Marvel to release new What if? titles.

[Darthphere]

http://www.newsarama.com/WW_Chicago_06/Marvel/whatif.html

WW: CHICAGO '06 - MARVEL's WHAT IF? IS BACK
Spiraling out of Friday’s Mondo Marvel announcements at Chicago is the return of the What If? one-shots. While past issues have focused on long-time classic events from the Marvel Universe, these newest installments cover recent classics and fresh wounds in the heart of the 616 Universe.

Marvel has provided Newsarama which as much information regarding these five one-shots shipping in November and December. They are as follows…

November

WHAT IF? AVENGERS DISASSEMBLED
Written by Jeff Parker
Penciled by Aaron Lopresti
Cover by Gary Frank
"The Avengers have the same unfortunate tendency as ordinary law enforcement. Once we have a perpetrator to hang the crime on, we look no further."- Dr. Hank McCoy

It was the darkest day in Avengers history. Heroes died, the mansion was destroyed, and the team came to an end. But was the real problem solved? What if the greatest threat had gone undetected?
48 PGS

WHAT IF: SPIDER-MAN: THE OTHER
Written by Peter David
Penciled by Koi Pham
Cover by Mark Brooks
In "The Other," Peter Parker returned from the dead and embraced his "inner spider.” But WHAT IF the detente that was reached between man and arachnid had not ended there? What if the man known as Peter Parker had been completely consumed by his inner, bestial impulses, and became more spider than man?
32 PGS

WHAT IF? WOLVERINE: ENEMY OF THE STATE
Written by Jimmie Robinson
Penciled by Carmine Di Giandomenico
Cover by Doug Alexander
What if the world's deadliest killing machine was never de-programmed? Over half a year has passed since the Hand took control of Wolverine, forcing him to assassinate one great hero after another. Now only a handful of super-powered beings are left to stop him. Who will risk their life to end the path of death and destruction? Written by the creator of indie sensation Bomb Queen.
32 PGS

More Information on December’s What If? Age of Apocalypse by writer Rick Remender and What If? X-Men: Deadly Genesis by writer David Hine and artist David Yardin is forthcoming.

Newsarama also had an opportunity to briefly speak with Marvel editor Mark Paniccia about the five new additions to the What If? series family…

Newsarama Mark, Why did you focus on such recent stories this time around? Is it because What If? stories of the past have already mined all the big storylines of the past?

Paniccia: There are plenty of cool moments left in the Marvel Universe to tap into and more created every month. It was about doing something tied into all the recent great arcs. And all of them beg a doosey of a What If.

NRAMA:Creatively, how are these stories developed? Does editorial come up with the basic premise and then you seek a creative team? Do you put word out among your writers that you're developing a new series of them - give them the basic angle – very recent, big stories - and let them pitch you ideas?

MP: In some cases, we brainstormed or just emailed back and forth until we got the hook. And in other cases the writer had the concept right away.

NRAMA: I see Peter David is writing the The Other story spiraling out of this year’s crossover in the Spider-man titles. Did the other original writers of the other events like J. Michael Straczynski, Brian Bendis, Mark Miller, Ed Brubaker, etc., participate at all in generating the concepts?

MP: They did in the sense that these stories are based off of their original arcs, but the What If writers took it from there. For instance, Jeff Parker re-read Avengers: Disassembled and discovered something interesting about one of the characters and built his What If? from that. It continued to grow organically the more he studied the story.

Rick Remender presented some really cool directions for the Age of Apocalypse storyline and both of us started chatting and gravitated towards one of the springboards. We discussed it a little more and Rick went to town.

Each book went down a little differently.

 

[Phoney Bone]

Lame. It's all story-lines that happened at the most, 2 years ago. I want some f'n CLASSIC storylines.

 

[Sentry2005]

I'll pick up What If? Avengers Dissassembled, simply because I want to see if they could have done it worse The others don't really appeal to me.

 

[Darthphere]

And why they decided to do titles on probably two of the most ill recieved minis of the last couple of years is beyond me.

 

[Sentry2005]

If you read the recent Joe Q interview on Newsarama, you'll see that he actually doesn't care about anything other than profit. When asked why Mighty Avengers is being written by Bendis, he stated it was because New Avengers was the one thing that no one in the comic world was split on.

So rather than give us something fresh and new which could possibly have been as productive in terms of revenue, he went with what's making money, because the casual fan wants to pick up anything with Wolverine and Spider-Man in

So it's perfectly feesable to me that they'd do more stories based around failed concepts Stupid Marvel. And don't get me started about what he said in reference to Morrison's X-Men...

*edit* You did read it... you're the one that posted the thread about it *runs away embarrased*

 

[The_Vision]

I cant wait for them!!

 

[Doc Destruction]

Awful. More *********ory writing from hacks.

