“… I hate this comic with all my heart.
And it has nothing to do with the creative. It’s all business. Mister Miracle was one of the titles created by Jack Kirby when DC triumphantly gloated over his arrival from Marvel. I remember the big ad campaigns; for months DC touted “Kirby Is Coming!” followed by “Kirby Is Here!” It was a big deal and DC made the most of it, splashing Kirby’s name in bold letters wherever and whenever possible.
Now with the revival, less than 36 months after the last Kirby issue, there’s no mention of Jack anywhere at all. None.
That’s right, but it’s also so very wrong. Nowhere in this issue at all does anyone bother to credit or mention Jack Kirby.”
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The Scoop On 4 Seconds!
4 Seconds has scored a high-profile feature over at Diamond Comic Distributors SCOOP!
Scoop is a free, weekly email newsletter from Gemstone Publishing and Diamond International Galleries “produced for the benefit of all who enjoy the hobby of collecting.” Scoop’s article is an interview with Karl Kesel and I about our original comics story, 4 Seconds, which you can read for FREE over at Mark Waid’s THRILLBENT!
Here’s a quote from Karl on the 4 Seconds “digital difference” —
Digital allows for a level of subtlety and sudden change that you can’t come close to in print. If you show a crowd on a subway car and then digitally flick to the next frame where the only change is one character has turned his head a bit – your eye immediately keys in on that change and is drawn to it. In print, with those two panels next to each other, that small change would be a lot less apparent, if not lost completely … These make digital comics more cinematic than print, yet they remain comics – static images that you move through at your own rate.
Read the full interview HERE, and read 4 Seconds HERE!
Thanks to Scoop and ace interviewer Tom Mason for their coverage of 4 Seconds!
Top Five Ultraverse Comic Book Movie Properties
Editor’s Note: This week’s guest blog is a special treat — a look at the buried treasure that is the Ultraverse from two men who were there at the start! Along with a host of high-powered comics creators, Chris Ulm and Tom Mason played critical roles in the foundation of the Ultraverse, which might just be the greatest comic book universe you’ve never heard of! In an age where Marvel is bringing Ant Man and the Guardians of the Galaxy to the movie screen, the time may be right for the Ultraverse’s return!
Take it away, Chris & Tom!
Hey, Disney executives and producers with a Disney deal in your hand or a desk on the lot — have we got some ideas for you! As you know, your Marvel Comics properties are all locked up and tied together to create a Marvel Movie Universe that mirrors the founding comic books.
But, if you look on the fringes of Marvel’s super-hero properties, you’ll find a few gems in the Ultraverse, a universe of comic books that Marvel purchased from Malibu Comics back in 1994. There are several titles that could be pulled out to start their own tentpoles separate from the Marvel Universe.
Here (in no particular order) are our top five!
Mantra
Creator: Mike W. Barr, debut issue pencils by Terry Dodson
High Concept: Ancient Warrior Knight Reincarnated In The Body Of A Soccer Mom!
There’s nothing you guys love more than a body-switching movie. It’s been a reliable box-office performer ever since Freaky Friday. Sometimes, you have such a switch-crush that you’ll make two of them in the same year. In Mantra, an eternal warrior named Lukasz is killed but reincarnated into the body of a woman, Eden Blake. Now, you’ve got a manly-man warrior with the attitudes of a guy from centuries before stuck in the body of a single mom with two kids and an ex-husband. However you pitch it, it’s Highlander meets Switch and that’s either comedy gold or high drama.
Firearm
Creator: James Robinson, debut issue pencils by Cully Hamner
High Concept: Film Noire Detective Hunts Super-Heroes
Too many super-heroes? That’s what the so-called pop culture critics say. Somehow four super-hero movies in one year is too much for them and they need more idiotic rom-coms or weepy historical dramas instead. If you’re one of “those” people, then Firearm is your antidote: he hunts super-heroes. He’s no angry vigilante, though. He used to be in a British secret agency called The Lodge, but he “retired” and moved to California to set up shop as a private eye. But his cases are far from normal and usually involve crossing paths with both good and bad super-heroes, including the super-hero serial killer called Rafferty.
Prime
Creator: Gerard Jones and Len Strazewski, debut issue pencils by Norm Breyfogle
High Concept: Boy Living In A Man’s Body
The big man of the Ultraverse, he’s Superman and Captain Marvel all in one. A boy named Kevin Green transforms himself into a super-hero by “building” a super-strong hero shell around himself. The shell is built from organic liquid skin that ejects from his body. And when he transforms back, the body withers and spits him out. But that’s not the best part — he’s super strong and has basically all the powers of Superman, but he’s controlled by Kevin, a 14-year-old boy, with a boy’s experiences and emotions. So the world’s most powerful super-hero is an inexperienced, hormonally-charged teenager. The teenager never goes away — he’s always trying to masquerade as an adult. Once again, that’s either comedy gold or high drama.
Rune
Creator: Chris Ulm and Barry Windsor-Smith, debut issue pencils by Barry Windsor-Smith
High Concept: Twisted Twilight
Rune was a walk on the dark side. Rune, an ancient energy vampire, had many guises through the history of mankind: alien, sorcerer, beast, god, devil. Now he is dying of cancer and only the blood and energy of super-humans can stave off imminent death. Rune has it all: secret societies, government conspiracies, teenage romance and a story that spans the history of humanity.
The Strangers
Creator: Steve Englehart, debut issue pencils by Rick Hoberg
High Concept: Passengers Assemble!
Random passengers on a cable car get struck by energy and find themselves changed beyond recognition, with strange powers. Who becomes a hero? Who tries to hide? Who uses their newfound powers for evil? These are the questions that drive the strangest collection of super-heroes ever assembled. While suited to film, this property seems tailor-made for episodic television in the tradition of Lost or Under The Dome, with seemingly random characters thrown together, and then tested in the crucible of paranormal circumstances!
Malibu Comics Co-Founders Tom Mason, Chris Ulm, Dave Olbrich, and Scott Rosenberg at their 2012 Comic-Con Reunion
Drawing from classic super-hero comics, hard science fiction, horror and epic fantasy, the Ultraverse was known for its epic premises and imaginative takes on classic tropes. Many of the best concepts could not have been realized as movies because the state of the art for CG was not up to the task in 1993, and the audience was not sufficiently literate in all things comics. Now, that’s all changed — comic books drive box office world wide and it’s about time the strange and wonderful corridors of the Ultraverse were explored on the silver screen!
Are you listening Disney?
About The Authors:
Chris Ulm was a co-founder of Malibu Comics and the Editor-In-Chief of the Ultraverse, which was based on his original development. He co-created the Ultraverse title Rune with artist Barry Windsor-Smith. Chris Ulm is now CEO and co-founder of Appy Entertainment, a leading mobile games development studio.
Tom Mason was a co-founder of Malibu Comics and the company’s Creative Director. He co-created the Ultraverse title Prototype with writer Len Strazewski. Mason is currently an Emmy-winning writer-producer in the big, wide world of television.
Thanks, Tom and Chris, for making your case why the Ultraverse is ready for its close-up! What do you think of their list? Did they forget your favorite Ultraverse character? Should Marvel go with their own C-list characters rather than develop these Ultraverse properties? Does the loyal devotion of Facebook’s Ultraverse group indicate the Ultraverse still has the capacity for mass appeal? Sound off in comments, below!
IN TWO WEEKS: #113 Ben Urich: Role Model in a Sea of Heroes
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