Alonso: "Everything you know about Marvel Comics is about to change "

[Kurolegacy]

I was waiting for the "Back in my day...!" to follow. Things were perfect then, weren't they? Everything was exactly how you wanted it.

Hey I'm not that old to know of that far back. But at least back in the 90's we could still say that Marvel actually cared about their fans instead of pandering to whoever most likely isn't even reading their comics.

[Dog]

Hey I'm not that old to know of that far back. But at least back in the 90's we could still say that Marvel actually cared about their fans instead of pandering to whoever most likely isn't even reading their comics.

They cared so much they crashed the market for short-term gain?

And before anyone says anything, that's clearly not what's happening now.

EDIT: Now that I think about it, pandering to people not reading the comics is EXACTLY what happened in the '90s. Was that a joke post that went over my head?

[VideoGameCinema]

It kinda sounds like a reboot in my opinion. Not saying that is a bad thing, because I'm actually really excited for this! I'm just saying... Yeah, I'm pretty sure this is a reboot.

[thecrimson]

Honestly I'm only reading three books from Marvel and that's Spider-Man, Spider-Gwen, and Silk. So unless Marvel somehow completely screws those titles up post-SW, then I will probably still be reading Marvel books.

[Ultra Magnotron]

I'm just going to read the comics that seem as if they'd interest me. This attitude is beginning with the Secret Wars event and then I'll just see how that goes. If it turns out this is indeed a reboot (like DC's New 52) I'll likely drop all the Marvel titles on my pull list and replace them with more IDW and Dynamite offerings.

I'm giving you a chance, Marvel. Just don't screw it up. Unless you want the indies getting my money instead of you. :-)

[Songbird/Diamondback]

I think Marvel is just digging a hole for themselves. They have the potential to outright baffle people with what is and is not canon anymore. It's gonna be a mess.

[yet another]

Where did you get that quote you've got in your Thread heading?

The Alonso interview was nothing new, but the heading was more interesting because it supposes a complete change, which nothing in the interview suggests at all.

It's the name of the linked to article.

So yes, Alonso did not say that exact phrase (my bad for giving that impression), though I think it also serves as a pretty accurate summary of everything he did say there. After you have accounted for the usual pre-event hyperbole at least!

[Reviresco]

I think some folks are confused about the meaning of reboot, as it pertains to comics. Reboot means everything that came before is discarded as if it never existed, and you start over with a blank slate, except with familiar characters -- only now they have a new history.

Even though Marvel has wiped out their entire multiverse a few times before, they don't discard their history and start over with a blank slate. Even Heroes Reborn and the Ultimate Universe, while very much like reboots, they ended up being alt-universes, and 616 history / universe was not discarded.

It sounds as if Marvel will be keeping it's history, even after a universe changing event. It sounds like the same characters with the same histories -- from a variety of alternate worlds --are just now going to be in a different universe together. That's not a reboot.

[Drakeon]

After Secret Wars Marvel should change thier name to PC Comics.

Everything is political now. Or shock value and gimicks. There is very little story anymore. No character growth.

And movies have changed characters to jokes (Starlord for example)

It feels like the 616 ended with Age of Ultron.

[Anarchist]

Yeah, right, 'Nothing will be the same anymore'-rubbish number # 37428.

Who still believes this ?

Marvel = Status quo. Easy as that.

[Bafflement]

I think some folks are confused about the meaning of reboot, as it pertains to comics. Reboot means everything that came before is discarded as if it never existed, and you start over with a blank slate, except with familiar characters -- only now they have a new history.

Even though Marvel has wiped out their entire multiverse a few times before, they don't discard their history and start over with a blank slate. Even Heroes Reborn and the Ultimate Universe, while very much like reboots, they ended up being alt-universes, and 616 history / universe was not discarded.

It sounds as if Marvel will be keeping it's history, even after a universe changing event. It sounds like the same characters with the same histories -- from a variety of alternate worlds --are just now going to be in a different universe together. That's not a reboot.

