Your 2018 Predictions, Part Five: Gun on Ice Planet Zero.

§ January 23rd, 2019 § Filed under customer gary, predictions § 6 Comments

So, we meet again! Time to look at more your 2018 comic industry predictions and see how all you amateur fortune tellers did this time ’round! If you’ve missed any installments so far, here are some handly links to parts the first, the second, the third, and the fourth. Also, there’s still time to send in your 2019 predictions right here!

Let’s get this prediction party started:

Longtime customer* Gary Guthrie fishes sinisterly** with

“When Disney finally buys DC, we all get the Jimmy Olsen / Wolverine / BB-8 miniseries everyone has been clamoring for. Goofy is the surprise guest star.”

It really is only a matter of time before everything collapses into the comics singularity. Not yet, but it’s coming, oh yes.

“We can’t say Batman marries Catwoman, because when Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle wed, they retire from costumed adventuring and the Bat-family of books become domestic comedies. Peter Parker and Mary Jane are the surprise guest stars.”

As we know, no knot was tied between the two in either of their identities, so alas, no The Golden Batgirls or The Big Bat Theory or Gimme A Backbreak or I Love Lucius or anything like that was gifted upon us.

“Dr. Manhattan turns out to have been the source of The Spectre’s power all along. Mephisto and Son of Satan are the surprise guest stars.”

I figured at the very least Dr. Manhattan would get on the Spectre for stealin’ his naked gimmick in Kingdom Come. Ah well…there’s still a couple of issues to go in Doomsday Clock for that to happen…or for anything to happen.

• • •

Bret Sector divides us with

“DC’s success with its Hanna-Barbera crossovers will ‘inspire’ Marvel to go all in with Disney character crossovers…Spidey/Mickey; Deadpool/Goofy; and of couse Moon Knight/Dark-wing Duck.”

Like with Marvel/Star Wars crossovers, I’m surprised Marvel hasn’t attempted this, aside from what I’m sure is some Disney-imposed restriction on such things. This of course means no Howard the Duck/Donald Duck: PANTS-OFF in our immediate future, I’m sad to say.

“This year’s return of Marvel Value Stamps and FOOM will lead to the return of the MMMS and a re-issue of the 45rpm marching anthem.”

At the very least, make it a digital download! But I’m afraid the Merry Society still no longer marches.

“DC’s comedian comics from days gone by (e.g., Jerry Lewis, Bob Hope,…) will ‘inspire’ Marvel to start a comedian team comic made up of modern day comedians who also happen to be comic book authors as well – Brian Poehn, Patton Oswalt, Rashida Jones, Zeb Wells, and Del Close are the Comedy Avengers!”

“So what’s going on in this Louis C.K. comic book…ew, gross.”

We did have a comic book by comedians that debuted on Free Comic Book Day, but not quite like what you were hoping for. Which is too bad. In fact, I wouldn’t mind just the Bob Hope comic book coming back. It would probably sell like five copie nationwide, but I’d like it!

• • •

A.J. bops you with this here lollipop

“A Herbie: The Fat Fury movie will be announced.”

Would have loved for this to be true, but we must face the unfortunate fact that the entertainment industry lacks the sheer genius and talent to properly pull off what would be The Greatest Movie of All Time, Perhaps Even Greater Than Frank Miller’s The Spirit.

• • •

David Alexander McDonald calls this “keeping it down” with

“…okay, okay, I’ll try to keep it down this year. You’re an old man now, Mike, can’t lift the way you used to.”

“we’ll see more movement amongst the bigger publishers towards European style albums, with Snyder’s ALL-STAR BATMAN gradually going that way. Marvel will revive their 1980s/1990s graphic novel line, but pooch it badly, while DC will gave trouble being consistent. The *big* winners for a while will be Boom, Dynamite and IDW (who will have Byrne adjust his design for New Visions to start the trend.)”

…I’d say Batman: Damned kinda fits the bill here…it’s been a success so far, goosed along by a little bit of that ol’ fashioned sales booster of “controversy” — and there have been one or two other oversized album-esque publications here and there, but I haven’t seen anyone pushing for the big switchover yet. But at least it appears to be a viable option!

