5555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555 5 5 5 Ed Dukeshire and Mike Imboden Present 5 5 THE FIFTH ANNIVERSARY EDITION OF: 5 5 5 5 THE COMIC BOOK NET ELECTRONIC MAGAZINE ISSUE NUMBER 253 5 5 2/25/2000 5 5 Edited by: David LeBlanc - ComicBkNet@aol.com 5 5 5 5 FREE VIA EMAIL SINCE FEBRUARY 1995 5 5555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555555 ______________________________________________________________________ T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] On the Net ............................ David LeBlanc [2] Letters to the Editor ................. Your Page! [3] TRIVIA CONTEST ........................ Win *real* prizes! [4] Network Buzz .......................... News, gossip & rumors [5] Ramblings 2000 ........................ Rich Johnston [6] Interview: John Ostrander ............. Tim O'Shea [7] Hey Kids, Comics! ..................... Steve Bennett [8] Had Your Phil ......................... Phil White [9] M.O.E. Reviews ........................ Paul Dale Roberts [10] My View: ZZZ .......................... David LeBlanc [11] Top 100 Comics for February ........... Diamond Distributors [12] New Comic Book Releases List .......... Charles LePage [13] HYPE! Section ......................... Various [A] Submission, Back Issues, Copyrights ______________________________________________________________________ World Wide Web Home Page-->> http://members.aol.com/ComicBkNet Mailed by ONElist: http://www.onelist.com/community/ComicBookNetworkEmag HTML WEB EDITION at -->> http://www.digitalwebbing.com/cbem featuring a week's worth of the online strip: Steve Conley's ASTOUNDING SPACE THRILLS ----------------------------------------------------------------------- o \o/ _ o _| \ / |_ o_ \o/ o /|\ | /\ _\o \o | o/ O/_ /\ | /|\ / \ / \ |\ /) | ( \ /o\ / ) | (\ / | / \ / \ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- The ComicBook Network was founded by Ed Dukeshire and Mike Imboden ----------------------------------------------------------------------- If you wish to receive each issue automatically through your Email account, FREE, please send amessage FROM that account TO: ComicBookNetworkEmag-subscribe@onelist.com To UNSUBSCRIBE send a message FROM the account to be dropped to: ComicBookNetworkEmag-unsubscribe@onelist.com See section [A] for the address to mail material to be reviewed. ______________________________________________________________________ All text contained within is copyrighted to the originating author(s). Except where elsewhere noted, The Comic Book Net Electronic Magazine is Copyright 2000 by The ComicBook Network. You may freely distribute or retransmit this file intact without alteration for noncommercial purposes only. Except for personal archiving, permission must be obtained from the individual authors to reproduce, retransmit, or publish any part of this magazine. ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [1] On the Net David LeBlanc Five years! WOW! Considering the other comic related E-zines that have tried to do what we do it is a major accomplishment. None of them were weekly, some of them even solicited ads to raise money, and of those still going I believe we are the longest running, direct to Email, dedicated to all comic books Emag. Over the last five years we have brought you the news, reviews, interviews and other stuff that have made this one of the most exciting times in the history of comics. We at CBEM central have enjoyed it and look for many more years of the same. Before we forget, we need to remind you to vote for the COMIC BOOK NET ELECTRONIC MAGAZINE (this Emag) as Favorite E-Zine in the 1999 Comics International EAGLE AWARDS. You will find the link on our home page on AOL and Digital Webbing or just copy and paste this address to your browser: http://www.comics-international.com/eagleawards/eagleawards.html The list of nominees is in our last issue, still available on our back issues page. Now here are some highlights of the last five years: 2/27/95 - 1st issue edited by Ed Dukeshire, includes reviews by David LeBlanc and Chris Orr. 3/2/95 - 3rd issue; we advertise our first internet Email address for feedback -> ComicBkNet@aol.com 5/15/95 - Issue #9 - we advertise for Email subscriptions. Emag being posted to files sections on BBS networks, AOL, Genie and Compuserve. 7/10/95 - Issue #17 - Ryan Brewster takes over the mailing list maintenance. 8/7/95 - Issue#21 - 1st web page set up at www.chris.com 8/13/95 - Issue 22 - Ryan Brewster becomes new Editor 8/20/95 - Bobb Waller begins column of new comics shipping. 10/1/95 - Issue #29 - "OUT OF AFRICA" begins - column from South Africa 1/21/96 - Issue #45 - Ryan's last issue, begins his own Emag 2/19/96 - Issue #46 - after nearly a month hiatus, the Emag becomes THE COMIC BOOK NET ELECTRONIC MAGAZINE with David LeBlanc as the new editor. Web page moves to its current home at http://members.aol.com/ComicBkNet. Subscribers number about 200 2/24/96 - Issue #47 - 1st anniversary, 3/1/97 - First Trivia contest in memory of Seaborn Adamson - now the longest running feature of the Emag 3/15/96 - 50th Issue - Letter from 'NUFF SAID indicates we are being plugged on the radio 3/22/96 - Issue #51 - RECOMMENDED READING column begins written by Joe Torres (COPYBOOK TALES, SIREN) 4/1/96 - First SPECIAL EDITION - April Fools issue. 8/30/96 - Issue #74 - The NCRL becomes a regular feature making Chuck Lepage the longest continuous contributor to the Emag to date beside the editor. 9/6/96 - Issue #75 - divisible by 25 Variant cover issue. 1/10/97 - Issue # 93 - TIPS OF THE TRADE column begins by Larry Underwood (VOLUNTEER COMICS) 1/31/97 - Issue #96 - The Comics Newswire by Mike Doran begins 2/28/97 - 100TH Issue - 2nd Anniversary, Newswire changes its name to NEWSARAMA. 3/21/97 - Issue #103 - Robert Beerbohm writes in about the `73 Berkley Con. 4/4/97 - Issue #105 - Beerbohm begins his COMICS REALITY series 5/9/97 - Issue #110 - Review of ALTER EGO reprint, granddaddy of the fanzines. 7/4/97 - Issue #118 - NEWSARAMA moves to exclusive deal on MANIA 8/8/97 - Issue #123 - MINI-COMICS review column begins by John E. Thompson (ACTION COP) 9/19/97 - Issue #129 - Interview with Chuck Rozanski on his bid for Marvel. 11/28/97 - Issue #139 - QUOTE OF THE WEEK contest begins sponsored by ACCLAIM reps Lou Novacheck and Jess McCann 1/2/98 - Issue #144 - Online interactive HTML version begins on DIGITAL WEBBING 2/13/98 - 150TH ISSUE - Interview with former CBEM contributor Chris Orr, new head of Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. 1/1/99 - Issue #195 - Subscribers now number 1135 plus several hundred hits per week on web editions. 2/26/99 - 4th Anniversary, Interview with Jimmy Robinson, MGM loses Spider-Man movie rights. 3/19/99 - Lee Falk (THE PHANTOM) dies. 4/2/99 - Marvel gets $60 Million loan 4/16/99 - INNOCENT BYSTANDER (CBEM's Gary Sassaman) joins 3 GEEKS in new anthology comic. 4/23/99 - Interview with the Editor - David LeBlanc, John Broome dies 5/7/99 - Comic Book Museum closes doors, FIRST female CBEM columnist Jennifer M. Contino begins "Stranger in a Strange Land" 7/03/99 - Jim Shooter returning to ACCLAIM/VALIANT 8/27/99 - Issue #228 - largest ever! Valentino takes over Image Central 9/03/99 - SPAWN animated wins second Emmy, Siegel heirs reclaim their half of SUPERMAN rights! 9/17/99 - Wizard comic line announced 9/24/99 - Claremont to return to X-MEN 10/15/99 - HARSH REALM creators sue TV's Chris Carter 10/29/99 - Griep named CEO of NextPlanetOver.com 11/26/99 - GORILLA COMICS announces lineup 12/03/99 - INTERVIEW: Walt Simonson 12/10/99 - Joe Simon may reclaim CAPTAIN AMERICA rights 12/24/99 - CROSSGEN COMICS announces lineup 12/31/99 - INTERVIEW: Tom Brevoort, Tony Isabella's last column for CBEM 1/7/2000 - Don Martin dies 1/14/00 - AOL buys TIME WARNER/DC 2/14/00 - Gil Kane dies 2/18/00 - CBEM nominated for EAGLE AWARD, Interview; Trina Robbins. Subscribers are now more than 1250 2/23/00 - These comics arrived at your local store: ABSTRACT STUDIOS Strangers In Paradise Vol III #30, 2.75 ACCLAIM COMICS Unity 2000 #2 (Of 6), 2.50 <---Pick of the Week! BEHEMOTH BOOKS Brainbomb SC, 19.95 DC COMICS Authority #12, 2.50 Flash #159, 1.99 Flinch #11, 2.50 Top Ten #7, 2.95 Weird War Tales Special #1, 4.95 WIZARD ENTERTAINMENT Gatecrasher #2 (Of 4), 2.50 Anybody see "Everyone Loves Raymond"? A great send up of the Pokemon card craze and a plug for Little Lotta comics. The scene in the comic store is hilarious! David LeBlanc - ComicBkNet@aol.com Editor The Comic Book Net Electronic Magazine ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [2] Letters to the Editor If you want to comment on this or any previous issue, want to offer something for us to publish, or just want to shamelessly suck up to the editor to try and get your name in print send Email to: ComicBkNet@aol.com Note: Letters of comment may be used in future issues of CBEM unless you specifically request us NOT to use them. Your Email address and/or name will be withheld upon request. +++++ Subj: Comic Book Network Date: 2/24/00 4:52:01 PM Eastern Standard Time From: factsondemand@aol.com (Facts on Demand Press) This e-mail is "official notification" that your web site -- Comic Book Network -- is now mentioned "in print!" That's right, your web site is mentioned in The Incredible Internet Guide to Comic Books & Superheroes! Our 420-page book mentions your site along with 1900 "choice" comic book and superhero-related sites, cross-references them in any of 140+ categories along with sample screen captures, descriptions, and easy to spot icons! Plus, as an added bonus, the book includes over 1300 character and team appearance chronologies so that comic fans can organize their collections and find out what order to read the issues in their collection! To download your award graphic and find out more about the book, go to http://www.incredibleguides.com/special/comics Congratulations, Facts on Demand Press PS The Incredible Internet Guide to Comic Books & Superheroes is available in bookstores nationwide. Plus, our web site offers the book at THE lowest price available online -- save over 25%! http://www.incredibleguides.com/special/comics ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [3] [TRIVIA CONTEST] **THE FIRST PLACE TO FIND THE EMAG EACH WEEK IS ON OUR HOME PAGE!** IF YOU ARE DESPERATE TO WIN THE TRIVIA, GO THERE FIRST ON FRIDAY NIGHT http://members.aol.com/ComicBkNet/emag.htm QUESTION OF THE WEEK Prizes donated by Discount Comic Book Service at www.dcbservice.com where you can order most DC, Marvel, Image, and Dark Horse comics, statues and retail products for 35% off. +Submit your own trivia and win the CHEEZY PRIZE(tm) if you can stump+ +the readers! You MUST submit the correct answer with your question.+ LAST ISSUE'S QUESTION OF THE WEEK: From: Josep Calduch If you wrote "E-MAIL" on your envelope in the 1980's, you were writing to the letter section of which comic book series? A: "E-MAIL" was the letter section of "E-MAN" (First comics) Sean Sullivan, this week's winner, receives Superman: They Saved Luthor's Brain! Trade Paperback from our sponsor +++++++++++++++++++++++++++ THIS WEEK'S TRIVIA QUESTION: In honor of our FIFTH anniversary, THAT'S ENTERTAINMENT of Worcester Massachusetts has generously donated a copy of the hardcover collection of issues 9-12 of XENOZOIC TALES titled TIME IN OVERDRIVE, signed by Mark Schultz. Here is the question: Which industry award did Mark win for XENOZOIC TALES - 3 out of 4 years in a row? NEXT WEEK: The 4th anniversary edition of the TRIVIA CONTEST! IMPORTANT RULES NOTICE The first correct answer to reach the editor wins the CHEEZY PRIZE(tm). The editor will be the sole judge as to which guess arrived first! Messages with more than one guess will be disqualified. LIMIT: ONE PRIZE PER MONTH PER PERSON! ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [4] Network Buzz News, gossip and rumors from around the industry COMIC-CON INTERNATIONAL TAPS GARY SASSAMAN FOR PROGRAM COORDINATOR POST SAN DIEGO - Comic-Con International (Comic-Con) has hired creator/writer Gary Sassaman as its new head of programming. The primary function of the programming coordinator will be to develop and implement a variety of programs, workshops, and seminars on all aspects of comics and the popular arts. In addition to the annual Comic-Con held each summer, Sassaman will also be responsible for programming of other events under the Comic-Con International banner including: The Alternative Press Expo, Pro/Con, and Comic Book Expo. "We're very happy to have him on board," commented David Glanzer, director of marketing and public relations for the non-profit organization, "he has a great background and we look forward to his involvement in our events." Sassaman has previous experience with Comic-Con as the producer of the multi-media presentations for the Will Eisner Comic Book Industry Awards and the Will Eisner Spirit of Retailing Awards, both of which are also run by Comic-Con. He also maintains the Comic-Con Website. "I started to come to Comic-Con in 1992 and through my visits fell in love with the city of San Diego," said Sassaman. "Because of that I decided to move here in 1998. It's always been a dream of mine to be involved with the Comic-Con, and I'm looking forward to working with the staff and volunteers who spend so much of their time on making Comic-Con's programming the best any convention offers." Besides being a life-long fan, Sassaman's experience in comics includes creating the critically acclaimed comic book series "Innocent Bystander," which now appears in the pages of "Geeksville" on a bi-monthly basis. His experience also includes past programming for conventions as well as a stint in the comics retailing field. In addition to his programming duties, Sassaman will continue his duties as producer of the multi-media programs as well as maintaining the official Comic-Con Website. Comic-Con International will be held on July 20-23 , 2000 at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, CA and is a nonprofit educational corporation dedicated to creating awareness of and appreciation for comics and related popular art forms, primarily through the presentation of conventions and events that celebrate the historic and ongoing contribution of comics to art and culture. For more information on Comic-Con please visit our website at www.comic-con.org. For more information, contact David Glanzer at 619-544-9555 or Gary Sassaman at 619-237-0369. +++++ ACTIONACE.COM LAUNCHES NEOGLYPHIX! Feb. 25th, 2000 Richmond, CA ActionAce.com has added the newest and most innovative site to its network: NeoGlyphix -- at http://www.neoglyphix.com. What exactly is NeoGlyphix? In a sound bite, it is ActionAce.com's cutting edge webisodic action/adventure site. It is the place where denizens of the net can tune into exclusive, interactive anime/comic hybrids, and the only site anyone would need to visit for the full spectrum of digital entertainment. NeoGlyphix's flagship series is a cyber-western entitled VIRTEX And right now, NeoGlyphix's feature is the first part of an origin story which tells of the world that Virtex lives in and, more importantly, the