STEVE WACKER: TALKING BRAND NEW DAY

[MattBrady]

Last week, we told you he was ‘a coming (and yes, he jumped the gun on Friday with some answers to some questions while we were previewing art), and as promised – Spider-Man editor Steve Wacker is here to handle some of your Brand New Day questions.

Rather than continue with any kind of normal introduction, we’re just going to turn this over to Steve…


Look, you’re mad, I’m mad, we’re ALL mad. It’s been a real firestorm of a weekend and all of us have walked away a bit bruised, a bit battered, a bit bitter.

I mean have you seen the new look for Jughead!?!?

If I knew how to make a red frowny face with his eyes rolling, believe me I’d use THREE of them!!!

C’mon!! What are they thinking? They just lost my money until they stop messing with the classics! Jeez, ya’d think Quesada was running that joint! What’s next? We discover Mr. Weatherbee hooked up with Betty when Archie was out of town? Moose is part of a lineage of totemic mooses? You know what? I just quit comics! Goodbye, childhood! See ya on skid row!

Anyway, Brady knocked your anonymous screeds down to 10 loaded questions and I picked a couple extra just because I liked them (or they gave me clear opportunities to make fun of Brevoort).

So sit back, grab a Sugar Free Red Bull, and try to read a complete answer before getting so mad you just have type half-cocked. And for Brady’s sake, please, please, please no questions about One More Day. I just can’t take it!

This interview is dedicated to Pcm979 who wrote:
“So this Back In Wack consisted entirely of Wacker refusing to comment, making awkward jokes and showing us preview art? Next time they can just skip to the art.”

I couldn’t agree more….but until then, here we go:

Big picture, what is "Brand New Day?" There seems to be confusion as to whether "Brand New Day" itself is an arc, if it's a subtitle, or...what...? How would you describe it both a Spider-Man/comic fan and to a person on the street?

Steve Wacker: I can’t fathom a person on the street asking me that unless his friend was picking my pocket while I answered, but I’ll give it a shot.

Brand New Day is not the name of a story the way One More Day was the name of the Joes’s last story. BND (as all the hip 35 year olds are calling it) is simply an over-arcing title we’re giving to the first four months of this launch. It’s there to let people know that something new is happening in Amazing Spider-Man.

One way to look at it is to think about Brand New Day as the name of a record album. We’ve got 12 songs on that album (representing our first 12 issues) all under the umbrella of BND. By the end of it, you’ll have a pretty good idea of the new status quo and the new talent involved with the book.

The Brand New Day slug will be on our first 12 issues to help people know this is where it all starts. You can pick up any of these to get an idea of what’s happening to Spidey.

Obviously, given recent events, scheduling of Spider-Man books is a topic that has a lot of readers concerned in general, and more specifically, BND is adopting an "enhanced" production and shipping schedule. You're launching a month later than you originally planned, but what can you say to addresses the aforementioned concerns about staying on schedule?

SW: We’re going to do what everyone does: Hope for the best, plan for the worst.

I’m never far enough ahead on these things to satisfy myself, but we’ve got a good amount of issues being worked on now (I’m dealing with an August shipping issue at the moment), so I’m feeling relatively at ease this evening at least.

That said, it’s Spider-Man and every issue matters since we’re asking for such a substantial buy-in of 3 issues a month. So I’m not going to push an issue out if I don’t think it’s good and expect people to be satisfied.

They’ll respect you most if your book is on time and good, but I think they respect you least if the best you can say about your book is that it’s on time.

(Insert some sort of booger or ca-ca joke here so Newsarama regulars don’t get bored with a serious answer)

Connected to that - and a throwback to the 52 conversations we used to have - can you take a look around at the ASM stuff on your desk right now - what pieces from what issues are making their way across your transom this week?

-Final color for Morry Hollowell for ASM #547.

-First proof of the letter column for #546 from Rich Ginter in production

-Wasabi Peas. Believe me they help.

-New package of inks from Andy Lanning for ASM #553.

-A to do list for tomorrow’s writer conference call

-A color version of Phil Jimenez’ third cover.

-A picture of my son dressed as Spider-Man (for reference).

-Three scripts from Guggenheim for later in the year. He wrote all three parts at the same time, so he could make sure his story worked. Ya gotta love that.

-Color from #559 (art by M***** M***** and J***** R********)

-A note to call Guggenheim about the 2008 Annual.

-Cover sketches from Bachalo for #556

-A couple random notes about a top secret Spidey book Phil and I are talking about.