“Movies/TV…DC will work up and promote a riff on Multiversity to tie films and TV shows together. New plans will be laid out to rescue the DC IP. Marvel Studios will promote the idea of a multiverse post-Infinity War as a way of pushing off continuity questions and the hassles of the TV and film arms working coherently together. It’ll still all be MCU. Sony will be embarrassed, Fox’s last X-slate will play out, and there’ll be no more X-Men until 2025.”

Hmm…I don’t think we’ve seen action in either direction so far. The next DC crossover on TV is titled Crisis on Infinite Earths, but it almost certainly won’t involve the movies. (If anything, I’m betting there’s going to use it to get Supergirl on the same Earth as everyone else…there’s my 2019 prediction). And I think Marvel has too much invested in keeping everything at least loosely tied togther…they likely feel the appeal of the TV shows is boosted by their sometimes distant connection to one film contintuity, without dealing with parallel universes and such. I think Sony’s probably fine, as Spider-Man licensing ahd their deal with Marvel Studios has been lucrative (and the Venom movie wasn’t the bomb people were expecting…well, that I was expecting). And…is there still another X-movie coming? I’ve lost track. Whether Marvel picks it up again for the 2025 slate…check back here in 2025!

“Mike will form a jug band and perform in store concerts if nothing but songs about swamp creatures. The band will be called Mike Sterling’s Louisiana Swamp Stompers and their first (and likely last) album will be titled REBORN ON THE BAYOU.”

“MUCK-ENCRUSTED MOCKERY OF A MIKE,” thank you very much.

• • •

Richard Martines sez

“With the addition of Bendis to the already strong line up of King and Snyder, DC will have a boost in quality product that should result with increased sales. Add that to the Art Direction with Jim Lee as the lead guru, and I see a great 2018 for DC.”

Like was mentiond in a previous installment, comic book sales were down a bit overall over 2018. That doesn’t say too much specifically about quality, which is a very subjective measure…but I’ll say all the folks named are doing mostly good work with good readerships over at DC. I mean, it’s hard to find a series more critically acclaimed from the Big Two than Mister Miracle. Bendis hasn’t been the Big Deal that folks were expecting, I think…Superman sales started out strong, but are dwindling back to where they were pre-Bendis. But his Young Justice debut issue did well, and we’ll see how the Bendis-headed “Wonder Comics” imprint does overall.

“I look for Marvel to cut back on titles and focus on increasing quality and sales with less product. This is what Brian Hibbs is asking and it makes sense to me. Not only for Marvel but for all comic publishers.”

Marvel’s hasn’t reversed its decades-long publishing strategy yet!

“Even with Geoff Johns as a voice of comic book fan reason at WB, I see WB continuing with disappointing movies. The Zack Snyder effect of 60 seconds of gorgeous scenes throughout the film, but having too much darkness in the plot, continues to haunt DC movies. Hopefully the Patty Jenkins effect will rise to the top. That said, my son says comic book movies seem to all be getting a bit stale.”

Aquaman certainly turned things around there! I think with its billion dollar take, we may see movies more along those lines than Batman V. Superman (which I liked just fine, but I get why people would be turned off by it). I still think Justice League, while not perfect, was still a fun movie that seemed closer in line to what people wanted, but still so heavily under the shadow of the previous films that folks went in (or didn’t go in, as the case may be) inclined against it. I have no idea what that Joker film will be like, but the next Wonder Woman film will likely continue that particuilar success, and that Harley Quinn film should give us what people liked about the Suicide Squad movie (Harley Quinn) and not give us what we didn’t like about the movie (pretty much everything else in the movie).

And I know everyone’s predicting superhero movie fatique…but it hasn’t hit yet! I mean, Star Wars movie fatigue set in first, who could’a predicted that?

• • •

Rob London bridges the gap with

“A Fantastic Four reference sneaks its way into one of this year’s three Marvel movies – maybe something as simple as RICHARDS WINS NOBEL in a news-crawl.”

This article claims such ann Easter egg in one of the Netflix shows, which everyone missed because nobody was watching that particular esries. So, um…maybe that was an egg, or it was a coincidence?

