ROGUE EL had this posted on his myspace... one of his "blogs". I thought it really fit the topic at hand.
The undeniable truth is that comics are mainly bought by proper fans, and rarely by the casual consumer (in western society - in Asia, comics are as popular as newspapers and read by all ages). Although many children are buying the revamped versions of classic heroes, lead by Ultimate Spider-Man, it's still the hardcore fans who buy most of the comics.
Fans can be very demanding, and confrontational. And when they group together, especially on the intenet, watch out. They become like a pack of sharks, and then vultures. They are like this because they care about the characters so much, and they don't want them changed.
This is the problem. It's not the character that is most important, it's the story. Comicbook creators don't have the luxury of real character development. The readers won't allow it. They want their heroes and villains to remain exactly how they remember them. And so the writers and artists are unable to use their full creative impulses, to create full, evolving characterisations and storylines, because the readership wants the characters to remain static, in limbo.
In the 1990's, some of the major comicbook icons were involved in major storylines. The stories all went like this; the hero suffers a major trauma, either physically or mentally, and is replaced by a new version(s) of the hero.
In the case of Batman, he was defeated by the brual supervillain Bane. The unstable vigilante Jean-Paul Valley became the new Batman, quickly went off the rails, and ended up as a high-tech monster. The real Batman eventually returned and defeated him. This is the Knightfall saga.
In The Death and Return of Superman epic, the Man of Steel is defeated by the savage Doomsday. Superman was replaced by four psuedo-Supermen, none of whom turned out to be the real McCoy. The genuine article returned, and saved the earth from being turned into a giant spaceship by an intergalatic warlord.
These two storylines created much controversy, but there is no doubt the creators behind them intended for the real versions of the characters to ultimately return. At heart both merely replicate the superhero story blueprint on an epic scale; will the hero appear in time to save the day?
However, in the infamous Spider-Man Clone Saga, the creators had other ideas. We find out that, since the mid-70's, we haven't been reading the real Spider-Man's adventures. At that point he was replaced by a clone. So the Spider-Man from the classic Stan Lee/Steve Ditko/John Romita Sr stories of the 60s is not the same one that's in the Todd MacFarlane/JM DeMatteis/John Romita Jr stories I grew up reading in the 80s.
It was a shocking and thrilling idea. There was so much potential for great science fiction and human drama. Marvel's attempt to freshen the Spider-Man comics had electrified them.
But it did not go down well. Perhaps the Clone saga was badly written. Perhaps the new Spider-Man was too different from the original. But the main reason this story was savagely attacked by fans; because it changed the character of Spider-Man.
And so the artists and writers had to go back, change the story, and assure us that the whole thing was just a trick by the Green Goblin.
The same with the DC superhero Green Lantern, aka Hal Jordan. After his home city was destroyed, his anger was such that he killed all the other Green Lanterns (an intergalatic police force) and stole their energy (powered by 'magic' rings). One last ring was given to teenager Kyle Rayner on earth, and he was given the monumental task of being the last Green Lantern. Everything was turned on it's head; the balance of power shifted between good and evil, the hero of the saga became the villain, a boy had to become a hero. The only hero. Very similar to Star Wars, in fact.
Kyle Rayner actually lasted a decade in print, despite the onslaught of fans who wanted Hal Jordan back. But Hal had developed as far as he could as a hero - there was no where for the character to go. Except to the dark side. Fans said Hal would never become evil. But the fans didn't write the comics, and, whilst keeping the characters believable in their actions, they should be explored. They should go through the ringer, that is the essence of heroic drama and myth.
With Kyle Rayner, there was a new hero, a new version of the Green Lantern who had to endure a trial of fire and lean to be a hero. There was so much potential in this new, fresh version as he contrasted with the older version of the character. How would he approach things? What would he do differently? More drama was added due to the fact that he was the last one of his kind.
An epic change of course for the Green Lantern series. And let's not forget, there have always been many different Green Lanterns, as it is a force of superheroes protecting the universe. Hal Jordan wasn't even the first. So it was only right for Kyle Rayner to become the new focus of the series.
Not according to the fans. They wanted old Hal back as a good guy. And so, the writers altered, contrived their story to make the readers happy again. Hal was possesed by some kind of evil force. He then saved the universe, became the wondering spirit of vengeance the Spectre, and recently has become the main Green Lantern again. Kyle Rayner's whole coming of age hero arc was abrubtly cut short to suit the readers.
An epic tale that would change Spider-Man forever and alter our view of the entire history of the character....was spoiled. A dramatic saga that gave us a new Green Lantern and turned the whole universe on it's head.....was ruined.
That such exciting ideas was killed by the fans is sad indeed. That they wouldn't allow real character development prevents them from reading really great stories. Imagine, if you will, Achilles being revived because the readers didn't like him dying. Oh, the arrow didn't kill him, it only wounded him (the same thing happened to Sherlock Holmes, although his death was simply a deliberate and failed attempt by Conan Doyle to dispose of him) . Frodo didn't really become corrupted by the ring, he just pretended to be. Incredible stories can only happen when incredible things happen to the characters. Story equals character. The story comes from the character development. These heroes must be allowed to change, to alter, to die, be reborn and evolve. That is where the great tales come from. That is why Casino Royale has far and away the best story of any James Bond film.
And if you want to read truly great fiction, then you have to accept, you have to revel, true character development.
