I'm getting lots of queries about the fact that Rich Johnston has reported in his column that Marvel is considering offering me the Hulk again. This is based upon Joe's soliciting fan reaction, getting huge cheers, during one of his panels on the notion of my coming back on the series, and then giving a cryptic, Cheshire cat response.
Now, honestly, I've been to such gatherings, and while it's great that people cheered when Joe asked what they thought of me returning full-time to HULK, my guess is that if Joe had said, "We're thinking of tearing up the carpeting at the Marvel offices and switching over to linoleum, whattaya think?!" he could have gotten thunderous applause. So, y'know...
That said, No, Marvel has not approached me about the prospect of returning to an ongoing HULK series. For one thing, with Bruce leaving to go off to DC, I don't even know if there IS gonna be an ongoing HULK series, do you? I am still doing the six-issue HULK limited series next year, and yes, we do have an artist aboard: Lee Weeks, which will be fun since I haven't worked with Lee since our "Justice" days.
Ever since Bruce's exclusive with DC was announced, I've been speculating that maybe Marvel is now looking to the limited series as a litmus test, because certainly fans have sent mixed reactions on line. For every fan who says, "We'd love to see Peter David back on HULK," there's another who says, "Been there, done that." So it could be they don't know what to expect and are interested to see what the miniseries results in. But I don't know for sure. It's pure guess on my part and, for all I know, they could announce tomorrow that Bendis is taking over on HULK and that's that.
So I guess we'll all find out together.
PAD
Posted by Peter David at July 29, 2004 11:21 AM | TrackBack | Other blogs commentingAh, but Peter, the real question to me is, would you take the job? Given your, er, uh, I mean the aged Rick Jones' statement in your final issue of the Hulk series (wow, that's two boards in as many days on which I've referenced that issue) that you've said all you have to say regarding the character, do you have the enthuiasm, not to mention the stories, to take it on again as a regular assignment?
Surely that answer to this question should play into all this talk about it, shouldn't it? :-)
I usually take these rumours as they are. Rumours.
Now, while I'd love to see PAD on Hulk again, the question again is whether Marvel would allow him to do what he wants to.
Whatever. I've cut down my CB reading to a handful of comics, and most of them are written by Peter. And since James Robinson seems out of the loop in writing, I'll stick with the others, Planetary and whenever a new Hero Bear comes out.
Though I do have an open slot since CM is done... Madrox and the Hulk mini are there to do it, I guess.
Travis
Bendis taking over the Hulk? Man, and there were those who said your version of the Hulk was wordy...
> For every fan who says, "We'd love to see Peter David back on HULK," there's another who says, "Been there, done that."
The same thing could be said about Chris Claremont's latest return to the X-Men. Those divisions didn't seem to stop HIM from coming back. :-D
--Don, aka Ygor
I'd love to see you back on [i]Hulk[/i], Peter. I really hope it all works out.
I'll pick up the mini series and I hope that, if both sides are willing, we will see you writing the Hulk again full time.
The same thing could be said about Chris Claremont's latest return to the X-Men. Those divisions didn't seem to stop HIM from coming back. :-D
Was that supposed to be a message in support of a return to Hulk? It seems like it's more of an argument for him to stay away...
Peter:
I have to agree with Luigi Novi on this one.
If they did (I hope, I hope) offer you the Hulk writing assignment again, would you want it?
Even if they promised you creative freedom (and we all know how long that clause has lasted in times past), are there still Hulk stories you want to tell?
There must have been at least one, or else you would not be writing the mini-series.
Of course I could also see Marvel turn around and start pricing it higher than regular issues (like $2.99 or higher!) so it winds up being a very short run based on sales.
Then Marvel would look like the good guy, saying 'Hey, we listened to the fans and gave Peter David another shot'.
Not sure how you or any of us out here would feel about that if it did happen, but then again right now we're only discussing rumors and hypetheticals.
In any event, good luck with the mini-series!
Lee.
> > The same thing could be said about Chris Claremont's latest return to the X-Men. Those divisions didn't seem to stop HIM from coming back. :-D
> Was that supposed to be a message in support of a return to Hulk? It seems like it's more of an argument for him to stay away...