-A beautiful book about Spanish artists called Comics Made in Spain by Koldo Azpitarte. It features chapters about Salvador Larocca and Pasqual Ferry both of whom were in town last week. Salva was here talking about his next project and Pasqual was making it clear he wants to draw Spider-Man which I pretended to be calm about.

-Complete inks from part one of next summer’s blockbuster Spidey story.

-A list of topics for the new Spidey office blog at
http://www.marvel.com/blogs/Spider-Office

-A blinking red light with 3-4 people I haven’t called back today.

-And finally a letter from an helpless fingerless-gloved, porridge eating orphan thanking me for shipping Amazing Spider-Man three times a month starting in January. Don’t thank me, orphan, thank Joe Quesada.

Okay, here’s one I picked:

Jason1749 writes: Steven, will each writer be able to set their own "tone" for their issues, or will the stories need to be homogenized since this is a single title?

SW: Jason1749 (if that’s even your real name and the year you’re from), I rewrite the writers of all my books into a nice low monotone…like a 1950s DC editor! It’s my way or the highway, bub!

Truth is, I think all the new writers have pretty distinct voices, so it doesn’t feel homogenized to me. I did suggest to Guggenheim that I was afraid a Mighty Mouse reference he made in one issue might be a little dated, but it turned out that it worked, so we kept it in.

There are certainly cases where the writers have been asked to make changes, but that’s pretty standard (Bob Gale insists on trying to force a Countdown crossover, f’rinstance). I don’t believe they’ve been “tone”-changing though.

The writers have all come up with the basic framework for the next year or so and then come up with stories that work within that framework. I can’t promise you’ll like every issue, but I do think there’s a strong and distinct variety in tone.

About the storylines themselves - bigger picture, how involved are the other writers in each others' stories? For example, Dan Slott has mentioned to us that even though he's writing the first month, he's essentially got his fingers in the pots of the other writers' stories, and vice versa. Can you sketch out the process of single issue in terms of how many hands it goes through?

SW: The actual plots of the stories are up to the individual writers. We talk about them as a group and everyone has pretty open about sharing ideas if it makes a story better, but when Zeb (or whomever) writes a story, it’s his story.

Where I think they bounce the most info off each is in the details and subplots. Making sure that the place someone is leaving Pete in one issue is the same place we pick him up in the next issue. Given how may issues are being worked on at once everyone has to stay flexible about that kind of thing since you may get to page 22 of a script and realize the pieces didn’t fit like you thought they would a few weeks ago.

I created a spreadsheet which is now kept up by the book’s assistant, Tom Brennan, to help keep track of where the various chess pieces are, but minor things have fallen through from time to time, so we keep refining it. Nothing major yet (…not that I’d tell you. That’s for Brevoort to reveal on his blog.)

The cast of the BND-era. We've seen in the Spider-Man Bible (almost abbreviated that as "the SM Bible, which is a completely different book), that there will be a collection of new faces coming to the series, from a new owner for the Daily Bugle, a horde of new villains and others - but how would you describe the balance between "classic" Spider-Man and new when it comes to the cast? Will readers see, for example, Flash, Robbie, May, MJ, Betty and folks he's known for decades, or will this really be a fully "brand new day" when it comes to the folks Peter and Spider-Man will be interacting with?

SW: I’d say it’s 50/50. Most of the older characters you mention will appear, but they mingle pretty seamlessly with the new characters. Jonah in particular plays a big part in Pete’s new status quo and may not be with us for long. Seeing how Pete and the rest of the crew at the Bugle handle that is a big part of the first year.

If there's one word that's described Spider-Man over the last three to five years, it's "change." JMS' inclusion of the spider-totem into Spider-Man's story. Ezekiel. Sins Past. The Other. Unmasking in Civil War. Some have been changes that can be (relatively) easily gotten over, but others, such as his new powers that came about as part of "The Other" are physiological and hard to forget about, or let go of on a therapist's couch. To what extent will Spider-Man still be affected by these changes? Will he still be shooting from organic shooters? Are Gwen's kids still out there? Will he still have those weird relationships with villains with animal totems? ...or again, is "Brand New Day" to be taken literally?

SW: I can’t answer everything in here because it gives away too much, but I think I can address a larger issue about where we’re picking up Pete’s story and where he’s been.

As you listed, JMS’ run is filled with massive and major changes to the Pete’s life (some of the biggest changes ever in the character’s history), but nowhere in that run do I not recognize the person I’m reading about. It’s a testament to the writing that Pete still comes through in every page. I think JMS’ years on the book stand as one of the top three runs Spidey has ever had. So, no, we’re not looking to get away from any of it.

