7/28/99

Wizard World was a blast, and as I promised all the news of what went down can be found here! First, the anticipated announcement from Joe Quesada and Jimmy Palmotti was made as they revealed their plans for 2000! Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon of Preacher fame, will be writing and drawing a 12 issue Punisher series! As if that wasn't enough, Grant Morrison will also be joining the Marvel Knights line as he and J.G. Jones will be writing and drawing a six issue Marvel Boy comic! Also, the creative team behind Inhumans, Paul Jenkins and Jae Lee, will be returning with an as of yet untitled project! Devin Grayson will also be returning with another Black Widow mini series and Kevin Smith may also return but as to when and where is unknown. Also, announced in Chicago was the creative team behind a new Avengers Forever spin-off series. The title will remain unknown, so it won't give away anything in the current Avengers Forever title, and will be penciled by former Slingers penciler, Chriscross and written by the legendary Peter David! That's right, former Incredible Hulk writer, Peter David, will be returning to Marvel Comics! Also, the long awaited JLA and Avengers crossover may finally happen in the summer of 2000! The series will be six issues long, allowing DC to do the creative chores for three issues and Marvel to do the other three. As for Marvel's creative team, Kurt Busiek, Mark Waid, and George Perez will all be involved in the crossover. And finally before we wrap up the news on what went down at Wizard World '99, I'd like to invite you to check out two small press comics that look absolutely fantastic! The first is titled, S.O.M.A. Force and is the first of many comics from OmegaTi Studios. S.O.M.A. Force tells the story of a young man whose body was destroyed by a serum that was meant to cure him of AIDS. The story begins when his body explodes, and each one of his body parts grows into a separate creature! Please visit their web site at http://www.infinet.com/~omegati for more info on their other titles and S.O.M.A. Force. The other comic is titled, Tohubohu, and issue #1 will be released this September. It is published by New Breed Comics, and I was lucky enough to already pick up a copy, and if you like fantasy books like Tellos or Battle Chasers, but would like a deeper story, Tohubohu is for you! Set in the future, with humans being on the bottom of the evolutionary chain, Tohubohu is full of intricate plots, from political strategies, to the Shadow Warriors, and will leave you wanting more! You can also check out their web site, its located at www.newbreedcomics.com. In other news, the much-anticipated return of Wolverine's adamantium will occur in Wolverine issue 145! Also, Marvel is planning a Thing one-shot for next year. Marvel Enterprises announced Tuesday Peter Cuneo as the new president and C.E.O. of the company. Cuneo will replace Eric Ellenbogen, who recently resigned to head a media investment concern. Morton Handel, Marvel's chairman of the board, made the following statement on Ellenbogen's departure, "Eric joined Marvel at a critical time, just as the company emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy. He assembled an outstanding management team, successfully completed a $250 million long-term financing and arranged a three-year $60 million working capital facility. He also helped launch the Spider-Man filmed entertainment franchise with Sony Pictures Entertainment, resolving years of litigation over the company's best-known property. We thank him for his considerable contributions to Marvel." Finally, the Comic Book Continuum has acquired several images of the new Spider-Man cartoon, Spider-Man Unlimited as well as the upcoming Avengers series. Spider-Man Unlimited is scheduled to begin on October 2nd, and the Avengers are set to air on September 18th. The picture to the right is the logo for the Spider-Man Unlimited series, and the one to the left features Spidey as he'll appear in the cartoon. The review for Hulk issue #6 has been posted in the Comic Reviews section!

Tons of news on Mavel Movies from Spider-Man to Namor the Sub-Mariner, Villiany of Doctor Doom trade will feature a previously unseen cover by Jack Kirby, and Kelly returns with M-Rex!

