Ask Kurt Busiek

[MRP]

I wouldn't call it the least interesting aspect. The origin is foundational after all.

But let's be honest: Most writers are so preoccupied with getting their hero to smash up bad guys and join the feats parade that they really skimp on origin and supplemental backstory, including the means and source of the character's attributes. Better writers usually come along and either fill in those blanks or add their own well-conceived twist on it, which ultimately attracts readers and breathes new life into trite, stagnant, off-beam characters. If you really want to stick the landing, you have to invest a bit more into a character's origin. If you don't, someone else will, and no one will even care to remember that you created the character in the first place.

They aren't interesting because origin stories are rarely something the character did, and often something that happened to them. They are passive, not active. Take two of the earliest origins in comics-Superman-Krypton explodes, baby Kal is sent to Earth, found and raised by Kents. Foundational sure-but doesn't tell you anything at all about who Clark/Kal is because Kal does nothing in the story, it happens to him, he isn't really a protagonist in it-Jor-El, the Kents sure, Clark/Kal, not so much. The protagonist faces conflict, overcomes it, and grows and changes as a result. That is the core essence of story. The origin story of Superman is not Superman's story. Therefore it is the least interesting story about him. The same with Batman/Bruce Wayne-he saw his parents killed in an alley and swore vengeance. Great. Foundational absolutely. Reveal anything about who Bruce/Batman is, how they will do that, or even whether that was an empty promise in the moment as so many reactions to grief are? Absolutely not. Those are the things that make Bruce interesting-what he does, not what is done to him. Bruce as actor, not passive recipient. The origin is a MacGuffin that lets you get to the real story being told about the character, where the character does story things and is not a passive recipient of the action merely reacting to events. So I agree, they are foundational, but that makes them no more interesting because of it.

the 11 page story of Spidey's origin in Amazing Fantasy 15 or the 8 page origin of Dr. Strange in Strange Tales #115 are good origin stories, they set the foundation but tell stories of the character doing something not having something done to them and becoming a super-hero as a result. But those 11 and 8 pages are absolutely enough. They don't need to expanded or decompressed into a mini series or arc. They do what they need to do so you can go on and tell more interesting stories about those characters. I find the need to go back and continually retell or fiddle with origins stories expanding them is more a sign of a lack of other interesting stories to tell by the storyteller than an effective way to increase interest in the character. If you want to be remembered for creating a character, don't rest on your laurels of some origin story, keep telling dynamic, interesting stories with that character. Ditko's legacy with Doc and Spidey is more about the other great stories he told about them than the origin stories at the beginning. Comic creators are story tellers, their legacy comes form continuing to tell interesting stories, not be one-hit wonders with an origin story.

When I was a kid and discovered Spidey, it was because of the stories being told about him. I got to read his origin in the big Origins of Marvel Comics book my cousin had, and it was cool, but not as cool as they stories I got to read every month where Peter juggled his day to day life with bring Spidey, his hunt for the villain of the week with paying his bills, making time for Gwen, etc. etc. (I discovered Spidey in the 70s and got Marvel Tales w/SA reprints more often than the current book). What made Spidey interesting was the stories being told about him that revealed his character, not an origin story told a decade or more previously, and it was Spidey's longevity and the oeuvre of stories about him that cemented Ditko's Spidey legacy, not an 11 page origin story in Amazing Fantasy 15.

If you have interesting stories to tell about a character that take place at different points in their career, those can be good, but it has to be because they are good stories in and off themselves and not because they are expanding/revising/revisiting continuity. Kurt Busiek's Untold Tales of Spider-Man is a great example of that. They took place in the Ditko era, but were good stories in and of themselves. They didn't need to be told because Ditko didn't flesh out the character and they didn't cause anyone to forget Ditko role in Spidey's creation (there were a whole of of other things that did that but that's a different conversation). The only reason they needed to be told was that they were good stories that interested readers and this sustained and built the legacy not diminished it. But if all you do is mess around with origin stories, you never get to do that. And if the origin is the most interesting thing about the character and that's the best story with them, you are not going to sustain readership. If each story is less interesting than the first, people aren't going to keep coming back, and that origin story, character, and legacy will be forgotten.