The classic comic book characters work because you can bend and reshape them into almost anything and they still snap back, fresher and stronger than before. No matter what has happened to Pete, he’s basically remained the strong, recognizable template that Stan, Steve and John created.

The other stuff is all window dressing, On its best days, the book has always centered around the struggles of Peter Parker…and that’s going to continue.

Oh, and Mephisto buys the Daily Bugle.

Perhaps not a direct question for you, but as best as you know - how will trades be handled? Will each month be seen as an "arc" and treated as such, or will the schedule allow for multiple-month arcs/stories?

SW: Most likely, the first 12 issues will be collected in two volumes. Beyond that you’ll probably see collections ranging from 5-8 issues depending on story length. We’re keeping that kind of thing in mind as we plan, but we don’t want to start making one issue stories into five parters just to fill out a collection.

Between OMD and BND, there are clearly major changes coming to Spider-Man's world. Given that he is both the "everyman" of the Marvel Universe, as well as a social gadfly, how will these effects be seen throughout the Marvel U?

SW: Instead of webs, he now just throws Aunt May’s bones at bad guys and swings on a vine made of Mary Jane’s hair. Bet the organic webshooters don’t look so bad now, internet!!

Beyond that, there’s plenty of Spidey in the Avengers (who also appear in Amazing during month four) and Spidey is still struggling to match his turbulent personal life with the demands of his public life as Spidey.

Parse from that what you can.

Here’s another from my pile.
Omega Flyer writes:
I believe I’ve read that JRjr will be making his long awaited return to the Spidey book penciling for Dan Slott at some point, as much as I love JRjr's Spidey, does this mean Steve McNiven is leaving Amazing after his first arc or will he be moving to another writer or just taking a break?

SW: I’m a little confused because you don’t seem too angry, but whatever.

McNiven was only ever going to be around for the first arc because he had an opening before starting another big project coming out later in ’08. So Steve along with Dexter Vines and Morry Hollowell – the new Fantastic Four of art teams…well, Fantastic Four if it were one of those issues where Ben quit the team, leaving just the other three to hang around waiting for Ben to come back. I mean, come on, you think a big orange rock guy is going to find another job as good as the FF one? Yeah, pull the other one. What the hell was I talking about?

Oh, Steve, Dex and Mo are climbed onboard for the first three issues to help give us a strong launch and establish the look of the new book.

However, if you want to start a thread titled something like: “McNiven demands name be taken off all future issues of Amazing Spider-Man!” feel free. It’s sorta true, which is good enough!

As for Johnny Jr…that’d be great, but I think he’s on Kick-Ass now. Besides as much as JRJr may be one of the finest Spidey artists ever…Romita Senior is my real Holy Grail.

Speaking of that, the writers have all spoken about their long-term plans and commitment to the series, but it's already known that some of the artists are on the series for a short period and moving on to other projects. Overall, how are you envisioning the creative turnover on ASM with the 3x monthly shipping?

SW: I think this a pretty intense book to work on and some artists aren’t going to be able to give it a long-term commitment with such a relentless schedule. Everyone on the schedule side of things here at Marvel (including Talent Manager Chris Allo and Managing Editor David Bogart) have been instrumental in looking ahead and seeing when artists on my wish list are coming free from other projects and can step in to do a story before their next project starts.

That’s how we got McNiven, that’s how we got Salvador, that’s how we got Bachalo (Jimenez just does what he’s told).

Salva and McNiv are onto their next things, but we’re thrilled they were able to help launch the book and draw a complete story. Bachalo and Jimenez are sticking around and coming up we’ve got even more of Marvel’s best including M*** M*****, B**** K***** and some more surprises. By the end of our first year, it’s going to look like a who’s who of the industry’s best artists.

Even with the relentless, almost-weekly schedule, I don’t think you want to take too many shortcuts on the art side. It’s a visual medium and I believe if you’re going to ask for such a big commitment from readers (both in time and money), you want to make sure their eyes are getting their money’s worth.

Finally - will BND be connected to OMD?

SW: “Finally?’ Wasn’t that the subtext of every question?

It’s different in tone and execution, but Brand New Day is absolutely connected to One More Day and picks up right where it leaves off…however that tells you much less than you think.

All right it’s 1AM and I still have to read Best Shots, so I’m out. See ya in 4 weeks!

In the meantime don’t forget to check out the new Spidey office blog at:
http://www.marvel.com/blogs/Spider-Office

[d00gZ]

Originally Posted by MattBrady

-Color from #559 (art by M***** M***** and J***** R********)

SWEET! Marcos Martin and Javier Rodriguez!

