Tuesday Post Part 1- Being a Comic Book Fan

So as many people who know me, and as anyone reading this blog know by now, I am an avid comic book fan.  Mostly I follow comics from the big two (Marvel & DC) with a few exceptions here and there.  As a comic book fan, especially of the big two, I have many favorite characters that have existed for decades upon decades.  Some who are reading this may like books who feature the same protagonist over a large amount of years, even being written by different authors.  Those folks will probably understand better about the issues that many comic fans deal with when a new writer comes onto their favorite title, or a reboot or relaunch or big change happens in a comic universe or comic line.  Recently I was at San Diego Comic Con and at a Marvel panel they made a jab at DC and their propensity to have events that either reboot their history or continuity, or fix some problems that have come up.  Marvel has never done any reboots but have done what is called ret-cons (changing continuity retroactively) to varying degrees.  However, after reflecting on what was said at the Marvel panel, I realized reboots or ret-cons are flamboyant ways to discussing what happens all the time in comics....a new writer does something new with a classic character.

To fans of comic books or even just books as well as television and movies, really two things matter the most: plot and characters.  Some of are more concerned with one over the other, some of us like those two simple, others more complex.  However, it really boils down to those two elements.  I want Bruce Wayne/Batman to sound, think and act in an essential way like the Batman I have been reading for over a decade.  And good writers, will create a plot that engage and challenge those characters in interesting and enticing ways.  Sure, writers will sometimes take a character when they are older or younger than the norm, or might change some part of their back story that might affect the character in a way that hasn't been seen before; for example when DC rebooted it's continuity, they now have a young Superman, who was an orphan by the time he was 18 and starts working for a rival to the Daily Planet.  It's a twist on what is expected, but it doesn't truly change the essential of a character.  Some fans will always be upset at change - no matter how small or how cool or how interesting.  However, most fans get truly upset not at changes or twists, or even the killing of a characters, but when a character they know and love does not act as he/she should.

What do I mean? If Bruce Wayne/Batman starts murdering criminals, that would be a problem.  However, the recent plot twist that he may/may not have a younger brother he never knew about has not been problematic.  And for two reasons.  A.) It does not change the essential of who Bruce Wayne/Batman is and B.) that story was told really well.  Really good writers get away with a lot more when they tell a story very well.

Another example before I go.  Around the same year, the writers of Batman and Captain America decided, without knowing decided to bring back the title characters presumed-dead sidekicks.  One was met with more negative critical reaction than the other.  I liked both. What the Cap story did was make the sidekick a tragic figure, used by forces beyond his control into being a villain.  The Batman story took a not fan loved sidekick and made him into a lethal vigilante.  Both stories had the character act uncharacteristically, but only one gave a journey for that character to redeem those actions that were in large part beyond his control.

Sunday blogging: DKR and Aurora

So, I'm hoping to do posts on Sunday, Tuesdays and Thursdays, and I hope that I keep them small, it'll be easier! ;)  So I hope that Thursdays to be reviewing comics, while Sunday and Tuesdays on more general topics. So I'm going to start with something very topical....

Aurora:

