MARVEL's ICON IMPRINT LAUNCHES THIS JULY WITH KABUKI, POWERS!

[MattBrady]

With statements from ERIK LARSEN, BRIAN BENDIS & DAVID MACK (below)

Press Release

Marvel Comics announces the launch of ICON, a new publishing imprint that will produce projects utilizing properties outside of the Marvel Universe.

ICON will launch with two titles fans are already familiar with: Brian Bendis' "Powers" and David Mack's "Kabuki."

Marvel is not new to publishing licensed properties. It has had a successful history with such classic licenses as GI Joe and Transformers. However, Marvel, which works with the top talent in the comic industry, has long been considering ways to offer its creators a home not just for their Marvel projects, but for their other work. The new ICON imprint has been created with a mandate to pursue both these creator and licensed projects, while maintaining the highest level of talent and the brands that readers have come to expect from Marvel.

Dan Buckley, Publisher, said, "We had been considering this kind of imprint for a while before talking to Brian and David. But once we did, everything fell into place. Starting with Brian and David on Power's and Kabuki really sets the standard for the whole line. We are very excited about this initiative, and are thrilled that Powers and Kabuki are launching it."

Bendis offered, "We have always said that we have benefited so much from the generations of comic creators before us who worked so hard to pave the way for creator rights. We have had it so good and we are stunned that we get to help take it to the next level... Marvels first true creator-owned imprint."

Said David Mack regarding Marvel Comics' Editor-in-Chief , Publisher and President of Publishing, "Bravo to Joe, Dan and Gui for making this happen!"

In response to Friday’s announcement by Marvel, Image Publisher Erik Larsen issued a statement to Newsarama, and both Brian Bendis and David Mack posted statements to their message board communities answering readers’ questions about their new deal with Marvel, and clarifying some details, which they also issued to Newsarama.

ERIK LARSEN

“I think it's terrific that Marvel has come to their senses and finally realized that there is value in letting creators actually create. They've been dependent on 40 year-old characters for too long and while they've yelled from the rooftop that they're the "house of ideas" -- it's nice to see the possibility of a few new ideas actually getting out there from this publishing giant.

And, in what has become typical Marvel fashion -- their first move is NOT to innovate, but to imitate. They’re not creating something new, but are instead taking titles that have been around for years and have stood the test of time, essentially trying to imitate us in the process. As you might expect, I'm less than thrilled that they're cherry picking from Image. And I'd be lying if I said I wasn't concerned about the future of Brian, Mike and David and their creations. I can't help but feel this is ultimately an unwise move for these creators, but part of supporting creators' rights is supporting a creator's right to choose. These guys feel it’s the thing to do and if a creator does business at Image -- they have the freedom to do things like that. We don’t sink our claws into properties or tie people down. Creators are free to make their own choices, even if they’re not choices we agree with.

How will the loss of these two titles affect Image? In all honesty -- not a lot. Kabuki hasn’t had a new miniseries in years and Powers is a single title. Brian, Mike and David are keeping their trade paperback libraries at Image and we will continue to sell them through our backlist. Of course we're sorry to see them go, but it’s not the end of the world. We take a small flat fee from every title that comes out through Image and financially this isn’t a huge hit. At this point we’ve got literally dozens of exciting new titles in the works that we’re thrilled to be publishing. The loss of a couple of our older titles isn’t something that pleases us on any level--but we’ll get over it. All of us here at Image wish Brian, Mike and David the very best and if things go sour--and they aren’t contractually bound to another company—we’ll be more than happy to welcome them back. These are good guys. We’ve treated them well, they've treated us well--and I hope Marvel treats them well.”

--Erik Larsen

Publisher
Image Comics

BRIAN BENDIS

“Happy Passover, muther f****ers!! Sorry, I always wanted to start a post that way.

The rumors and press release are true. Powers and Kabuki are holding hands and jumping to a brave new publisher after many awesome years at image.

The good news is that nothing about the quality or content of the comics will change. This is fully creator owned publishing initiative just like image central is. We own every page, every staple. All content is ours. Produced exactly like we have for many years at image. Same letter columns, same production people, same everything. No ads except for in house ads in the back.

Everything is the same except the company logo. Most people won’t even notice the change.

If you are already a reader of Powers, stay cool. It’s all the same goodies.

If you have heard of Powers but haven’t read it, but you are a fan of my Marvel work, particularly Daredevil and the Pulse, I truly think you will love Powers and now you have a perfect and totally easy way to get on board the first issue of the new series.