7/21/99

The Spider-Man blockbuster motion picture will be heavily under the influence of Marvel Comics. Avi Arad has stated that besides from having a say over how the characters look, Marvel will also be either producing or executive producing the film. Arad also stated that Marvel has story and outline approval and that the script can not be different from what was approved. In other movie news, and believe me we got plenty of it, the Incredible Hulk movie is back on track and moving along very rapidly. Screenwriter Michael France is currently developing a Hulk script for producer Gale Anne Hurd. Meanwhile, Andrew Kevin Walker has been hired to write the script for the Silver Surfer movie. The Silver Surfer movie is being produced by Bernd Eichinger for Fox and is scheduled to begin production sometime in 2001. Moving right along, Marvel is looking for Raja Gosnell (Never Been Kissed) to be the director for the Fantastic Four movie. Hoping to hit theaters by the summer of 2001, the Fantastic Four movie will be produced by Chris Columbus and Michael Barnathan from a script by Batman scribe Sam Hamm. Briefly, Mark Gordon and Gary Levinsohn (Saving Private Ryan), are in talks with Marvel about producing a new Captain America film. After a successful debut as Blade, Wesley Snipes, with his Amen-Ra production company, are planning to produce a Black Panther movie. Other movies being talked about at Marvel include Namor the Sub-Mariner, Iron Man, Daredevil, and possibly an animated Thor film! Marvel will be releasing a trade paperback entitled, The Villainy of Doctor Doom, that will feature a previously never before seen cover penciled by none other than the King himself, Jack Kirby! Klaus Janson will ink the cover and the trade will go on sale everywhere November 3rd! Finally, Joe Kelly will be writing his own monthly series from Image Comics, titled, M. Rex. M. Rex will follow the adventures of a young boy named Rex, in an alternate reality, where he has the power to do almost anything. The Comic Reviews section is complete, be sure to check it out for reviews of Savage Dragon, Spider-Man, Hulk, and more to come!

 

 

 

The Marvel Knights will be doing an Ant-Man special this Christmas, The Sinister Six return to the pages of Spidey, Byrne has been fired as writer of the Hulk, and more news on the Tooth and Claw sculptures!

 

7/14/99

Courtesy of www.marvel.com we have learned that the Marvel Knights will be doing an Ant-Man one-shot slated for this December, entitled Ant Man's Big Christmas! Bob Gale (Batman: No Man's Land, and upcoming issues of DAREDEVIL) will be scripting the series and Phil Winslade (Wonder Woman: Amazonia, Goddess) is the penciler. More details hopefully within the week. Onto Spider-Man who will be facing the Sinister Six once again in Amazing Spider-Man #12! There's been a change of membership, however, with Dr. Octopus being replaced by the recently returned Venom! The story will be continued in Peter Parker: Spider-Man #12, which will also have the conclusion of the Mary Jane stalker saga. The prelude to Heroes Reborn: Doomsday and the return of Dr. Doom himself all takes place in Fantastic Four #24! Meanwhile, it seems the ever busy Erik Larsen, now has another book to write. This time, Larsen's filling in for the recently fired John Byrne on the pages of the Hulk, for Hulk's climatic return bout with Wolverine in issue #8. Seeing as Larsen was already the writer for Wolverine, it seemed like a natural choice for him to pick up the writing chores on the Hulk. The Hulk will also be guest starring in the pages of Wolverine later that month, and so far no new writer has been announced to replace Byrne, besides Larsen who is only scheduled to do issue #8. Jimmy Palmiotti recently discussed with the Comic Book Continuum some plans for the Marvel Knights II line. Besides the Ant-Man special, look for a mini-series of the Black Widow and The Punisher, as well as many more new characters some of which will be done by returning Jae Lee, Paul Jenkins, and J.G. Jones. Look for more details on the Marvel Knights II line at Wizard World or check back here after the convention for all the details. Also, new Aquaman writer Dan Jurgens has announced that Steve Epting will be the series' artist and Michael Kaluta will be the cover artist. Finally, as it was first revealed here last week, we now have more details about the Tooth and Claw statue. Yesterday TOY VAULT and Mark Pacella announced their partnership on the production of a special edition cold cast statue. The statue will be of the character Claw and will be done by the Shislett brothers. The scheduled release date and much more can be found in the news archive, for more info concerning Tooth and Claw click here.

 

 

 

More news on Heroes Reborn: Doomsday, Comic books grab big bucks at the latest Sotheby's auction, and both Storm and Mystique have been cast in the X-Men movie!

 

