I'd say it ain't so, but, alas, it is. Marvel is outsourcing their
characters. Who's going where keeps changing, but Extreme (Rob Liefeld),
Wildstorm (Jim Lee), and Topps (Jim Salicrup) have been rumored to be
seeking some of the characters. I'll try to keep ya'll up-to-date.

95 responses total.

Tenative info:

Fantastic Four, Avengers, Captain America, and Thor are going to Extreme/
Wildstorm. Hulk will likely be cancelled should this happen. Marvel 
considered shipping the Spidey titles to Topps (once upon a time, Jim
Salicrup was the editor of the Spidey line, and the comics were *readable*
then), but it seems they won't after all.

Nothing has been confirmed as final, yet.

<robh's jaw hits the floor>

I would never have expected this.  I mean, I knew Marvel was in
trouble, but selling of the characters?

It's not so much that Marvel is in trouble. The company is still making
a profit, but, as stock prices are falling, the profit isn't enough.

Are you aware of the reputation of the person who holds most of Marvel's
stock as a corporate raider? Buy a healthy company, leave it a husk.

The press conference was Thursday...

Details, you say? I'll give you details...

Wildstorm gets Iron Man and Fantastic Four. Extreme gets Captain America
and the Avengers. Both Jim Lee and Rob Leifeld agree to pencil the first
six issues they do of one of the two titles they get. It's expected to
be the Fantastic Four and Captain America, respectively. Thor is
cancelled, but Hulk *isn't*. Apprently a "Hulk SMASH" version of the
Hulk will appear in the Image books, but Marvel will continue to publish
Peter David's version of the character.

Bob Harras, Marvel's new EIC, hinted at more deals like this coming up
in the next few months.

(I also have a press release relating to the Marvel/DC titles to
be released after Marvel vs. DC #3, but I have to find it. :) )

I assume Marvel is holding onto its Mutant titles like grim death?

Also, what is the status of the Nickelodeon cartoons (i.e. Ren and Stimpy)
with regards to comic book licensing?

I don't think that Marvel is going to give up its cash cows
anytime soon. That would include the X-Men and Spiderman titles 
as those are featured weekly on Saturday morning and also sell 
incredible amounts of toys. I'd bet it'd also include such licensed
properties as Barbie, Ren & Stimpy, and the Disney license.

   Well, this is new and bizarre.  Marvel is making money, yet it's
being literally raided?
   What is Wildstorm?  I'm really out of the comic scene at the
moment.

Wildstorm is the company run by Jim Lee. His first comic story was
the second half of a Solo Avengers book. I forget if it's #1 or
#2. Lee really began to blossom under the tutelage of Carl Potts
while working on the first issues of the Punisher's War Journal
title, eventually handling all the art chores himself. He broke
out after being put on the regular X-Men title. At one point, his
X-Men #1 (new series) was the best-selling American comic in
modern times (post-_Seduction Of The Innocent_).

I forget the year, but seven of Marvel's most popular artists, Lee
being one of them, left the company to begin their own company, Image,
which has risen to take the #3 spot among American comic publishers
and has changed the entire industry, shifting it from the "Big Two"
scenario that existed previously.

New info:

Chuck Dixon has agreed to write the Image issues of Captain America. As
I announced earlier, Liefeld will draw the first six issues, after which
Dixon assumes "complete control."

While Jim Lee will draw the first six issues of Fantastic Four, a surprise
artist will be drawing Iron Man. Whilce Portacio, who gained fame on such
titles as Punisher and X-Men before leaving to form Image will return to
comics to draw the Iron Man series.

   Can someone come up with a list of who owns what, now?
Or point me to something that explains it all?

wish I could, but everything's a mess. If I find something, I'll
post it.

i don't think any characters are owned by different companies now. They were
just using image's creative teams on Marvel books.

Okay, Extreme and Wildstorm (or Image) are not putting out these books, They
will still be owned and published by Marvel. Jim Lee and Rob Liefield will
go on these book as creative directors. They'll deside who will write and draw
the book as well as the story plot outline (in total there are four Image
founders going back with Wilce Portacio and Jim Valineto working on the
project). These books are going to be the outcome of the Onslaut crossover
where the characters will go into another demension and forget who they are
(or something like that). Each of the books will start with #1. After the 12
issues, the books creative control will return to Marvel. Also, there will
be severial Image Marvel Crossovers including Spider-Man/Backlash,
Spider-Man/Badrock, Wolverine/Deathblow, Wolverine/Badrock, Cable/Prophet,
X-Force/Youngblood, and maybe Gen 13/Generation X.
As for my opinion on this, I don't like it. Have they forgotten why they left
in the first place?