The reason for the move is not a slight against image on any level. Both David, Mike and I are still part of Image. We will continue to produce our existing library through image, which thanks to your good word of mouth is a big part of our lives. That includes the first five Powers trades and all the Jinxworld titles (Jinx, Torso, Goldfish, Fire, and Total Sell Out.)

We will still continue our foreign licensing through Image and I will still have my wild and crazy message board at Image as I have for many years.

And if you remember, I produced Fortune and Glory at Oni even though I was at Image, why? Because Oni is good people and I wanted to do business with them. Still do. Wasn’t a slight against Image then, and this is not either.

David, Mike and I have been at Image for eight years (longer than Rob and Jim put together btw,) and continue to support what has been built in Image Central with our presence. Though, yes Jim Valentino was my savior over the years, both Eric Larsen and Stephenson have been nothing short of saintly in every single situation I have found them in. What this is about is Marvel breaking historic ground for the company and our desire to support this with our lifeblood.

Creator ownership, real creator ownership, not that half assed stuff you hear about from other companies, is so important to all three of us. And when Marvel offered to build this, we felt it was so important to be part of it.

We have always said that we have benefited so much from the generations of comic creators before us, who worked so hard to pave the way for creator rights. We have had it so good and we are stunned that we get to help take it to the next level... Marvel’s first true creator owned imprint.

We do want to say to our readers and retailers that we are very, very sorry for the necessary resolicitation. We know paperwork is a pain in the ass, as is waiting for comics. We have never in all of our years ever had to resolicit. But, as you all know, in life sometimes things don’t time out the way you would hope for. The resolicit of our recent relaunches was the best scenario.

Sorry for surprising you guys with this announcement, business is a tricky bitch and we wanted to make sure everything was smooth sailing before we went blabbing. There’s enough of that on line.

Actually we were ready last Thursday, but we realized the date and figured no one would believe us.

More good news: though there will be a couple of months delay on the new Powers, July will see not one, but two brand new issues and a new trade. All this and I f**k up the Avengers the same month.

The new trades will match the Image trades in design and paperstock so your shelf will look fab. I know this is a concern for some.

On a side note, Mike and I found some ways to improve the first issue and it’s definitely stronger because of the downtime.

I do promise that this is the last big announcement from me for a while, even I am sick of me, and I love me.

So, if you are a fan of Powers or Kabuki, really, other than the delay, this is all good news. A happy home for your favorite book is about all you could hope for.

Thanks to all of you for your continued support. As I have told you, you vote with your wallet. You tell the publishers what you want and they listen. You made this happen.”

DAVID MACK

“THE NEWS

Here is the news. And some clarifications. Kabuki and Powers are indeed going to begin publishing at Marvel. Our new Kabuki and Powers series will debut in July through the Marvel Previews catalogue.

CREATOR OWNED:

Our books and all related rights remain completely ours. So Kabuki and Powers will continue with the exact same format that you are used to. No ads interrupting the story, a hearty and personal letters column, the paperstock and production values of our choosing. There will be no change in content.

Our books are not part of the Marvel Universe, but will be published under a brand new Marvel imprint called ICON. This is Marvel's first ever step to a fully creator owned launch. Not partially owned situations, but fully and completely creator owned. Bendis, Oeming and I have benefited by the path that Marvel creators before us have made in the direction of creator rights, and we see this as one way to build upon that and create a new milestone in that direction.

This is a unique opportunity that offers Kabuki and Powers the best of both worlds. For the readers who have enjoyed our Marvel work, we believe that you will find that our creator owned books such as Kabuki and Powers are everything that you would hope they are. For the readers who have been with us for years, our books will continue in the content and format that you have loved and supported in the past. The only difference is that they may be easier to find now.

IMAGE COMICS:

Bendis, Oeming and I are making this move together as friends, as we have long made decisions together like this when we first moved to Image Comics which has been our creative home for almost eight years. This is no slight to Image Comics who continue to publish fully creator owned books. We love Image Comics and all three of us continue to be a big part of Image Comics. The entire Kabuki library of the six previous Kabuki collections in paperback and hardcover are still only available from Image comics. I will continue to keep them in stock, and you can re-order them any time. The same with the Powers library. In fact, I hope a lot of new Kabuki readers will pick up all six volumes of Kabuki and Powers to read what came before, in anticipation of the new series in July.

