shiar Empire wants to exterminate the Phoenix - and fires it up. And the constant descriptions of the Grey clan get a tad annoying.

But.

This is an excellent single issue. I don't know the back story, or what's been going on, but the way Claremont sets the issue up, it doesn't matter. We get a bunch of aliens from the Shiar with funky powers, because everyone who doesn't live on Earth has funky powers, apparently, and they attack a Grey family reunion. With extreme prejudice. People get killed, Rachel calls the X-Men, Kurt manages to teleport Kitty and Betsy to the house before one of the bad guys throws up a force field, and the X-Men fight because they can't evacuate anyone. And they lose.

Yes, they lose. Claremont has never been afraid to show his heroes failing, and they fail big-time here. Maybe next issue they'll win. They don't here. It's a gripping read, because of the sense of urgency. The entire story takes place in 24 seconds. Claremont helpfully counts them down for us, and we actually believe it could take place in that short a time. Nothing happens to has to take longer. The efficiency of the bad guys and the relative ease with which they dispatch the X-Men is excellently done. This is the way a single issue should be done. I doubt I will even pick up the next issue - I don't want to get sucked back in! - but that's okay. If you just want to get this issue, you won't be disappointed.

There's also a breast-related problem. Betsy gets teleported in wearing nothing but a robe. So of course they try to keep her covered for the rest of the issue. This leads to some weird drawings, like this one:

Her right breast is all elongated. It's really bizarre. Then, a few pages later, she loses the robe completely (I know, shocking). Then the drawing gets even stranger:

If that debris is supposed to be hiding her nipple, Betsy really should sue her plastic surgeon - it's hiding the bottom of the breast! Just weird stuff. But Mark Fossen should be happy - it looks like the Focused Totality is back! Didn't we all miss it?

Really. Excellent. Issue. Surprisingly so.

X-Factor #1 by Peter David, Ryan Sook, and Wade von Grawbadger
$2.99, Marvel

David picks up where the Madrox mini-series left off (sort of), and it's a good thing, because that was a good series. See how that works? Those of you who don't like David because he's too self-consciously witty, well, he tones it down quite a bit here - there's a little bit of the repartee, but not annoyingly so. The issue sets up the whole "mutant detective" thing for those who missed the mini-series. Jamie Madrox has decided to be a detective, because being able to split into hundreds of different versions of himself comes in pretty handy in that line of work. He recruits Siryn and Guido, who fail their first assignment, Monet St. Croix, who never actually shows up in this issue (she's on the cover - does that count?), Wolfsbane, who appears to yell at Rictor, who has lost his powers and is on a ledge wondering whether he should jump or not. Jamie sends one of his multiples - the optimistic one - to talk him down. Because it's Peter David, nothing is always what it seems. Things appear to end badly.

This is a cool idea for a series and a good creative team to make it happen. Sook's art is very pretty, and David wrote the best run of the old X-Factor series, so why not get him to do this? He does this kind of thing well - a book that has potential for a lot of twists and a chance for a nice group dynamic, all the while speeding along. David is good at keeping things moving. We'll see how this goes, but I'll be back, at least for a while.

X-Men #179 by Peter Milligan, Salvador Larroca, and Danny Mike with Allen Martinez
$2.50, Marvel

Like that cover? "Featuring: Sentinel Squad O*N*E." Doesn't quite have the ring of "Guest-starring: Captain America!" does it? What a weird way to advertise.

Anyway, Bobby gets his powers back, the creepy chick in the hockey mask does nasty things, blah blah blah. The main story is dull - sentinels come to guard the mansion. Whatever. Last issue we had Phantom Torso, which tied into what Lorna saw in space. This issue we have ... Apocalypse. God I hate Apocalypse. In a one-page interlude, some guy finds him buried in Egypt. We don't actually see him, but come on - it's Apocalypse. Shit. Then we find out who the mysterious dude who took off with Mystique is. Sadly, it's not Fantomex, as one commenter suggested months ago. I don't know who it is, but Mystique wants him to woe Rogue. It's all very medieval. Then Lorna decides to go find out what happened in space, and Alex goes with her. I love how Alex says, very dramatically, "I'm leaving the X-Men." Why do people even say that? Are they like a band, and they now can't make the album because Alex isn't there? Since when is it mandatory to be with the X-Men all the freakin' time? I love when someone says that - like now he can stop paying the dues or something. What a stupid thing to say.

