James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes / Winter Soldier Appreciation

[scribbleMind]

I feel like Agent Venom might essentially be doing Bucky's job now, and he might do it in a way that's far superior to what we got. Hopefully that means Bucky is Earthbound again, as space certainly didn't do him any favors.

[berserkerclaw]

I'm hoping the unannounced books have info on bucky and Black Widow

[Winterboy]

I'm hoping the unannounced books have info on bucky and Black Widow

can it.jpg

[Bl00dwerK]

I'm hoping the unannounced books have info on bucky and Black Widow

How did the last two runs sell?

[Lady Warp Spasm]

I do not have numbers, but I think this current run is selling even less than the previous which was not good. Hopefully someone who keeps track of these things can correct me and clarify.

[Bl00dwerK]

I do not have numbers, but I think this current run is selling even less than the previous which was not good. Hopefully someone who keeps track of these things can correct me and clarify.

I'm still getting it, just to complete the set, but I haven't read the last couple issues. I was hoping it would be good, but I just don't like Kot's work. I won't be picking up anything that has his name on it in the future...

[Conway]

I'm still getting it, just to complete the set, but I haven't read the last couple issues. I was hoping it would be good, but I just don't like Kot's work. I won't be picking up anything that has his name on it in the future...

I don't think Kot is entirely the problem. He writes some strange stories that work well in trades like Zero and Secret Avengers. The stuff in Zero would be perfect for Bucky, but he was given this "Bucky in space" thing by Original Sin and it's just not appropriate to the character. He routinely makes a world that nobody else sees or operates in, the problem is The Winter Soldier was designed to operate in the world that S.H.I.E.L.D. does. If he was finding earthbound threats that even Maria was unaware of it would've been great, but they sent the most down to earth character they had to the far ends of the galaxy because they didn't want to find room for him.

The last run did okay (not exactly good though) while Brubaker was on it, but the sales dropped as soon as they switched teams (and sent him to space). It wasn't entirely fair because The Electric Ghost was a good story, it just wasn't ever going to be a good as a Brubaker story.

[Winterboy]

It's time to bring him back to espionage & conspiracy road again.

[Bl00dwerK]

I don't think Kot is entirely the problem. He routinely makes a world that nobody else sees or operates in, the problem is The Winter Soldier was designed to operate in the world that S.H.I.E.L.D. does.

He could have written a different story, even with the "Man on the Wall" setup. He didn't have to give us telepathy and space drugs. I get what you're saying, but I think Kot is just an odd duck and it's reflected in his writing...

[Winterboy]

He could have written a different story, even with the "Man on the Wall" setup. He didn't have to give us telepathy and space drugs. I get what you're saying, but I think Kot is just an odd duck and it's reflected in his writing...

Agreed.
I just droped Zero after the second arc. The story just keeps getting weirder and weirder.

[Of Atlantis]

I do not have numbers, but I think this current run is selling even less than the previous which was not good. Hopefully someone who keeps track of these things can correct me and clarify.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but when Brubaker left, the book had found its footing with sales and was beginning to plateau at 25k in sales, which is good. Any time a book plateaus above the cancellation line, it means it's turning a profit and the book can keep going. Peter David's previous X-Factor series plateau'd at 22k every week, no more no less, and stayed alive almost two years.

Then Brubaker suddenly left the book and left us with "that" ending, which is up for debate whether or not editorial had something to do with it. Brubaker himself was quoted as saying he would write a Winter Soldier book forever if he could, but it's also worth saying he pursued to expand his creator owned books, which make creators a lot more money than working for a company. So it's debatable at best.

Anyways, Latour took over and Brubaker leaving undoubtedly took of a chunk of sales with him. I believe, despite Latour actually doing a pretty good job taking over such a stellar run, the book would end at about 18k in sales.

Now, let's look at Kot's run. The book debuted at 47k sales. Not great. It debuted the same week as a lot of #1's, including female Thor's debut, which essentially stole any and all limelight, and Axis, another event. It didn't stand a chance at selling at the level at most #1's. #2 sold 32k, which is about a 25% drop (which is actually pretty good). It declined pretty fast after that. #8 sold 14k in May. That's bad, especially considering the cancellation line is generally at 20k.

He could have written a different story, even with the "Man on the Wall" setup. He didn't have to give us telepathy and space drugs. I get what you're saying, but I think Kot is just an odd duck and it's reflected in his writing...

I tend to lean in this direction as well. He was given a framework that was potentially complimentary to Bucky's character and skill set, but what we got was something else completely. Space drugs, interspecies relationships, alternate universes, a wild goose chase, Loki. That's all Kot.

[Bl00dwerK]

He was given a framework that was potentially complimentary to Bucky's character and skill set, but what we got was something else completely.

It started out so well, too. I loved the interaction between James and Daisy, and really thought that was going somewhere. I guess that's the best thing I'll take away from Kot's run..

[Of Atlantis]

So if anyone was planning to get Red Skull #1 for Bucky, might want to think again.

spoilers:

Bucky seemingly dies in the first issue at the hands of zombies, alongside the rest of the team save for Magneto, who is saved by Red Skull. Yeah.

end of spoilers

So far, Bucky's presence in Secret Wars has been disappointing to say the least.

It started out so well, too. I loved the interaction between James and Daisy, and really thought that was going somewhere. I guess that's the best thing I'll take away from Kot's run..

It did start out well enough, where the worst of it was occasionally confusing art layouts. Then it was at about #3 where I was like, okay where is this going and #5 where I just thought to myself, why?

[berserkerclaw]

I bought it up to 7. I just got bored with the slow story. Book goes up to 11 so I only didn't buy what, 4 issues? I don't care how it turns out. I just hope bucky shows, up somewhere like captain America or hell even agents of shield. But hopefully a new solo or more likely team book with widow would be ideal

[HsssH]

I made "smart" decision after second issue. Glad to see that I didn't miss much.