7/07/99

As we reported last week, Marvel will be returning to the Heroes Reborn universe in November, this week courtesy of Marvel themselves we learn just what exactly Heroes Reborn: Doomsday is. There will be a total of seven issues, the first one Heroes Reborn: Doomsday #1 goes on sale November 3rd. Masters of Evil #1, Rebel #1, Ashema #1, Remnants #1, and Young Allies #1 all go on sale November 10th. The final issue, Doom #1 goes on sale November 17th. In the first issue of the series, Doom returns to the Heroes Reborn Earth finding the planet horribly transformed California a radioactive wasteland, Chicago run by the mob, a World Party controlled Germany, and a Manhattan ten stories above water surrounded by Atalatean colonies. Doom must amass an army amidst all this chaos and take back what is his. Young Allies #1 will be written by Fabian Nicieza and drawn by Mark Bagley. In an interview with the Comic Book Continuum, Nicieza discussed the premise of the book, saying that the Young Allies are basically a group of young superheroes brought together by the Internet, whose initial goals are basically to use their superpowers for good in a time when they're needed most. Nicieza's other book, Thunderbolts has been selling quite well and despite recent rumors is not going to be cancelled. MC2 creator Tom Defalco also dispelled any rumors concerning Marvel Comics MC2 line, stating that discussions for two new books, not counting F5 or Wild Thing, to be added to the MC2 line are underway. Look for a sculpture of Claw from Mark Pacella's new comic Tooth and Claw to to hit store shelves sometime in September. The prototype of the sculpture will be on display at the San Diego Comic Com which is from August 12th to the 15th. Finally, Sotheby's auction this past Monday in New York fetched quite a handsome sum, thanks to many antique comic books. A 1938 copy of Action Comics #1, which introduced Superman and is considered the most important comic ever published, sold for $46,000, slightly less than its pre-sale estimate of $50,000 to $60,000. A 1963 painted of Tarzan by Frank Frazetta, sold for well above its pre-sale estimate of 35,000, going for a whopping #49,450! There are only about 75 Action Comics #1 known to exist, only one being in mint condition, however, a restored May, 1939, copy of Detective Comics #27, featuring the debut of Batman, with only 50 copies known to exist sold for $34,500. Some late breaking casting news for the X-Men movie just in. The role of Storm has been filled by Halle Berry and Mystique will be played by Rebecca Romjin-Stamos. The parts of Jean Grey and Cyclops will be cast shortly, check back here for all the late breaking news as it happens!

 

 

 

The Hulk and Thing's return bout, Claremont returns to the X-Men, Doomsday comes to the Marvel Universe, and Rogue cast in the live-action X-Men movie!

 

6/28/99

The famous feud between the Hulk and the Thing continues and it all begins in issue 7 of the Incredible Hulk. The Hulk is accused of murdering hundreds by crashing an airliner, which was actually the work of Tyrannus, when a series of superheroes attack the Hulk! After the Avengers go after him in issue 7, Wolverine attacks in issue 8, and finally in issue 9, the Thing appears and renews their legendary rivalry! Also coming from Marvel Comics, reprinting the 1946 classic that introduced Marvel's first super-team, the All-Winners Squad, the 80 page, Timely Presents: All-Winners, is scheduled to arrive on store shelves this October. This November, Marvel will revisit the Heroes Reborn universe, in a 3 week long "publishing event", titled Heroes Reborn: Doomsday, the series will also mark the much anticipated return of one of Marvel's most famous villians, Dr. Doom. Some major news concerning the live-action X-Men movie, the role of Rogue has officially been cast, and was given to Anna Paquin. Some of Paquin's past credits include, The Piano, Amistad, and A Walk on the Moon. Just to recap, Paquin joins Dougray Scott (Wolverine), Patrick Stewart (Professor Xavier), Ian McKellen (Magneto) and Tyler Mane (Sabretooth) in the cast. Last week, we covered Kurt Busiek's departure of Iron Man, but according to the Comic Book Continuum, artist Sean Chen plans to stay. Chen stated that he'd like to stay on Iron Man after new writer Quesada's four issues, and called Quesada's outline, "fantastic." Chris Claremont will be returning to the X-Men with X-Men: True Friends #1, scheduled to ship July 14. The three issue limited series involves Kitty Pryde and Rachel Summers when they were members of Excalibur, and flung back to 1936 to a point where they can prevent World War II. Some more casting news for the upcoming animated Avengers includes Wayne Best as Scorpio, Gerry Mendicino as Taurus and Nigel Hamer and Julie Lemieux as the two sides of Gemini. All these characters compose the villainous Zodiac, whom along with Ultron play a major part in the series. Finally, ComicFan is hosting a Tooth and Claw contest where you can win signed copies of Tooth and Claw #1. You can check out that and more at their site, by clicking the button below. The Spider's Web has just been updated with the review of Amazing Spider-Man #8. If you'd like to see other comics reviewed there and are interested in writing the reviews, e-mail me.

 

 

 

Busiek leaves Iron Man, new Marvel Knights to be announced at Wizard World '99, Cliffhanger's newest comic, and Wolverine cast for the live-action X-Men movie!