details of his creation. Visit now and enter a contest to win a NeoGlyphix T-shirt. Explore the message boards and interact with Virtex himself in the upcoming live chat. As a companion to the origin story, NeoGlyphix has also created a separate website that serves as the main interface to the law enforcement agency that Virtex works for: the JUSTICE CYCLE BUREAU. This "extranet" site can be accessed at http://www.jcblink.net and is the nexus for all the background information on the JCB, as well as Virtex's world of the MadLands. There is a top-secret CLASSIFIED section that requires a special username and password. You can obtain it by joining the NeoGlyphix mailing list. NeoGlyphix.com, where the future of online entertainment is being forged today! Explore today at: NeoGlyphix http://www.neoglyphix.com JCBLink.net http://www.jcblink.net -- ActionAce.com Beyond Your Wildest Imagination! Toys! Anime! Movies! News! Action! http://www.actionace.com +++++ CROSSGEN COMICS OFFERS MONEY BACK GUARANTEE Readers Can Return Comics Directly to CrossGen for a Money Back Refund Contact: Ian M. Feller 813/891-1702 Ian.Feller@CrossGen.com TAMPA, FL., February 21, 2000 - In a move unprecedented in the comic book industry, CrossGen Comics is putting its money where its comics are. CrossGen is offering readers a chance to receive a money back refund if readers do not feel they received value from the first few CrossGen issues. "CrossGen is creating a brand new universe filled with dynamic heroes, vile villains, and interesting new worlds. Stories to grab readers and pull them in," said Ian M. Feller, Manager Media Relations. "We want readers to give them a try, and not just one issue. Two years of planning have gone into the creation of the detailed framework that makes up the CrossGen Universe. The stories contain depth unlike those any publisher has ever planned before, so it is impossible for readers to base their decisions on reading just one issue. We realize that there are many choices for readers, so we're making it easy for readers to take the challenge," Feller further explained. Details of the offer are as follows: Buy CrossGen Chronicles #1, on-sale May 24, and the first three issues of any one of CrossGen's four monthly titles. That means Mystic #1-3, Sigil #1-3, Scion #1-3, or Meridian #1-3. Read the four issues. If readers do not feel they've received value, they simply package up Chronicles and the three issues, write CrossGen a legible hand-written note explaining why they didn't feel they received value from the issues, and send it all to CrossGen by November 30, 2000. The address they send it to is: CrossGen Money Back Challenge 4023 Tampa Rd. Suite 2400 Oldsmar, FL 34677 Within three weeks readers will receive a check from CrossGen for the full retail price of the four comics. CrossGen will then take the returned comics and donate them to charity. Readers are asked to keep these points in mind when sending for the refund: No photocopies of a letter will be accepted. Illegible letters will not receive a refund. And only one return per person, per family, and per address will be refunded. Emphasized Feller, "CrossGen is confident in the quality of the comics we will be producing. So confident in fact that we are willing to do something never done before in the comic book industry." CrossGeneration Comics is based in Tampa, Florida. Their unique and innovative approach to comic book publishing is sure to make them a company to watch out for well into the next millennium. Look for the beginning of the CrossGen Universe in May 2000. Check them out on the web at www.crossgen.com. +++++ THE COMIC READER to Return in Spring 2000 February 22, 2000, Denver, Colorado - After more than a decade since its last issue, THE COMIC READER makes its return this spring! Once a critically acclaimed magazine by fans and professionals alike, the newest incarnation of TCR will include many of the elements that made the first volume such a hit to begin with. Jerome L. Sinkovec, the magazine's last standing editor/publisher into the early 80's, sent his hopes that THE COMIC READER would again add a positive editorial choice among the medium's current journalistic coverage. Wishing the new publishing team of David Gallaher and Don Lund the best of luck in their endeavor to re-launch the storied publication, Sinkovec added "It was always a great name for a magazine." The first volume of TCR spanned more than a decade with over 200 issues going out to the industry's hard-core fans, who needed more information on their favorite comics. "One of the aspects of THE COMIC READER that was so enjoyable were the monthly comic strips that ran through the magazine by innovative creators such as Gil Kane, Fred Hembeck, Steve Gerber, and Bob Kane - in that tradition - the newest version of THE COMIC READER will contain monthly original strips by celebrated writers and cartoonists alike," said TCR publisher David Gallaher. "We also feel that regular news features and interview contributions by Beau 'COMIC WIRE' Yarbrough of COMIC BOOK RESOURCES adds instant credibility our magazine's freelance editorial staff." Among the creator owned strips will be a genre-bending western titled "HUNTER" by John "BLAZE OF GLORY" Ostrander and Tom "THE KENTS" Mandrake. Of the strip, co-creator John Ostrander noted, the lead character in the story is based on an idea by his late wife, Kim Yale. Jay "TITANS" Faerber teams with Dev "YOUNG HEROES IN LOVE" Madan to unlock a murder mystery story among the pages of TCR. "It will not all be serious stuff," commented Gallaher. "Chris 'DESPERATE TIMES' Eliopoulos will be debuting his new sci-fi/comic fan humor strip, 'VIRTUAL REALITY' and Chris 'BULLPEN BITS' Giarrusso shows off a brand new universe of fun in 'COMIC BITS.'" Rounding off the cast of talented contributors are Erik "SAVAGE DRAGON" Larsen, who will provide the cover of the first issue, while Marvel editor Tom Brevoort takes up the READER's back page and taps into his insights on the medium in a monthly column. Also, in the first issue, Dan "JSA: LIBERTY FILES" Jolley will explain to readers and hopeful future writers about how he broke into the business. "THE COMIC READER's informative articles about the comic medium include interviews and stories that spotlight the medium and the comic reader - in an effort to celebrate the diversity within the art form." Gallaher added. "Contrary to other trade publications, TCR won't have variant covers, prices guides, 'flavor of the month' artists or pretense. Instead, it is our intention to legitimize the art form in a way that is accessible to everyone." The new staff, comprised largely of freelancers and volunteers looked forward to the huge challenges of providing a unique media voice in a community industry. "We have a lot of work to do in order to measure up to the excellent reputation established by previous TCR talents," said Managing Editor, Don Lund. "I remember reading a line from former editor Michael Tiefenbacher who essentially explained that TCR may never have the scoop on other publications, but will always take the time to get the details straight before passing them on to readers. "If we do our job, comic fans will be able to hand our magazine to someone who doesn't understand the tremendous diversity of the medium and say, 'Here, this is why I love comics,'" Lund concluded. THE COMIC READER #1, volume two will be available June 7, 2000 with a cover price of $4.95 U.S. and $6.90 CANADA for a monthly, comic-size format, with a minimum of 62-pages. Look for more details about TCR in the April edition of PREVIEWS from Diamond Comic Distributors. TCR's Website: www.thecomicreader.com opens March 1, 2000. For more information on advertising or advanced subscriptions, call (303)-464-5014, email TheComicReader@aol.com or write: TCR, 1140 US HWY 287, Suite 400, #111, Broomfield, CO, 80020. +++++ Shop At Home Network and collectibles.com Announce Online Alliance With Krause Publications Agreement Creates an Online "Newsstand" for Customers Exclusive Internet Editorial and Collectors' Content Cross-Media Marketing and Promotional Initiatives (BUSINESS WIRE) - Shop At Home, Inc. (NASDAQ:SATH), and collectibles.com(SM)(http://www.collectibles.com), a leading retailer of specialty consumer and collectibles products through interactive electronic media, have entered into an extensive marketing and promotional agreement with Krause Publications, Inc. (http://www.krause.com), the world's largest publisher of collectibles and hobby magazines. As part of this agreement, both companies will work to create an online "newsstand" for the sale of magazines, books and periodicals for all levels of collectors as collectibles.com continues to build a dynamic and complete online community for collectibles product and content. The strategic partnership also includes co-marketing and cross-promotional initiatives for both companies. Shop At Home, collectibles.com and Krause will receive broad exposure to each of their respective targeted collectibles and hobby consumers. Initial programs will focus on core consumer segments in sports, knives and coins with authoritative magazines such as Blade, Coins and Tuff Stuff. Additionally, Krause will provide exclusive editorial and collectibles content and access to price guide information for collectibles.com. Further, the relationship between collectibles.com and Krause Publications will extend beyond the Network and website to opportunities such as trade show sponsorships, Internet chats, celebrity signings, product shipping stuffers and database marketing alliances. Tim Engle, President of collectibles.com said, "Our partnership with Krause publications is a perfect fit with our strategy to become the leading online community for collectors. Krause's brands are some of the best known in the collectibles industry. Our broadcasting and merchandising expertise and state-of-the-art technology combined with their strong brand recognition in the industry is a powerful alliance that creates tremendous consumer value by offering a "one-stop" shopping and information experience for collectors." "I am enthusiastic about the opportunities that this relationship brings to our company," said Krause Publications President, Roger Case. "Shop At Home and collectibles.com have exposed millions of people to the joy of collecting, and we are proud to partner with them as they continue to develop a complete community for their customers. Through this alliance collectibles.com will point collectors to the experts at Krause Publications, whose magazines and books will help collectors get the most out of their hobbies." About Krause Publications, Inc. Krause Publications, founded in 1952, is the oldest and most well respected publisher in the collectibles and hobby industry. Additionally, it is the world's largest publisher of collectibles and hobby magazines and books. It publishes 53 periodicals and has over 600 books in print covering antiques, arts and crafts, collectible cars, coins, comic books, baseball cards and other sports memorabilia, bean-bag toys, collectible card games, collectible firearms, collectible knives as well as fantasy sports, hunting and fishing, limited-edition collectibles, military collectibles, movie memorabilia, collectible paper money, postcards, records, stamps, and collectible toys. Krause publishes two additional magazines serving the construction trade. About Shop At Home, Inc. Shop At Home, Inc. sells specialty consumer products, primarily collectibles, through interactive electronic media including broadcast, cable and satellite television, and, increasingly, over the Internet. Shop At Home Network reaches over 57 million unique cable and satellite households and is the Nation's 15th largest television broadcaster with stations in San Francisco, Boston, Houston, Cleveland, Raleigh and Bridgeport, which is licensed to the New York market. About collectibles.com collectibles.com brings together state-of-the-art technology from Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ:ORCL), BroadVision (NASDAQ:BVSN) and others to offer collectors a unique online shopping experience. Site features include real-time online customer service, a dynamic shopping cart that stays with customers as they navigate through the site, 3-D images and streaming video. The site offers thousands of products in a variety of collectibles categories ranging from coins to sports memorabilia to ceramics and figurines. Contact: Shop At Home Inc., Nashville Kim Dettwiller, 615/263-8400 website:shopathomeonline.com +++++ Marvel Enterprises Reports Q4 and 1999 Results NEW YORK (BUSINESS WIRE) - Marvel Enterprises, Inc. ("Marvel") (NYSE:MVL) today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and year-ended December 31, 1999. -------------------------------------------------------------------- MARVEL ENTERPRISES, INC. SUMMARY CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (Dollars in thousands, except per share data) -------------------------------------------------------------------- Three Months Ended Twelve Months Ended December 31, December 31, 1999 1998 1999 1998 --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Net sales $92,995 $75,715 $319,645 $232,076 --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Cost of sales 45,026 40,220 150,858 127,978 --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Gross Profit 47,969 35,495 168,787 104,098 --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Selling, general and administrative expenses 43,255 36,210 124,596 97,135 --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- EBITDA (1) 4,714 (715) 44,191 6,963 --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Depreciation and amortization 6,158 5,760 18,078 19,332 --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Amortization of goodwill and other intangibles 6,496 6,505 25,857 7,091 --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Operating income (loss) (7,940) (12,980) 256 (19,460) --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Interest expense, net (7,884) (9,105) (32,077) (9,440) --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Other income, net 1,160 676 4,043 676 --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Loss before income taxes (14,664) (21,409) (27,778) (28,224) --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Income tax provision 2,486 7,160 4,482 4,386 --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Loss before extraordinary expense (17,150) (28,569) (32,260) (32,610) --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Extraordinary expense, net of tax -- -- 1,531 -- --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Net loss (17,150) (28,569) (33,791) (32,610) --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Less: preferred dividend requirement 3,662 3,380 14,220 3,380 --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Net loss attributable to common stock (20,812) (31,949) (48,011) (35,990) --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Basic and diluted loss per share from continuing operations ($0.62) ($0.95) ($1.39) ($1.23) --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Basic