Pulse Glazer
Grey, man, I didn’t even pick up yet this week. What the hell are we writing about?
Grey Scherl
Well, we were going to talk about X-Treme X-Men and your mancrush on Greg Pak, but noooo, your ass had to wait for Friday for books. So we’re going to talk about Marvel just like we talked about DC. Two guys. Five Books. Overhaul.
Glazer
I don’t have a mancrush on Pak… says I before we begin as I’m ready to prove myself wrong. Let’s do this, taskmaster – what’s your #5?
Grey
For my number five I’m picking up The Punisher, and going with a creative team of Kyle Higgins and Michael Lark.
Glazer
Wow, Higgins isn’t DC exclusive?
Grey
I actually don’t know if he is or isn’t, I’m assuming he isn’t for the sake of this (because I don’t want to do the research), but if he is…well, you had Brian Wood working at DC again the last time we tried this, so crazier things have happened!
Glazer
Ha, fair enough. He hasn’t been quite as dark as Punisher. Are you changing the tone, or going more by the mini-series that Higgins began with?
Grey
I’m actually looking at his run on Deathstroke, I picked it up off of digital last weekend and it was just uber violent. I figure combine that level of dark and violent with the sort of characterization he brings to a character like Dick Grayson (because, honestly, Slade was one note but the action was awesome), and I think you could do an awesome Frank Castle.
Michael Lark just seals the deal.
Glazer
Works for me. I wouldn’t read it, but when I don’t read an Ennis run, you aren’t getting me on a character.
Grey
I have Garth’s run in oversized omnibus form. It’s a weapon.
Glazer
My #5 is a likewise dark character – Deadpool, on whom I’d put Jason Aaron.
If they want ‘Pool to be A-List, he needs an A-List writer. Aaron has the right dark humor for this book. If I’m greedy I’d even go with Steve Dillon on art to give it some gravitas.
Grey
I’d buy it.
I do think his Wolverine and the X-Men has some great dark humor in it.
Glazer
Me too, and I haven’t like Deadpool much under Way.
Grey
It kinda died to me around the time he went to Vegas.
Glazer
It was just too slapstick for me. I miss Joe Kelly’s run which was funny with a heart.
Grey
Everything was just for the sake of a joke and it got old.
Glazer
Right – it devolved the character.
What’s your #4?
Grey
Wolverine by Brian Bendis and Chris Bachalo.
Glazer
Wow would I not read that!
It’d sell, though.
Grey
I pulled Wolverine out of the hat and drew a blank.
Honestly, I wanted to give it to Cullen Bunn, but he’s writing it right now so he was exempt.
So I got to thinking about who wrote a Wolverine in a team book that I didn’t hate, and AvX aside, I have never hated him under Bendis.
Glazer
Ha, Fraction would have fun on Logan, no?
Grey
Frac wrote him in Uncanny X-Men for a few years, I’ve had my fill.
Glazer
I don’t hate him under Bendis, fair.
You realize Bendis has had Logan for longer than Frac did, right?
Grey
Yeah, but Frac used him more and less eventfully.
New Avengers was Luke Cage and his white friends. Logan was just one of them.
Glazer
Fair enough. You know, I could be talked into Logan under Bendis.
Grey
Bachalo is there because I love his style and he always draws a fun Wolverine.
Glazer
Bachalo is great.
Grey
I didn’t get too deep into artists for this, but he’s always on my lists. He makes bad issues better just by being there.
Bendis I would just expect to go over the top with the action because he could.
Glazer
I like the idea of Bendis dialogue side-characters bouncing off Wolverine’s gruffness.
Grey
He could have a grunt like Batman did in Morrison’s JLA.
Glazer
Ha, sounds right.
My #4 is a guy you won’t really know, but I want him to write and draw the book – Brandon Graham on X-Force.
Grey
I have no idea who that is.
Glazer
He writes Prophet. If he can take one Liefeld property and turn it into dark gold, he can do the same with X-Force.
Grey
Fair enough.
Glazer
This one is in large part a major trust of Fulton’s taste.
Grey
One of his boys?
Glazer
He gives Prophet his book of the week constantly
Grey
I should scope it.
Glazer
I’m trading it. Fulton gave me my favorite book ever, so he wins.
Daytrippers, by the by.
Grey
I tend to randomly come across my favorite books.
I bought Batgirl initially just on the hope that it wouldn’t suck.
Glazer
Daytrippers is the best single trade I’ve ever read of anything.
Grey
It’s sitting on my dresser.
Glazer
It’s unreal. It gets misty whenever I read it.
Read it and I’ll 2-Guys it with you.
But first, your #3.
Grey
Amazing Spider-Man by Kelly Sue DeConnick and the Dodsons.
Glazer
Ha, you love Kelly Sue!
Grey
I’m all about new talent boosting their profiles, and I have yet to read something by her I didn’t like.
Plus, you made me recast Spidey when I wanted to leave it unrelaunched with Slott in charge!
Glazer
Well, it’s going to happen so deal with it!
Grey
No! Slott forever!
Glazer
Sorry man, he’s got to move on.
Grey
KSD would not be a downgrade though, if her writing of Spidey thus far is to be treated as the norm and not a fluke. She gets the personality, she gets the humor, and hey, she even gets Norman Osborn. She wrote his mini too.
Glazer
I recall – that mini was great.
Grey
It introduced the entire cast of Dark Avengers….well, most of them.
Glazer
Only for Bendis to make me not care… and Parker to make me sort of care.
I miss Agents of Atlas.
Grey
I miss Batgirl.
Glazer
Let’s move on this got sad…
Grey
Wait, this is Marvel.
I miss Spider-Girl.