Though we had a great relationship with Jim Valentino, the former Publisher of Image, we have nothing but love for Erik Larson, the new publisher, and Eric Stephenson director of marketing. In fact it was Erik Larson that invited Kabuki to Image so many years ago. Erik and Eric have both been a huge help to us and very understanding of our current situation. We continue to be in business with Image with our library of collections and with new creator owned projects in the future.

The move to our new imprint at Marvel is not a competition with the service the Image offers to the creative community, but a unique opportunity that offers Powers and Kabuki the best of both worlds for the new launch of our books. Marvel saw that we were in a certain situation, and offered us this solution. It is an invite-only imprint that Marvel made for us as a reward for our level of work with them.

READERS AND RETAILERS

A major concern over this was the fact that we had to resolicit the Kabuki #1 and Powers #1. Bendis, Oeming and I have done creator owned books for over twelve years, and never once had to resolicit. We know that this rescheduling can be a hassle for retailers and readers. We had some things come up that did not go as planned, and this time we had to make a resolicitation. We want to apologize to our retailers and readers for the rescheduling and we will do everything we can to help.”

Developing…

[rudini]

ohh first post!

WOW THIS IS HUGE NEWS!!!!!!!!! HOLY CRAP!! No wonder both books have been having such huge delays.....!!! WOW!!! I hope this means Romita Jr. can come back to Marvel with Gray Area!

Wow this really is the end for image.....those poor bastards have nothing else.....(Wanted is ending and Rising Star is hopefully starting and ending soon)

pax,
rudini

[spider985]

This is great news.

I guess this Marvel's way of enticing new creators to them.

Good luck.

[tivo75]

this could be huge for marvel! i wonder who else is gonna jump on board. having bendis alone makes it worth wihle, we could see more Jinx or Goldfish books. awesome

[Armoured Gideon]

Anything that brings greater exposure to Powers, one of the greatest books of the last few years is ok with me. Lets hope all those Marvel Bendis fans can be channelled towards this book. I also look forward to this opening the gates for more intriguing creator owned work coming out of Marvel.

By the way, lets try not to drag this thread down with resurgent bitching about Epic, eh?

[NotAnIssue]

Great to finally have confirmation on this....the Bendis board's been talking about this all week!

[MudshovelForYou]

This really is something that Marvel needs, and the fact that this has been so quietly developed as well as the small size with which they are launching the imprint, shows that (hopefully) they are dedicated to giving DC a run for the money in the creator-owned field.

[SpyGuy]

Originally posted by rudini
Wow this really is the end for image.....those poor bastards have nothing else.....(Wanted is ending and Rising Star is hopefully starting and ending soon)

Yeah, I think Marvel smells some blood in the water as far as Image is concerned. Of course, Bendis and Mack must have smelled it first and decided to bail before the feeding frenzy began.

I'm glad to see that Marvel has finally decided to establish a creator-owned/licensed project line, but it's a shame thatEpic, which was planned as such a line, had to be destroyed as a result of corporate politics.

[ramberk]

I wouldn't say this is the ending of Image. Without Image we may never have had Devils Due, Dreamwave, Archangel Studios, etc. Sure, they all jumped ship and ditched Image, but Image is still the place to get your start if your an unknown. Do you really think Marvel is gonna start publishing material from unknown creators?

Yeah, that was what Epic was all about and look at how that turned out.

Anyhoo. This sounds interesting. It could be Marvel's way of courting talent and keeping it in the fold. We'll see how this turns out. Brian and David had already done a lot of Marvel work so its not too surprising that they would feel comfortable moving their books to Marvel. Although, I thought Brian was pretty loyal too Image. Hrm. We'll see.

I mean, what could Marvel promise to give Brian and David in order for them to bring their books over. What could Marvel give that Dark Horse or Image couldn't give? Maybe Marvel would have a better chance at getting Brian a Powers movie. Just speculation.

This does make everything very tricky. Especially because Marvel has had such a checkered past with the publishing of creator-owned books.

[Primate]

If Image is indeed on the way out, I hope Hawaiian Dick lands on its feet with another publisher!

Whichever way ya slice it, this sucks for Image.

[Christian Otte]

This is very nice move, if you ask me. Marvel has constantly been criticized for not publishing comics not related to the Marvel Universe, and what do we have here - an imprint precisely for that!

I'll definitely pick up Powers, and mayhaps Kabuki - David Mack's DD storyarc left me cold.

[Slangword]

Originally posted by MattBrady
Press Release

Bendis offered, "We have always said that we have benefited so much from the generations of comic creators before us who worked so hard to pave the way for creator rights. We have had it so good and we are stunned that we get to help take it to the next level... Marvels first true creator-owned imprint."