and diluted loss per share after extraordinary expense ($0.62) ($0.95) ($1.43) ($1.23) --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- Common shares outstanding 33,557 -- 33,557 -- --------------------------- --------- ----------- --------- ---------- (1) "EBITDA" is defined as earnings before extraordinary items, interest expense, taxes, depreciation and amortization. EBITDA does not represent net income or cash flow from operations as those terms are defined by generally accepted accounting principles and does not necessarily indicate whether cash flow will be sufficient to fund cash needs. Commenting on the Company's performance, Marvel President and CEO, Peter Cuneo, said, "Marvel's strong 1999 financial performance reflects our first full year of combined Marvel and Toy Biz operations and was highlighted by significant achievements in a range of areas that have repositioned Marvel on firm ground. Progress in 1999 included the formation of a senior management team with proven, relevant industry experience, the creation and adoption of a revised business strategy including plans for the Internet, the creation of a sound financial platform, including the divestiture of non strategic assets, and the initiation of proactive operating strategies in all units, supported by the commencement of Marvel's first ever brand management discipline, aimed at linking all activities under the Marvel banner with the goal of deriving synergistic benefits. "As we look forward in 2000 and beyond, we have many reasons for optimism, including the Company's strongest-ever line-up of entertainment projects, including five major motion pictures slated for release over the next three years. This film slate underscores the broad appeal of the Marvel character brands and should serve to drive awareness and interest in all other areas of our business. In addition to exposing our character and corporate brands to a global audience, major motion pictures can also potentially generate very significant EBITDA increases from licensing, toy sales, publishing, specialty publications and the Internet. Leading off this year is the July 2000 release of X-Men from 20th Century Fox, followed by Spiderman from Sony Pictures, due in the later part of 2001. Additionally, Blade 2 from New Line Pictures, The Hulk from Universal Pictures and Fantastic Four, also from 20th Century Fox, are in development with releases planned by the end of 2002. "Additionally, we are making good headway in exploiting several character brands for television and through the Internet. We are also exploring ways in which Marvel can, for the first time in its history, become involved in the production and ownership of entertainment content in a variety of traditional and new media. On the Internet we are committed to creating a world-class Internet destination at Marvel.com. To accomplish this goal, we have undertaken exhaustive market research and are now in the process of evaluating a range of possible partnerships with leading Internet companies to help us realize the Internet potential of our character brands." Mr. Cuneo concluded, "We are also very excited by the excellent response our toy lines received from retailers as well as licensee interest in our characters at last week's International Toy Fair. Our licensing and toy introductions around the X-men movie were extremely well received and public interest in the movies continues to rise. A preview of the film, available at the X-Men Web site (http://www.X-men-the-movie.com), provides a glimpse of this impressive work and its tremendous all-star cast. Expanding upon our movie-related activities, we expect to launch a licensing partnership with Sony for the Spiderman movie in the next several months." Marvel's net sales increase in 1999 was largely attributable to the inclusion of twelve months of operations from the Licensing and Publishing divisions that were acquired as part of the Company's acquisition of Marvel Entertainment Group ("MEG") in October 1998. Only three months of operations from these divisions were included for the full year 1998. The incremental sales in 1999 versus 1998 for the Licensing and Publishing divisions were $25.9 million and $28.3 million, respectively. Sales by the Company's Toy Biz division increased by approximately 16% or $33.3 million in 1999 to $245.8 million, compared to $212.5 million in 1998. The increase was primarily due to sales of World Championship Wrestling ("WCW") action figures, a product line introduced in 1999, and increased sales of large and small dolls and doll accessories (specifically Kinder-Garden Babies and Miss Party Surprise), partially offset by a decline in the sales of Marvel-related products related to the planned implementation of Marvel's brand management strategy. Gross profit increased from 1999 to 1998 primarily due to the inclusion of a full-year's activity for the Licensing and Publishing divisions as well as an increase of $27.0 million in gross profit from the Toy Biz division. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased in 1999 over 1998 principally reflecting the addition of the Licensing and Publishing divisions, offset by one-time charges incurred in 1998 resulting from the Company's restructuring in connection with the acquisition of MEG. EBITDA for 1999 was $44.2 million, including approximately $5 million in one-time charges, compared to 1998 EBITDA of $7.0 million. The increase in Marvel's 1999 fourth quarter net sales was largely attributable to an increase of approximately $23.7 million in sales from the Toy Biz division, primarily due to sales of WCW action figures and increased sales of Kinder-Garden Babies and Miss Party Surprise products, as well as increased sales of Other Boys Products (specifically My Pal 2000 and Power Rangers) which were partially offset by a decline in the sales of Marvel-related products. Fourth quarter gross profit increased in 1999 over 1998 primarily due to a contribution from the Toy Biz division which was partially offset by a decrease in Gross Profit in the Licensing and Publishing divisions. The Company's Gross Profit overall percentage increased to 52% from 47% primarily as a result of favorable changes to the toy product mix. Selling, general and administrative expenses increased in the fourth quarter of 1999 compared to the prior period, primarily due to the addition of the Corporate division's Payroll Expenses and Professional Fees as well as production costs in the Licensing division associated with The Avengers television series on Fox Kids. The Company's balance sheet remains strong with approximately $64.8 million in cash as of December 31, 1999 and working capital of $91.9 million. Marvel Enterprises, Inc. is one of the world's most prominent character-based entertainment companies with operations in licensing, toys - via its Toy Biz division, comic book publishing, entertainment and the Internet. Through its ownership of over 3,500 proprietary characters, the Company licenses the right to use its characters in a wide range of products and services such as apparel, snack foods, video games and collectibles, as well as for television series and feature films. Additionally, Marvel has published comic books for over 60 years in the United States and numerous foreign countries. For additional company information visit the Company's corporate Web site at http://www.marvel.com. Except for historical information contained herein, the statements in this news release regarding the Company's plans are forward-looking statements that are dependent upon certain risks and uncertainties, including the Company's potential inability to successfully implement its business strategy, a decrease in the level of media exposure or popularity of the Company's characters resulting in declining revenues from products based on those characters, the lack of commercial success of properties owned by major entertainment companies that have granted the Company toy licenses, the lack of consumer acceptance of new product introductions, the imposition of quotas or tariffs on toys manufactured in China as a result of a deterioration in trade relations between the U.S. and China, changing consumer preferences, production delays or shortfalls, continued pressure by certain of the Company's major retail customers to significantly reduce their toy inventory levels, the impact of competition and changes to the competitive environment on the Company's products and services, changes in technology and changes in governmental regulation. Those and other risks and uncertainties are described in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K. +++++ Obituaries in the News GREENWOOD, S.C. (AP) - Fred Rhoads, a cartoonist of the post-World War II ``Sad Sack'' comics, has died. He was 78. Rhoads died Sunday from complications of Alzheimer's disease in Greenwood, where he lived since December. The cartoonist drew the exaggerated life of a World War II GI trying to cope with a civilian's life in ``Sad Sack'' comic books. The cartoon was initially created for Yank Magazine during the war - with the character a luckless draftee - by George Baker. It was resuscitated by Harvey Comics after the war. Rhoads was one of the artists who worked on the postwar ``Sad Sack'' comic books, helping illustrate the character's comic woes for more than 20 years. He once recalled that Baker's contributions were sometimes a little racy. ``He was used to drawing for men in the service,'' Rhoads once said. ``His humor tended to be more dirty. More sexy. And that didn't work as well in the comic book.'' Rhoads once sued Harvey Comics for more of the profits for his efforts on ``Sad Sack'' comic books. A Pima County Superior Court awarded him $2.6 million in the early 1980s, but that ruling was reversed in the Arizona Court of Appeals. Rhoads also assisted ``Beetle Bailey'' creator Mort Walker, Jimmy Hatlo, who did ``They'll Do It Every Time,'' and Fred Lasswell, who created ``Snuffy Smith.'' More recently, Rhoads worked for the Tucson (Ariz.) Citizen as an editorial cartoonist in the 1980s and early 1990s. Rhoads studied art illustration in New York City from 1940-1942 until he joined the U.S. Marine Corps in World War II. +++++ Director Johnson in ``Daredevil'' talks By Michael Fleming NEW YORK (Variety) - Mark Steven Johnson is in talks to write and direct ``Daredevil,'' the live-action version of the Marvel Comics superhero franchise that recently took root at Columbia Pictures. Johnson has long been interested in adapting the comic about a blind lawyer who uses his other, heightened senses to fight evil in a red spandex suit. While at Fox, ``Daredevil'' was developed by such directors as Chris Columbus and Carlo Carlei who, like Johnson, are fans of the superhero. As Fox is up to its eyeballs in superheroes with ``X-Men,'' ''Fantastic Four'' and ``Silver Surfer,'' Marvel recently relocated the franchise to Columbia parent Sony, which is making great strides on mounting ``Spider-Man,'' to be directed by Sam Raimi, and ``Dr. Strange,'' which Chuck Russell is circling to write and direct. +++++ NextPlanetOver Auctions Target Comic-Book Fanatics; World's First Comic Book Among Items for Sale SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 21, 2000--NextPlanetOver (www.npo.com), the ultimate online destination for the entertainment hobbyist, today announced the launch of its auctions, which will feature rare, original, and valuable comic-book properties. Among the items for sale is a signed copy of 1933's Funnies on Parade, which is widely considered to be the first ever comic book published. "We are trying to benefit retailers in several ways, beginning with no listing fees," explained Milton Griepp, chairman and CEO of NextPlanetOver. "Unlike enormous auction sites, we provide our retailers with a targeted, well-versed audience that is enthusiastic about their products. We feel that this is a tremendous opportunity for retailers to promote themselves on the Internet." Industry celebrities have also put original art up for sale on NPO.com Auctions. Contributors to date include: -- Neil Gaiman, creator of Sandman -- Jae Lee, winner of an Eisner Award for Thhe Inhumans -- Dan Brereton, Batman artist, Buffy the Vaampire Slayer writer, and creator of Giantkiller -- Tony Daniel, creator of The Tenth and F5 -- Peter Bagge, best known for his Hate seriies -- Ron Chironna, Magic: The Gathering artistt -- John Kovalic, creator of Dork Tower -- Sean Phillips, The Invisibles and Hellblaazer artist John Chruscinski of South Florida's Tropic Comics and Collectibles is one of the retailers who plans to sell his company's prized possessions on NextPlanetOver Auctions. "It used to be that collectors might meet once or twice a year at a comics convention," he noted. "NextPlanetOver is making it possible to buy and sell collectibles anytime, anywhere." Tropic Comics has listed perhaps the most important item for sale at the launch of NextPlanetOver Auctions: Marvel Comics No. 1 (1939), a rare comic book that includes the first appearances of such well-known characters as Sub-Mariner, Human Torch, Angel, and Ka-Zar. Tropic's offerings also include a copy of the original Funnies on Parade, signed by William M. Gaines, creator of EC Comics. +++++ CHRIS WARE INCLUDED IN SMITHSONIAN EXHIBITION OF AMERICA'S MOST INNOVATIVE AND INFLUENTIAL CONTEMPORARY DESIGNERS The Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum of the Smithsonian Institution has announced "Design Culture Now,” the first exhibition in a triennial series featuring "America's most innovative and influential designers.” Opening to the public on March 7, 2000, this is the only exhibition of its kind on the United States, presenting “a critical overview of key developments in American architecture and design every three years.” The exhibition will run through August 6th and feature an invitation-only media preview on March 6th. For this inaugural exhibition, the curators have included several issues of The ACME NOVELTY LIBRARY, created by CHRIS WARE. It is likely the first time a contemporary comic book has hung in any branch of the Smithsonian. For a full report on this landmark event, go directly to the FULL NEWS ARTICLE on the Fantagraphics website: http://fantagraphics.com/news/news.html or visit the museum's website: http://www.si.edu/ndm/ +++++ From the SPLASH PAGE of Comicon.com at: http://www.comicon.com/splash/ NEW SMALL PRESS SHOW ANNOUNCED! 