[God-Man]

Goddamnit those pages look awesome. I'm feeling awfully tempted to buy this...

[Marius665]

if New Avengers are going to be in it I might give it a try

might....get....this....

talking.....like....Shatner!

[OM]

Color from #559 (art by M***** M***** and J***** R********)

...Marilyn Monroe and Jason Robarts are working for Marvel now?

[Newtype1089]

so0o all the stuff in New Avengers right now is pre One More Day right? since spidey's still in black so I guesse by Brand New Day they catch back up to each other o0o0o and I can't understand why people don't want to read Brand New Day because One More Day sucked no one involved with One More Day has anything to do with Brand New Day I hate hate hate One More Day but I cannot wait for Brand New Day best writers in town with the best artists around how could you not like it and it's totaly old skool classic spidey fun from what we've seen about it and I agree JMS run is deff in the top 3 of all time it's number 1 for me but I know ppl would hurt me for saying that all in all I cannot wait for Brand New Day

[d00gZ]

Originally Posted by MattBrady

even more of Marvel’s best including M*** M*****, B**** K***** and some more surprises.

Mark Millar and Barry Kitson!

[jlawesome]

Originally Posted by Newtype1089

first post??

haha, no.


...........

[Mr_Punch]

Love those Bachalo pages.

[TheNoirPI]

"We’re going to do what everyone does: Hope for the best, plan for the worst."

Isn't not planning at all how it's done for the worst? Or is just moving it month by month until it actually comes out or falls of the face of the Earth considered planning?

[jatorres]

Mike Mayhew & Barry Kitson?

[neftones]

Millar and Kitson? Hell yes.

[Truthseeker]

I can't get this. I love Spidey, but I can't buy it. I don't like what they are doing in One More Day. I just don't like the direction things are heading, either it is retcon that changes the character away from the Spidey I have always known and enjoyed, or it is a gimmick to get me to buy an almost weekly book.

Either way it is not for me and I am voting with my dollars as it is all we consumers can do.

[Hand213]

Well played, Mr. Wacker. Well played.

[Dreighton]

I really hope I'm wrong about One More Day and Brand New Day, and the "End of the Marriage" is just a big fake out. Not that I'll know...I gave OMD a shot...I'm not a fan on several levels.

I loved all the art, very different styles....but all very good. I loved especially loved the Ross Andru-esc pencils on the ASM-547pg13.jpg

[dalunt]

I am boycotting Spiderman because of what Joe Q is doing, but I would rejoin if Millar was writing it.

[whitemarkd]

So Peter's dating Jughead now? I'm so confused...

[Drizzt3]

The art looks good.And i really really hope that BND will be what Steve Wacker and Dan Slott says...Otherwise i'm gonna give Asm for good.

After the issue 3 OMD crap,they really need a good story...

[nickmarino]

Bachalo's stuff is looking incredible

[Marius665]

has Menance and Mr. Negative been the only bad guys shown to be in Brand New Day
where are all the rogues at?

[I-Ching]

Can someone help me here....

Okay I get the part where he made a deal with Mephisto so...

Is his marriage just over or it never existed?

Is Aunt May alive?

Is MJ a superhero?

I like what Marvel is doing here and this creative line-up but I don't want to go in blind.

Thanks

[zodcomplex]

Steve Wacker is a genius. That is all.

[J. Dincauze]

Originally Posted by Truthseeker

I can't get this. I love Spidey, but I can't buy it. I don't like what they are doing in One More Day. I just don't like the direction things are heading, either it is retcon that changes the character away from the Spidey I have always known and enjoyed, or it is a gimmick to get me to buy an almost weekly book.

Either way it is not for me and I am voting with my dollars as it is all we consumers can do.

Have fun with that.

[jaysncards]

After reading this, all I ca say is that I love Steve Wacker. No one in the industry (at least that answers questions here) is better at promoting book, telling you nothing but everything, and poking fun at collegues/ Distinguished Competition than him (though Gail Simone comes close). I swear, I am not a Marvel guy but I am tempted to buy this just because of Wacker.

[Drizzt3]

Originally Posted by I-Ching

Can someone help me here....

Okay I get the part where he made a deal with Mephisto so...

Is his marriage just over or it never existed?

Is Aunt May alive?

Is MJ a superhero?

I like what Marvel is doing here and this creative line-up but I don't want to go in blind.

Thanks

You gotta wait for Asm 544...Somethings will be clear then...