 

[Colossal Spoons]

I'll pick up the Avengers Disassembled one just out of curiousity.

 

[Darthphere]

Awful. More *********ory writing from hacks.

Umm yeah I wouldnt call PAD, Jeff Parker or David Hine hacks.

 

[Anubis]

I'll check out the Disassembled and Wovlerine one. Don't much give a rats ass about the other.

 

[Sabretooth]

That's dumb. Why not think of original,interesting What Ifs instead of basing them all off of stories that blew monkey nuts?

 

[Elijya]

If you read the recent Joe Q interview on Newsarama, you'll see that he actually doesn't care about anything other than profit. When asked why Mighty Avengers is being written by Bendis, he stated it was because New Avengers was the one thing that no one in the comic world was split on.

while that's an exaggerated statement, it's for the most part true given the sales of the title. Sure, there might be 3,000 vocal fans on the net, but there's over 100,000 fans picking it up month in and month out

 

[Elijya]

That's dumb. Why not think of original,interesting What Ifs instead of basing them all off of stories that blew monkey nuts?

What if?s are almost always based on previous stories

 

[Sentry2005]

while that's an exaggerated statement, it's for the most part true given the sales of the title. Sure, there might be 3,000 vocal fans on the net, but there's over 100,000 fans picking it up month in and month out

I get that, and if I were in his position, i'd most likely do exactly the same thing. Money is the name of the buisness. BUT, if you've got one dollar reaping title with a certain writer that is hitting all the right notes, why would you give him a title based on the exact same premise? I mean, if you like one, you'll like the other I guess is the idea.

But what if it turns out more 'I'm getting one Avengers title by Bendis, I don't need two' is the reaction? Personally, i'd like to think I would have given the book to someone else if I were in Joe Q's position, probably Vaughn. But thats just my opinion. *shrug*

 

[The Cleric]

i think that the what if title should take some fan request. if the request is intreguing, its not the type of comic where it could harm them, maybe put two stories in one. i dunno, i guess i had a few ideas that had promise.

 

[The Question]

I get that, and if I were in his position, i'd most likely do exactly the same thing. Money is the name of the buisness.

I wouldn't. Marvel comics, along with Christmas, Coca Cola, and Nikelodeon, is on my list of things that seemed magical to me as a child, and now seem like corperate shams. Coke was always a corperate sham, Christmas always had a degree of that but it's gotten worse, but Marvel and Nick each had that special something when they started. Now, they've gone down the tube of big buisness. I'd, personally, want to bring back that special spark. No more varient covers, no more tapping a writer's popularity for sales to the point where all we're getting is crap, no more any of that stuff. But then, I'm an idealist.

 

[Horrorfan]

They all sound pretty cool to me. when are they released again?

 

[Red]

Whats the symbiot suit gotta do with The Other

 

[Phaedrus45]

You can complain about them being stories from the last two years, but they are already better than the last set of What If? comics that came out not long ago. At least it's not just taking a hero and transporting him to some other era, like the 20's.

 

[twylight]

Is it me or does the Spider-Man one sound really lame?

The Disassembled one I'll pick up but the other ones don't interest me at all and seems somewhat absurd.

 

[Lactophiliac]

But what if it turns out more 'I'm getting one Avengers title by Bendis, I don't need two' is the reaction? Personally, i'd like to think I would have given the book to someone else if I were in Joe Q's position, probably Vaughn. But thats just my opinion. *shrug*

Well Bendis pitched the idea for the Mighty Avengers, so it's his comic to write really, I mean it would be in bad taste to take the idea and offer it to someone else if Bendis pitched with the intentions of writing it himself.

 

[The Joker]

Is it me or does the Spider-Man one sound really lame?

Anything based on the Other is really lame.

If they're going to do a what if story for Spidey, at least pick a good one, not one of the worst stories he's had in years.

 

[Roughneck]

hmmm. Maybe the AOA one is What if: The New Age Of Apocalypse Debacle didn't suck ass.

I'll prolly nab the Wolverine one too.

 

[Sentry2005]

I wouldn't. Marvel comics, along with Christmas, Coca Cola, and Nikelodeon, is on my list of things that seemed magical to me as a child, and now seem like corperate shams. Coke was always a corperate sham, Christmas always had a degree of that but it's gotten worse, but Marvel and Nick each had that special something when they started. Now, they've gone down the tube of big buisness. I'd, personally, want to bring back that special spark. No more varient covers, no more tapping a writer's popularity for sales to the point where all we're getting is crap, no more any of that stuff. But then, I'm an idealist.

Yeah, I know what you mean. But thinking from a buisness point of view, were I to become EiC of Marvel, I think i'd figure out quite quickly that what I want, and what sells, were two entirely different things in todays market

 

[Sentry2005]

Is it me or does the Spider-Man one sound really lame?

No, you're right, it does sound lame