'SPACE' IN COLUMBUS IN APRIL! A new small press convention will launch in Columbus, Ohio this year on April 15th. Bob Corby of BACK PORCH COMICS has organized the Small Press and Alternative Comics Expo (SPACE) and promises that over 60 small press and alternative comic creators and publishers will converge on Rhodes Center at th Ohio Expo Center to exhibit their wares. The show opens at 10:00 AM and closes at 7:00 PM. Admission is $3.00 the day of the show. Tables are still available through Bob Corby at: BackPorchC@aol.com. Table cost is $35.00 for an 8 foot table through March 17, 2000 and $40.00 thereafter. +++++ From the Comics Continuum at http://www.comicscontinuum.com/: JOHNS TO WRITE FLASH Geoff Johns told The Continuum that he will be writing DC Comics' The Flash for six issues beginning in July. "Flash is not ONE of my favorites but MY favorite character," Johns said. Johns' first issue will be Flash #164. He said that Angel Unzueta - the artist of Sins of Youth: Kid Flash/Impulse #1, will be the artist of Flash. As for his plans, Johns said "I can't talk much more about it just yet." CLERKS STARTS ON MAY 31 ABC has announced that Clerks, the animated series based on the movie from Kevin Smith, will begin on the network on Wednesday, May 31 at 9:30 p.m. (ET/PT). Here's how ABC describes the series: "In 1994, a low-budget, black-and-white film called Clerks walked away with the Filmmakers Trophy Award at the Sundance Film Festival and two prizes at Cannes. The movie launched the career of writer/director/producer Kevin Smith and introduced the world to a quartet of ambition-free, foul-mouthed, unkempt but frequently hilarious young men who have become true cult icons. And what better format for Dante, Randal, Silent Bob and Jay than an animated series that lets them rise from the drudgery of their daily lives to comic-book hero status ... sometimes. "Dante Hicks (voiced by Brian O'Halloran) disdainfully mans the cash register at the Quick Stop in Leonardo, New Jersey, while his friend, Randal (voiced by Jeff Anderson), is the equally unmotivated clerk at RST Video next door. They manage to keep an impressive verbal dialogue running during the bizarre parade of customers and their daily dealings with whatever else arises. Seemingly continuously loitering in and out of their stores are Jay (voiced by Jason Mewes) and Silent Bob (voiced by Smith), who give literal meaning to the phrase, 'high jinx.' "In this animated series, Dante and Randal find themselves involved in such predicaments as heroically battling the greedy and evil billionaire, Leonardo Leonardo (voiced by Alec Baldwin). In another action-packed, yet touching, episode, Randal wrongly believes the town is in the midst of an outbreak of the Motaba virus, forcing Dante to fly a helicopter and confront his own homophobia to prevent the U.S. army from destroying Leonardo. Additionally, another episode centers on the two locking themselves in the Quick Stop freezer. Meanwhile, all the heroics fail to attract even a single female to visit them at work." O'Halloran, Anderson, Mewes and Smith are all recreating their roles from the film for the animated series. In addition to Baldwin, other celebrity guest-voice appearances have been recorded, including James Woods, Gwyneth Paltrow and Charles Barkley. Smith, Scott Mosier and David Mandel are creators and executive producers of the series. Harvey Weinstein, Bob Weinstein and Billy Campbell are also executive producers. +++++ From Comics2Film at http://www.comics2film.com Rat Bastard ----------- With work on the Rat Bastard TV show underway, creators Cliff Galbraith and Tim Bird are headed for the Hollywood hills to help with the process of adapting their creation. "We're headed out there on Sunday for meetings with [Imagine Television] and Ed Neumier," Galbraith told Comics 2 Film Monday night. Ed Neumier, best known for creating Robocop is writing and developing the show as an animated series for UPN. Galbraith and Bird, who work creatively under the pen name of the Huja Brothers, are pleased with Neumier's vision for the show. "We get along with Ed really great. Ed wants to make this really bad ass," Galbraith told C2F. Galbraith credits Neumier with putting the deal together. "I believe he had a development deal with Imagine. The book was brought to Ed through a series of agents. When Ed saw it he said 'Well, this is it, this is what we should be doing.'" The Huja brothers told us they were the last to know about the deal. They were not informed about it until all the papers had been signed by the studio and the show was set up at UPN. "All this just seems to us to be happening so fast," Bird told us. "We went from wondering, 'Geez! Are we going to be able to afford to put out the graphic novel' to 'Oh my God, Disney is flying us out to Hollywood.' It's definitely been a bit of a trip." Although they're happy to be collaboration with Neumier, the Huja's have found that working from New Jersey on the Hollywood based production has put a strain on things. Galbraith said, "We've been working with Ed from over 3000 miles away, by fax and by phone and it's just not the same as being out there with everybody. And so, we put a little pressure on the studio to bring us out there and get us involved in this thing." While they have been involved in the development, it started to feel like things were getting away from the Hujas. The pair lobbied with the studio to come out to California and participate to a greater extent. "We want to go out there now and kind of shape what this whole thing is going to look like." Next week the creators will meet with the studio and network types to make sure the essence of their comic remains intact. "I think that either the network or the studio wants to possibly lighten it up a little bit. Its not like we want to blow people's heads off or anything like that or have any language that's questionable. Its more a case of how true it's going to be to the book, what they're going to do with the actual characters and what their personalities are going to be." "We're going to be involved in that process," Galbraith told C2F. "A lot of creators don't get the right to do that. We're involved with a really good company. Imagine is treating us really well. I think Ed is being really cool about the whole thing. Neumier was interested in having Bird and Galbraith write for the show, even before the contracts were drawn. "He wants us to be involved in this. Like I said before, most studios want to get you out of the way. The reason it is going so well is that the producer used to be a screenwriter. He knows what its like to get pushed aside and to not be listened to." Casting talks are underway on the show, although no one has been signed at this point. Galbraith also told us that the trip to Hollywood may last longer than a week. "We're going to go out there for a week this time and after that we may relocate out there. There's just not a lot of animation going on in New Jersey," he said, laughing. The Huja brothers will now likely look at TV and film for future projects that were originally slated for comics. However, Bird suggested that there may be a return to comics in the future. "Once the show is up and running it'll definitely be a shot in the arm for any other projects we were to do now in the comics field. Our first love is comics, we grew up on those." The once planned paperback collection of the original Rat Bastard comic is currently on hold. Once the show is on the air, the book may be released and reach a potentially larger audience than the comics enjoyed. http://www.crucialcomics.com Elfquest -------- The Elfquest CG animated feature continues to pick up steam. Comics 2 Film recently spoke with Craig Miller of Wolfmill Entertainment and got a status report on the movie. Miller is an Executive Producer on the movie and co-wrote the screenplay with Wolfmill partner Marv Wolfman and Elfquest creator Wendy Pini. "We're in the storyboarding phase at this point, doing the preliminary designs." Miller told C2F. Casting is underway on the movie, although no actors have been signed at this point. The filmmakers will be hosting a reception at this week's American Film Market to get the word out on the movie. "We just wanted, along with our European partners, to really announce that Elfquest was underway and let people know about it." Accompanying the announcement is a Wendy Pini preliminary poster. "It's a preliminary poster for the movie," Miller told us. "They are not the final character designs, but it gives you an idea of what the movie will be like." Although the movie has been in the works for several years, Miller told us it is still about two years from being released. However, today Wolfmill Entertainment announced that they'd entered into a a worldwide licensing agreement with Living Toyz for a line of action figures based on the movie. Prior to the release of the movie, Los Angeles-based Living Toyz will produce several sets of action figures based on the original comic book designs as featured in the Elfquest comics published by Warp Graphics. With the premiere of the film, Living Toyz will release a double-sized set of figures based on the character designs from the film. The film is being produced in association with the European Animation Group, a pool that includes Project Images Films, Sceneries Europe, GTC (France), Das Werk, Trixter Film (Germany), Indice Multimedia, and Storyboard (Spain). (Please visit the Comics 2 Film website at http://www.comics2film.com for a look at the Elfquest poster). Mage/Grendel ------------ It's been years since Comics 2 Film has been able to offer a report on a movie version of Matt Wagner's Grendel. We recently attended an online chat at the Mage web site in hopes of learning more about the in-development Mage movie, as well as any plans for Grendel. It looks like fans of The Devil will have to keep waiting. When a chatter identified as Echo_Grendel asked about if Wagner hoped to make a Hunter Rose movie, the comic creator responded, "Oh yes. Its just that Grendel will garner more [money], if Mage is hot shit. Hate to be a whore, but we're almost considering Grendel more of a franchise than Mage." Wagner's told us in the past that he wants to see the Mage movie through before he focuses any attention on Grendel. We asked Wagner how the screenplay for Mage is coming along and what interaction he had with screenwriter John Rogers. "Rogers is a huge Mage fan. So far, I'm thrilled with the interaction. Which means, I know when to leave him alone..." For fans who missed out on the Wagner chat, Kevin Hawkins tells us that another is scheduled for March 8th at 6:30 PST, 9:30 EST. See the Mage site for more details. http://www.higherlove.com/mage Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker ---------------------------------- October 31, 2000 is the date that the Joker will menace the Batman of the future in the direct-to-video feature Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker. However, thanks to Lovecraft13 of the Van Gough Experience and Batcave web sites, we can get a glimpse of the undying clown-prince-of-crime today. The image sent in by Lovecraft13 is from a "Batman Beyond: Decode & Win" promotional display that can currently be seen at Warner Stores. Presumably, the image of Joker on the display reflects what the character will look like in the video feature. http://come.to/lovecraft13 http://www.fabio2.zzn.com Hell Eternal ------------ FROM POPIMAGE.COM: In a December interview with the PopImage online magazine, Jamie Delano revealed that he is at work on a screenplay of his 1998 comic book Hell Eternal. "I've been working on adapting Hell Eternal for the screen," Delano told the magazine. He also revealed that he had production company involved. "They have a first draft screenplay in with FilmFour at present, awaiting a decision on further development funding. It's too soon to be optimistic, but I think I did pretty good work on the script, considering I was learning movie-writing on the job." Hell Eternal was a one-shot published in 1998 by DC/Vertigo. The comic was illustrated by Sean Phillips. Delano provided this description of the story, "This is an 'inspired by real incidents' story of three young dilettante neo-Nazi British students who slip too far 'outside' to find their way back, and end up dead 'by their own hands' in heartland USA. Some strong interest has been shown, but I guess it has about a 10% chance of making it to production as a (low budget) movie." Thanks to Michael Rhode of the Comics Research Bibliography. http://www.popimage.com http://www.rpi.edu/~bulloj/comxbib.html Danger Girl ----------- FROM CORONA COMING ATTRACTIONS: According to a scooper for Corona Coming Attractions, movement on the Danger Girl movie may be slowed due to studio cautiousness. The scooper claims that New Line is nervously watching similar productions like Columbia's Charlie's Angels and Paramount's Tomb Raider before charging forward with Danger Girl. http://www.corona.bc.ca +++++ From The Daily Buzz at http://www.mania.com/newsarama/index.html Kelly Launches Anti-Mutie Site As the July 14 premiere of the X-Men motion picture draws near, various pro- and anti-mutant factions have been vying to disseminate information. In response to 20th Century Fox's official movie website's [www.x-menmovie.com] markedly pro-mutant stance, long-time mutant opponent and presidential candidate Sen. Kelly has launched his own website. Kelly's Mutant Watch [www.mutantwatch.com] offers official government reports on the rise of genetic mutations in the U.S. as well as tips on how to spot mutants in your own neighborhood. No doubt this will be a useful page for people concerned about the Mutant Menace. +++++ From Newsarama; http://www.AnotherUniverse.com/newsarama WINNER OF THE 1997 & 1998 INTERNET "SQUIDDY" FOR BEST WEB SITE Marvel Cancels New Warriors, X-51 Writer Jay Faerber has announced the cancellation of his New Warriors series with May's issue #10 . "As you can well imagine, I'm very disappointed to announce that Marvel has canceled New Warriors," said Faerber in a statement. "As I've often said, to anyone who'll listen, New Warriors was the book I most wanted to write at Marvel. So it's rather disheartening to have that dream realized so early in my career, and then taken away after only a year. I really wish it was possible for Marvel to give the book another year to catch on, because I really think Jamal Igle would've boosted our sales. He's one of the best new artists I've ever seen, and the four issues we did together were an absolute joy." "And I'm sure that news of this cancellation will have the fans up in arms, about what an evil company Marvel is, and how they don't give books a chance, Faerber continued. "And while I wish we would've gotten some more promotion, I will say that this really isn't Marvel's fault. Because of their debt, they have to answer to the bank, and the bank just won't tolerate them publishing books that don't make a profit." "I know a lot of fans are of the mentality that they'll drop a book once they know it's going to be canceled, and frankly, I can't understand that. I'd think they'd want to stick with the book, and savor every last issue, knowing it's not going to last. So I'm asking people to keep buying the book, even though you now know it's gonna end. Jamal and I poured our souls into the next three issues, and I think it's some of the best work of our careers." In other Marvel cancellation news, Fandom's X-Fan is reporting that a source close to the M-Tech title X-51 has confirmed that the series will also end in May with issue #12. MORE DC CREATIVE CHANGES Change seems to be in the air this week around the DC offices. This past week has already seen official confirmation of new creative teams for the Flash, the Titans and Wonder Woman (for details, check out this