Anyway, next issue the mystery begins to unravel. I did NOT look at Cronin's spoiler of the cover a few weeks back, because I didn't want to know. Keep it to yourself, people! These past few issues have just been filler to get past Decimation, and now Milligan is back on notice. I keep buying this, but it's close to the edge. We'll see how this mystery in space works out. It feels like it's something Milligan could hit right out of the park.

Thanks for putting up with my breast-obsession today. They just leapt out at me this week - maybe they were meant to???? No, the artists couldn't be that manipulative, could they?

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Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed #29!

This is the twenty-ninth in a series of examinations of comic book urban legends and whether they are true or false. Click here for an archive of the previous twenty-eight. This week is a slight change of pace, as it is the first "Theme Week." This week's Comic Book Urban Legends Revealed is "Kurt Busiek Week!"

Let's begin!

COMIC URBAN LEGEND: Kurt Busiek came up with the idea for Jean Grey's return.

STATUS: True

How decisions are made in any creative medium is almost always a story of interesting interralations between many people. Writers and editors, producers and directors, friends and relatives, ideas can come from all sorts of places.

How the idea of Jean Grey's return to comics came to fruition is just one of those stories.

The best encapsulation of this story comes from an unlikely (for me, at least) source, wikipedia, which I generally am hesitant to cite as a definitive source, but in this instance, Kurt Busiek himself helped edit the current Wikipedia piece, so I think its veracity should pass muster.

So, to begin,

Shortly before the publication of Uncanny X-Men #137, future freelance writer Kurt Busiek, then still a college student, heard about the upcoming events through the fan grapevine, as did fellow future comics pros Carol Kalish (who would go on to head up Marvel's Direct Sales Department for years) and Richard Howell (artist of the Vision and The Scarlet Witch 12-issue maxi-series, among others). The three of them also heard that Jim Shooter had declared that Jean Grey could not be revived unless it was done in such a way as to render her guiltless of Dark Phoenix's crimes. Taking this as a creative challenge, all three then-fans decided to come up with their own resurrection scenario. Busiek's involved the discovery that Jean Grey was still on the bottom of Jamaica Bay in suspended animation, and the Phoenix entity had used her body and mind as a lens, creating an immensely powerful duplicate of Jean, but a duplicate which grew more corrupted and distorted the longer it remained separate from the true Jean.

Later on,

in 1983, after beginning a career as a freelance writer the previous year, Kurt Busiek attended a comics convention in Ithaca, New York, staying at the home of Marvel writer Roger Stern. In conversation, both writers' longtime interest in the X-Men came up, and Stern expressed regret that there was no way to bring Jean back, not while satisfying Shooter's edict. Busiek told Stern his idea, not expecting it to amount to more than idle conversation. Later, Stern told the idea to John Byrne, then writer/artist of Fantastic Four.

In 1985, Jim Shooter greenlighted a new series that would reunite the original X-Men into a new team called "X-Factor," to be written by longtime freelancer Bob Layton. Hearing of this, Byrne called Layton and suggested Busiek's idea as a means of raising Jean Grey from the dead while satisfying Jim Shooter's demands for total absolution for Jean.

So there you go. Five men, a few years, and many conversations ensued before the perfect confluence of events resulted in Kurt Busiek's idea (which came about before Jean even DIED) gestating into how Marvel handled Jean Grey's return.

COMIC URBAN LEGEND: Triathlon was gay.

STATUS: False

In the letter pages of Avengers #7, a question was posed as to whether the Avengers would add any members of color or any gay members. The reply was "There's always a chance. Heck, come back next issue." Avengers #8 was the debut of Triathlon.



This led to rumors, naturally enough, that Triathlon was (or at least was MEANT to be) gay.