*Dixon is out, Loeb is in!  X-Force writer Jeph Loeb has replaced Chuck Dixon
on Rob Liefeld's Captain America.  More info to come.

two things:
There will be two Hulks and two Thors. As said before, the dumb green Hulk
will be a part of the "Heroes Reborn"while the normal Hulk that you've been
reading will be written by Peter David. Thor will also be apart of the "Heroes
Reborn", but there will be also a Tales of Asguard book coming out soon.
   To add to the crossover list... Some time in 97 Jim Lee's WildCATs will
be teaming up with X-men in a four issue mini-series. Scott Lobdell will most
likely write the story and Marvel and WildStorm will each produce two of the
books to the crossover. There will also be a Gen 13/Generation X crossover
too (but even less details are known). More to come, of course.

i heard about a Star Trek/X-Men crossover.. that would suck.

Jim Valineto has filled a lawsuit against Rob Liefield... so most likely he
wouldn't be writing Avengers after all. Lets see if Rob can get this book out
on time, or else Marvel will kick him out so fast his butt will leave scid
marks. (notice how I like to make fun of Rob?)

   A fax came in from Marvel that said Jim Valentino's departure from the
writting chores on Avengers should have no impact on the book coming out on
schedule. No info yet on who is replacing him.

I still don't have any compfermation other then the e-mail I got that says
if Rob is still at Marvel or not. What issue are we at on Captain America and
Avengers?

i think the #3's are out..

according to my e-mail I got, It said that Rob's last issue was going to be
issue #3... So was the e-mail a fake? (I hope not!)

i wouldn't mind at all if Liefield got kicked off the Heroes Reborn books..
He sucks.

Amen!

I guess not, Marvel anonced that Heroes Reborn will have their first
crossover in issue #6 of each book and Rob was in their plans. The focus of
the crossover is Ironman joining the Avengers and Cable discovering this new
universe. Yes Cable will crossover to Heroes Reborn. Sad isn't it?

Cable is another of Liefield's lame creations...
not surprising he's gonna go to Heroes Reborn..
i wish i didn't have to wait a year for them to come back to our timeline
again...

well they could, they don't really like Rob, but Jim Lee is there to stay.
Even with that Jim Lee is affully busy. Rob has pitched a Mutain Reborn idea
to Marvel who likes it. Expect to see a new New Mutians.

Mutants Reborn".. gee.. where did Rob get that title from..
it looks... familiar.. hmm.. 

More news... There are lots of rumors out there that the Heroes Reborn
characters will return to the Marvel Universe later this year; no confirmation
yet that this will occur, but several insiders at both companies have said
that there is a proposed plan to bring the heroes back to the Marvel Universe
in a storyline that would center around the X-Men. Extreme Studios announces
that Stephen Platt will supply the art for Captain America #s 8-10. The
Loeb-Platt three-part story arc will be set in WWII, and will team Captain
America and Nick Fury & the Howling Commandos, who thwart a Nazi plot
involving a mysterious alien landing...

a storyline centered around the X-Men.. are there any other kinds?
(rhetorical question)

<dave laughs his head off> hahahahahahahahah!

I heard today that Marvel plans to make an animated Secret Wars. Any truth
to this? This sounds like a logistical nightmare to me. Of course, they
could follow it with Secret Wars II or The Beyonder gets potty training.
(I kid you not. Peter Parker taught the Beyonder how to use a bathroom.)

UGH

news to me...

I wouldn't mind a Secret Wars animated show. It would be great (only if they
follow the actual story insted of fucking it up like their other cartoons).
Secret Wars was the first real comic I read. It was perfect because you didn't
have to buy any other comic to get the story and if you read one title (like
Avengers) you don't have to read Secret Wars to figure out what happened. It
was a great story. Although, I hope they make anything out of Secret War 2.
That series was so terribly bad. If Marvel does make a Secret Wars animated
they should get Mike Zeck to do the designs.

Look for Industrial Revolution, the crossover storyline running through the
Heroes Reborn titles in February, to pave the way for a gradual reuniting of
the HR pocket universe and the Marvel Universe...

does this mean the Liefield nightmare is over and all the titles that were
starting to gain a following before this crap happened will return to
something resembling what they were before? or will ALL the Marvel books start
resembling those wonderful/clone Image characters?

okay, I'm 79% that something will happen (weither it is that they will go back
to normal or go to another universe with another creator) but Rob and Jim are
out of there at issue #12.  I also know that Galatus ends it in every #12.

YE GODS!!
good. it will end. this pleases me. but if they don't return..

hey does anyone know when the Transformers are a gonna cross over with
anybody?

- Backtalk version 1.3.30 - Copyright 1996-2006, Jan Wolter and Steve Weiss