EOY2007 Contest: The First Round.

Refer to the previous post to find out why people are asking me all these questions. Now, let’s begin.

Andrew:

If you were given the opportunity to write — with no creative interference involved — a title featuring existing licensed comics character/team/concept/whatever of your choice, which one would you choose, and why?

I’ve never read an issue of Damage Control, but the team concept really appeals to me, so I’d do the necessary research and dive in, I guess. (Especially if I could do it as a six-to-twelve issue comedy set during the Silver Age, parodying the worst aspects of Roy Thomas and his ilk.)

That or Batman, who’d just beat the crap out of dudes. I also have a strange itch to do an old-school Wolverine story set in Madripoor in the 50s.

Adrian:

Where did you hide the body?

We don’t talk about that any more, especially if we don’t want to end up rotting under the boardwalk at Coney Island, got it?

Alex:

Train A leaves Detroit at 3.45pm, on a balmy tuesday in May; Train B leaves Paris at 6.10am on a brisk November morning. Train A is carrying a hundred and fifty moderately existential poets to a conference in Vegas; Train B is transporting one hundred and fifty import/export consultants to a rest’n'relaxation clinic in the rolling countryside of Normandy. A butterfly flaps it’s wings. In Oslo a woman is crying. You are a Scorpio. If both trains are travelling at exactly the same speed – why does Jeph Loeb suck so much?

I certainly wouldn’t say that Loeb unilaterally sucks – I like specific chunks of a lot of his work, despite the overwrought narrative that drips everywhere. There are moments from Superman For All Seasons that still get to me. Mind you, these are just moments, but he’s got to be appealing to enough of the readers for Marvel to sign him to that exclusive.

(Does that mean his work is good? No, but it’s popular, and that’s all that matters.)

Mr Witt:

how ’bout a game of street hockey? (yes, i know: lame jokey question, but xmas has fried my psyche again…) nice blog, keep it up, thanks!

Nah, man, I wrecked my ankle in New York. You kids have fun, though.

Rjackson:

O(B)G (Original Battlestar Galactica)? or Newsk00L Galactica? Bonus Question: Joanie Loves Chaci (sp?)? or Scott Baio: 45 and Single?? The world wants to know Kevin. Merry Holidays and New Year!

The new Battlestar Galactica is my favorite program on TV. And if I said how much I’m looking forward to the trainwreck that is Scott Baio is 46 and Pregnant, I’d probably get kicked off my own damn blog.

Matt Brough:

Who would be your pick to write The Punisher when Ennis leaves?

Jeph Loeb with art by Joe Madureira.

Chris Bird:

What movie featuring a “big two” character do you most want to see? Which do you think is most “doable” as a movie or movie franchise for story reasons? Explain your reasoning and include preferred major cast picks.

Unlike a lot of people, I don’t really care about superhero movies unless they look like they’re worth a toss. I actually prefer them in comics form, where Grant Morrison’s mad ideas or Jack Kirby’s dynamic layouts can serve the characters best. That said, a relaunched, noir-influenced Daredevil film series that hewed a bit closer to “reality” would be appealing, particularly if they just moved things forward so that we were five or six years into the character’s career. As far as casting goes, I’ll say Jamie Bamber because he’s so dreamy, with Scarlett Johansson as Karen Page and Seth Rogan as Foggy.

J Hopkins:

who killed Laura Palmer?

Leland, while possessed by BOB. Duh.

Philip Looney:

Where do you think superhero comics are headed? Up or down? Will Digital comics eventually save the industry?

Down (Countdown and its spinoffs) with some exceptions (All-Star Superman) that appeal to a broader audience and offer a glimpse at the bigger comic book universes without requiring a PhD in Nerdology. As far as digital comics, the current model Marvel is offering is pathetic. Renting access to a limited library of titles is a very old-business model, the equivalent of going to a Blockbuster with 1000 movies instead of using Netflix. I’ve preached about eMusic’s model before, but it seems to be one that works for artists and the company: download (and be able to keep) X many titles/tracks for $Y a month. Since someone’s already done the hard work of creating the .cbz and .cbr formats, it seems odd that the companies aren’t using them, particularly since they could embed updated ads into older comics.

Shane:

What’s my middle name?

Arkedelphia.