Duh. Private Enterprise.

/thread worthless without pics of Jessica Alba as the Invisible Woman
//turning visible
///wink wink nudge nudge

OtherLittleGuy: Jessica Alba as the Invisible Woman

I much prefer her in Sin City. Well...the version that plays in my head, where she's ACTUALLY a stripper, not just a dancer.

simplicimus: Mole Men? I know it's the starter issue, but why not Namor?

Mole Men have, in almost every FF reboot, been the first enemy, just like Kingpin's one of the first for Spidey.

Mugato: I thought they were making a sequel to that. I thought it was great from a technical standpoint anyway.

Last I heard, it was in development hell.

Ouch. You really know how to hurt a guy, subby.

Sadly, they also made Thing PC



"It's sternly-talkin'-to time!"

Mugato: PizzaJedi81: I much prefer her in Sin City. Well...the version that plays in my head, where she's ACTUALLY a stripper, not just a dancer.

That was bullshiat. Most of the rest of the film was faithful to the book down to the panel but Alba wouldn't make with the boobies. It'd be one thing if her performance was decent.

And that is why God created Carla Gugino.

/HE MADE ME WATCH!!!!

So it's important to make sure the story is updated with accurate technological representations while they're being mutated by magical space rays. Got it.

Still no explanation of how Americans were launched into space in 1961.

Mugato: PizzaJedi81: I much prefer her in Sin City. Well...the version that plays in my head, where she's ACTUALLY a stripper, not just a dancer.

That was bullshiat. Most of the rest of the film was faithful to the book down to the panel but Alba wouldn't make with the boobies. It'd be one thing if her performance was decent.


Alba - "Hey, Marv. Who's the babe?"

Rodriguez - "You wanna try that line again, Jessica?"

Alba - "Hey, Marv. Who's the babe?"

Rodriguez - "You wanna try that line again, Jessica?"

Alba - "Hey, Marv. Who's the babe?"

Rodriguez - "Fark it, we're moving on."

/worst line delivery ever

Wendy's Chili: PizzaJedi81: simplicimus: Mole Men? I know it's the starter issue, but why not Namor?

Mole Men have, in almost every FF reboot, been the first enemy, just like Kingpin's one of the first for Spidey.

Kingpin didn't appear until issue #50. He fought the Fantastic Four, Chameleon, Vulture, Tinkerer, Doctor Octopus, Sandman, Lizard, Enforcers, Mysterio, Green Goblin, Kraven, Dardevil, Scorpion, Spider-Slayers, Molten Man, Looter, Rhino, and Shocker (most of them multiple times) before he ever met the Kingpin.

Damn it. Spidey-fail. My bad.

PizzaJedi81: simplicimus: Mole Men? I know it's the starter issue, but why not Namor?

Mole Men have, in almost every FF reboot, been the first enemy, just like Kingpin's one of the first for Spidey.



/obscure?

Kind of seems like a non-story... but hey who can hate Marvel comics?

Check out Avengers Academy by Christos Gage, it is flat out one of the best books on the shelves.

How long will it be before people understand that the average superhero comic is dead?

Mugato: but Alba wouldn't make with the boobies.

And now it's too late and there's newer boobies out there and no one really care any more.

Kurmudgeon: Mugato: but Alba wouldn't make with the boobies.

And now it's too late and there's newer boobies out there and no one really care any more.

The ass is still primo, though.

By the Russians. Duh.

Mugato: OtherLittleGuy: And that is why God created Carla Gugino.

She's hotter anyway, despite being a bit older.

You shoulda seen her 15 years ago in Spin City. Daaaaaaaaaaaaamn.

FirstNationalBastard: whizbangthedirtfarmer: How long will it be before people understand that the average superhero comic is dead?

The problem is, it's what the majority of the industry is based on. This isn't like the late-40s, when comics had plenty of other genres to step in to take the place of Superheroes. DC and Marvel have increasingly thrown their lot in with an ever shrinking group of aging superhero fanboys, neglected to create new, younger customers, and created no new characters to rely on in the case of something bad happening, like losing the rights to Superman. When people finally realize that mainstream superhero comics are shiat, and quit buying, that's the end of at least DC and Marvel as publishers, and the comics industry in its current form.