 

6/21/99

It has just been announced that Kurt Busiek will be leaving Iron Man with issue #25, and to take his place will be none other than one of the Marvel Knights, Joe Quesada! Busiek stated that he was leaving Iron Man for basically the same reason he left Thunderbolts, stating that he was being overworked, and needed more time to spend with his family. Quesada's first issue will be issue 26, and he's already outlined the story for his first four issues, which will feature Tony outside of his armor. Wizard World '99 is only one month away, and that is where the new Marvel Knights creators and projects will be revealed. Jimmy Palmiotti and Joe Quesada announced that on Saturday, July 17th they will reveal their new partners as well as the books they'll be working for. I'll be there live to get you all the details (and have some fun, too!) so stay tuned. In other news, Cliffhanger's new fourth title, Steampunk will debut early next year and will be brought to you by the creative team of Chris Bachalo and Joe Kelly. Steampunk will be released monthly in story arcs of about four to six issues with a several month break in between. Also, Galactus the Devourer #1 of 6 will be released July 21 from Marvel Comics and will feature the Avengers, Silver Surfer, the Fantastic Four and many others as the long awaited questions surrounding Galactus are answered. Finally, production for the live-action X-Men movie is scheduled to begin September 13th; the roles of Jean Grey, Storm and Cyclops are still being cast. The role of Wolverine has officially gone to Dougray Scott, who's also signed with the option of returning for a sequel if there is one. To find out whom has already been cast check out the News Archive, and to see a picture of the teaser poster for the X-Men movie click here.

 

 

 

Marvel Knights will continue through the year 2000, Kelly leaves Deadpool, release date for the Animated Avengers show, and new from Image this August Tooth and Claw!

 

6/14/99

There's plenty of news today, so let's get started with the recent developments concerning the Marvel Knights line. First off, the editors of the Marvel Knights line, Jimmy Palmiotti and Joe Quesada have signed with Marvel Comics to continue the Marvel Knights imprint into the year 2000. The Inhumans comic will end its run, as planned, with issue 12, but Black Panther will continue after issue 12, just under a different editor! The reason for the switch is simple; Palmiotti and Quesada have plenty on their plate, as it is, switching Black Panther to a different editor will help to lighten the load. The new editor, Ruben Diaz, is also editor of Deadpool, which will be written by Black Panther scribe, Christopher Priest, starting with issue 34. Some of the things Priest has planned for the merc with a mouth are, the discovery of Deadpool's true origin, the return of his cancer which will horribly disfigure Wade even further as well as giving him some new super powers, and an all new headquarters with an array of all new weapons! But what about Deadpool scribe Joe Kelly? Unfortunately, he'll be leaving the book with issue 33 due to a multitude of reasons, most notably being the ever-changing status of the book from cancelled to not cancelled and so forth. Despite this and other reasons, Kelly's decision to leave the book was not an easy one; "It is a VERY bittersweet move for me. I don't want Deadpool to become 'Just another job,' and I can see that starting to occur already, between my workload, the cancel-uncancel emotional damage, and the editorial change. Better to keep it a magical thing, than drive it into the ground." Another popular Marvel artist, J.M. DeMatteis will be leaving Marvel with Peter Parker: Spider-Man '99 annual, to pursue work for DC. Some of the work DeMatteis will be doing for DC includes JLA issue 35, JLA: Realworlds (48-pages), Superman: Man of Tomorrow issue 15, and an all new Spectre series. Progress for the sequels to both the Blade and Spawn movies is good, with both movies moving along rapidly toward production. The premiere of the animated Avengers has been scheduled for September 25 on Fox Kids. Pictures of Tyler Mane, the man playing Sabertooth in the upcoming X-Men movie can be found at www.comics2film.com. Finally, from Image Comics and Explosive Studios, comes an all-new comic book series created and drawn by artist extraordinare, Mark Pacella, Tooth and Claw! Issue #1 will ship from Image Comics this August and will be 30 pages long, with a cover price of $2.95. For more information on what looks to be like one hell of a series, check out the official website for Mark Pacella's Tooth and Claw at www.toothandclaw.com for news, images, fan art, and more! To link to Rob's Comics check out our brand new Link to Us section!

 

 

 

Casting for the upcoming Spider-Man cartoon, as well as news on the animated Avengers show, Nova to be cancelled, Stone Cold Steve Austin comic book, and more on Sabertooth of the X-Men movie!