Let me say this: My thoughts and prayers are with all the people who were killed or hurt, at the theatre, and those related to all those hurt, killed or traumatized at the shootings in Aurora.  It is a tragedy.  But as someone who is a voting, concerned human being and citizen, I think the responsibility is on us to try to learn from such tragedy and to try to get some good from something so evil.  I think the obvious issue that will be on the news and talked about by pundits everywhere is guns.  If you asked me 10 years ago, you would get a different answer that you would today about this issue.  For the record, I am ok with the 2nd amendment.  It's not my favorite amendment, but it's there.  However, I think that we as a society and as a country need to come together, all of us, and work out a better solution to the issue.  I think civil liberties, including the 2nd amendment, are very important but so is the concern for the common good and common safety.  And just like we need to have an informed and educated national conversation about how to deal with the complex and complicated issues of national security when it comes to issues of terrorism and foreign threats, we need to have an equally educated and informed conversation about domestic threats and guns is one of those issues when it comes to domestic threats. Do people have the right to own guns?  Yes.  Do people have the right to be concerned about issues of security and common safety?  Yes.  So, instead of craziness and decisiveness on the right and the left, and ramping up the language and partisan bullshit, we need to have the calmer voice of reason from all walks of life, and from both parties and mentalities sit down together and figure out how to compromise and reconcile the concern of both for the good of all.  And while, I admittedly lean left on much and more, I feel that when it comes to guns, we need to be extra cautious. (For those of you who are reading this and are on the right, I feel the same about issues of abortion, so there you go).  I'm more than willing to have systems that provide food and housing and bus passes to people and then crack down on those who abuse those systems, than have the same mentality for the gun control system.  You want to have a shotgun and handgun and rifle?  Fine.  But I think the armor piercing bullets, the grenade launcher is a little much and not needed.  I think have more guns than you have appendages is a little much.  The telos of guns is to kill.  Some might argue protection or for hunting, but it's to kill, really, maybe in the service of protection or to hunt.  So when we are dealing with something whose purpose is such, we need to be extra careful when it comes to background checks and waiting periods, and what kind of weapons and munitions that we sell.  I had a buddy growing up whose father had guns, and educated his children on how to respect and to use guns.  I told him him I wish we had more gun owners who were like that.  I think to exploit this tragedy for ham fisted legislation is not what is needed, nor is to use this moment to ignore the real issues that guns present.  I hope we can rise and be better citizens and human beings about such an important issue.

The second issue that will not get much play in the media but is important, is overwhelming fact that whenever there is a violent act on the level on what happened in Aurora, it's done by a male.  School shootings, lone gun-men, bombers, ect. are almost exclusively done by males.  And of course the overwhelming majority of domestic violence is done males.  I think we also need to have educated and informed conversation about if and why violence is connected with masculinity and if vehicles like the media, such as movies and television only help to encourage and enforce that mentality.  It's a real and important issue that smarter people than me need to be discussing on the national level in front of a national audience.


Finally, and least importantly, the Dark Knight Rises review.  Now I've only seen it once, and while it has some issues (namely transitions) it was really, really good.  It tied a lot back to the Batman Begins, but came the same scope of the Dark Knight.  I think all three movies will truly change the comic book movie genre, and I think the Amazing Spider-Man is the first result of that kind of the movie making.  I wouldn't be surprised if you start to find the Marvel movies, especially the next round of sequels, Iron Man, Thor and Captain America will follow this trilogy to tackle real world issues and focus on story more than one the 'coolness' of bringing a certain character to the 'silver screen'.  I'll probably post more on it after a second or third viewing, but those are my first thoughts after seeing it the first time.

Marvel's Summer Movies

So a friend told me that the thing about blogging is to do it with some frequency....so I figured, to start, Thursdays would be a good day to post, and maybe post more frequently once we get started.  So tomorrow, I see The Dark Knight Rises, and I'm sure I will have a lot to say.  But let me talk about the Avengers and the Amazing Spider-Man which came out earlier this summer.

The Avengers

Here's the thing - I've seen this movie three times.  So I liked it.  A lot.  However, I have to say, each time, I noted that up until the fight where the Hulk gets loose on the Helli-carrier and Loki gets free, it was kinda slow.  Still amazing and Whedon did an amazing job.  My hope is that they have a little more diversity in the next movie.  Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, two stalwart Avengers are in limbo because the rights to those characters might be owned by Fox.  The next two would Ant-Man/Giant-Man and Wasp, but really, two white people/scientists.  My choice would be Carol Danvers a.k.a. Ms. Marvel/Captain Marvel and the Black Panther.  There is a rumor that Falcon might be in the next Cap movie and he would be a good choice as well.  I also hope that the sequel, and a Justice League movie when/if it happens, would do something different than alien/demonic army attacks at the behest of lone bad-guy.