S

I'm a bit confused by this quote.

Although there was the occasional Marvel character mini-series, Epic published mostly creator owned properties. Just off-hand, I can think of Groo, Coyote, Dreadstar, Tor, and Trouble with Girls, and Moonshadow, all of which were published by other companies in some form or another.

So is there something different about this that really makes it "Marvel's first true creator-owned imprint" or is it just a misunderstanding of the history of Epic?

Also, anybody know what Milestone's reaction is to using the name of one of their major characters? Have they lost the trademark for "Icon" as the name of a comic book?

Regardless, I hope this works out for the present and future creators who come to this imprint.

[American Caesar]

Is this a deal like CrossGen's "Code 6" or whatever it's called – wholly creator-owned with a bit of the kitty going back to the publisher for printing costs?

And... what's the chance of this living longer than Epic? Fer serious! No joke!

[G Dog]

Originally posted by SpyGuy
Yeah, I think Marvel smells some blood in the water as far as Image is concerned. Of course, Bendis and Mack must have smelled it first and decided to bail before the feeding frenzy began.

Let's not go insane here. I'm sure it's no coincidence that Icon is being built on two well known names. Epic was already Marvel's attempt to give unknowns a shot and it failed miserably. If nothing else, Image is still the only big name that is taking true chances on complete unkowns. Look at Erik Larsen's Waiting For Tommy interview and it's obvious that this means VERY little to Image. They make a token amount from each book they publish, and they can replace Powers and Kabuki with any tow random books (maybe tow more Robert Kirkman books...that'd be sweet). This means more to Marvel, Bendis, Oeming and Mack than it does to Image.

[Dood Lee]

Originally posted by Armoured Gideon
Lets hope all those Marvel Bendis fans can be channelled towards this book.

Depends on which fans. Younger readers (the ones who read Ultimate Spiderman) i would think would be the ones i wouldn't want reading Powers, since it contains such mature content. Hopefully though, the move will attract more of the teen-adult readers, cuz Powers is such a great book that it deserves to be in the top 25.

[Christian Otte]

Originally posted by American Caesar
And... what's the change of this living longer than Epic? Fer serious! No joke!

Three words: Brian Michael Bendis.

[jasinmartin]

Yet another exciting chapter in the saga that is...
THE COMIC INDUSTRY

Pick up next month's installment to check in on all these exciting sub-plots:
Does this spell impending doom for Image?
Will Manga strangle the competition with it's bookstore dominance?!
Will Marvel actually publish creator-owned material?!?
Will Punisher "Hulk out" at the box office, or give 'em hell… boy?

[spookymonk]

I think this is great news. I just hope that, like Vertigo, Marvel also uses this imprint to develop new properties.

[Christian Otte]

Originally posted by jasinmartin
Yet another exciting chapter in the saga that is...
THE COMIC INDUSTRY

Pick up next month's installment to check in on all these exciting sub-plots:
Does this spell impending doom for Image?
Will Manga strangle the competition with it's bookstore dominance?!
Will Marvel actually publish creator-owned material?!?
Will Punisher "Hulk out" at the box office, or give 'em hell… boy?

Who's writing it?

[Last Republican]

Man, I LOVED Icon a decade ago...loved Static, Blood Syndicate, and Xombi as well. Genuinely underrated books during a era of shiny covers, overrated creators, and "investment copies".

What? It's not...? Oh, nevermind.

[gren99]

personally, i'm a tad worried about this. i think 'powers' has been slipping a bit of late (tail-end of V.1 for sure) and i'm hoping and praying that bendis decides not to skew the book to a 'larger' audience with this move, along the lines of what we got when 'alias' (excellent book) morphed into 'the pulse' (really left me flat so far).

i also gotta wonder if image will still do TPBs of the remaining issues of 'powers'.

[SHABBAZZ]

Marvel truely has the Midas Touch. First Tsunami, then Epic now Icon. It is a sure fire, can't miss, guaranteed success! Does Brian Bendis have Joe Quesada's job yet, or will that be announced next week some time?

[Johnny Smith]

Hip Hip Hooray for Dan Buckley!!!

Marvel rocks!

[B.AllanDempsey]

What does this mean for the issues of Powers/Kabuki that have already been solicited?

BAD

[leez34]

Bendis always said he'd never allow a "mature readers" label to be put on Powers. I wonder if this will affect that.