Of course, that might not be a bad thing.

Nope. Image, IDW, Boom! and so on are the publishers who will take over the marketplace. We see comics that are longer-lived if they actually reflect the intelligence of their readers (take the superhero "OH HE'S DEAD! BUY THE ISSUE!/HE'S BACK! BUY THE ISSUE!" stuff that happens every week, it seems) starting to hold their position for longer runs. Marvel and DC have moved more toward the entertainment spectrum. Yeah, they have the comics, but they are essentially a hollow marketing tool for films and toys.

With this:

Maybe Ben Grimm will take Viagra & impale Alicia Masters through the drywall.

FirstNationalBastard: whizbangthedirtfarmer: FirstNationalBastard: whizbangthedirtfarmer: How long will it be before people understand that the average superhero comic is dead?

The problem is, it's what the majority of the industry is based on. This isn't like the late-40s, when comics had plenty of other genres to step in to take the place of Superheroes. DC and Marvel have increasingly thrown their lot in with an ever shrinking group of aging superhero fanboys, neglected to create new, younger customers, and created no new characters to rely on in the case of something bad happening, like losing the rights to Superman. When people finally realize that mainstream superhero comics are shiat, and quit buying, that's the end of at least DC and Marvel as publishers, and the comics industry in its current form.

Of course, that might not be a bad thing.

Nope. Image, IDW, Boom! and so on are the publishers who will take over the marketplace. We see comics that are longer-lived if they actually reflect the intelligence of their readers (take the superhero "OH HE'S DEAD! BUY THE ISSUE!/HE'S BACK! BUY THE ISSUE!" stuff that happens every week, it seems) starting to hold their position for longer runs. Marvel and DC have moved more toward the entertainment spectrum. Yeah, they have the comics, but they are essentially a hollow marketing tool for films and toys.


That's exactly what I meant when I said "end of the comics industry in its current form".

The end of mainstream DC and Marvel would be great for creativity. The problem would be would people start buying new comics that don't star the same old stale characters they were reading about when they were 12?

For the most part, the current fanbase will not take a chance on anything new. Of course, I guess it would be up to the survivors to finally create that new Audience DC and Marvel never cared about.

Well, DC and Marvel, over the past few years, have really tried to go after the kiddie base to keep their products accessible. Superhero Squad, the Brave and the Bold, Imaginext figures, and so on, are all geared to ensure that superhero comics will continue to maintain some visibility on the shelves, which, in turn, will give added incentive to market a property as "hot" and bring in the big bucks in terms of other media deals.

whizbangthedirtfarmer: FirstNationalBastard: whizbangthedirtfarmer: FirstNationalBastard: whizbangthedirtfarmer: How long will it be before people understand that the average superhero comic is dead?

The problem is, it's what the majority of the industry is based on. This isn't like the late-40s, when comics had plenty of other genres to step in to take the place of Superheroes. DC and Marvel have increasingly thrown their lot in with an ever shrinking group of aging superhero fanboys, neglected to create new, younger customers, and created no new characters to rely on in the case of something bad happening, like losing the rights to Superman. When people finally realize that mainstream superhero comics are shiat, and quit buying, that's the end of at least DC and Marvel as publishers, and the comics industry in its current form.

Of course, that might not be a bad thing.

Nope. Image, IDW, Boom! and so on are the publishers who will take over the marketplace. We see comics that are longer-lived if they actually reflect the intelligence of their readers (take the superhero "OH HE'S DEAD! BUY THE ISSUE!/HE'S BACK! BUY THE ISSUE!" stuff that happens every week, it seems) starting to hold their position for longer runs. Marvel and DC have moved more toward the entertainment spectrum. Yeah, they have the comics, but they are essentially a hollow marketing tool for films and toys.


That's exactly what I meant when I said "end of the comics industry in its current form".