Kurt Busiek cleared up this rumor at the Gay League,

We hadn't established anything about Triathlon's sexual preference, so when people asked about the possibility of a gay Avenger, I thought that hey,maybe he's gay -- we haven't said one way or the other. But Tri was so controversial, and so many fans had issues with how he got onto the team, or the racially-charged atmosphere it happened in, that I just didn't want to add one more aspect that would be a hot-button issue -- negative or positive -- with readers. Too many readers already thought of him as a token, so I thought it'd be better to work on getting past that than give another set of readers a reason to see him as a label more than as a character.

I think Busiek made the right call. Do you agree?

COMIC URBAN LEGEND: Kurt Busiek was NOT the first choice for Untold Tales of Spider-Man

STATUS: True

Rarely does a non-creator-owned book, in this day and age, becomse so synonymous with one creator as much as Untold Tales of Spider-Man did with Kurt Busiek. In the 90s, other than James Robinson's Starman and Peter David's Hulk, very few others stand out.



Therefore, it is quite surprising to note that Kurt Busiek was NOT the first choice to write Untold Tales of Spider-Man, but rather, got the job as the original choice for the book, Roger Stern, passed on the assignment, suggesting Busiek instead.

In a recent interview at Comic Book Resources, Stern relays the story,

CBR: What brought you back to Marvel?

Stern: Tom Brevoort and Glenn Greenberg. Those two guys were after me for months to write a book for them. They first approached me when they needed a new writer for the "New Warriors," but the book had been around for over four years at that point, and I'd never read it. Then they offered me a new title: "Untold Tales of Spider-Man." I was intrigued by the idea, but told them that I thought Kurt Busiek would be a better choice, as he'd already researched that era for Marvels.

I wonder how the series would have gone had it been Stern instead of Busiek. If anyone COULD live up to the quality work that Busiek did on that title, it probably WOULD be Stern, who had (as mentioned earlier) a part in getting Busiek's Jean Grey idea to Marvel. See, it (and this entry) has come full circle!

So, that's it for this week, folks!

Feel free to drop off any urban legends you'd like to see featured!!

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Judging (Marvel's March) Books By Their Covers

Marvel's March Solicitations are up, so let's make some prejudgements based just on the covers (as we all love to make prejudgements, don't we?).

Let's begin!
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This is a major improvement over last month's cover...



Very striking piece by Peterson.
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Who do you think gets lightboxed for the Super Skrull?

Imagine if he actually DREW that! Wouldn't that be a pip?
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Now we know why Bagley is not drawing Ultimate X-Men.
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Notice that Rogue and Iceman started getting serious AFTER she absorbed Gambit.

Something latent there, no?
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OMIGOD!



The Shadow Thieves are invading the Marvel Universe, too!!!
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I don't get it.



How are they disguising Spider-Man's costume on ONE cover, but on this other book, he has the same old costume?
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Not a fan of this Byron Penaranda cover, but...



it sounds like they are going to let Tania Del Rio redo Araña. That is grand news!

I just hope it does not involve totems in any way, shape or manner.
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Isn't it funny that, if you were to go by Spider-Girl...



...you would think that the Clone Saga was, like, the single most important event in Spider-Man history.
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Awwwwwwwwwwww....
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You ever hear the story about how David Finch came to draw Spider-Man's eyes like this?

He just picked up a copy of Marvel Knights: Spider-Man, and thought that that was just how it was done.

I love that story.
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Here's what I think happened...



Marvel thought Oeming wanted to do an adaptation of the Nic Cage film, God of War, but he actually wanted to do a book about Ares, God of War.

Gotta pay attention to what you greenlight, Marvel!!
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I don't know if this works as a cover, but it is a cool image.


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..............

Really?

Really?

You're gonna kill off Foggy freakin' Nelson?

Really?

You sure?

Really?

Cool cover, though.
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Someone should tell Tony Harris that he doesn't have to follow the photo reference THAT closely.
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Remember when Gulacy was awesome?
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I just love the implication from this cover that, in his search for a wife, the married wife of his friend Reed Richards is still a possibility.
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Doesn't this cover look just like it stepped out of, like, 1994?


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It is funny...



This cover is JUST bordering on the edge of goofy, but Andrews has pulled it off.
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Wow.



That is a lot of characters I don't care about.