The Amazing Spider-Man

This was a far superior movie to any of the 1st three as it comes to acting.  Every actor was better, especially Garfield and Stone in their delivery and their chemistry.  McGuire and Dunst look like rank amateurs, especially McGuire.  The CGI and some of the fight scenes were not as finely timed or tuned as the Avengers, and I think many fans were hoping for more when it came to CGI - one could make the comparison that it is equivalent to the other three movies when it comes to action.  And it shouldn't be since it's been almost a decade since the 1st movie.

A New Mandate

So it's been a while......and things have changed.  Happily married, new dog, just came back from my first San Diego Comic Con.  I wrote a screenplay earlier this summer.  And I have decided to re-dedicate myself to blogging.  I'm working on reviews mostly, movies, television, books and comics, though I will be throwing in differing topics such as theology and politics every once in a while.  I'll be working retroactively on movies, posting reviews about the Avengers, the Amazing Spider-Man, Brave and some DVD's I've seen, as well as books I have been reading.  I'll also talk about my experience at SDCC and some general thoughts about comics today, and start working on reviews of specific issues or story arcs in the future.  I know in the past, my posts have rambled on, so I'll be working on shorter, tighter posts and hopefully many of you will enjoy it.  thanks,

Mike

New DCU

The New DCU: Thoughts, Concerns and Hopes

So, for those of you who aren't as wired into the comic book world as I am, DC Comics announced that it will be relaunch some regular and launching some new books, all with #1 come September. This is a big deal when it comes to two comics that have almost 1000 issue series such as Action and Detective Comics. DC stated that they wanted to refresh concepts for the 21st century and make their characters more accessible, as well as celebrate the diversity of our world. Well, fan reaction, to be mild has been mixed. Many are concerned about continuity, whether the stories and characters they love have been erased from existence. Others are concerned that characters of prominence seem to be missing from solicitations and book descriptions. Also, while DC stated their commitment to diversity, many have, rightly so, pointed out that their first image of the Justice League, was 5 white guys, one african-american male hero and one white female hero. Not quite really diverse. And as for the diversity about characters, it isn’t that much different than it was before, and perhaps a tad worse, especially when it comes down to the diversity of creators, gender, racial and sexuality wise. I, however, am hopeful.

Why? Well I would direct you to article on Newsarama that addressed the accessibility and the ‘relaunch’ nature, by comparing to Doctor Who and discussing how DC’s goal is make the concepts behind the characters to be simple and easy to jump on. Link: http://www.newsarama.com/comics/write-or-wrong-68-dcnu-doctor-who-110614.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Newsaramasite+%28Newsarama.com%29&utm_content=Twitter

And, you know what, that’s smart. They are telling comic book shops they can return the 1st 3 issues if people don’t buy, and they are accessing new readers (also with the news deals with bookstores like Barnes & Nobles and being able to download them on he same day they new in stores) - but my friend Michele is excited about buying a Wonder Woman #1. She wants to read good stories about characters she knows of and likes from other mediums, and be able to get in on the ground floor. So, I think on that level it works.

Today, and for the last couple DC is saying that continuity is not being rebooting, but it simply means compressed. Much like Doctor Who since 2005, you don’t have to watched the old show to catch on. Hell, you didn’t have to watch seasons 1-4 to jump onto 5. Which means big and more recent events like Identity Crisis will exist but Panic in the Sky from the 90‘s might not. And i think, in a few instance it’ll more like the Star Trek movie, where some things with be ‘rebooted’ or changed to help things make sense. Maybe make characters younger, or in the case of Babs Gordon, walking, and maybe some more embarrassing stories or confusing timelines (I’m looking at you Hawkman) will be streamlined.

I think what, in light of those comments, concerns me the most is the possibility of some characters not existing, not so much that they won’t have books. I think there will be a wave 2 in early 2012 with Batman Inc. Books like the JSA and Outsiders will be included, I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a pulp book like Doc Savage, maybe doing something with the Red Circle, and maybe doing something with some of the older Titans/Infinity Inc characters. However, while the possibilities are there for Ryan Choi to be alive and a supporting character in Fury of Firestorm, the question of whether Speedy or Connor Hawke exists if Green Arrow is younger is of concern. If Superman is the first Super Hero, do the JSA exist, or only some of them, or were they something else than what we knew. Are some of the legacy characters that are cult favorites, be wiped away in order to stream line continuity? That is a big question for a lot of fans.

