NYCC '08: MARVEL APES

[MattBrady]

by Troy Brownfield

That wacky Joe Quesada. Every one in a while, he’ll throw out a teaser on convention panels that may not be followed up on for months. The transformation of Speedball was one such dangler. Another was the suggestion, years back, of something called “Marvel Apes”. As it turns out, the details are now in and Karl Kesel will be handling the writing chores, with Ramon Bachs on art and Steve Wacker editing.

We had occasion to speak to veteran creator Kesel on apes, Kirby, and general Marvel monkey business.

Newsarama: "Marvel Apes" is something that's been mentioned at convention panels for a while. How did you get attached?

Karl Kesel: A call from Steve Wacker was all it took. For some strange reason, he (and, I believe, Joe Quesada) thought I was the perfect choice for a story about super-powered, intelligent apes. And for some even stranger reason, I agreed!

NRAMA: From a writer's perspective, how do you dig in to a project like this? The very title suggests some Silver Agey humor, but I'm guessing no one would this strictly for the sake of a gag. What's your process like here?

KK: Of course, the first things that come to your mind are the jokes and bad puns— Spider-MONKEY is a hero in MONKhattan in the United SIMIANS of America. It’s a Cocktail Party Idea— one you can toss around funny one-liners about with your friends as you sip drinks (in this case: banana daiquiris). But to have a STORY you need more than jokes. You need conflict, you need characters readers can admire and root for, and you need something real at stake. That’s when you start looking past the banana peels and asking yourself: Okay, how does this society really work? What’s important to these characters? For all its similarity to the mainstream Marvel Universe, how is it different? Once you figure that out, the story almost writes itself.

NRAMA: We know that you're a Kirby fan (really, who isn't?), and Kirby had truck with blends of humans and animals in a lot of his work. Did any of that inform your approach?

KK: Yes and no. The story does begin with a cameo from the Red Ghost and his Super-Apes— how could it not, really?-- but after that I can’t say I had, say, Kirby’s Kamandi or High Evolutionary in the back of my head as a guiding light. The story really did have its own life, its own tone, and I just tried to get that down on paper. On the other hand, we do introduce a new character— Ape X (and yes: I know there’s an old Marvel character with that name, but this one has nothing to do with that one)— and Ape X is very Kiirby-inspired. He’s a super-strong gorilla wearing a magic Mexican wrestling mask— one of those destroy-a-city-block brawlers that Jack constantly created. And Ramon draws him perfectly— all muscle and mass.

NRAMA: Comic fans seem to have a cluster of perennial fascinations that include zombies, ninjas, robots, pirates, and monkeys. After first acknowledging that an ape and monkey are two different things, what, in your estimation, is the appeal of blending super-powers and primates?

KK: The thing about monkeys and apes is that they look like us, but they’re not us. So you put them in clothes and they look funny. But it’s more than that because monkeys-in-clothes (or apes-in-capes, in this case) allow people to laugh at themselves without really laughing at themselves. You don’t laugh at a monkey dressed as George W. Bush because he’s doing the same stupid things the real Bush does— no no no. You’re laughing at him because a monkey dressed as George W. Bush looks FUNNY! (At least, that’s what we tell ourselves.) And there’s a touch of that “court jester” comedy/commentary in this story, too. You almost can’t avoid it.

NRAMA: When you, Ramon and Steve discuss the look of the story, do you veer toward realism or a more cartoony take?

KK: The world itself is approached very logically and realistically, within the concept’s limits. For instance, we tried to image what Monkhattan would look like if it had been built by a simian society. Now, it still had to look like Manhattan— we wanted the readers to be able to identify it instantly— but it had to be different, too. Of course, that’s easy to SAY— but Ramon did a brilliant job in bringing it to life. The characters, at their core, are also treated very seriously— although the tone of the story often allows Ramon to be a bit more cartoony than he would be on other jobs. Which is fine, because those bright moments only make the dark ones even darker by comparison.

NRAMA: Bigger influence on the story? "Planet of the Apes" or "Lancelot Link: Secret Chimp"?

KK: Lancelot Link, definitely (I didn’t think anyone but me even remembered that show!), followed by a healthy dose of Planet of the Apes (the original), with a dash of the monkeys from the start of 28 Days Later mixed in. Seriously.

NRAMA: Anything that you can tell us about the plot? Will it mirror recent Marvel events in any way?

KK: Actually, quite the opposite. I’m certain once Marvel Apes comes out that the rest of the Marvel Universe will start copying (or “aping”) us!

As for the plot, all I really need to say is that the hero of our story is the one-and-only, ever-grinnin’ GIBBON! Move over, Wolverine! I’m certain the fans are already lining up outside their local comics shop...