week's Newsarama Digest and last week's edition), and is closing out with news of more creative turnover. Batman writer Larry Hama tells Newsarama that he's "off Batman, as of now.” Hama cited "creative differences" as the reason behind his departure, but stressed there were no "bad vibes" involved with his decision. "I'm still pals with Denny [O'Neil] and I'll be working with Bob Schreck on a Green Lantern hardcover project,” he said. Though still in the early developmental, "We got a great idea, let's see what we can do with it" stage, the basic springboard Hama and Schreck are working with is "Hal Jordan: Last Will And Testament." There was no word from DC on Friday as to what Hama's last issue will be or on possible replacements. In other DC creator news, last week we told you writer Geoff Johns and penciler Angel Unzueta are slated for a Flash story arc (following the exit of the current team of Waid/Augustyn/Pelletier) tentatively set to include issues #164-169. This week Newsarama learned that artist Scott Kolins is currently set to take over following that arc (tentatively issue #170), as the next regular penciler of the title. There is no word yet on who will be joining him as the next regular writer. Readers can soon get a peak into the future as Kolins pencils next month's Flash #160. DC'S GLOBAL VILLAGE As most DC observers already know, this year's Annuals will feature an international theme, and each will introduce a new hero(es) and/or villain(s) from different areas of the globe into the DCU. Here's a look at some of the annuals in the works, and Newsarama will be bringing you details of others as we get them_ The team of Brian Vaughan and Steve Scott handle this years JLA annual, and Vaughan chose Turkey for this international setting. John Ostrander, Jim Aparo and Sal Buscema handle this year's Batman annual, and Ostrander's designated country is the United Kingdom. Chuck Dixon and Argentinean comics artist Alcatena handle the Flash annual, and their international location is Argentina of course. The regular co-writers of the JSA - Geoff Johns and David Goyer - handle that new title's first annual, with art by Michael Bair and Buzz. Greece is their location and the story will see the return of the would-be-rulers and twisted bio-engineers the Council, from Archie Goodwin's and Walter Simonson's classic Detective Comics back-up serial, Manhunter. Finally (for now), Johns will also be co-writing this year's Titans annual, this time with Beast Boy partner Ben Raab. Justinaino, their penciler for the Beast Boy mini-series, handles the pencils here. "The annual stars Gar Logan and Flamebird (with a special appearance by Gar's slacker cousin Matt!), along with Nightwing, Flash, Troia, Tempest and Arsenal, as they confront an invading force of Tengu (Japanese goblins) in Tokyo.” Asked if this might involve rumors of a new Titans West team Newsarama has heard about, Johns replied with a wry smile, "Titans West..? Close_" - Artist Bart Sears, who pencils May's Mutannt X #21, is the title's new regular penciler, according to editor Jason Liebig. - It appears as if the upcoming creative chaanges to DC's Wonder Woman ongoing series are not just limited to the departure of writer Eric Luke. A spokesperson for DC Comics has confirmed that a plan is in development for creator Phil Jimenez to write or possibly co-write and draw the series for "about a year", although specific details are still being worked out between Jimenez and DC. Adam Hughes will stay on as Wonder Woman cover artist however, according to the spokesperson. Newsarama will bring you more details when they become available. - According to writer and Gorilla founding ppartner Karl Kesel, his and partner Tom Grummett's creator-owned Gorilla project, Section Zero, will debut this June, after being previewed in George Perez's Crimson Plague #1, which will also ship in June. Crimson Plague is set to premiere in the first half of the month, with Section Zero premiering in the latter half. In other Gorilla news, the company has announced the addition of Eisner-nominated colorist Jeromy (Leave It To Chance, Promethea) Cox to the creative team of Gorilla's launch project, Shockrockets, joining writer Kurt Busiek, penciler Stuart Immonen and inker Wade von Grawbadger. The first issue ships in April. - Most readers of DC's Titans are already awware that penciler Mark Buckingham is leaving the title with issue #16, and that writer Jay (New Warriors) Faerber, co-writer of issue #13 with Devin Grayson will be joining Grayson again for a 4-issue co-written story arc in issues #17-20. But today Titans editor Eddie Berganza told Mania's Newsarama that the changes don't stop there. "The sad fact is Devin will be leaving the book with issue #20,” explained Berganza. "It also marks the exit of one or two of the Titans, but that's all I'm saying_" As to art chores, issues #17-20 will be handled by newcomer Adam DeKraker, inked by Andy Lanning, and then joining Faerber with issue #21 as the new regular penciler will be Paul (The Flash) Pelletier. "I've wanted to work with him for a while and liked his take on the team (see the Titans Secret Files #1),” said Berganza. "He's also very excited about this, so expect lots of awesome stuff! And Phil Jimenez will be our regular cover artist beginning with issue #15.” - Writer Jay Faerber takes over as the regullar scribe of DC's Titans with issue #21 (after a 4-issue story arc co-written with exiting writer Devin Grayson) - Image Comics has announced the publicationn a new creator-owned book by respected industry veteran Jerry Ordway. The Messenger marks the writer/artist's first return to Image Comics since the 1993 release of his and Al Gordon's Wildstar. Ordway will be writing, penciling, and inking the 48-page prestige format one-shot colored by Nick Bell (Homage Comics' Desperadoes) which lays the groundwork for a future creator-owned series. Ordway said, "Working with Image on The Messenger is a real kick, as I was one of the first 'outsiders' (along with my WildStar co-creator Al Gordon) to be welcomed into the fold when they first exploded on the scene in 1993(?) I've always admired what the founders accomplished, and am really excited to be part of new publisher Jim Valentino's plans for the future." The story tells the tale of a man haunted by his past and his gift to "see" into the mind of anyone he touches. This man, The Messenger, uses this power to determine the absolute guilt of accused murderers and other criminals, delivering justice unencumbered by the legal system. But what happens when he discovers that his "gift" wasn't infallible - that he has the blood of innocents on his hands? The full-color one-shot is slated to ship in July. - Colorist/creator Christian Lichtner has reeleased the following statement regarding the previously announced move of both EVE Protomecha and Soul Saga to Image Central from their previous studio home at Top Cow: "Top Cow's newest smash successes E.V.E Protomecha and Soul Saga are scheduled to move to Image comics at the end of their commitment with Top Cow. "While we tremendously enjoyed our stay at Top Cow, we look forward to working with Jim Valentino at Image Central", says Lichtner. Sonia Im, director of creative affairs for Top Cow Productions adds, "We are happy to have been able to assist Liquid! in the launching of these two titles and wish the respective creative teams the best for the future." Lastly Lichtner states, "We will continue to publish E.V.E Protomecha through issue 4, and Soul Saga through issue 3 under Top Cow as solicited, and then smoothly transition our publishing to Image. The shipping schedules for these titles should remain unaffected. Lastly, rest assured that the move will not affect the high quality that readers have come to expect from these titles." - Marvel Knights Joe Quesada has announced tthat they have signed painter Scott Hampton - illustrator of Books of Magic II and Batman: Night Cries, a painted Batman graphic album written by Archie Goodwin - to illustrate the upcoming 3-issue follow-up last year's Black Widow mini-series. The next chapter in Natasha's ongoing battle with the 'new' Black Widow, Yelana; the limited series will be written by the 'Batty' team of Devin (Gotham Knights) Grayson and Greg (Detective Comics) Rucka. The miniseries has yet to be named. - Cartoon Books has announced the launch of Act III of Jeff Smith's Bone with June's issue #38. To celebrate the launch, the issue, entitled "Ghost Circles", will feature 3 covers, designed and drawn by Frank Miller, Alex Ross and Smith, respectively. "Frank and Alex are not only two of the best creators in comics, they're also friends of mine, and it's been fun working together," said Smith. According to Cartoon Books, "The story picks up from the cliffhanger at the end of Issue #37, which revealed the identity of the mysterious Hooded One as well as why everyone was after the "One Who Bears The Star." The End of Act II of Bone created a storm of speculation. Everyone wanted to know "Is Thorn the new Hooded One?" Find out for yourself this June_" +++++ From the DCOnline newsletter; http://www.dccomics.com/newsletter.html To subscribe, or for questions or comments about the DC newsletter, please email DCWebSite@aol.com. HOWARD PORTER RENEWS EXCLUSIVE TWO-YEAR CONTRACT WITH DC DC Comics is pleased to announce that Howard Porter — best known for his work on JLA — has signed a two-year exclusive contract. Following his stellar run with writers Grant Morrison and Mark Waid on DC's flagship team-book JLA, Porter will take over art chores on ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN later this year, joining writer J.M. DeMatteis. A JLA creative team member since issue #1, Porter's bold, classic style has carried the epic threats against which the JLA banded together to protect Earth. According to Porter: " Working with Grant's been wild; I had no idea that JLA would take off like it did. Grant got to use the characters he loves, and it seemed like the whole world was already waiting for it. Working with Mark [Waid] has been completely different and equally as much fun. His stories are more character-driven, whereas Grant's are more about all-out craziness. It's great — I feel like I was part of JLA history; I'm very lucky to have been a part of it." According Group Editor and editor of JLA Dan Raspler, "It's been a great pleasure working with Howard for the last three years on JLA and I was delighted when I heard we were able to finalize his exclusive contract with DC. Howard's a consumate professional with an exciting style all his own." After Porter concludes his run on JLA with issue #46, his first SUPERMAN work will appear in ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN later this year. According to Porter: "I'm excited to do one character after doing 17 on a team book like JLA; one single character like Superman who I can really sink my teeth into, learn my way around him and make him act and react to all types of situations. The new creative direction of the Superman books has got me really jazzed up. I can't wait to hear what they've got in store for me with the coming storylines." Superman Editor Eddie Berganza says: "Personally, Howard got the job because he makes me laugh, but professionally, he's proven he can do epics, and there's no better place for him to go after his amazing work on JLA than to the larger-than-life world of Superman. The stuff we've started to talk about is big, we're not gonna let Howard rest too much." Howard Porter's work on JLA can be seen through issue #46 as well as in the JLA collections NEW WORLD ORDER (STAR 06046), AMERICAN DREAMS (STAR 07133), ROCK OF AGES (STAR 10665), STRENGTH IN NUMBERS (STAR 08530), and JUSTICE FOR ALL (STAR 10233). Porter's final story with Grant Morrison, "World War Three", in issues #36 (AUG99 0187), #37 (SEP99 0152), #38 (OCT99 0189), #39 (NOV99 0121), #40 (DEC99 0165) and #41 (JAN00 0225) . In addition to Porter's signing, James Robinson (STARMAN), José-Luis García Lopéz (SUPERMAN, INC), Greg Land (NIGHTWING), and Michael Lark (SCENE OF THE CRIME, LEGEND OF THE HAWKMAN) have all signed exclusive contracts as well, each with a term of one year. THE NEW BATMAN/SUPERMAN ADVENTURES/BATMAN BEYOND EPISODE SCHEDULE Warner Bros. Animation has supplied DC with the following air schedule for the animated The New Batman/Superman Adventures and Batman Beyond on the WB Network, airing Saturday mornings and on weekday afternoons. All times are Eastern and Pacific: 2/26/00 (8:00 am) "Sins of the Father" (Batman) 2/26/00 (10:30 am) "Rebirth – Part 1" (Batman Beyond) 2/26/00 (11:30 am) "Rebirth – Part 2" (Batman Beyond) 2/28/00 (3:30 pm) "Solar Power" (Superman) 2/28/00 (4:30 pm) "Spellbound" (Batman Beyond) 2/29/00 (3:30 pm) "Stolen Memories" (Superman) 2/29/00 (4:30 pm) "Lock-Up" (Batman) 3/01/00 (3:30 pm) "Bizarro's World" (Superman) 3/01/00 (4:30 pm) "Cold Comfort" (Batman) 3/02/00 (3:30 pm) "Feeding Time" (Superman) 3/02/00 (4:30 pm) "Little Big Head Man" (Superman) 3/03/00 (3:30 pm) "Action Figures" (Superman) 3/03/00 (4:30 pm) "Terry's Friend Dates a Robot" (Batman Beyond) 3/04/00 (8:00 am) "Absolute Power" (Superman) 3/04/00 (9:00 am) "Last Resort" (Batman Beyond–new) 3/06/00 (4:30 pm) "Ascension" (Batman Beyond) 3/07/00 (4:30 pm) "Mxyzpixilated" (Superman) 3/08/00 (4:30 pm) "Growing Pains" (Batman) 3/09/00 (4:30 pm) "New Kids In Town" (Superman) 3/10/00 (4:30 pm) "Bloodsport" (Batman Beyond) 3/11/00 (8:00 am) "Animal Act" (Batman) 3/11/00 (9:00 am) "Armory" (Batman Beyond—new) ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [5] Ramblings 2000 Rich Johnston twisting@hotmail.com [Renamed for the new year, Ramblings 2000 continues to spread confirmed and unconfirmed news and rumours. It welcomes comment, especially comment that clarifies, refutes and corrects information already disseminated. Rich Johnston is an advertising copywriter, co-self publisher of Twist And Shout Comics, BBC comedy writer and comics columnist. He currently lives in South London, England. His column can be found online at: http://www.twistandshoutcomics.com All Ramblings e-mail received will be considered public domain and may be quoted.] This column is RUMOUR. Do not take anything here seriously. These RUMOURS are presented here as GOSSIP for their ENTERTAINMENT value. Dateline: 21 Feb 2000 DC-Cution Every now and then, I get a doom-laden rumour... and this one's no exception. It's the same Marvel source that gave us all that fun about changing conditions at Marvel and DC... and this source has always been heavily biased towards Marvel and against DC. However, a number of pros have backed up his observations in the past. Either way, this is heavy rumour territory, so remember... Rumour, not Fact. Rumour, not Fact. Got it? Okay, hard hats on... Apparently, DC's big man Paul Levitz had an uncomfortable meeting with his AOL/Time-Warner bosses recently. The deal is that he has one year to reverse DC's sales slump or he's, as the source puts it "out on his ass". Now, Ramblings has had a number of similar rumours concerning the threatened firing of Paul Levitz. And like John Major's childhood home, he's still