And about diversity, there is a very good argument that DC is very diverse and can be very diverse, but editorial has to challenge creators to use and utilize those diverse characters in compelling and real ways. Instead of four books with all of the male Robins, why not have one with Cass Cain and Steph Brown, or the Outsiders, which has been one of the most diverse books, with one of the first African-American superheroes, Black Lightning, who has 2 daughters (one of whom is gay) both who are superheroes.

Again, I’m excited. I trust many of these creators. I think, however, letting fans know there will be a wave 2, and address some of fan;s fears about the futures of characters like Wally West and Donna Troy, would be helpful- but I’m sure they want to focus on Sept. and not have fans waiting for next January. And I would encourage DC to look to bloggers like NerdyBird at http://www.thenerdybird.com/ and DCWomenKickingAss at http://dcwomenkickingass.tumblr.com/ -have real concerns about the diversity of creators and diversity of characters. NeryBird wrote a great piece about Oracle vs. Batgirl and Gail Simone and her did an interview that was fantastic. But people love their characters, and when DC says they are about diversity and there isn’t a whole lot of change in terms of diversity when it comes to the solicits, well it’s understandable that fans are concerned. And fans, I have faith in these creators, and I understand the want to not be shackled by continuity. To be free to do new and creative things with their characters. I’m ok with compression and I’m ok with streamlining of their history. I’m ok with new books that don’t highlight my favorite characters. But what I would like is for these characters to still exist or possibly could exist. I would like that commitment to diversity to be real, both in characters and in creators.

And as for what’s next, I think there will be wave 2. Maybe in October and maybe in early 2012 along with Batman: Inc. Look for #1’s of books such as JSA, Outsiders,a 2nd Flash book called Speed Force, a pulp book aka Doc Savage or Spirit, something to do with the Marvel Family, something with some of the women of Gotham such as Huntress, Steph Brown and Cass Cain, Batman Beyond and either Superman or JL Beyond, a new Zatana and Xombi, and maybe a 2nd JSA book for Power Girl or some other characters.

Also remember this. Captain Marvel, Captain Atom, the Blue Beetle, the Question, Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters...all of these characters were that were created by other comic book companies that were acquired by DC. And while most of the focus was that converging of the multi-verse, especially 5 earths into one earth with one history. But while it created many, many headaches with characters like Hawkman, but it made characters from Fawcett, Charlton and Quality comics part of the DC Universe. And now, the relaunch/reboot will take characters like the THUNDER agents, Milestone characters like Static, bringing back Vertigo characters, and Wildstorm characters into the DCU. And while I don’t know the status of the Red Circle characters, if they have those licenses still, I wouldn’t be surprised to see them in a Wave 2.

Diversity: Not An Old Wooden Ship

Diversity in Comics

I recently joined twitter and have been very much delving into that world. What I enjoy about twitter is that for the most part, depending on whom you follow, you can get the thoughts, jokes and comments from real writers, actors, and other individuals in certain industries. As a comic book fan, I of course follow many comic book creators, as well as many of the intelligent people who tweet and respond to those creators. Recently, I engaged in conversations with the Marvel V.P. Tom Brevoort, and two bloggers @dcwomenkicknass and @SonofBaldwin about the issue of Diversity in comics. Both of them posted on their blogs about these issues here:http://dcwomenkickingass.tumblr.com/post/5359835068/muchmore and here:http://sonofbaldwin.blogspot.com/search/label/comic%20books . Both of these bloggers have and can speak more eloquently about the issues of race, gender and sexual diversity in comics that I can.

However, as a white heterosexual male who is a comic fan and grew up in a middle to upper middle class neighborhood outside DC, I wanted to chime in as what most comic book creators (people who work and write for Marvel and DC) might see their audience to be.