No, I'm GLAD Claremont is back with the X-Men, and I'd be MORE than thrilled to see PAD return to the Hulk. Both of them are extremely talented writers who have brought a lot to their respective characters, and I believe they both still have plenty of exciting stories to tell.
It's just that X-Men fans seemed (to me at least) to be equally divided on the issue of Claremont returning to that title again, and yet Marvel decided to bring him back. I was just hoping that something similar will happen to PAD and the Hulk; that despite the mixed feelings among the fans, Marvel will ultimately decide to bring him back.
Sorry about the confusion.
--Don aka Ygor
I'm a HUGE Hulk fan so I admit my bias. I was a fan back in the "Hulk is Strongest there is" days and I completely enjoyed reading and re-reading Peter David's run (I felt for him about how his pacing was interrupted for crossovers.) My reaction is mixed.
Claremont made his glory on X-Men but it became painfully obvious that he overstayed the welcome. And when he comes back to it I try my best to find total fanboy enjoyment but something just seems lost (putting it kindly considering the truck accident that was Xtreme X-Men.) I notice the Jim Starling kinda come in with a bang, then vanishes for a little bit the comes back, and often with a bang.
It was hard for me to see Peter David go - and issues after his departure kinda proved me right on that one. I don't blame the new creative team, I can imagine what it had to be like to follow up on such a brilliant run. I, for one, would never want to follow Peter David, Kieth Giffen or Alan Mooore after they send a series to that stratosphere - it just can't be easy. I like Bruce Jones well enough (though I wish he'd wrap things up a little faster).
If Peter David chooses to do the Hulk again, I say fine. I will be right there when the mini comes out and I will own every single one of them. If he chooses not too, I respect the decision and hope if anyone does take over the book they give it the life it deserves.
>>Even if they promised you creative freedom (and we all know how long that clause has lasted in times past), are there still Hulk stories you want to tell?
There must have been at least one, or else you would not be writing the mini-series.
wasn't Hulk:the end written after peter concluded his run on hulk?
I do hope you will get the offer and that you will take it. And what about another spyboy ongoing?
One thing I would be ready to guarantee: MArvel will keep The Hulk going in some form. He's too high-profile (especially since Marvel is still hoping for a second Hulk film). He will return in some fashion, though whether he will remain an MK hero - which might make someone like Bendis suited to his travels and travails - or whether he will be rebranded in a second round of "Avengers Disasembled" reboot, who can say? But he will be back. I think.
If PAD were my friend and asked my advice, I would say, don't do it. What's the upside? To prove he can write the Hulk? He's already done that.
My thoughts would echo an old DC Comics Presents (written by Steve Engelhart) where Mr. Miracle was challenging Superman to fight. Lois told him not to do it.
"If you win, everyone will say, 'Well, of course, he's Superman.' and if you lose everyone will say Superman doesn't have it anymore." (I'm paraphrasing, I'm sure.)
If PAD felt he really had Hulk stories he needed to tell, it would be one thing. But he's an excellent, commercial writer. So he would do just as well, if not better, in my opinion, devoting that energy and creativity to something new instead of taking a step back.
Don't get me wrong. As a reader, I would love to have PAD's Hulk coming out monthly again but I keep thinking of the second Dark Knight series and the last two Star Wars movies and how Alan Moore has been smart enough never to write "Watchmen II: Electric Bugaloo"
I want to see Peter Hulk novel What Savage Beast make it's transition to the comic book medium. I was forteen when I first read it and was so emotional blown away by the story I cried again. I just read it again for the uptenth time and I still cried. If The Last Titan made the jump from prose tale to comic book why not What
Savage Beast. Beside if Peter takes the Hulk book as it stands right now he is going to have to do a lot of fixing thereby torking off the currant fan base.
"But he's an excellent, commercial writer. So he would do just as well, if not better, in my opinion, devoting that energy and creativity to something new instead of taking a step back."
Fans talk a real good game of saying that's what I should do. And then when I do it, maybe one fan in six supports it.
PAD
It's pure guess on my part and, for all I know, they could announce tomorrow that Bendis is taking over on HULK and that's that.
Shhhhh. Not too loud. They'll hear you.
