Year: 2002

My editor at Penguin-Putnam called the other day. With me going over the copyedited manuscript for “ONE KNIGHT ONLY,” she asked what I had planned next. Talk turned toward a third Arthur book, since a trilogy has a nice sound to it and the end of “ONE KNIGHT ONLY,” while it is definitely a conclusion to the story, does leave open significant possibilities for a third volume. I’m working up a proposal now for what I’ve tentatively titled “FALL OF KNIGHT” and we’ll see how that flies.

I’ll keep you posted.

PAD

Hot socks, kids! Gwen will be working at New England Comics on Saturdays…and possibly Wednesdays, depending upon some other factors.

Told you I’d keep you up to date.

I’m keeping this short because I’m having computer problems. It’s making lots of weird noises. Hopefully it’ll be fixed soon.

PAD

Last night’s episode of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” was the first one this season that could genuinely be called gripping. The Buffy-gets-shrunk sequences worked largely due to the chemistry between Buffy and the vampire; there was more pop to their interaction than I’ve seen between her and any of the regulars this season. The absence of Amber Benson hurt, but clever writing made the sequence work well. And the double gut punch of the two twist endings was a genuine jaw-dropper (which we also haven’t seen a lot of this season.)

It’s looking more and more likely to me that the First Evil from season 3 is behind this. Here’s another nutty notion: What if the Watcher’s Council is evil as well…and perhaps has been all along? What if they were formed, not to aid slayers, but to keep them reined in so no slayer would ever reach her full potential? What if the reason the First’s henchmen were able to kill what I think we all assume to be slayers-in-training, was because the Council knew right where to point them? Imagine if the Council were governed not by altruisum, but by the philosophy that one should keep friends close and enemies closer.

PAD

Joe Quesada was asked about the retailer poll and, in discussing it, stated that:

“If a major account tells us they like a business policy because it helps them move more units and order more Marvel product we will listen much more intently than if five tiny accounts told us they didn’t.”

I’ve no doubt.

Me, all I know is that thus far the responses are coming in so lopsidedly against Marvel that it’s becoming embarrassing. At the very least…at the VERY least…it makes very understandable and defensible why Heidi would have stated “most retailers” are against it. Marvel’s opinion thus far seems buoyed by an ostensible majority that is not only silent, but tongue-tied.

It is entirely possible that the Fortune 300 doesn’t want to be bothered saying anything. But I’m not exactly tracking with why that would be. Perhaps they worry about being publicly villified by other, opposing retailers. But I’ve made clear that confidentiality will be honored where desired, and I’d like to think people take my word for it.

I submit another possibility. Just food for thought:

The notion that some retailers are smart enough businessmen to know that Marvel had already committed to their current policies. Policies which, I should re-emphasize, are working…at least as far as Marvel is concerned. So why rock the boat? Perhaps one doesn’t stay in the inner circle unless one says what people want to hear. Maybe they figure that if they don’t say what Marvel wants to hear, Marvel will stop listening altogether.

I don’t claim to know. I don’t know, because I’m not hearing from these many retailers who support Marvel. I *am* hearing from retailers who identify themselves as top sellers in the marketplace, and I gotta say…they’re not loving the policies.

The purpose of the poll is not to pillory Marvel or make anyone out to be liars. It was to spread information. It was to explore why a CBG columnist reported one thing and Marvel said in an incredibly aggressive manner that she was wrong, holding her up for public ridicule while doing so.

Maybe retailers who tell Marvel they support their policies don’t want to admit they’re just saying what Marvel wants to hear. Or maybe they don’t want to risk putting themselves at odds with other retailers. There’s no way to know. Heck, maybe they just don’t give a dámņ about polls, in which case we’ll never know.

But it certainly would be nice to.

PAD

Well, now that DC’s announced it, I can talk about YOUNG JUSTICE going away. Which is obviously upsetting for me, considering it’s pretty much the best selling title I’m writing.

I know some creators can’t wait to announce a title of theirs being cancelled. I’m not one of them. I’m just not real big on spreading around bad news. And I’m actually somewhat surprised how depressed I am about this, considering originally I only committed to doing six issues. But I’ve grown very attached to the kids.

What caused YJ to go away, despite healthy sales? The “Teen Titans” animated series. Ironic, I know, considering I wrote an early verison of that series bible (although I’ve since learned that the version which got the series green lit didn’t feature any of the work I did on it. And since I don’t want to claim credit for stuff that other people did, I figured I should set that record straight.) The moment the “TT” series got the go-ahead, DC decided to scuttle YJ so they could produce a “Teen Titans” comic more evocative of the forthcoming cartoon…which I did my original work on because they wanted it to be in the spirit of YJ.

So why wasn’t I then asked to write the new TT comic? Well, come on: Who relaunches a new comic series with the same characters and the same writer? That trick never works.

I suppose what I regret the most was, when “Impulse” and “Superboy” were both canceled, I was going to have free rein with the characters. I could do anything I wanted with them since YJ had become their home book. And now I won’t have the chance to do them.

And I’m also going to regret not working with Todd Nauck anymore. In this day and age when artists ricochet from book to book and get “hot” that way, Todd stayed with the book from start to finish and only got better and better…and less and less heralded simply because he remained in one place. Just like Leonard Kirk. Many fans gripe about the transience of artists, but then take artists (and books) for granted when the creative team remains for year after year. Kind of a mixed message there.

YJ wraps with #55. Fortunately enough, I’ve known about this for a long enough time that I can pull everything together in a four part storyline that brings to a head several main subplots. In short: Secret goes off the deep end. Darkseid recruits her. The Wonder Girl/Superboy percolating romance is finally addressed. Red Tornado returns. Harm returns. Slo-Bo makes a shocking revelation. Lotsa neat stuff. My thanks to the longtime YJ fans who have supported the book…and my regrets that I couldn’t do more to keep the series around.

In the meantime, I’ve got several new projects in the hopper. I’ll announce them as soon as the contracts are signed.

PAD

I spoke with my eldest daughter, Shana, last night, and she told me with great excitement, “I saw this TV show tonight with little Buffy! Buffy as a little girl.”

My mind immediately ran through the episodes of the series featuring Buffy as a youngster. I came up with a couple, but none of them had run recently on FX. Then I thought someone had green lit the animated series and I’d missed the announcement, but that wasn’t supposed to be about Buffy when she was “little.” “What show?” I asked.

“This show! With little blonde Buffy! And Giles the stuffy British guy, too.”

“What?!” I was completely bewildered, since Giles didn’t meet Buffy until she was in her teens.

“Yeah! It’s about Buffy when she was living with her Uncle Bill, and Giles was the butler…”

“Shana, you were watching FAMILY AFFAIR,” I sighed. “It’s a remake of a series from thirty years ago. And the butler is Mr. French, not Giles.”

“They called him Giles,” she replied.

I realized she was right: “Giles” was Mr. French’s first name. I assured her there was no relation to “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” although now that I think on it…*two* series featuring characters named Buffy and Giles? Coincidence? Buried memory on Whedon’s part? Tribute? You decide.

Regarding this week’s actual episode of BTVS: The pace dragged something fierce and the subject matter was a retread of earlier stories. But the whole episode was worth it for the wordless sequence outside the principal’s office with Buffy, the rocket launcher, and Spike.

I mourn the fact they don’t do “Buffy” and “Angel” crossovers, because I would dearly love to see Conner show up in Sunnydale and start getting involved with Dawn. How hilarious would that be, with Buffy suddenly re-experiencing her and Angel’s romance, except she’s seeing it from the POV of the worried mother figure.

PAD

PAD