Marvel Heats up Fight with Kirby Family, Seeks to Retain Copyrights
Iconic artist Jack Kirby certainly contributed to some of the most famous battles, scenes and story arcs in comic book history through his storytelling and distinct artwork, but perhaps even he couldn’t imagine the epic battle that’s about to be waged between members of his estate and Marvel Comics! Several months ago, the members of Jack Kirby’s estate served Marvel with notices of copyright termination, stating their intent to reclaim the rights to characters such as The Fantastic Four, The Hulk, Spider-Man and The Avengers. Current law permits creators to seek to reclaim rights to their work after a period of waiting over several years. Read more
Hulk Santa Variant Covers
Nothing quite says Christmas like Red Hulk in a Santa Claus hat. Marvel Comics has announced that Hulk #18 and the Fall of The Hulks Gamma will have interconnecting Hulk Santa variant covers. The Santa variant covers will be drawn by artist Ed McGuiness.
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Jack Kirby’s Family Seeks to Reclaim Rights From Disney, Marvel
Acclaimed comic book artist Jack Kirby was responsible for co-creating some of the most memorable characters in comic book history, as well as illustrating some of its iconic and classic battles. Now, Kirby’s children are possibly creating an epic battle of their own. According to the L.A. Times, the late Kirby’s four children have filed what has been referred to as “notice of copyright termination” for 45 characters to companies such as Marvel Entertainment, Disney, Universal Pictures, the owners of Hulk distribution rights, and 20th Century Fox, owners of the movie rights to distribute X-Men and Fantastic Four films. Read more
Comic Book Previews for the Week of September 23rd, 2009
The days of summer are slowly waning, soon we’ll break out sweaters and jackets, and pumpkins, hopefully not of the bomb variety, will pop up everywhere. That doesn’t mean we have to slow down our reading of comics, especially THIS week!! Marvel brings the long-awaited, much-ballyhooed, debut of the new Spider-Woman solo series is HERE!! Spider-Woman #1 arrives, courtesy of power team Bendis and Maleev. What will await Jessica Drew as she makes her way in a savage new world? Dark Reign: The List takes aim at the X-Men this week, and also look for the one-shot Dark Reign: Made Men, which will focus on the lesser villains of Marvel and how Osborn’s world has affected them. Amazing Spider-Man #606 brings old flame/nemesis/ally The Black Cat back into Spidey’s life, and look for Ms. Marvel #45 as the battle between the original and current Ms. Marvel reaches its climax! Read more
Comic Book Previews the Week of August 19th, 2009
Another Marvel character hits a milestone issue this week! After joining the 600 club this summer, The Incredible Hulk, Captain America and Spider-Man will welcome Daredevil into the multiple-hundreds club when Daredevil #500 bows this Wednesday. Lady Bullseye and Kingpin will continue to make Matt Murdock’s life complicated as Ed Brubaker crafts this tale, with another creative team set to pick up after this issue. Joining Luke Cage, the Punisher goes dark with Punisher Noir #1, a tale set in the 1920’s with mobsters aplenty! Look for a very Rogue-centric issue of X-Men Legacy #227, as she struggles with the burden of carrying the mind and power of a god! Read more
My Marvel Memories: A Personal Reflection on Marvel’s 70th Birthday
One of the things my late grandfather was always lamenting to me was his treatment of comic books when he was a youngster in the late 1930’s and early 1940’s. I started collecting comic books when I was in high school, the mid-1990’s, and my grandfather was always quick to tell me about how they used to be a dime, how he couldn’t believe he got rid of them, and of how they burned so many of them for warmth or used them for various bodily functions and household cleaning.
I know for a fact, based on his observations, that several of those long-lost comics came from Marvel, then known as Timely Comics. The comic book collector/reader/writer I am today cringes when I think of all those lost gems and characters and my grandfather’s memories of them, but I know, on this 70th birthday of Marvel’s, that I will have plenty of my own memories for years to come. Read more
Incredible Hulk #600 Gets Second Printing
Marvel Comics has announced that Incredible Hulk #600 has sold out at the distribution level. Therefore, Marvel has also announced that they will be going back to press to print a second edition of this important Hulk issue. The Incredible Hulk #600 Second Printing Variant is scheduled to arrive in comic book stores on September 9, 2009.
In addition to the Hulk, Incredible Hulk #600 also features a special guest appearance by Spider-Man. The issue covers some of the secrets about the origin of Red Hulk. Incredible Hulk #600 was written by Jeph Loeb with art by Ed McGuineess. It also leads into Greg Pak’s Incredible Hulk #601 while Loeb and McGuinness continue on Hulk.
In addition, there is a tale of The Savage She Hulk by Fred Van Lente, and the Jeph Loeb/Tim Sale Hulk Gray #1 is re-presented. The Incredible Hulk #600 Second Printing Variant will feature the interior art of McGuinness on the cover.
Comic Book Releases for July 22nd, 2009
Into the valley of the comic book store rode the 600. The 600th issues of Amazing Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk that is! With Doctor Octopus, Daredevil, a wedding and more, Marvel promises great and thrilling reading for fans of the series and those just interested in this milestone issue! Same goes for the Hulk, except the action involves Red Hulk, Green Hulk AND Spidey! Springing from Immortal Iron Fist comes Immortal Weapons, five issue limited series! Also airing this week is another installment in the Halo franchise with Halo: Helljumper, ushering in a new story and new creative team for this video game franchise. Read more
HeroesCon News! Marvel’s Dark Reign Panel
HeroesCon hosted another Marvel panel on Saturday, focusing on the highly successful and intriguing Dark Reign storylines that show no signs of slowing down. Marvel talent scout C.B. Cebulski once again helmed the discussion, with Marvel editor Jeanine Schaefer, Jonathan Hickman (Secret Warriors), Brian Michael Bendis (Dark Avengers, New Avengers) and Matt Fraction (X-Men/Dark Avengers) on hand to answer questions and make announcements about upcoming events and happenings with Dark Reign.
Starting with a question and answer period, one fan asked about the tendency of Marvel to pose questions for their story lines, such as the “who’s side are you on” question for Civil War. Would there be a similar question to go along with this next arc of Dark Reign? The answer seems to be the one on everyone’s mind, and Matt Fraction said it best, “when will Norman Osborn lose his $#!*”. Good question! Read more
It’s a Comic Book Summer! Comic Book Events You Shouldn’t Miss!
Ah, summer. Time for vacations, fun in the sun and of course comic books. While at any given point during the year there is no shortage of comic book events or storylines, summer seems to have more attention-grabbing events and happenings than any other time. How lucky for comic book readers!
As you’re putting together your beach reading, consider adding some of the titles, events and storylines from the list below. First up in our summer focus we look at the books rolling out from the “House of Ideas” itself, Marvel.
Plenty of Hulking Out - The green powerhouse known lovingly as The Incredible Hulk will be getting lots of work this summer, especially in early June when the War of Kings storyline hits in Savage World of Sakaar #1. Son of Hulk will also undergo a shift in storyline as Paul Jenkins takes over the reigns in July. Perhaps the biggest news for Hulk will come with Incredible Hulk #600. This landmark issue will feature Red Hulk, Green Hulk, Spider-Man and a host of other surprises from the team of Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuinness. Speaking of milestone issues…