Isn't his current path of destruction through Marvel characters enough?
Well, if they DO make the offer, I, for one, hope PAD takes it. If I could only have one writer's run on the book it would be his. Well, actually, it would be Stan Lee's but only so I could sell them for a tremendous price and then buy all of PAD's, pocketing a fairly hefty amount of change in the process.
Fans talk a real good game of saying that's what I should do. And then when I do it, maybe one fan in six supports it.
I don't doubt those numbers are correct, sad to say -- but I also think that's a systemic problem, not something specific to you.
Look at ... oh, I don't know ... John Byrne. Most of the stuff he's done outside the really hot titles tends not to last very long (and I say this as one of the twelve people who kinda liked "Marvel: the Lost Generation").
Look at movies. What are the biggest hits of the summer? Spider-Man 2, Shrek 2, Harry Potter 3, and The Bourne Supremacy. All sequels, three of which are not only sequels but adaptations. The surprise hit of the summer, F9/11, is perhaps somewhat original in its presentation but not in its actual content.
Anyone going off the beaten path has a lot of folks leaving them behind when they do. One could argue that the most recent Harry Potter film is suffering slightly at the box office because it's not as slavish an adaptation as the other two. (I don't know if I'd agree, but I've heard the argument made.)
As for you...
Your Captain Marvel lasted about as many issues (across volumes) as the first one did, and that first one had a zillion different writers and at least one lengthy hiatus.
Supergirl went 75 issues, a good run by any standards in 2004. Your Hulk run went on for over a decade.
Soulsearchers is still going on strong after I don't know how many years.
Fallen Angel will, I hope, keep going for quite some time -- I know that one's been touch-and-go and it's frustrating, but it's good stuff and I hope more people are starting to recognize that.
For that matter, you just said you did a lot of panels at Comic-Con as a fantasy writer alongside folks like Brooks and Jordan. The Apropos series is definitely "something new" and not retreading old stomping grounds of yours, and you've certainly had plenty of success with that.
I guess the gist here is a hope that you not get too bitter or discouraged at some of the turns the last year or two have had. I understand where your sentiment's coming from, but I think the big picture isn't quite as bad as all that.
TWL
Woo-hoo! I'm a 1 in 6!
Hate that I have to be, but happy to be one of them.
I thought Marvel: The Next Generation was very cool. Only Generations has tripped my trigger among Byrne's other works since he shut down Next Men. (And I'm still grumpy about him not finishing Danger Unlimited, which I thought got off to the strongest start of anything he's ever done.)
It takes a lot for me to pick up new writers' takes on established characters unless there's a clear hook which immediately interests me. Unfortunately, Peter's writing style over the last ten years has been one of very gradual development, and by the time the hook becomes evident I've since departed.
Maybe I need to be more patient, which is why I've been sticking with Fallen Angel. I am fervently hoping that one of the characters will become someone I can root for, though. I find the major ones to be unsympathetic - Lee included. That makes it a tough read at times.
Umar: Claremont made his glory on X-Men but it became painfully obvious that he overstayed the welcome.
Luigi Novi: I dunno. I think it’s hard to judge his work in the last couple of years because he was so hamstrung by the directives from editorial and the suits upstairs to have an annual mutant crossover, not to mention that Jim Lee was reportedly given editorial favoritism over his wishes as a writer. It is my understanding that such crossover directives is also one of the reasons that Peter left X-Factor (correct me if I’m wrong here, Peter).
Lester: I want to see Peter Hulk novel What Savage Beast make it's transition to the comic book medium.
Luigi Novi: HERE, HERE!!!!!
But it’ll never happen. :-(
PAD, I look forward to your return to the Hulk, whether it's six issues or six hundred.
I am curious about how you'd deal with Betty. Bruce Jones's solution just doesn't work for me. I know you could fix that mess.
I am hopeful that you get enough readers to garner your second run on the book.
Luigi Novi: I dunno. I think it’s hard to judge his work in the last couple of years because he was so hamstrung by the directives from editorial and the suits upstairs to have an annual mutant crossover, not to mention that Jim Lee was reportedly given editorial favoritism over his wishes as a writer.