here. And if someone threatened to fire me every weekend, I'd soon find somewhere else. So I'm a little dubious. Anyway... the rumour continues that Levitz has also been told to make major cutbacks, and the first to be fired will be the expensive group editors. Allegedly Carlin, Helfer, Berger, Raspler and O'Neil are all on 100K plus a year and, according to the rumour, they're simply not justifying their income anymore. Berger's Vertigo line, for example, is running at a loss and she's still making top dollar and employing six full-time editors. It's time for these guys to go, but oddly enough, we're told Berger is the only one who's going to survive the slaughter. The rumour continues, stating that Levitz plans to bring her back into the DC fold when he closes Vertigo down in late Summer, but the other group editors and DC's executive editor will all be fired by the Chicago convention in, what the source describes as "a last-ditch attempt to save his own ass." Lovely. We've certainly heard the Vertigo-closing-down rumour many a time, and yet it hangs on resolute, publishing high-quality comics that get noticed by the critics if not the punters. The medium would be at a loss without it. As to who will replace them? Well this is where the Marvel bit links in - apparently Bob Harras has been warned to take care of his Marvel Knights hot-shots. The new, stream-lined DC might be headed by none other than Marvel's own Quesada and Palmiotti. Bob Schreck is also very highly regarded by Levitz. Of course, purely personal speculation, this could also be a moment for someone like Jim Shooter to step in. He's been rather quiet recently, hasn't he? Any comment on this article, fan or pro alike would be well received. The usual address, twisting@hotmail.com will suffice. The Other Shoe Plummets. X-Fan at http://www1.fandom.com/X-Men reports the cancellation of both New Warriors and X-51 as originally rumoured on Ramblings 2000, making a clean sweep of that first rumoured cancellation list. But is it the end? Regular rumourmonger Lt_Kali reported in with the same news just before the second cancellation was announced. Credits Due. The latest X-Men (issue 99), although this time actually credited with a scripter (Terry Kavanagh) has, again, fallen victim to accusations of actually being written by Chris Claremont. It's less clear cut this time... and the actual credit does make me believe that Kavanagh actually had a hand in this, but the verbosity of script, and a selection of choice Claremontisms makes another good case that Claremont has returned to the X-books before his credit catches up with him. Cover Charge We were the first to bring you news of the last internal Image memo, right? Well that place is leaking like a sieve at the moment... We have received the following memo, from a source we believe to be trustworthy, which we reprint for your pleasure. VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION VARIANT COVERS/TOUR BOOKS Beginning with JUNE, 2000 solicited books Image will be imposing a $300 per cover for any/all Variant, alternate, incentive cover and any/all "tour"/"convention" book (regardless who the client is--from Tower Records on down). While we understand that these items continue to sell and make people money and that's a good thing. This office has never been recompensed for the extra time and effort in trafficking, billing and the myriad shipping problems they cause. We are not going to say you can't. We are going to say that they are a tracking nightmare for us--and we ain't doin' it fo' free no mo'! The only EXCEPTION to this will be straight 50/50 cover splits (cause they're easy.) Oh, and BTW, this also holds true for PARTNER as well as Image Central books! RESOLICITATIONS: If a book is resolicited (either due to lateness or due to low initial orders) you will be charged one half of the page rate plus full original solicitation cost (so $2500+$1250=$3750.) Realistic scheduling has it's own rewards. Okay people, interesting memo... let's dissect it. Image has never quite had the variant cover obsession that other companies have had... well not since Rob left anyway. Again on constant cancellation and resolicitation, there's far greater culprits. Even so, this is responsible publishing, even if it's expressed purely for short-term financial reasons as opposed to a long-term brand building decision. A good thing all round I reckon... now if only the likes of Marvel, Avatar and Awesome would learn from their example. Dateline: 22 Feb 2000 DC Back Atcha! She of the not-amused Queen Victoria variety, DC press-person-to-perfection Patty Jeres was quick to rebuff the rather-Marvel-biased allegations about DC's future. Brief and to the point, Patty stated "All you recount below is total nonsense." You know, some people could say that about the whole column, Patty, not just the article. X-Shaman writer, Steven Grant also had an opinion. That backed up our own comment on the rumour. "I don't have any inside information, but it sounds like bullshit to me. For one thing, it presumes Time Warner GIVES a rat's ass about DC, which it doesn't... I hear variations on this same rumor about every six months, and it hasn't happened yet..." As do I, Steven. But I couldn't pass this one up. Indeed, there was one person who replied confirming much of the rumour. But then their e-address was a free-web-mail one that parodied the title of this rumour, accusing me of ego mania... me? An ego maniac? Only I could think up such a thing. All hail DC! Long may she reign! Talking of which, I've got this great mini-series proposal for the Gas Gang, in which they put out their own perfume range in an attempt to conquer the world... or did they do that one already? Feeding The Worm A while back, Ramblings mentioned The Worm, a comic strip book plotted by Alan Moore (the plot and script excerpts are reprinted at the back), written by the likes of Garth Ennis, Jamie Delano and drawn by luminaries including Simon Bisley, Dave Gibbons, Hunt Emerson, David Lloyd, Al Davison, John Bolton, Kevin O'Neill and more, with translation into French and Swedish, came out in the UK this past month for ten pounds. It'll be out in the US in March for twenty dollars... quite a harsh exchange rate for North American types... well Twist And Shout are arranging a better exchange rate, bringing the price down to under $17. To order your copy when it's released, go to http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/189986637X/twistandshoutcomA/ - go on, fit that into your browser. While I'm In A Capitalist Mood... I'm selling a lot of comics. About 10 long boxes have got to go. I've put a whole load on the web at http://www.geocities.com/evenwood/sale.html which you're welcome to browse through. But keep a pen and paper handy as I don't have the technology to do shopping baskets... Scroll through stuff alphabetically, or choose prominent creators whose work I've spotlighted. But no prices? that's right... if you choose one or two comics, it might cost you close to guide price. However, if you want to take a load off me, I'll be doing some slashing to the bone. And every order gets free comics of my own choosing (guaranteed no . Feel free to make any enquiries to giantbids@hotmail.com and I'll see what I can do. ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [6] Interview with John Ostrander Tim O'Shea tim_jen@mindspring.com [Tim O'Shea is a 31-year old desktop publisher who lives in Atlanta with his wife and four-month old son. Tim, who has been reading comic books on a weekly basis since 1977, thinks he's the only rabid comic book fan who intends never to attend a convention.] Hot on the heels of the news that his Western series, BLAZE OF GLORY, had sold out, industry veteran writer John Ostrander took part in a quick Q&A about his previous, ongoing and upcoming projects. I'd like to thank John for the interview.-Tim O'Shea CBEM: As evidenced by Martian Manhunter (MM) #17 and throughout the series, the reader's been shown that J'onn has a slew of alter egos. When first developing the series did you sit down and make a list of all the alter egos you'd want to use, or did you have the general idea in your mind with the intent to develop different alter egos as opportunities presented themselves? OSTRANDER: To be honest, after we got the MARTIAN MANHUNTER, we had very little time at start to do much long term thinking or developing. Given how they wanted to launch the book (tie-ing in with the DC 1 Million crossover), we started behind schedule and had to do a lot of thinking as we went along. Early on, we wanted to develop a series of primary alter-egos for J'onn to switch around in but that soon proved unwieldy. We'd always be creating new alter egos and it didn't serve a useful purpose, not in an ongoing book. It was an interesting idea so long as J'onn was only a supporting or team player. It sometimes works like that -- things that are great ideas as CONCEPTS don't work for an ongoing monthly book. So we decided to make the JLA his supporting cast while we thought more about J'onn and got more things together. The multiple alter egos idea turned into a millstone pretty fast for us. CBEM: OK, this is one of those "think long-term" questions. You and Tom Mandrake crafted THE SPECTRE until both of you felt the series had reached its logical closure. Anyone that read MM Issue One Million (THE ABYSS OF TIME) knows that ultimately J'onn becomes Mars to save the planet. How much have you plotted out from the current storyline to his Mars transformation? If left to your own devices as well as supported by sales, how long could the Martian Manhunter go? OSTRANDER: Keep in mind that the DC One Million story was only our second issue. Also, the idea that he melds with the planet Mars was handed to me as a fait accompli. That was already part of the crossover story, an important part, so I had to deal with it. Left to my own devices, I would not have made J'onn's future so cut and dried and laid out. If the reader already knows that J'onn lives that long, it's hard to create a credible threat to him. So I decided what we would do is lay hints to a possible future and go from there. But we really haven't plotted out to that. There is a basic difference between SPECTRE and MARTIAN MANHUNTER. The Spectre was a neglected character who nobody could make work. We had a clear vision and basically won permission to make the character our own and finish out the story. J'onn was and is an active character in the DCU, part of the JLA, and one we would have to share. J'onn is going to be around long after Tom and I get done telling OUR stories so we can't really write a finish to him, other than the one we have seen appear. As to how long could it go or how long we would be on it -- Tom and I like long runs so figure at least three years unless sales say otherwise. CBEM: That being said, whenever you finish the series, what are the odds you and Tom would consider reviving Marvel's long-abandoned (and abused) Doctor Strange? I once read an interview where you expressed a fondness for the character. (and I would love to see how Tom might portray the eye of Agamotto). OSTRANDER: Well, Tom and I both love DR. STRANGE but a lot would depend on Marvel. That really isn't for us to say. CBEM: GOTHAM KNIGHTS I AND II were really enjoyable projects that you did with the artist Mary Mitchell a few years back. Then I seem to remember Mitchell doing a fill-in issue of Heroes for Hire. Will she be filling-in on an issue of MM anytime soon? Are there any other projects you two might do together in the future? Personally I'd love to see her do an issue where rather than it starring J'onn proper, it featured one of his alter ego's adventures, namely Big Doof. OSTRANDER: Mary is working toward a career in children's books right now. Might we be able to lure her back for a story? That would depend on what and where. I love working with Mary and I think she is an incredible talent. Pretty great person, too. CBEM: You closed the door on Corrigan Spectre with your final issue. Could you ever envision the new Spectre making a guest appearance in MM? On pages 13 and 17 of MM Issue One Million, we see a Spectre in the midst of a far-flung future battle. Did you plan for that to be Corrigan or some other incarnation of Spectre (or is this too much of a fanboyish question to even answer)? OSTRANDER: The Spectre of the future was something that Tom threw in. I would expect it to be someone other than Corrigan. OTOH, we're doing a series of one- issue stories set in the time between when J'onn first came to Earth and the start of JLA Year One. In one issue, he runs across a private detective named - Jim Corrigan. Could the Spectre be far behind? Probably not. Look for it, I think, around issue 23. CBEM: Your portrayal of DEO agent Chase seems consistent with her short-lived series. Is this due to good research on your part or did you actually consult with D. Curtis Johnson about his character? OSTRANDER: Read and enjoyed the series CHASE. He did a dynamite Amanda Waller in one issue. CBEM: In the Rings of Saturn storyline just completed in MM, J'onn physically and mentally "becomes one" with Jemm's betrothed, Cha'rissa. Will there be repercussions from this, given that Jemm later "becomes one" with her as well, seemingly then learning of J'onn's and Cha'rissa's "indiscretion"? OSTRANDER: You're assuming that, with these alien cultures, it would be viewed as an "indiscretion." Alien people, alien culture, different values. Given that --both J'onn and Cha'rissa are not pursuing their relationship, given that she is now married to Jemm. CBEM: J'onn is a character that's been knocking around the DC Universe since the mid-1950s. Have you ever considered using any of the storylines from his DETECTIVE COMICS or HOUSE OF MYSTERY days as a springboard to a modern-day update or variation (a TIMES PAST tale of sorts)? OSTRANDER: Not at this time. If I find something of interest from the past, I might use it. DIANE MEADE, his former partner when he was a cop, should be showing up after issue 24. The stories printed in the past are only of interest to me if they have a bearing on what I'm doing NOW. CBEM: What is the status on QALIBAN, a DC monthly book that you were developing with Jan Duursema? I know you two are currently working on a mystery issue of STAR WARS for Dark Horse. OSTRANDER: Nothing going forward with QALIBAN at this time although I'm really keen on the STAR WARS story we're doing. I think it is going to be excellent. CBEM: What (if anything) can you tell us about your upcoming JUSTICE LEAGUE project? Has an artist been selected? Can we assume J'onn will appear? OSTRANDER: Don't think I can really discuss the projects just yet although you can be sure J'onn will be a significant part of them. CBEM: On to your Marvel work, how hard is it given the sci-fi nature to your other current work (MARTIAN and STAR WARS) to shift your writing style into something like a Western? OSTRANDER: A story is a story and each has its own challenges and difficulties as well as pleasures in writing. The genre doesn't matter that much to me. Actually, shifting gears is fun as it keeps