I love comic books. I love classic comic book characters. My top five DC and Marvel characters are all name recognizable characters. However, when I was in high school, I read Morrison’s JLA. And I remember thinking to myself, why the hell is Steel on this team and not Captain Marvel? To me, Captain Marvel is an A-List character and Steel is a weird combination of Iron Man, War Machine and Superman. And then, I read Steel in Morrison’s JLA and he instantly became a favorite of mine.

He made the character unique and real and human.

He wasn’t a stereotype or even their to represent all black males (which the character once said himself) he was there to fulfill a role because that is what the JLA needed and that is what the writer thought was best. And Morrison wrote the hell out of him. At the same time Priest was writing the Black Panther, which I was catching onto and was then seen in the Avengers, who Busiek at the time referred to as the #4 after the ‘Big 3’ of Cap, Thor and Iron Man. And between how the character was written and grew betwee

n Busiek and Priest, I couldn’t agree more. That hooked me on other Priest books like the Crew and I started to develop a love of characters that provided a li

ttle more diversity than I had originally thought needed in the comic book world. At the same time, personally, my eyes were opened to how I benefited from diversity. I was going to college, rooming with a Haitian-American from Long Island who loved Dragonball Z, working for a gay man, and meeting people from around the country. And then I traveled abroad to Belgium where I met young people from all over Europe as well as other places, and started traveling a lot. However, what that brings me to is that our world is diverse. Comic book readers are diverse. And I think it would surprise many comic book fans and creators how much fans enjoy true, real and well-written diversity.

I’ve said before that I really started to like the Black Panther in high school. It was a great book written and drawn by a great team. It was engaging, intelligent and action packed. Priest made the Panther into a unique character that wasn’t an ‘African Batman’. And when they brought the book back under Reggie Hudlin, in my mind, it didn’t measure up to Priest’s run. And that, I think gets to the heart of issues of ‘diversity’ in comics. All characters can be and have been poorly written. ‘Minority’ characters in particular have suffered that in huge ways. But Brubaker writes a great Falcon, and Bendis a great Cage and so on. There have been great comic book writers who are not ‘minorities’ who have written greatly diverse characters and treated that’s character diversity not as the defining characteristic about that character but as a contributing characteristic to that character. Black Lightning is African-American, he is also a teacher, a divorced husband who stills get along with his wife, a super-hero and a father. These are all parts of a whole character. And what comics needs are good, well written whole characters.

I understand that when the ‘classic’ characters were being created, they were mostly white with certain aliens filling out the ‘minority’ spots on these teams. And when diversity was added, many characters were written very stereotypically. Even female characters on these teams who are ‘classics’ have been and often are written stereotypically. However, I feel since I have been reading comics, creators who have written comic better, including ‘diversity’ characters.

However, what I do not understand is the choices by creators and editors not utilize the wealth of diverse characters that they could use. Why do we have to Hank and Jan and deal with their craziness where Bill Foster would fulfill the role of giant scientist and would offer a new and different voice as would Rita DeMara. They have the same powers, with new histories, new perspectives and new voices. Have Ollie Queen be the Green Arrow in the main comic, but

have Connor Hawke in either Birds of Prey or on the Justice League with other 2^nd and 3^rd generation heroes right now. Steve Rogers dies, why would Marvel consider and even weave in Josiah X from the Crew into the book or have Casper Kole be in the New Avengers as a NYPD officer on the team. Tom Brevoort stated that an all Black Avengers would be contrived. And while I understand the point that it could seem contrived or paying lip service to have a minority book, the concept of super hero teams in general could be considered contrived, especially teams like the Young Avengers (which of all Avengers teams is probably the most diverse!) However thinking upon it, I have a hard time that a good writer couldn’t come up with a reason that the Black Panther (a classic Avenger) couldn’t call together a team composed mostly of ‘diverse’ super heroes such as the Falcon, Photon/Pulsar, Firebird, Mantis, White Tiger (Kasper Cole), Madame Web (Julia Carpenter), Black Knight, Goliath (Bill Foster’s nephew Tom). These are no more Avengers than the New Avengers are today, and if you needed a Cap, Iron Man or Thor, you could throw in War Machine or Battlestar for good measure. I just feel that perhaps creators and editors feel more comfortable with characters who at first glance they feel they and their readers can immediately relate to. I think they also feel that their readers are mostly white males who don’t enjoy reading about characters who are not like them, and they may feel that they don’t want to mess up a character who is 'not like them' by portraying them in a way that might be uncharacteristic of that character.