The end of mainstream DC and Marvel would be great for creativity. The problem would be would people start buying new comics that don't star the same old stale characters they were reading about when they were 12?

For the most part, the current fanbase will not take a chance on anything new. Of course, I guess it would be up to the survivors to finally create that new Audience DC and Marvel never cared about.

Well, DC and Marvel, over the past few years, have really tried to go after the kiddie base to keep their pro ...



The problem I see with the big two is basically one of marketing and the idiotic idea to go to 'exclusive' deals with companies. I mean, it's right there in the word 'exclusive.' You are excluding part of your audience.

How many more paper comics would they sell if they put a comic rack right next to the Thor and Captain American costumes in Walmart? How many more issues of Green Lantern and Batman would sell if they had a rack right next to the action figures? You go buy a toy for your kid, he sees the comic book and you pick it up for him. Let's go home and read about the cool adventures Cap has in this latest issue.

Traditional capes and cowls superheros are NOT dying off. They're just changing mediums, but if the big two want to keep publishing those weekly and monthly adventures, they're going to have to change their marketing strategies and drag out into the street and shoot the dumbfarks who told them 'exclusivity' was the way to go.

Why can't it be set in the 50/60s? Why does it have to be modernized?

This seems familiar...
...until they muck everything up in the most asinine way possible and let Jeph Loeb in the building.

Trocadero: [www.nexternal.com image 300x459]
This seems familiar...
...until they muck everything up in the most asinine way possible and let Jeph Loeb in the building.

Shhh, they might hear you!

simplicimus: Trocadero: [www.nexternal.com image 300x459]
This seems familiar...
...until they muck everything up in the most asinine way possible and let Jeph Loeb in the building.

OK, who's the fifth character?

Crystal (Unless it's Krystal) of the Inhumans.

Dark Horse is offering Hellboy Volume 1 for free through their app. I found this a day or two after I bought it. Not pleased.

I just got all the major companies' apps. DC's is the best.

Gunny Highway: Dark Horse is offering Hellboy Volume 1 for free through their app. I found this a day or two after I bought it. Not pleased.

I just got all the major companies' apps. DC's is the best.

Eh, I'd rather buy them from my local shop.

PizzaJedi81: Gunny Highway: Dark Horse is offering Hellboy Volume 1 for free through their app. I found this a day or two after I bought it. Not pleased.

I just got all the major companies' apps. DC's is the best.

Eh, I'd rather buy them from my local shop.

They get a lot of my money as is.

lakrfool: Maybe Ben Grimm will take Viagra & impale Alicia Masters through the drywall.

...at least she never saw him it coming.

I guess another earth will be used for the mainstream Marvel universe? It used to be that the Thing before he was the Thing was Captain America's friend during WW2, this was said back in the 70's. Ben Grim fought along side CA. Then in the 90's he didn't and they said that was an alternate earth and the Marvel universe changed after the Spiderman clone saga. I guess it changed again to go along with DC's new 52.

JohnnyAqua: I guess another earth will be used for the mainstream Marvel universe? It used to be that the Thing before he was the Thing was Captain America's friend during WW2, this was said back in the 70's. Ben Grim fought along side CA. Then in the 90's he didn't and they said that was an alternate earth and the Marvel universe changed after the Spiderman clone saga. I guess it changed again to go along with DC's new 52.

You're thinking of The Torch, not Thing. There was a Torch in WW2 that fought alongside Cap, but he was an android. The Fantastic Four weren't created until 1961....about 15 years after Cap and the original Torch had their adventures. I'm not quite sure what you're talking about when you say the universe has changed after Spidey's clone saga. All the main marvel comics, all your spiders and x-people and gods and Avengers have always been in the same universe.

A few years ago, they did come up with the Ultimate Universe, where you get Ultimate Spiderman and UItimate Xmen and the like. They are and have always been completely separate from the main lines.

DC's new 52 reboot has only been going on since September, so they're at best, 6 issues into the new lines. Some of them have been really good, some suck and some are decent. Just like with any offering.

