Comments on: Alternate Current: Sometimes Disparate Is Good!

By: Mike Haseloff

Mike Haseloff — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 15:10:17 +0000

I think the great irony of these issues is that once upon a time the identifiers were reversed. Marvel projected the superior notion of reality, while DC’s stories were scattered across references, fictional cities, or even dimensions!

My how things change!

By: Dyfrig

Dyfrig — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 12:22:41 +0000

The problem is that Marvel have constructed several storylines that have to be resolved. Steve Rogers can stay dead and Peter Parker divorced – they don’t create real problems. But in Civil War, Marvel created a storyline that affects the vast majority of it’s characters. It’s an amazing storyline, but it’s in danger of running down a blind alley. Either the war has to end, and everyone makes up, or the Marvel USA is perpetually stuck in a situation where the heroes are fighting each other.
Now I don’t really have a problem with the heroes fighting each other. The main problem that most comic books have is that writers are far, far, better at creating heroes than villains. Having the heroes go up against each other makes for more interesting stories, because they’re better balanced. But it takes the whole Marvel universe in a new, and darker, direction. It’s a big gamble, and Quesada is not the gambling type. So all of these storylines do need resolving, to bring Marvel back to “normal”.
Maybe I’m stating the obvious, but isn’t this what Secret Invasion is going to be about? A great threat from the outside, forcing Earth’s heroes to remeber why they fight, and put their differences to one side. One of the anti-registration characters plays a pivotal role in destroying the Skrull – probably dying in the process – thus reminding the world that even the antis are heroes. The Reg act gets repealed, and Marvel is back to normal.

By: dlfurman

dlfurman — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 19:18:28 +0000

The problem with Marvel is that is trying to do a cohesive universe that isnt cohesive.

The Marvel StanLeeVerse (yeah I made that up) was not that big (by book numbers). So he could have Thor do a flyby in Spider-Man to say “Hey! This is the Marvel Universe where anything could happen.” The continuity didn’t matter so much because Thor could be flying to/from an adventure in his book or in the Avengers. No explanation was necessary. In fact the reader filled in the blank. If he/she read Spider-Man, Thor and Avengers, then that was really cool. If he/she just read Spider-Man, then the reader could also say “I acknowledge the bigger Marvel Universe, but I’ll stick with Spidey!” No harm, no foul.

When when you grow the product and have LINE editors for an entire range of books and INTRALINE-CROSSOVERS then the company has introduced this element that the readers EXPECT have fit into the rules that the company has provided.

Have separate sandboxes or one big one. But when ya mix them, you have to deal.

By: Spaise

Spaise — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 23:42:01 +0000

yeah, i’m not sure if it really matters that all of the books are tied in. I mean seriously is someone really reading them all. if you rely on your writers to piece all of these little events together you got to rely on your readers to know what’s going on every issue.

i purchase a few stories a year, so what i’m looking for, is a good story. you’re an idiot if you believe in continuity…lets be serious most of our current characters have been rolling for a good 30-50 years; their still the same age, fighting the same people, doing the same stuff.

all you need is your basic character and psyche, what a writer wants to do with that is up to them