Seriously— the Gibbon wasn’t the perfect choice just because he’s a mainstream Marvel character who can easily “pass” in an ape-filled monkeyverse, but because he’s such a lovable loser. Nothing ever goes right for him— he never gets a break, the girl, or the glory— and suddenly he finds the fate of an entire universe in his hands. In some ways, Marvel Apes is a sprawling epic like Lord of the Rings, and the Gibbon is our Frodo— one small person dwarfed by the overwhelming forces that stand between him and his goal. He even has his own Samwise— a spunky gal-scientist (human) named Fiona Fitzhugh who literally gets sucked into this adventure along with him. As for a Gollum— well, you’ll just have to read the mini-series and see for yourself!

Care to comment about this on the New Newsarama? Click here!

Return to the NY Comic Con mini-site

[Staredcraft]

I've been wondering when this would finally Take off the ground, if at all. Nice to see it won't just be "Marvel Zombies with Apes" or anything like that, it'll be it's own thing with its own type of humor.

OH and FIRST POST!

[PhilipAMoore]

I am going to pass on this one the ida of superhero gerillas just does sound like my barrol of monkeys if anything it sound alot like one of those comics that will are destine fale coming out of the gate. good day

[Greg McElhatton]

Ah, we're getting the Marvel version of JLApe, I see.

[zeitgeist07]

they must have Art Adams for covers.

[Ace]

Karl Kesel is one of the VERY few writers whose work I will read regardless of what it is.

Why he doesn't have an ongoing book for DC or Marvel is beyond me.

I want this to do absurdly well like Marvel Zombies just so he maybe gets more writing gigs.

[Omega Flyer]

I never got into Marvel Zombies but this sounds realy interesting to me. Especially the focus on the Gibbon, been a fan of him ever since PWJ #4.

[M. Bloom]

It was a stupid idea when DC did it, now it's a stupid idea and a rip-off.

[Not From Around]

The idea that this is something the public is really eager to see seems a bit counter-intuitive....

[shadowchaser]

this is so stupid, sorry

[JoeMaggio]

"Power Mandril"

Does anybody remember a series of short films (I think they ran on TBS in the '80's), in which a group of chimpanzees acted out famous movie scenes? They always made me laugh and I'd like to see them again.

[Blind Assassin]

This looks like a barrel of fun. I will check this out for the cover image alone. It just made me laugh my ass off before I even got to the article.

For people who say the marvel u is too dark, this is the antidote.

[adamcasey]

Originally Posted by JoeMaggio

"Power Mandril"

Does anybody remember a series of short films (I think they ran on TBS in the '80's), in which a group of chimpanzees acted out famous movie scenes? They always made me laugh and I'd like to see them again.

It was the early to mid-90s. My favorite one was the "When Harry Met Sally" parody.

[cap infinity]

Originally Posted by MattBrady

a super-strong gorilla wearing a magic Mexican wrestling mask

That sounds like just the kind of thing I'll enjoy.

[Absalom]

this can't be serious... this is ridiculous... it's DC level. which is sad to see... after civil war, house of m, secret invasion, messiah complex, and lots of very good monthly series Marvel would do Apes . . . ? that's low.... very low...
if it's true, I'll pass on this event.

[Hypestyle]

great... they had better avoid treating marvel's black characters this way.. I don't want to see power man, falcon, storm, black panther, none of that..

[H.Pym Esq]

Just think- Hank Pym as a teeny tiny little monkey making friends with huge ants.
I am calling it now that there will be a splash page somewhere in this series of a giant banana.

[Samy Merchi]

Does this have an ETA?

[pta391]

I'm sold. This looks VERY fun!

[Doc Nero]

Originally Posted by Hypestyle

great... they had better avoid treating marvel's black characters this way.. I don't want to see power man, falcon, storm, black panther, none of that..

Bit late for that, you did see the 'Avengers' pic above you?

[TheGrayHulk]

Spider-Man has a tail on that cover, that means he's a monkey, not an ape.

[Samy Merchi]

And he's not the only one that's not an ape.

They're all non-apes, except for one.

I'm not up on my primates, but I think Wolverine or Cage is a baboon. Spider-Woman is a...chimp? I'm not sure. But definitely not an ape.

They're all primates, not specifically apes.

It's just that "Marvel Apes" sounds better than "Marvel Primates". It's not factually correct and will never be.

[NewRisingSun]

Yes!!! They've found my weakness, stories about simians.

[BoosterGold]

pretty dumb idea.

[Moe Hailstone]

When Marvel Zombies was introduced, I thought it was an interesting idea so I supported it. Marvel milked that dead cow and now it sucks.

I won't even bother to look at any Marvel Apes issues since the idea seems stupid to me. Plus it just makes Marvel look like a copycat since DC had already done this idea (and I think that their take on it was lame as well).