-M

[James Hunter]

Mr Busiek,

This may seem an odd question but, given that the x-titles have had 2 relatively successful (at least the first run was, I'm not as sure about the second volume) of X-MEN LEGENDS, exploring stories set in the past and filling in gapsd in continuity, have you ever considered doing something similar with an AVENGERS LEGENDS type title? (if noting else, I would like to explore the situation which you left the Blood Wraith in).

Thanks for your time.

[Kurt Busiek]

This may seem an odd question but, given that the x-titles have had 2 relatively successful (at least the first run was, I'm not as sure about the second volume) of X-MEN LEGENDS, exploring stories set in the past and filling in gapsd in continuity, have you ever considered doing something similar with an AVENGERS LEGENDS type title? (if noting else, I would like to explore the situation which you left the Blood Wraith in).

Well, it wouldn't be up to me. It'd be up to Marvel, and whoever'll be editing the AVENGERS books next, I'd think. If they decided to do AVENGERS LEGENDS and asked me for a story, I'd think about it -- but I can't say I've thought about it before this.

I have, on occasion, thought about doing something like X-MEN FOREVER -- a series picking up right after my last issue on AVENGERS and continuing it in its own alternate continuity. But that too would require Marvel wanting to do it, and then me having time and energy for it that I didn't want to spend on doing something else.

I'm not expecting either to ever happen, but I guess you never know.

kdb

[whitecrown]

I have, on occasion, thought about doing something like X-MEN FOREVER -- a series picking up right after my last issue on AVENGERS and continuing it in its own alternate continuity. But that too would require Marvel wanting to do it, and then me having time and energy for it that I didn't want to spend on doing something else.

kdb

Would you ever self-publish like John Byrne did with his X-Men Elsewhen series if Marvel for some reason did not show any interest?

[Kurt Busiek]

Would you ever self-publish like John Byrne did with his X-Men Elsewhen series if Marvel for some reason did not show any interest?

No. John can do the whole thing himself, and can apparently afford to do it for free. I can't do either of those things, and even if I could afford to hire an artist, I'd almost certainly do something we could actually publish commercially.

And as I understand it, Marvel did show interest in that Byrne project, but for whatever reasons he chose not to do it with them.

kdb

[Cap808]

Mr. Busiek - I remember you using Richard Rider in your previous Avengers run, and I was curious (and hopeful) that if you ever wrote the Avengers again, would he finally become a member?

[Kurt Busiek]

Mr. Busiek - I remember you using Richard Rider in your previous Avengers run, and I was curious (and hopeful) that if you ever wrote the Avengers again, would he finally become a member?

I like Nova a lot, so it wouldn't be impossible. But I'm not expecting to write another AVENGERS run, and if I did I'd figure out the line-up then, rather than plan it now.

kdb

[GAP]

Out of curiosity, did you really like how the Avengers were portrayed in the MCU films? In your opinion, what did the MCU do better than source material? And vice versa?

[Gaastra]

Was there a bad guy you wanted to use in avengers but couldn't and who do you see as the avengers number one bad guy?

[sbp1972]

Apologies if already asked, but have you heard if Marvel ha any plans to issue new editions of the "Avengers Assemble" collections, especially the first three volumes with your and Mr. Perez's run?

[Kurt Busiek]

Out of curiosity, did you really like how the Avengers were portrayed in the MCU films? In your opinion, what did the MCU do better than source material? And vice versa?

I don't have the energy to writing a critical essay comparing and contrasting the MU and the MCU. I've generally liked the movie portrayals just fine, though I'd like to have seen more Hawkeye and I kinda wish Wanda looked more like Kirby's Wanda. Things like that.

But I watch these things as a viewer, and rarely think about what I'd do instead -- and when I do, I save it for potential future use.

Overall, I think the Avengers movies have felt pretty Avengers-y to me.

Was there a bad guy you wanted to use in avengers but couldn't and who do you see as the avengers number one bad guy?

I had ideas for the Lethal Legion and for Zodiac that I didn't get to use -- and he's pretty obscure, but I had a story setup for the return of Ixar (and the Ultroids) that I would have had fun with. Plus the Collector, more with Ego the Living Planet and the Bloodwraith, and lots more else.