But back to your original statement, the main Marvel Universe (616, if you will) hasn't ever had a line-wide reboot. Some of the guys have been retconned, but it's usually not by a lot. Unless you're talking Spidey's "One More Day" which was almost universally hated.

The Marvel Universe (and the DC Universe, too) work on a "sliding" continuity scale. They started officially doing this about 10 years ago or so.

Basically, in comic books, every hero had their "origin" story roughly ten years ago. So in 2012, Spider-Man became Spider-Man in 2002. Superman became Superman in 2002.

It's not a hard-and-fast rule that resets every year, though. It's just a guideline. They HAVE to do it this way, because no other way works. And really, who gives a shiat about continuity? Seriously. Continuity is a pointless exercise that slowly wrecks everything in comic books, and should generally be ignored, in the long-term.

FirstNationalBastard: Raug the Dwarf: JohnnyAqua: I guess another earth will be used for the mainstream Marvel universe? It used to be that the Thing before he was the Thing was Captain America's friend during WW2, this was said back in the 70's. Ben Grim fought along side CA. Then in the 90's he didn't and they said that was an alternate earth and the Marvel universe changed after the Spiderman clone saga. I guess it changed again to go along with DC's new 52.

You're thinking of The Torch, not Thing. There was a Torch in WW2 that fought alongside Cap, but he was an android. The Fantastic Four weren't created until 1961....about 15 years after Cap and the original Torch had their adventures. I'm not quite sure what you're talking about when you say the universe has changed after Spidey's clone saga. All the main marvel comics, all your spiders and x-people and gods and Avengers have always been in the same universe.
.

No, Ben Grimm and Reed Richard originally served in WW2.

As the timeline moved further away from the 1960s, that was retconned out.

I guess that makes sense. They weren't Mr. Fantastic and the Thing at that time though, were they?

texdent: realmolo: The Marvel Universe (and the DC Universe, too) work on a "sliding" continuity scale. They started officially doing this about 10 years ago or so.

Basically, in comic books, every hero had their "origin" story roughly ten years ago. So in 2012, Spider-Man became Spider-Man in 2002. Superman became Superman in 2002.

It's not a hard-and-fast rule that resets every year, though. It's just a guideline. They HAVE to do it this way, because no other way works. And really, who gives a shiat about continuity? Seriously. Continuity is a pointless exercise that slowly wrecks everything in comic books, and should generally be ignored, in the long-term.

Came here to say this. As the years go by, they have to keep pushing origin stories forward.

Exception:

Captain America, Wolverine, Nick Fury, the original Human Torch, Namor, the rest of the Invaders, the Black Widow, Bucky/Winter Soldier, and a few other characters are thus far still able to trace their history to World War II or earlier.

Everyone else-- The FF, the Avengers, Spider-Man, the X-Men, Defenders, Champions, etc. are from the Age of Heroes which began 10-20 years ago in Marvel's sliding timeline.

I do wish they'd avoid mentioning actual years, or referring to dated things like Twitter or Facebook, or the name of the current President or certain celebrities.

Does anyone really ever read FF? I understand it's still around just by virtue of being one of the oldest Marvel titles, but I never see anyone ever *read* this. I've always found it dull and dry compared to pretty much every other Marvel property. It's a stagnant idiom that never changes. Asshole scientist, woman who stays with him for no reason, jerkwad guy on fire who never grows up - ever, and giant misshapen rock thing who's too dumb to ever ask if the scientist is so damned smart why is he a miserable rockman still? Throw in a kid who's a dues ex machina just so the writer never has to actually write and who read this?

Keep the interesting side characters like Namor and have the Thing go on a rampage, leveling the tower, bringing it all down on top of them. :P

moothemagiccow: Terrible Old Man: Does anyone really ever read FF? I understand it's still around just by virtue of being one of the oldest Marvel titles, but I never see anyone ever *read* this. I've always found it dull and dry compared to pretty much every other Marvel property. It's a stagnant idiom that never changes. Asshole scientist, woman who stays with him for no reason, jerkwad guy on fire who never grows up - ever, and giant misshapen rock thing who's too dumb to ever ask if the scientist is so damned smart why is he a miserable rockman still? Throw in a kid who's a dues ex machina just so the writer never has to actually write and who read this?