 

6/07/99

Welcome everyone, I'd like to start off with some great news concerning the Spider-Man Unlimited cartoon which will premiere this fall. Here's the casting list, which will also give you a pretty good idea of which characters will be appearing in the show. Rino Romano will be the voice of Peter Parker and Spider-Man, Jennifer Hale (voice of Black Cat in '94 Spider-Man series) will be the voice of Mary Jane, Michael Donovan (voice of the Gray Hulk in The Incredible Hulk animated series) will be the voice of Carnage, Richard Newman as J. Jonah Jameson, Brian Drummond as Venom, Mark Gibbon as Nick Fury, Christopher Gaze as Bromley, Ron Halder as Sir Ram, Kim Hawthorne as Karen, Rhys Huber as Shayne, Akiko Morison as Naoko, John Payne as John Jameson, Tasha Simms as Lady Ursula and David Sobolov as Lord Tyger. We reported that Mark Waid was leaving Captain America, well starting with issue #25 Thor scribe Dan Jurgens will take over as writer. Jurgens was quoted as saying that he plans on introducing villains from Cap's past, as well as creating some of his own. Some good news concerning the Avengers animated series, 5 more episodes have been ordered for the fall season making the total number at 18 now. This will make it more likely for a cameo appearance by some of the bigger heroes, which aren't a part of the regular line up, such as Thor and Captain America. In conjunction with the new series, Ty Templeton will be writing a new comic Avengers United, from Marvel Comics, which will debut in September, and although based on the series, will contain original stories. Erik Larsen's new series from Marvel, Nova: The Human Rocket will likely be cancelled after issue 7. However, an all-new New Warriors series, which I think will be pure crap, considering what I've read in Wizard about the story, and the images of the characters I've seen, is in the works. It's a shame to hear that Nova is being cancelled so soon, Larsen was doing a good job, and I was looking forward to see what else he had planned for the "human rocket". In other news, Chaos! Comics will be bringing us a Stone Cold Steve Austin comic book this October. The book, titled, "Stone Cold Steve Austin: Tougher than the Rest", will be a four issue mini-series with a 32-page full-color format with a cover price of $2.95. Finally, look for an all-new 3 issue Astonishing X-Men series this July, which will be the beginning of something huge that will lead the X-Men into the year 2000. Some brief news concerning the casting for the upcoming live-action X-Men movie. The man casted to play the part of Sabertooth, Tyler Mane, is 6-foot-10, weighs 275 pounds, and has long blonde hair. As most of you probably already know, he was also a professional wrestler at one time, but as to where he wrestled and who remains somewhat of a mystery. However, in a Rob's Comic Book Site exclusive we've learned that Tyler Mane wrestled for the UWF on 9/23/94 against Steve Ray in the UWF Blackjack Brawl! More news as we get it. Also, it has been confirmed that Dougray Scott has been offered the role of Wolverine, no word yet as to whether or not he'll take the part.

 

 

 

Danger Girl action figures, Casting news for the X-Men movie, the CBLDF launches a membership program, and Mark Waid leaves Captain America!

 

5/28/99

That's right, that is an Abbey Chase action figure and it'll be coming your way this August courtesy of McFarlane Toys. In addition to the Abbey Chase figure, a Sydney Savage, Natalia Kassle and a Major Maxim will also ship in August and for pictures of every one except for Sydney Savage be sure to check out the Comic Book Continuum. Now some really exciting news concerning the live-action X-Men movie, Patrick Stewart has been cast to play the role of Professor X, and pro. wrestler Tyler Mane will be playing the part of Sabertooth. Although, there was an official announcement for Tyler Mane being caste as Sabertooth, none has yet been made for Stewart. His involvement, however, is basically a done deal as www.startrek.com has confirmed his casting, and the official announcement is expected within the week. The animated Avengers series continues its smooth progress, with the first six episodes having been already recorded. Finally, Gary Carlson will co-write Erik Larsen's final issues on Aquaman (59-62) to help him with his ever increasing work schedule. For more Erik Larsen be sure to check out his all-new Nova series from Marvel! The Comic Book Legal Defense Fund is launching a membership program for the first time in history. To become a card-carrying member of the CBLDF you'll need to sign up on-line at their web site at www.cbldf.org by calling 800-99-CBLDF, or by using their newsletter, Busted! There is an annual fee of $25, and the Fund hopes to receive 1,000 new members by the end of 1999. In other news, Mark Waid has announced that he will be leaving Captain America with issue #22 being his last on the series. Finally, Dark Horse Comics will now be offering free e-mail to all of its fans. Users can register at their new site and will also receive news about Dark Horse Comics, in addition to chances to win Dark Horse prizes, and invitations to fan clubs and organizations.

 

 

 

Tons of news on the Avengers animated series, Venom and Carnage return to the Spidey comics, news concerning the Hulk movie, and Magneto cast for the X-men movie!