Glazer
My #3 is my most obvious of picks… for Hulk I have Brian Clevinger and Scott Wegener. I want fun adventures Hulk for a bit – he’s been too angsty – and the Atomic Robo team would bring it.
Grey
Leave Atomic Robo for Hulk?
Glazer
Atomic Robo is a mini-series a year. They could do both.
Grey
Point made. I don’t read it so I did not know.
Glazer
It’d be stellar. They just make fun comics. You should get the first trade. It’s super cheap on Comixology… and a ton of it is free at http://www.atomic-robo.com/free-comics/.
Grey
I’ll scope it out.
Glazer
Free is the right price.
Grey
It tends to be.
Glazer
Your #2?
Grey
Fantastic Four by Dan Slott and Steve McNiven.
Glazer
I’d read the hell out of that. Can I suggest a companion book?
Grey
Hit me
Glazer
FF by Christos Gage.
Grey
I’d rather see Slott do both…he says, not giving props to one of his top five guys at Marvel.
It was Slott or Waid when I got down to thinking about it, but if Slott is off of Spidey, he’s gotta move up. Fantastic Four is up, as far as I’m concerned.
Spidey is more recognizable, Fantastic Four is the World’s Greatest Comic Magazine. Where writers go to try and have the most iconic runs of their careers.
Glazer
I love Gage with kids and think he’d rock with the Foundation. Let Slott focus on the core book.
Grey
I’d definitely read it, I won’t deny that.
I just think Gage is better suited for a higher tier book than the sister title for F4.
Glazer
He can do more than one title.
Grey
We only use each writer once on these lists.
Glazer
I know, but I didn’t use Gage. I assume you do. Spoilers!
Grey
Curse you!
Glazer
#2 for me is Cullen Bunn and Howard Porter on Thor. I want Porter back to high profile work and Bunn on another major book. I think he could make the OK guys really interesting and handle it as a supernatural book rather than the mythology that’s been done to death of late.
Grey
Porter is a DC guy still, and he’s been laying low ever since he came back to the industry after the hand accident. That said, I would buy this book.
Glazer
Pretty sure he isn’t exclusive, so a good enough offer might get him.
Grey
My top pick?
Captain America
By Christos Gage and Adam Kubert.
Glazer
I would read the hell out of that. It’d be mighty different from Bru’s Cap.
Grey
Gage is someone I’ve been high on for a while, and he’s really worked his way up from DC’s Wildstorm guy to someone that’s doing solid work on second tier Marvel titles, as well as writing the absolute hell out of Angel & Faith over at Dark Horse.
I could see him bringing back superhero Cap, the one we haven’t seen in almost a decade. The one Brubaker said he’d give us during the last Cap relaunch.
Glazer
He’s been great since Stormwatch, just took him awhile to learn how to deal with editorial.
And Gage’s great, but last issue of Avengers Academy? The drizzling shits.
Quicksilver is super dues ex machina and having Pym say he never met a robot who overcame it’s programming is straight up absurd.
Grey
There are minor issues here and there, but it’s always for the sake of making the characters better. Everything he does helps define the giant cast he works with.
Glazer
That was a terrible story. 99% of the rest are excellent.
Grey
The AvX tie should have ended with the X-Kids getting out, having Emma show up for the Sentinel was…it was filler.
Glazer
Right – they should have built an issue on the team disbanding rather than tacking it on out of nowhere.
Grey
Yup, it felt like we lost two issues of build up to two issues of Juston. Though Sentinel was a good mini. It was nice to see someone remember it.
Glazer
It was good, but this barely felt like the same character.
Grey
A few years of off panel limbo changes anybody.
Glazer
Fair enough.
Grey
But this move elevates Gage to the top tier, where he belongs.
Glazer
So, my #1 is a weird one, but I’d love it forever and ever. Greg Pak and Fred Van Lente reuniting for Thor with Carlos Pacheco.
Grey
You just put Bunn on Thor!
Glazer
Damnit, I meant Iron Man.
I want a jet setting, fun Iron Man for awhile after all the doom and gloom of Fraction’s run.
Let him enjoy being a superhero billionaire playboy under Pak and Van Lente.
Grey
Whatever happened to Van Lente?
Glazer
He’s writing smaller books, which is a damn shame since he’s fantastic.
Grey
Sometimes it’s the most random people who fall back to small press while the guys you wish would just stick around.
Glazer
Poor Nick Spencer.
Grey
He’s still Marvel exclusive, he’ll have a new book in Marvel NOW!
Glazer
I know, but he got such weird titles previously.
Grey
They just threw everything at him and overexposed the crap out of a guy who wasn’t ready for the Bendis or Fraction level workloads yet.
Glazer
And everything he had but Ultimate X-Men was a mess from crossovers.
Grey
Iron Man 2.0 was dead to me when it had five issues in two months. To launch the book.
They rushed it out so it could tie into Fear Itself.
Glazer
I loved the Palmer Addley story but damned if the book ever got around to telling it.
Grey
Why tell that when he can go fight a hammer wielder in K’un L’un?
Glazer
So bad.
Grey
So pointless.
Glazer
Still, back to Van Lente – Incredible Hercules is the single best Marvel Title of the past decade that I can think of.
Grey
You loved that book. I’ve never read it.
Glazer
It was pure fun. That’s what I want from Tony.
Grey
I want to read a fun Tony too.
Glazer
Van Lente and Pak, bank it!
Can I go to bed now?
Grey
Yes, yes you can. This is what you get for wanting to start at 1:30 in the morning my time.
Glazer
Well, goodnight! See you tomorrow when we discuss the new Marvel Now! Announcements.
Grey
Have a good one everyone!