I stopped reading Uncanny X-Men after #230, when I realized that not only did I have no idea what had happened in the previous two years' worth of stories, I didn't really care, either. This was long before Jim Lee or the editorial directives you mention, and just before Crossover Mania began. I think X-Men would have been best served by finding a fresh writer after #200.
Then again, I think the series could have been happily ended after #176. Cyclops got his happy ending, he was always the true protagonist of the series, what better ending could there have been?
Of course, that's not how popular ongoing series are run...
I stopped reading Uncanny X-Men after #230, when I realized that not only did I have no idea what had happened in the previous two years' worth of stories, I didn't really care, either. This was long before Jim Lee or the editorial directives you mention, and just before Crossover Mania began.
Before Jim Lee, yes, but Crossover Mania had already begun by then. If memory serves, "The Fall of the Mutants" was in the mid-220s, and the Mutant Massacre stuff was around 210.
TWL
> I want to see Peter Hulk novel What Savage Beast make it's transition to the comic book medium. I was forteen when I first read it and was so emotional blown away by the story I cried again. I just read it again for the uptenth time and I still cried. If The Last Titan made the jump from prose tale to comic book why not What
Savage Beast.
Yeah, that would be pretty cool. I first read WSB when I was in high school, and it's since become one of my all-time favorite novels. I wouldn't mind seeing a comic book/graphic novel version someday, especially if it reunited PAD with the Future Imperfect team (George Perez, Tom Smith, etc.). Perez did do the illustrations for the novel, so why not?
Also, what I'd REALLY LOVE to see sometime is an Incredible Hulk: Hell on Earth Saga graphic novel, by PAD and Adam Kubert. This would depict the events that were described or hinted at in Incredible Hulk #467 and Incredible Hulk: The End, as well everything that happened in-between those two milestone issues, exactly the way PAD originally envisioned. Awesome. :-D
--Don aka Ygor
Tim Lynch: Before Jim Lee, yes, but Crossover Mania had already begun by then. If memory serves, "The Fall of the Mutants" was in the mid-220s, and the Mutant Massacre stuff was around 210.
Hmm, you're right. Guess I blocked that horrible time out of my memory!
[i]Also, what I'd REALLY LOVE to see sometime is an Incredible Hulk: Hell on Earth Saga graphic novel, by PAD and Adam Kubert. This would depict the events that were described or hinted at in Incredible Hulk #467 and Incredible Hulk: The End, as well everything that happened in-between those two milestone issues, exactly the way PAD originally envisioned. Awesome.[/i]
i have to admit...just thinking about the possibility of that happening made my nipples hard.
...damn. I hate it when I share too much.
...and no, I won't get mine pierced either (not that anyone cares about -my- nipples as much as PAD's anyway) :D
:(
how would one (successfully) do italics (as opposed to just hinting at the notion of via incorrect bbl markup)? :)
I think that Peter's Hulk run was the best thing that ever happened to the book.
Peter your return would only strengthen this character and increase sales. I can understand your point about 1 in 6 fans support your work but with a fan base as large as you obviously command those would still be impressive numbers.
Whatever the Marvel PTB's decide I am still looking forward to your Hulk limited series.
Regards:
Warren S. Jones III
I agree with Luigi. The real question comes down to whether PAD _want_ to write an ongoing Hulk story again. Sometimes a writer likes to revisit something he's written before (e.g. Claremont and X-Men). Sometimes they decide to move on (e.g. Richard Carpenter and Robin Hood).
I enjoyed PAD's run on "Hulk", and would pick up the title again if he returned to it (same with "Supergirl"); but I'm not dwelling on it. Those are in the past, and "Fallen Angel" is of the present.
Rick
P.S. if PAD does return to "Hulk", perhaps he'll be able to go beyond the green and gray hulks, to write about the red, orange, yellow, blue, indigo and violet Hulks, too.
Peter & co.,
For what it's worth I'd buy they Hulk if you were back on it and I'm really looking forward to you and Lee Weeks' mini next year!
I am also supporting Fallen Angel in tpb - which is a great read - and I'm already missing Captain Marvel. That last issue was awesome! Thanks for the soild 60 issues.
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