At the end of the day, what I am saying, is that as a white, male, heterosexual, I enjoy diversity. I enjoy the diversity of life, food, opinions, sayings, culture, and comics. Secret Warriors took over for Checkmate as my spy comic. Batman Inc. is my conspiracy book and Avengers are my team book. I love the Guardians of the Galaxy as much as I love Green Lantern. I think the people in charge of comics are overtly concerned with ‘watering-down’ their product with too many variations on a rift. And economically speaking, I can understand that issue. However, I feel that should be a challenge and not an edict to back down from realities of the life. The world is diverse. Comic readers are diverse. Comic books and their characters should be diverse as well. Could it be confusing to have two Green Arrows or two Flashes, one in their own book and one in a team book – Yes? However, Green Lanterns and Batmen seem to make it work, because they are written by good writers who understand how to make the characters unique and different. Couldn’t we have a Barry book with Wally in the JLA? A New Avengers that maybe took the idea of ‘street-level’ characters to a new, unique and real place by including real ‘street-level’ characters? I like Ms. Marvel, but she is not street-level.

At the end of the day, comic book fans want well written stories that matter. We always want to see our favorite characters but the way they become our favorites is by being well written. I’m sure comic book companies will always be concerned about the sustainability of a comic, but I refuse to believe that your classic comic books couldn’t have a little more balance and diversity when it comes to gender, race, culture and sexuality. Should it be lip-service or inclusion just for the sake?... no. But Morrison made Steel work on the JLA. Birds of Prey is an amazing book and Black Canary led Meltzer's JLA. Static Shock was a hugely popular TV show. John Stewart was the GL of a kid's cartoon. So why don't we have a diverse character on the new Avengers book?

Summer Event Fever Part 1 - Fear Itself

Summer Event Fever Part 1

In the next few installments I will be discussing the Spring/Summer Events from both DC and Marvel Comics including Age of X (soon!) Flashpoint and War of the Green Lanterns, just to name of few. But today, the Fear Itself prologue came out today, called Book of the Skull. From what has been told, Fear Itself, came from the want of Marvel to do a mini-event like Age of X, or Sinestro Corps War from DC between Captain America and Thor, capitalizing on their respective summer movies. However, it sprang out of there, and Thor’s writer Matt Fraction took controls with Cap’s writer Ed Brubaker taking the idea from the original story pitch involving a WWII story with the Red Skull plan for power never coming to fruition thanks to Captain America, Bucky and Namor. In the present, the current Baron Zemo helps Sin, the original Red Skull’s daughter and current Red Skull to find a artifact from that adventure in order to find exactly what the original Skull brought to Earth during WWII. It turns out it was a hammer, a hammer connected to an ancient Asgardian who turns out to be Odin’s dirty secret (Odin being Thor’s father and the king of the Asgardian Gods.) and who is alluded to be the actual All-Father of the Asgardians. He is called the Serpent and is the Asgardian God of Fear. It seems the Serpent gives the new Red Skull a hammer, and will bestow 8 hammers on other super powered beings (some heroes and some villains) to take over the world. From what we know the cover to Fear Itself #2 - it looks like Absorbing Man and the Grey Gargoyle (two Avengers and Thor villains) will get hammers as well as the Juggernaut (who has battled pretty much everyone, especially the X-Men). The Questions is who else could be the Worthy - those who receive hammers?

First let’s examine three factors: a.) the first set of teasers by Marvel for the event, b.) the 2nd set of teasers that dealt with the Worthy and c.) what books are tying in to the event as well as miniseries.

The first set of teasers included- Spider-Man in front a set of TV’s talking about the real world factors that make us afraid, Steve Rogers as Captain America in front of a shattered shield, Odin standing atop of a defeated Thor, the Hulk standing remorseful after slaughtering the earth’s heroes, Cyclops dressed up as Magneto and Iron Man looking on the military in stark war suits.