 

5/21/99

Hello once again everybody, the picture to the right is courtesy of marvel.com and depicts the Avengers as they'll be seen in the upcoming animated series! Not only that but the series, which is set to begin next season on Fox Kids, has completed the voice casting process and is now fully underway in the voice recording stage. Lenore Zann, who played Rogue in the X-Men animated series is voicing Tigra, Rod Wilson (Longshot of the X-Men) as Ant-Man, the leader of the team; Tony Daniels as Hawkeye; Hamish McEwan as Wonder Man; Martin Roche as Falcon; Lynda Ballentine as Wasp; Stavroula Logothettis as Scarlet Witch; Ron Robin as Vision; Graham Harley as Jarvis; and John Stocker as Ultron. With all these great names, characters, awesome design (as seen to left), not to mention the experience and talent in the production team, which ranges from Ron Myrick (The Incredible Hulk animated series) as Producer, Eric and Julia Lewald (X-Men) as the story editors, and Tony Pastor (Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, Iron Man and Silver Surfer) as voice director, it seems like the Avengers show will be a great success for Marvel and a pleasure to watch. Marvel's other upcoming animated show, Spider-Man Unlimited, is in the final stages of voice casting. In other news, look for some of Spidey's classic villains, specifically Venom and Carnage to make their returns this summer. This July, look for Venom to pop up in Peter Parker: Spider-Man #9, and the following month his symbiotic counterpart, Carnage returns in Peter Parker: Spider-Man #10! For all you Mutant X fans be sure to pick up issue number 13, as it will center around Bloodstorm, and strong fan reaction could lead to her own title. Also, Danger Girl 5 is projected to arrive in stores May 26, and the all-new Mankind series will premiere in August with Mankind #1 with a cover price of $2.95. This just in, the official casting announcement for the X-Men live action motion picture has been made and it has been confirmed that Ian McKellen will be playing the X-men's arch nemesis, Magneto, in the film. As far as other characters appearing in the movie, Professor X, Wolverine, Jean Grey, Storm, Cyclops and Rogue will all be there, but as to who will be playing them is currently unknown. Filming is scheduled to begin this August in Toronto. Universal Pictures recently acquired Mike France to develop a script for the Hulk movie. Details are not being disclosed at this time, but a previous script that was created by Jonathan Hensleigh, which depicted a completely different origin for the Hulk and was not similar to the comic at all, was scrapped leaving Hensleigh with no involvement in the film at all. This could mean that Universal Pictures is looking for a story more faithful to the comic.

 

 

 

Harley Quinn set to debut into the DC universe this August, Wolverine and Cable meet for the first time, and Inhumans' scribe Paul Jenkins gets set to take over on Webspinners!

 

5/14/99

Batman: Harley Quinn will debut from DC comics in August. The 48 page one-shot marks the first time the character created for the Batman animated series will appear in a DC comic. The book will be written by Paul Dini, Harley's co-creator and will feature a painted cover by none other than Alex Ross himself. Also from DC, an all-new Batman Beyond episode will be airing on the New Batman/Superman Adventures on Saturday May, 15th. Also airing the same day, will be an all-new Superman episode guest-starring Supergirl. Onto some Marvel news, we learned about Spidey's involvement with the Got Milk? ads in an earlier edition of news, but now Marvel has confirmed two ads drawn by Adam Kubert and Andy Kubert, featuring both the Incredible Hulk as well as Spider-Man. The ads will appear in the July, August and September issues of Marvel Comics. The 48 page Cable/Wolverine: Guts N' Glory will also debut in August from Marvel Comics. The book will be written by Joe Casey and drawn by Stephen Platt. The story will be about the first meeting between Cable and Wolverine, more news concerning this can be found at marvel.com. Also from Marvel, something I'm personally looking forward to is Inhumans scribe Paul Jenkins and Black Widow artist J.G. Jones taking over on Spider-Man in Webspinners issues 10-12. Jones will only do the covers and the 12th issue, but it should be great to see Jenkin's story that will center on the Chameleon and ship in July.

 

 

 

Marvel's brand new Monopoly game, the Clerks animated TV show, and Wildstorm/DC first crossover since DC's acquisition of Wildstorm!

 

5/07/99

I'd like to start this edition of news with something that I read in the latest edition of Wizard. The makers of Monopoly plan on releasing a Marvel Monopoly special edition this summer! Rather than buying and trading property, here you will be buying and trading rare comic books feature all your favorite Marvel characters! That's pretty damn cool to me. Anyway two more pieces of news courtesy of Wizard, the plan to involve Morbius in the Blade sequel has been scrapped, and starting in January ABC will be airing six episodes of the new animated Clerks show. With some great talent such as a former writer of Seinfeld, and Kevin Smith on board, it looks rather promising. Now onto just what exactly that kick-ass picture to the left is all about. Well, the picture and the news are both courtesy of the Comic Book Continuum and it seems that new Cable writer Joe Pruett and artist Rob Liefeld are working well together. Pruett's first issue, issue 71, will digress from the initial plan, and serve as a jump-on point for new readers. Pruett said that it will not be another Flashback type issue, but it will delve into whom exactly Cable is and what he's supposed to do. Pruett promises some familiar faces to be appearing, including X-force, and also tells that the highly anticipated gathering of the Twelve is coming up. One final note concerning DC/Wildstorm, the first crossover since DC acquired Wildstorm will occur in June's "Wild Times" set of one-shot comics. Scheduled to arrive in stores June 30th, the comics will feature Wildstorm characters in other time periods, as well as guest appearances of DC characters.