Keep the interesting side characters like Namor and have the Thing go on a rampage, leveling the tower, bringing it all down on top of them. :P

WOTTA REVOLTIN DEVELOPMENT THIS IS

//from the twelve or so issues of FF I've read, Doom is the only reason to open the book

Well, that dynamic is a bit off these days. There's no Johnny (Still dead-ish), and Spider-Man is there in his place. There's also a whole pack of kids; Not just Franklin, but his super-intelligent sister and a bunch of "classmates" who are watched over by Dragonman (an android that looks like a purple dragon-man).

On top of that, Reed is always in another universe, Sue is MUCH more powerful these days (she's one of the more powerful characters in Marvel, actually), and the Thing is an Avenger, along with Spider-Man.

So it's not quite the same boring story you may have read 10 years ago. It has changed a bit over the years.

Nihilist's Guide to Reticent Entropy: moothemagiccow: Terrible Old Man: Does anyone really ever read FF? I understand it's still around just by virtue of being one of the oldest Marvel titles, but I never see anyone ever *read* this. I've always found it dull and dry compared to pretty much every other Marvel property. It's a stagnant idiom that never changes. Asshole scientist, woman who stays with him for no reason, jerkwad guy on fire who never grows up - ever, and giant misshapen rock thing who's too dumb to ever ask if the scientist is so damned smart why is he a miserable rockman still? Throw in a kid who's a dues ex machina just so the writer never has to actually write and who read this?

Keep the interesting side characters like Namor and have the Thing go on a rampage, leveling the tower, bringing it all down on top of them. :P

WOTTA REVOLTIN DEVELOPMENT THIS IS

//from the twelve or so issues of FF I've read, Doom is the only reason to open the book

Well, that dynamic is a bit off these days. There's no Johnny (Still dead-ish), and Spider-Man is there in his place. There's also a whole pack of kids; Not just Franklin, but his super-intelligent sister and a bunch of "classmates" who are watched over by Dragonman (an android that looks like a purple dragon-man).

On top of that, Reed is always in another universe, Sue is MUCH more powerful these days (she's one of the more powerful characters in Marvel, actually), and the Thing is an Avenger, along with Spider-Man.

So it's not quite the same boring story you may have read 10 years ago. It has changed a bit over the years.

Actually the big recent storyline was Johnny Storm's Presumed death/disappearance and the restructuring of the FF. Its actually quite a bit different now. Spider-Man filling in for him while he was gone. Havent read the last few issues so I am not sure how much back to normal now, but there are actually two titles now. Fantastic Four as well as "the Future Foundation" with a number of other characters.

Actually FF has been pretty good lately. The writer on it is quite skilled.

carrion_luggage: Sadly, they also made Thing PC

[superherouniverse.com image 640x480]

"It's sternly-talkin'-to time!"

What was the back story of Johny Storm being replaced by a robot in that horrible cartoon?

FirstNationalBastard: RepoManTSM: carrion_luggage: Sadly, they also made Thing PC

[superherouniverse.com image 640x480]

"It's sternly-talkin'-to time!"

What was the back story of Johny Storm being replaced by a robot in that horrible cartoon?

There are two stories out there.

One is that the producers didn't want kids to set themselves on fire emulating the Human Torch.

The other is that the Torch was optioned out to another studio for his own solo story, and couldn't be used in the cartoon. So, they created H.E.R.B.I.E. instead.

Johnny Storm was replaced because they thought kids were going to try and set themselves on fire, that was the story I heard back in the day and a few years back in a Wizard issue. They wanted Spiderman but he was optioned to another studio. When they did Spiderman and his Amazing friends, they wanted the Human Torch but could not get him because he was optioned to another studio. They created Firestar for that reason. So it worked in reverse.

Disapproves.