I think their number one foe is probably either Ultron or Kang, though I think Zemo and the Masters are up there too. And I had fun writing all of them.

Apologies if already asked, but have you heard if Marvel ha any plans to issue new editions of the "Avengers Assemble" collections, especially the first three volumes with your and Mr. Perez's run?

They don't tell me these things, but since they reissued the AVENGERS BY KURT AND GEORGE OMNIBUS volume 1 this year and have announced a reissue of volume 2 for next year, I wouldn't expect them to reprint it in a different format soon. But I have no actual information on that.

kdb

[Phoenixx9]

I had ideas for the Lethal Legion and for Zodiac that I didn't get to use -- and he's pretty obscure, but I had a story setup for the return of Ixar (and the Ultroids) that I would have had fun with. Plus the Collector, more with Ego the Living Planet and the Bloodwraith, and lots more else.

I think their number one foe is probably either Ultron or Kang, though I think Zemo and the Masters are up there too. And I had fun writing all of them.

kdb

I love all of the baddies you mentioned, but I know and love Ixar and the Ultroids very much, lol! I always thought we would see them again, but we never have.

I would have liked to see your rendition.

Maybe there is still a chance for that story to happen?

[Commissioner Wayne]

What’s your take on Hank Pym? Several writers, including yourself, have gone to great lengths to redeem his character without sacrificing his flaws, only for others to come along and treat him worse than most super villains, setting the character back yet again. The infamous slap happened over 40 years ago and he’s been “dead” for 5-6 years. We apparently have a glimmer of hope now with Avengers Inc, but fool me once…

[Chris0013]

Mr Busiek...I am a fan of D-Man from back when he we in the Thing solo and Captain America.

When you brought him into the Once An Avenger story dealing with Morgan Le Fay's nonsense...why did you have him as the "stinky guy" with everyone disrespecting him? Why not have done something like having him thanking Falcon for bringing him a spare costume and commenting on enjoying a hot shower considering his living situation??

[Kurt Busiek]

I love all of the baddies you mentioned, but I know and love Ixar and the Ultroids very much, lol! I always thought we would see them again, but we never have.

I would have liked to see your rendition.

Maybe there is still a chance for that story to happen?

You never know. Or at least, I never do.

What’s your take on Hank Pym? Several writers, including yourself, have gone to great lengths to redeem his character without sacrificing his flaws, only for others to come along and treat him worse than most super villains, setting the character back yet again. The infamous slap happened over 40 years ago and he’s been “dead” for 5-6 years. We apparently have a glimmer of hope now with Avengers Inc, but fool me once…

I like Hank. But it seems like there's always someone in the wings who wants to wreck him again. As long as Marvel's gonna let 'em, there's no point to redeeming him.

Mr Busiek...I am a fan of D-Man from back when he we in the Thing solo and Captain America.

When you brought him into the Once An Avenger story dealing with Morgan Le Fay's nonsense...why did you have him as the "stinky guy" with everyone disrespecting him?

Everyone didn't disrespect him. You'll note that Cap treated him like an ally, and I think even told someone who was disrespecting Dennis to button it. And most of the Avengers who looked askance at him were either jerks, had powerful noses, or were concerned about him.

But some Avengers are jerks. And some have very sensitive senses of smell.

Why not have done something like having him thanking Falcon for bringing him a spare costume and commenting on enjoying a hot shower considering his living situation??

There wasn't time at the start of the adventure. Afterward, Jarvis helped him out with the shower, laundry and food, and told him to come back any time he needed more.

And I don't think Sam has spare D-Man costumes, anyway, and it would take away one of the things that makes D-Man distinctive and different.

I like D-Man a lot, but I think he's even better as the brain-damaged homeless hero of a bunch of ragged Kirby people, and I wanted to do a whole storyline with him and the Zero Streeters. I love that he's got all these problems that would wipe out a normal person, but he just keeps on being a hero -- I think that makes him a wonderful character.

So smelly homeless D-Man is my kinda hero, and the Sub-Mariner and Moondragon are jerks.

kdb