 

 

 

Marvel's Contest Of Champions II voting to begin, Marvel Comics and Gibson Guitars produce one kick-ass Spidey guitar, and some news on the Superman and Batman animated shows!

 

4/28/99

Starting Friday the voting for the Contest of Champions II mini-series will be taking place at www.marvel.com/champions. The first issue of the mini-series won't actually be released until this summer. There will be five issues total with the issues 2-5 featuring The Hulk Vs. Mr. Fantastic (July 21), Slingers Vs. New Warriors (August 4), Daredevil Vs. Deadpool (August 18), and Hawkeye Vs. Gambit (September 4). The voting will begin for the first battle on April 23 and will end April 30. Where the voting for the second battle picks up and so on. In other news, Marvel Comics along with Gibson Guitars Custom Ship will introduce a unique Spider-Man signature guitar called Webslinger One. The limited edition of 150 guitars will be offered only through national and international comics and collectible dealers. The guitar will come with a personally signed pickguard by none other than Stan "The Man" Lee, as well as a set of limited edition Spider-Man picks, strings and strap compliments each guitar along with the hardshell custom case with "Spidey blue" interior and web case cover. Marvel plans to promote this and will offer a contest in each of their July books to win the guitar. There will be one guitar emblem hidden in every book and you must find at least 10 emblems in various issues to win the guitar. This information was provided by the Comic Book Continuum click here to see the actual article and a picture of the guitar itself. Onto some DC news, the animated Superman show will soon feature a team-up between Superman and a newcomer to the show, Aquaman. The show will air on the Saturday, May 8th edition of The New Batman/Superman Adventures. To see a picture of what the animated Aquaman will look like click here. Two new Batmon Beyond episodes have also been announced for May 1 and May 8. One final note, one of the best comic book sites around, the Unofficial Superboy Website, was recently shut down by DC comics. The entire article and link to the site, explaining everything in detail can be found in the Thursday edition of Jonah Weiland's Comic Book Resources's Comic Wire by clicking here.

 

 

 

More news on the WCW/NWO comics, News on the Avengers animated show, the X-Men movie gets a budget cut, and Spidey to appear in a Got Milk? commercial!

 

4/21/99

   As we learned in an earlier edition of news, Marvel is planning on releasing four WCW/NWO titles in the fall. Marvel recently confirmed this, stating that only one of the titles is likely to be a monthly, while the rest are specials or limited series. The comics will be focusing mostly on WCW wrestlers, Hollywood Hogan and Goldberg. Marvel isn't the only one getting involved with pro. wrestling, however. Image Comics will release a monthly series starting in August and co-written by WCW wrestler, Kevin Nash, that stars Nash as a futuristic super hero. In other news. the Avengers Animated Series has begun voice recording for their first episode in Toronto, Canada. Tony Pastor, who also did Silver Surfer, Spider-Man, Fantastic Four and Iron Man, will be voice directing. The X-Men motion picture was issued a budget cut from Fox, reportedly from 100 million dollars to 65. This will likely rule out any big name actors, as they will be trying to save as much money as possible. Batman Beyond: The Movie will be released on May 18th in video format. Also, Spider-Man as well as other Marvel characters are scheduled to make appearances in Got Milk? commercials, we'll keep you posted as more news breaks. For more news on the X-Men and Avengers motion pictures be sure to check out the news archive! To see the cover of the Kevin Nash preview comic click here!

 

 

 

New writer on DC's Aquaman, Erik Larsen goes Nova, and more news on the new Spider-Man animated show!