everything fresher. CBEM: While THE KENTS was more historically based, BLAZE OF GLORY seemed to draw slightly less upon historical context while juggling the Marvel Western continuity at the same time. Does this make BLAZE more challenging to write than THE KENTS? OSTRANDER: No, actually. THE KENTS was more demanding because I was trying to work in so much actual history and be as accurate as I could, given the story I was telling. With BLAZE, I simply used the elements of Marvel continuity which I liked and disregarded or changed the rest. I freely admit I haven't read EVERY Marvel Western ever printed, nor even every story about these characters. I read enough to get a feel for them and then to create my spin on the characters and make them fresh, exciting, and interesting to modern readers. BLAZE was more like a MOVIE Western (deliberately so) while the KENTS tried to be more of a historical western, like a miniseries. CBEM: I know that Western heroes lived by a different code than their modern-day counterparts. While I'll concede that Kid Colt is an "outlaw" hero, it still disturbed me when he killed two men who'd holstered their weapons in issue 2 of BLAZE. In THE KENTS it was often seemingly clear who was "good" or "evil" in the series, with the possible exception of Jeb Kent. By still riding with Colt can the other gunslingers still be considered "heroes"? OSTRANDER: Interesting question and a fair one and one that should be answered by each reader according to their own individual beliefs. Are they "heroes"? In some ways. Even Kid Colt. They're also outlaws. They are all flawed. They are the PROTAGONISTS -- not necessarily "heroes." That's what made it a more interesting story CBEM: Do you have any desire to author a monthly Western series for either Marvel or DC? OSTRANDER: Sure. Desire is one thing -- opportunity is another. But Marvel may be interested in a follow up to BLAZE so maybe we'll continue to lay groundwork. CBEM: Is BLAZE an attempt to clarify some of the more confusing Marvel Western continuity and origins, laying the groundwork for a monthly? OSTRANDER: Actually, it was an attempt to make a CODA to the Western characters, showing how some of them died. I didn't expect to have a chance to do another series and I still don't know if I can. If I was going to have one shot at doing a Marvel Western, I wanted it to be big. CBEM: When QUICKSILVER ended abruptly had you gotten to say all you had wanted to with the character? How about with HEROES FOR HIRE (H4H)? In both cases, the series ended too soon for me. OSTRANDER: Me as well. On QUICKSILVER, Joe Edkin and I had just finished clearing away the tangle we had inherited. We never really got around to our own version of the character. As for H4H -- I had LOTS more I wanted to do. CBEM: Could you please elaborate on the plans you had for Quicksilver and/or also H4H? OSTRANDER: Well, on H4H, we were going to do a storyline that would've brought the original Invaders back together again for a one issue story. We were going to follow through on the Black Knight/Avalon stuff and build into K'Un L'Un coming to this temporal plane and what Danny would have had to do to prevent it or reverse it. Oh, and I was going to bring the "narrator" back on board. Probably a few shifts in line-up here and there, maybe bring Hercules back. As for Quicksilver, Joe Edkin and I wanted to examine his speed abilities and define them in ways that would have made him unique from all other speedsters, building heavily on his heritage. More than that I don't wish to say. CBEM: In a semi-related question, do you think DC is able to give its new books more of a chance than Marvel, due to Marvel's financial troubles of recent years? OSTRANDER: No, not really. Because of the state of the industry, everyone is keeping a tight eye on the books and the numbers these days. CBEM: I believe you were the first person to utilize the original Human Torch (Jim Hammond) since John Byrne revived him in WEST COAST AVENGERS. In H4H did you plan on completely returning his powers, or did you prefer writing Hammond as a former superhero trying to cope in the "real world."? OSTRANDER: The plan had been to allow him to throw fireballs but not return to full flaming torch activities. I firmly believe there should only be ONE of a given character in a given universe. CBEM: I enjoyed the narrative style you employed in H4H and was sad to see it abandoned toward the end, I assume due to complaints by some readers. Could you ever see a book where you would try utilizing it again? OSTRANDER: Actually, we were going to bring back our "Narrator" to H4H but the book got canceled before we could. Do it again elsewhere? Hurm. Would depend on the book. CBEM: Once when interviewed about people you'd like to work with but had not, you mentioned Walter Simonson. With Mr. Simonson set to relaunch ORION in April for DC, would you ever consider doing a back-up New Gods tale for that title (much like the old Lee/Kirby Tales of Asgard back-up that often ran in THOR and Simonson's own back-up tale in John Byrne's run of JACK KIRBY'S NEW GODS?) You're no stranger to Darkseid given the pivotal role he plays in J'onn's future as revealed in the "already over-referenced in this interview" ABYSS OF TIME. OSTRANDER: I wouldn't be opposed to doing a back-up. We'll see if DC is interested. BTW, you'll be seeing more of Apokolips and some of Darkseid in the next Martian Manhunter two-parter which also features the JSA. CBEM: I know that prior to entering the comic book industry you were a playwright. Are you still involved with theater? OSTRANDER: No, not at this time. Other than, for the new season of Upright Citizen's brigade, I provided the narration for the opening titles. CBEM: What is your connection to the Comedy Central show Upright Citizen's Brigade? In other words, how did your voiceover of the intro come about? OSTRANDER: They called me. Del Close was their mentor and had previously done the voiceover but he died. At a memorial service it came out that I did a fair Del Close impersonation and that's what they were after. That's the long and short of it. CBEM: You once mentioned in an interview that you like to listen to music in your free time. What kind of music do you enjoy? OSTRANDER: All kinds although I have a LOT of soundtrack movie CDs. CBEM: Is there anything that you'd like to discuss that I may have not asked about? OSTRANDER: Just to point out that I'm VERY high on the TWILIGHT story I'm doing in the STAR WARS monthly book, starting with issue 19. It's a mystery and the art by Jan Duursema is VERY good. Also, I think the REVELATIONS issues in MARTIAN MANHUNTER are going to be way cool. We'll feature guest stars like Superman, Batman, and the Spectre, and the Abin Sur Green Lantern (which will be drawn by TIM TRUMAN). We'll also be doing a story about J'onn and the JLI and reveal all about the Oreos in a special issue drawn by DOUG MAHNKE. I promise you that will be very strange. CBEM: Thanks very much for your time. OSTRANDER: Hope this is of some interest. ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [7] HEY KIDS, COMICS! Steve Bennett SBenn13300@aol.com [ Hi, my name is Steve (S. A.) Bennett. I use to write comic books 'back in the day' (as the kids say) and am currently the manager of Dark Star III in Beavercreek, Ohio. For the last year, I've been writing a monthly comics column for non-comics readers in Dayton's free newspaper, Impact Weekly. Predictably, I chose to write about the lack of racial diversity in mainstream American comics, and the more I wrote, the more upset I got.] HEY KIDS, COMICS! LET'S GO TO THE RACIAL DIVERSITY SCOREBOARD... It would be all too predictable for me to use Black History Month as an excuse to write about how mainstream comics deals with racial diversity -- but I will anyway. The short answer is; ddismally. The entire industry, from those who own the companies to the creators of the heroes to the heroes to their readers, is about as diverse as a CMT video. Marvel Comics has the best track record, beginning in the mid 1960s, they introduced both black supporting characters and heroes, ranging from The Black Panther (who predated the Black Power organization of the same name) to Storm and Bishop, members of the X-Men (itself a 'take' on prejudice, mutants filling in for minorities). And a recent storyline in Avengers had the superhero group being picketed by black protesters for its' Rinso white lineup (of course, they were being manipulated by an evil organization, rather than being understandably upset about its lack of black members). The more conservative DC started later, but produced the classic 'relevant' issues of GREEN LANTERN/GREEN ARROW in the 70's which dealt with issues like racism, and also introduced the companies' first black hero, Green Lantern John Stewart. The 90's saw the arrival of Steel, who filled in for Superman when he was temporarily dead and went on to get is own title and big screen movie. Marvel superhero groups usually have at least one minority member, a tokenism preferable to DC's usually all-white teams (I'm not sure the Titans member Cyborg counts, as he's recently evolved into a golden liquid metal form). Also troubling is the lack of villains; black heroes will have black villains, but they rarely face white heroes, and Batman seems to face only white criminals -- though that's going to change. In the upcoming one-shot, BATMAN: THE HILL, written by Christopher Priest (a rare black comics writer), the Dark Knight has to face an inner city neighborhood with no fear of him. There have been attempts to make mainstream comics more diverse; in the early 90's companies like Milestone and Motown (yes, an imprint of the music company) produced comics that not only featured black heroes, but multicultural supporting casts that attempted to reflect the real world. Unfortunately, they had the misfortune of starting up just as the industry suffered a recession and have since ceased publication (though Milestone is poised for a comeback; one of their heroes, STATIC, is being considered for the Kids WB Fall TV schedule). But for the most part, mainstream comics remain staggeringly white. I took a 'core sampling' at random, looking at sixteen Marvel/DC comics scheduled to appear the week of February 16th and found that only sixteen African-Americans appeared. One starred a black hero (BISHOP), three were superhero groups with black members (X-MEN, THUNDER BOLTS, GENERATION X) or had a black hero in a supporting role (SUPERMAN, MAN OF STEEL). The remaining eleven were limited to either small roles and figures in the background. One sign of hope is the change taking place within the complexion of comic book creators. Say whatever else you want to about it, the comic book industry has always been color blind (in both senses), with no real history of excluding anyone able to produce and accept the page rates. In the last ten years, Hispanic and Asian creators have made considerable inroads into a predominately white field, which is partially why when minority characters do appear, they're more likely to be Hispanic or Asian than black (it's also partially because comics reflect popular culture's sudden, schizophrenic fascination with those ethnic groups). But the bottom line is, working black comics professionals remain a distinct minority, and that's reflected in the comics themselves. Like network television, the industry could use the threat of an NAACP boycott (it's a pity comics are beneath their notice) to serve as a wake-up call. As with televisions' limited color scheme, I don't believe this is the work of institutionalized racism as much as sheer laziness and that making the major companies aware of the situation is preferable to establishing racial quota's for superheroes of their creators. So sadly, comic books do reflect the reality of two distinct America's which may overlap, but rarely connect. If you want to see what messages are really being transmitted through the culture, you need to go down to its' entry level; soap operas, wrestling, video games, cartoons, comic books. Though frequently blamed for coarsening society, they can't afford to get too far ahead of the general public for fear of alienating them. And it seems perfectly acceptable that there are millions of Americans are under represented to the point of invisibility. The superhero is all about empowerment; I want to believe if you changed it's image, social change would follow. ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [8] HAD YOUR PHIL? PHIL WHITE ogre4@earthlink.net [Phil has written and edited numerous comics for AC, including MS. VICTORY and BOLT. He self-published the four part OGRE limited series and has been a contributor to CBG and CBEM. After many years as a Marketing and Advertising manager in Southern California, he recently moved to Northern Nevada where he works as a sales representative for a specialty software firm.] As I write this column it is Grammy award night. (I'm pulling for Kid Rock to win either best new talent or rock categories.) But, what, you may be asking, does music have to do with comics? If you are like me, you probably enjoy listening to music while reading your four-color wonders. Movie soundtracks are my personal favorite while reading or writing. I've been collecting film scores for scores of years if you'll pardon the expression. The very first soundtrack I purchased was Maurice Jarre's Lawrence of Arabia, way back in 1962 at the age of 13. Next came John Barry's James Bond albums and I haven't stopped buying since. Most recently I purchased the soundtrack to Desperado. Of course, I don't limit my comic book listening to soundtracks. To this day, hearing certain albums or songs from the past brings comic book images to my mind. When I hear Jefferson Airplane's "Surrealist Pillow," I flash back to a Kingpin story where Spidey and J. J. Jameson are chained together in a cell being flooded with water. The first two albums by The Doors bring up images of Iron Man and Captain America's epics from Tales of Suspense. I'll always associate the soundtrack to Our Man Flint with Steranko's S.H.I.E.L.D. adventures. The Moody Blues take me back to the adventures of Dr. Strange, as well as to the Carlos Castenada books that I was reading while listening to Nights in White Satin. I was going through an Emerson, Lake & Palmer and Rick Wakeman phase while reading comic adaptations of Robert E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian and King Kull. It was a time of high fantasy for me, with Michael Moorcock's Elric and Eternal Champion books. Music helps me loosen up and get focused when I work. While writing superhero comics for AC Comics, I listened to John Williams' Superman soundtrack. (In fact, I've worn out that particular album twice, once on LP and once on CD. Now I have two copies, just in case.) When I wrote the four issue Ogre series, I was looking for mood music with a gritty urban feel. Pearl Jam's first album and Nirvana's "In Utero" set the tone for that title. I just can't imagine comics without music. Music within comics is an entirely different matter. Writers who try to squeeze music