“Someone tries to bring back the Atlas/Seaboard characters. Nobody is particularly interested.”

Sorry, Morlock 2018 wasn’t a thing, and the world is the lesser for it.

“That Y: The Last Man TV show that has seemed like it was on the brink of happening for like a decade finally starts filming.”

Looks like you were right! GIVE THAT MAN A CRYSTAL BALL! …Oh, wait, you already have one.

• • •

Gregg Butterfield dreams up

“Marvel-Disney will pull the plug on floppies and go all digital on its periodical comics, limiting hard copies to trades and ‘event’ comics. DC and Image will hold out a little longer but inevitably follow suit. What’s left of the traditional comics shop market will collapse; the survivors will be the big ‘pop culture’ shops that focus on toys, games and trade paperbacks.”

Direct Market-geddon did not hit this year…and let’s hope this doesn’t happen until after I retire. Or “retire.” By which I mean “kick the bucket.”

• • •

Dave Carter lusts in his heart after

“The Aquaman movie will perform above expectations and be generally liked by movie-goers.”

That’s certainly an understatement! If you told people 20…hell, ten years ago, that an Aquaman movie would be one of DC’s biggest hits, they’d chase you with torches and pitchforks.

“The Black Lightning television show will not be renewed for a second season.”

Thankfully that didn’t happen and we did get season 2!

“DC’s ‘New Age of Heroes’ comics line will be plagued by delays.”

More like “plqgued with cancellations.” Just keep Terrifics going, DC! I need that comics!

That’s it for now…I should wrap up the predictions on Friday, so I’ll see y’all again real soon now, y’hear?
 
 

* “Longtime” as in “knew him from when I was working at the library before I started in comics retail!”

** Maybe a half-dozen people reading this, tops, will get this reference.

6 Responses to “Your 2018 Predictions, Part Five: Gun on Ice Planet Zero.”

  • Adam Farrar says:

    “And…is there still another X-movie coming? I’ve lost track.”
    Two! Dark Phoenix in June and New Mutants in August.

  • Turan, Emissary of the Fly World says:

    You seem to have missed the fact that there already has been a Marvel/DC crossover: the PHINEAS & FERB episode “Mission Marvel,” which featured Spider-Man, Iron Man, Thor, the Hulk, Nick Fury, the Red Skull, Venom, MODOK, and Whiplash, and had jokes about Aunt May, Ghost Rider, and Howard the Duck. One of my favorite yard sale finds is a plush doll of Perry the Platypus in the superhero outfit he wears here.
    (There was also a STAR WARS episode, but that was arguably not a real crossover, as it featured not the real P & F characters, but their “Star Wars Universe” counterparts. So, it does not fit into PHINEAS & FERB continuity, but I will insist with my dying breath that everything in it really did occur during A NEW HOPE.)

    The only Marvel/Disney crossover I really want to see is a Nick Fury/Dr. Director team-up…and now that KIM POSSIBLE is being revived (albeit in live action), maybe that is a possibility.

  • >Gimme A Backbreak

    Oh, goodness, thank you for this one, Mike.

  • Turan, Emissary of the Fly World says:

    By the way: Stan Lee’s cameo as a hot dog vendor in “Mission Marvel” ties that episode in with the first X-Men movie (a connection underscored by his dialogue). So, that settles it: the other Marvel superheroes DO exist in the X-Men Cinematic Universe.

  • Rob Staeger says:

    Gotta echo Mike H.: “Gimme a Backbreak” is GOLD.

  • David Alexander McDonald says:

    The MCU has established a multiverse, though, and the last season of Agents Of SHIELD got seriously into it with alternate timelines.

    It’s absolutely possible to keep everything connected, too. It just allows for hand waving when it comes to the inevitable continuity glitches. It ain’t no big thing.

    My comment about the DC multiverse was built on Diane Nelson’s comments about a DC cinematic multiverse. After I posted that, WB restructured and she was fired and replaced. The multiverse thing evaporated forthwith, and now we have a mosh-mash of unconnected projects and the festering remains of the DCEU (and likely, after Aquaman, several upset execs wondering why the DCEU was shitcanned.)