Does the fish lady even have a name?
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I can see Ben Affleck as Nova.

Nova is the deep core driller of this comic book.
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I love it...the 65th Anniversary.



Comics should be ballsier than that, even.

We should have, like, "Celebrating 43 Years of Spider-Man!"
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That's a pretty badass cover.



I love how it, like, makes SENSE for Doom to build statues of himself.
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I am ashamed.



I actually mistook Khari Evans for Khary Randolph.

Don't hate me.
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No WONDER the rocket crashed!!!



It was being piloted by Moe Howard!
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Wait a sec...I see Scorpion....but...



NO FRED VAN LENTE ON THIS COMIC!!!
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That is one sweet redesign on Ghost.


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I like how this is like an homage to that cover of Iron Man tearing through the wall.



Only, like, to the EXTREME!
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"QUICK! Overwhelm him with a mountain of suck!"
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Geez louise.



It is like Ms. Marvel just had a horrible, disfiguring accident.
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Nise poses.



I think Xavier is giving us Magnum.

Strange is going with Blue Steel.
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Big dropoff from last month's cover.



Still a nice cover.
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Similar sentiment to this month's Marcos Martin cover for Runaways.



Has someone given Martin an exclusive yet?!?!
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Hehe.



It's like he's not even trying.

He basically looked like he cropped a shot of a dude onto the body of Starfox. It doesn't even look like it matches the rest of the drawing.
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In this issue, we learn how Jewel was involved in Secret Wars, the Siege on Avengers Mansion, the Kree/Skrull War and...let's say....the moon landing.
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How is this the same artist who drew last month's hideous cover? This one is actually pretty good!
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Yes...that IS a bunch of characters on a cover.


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This costume could really use some bubbles around her waist.
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Really nice depiction of the city around him.


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I have no idea what Cheung was thinking when he sat down to design this cover.



It is such an odd concept design.
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Spider-Man looks oddly fat.


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Pretty cool drawing.



I do not remember any of them, though. I think a lot of the New Universe's appeal is nostalgia.
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Very nice, understated drawing by Kirk. Impressive job.


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Wow.



JRjr did a great job of replicating his old style for this cover!

Well, either that or he just reused some old art.

Wouldn't that be hilarious?
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Very cool Ladronn cover.


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I didn't even realize at first that this was Immonen.
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Was Cable vs. Apocalypse EVER cool?


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Yep.



They ARE standing there.

Next to each other.

This is true.
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Here, too.



They ARE standing there.

Stunning.
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VERY clever cover idea by Brooks.



Well done.
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This is a REALLY nice drawing of Siryn by Sook.



But I do not think that it works as a cover.
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Yes, please.



Please revisit Storm's origin.

That's what we all need.
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Not exactly great design work here.


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Have they left ANYthing untouched from Age of Apocalypse?



First X-Man, Holocaust, Dark Beast and Sugar Man.

Then Blink and Morph.

Now even the Sunfire!

Wolverine better watch his hands!!
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Are we supposed to know this person?
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I WOULD say this was a cool cover...



...but then I realized that it was Apocalypse and Dracula.

So I realized that it wasn't.
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Sean Chen should never be allowed to design a costume ever again.



Yikes.
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I think Tim Bradstreet Punisher covers are sorta like colorforms.



Take one Punisher standing up with gun and place it on a picture of sharks.

Take one Punisher turned to the side with shotgun and place it on a picture of mobsters.

Etc.

Etc.
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This is a very nice tradedress design by Oeming. Even if it is not original...hehe.



Well done.
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MY TOP FIVE COVERS OF THE MONTH!!!
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5. This is a very strong cover image by Allred.


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4. I love how Epting's covers for this title all look like they could be movie posters.



And COOL movie posters at that.
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3. I don't know WHAT this is propaganda for.



But I support it.

Damn your effectiveness, Juan Doe!!!
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2. See, now THIS homage cover is at least FUNNY!



That makes all the difference.
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1. This is just the must creepily awesome thing ever.



Even more so when you remember that this is Quicksilver's daughter on the cover!
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Okay, that's it for me, folks!

Feel free to share YOUR prejudices!!

AND your top five choices!

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