into their stories are, more often than not, doomed to failure. Too often, it feels like the writer is pandering to this other media, trying to draft it into a medium where it does not work or belong. There are many comic book creators who are frustrated musical muses. How many artist or writers do you know of who play in a band? How many of those bands are popular or even known. (Personally, I hope I never have to listen to Peter David sing again.) When Rick Jones became a wandering minstrel, it meant nothing to the reader and added zip to the stories. It was more an excuse of why Rick was missing. Sure, there were lyrics printed, but without the music to go with them, they were merely bad poetry. No matter what a writer did with the character, Dazzler could never capture the popular beat of Disco. Comic book artist are often challenged when having to portray rock bands authentically. Just as Jack Kirby continued to depict the "man on the street" wearing a fedora at a time when men no longer wore hats other than an occasional baseball cap, most artists will draw a stereotype image of rock stars_ one that often harkens back to beatniks. It has always struck me as odd when someone who is successful as an entertainer, tries to crash into the comics medium as a superhero character. Especially given the lousy track record for such endeavors. (They are almost as doomed to creative failure as sports figures, but that is another column.) There have been cases where real musicians were portrayed in comics successfully. The first that comes to my mind was the Alice Cooper story in Marvel Premier #50. The story concentrated on themes from Coopers songs, rather than trying to adapt the songs themselves. Cooper, who was supposed to be insane and kept in a straightjacket, was the only sane person in the comic. It was played for humor, just as most of Cooper's music makes fun of Satanism and the dark side. Thank heavens Alice didn't done a cape and become Captain Cooper. I understand that the more recent Kiss Psycho Circus did well sales wise, at least for a while. The current writer who has demonstrated no small success at melding music and lyrics within the context of his story is Terry Moore in Strangers in Paradise, where the lyrics to songs are an integral part of the story. Moore often includes sheet music. Most of the time, however, we get duds, like Michael Jackson's Captain EO. Singers are doomed to failure within the comic book medium, especially when portrayed as something that they are not, like a superhero. That's why I got such a laugh reading that Stan Lee is forming a partnership with the Back Street Boys to create a superhero team based on members of the group. Comics are a medium oriented to young males that, more often than not, fails when trying to import or translate musical entertainment or entertainers. The Back Street Boys is a pop group oriented to young females. We are talking oil and water. Of course, Stan's projects are planned for the Internet, not just as comic books to hawk at concerts. Should Lee actually start producing something besides e- commerce investors and should the Back Street Boys win over Kid Rock at tonight's Grammys_ No, my opinion remains. A Back Street Boys Superhero comic will probably suck lemons. Phil White PS. Now that I'm finished with this week's column, I'll listen to the soundtrack For a Few Dollars More by Ennio Morricone while posting comics for sale on ebay and updating my website at: http://home.earthlink.net/~ogre4/ ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [9] Multiverse Observer and Explorer Reviews Paul Dale Roberts silhouet9@aol.com [Paul promotes amateur and professional comic book artwork, scripts, storylines, and unpublished comic books with a newsletter called the Peoples' Comic Book Newsletter. Its website is at Jazma Comic Book Newsletter Productions at http://www.jazmaonline.com/ He is also a prominent letter hack, as anyone who reads comic letter pages would know. He is in production of his own self-published comic book called The Legendary Dark Silhouette and has copyrighted over 600 characters for his Jazma Universe.] Name: Frank Miller's Hell and Back 8 of 9 Publisher: Dark Horse Maverick Written and Drawn by: Frank Miller Price: $2.95 Comments: Wallace pursuit of Esther has become maddening as he lays waste to Maxine. Graphic images come to my mind, knowing that she has had her brains blown out and the pleading of Esther. Esther pleads are not heard, as her demise is inevitable. The scene shift to the luscious and lavishing Mariah and her off-orange colors was somewhat distracting from the story. Mariah reminds me of La Femme Nikita in her aggressiveness and as ruthless as Arnold Swarzenegger in the first Terminator movie, as she pinpoints the eye of Dr. Fredric and punctures it with a sickening sound that could only derive from the deepest pits of hell. 'My Blind Date' with a throwback on Mariah was nothing what I expected. As Josh is stuttering to make a date with Nisha, not knowing that soon afterwards he would be entranced by the seductive powers of Mariah. The echoes of 'loser' fade from Josh's mind as he rides with Mariah in her elegant Ferrari. Mariah doesn't just want to be 'friends' to Josh - she wants a whole lot more. Then when I thought for sure good ol' Josh was going to be seduced by this siren, he instead gets his both arms broken. The echoes of 'loser' reiterate back into his mind. Josh's father after visiting his son, sought out the truth and that truth becomes reality as the alluring Mariah accosts him. Hell and Back 8 of 9 gave me a feeling of dread; it was a story that stayed in my mind for quite a long time after reading it. When this occurs, this is a sure sign of superb storytelling. This is truly 'Hell and Back". Hell comes in all images, shapes and forms and this story gives the reader a taste of it all! Wallace seeks out Esther and where this will lead, is anyone's guess. I'm going to hate seeing this story end! As there is 1001 Stories of the Naked City, there are even more stories of Sin City, this is only one of them! Name: Promethea - Warrior Princess of Hy Brasil #6 Publisher: America's Best Comics Written by: Alan Moore Drawn by: J.H. Williams III - pencils // Mick Gray - inks Price: $2.95 Comments: Enjoy the mythos on Promethea and most likely the mythos originates from Greek mythology. Promethea derives (my theory) from Prometheus. Prometheus was the Titan who steals fire for the benefit of mankind. Zeus retaliates by chaining Prometheus to a rock where a vulture eats his liver every day and each night his liver grows back. The unknown originating writer took the male name of Prometheus and changes it to the female version of the name Promethea. The rest becomes history and the legend continues. Grace Brannagh so far is my favorite Promethea. I don't quite see how Sophie Bangs is going to make the grade as a Promethea, but I guess time will tell. The legendary land of Hy Brasil may have repeats with the Manigators and the severed heads, but it is still a place to marvel. A place with incredible blood roosters, islands in the sky and fish who swim in the atmosphere. Like the "Wizard of Oz", the great Marto Neptura projects his image in the sky, to make himself appear to be a god. As most writers who create a universe and populate their universe with strange entities, creatures and whatnot, have found themselves placed on a godly pedestal. I believe this is what Alan Moore is trying to lay down in his story. Grace Brannagh criticizes Marto Neptura's repeats in his story along with his bad grammar, but still there is plenty of originality to go around. Take for example the leech leaves. This takes plenty of imagination to think of falling leaves that look innocent in appearance and when they land on your skin turn a reddish color. Why? Because, they are biting and sucking your blood. Good thing, this is only an imaginary story, I shudder to think what would occur on a windy autumn day! The beheadings brought about by 'the' Promethea was grotesque, but I found myself still looking as the Manigators were instantly slaughtered. Promethea has the true warrior spirit and that is one of the reasons why I am favoring her the most. Sophie Bangs has plenty to be thankful for, the Manigators have a "Jeffrey Dahlmer" mentality as they were describing how they were going to eat Sophie. I was surprised that they didn't say they were going to cut off her fingers, spice it up with some Louisiana hotsauce and have "hot fingers", which is similar to your popular "hotwings". Sophie may be unconscious in the real world, but she is now experiencing something that will change her life dramatically. Sophie's knowledge on Promethea pulp fiction, may be useful for her, when she takes over the mantle of Promethea. Again, this has been a most fascinating read and Promethea - Warrior Princess of Hy Brasil #6 is the prelude to a direction of unknown bearings. I am mystified in knowing where this story will take me, I guess I have to wait and see! Name: A Shadowlander's Dream - Chapter Two: Death's Corridor #1 Publisher: Kat & Neko Manga Price: $2.50 Written and Drawn by: Kathryn Williams Comments: The colored covers are getting better and better with each issue! This colored cover has a glossy look to it with bright colors on the character and a shadowy background. Very well done. The story so far..."Five years ago young Hitarino Kima discovered a way to pass from reality to a land at the edge of Dream. While there she became close friends with many strange and unusual people. It didn't last, (nothing good ever does), and Kima ended up returning to an abusive home with little memory of her past or how to get back to her new found friends". Kima wakes up and says to herself "What? I'm 9 years old again?" Her memory being foggy, she wonders if the last 5 years has been a nightmare. She wonders if Neko, Jenn, Leinala were all figments of her imagination. Leinala-Chan makes her appearance to Kima and the shocking element of this story is that Leinala-Chan is dead! Leinala-Chan relates a very important message to Kima. As she gets this message across, an angel called 'Angelina-sama' waits for her to finish. In this story, you will learn more about the "Sphere of Dream and the mysterious Shadowlands. The story is enticing and will keep you coming back for more! Check out the website at: http://come.to/shadowlander'sdream or email them at either: neko_haruka@hotmail.com or kakabel@hotmail.com ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [10] My View David LeBlanc ComicBkNet@aol.com [David LeBlanc is the Editor of the Comic Book Net Electronic Magazine. He is a long time fan of comics and the electronic media - having been the moderator of the comics forums on WME, FIDONET and the Comic Book Network. He and his wife are attempting to raise two teenage sons in a suburb of Worcester, Massachusetts. David supports his comic book habit by working as the Manager of Marketing and Sales for a privately owned manufacturer of electro-mechanical components.] ZZZ #1 (March 2000) 32 pages, black & white, $2.35/$3.75 CAN Created and published by: Alan Bunce 66 Pacific Avenue#1509 Toronto, ON Canada M6P 2P4 ABUNCE@ISTAR.CA First you should know that this is not just the first effort from a new self-publisher. Mr. Bunce has spent 20 years designing, laying out, storyboarding, writing and directing animation. He has worked on INSPECTOR GADGET, BEETLEJUICE, EEK THE CAT, and STICKIN' AROUND. He directed BABAR THE MOVIE in 1989. Peter David and John Jackson Miller have both gave ZZZ high recommendations in their CBG columns. I too suggest you look for this comic in March, while you can still get it. This one is not like any other comic book you will find. It is a slapstick pantomime dream sequence in storyboard format. Indeed, Alan's years in animation production have shown through his art in his ability to draw sequential art so that it comes alive. It is about a little guy with a mustache who dreams of being chased by an arabian in what can only be described as a cartoon fantasy. Sometimes the scenery changes, sometimes the arabian changes, and nothing is predictable through the whole thing. You would think that 32 pages of this would get repetitive or boring but it holds your interest all the way. One part I enjoyed a lot was a series with our hero opening an arabian doll to find another inside and another inside that and on and on until there is a biting surprise in the middle. Fans of good cartooning, like that of Sergio Aragones, will thoroughly enjoy ZZZ. And after all, with a title like that you know it will be easy to find alphabetically - just go to the end of the rack! The next issue will be out this summer and then bimonthly afterward. Alan hopes to do nothing but this the rest of his life and don't be surprised if you hear more about it from the San Diego Comicon this year. It's that good. ______________________________________________________________________ ----------------------------------------------------------------------- [11] TOP 100 COMICS - February 2000 Diamond Comic Distributors Rankings are based on orders placed by retailers and reflect total units ordered not dollar values of total ordered. Unit prices are given for reference only. This is NOT a list of comics that sold the most copies to the consumers - it is a list of ORDERS by DEALERS. Rank Title Cost Pub 1 UNCANNY X-MEN #379 $1.99 MAR 2 X-MEN #99 $1.99 MAR 3 WOLVERINE #149 $1.99 MAR 4 ARIA/ANGELA: HEAVENLY CREATURES #1 $2.95 IMA 5 AVENGERS #27 $2.99 MAR 6 JLA #40 $1.99 DC 7 PUNISHER #1 $2.99 MAR 8 SPAWN #95 $1.95 IMA 9 DAREDEVIL #11 (RES) $2.50 MAR 10 DAREDEVIL #12 (RES) $2.50 MAR 11 BATGIRL #1 $2.50 DC 12 EARTH X #12 $2.99 MAR 13 FATHOM #11 $2.50 IMA 14 FANTASTIC FOUR #28 $1.99 MAR 15 AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #16 $1.99 MAR 16 THOR #22 $1.99 MAR 17 PETER PARKER: SPIDER-MAN #16 $1.99 MAR 18 IRON MAN #27 $1.99 MAR 19 BATMAN: DARK VICTORY #5 $2.95 DC 20 CAPTAIN AMERICA #28 $1.99 MAR 21 BATMAN #576 $1.99 DC 22 CABLE #78 $1.99 MAR 23 STEAMPUNK STANDARD EDITION #1 $2.50 DC 24 MUTANT X #18 $1.99 MAR 25 DETECTIVE COMICS #743 $2.50 DC 26 X-MEN: CHILDREN OF THE ATOM #5 $2.99 MAR 27 JSA #9 $2.50 DC 28 SOUL SAGA #2 $2.50 IMA 29 BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHTS #2 $2.50 DC 30 X-FORCE #101 $1.99 MAR 31 NIGHTWING #42 $1.99 DC 32 BATMAN: LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #128 $1.99 DC 33 WITCHBLADE #38 $2.50 IMA 34 X-MEN: THE HIDDEN YEARS #5 $2.50 MAR 35 GENERATION X #62 $1.99 MAR 36 GREEN LANTERN #123 $1.99 DC 37 FLASH #159 $1.99 DC 38 SUPERMAN #155 $1.99 DC 39 E.V.E. PROTOMECHA #1 $2.50 IMA 40 INCREDIBLE HULK #13 $1.99 MAR 41 PREACHER #60 (MR) $2.50 DC 42 ACTION COMICS #764 $1.99 DC 43 DARKMINDS VOL 2 #1 $2.50 IMA 44 GAMBIT #15 $1.99 MAR 45 THUNDERBOLTS #37 $1.99 MAR 46 WILDCATS VOL. 2 #8 $2.50 DC 47 SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL #99 $1.99 DC 48 ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN #577 $1.99 DC 49 MUTANT X 2000 $3.50 MAR 50 SIN CITY: HELL AND BACK #8 (MR) $2.95 DAR 51 JLA: CREATED EQUAL #1 $5.95 DC 52 WARLANDS #7 $2.50 IMA 53 X-MAN #62 $1.99 MAR 54 J