1. Characters from alternative worlds would be different characters with different histories.
2. The difference between stuff like Heroes Reborn/Ultimates and this is that 616 is actually getting destroyed/discarded.
3. A new universe where the characters have new, different histories... IS actually a reboot.

[aja_christopher]

I think I'll actually wait and see what happens before I decide if it's worth complaining about.

I know that sounds crazy, but since I'm not psychic or anything, it just seems like the best option.

[vitruvian]

I think some folks are confused about the meaning of reboot, as it pertains to comics. Reboot means everything that came before is discarded as if it never existed, and you start over with a blank slate, except with familiar characters -- only now they have a new history.

Even though Marvel has wiped out their entire multiverse a few times before, they don't discard their history and start over with a blank slate. Even Heroes Reborn and the Ultimate Universe, while very much like reboots, they ended up being alt-universes, and 616 history / universe was not discarded.

It sounds as if Marvel will be keeping it's history, even after a universe changing event. It sounds like the same characters with the same histories -- from a variety of alternate worlds --are just now going to be in a different universe together. That's not a reboot.

By that light, New 52 or even Crisis wouldn't be reboots, since 'everything that came before' was not discarded. However, as the term pertains to comics, those were reboots, just not completely 'hard' reboots.

So, if folding the Ultimate Universe characters into the new universe involves changes to the history of the new universe, such that they've always been in the same universe as the characters we know from the main 616 line up, it will indeed be at least a bit of a reboot... although there's every possibility that it will be a 'softer' one than Crisis or New 52. If they retain their histories and memories of having lived in a different universe and being essentially refugees, then no, it will not be a reboot but just a change in status quo.

EDIT: And just to be clear, whichever way they choose to go, I'm fine with it so long as they handle it well. On the other hand, if the execution sucks, then it sucks, and I'll be happy to say so.

Nor do I have any problem with them being quite coy about how they're going to handle things until they're actually publishing the relevant stories, so long as they don't outright lie and say they're doing one thing and then do the other. 'We're not going to tell you if it's a reboot or not' is a lot better than saying definitively it's not going to be a reboot and then doing one, or worse, doing one and then denying they've done it.

[Pav]

Marvel has absolutely no clue of what their fans wants. It's incredible.

And you speak for all fans, huh? I don't remember electing you as spokesman.

The fact that Marvel continues to rake in the dough invalidates your claim. Not to mention the success of brand new titles/characters like Ms. Marvel and Spider-Gwen.

Hey I'm not that old to know of that far back. But at least back in the 90's we could still say that Marvel actually cared about their fans instead of pandering to whoever most likely isn't even reading their comics.

Speculative. market.
Foil. Covers.

I think Marvel is just digging a hole for themselves. They have the potential to outright baffle people with what is and is not canon anymore. It's gonna be a mess.

No offense, S/D, but you're generally the king of thinking the sky is falling. Nobody is going to be any more baffled after SW than they were during Heroes Reborn or Amalgam comics or any other event that made people worried in the past.

After Secret Wars Marvel should change thier name to PC Comics.

Everything is political now. Or shock value and gimicks. There is very little story anymore. No character growth.

You see what you want to see. There are plenty of good stories happening right now. I'm reading three Marvel comics with great writing at the moment.

I think I'll actually wait and see what happens before I decide if it's worth complaining about.

I know that sounds crazy, but since I'm not psychic or anything, it just seems like the best option.

Sanity! Hooray!

-Pav, who just doesn't get all the worrying and complaining...

[Of Atlantis]

If Marvel's lost the ability to gain the benefit of the doubt from some fans, then that's on them due to past mistakes. I can understand and respect the "I'll wait to read it" angle, but you can't blame some fans for being pessimistic about how they hype this event. We've heard it before.

It's now their job to move away from "big change is coming" being synonymous with "big whoop is coming" if the fans who are truly concerned about SW matter to them. If they want to move in a direction where the focus is bringing in new fans at the expense of others, then they'll have to weigh their options and determine if it's worth it. Personally, I think it'll be a temporary pull for them, with potentially permanent ramifications, but we'll see.