 

4/14/99
    Erik Larsen, much noted for his work on Savage Dragon, was recently fired as writer of the DC comic, Aquaman. Dan Jurgerns is slated to take over. Although by no means does this significantly lighten Larsen's immensely packed schedule, as he tries juggling Savage Dragon, Nova, and Wolverine all at the same time. He continues his magnificent work on Dragon, in Wolverine he's been appointed the task of returning the adamantium back to Wolverine. As for his newest title, Nova, Larsen stated that he always wanted to do Nova, and plans to revisit some of the more classic villains, before creating any new ones. As all of you probably know by now, Thor 12 was released this week, feel free to discuss how you think Jurgens handled the conclusion, Romita Jr.'s always fantastic artwork of anything else in the Asgardians Speak! message board. Also, some more good news concerning the new Spidey series, Spider-Man Unlimited. Progress is reported to be going very smoothly, and the Spider-Man will resemble the one featured in Spider-Man 2099. Some of the other Marvel characters you can expect to see will be Machine Man, the High Evolutionary, the Green Goblin, the Vulture and everybody's favorite assassinating cyborg, Deathlok. Everything will have a radical twist, so don't expect them to look the same as they do now. To see a picture of how Spider-Man will look in his new animated show, click here!

 

 

 

Marvel's April Fool's joke, Rumors concerning casting of the X-Men movie, and Lou Ferringo returns to the Hulk!

 

4/7/99
    Marvel.com was redesigned on April Fool's Day, and in the spirit of the holiday they pulled off quite a prank. They issued phony press releases and statements, saying that there was a new mini-series coming out, where Spider-Man would join the X-Men and find out he was really a mutant. All the major comic sites (such as anotheruniverse.com and wizardworld.com) took this news to be true, until April 2 when Marvel declared that they had most certainly fooled us. In other news, rumors are flying about the casting for the upcoming X-Men movie, however, Arnold Schwarzenegger will have no involvement whatsoever and neither will Will Smith. Keanu Reeves a long time comic book fan, has expressed interest and told Entertainment Weekly that he'd love to play Wolverine! Eric Mabius, who will play the title role of the upcoming The Crow: Salvation, was also a comic book fan as a child, and would be interested in getting a role in the movie. It is also speculated that the planned release date (which is the summer of 2000) will be pushed back to Christmas time of 2000. One final note, Lou Ferringo who played the Hulk in the popular live-action television show of the 70's and 80's, told the Howard Stern Radio show that he would play a part in the development of the new Hulk movie. No word yet as to what specifically his involvement will be.

 

 

 

WCW/NWO comics set to debut from Marvel, a new Spider-Man cartoon under production,  release dates for new Marvel comics, and the new KISS video game!

 

3/28/99
    I'm sure many of you are familiar with the WCW/NWO toys that have popped up in recent months, well for those of you who didn't know, those toys are made by none other than Toy Biz! So what's so great about that? Well, Toy Biz also owns Marvel Comics, and this means that 4 WCW/NWO comic books are on their way, scheduled to arrive this fall from Marvel Comics. Speaking of new comic books, Marvel has also announced, that there is a New Warriors comic coming out this fall, and for October we'll see a new Blade and Ghost Rider title! I have some great news concerning the Avengers cartoon, as well as many more. First, the Avengers cartoon is finished and ready to go! Thirteen episodes have already been completed and the show will be brought to you by Marvel Studios and Saban Entertainment, and will air on the Fox Kids Saturday lineup this fall! As if that wasn't enough an all-new Spider-Man cartoon is underway and is titled, "Spider-Man Unlimited." It will have a darker look than the previous show, and all the characters will have new looks and all-new origins! Saban Entertainment is making thirteen episodes for this fall, and has already ordered another 13 for 2000. One final note concerning cartoons, the enormously successful Batman Beyond series, which set a ratings record for the WB on its premiere, had thirteen more episodes ordered for next season. Now onto movies! The Blade movie was so successful, that Marvel has a sequel, "Blade 2", planned and Wesley Snipes has already agreed play Blade in the sequel! There is also a Danger Girl movie in the works, and the script has already been finished, but no release date has been set. Finally, a new KISS game is coming out for the PC, it will feature background art from it's comic book, "Kiss: Psycho Circus" and a soundtrack by none other than KISS themselves!

 

 

 

The dispute over the rights to the Spidey movie are resolved, Fathom, Fantastic Four, and X-Men motion pictures are being discussed, and Todd McFarlane's DOOM?

 

3/21/99
    After years of disputes and court battles, the disputes for the rights to the Spider-Man movie are finally over. Sony Pictures Entertainment and Marvel Enterprises are the owners and plans for a Spidey movie are finally underway! Jim Carrey has reportedly expressed interest, whereas long-time hopeful director, James Cameron, bowed out and no longer has any interest in the project. There will be an upcoming movie based on the DOOM PC game and the story and characters' design will be done by none other than, Todd McFarlane! There are plans for an animated Fathom motion picture for the summer of 2002.

Back to the Archive!