The second set of teasers- three sets of heroes/villains standing around different types of hammers much like Thor’s. The Grey Gargoyle, Iron Man and Bucky Barnes as Captain America around one, Storm, Dracula and Sin the Red Skull around another, a depowered Hercules, Juggernaut and a young Loki around a third, Giant-Man, Ms. Marvel and the Absorbing Man around a fourth, and the Hulk, Thing and Colossus around a fifth.

The books tying-in and the mini series: Invincible Iron Man has I.M. dealing with the Grey Gargoyle in Paris, Iron Man 2.0 has War Machine teaming up with Iron Fist and the Immortal Weapons (the champions of the seven cities of Heaven- mystical kung-fu warriors), Avengers seem to be up against the Serpent, the Secret Avengers seeing the war from Steve Rogers perspective as the general of earth’s forces, Herc with a de-powered Hercules fighting against an army of villains, and Journey into Mystery with a young Loki using his mischief powers to a.) not become his older self and b.) create an Asgardian black ops team in the war and the new Alpha Flight series where the team is declared outlaws by Canada, Thunderbolts dealing with the Juggernaut, Avengers Academy most likely battling the Absorbing Man and a Spider-Girl issue. The Minis will deal with Spider-Man in a fear crazy NYC, Black Widow in Paris, Homefront featuring Speedball in Stamford where he was party to the accidental deaths of over 600 people and the Agents of Atlas going to Europe, Youth in Revolt counting about the marshalizing of former Initiative members and other young heroes from teams like the Young Allies, Fearsome Four with She-Hulk, Nighthawk, Frankestein’s Monster, Howard the Duck versus the Man-Thing, a Dracula one-shot, and a Deadpool mini and a digital mini about the Worthy.

So from that here are my picks after the Red Skull, Absorbing Man, Juggernaut and Grey Gargoyle:

1. A Hulk Character- sure the Juggernaut has faced the Hulk, but Marvel has made it a point to make sure the Hulks are included in the Fear Itself preview images -so I would not be surprised to see a Hulk character- maybe Red She-Hulk or a Hulk supporting character like the Brood Queen as one of the chosen.
2. An X-Men Character / Mutant - again the Juggernaut is rumored to attack Utopia (man he loves islands -1st Thunderbolts, now Utopia) - but I would not be surprised to see another mutant - maybe Magneto, maybe Archangel or Gambit, maybe a villain like Exodus or a former X-Man like Forge. I’d bet a lot on one of these characters.
3. A Hickman Character : Someone from a Hickman book: FF, Secret Warriors or S.H.I.E.L.D. - the obvious list is son of Ares, Phobos- the 12 year Alex who was part of one of Nick Fury’s caterpillar teams who was recently killed by the Gorgon. I’d also wouldn’t be surprised if maybe Newton or Da Vinci from S.H.I.E.L.D. to show or even a villain from the four cities from the FF.
4. A Spider-Man villain - it would make sense even if Spidey is not one of the bigger characters in the event (Marvel has basically said that) it would still be not unsurprising to find someone like the Rhino would fit perfectly in a fear based group of villains. The Lizard as well.
5. Another Captain America villain - the prologue as Baron Zemo(though pretty pissed at Sin) and other villains in Sin’s entourage have been Crossbones (who has new powers) and a new Master Man. I wouldn’t be surprised to see one of them as part of the worthy.
6. An Iron Man villain - even though it seems like Iron Man like Spidey are taking a back seat to Thor, Bucky as Cap and Steve Rogers - I still would be surprised not see a villain becoming one of the Worthy.

However, Marvel has said that heroes will become seduces the by the power of the Serpent in hammers, and many have suggested characters like Bucky who once was the Winter Soldier, would be an ideal choice as well as many other powerful heroes. Also heroes like the Punisher who instills Fear or Daredevil, the man without fear would also make sense. In the end, I’m very excited for this event - while it hasn’t been a Marvel event that has been building for a while unlike many of the Bendis events, it still looks to be a very exciting event.