Marvel is stuck in the mid-90s again
As a child, I feared for my livelihood. Marvel Comics, the only thing I had to live for as a lad of 10, was going bankrupt. There was talks DC might buy them. There were talks that they’d go under. There were talks talks talks.
Then they just axed a bunch of titles and resorted themselves and came back.
The problem was too many titles, too many gimmicks, too many crossovers and not enough new series that actually sustained themselves with an audience.
Well, with the seeming barrage of all of these things, it shows Marvel never learns. The April solicits just confirm that. Read on …
FANTASTIC FORCE #1
Written by JOE AHEARNE
Pencils by STEVE KURTH
Cover by BRYAN HITCHFROM THE PAGES OF FANTASTIC FOUR: The Hooded Man! Lightwave! Banner! Natalie X! Psionics! Alex Ultron! They’re the last six superhumans from a devastated future! They’ve rescued the remnants of a devastated humanity by relocating them to an artificial planet in the present day! Now they face their greatest challenge-to create a better utopian society! But there are vast forces from across the Marvel Universe who will move against them-plus a threat from their own era they thought they’d left behind! Plus, 8 pages of Director’s Cut Extras!
Wow. The failed series featuring a grown up Franklin Richards is back and shittier than ever! Awesome! Oh, and there’s a Wolverinething called “Hooded Man.”
I consulted Doom Fritter on this. Among comments about Wolverine’s hodded jacket, he begged the important question: “The first series only lasted 18 issues. Was there really a demand for this?”
The answer is a resounding no. If I read that Force Works is coming back next, I quit.
Although I agree with your general premise about the worst of the ’90s coming back (see: X-Force, Cable, the return of Stryfe, multiple variant covers), I actually am kind of interested in this Fantastic Force series because of the buildup in Fantastic Four. I think I read somewhere that this also spins out of the Old Man Logan series and Millar’s construction of a particular Marvel Universe future. So for me, this tips more to the “Carefully and lovingly built spinoff” side of the scale than the “Cynical attempt to cash in on as much as possible” side, though the execution could easily upset that balance.
But at least it will cost $3.99
is 3.99 the latest meme?
I’m not TOO surprised, because they brought back the Guardians of the Galaxy, and that was a pretty crappy title in the ’90s, despite my misplaced love for it. That said, the new GotG series is actually rather entertaining, so maybe they’ll do a good job with Fantastic Force?
Even so, at least the Guardians built and lost a significant fan-base over a 60+ issue run.
I still can’t believe that Wolverine is in yet another title. Hey, remember when Wolverine put on an eyepatch and called himself Patch? What is it with this guy and horrible disguises and equally horrible noms de plume that happen to match his disguise du jour? “Hey look, that guy in the bell-bottoms and suspenders looks a lot like Wolverine. But if he was Wolverine, why would he call himself Ol’ Spender-Bottoms?”
Oh man, that is a blog post in the making. Is there any other character who has taken on at least two alternate identities based on wardrobe descriptions?
Cyclops took on the Eric the Red identity at some point. There was also his time travel body switch thing Slym when he got sent to the future to raise Cable, and in Earth X, there was Mr. S, which was basically a balding Cyclops in a suit.
Kitty Pryde never had distinct identities, but she had a number of crappy costume and name changes, including Ariel, Sprite and Shadowcat. The last one was the only one that stuck.
But let’s give credit where credit is due and give a big RIP NEVER FORGET to Ol’ Dirty Bastard, a.k.a. Big Baby Jesus, Osirus, Dirt McGirt, etc. Wu-Tang Clan is truly nuthin ta’ fuck with.
Right, but the significant thing about Wolverine, at least compared to Cyclops and Kitty, is that Wolverine’s alternate identities are named after his wardrobe accessories — eyepatch-wearing Patch and hooded Hooded Man.