Your 2024 Predictions, Part Three: Fifteen with Wanda.
And so it goes on, our look back at your predictions for The Comic Industry in the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty and Four, with parts one and two at those links right there.
And yes, get in those predictions for 2025 before too much more 2025 goes by!
googum, as is his wont, googums
“1. Marvel’s going to try to pivot from Kang, to Ravonna. As long as they don’t try to use the name ‘Terminatrix’ it’ll probably be fine.”
Kang is definitely out in the Marvel movies, given the troubles with the actor, and the simple fact Kang wasn’t getting the Big Villain traction Thanos did. Essentially replaced by Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom, and that Avengers movie that would have been called “The Kang Dynasty” is now “Doomsday.” So there.
“2. They’ll also give up on the Guardians of the Galaxy; as a comic, at least the current batch. Maybe they’ll send Rocket to the 31st century for a bit and bring back the originals.”
Huh, could’ve sworn we had more of the Guardians over the last year, but it looks like the last Guardians comic was the annual in February. I’m sure I’m not remembering appearances of the Guardians (solo or together) in other comics, but it doesn’t look like there’s a new series for them in the near future, barring news I’ve not spotted. Oh, and as you read this a Doctor Doom and Rocket Raccoon one-shot should be on the stands at your better comic shops, or even mine.
“3. Some shoddy A.I. thing will be heralded as the savior of comics; maybe A.I. colors or letters or something. It’ll not only suck, it won’t even really be A.I, just super-outsourced.”
I’ve not seen anything from any legitimate publishers using A.I., far as I know. There was bit of a dust-up middle of last year regarding an artist possibly using A.I. for cover art. I feel like (or at least hope) anyone using A.I. to generate work would probably be shunned, shunned I say, so that’s a good incentive for someone in comics’ small pool to avoid it.
Bret comes this way with
“1. With the moderate success of the Blue Beetle movie, DC will revamp the Booster Gold character to make him more movie-friendly for a Blue and Gold team-up movie.”
Unfortunately, the Blue Beetle film actually didn’t do well at all, making just barely over its production budget, which doesn’t even count its promotional budget and so on. But it seems like a Booster Gold TV show may be in the works for streaming on Max. It looks like whatever they’ve done so far has been returned for regrooving, so it may be a while yet before we get any idea what it’ll be like.
“2. The success of Mark Waid’s pocket silver age universe of titles will lead Marvel to start their own pocket universe of titles (with more of an 80’s vibe) lead by the likes of Roger Stern and…buh buh buh…John Byrne!”
Not…as such. Marvel would occasionally do one-offs with ’80s and ’90s creators, and that Silver Surfer Rebirth was basically that. But not a whole lot of that in 2024, aside from facsimile reprints. Am I forgetting something? Maybe X-Men ’97, though that’s more a nostalgic call back to the cartoon than the comics.
“3. SECRET WARS III (12-part mini-series) by Jim Shooter and Mike Zeck. Nuff said.”
Would I read the hell out of this? Abso-freakin’-lutely. C’mon, Marvel, let’s get this going.
Snark Shark sorta predicted
“1) more Marvel movies will bomb.”
As noted previously, Madame Web and Kraven both died dogs’ deaths, as, like, everyone figured. Marvel Studios its own self only put out the one flick, and Deadpool/Wolverine made all the money.
“2) more DC movies will bomb.”
Also previously noted, Joker: Folie à Deux, DC’s only theatrical release for 2024 I believe, um, underperformed, shall we say.
“3) uh… i dunno.”
Me neither, Snark Shark. Me neither.
Thom H. hops on it with
“1. Nice House on the Lake vol. 2 is published or at least announced.”
Nice House by the Sea did indeed start coming out in 2024!
“2. Miracleman: Dark Age is put on hold indefinitely because Silver Age performed so poorly.”
Um…it’s probably on hold for now, but not for reasons of underperformance, shall we say.
“3. Tom King finally gets to write a Legion of Super-Heroes story.”
Not yet! Hey, might as well give the boy a shot…can’t hurt.
DK returns with
“It’s that time of year again….”
It just keeps comin’, DK.
“1) Kevin Feige gets fired or demoted.”
Nope, we still have Kevin Feige to kick around.
“2) There will be a big announcement of a major Justice Society project for the 85th Anniversary in 2025.”
Outside of a new ongoing series, I haven’t seen anything specifically for an anniversary celebration. I wouldn’t mind if they did a facsimile edition of this DC Special:
…but maybe throwing Hitler and a swastika on a cover right now may not be particularly wise. So maybe a facsimile of this digest (at normal comic book size, please) which reprints the story above, and more besides:
Anyhoo, I’d like to have all the digests reprinted in comic book size. DC Comics, you have your orders.
“3) Spider-Man sales drop noticeably.”
Sales actually went up a bit for me over the past year. Looking at Comichron sales appear to be relatively consistent overall, so it’s hanging in there!
Existentialman appears with
“1) Despite their high-falutin’ Hollywood lifestyles, Matt Fraction and Kelly Sue DeConnick will return to either Marvel or DC to write one limited series each.”
I…don’t think so? I’m sure I’m forgetting something. Let me know in the comments and I’ll update this entry. (By the way, doing a Google search on a woman comics creator always turns up some awful results.)
“2) A Disney+ Viv Vision television series will be announced in 2024 to premiere in 2025.”
Not yet, but give ’em time.
“3) Even with his past vision challenges, Mike will draw a much better capybara in 2024.”
this is like the third time you’ve asked me about my capybara drawing, and friend, I may never top this one from when I was five:
But the one I did for this post comes close.
Okay, Enuff Z’Nuff for today, so let’s continue our foray into the future via a year past on Friday, which is also in the future. …I’ve lost track of where I’m at. Anyway, thanks for reading, pals, and I’ll see you then.
Yay! 1.5 points for me. Thanks, Mike!
DeConnick did return to comics with FML, but it was at Dark Horse. Nothing at Marvel or DC.
Chris V – I was going to note FML, but decided against it. Guess I should’ve said!
Oh man, the Kelly and Lanzing Reboot (which is an anchor theme for the new Heroclix set coming out next month) launched in 2023? I could have sworn it was this there year. Also, it only got 10 issues despite launching with FCBD. Wow.
“Marvel would occasionally do one-offs with ’80s and ’90s creators”
They’ve been doing minis, too, and are still doing them II just got a trade new trade of Micheline Venom mini. A sequel by Claremont to the 1985 Kitty and Wolverine mini by Claremont himself was just announced.
Mike. Hi. If this capybara drawing was done when you were five, please put the art on display now that it will be 50 years old!
Or: have an AI contest to see who can do the best version.
“Kang is definitely out in the Marvel movies, given the troubles with the actor”.
Talk about blowing yer ONE big shot!
“Essentially replaced by Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom”
I still don’t get WHAT the hell they’re thinking.
“the Blue Beetle film”.
THERE WAS A BLUE BEETLE FILM?!?!
“Also previously noted, Joker: Folie à Deux, DC’s only theatrical release for 2024 I believe, um, underperformed, shall we say.”
didn’t see it, but it looked SO awful.
Oh, what about FLASH? or was that 2023, not 2024? The actor’s, um, ISSUES were presumably a factor. Even aside from that, that was BAD casting. He looks like neither Barry allen NOR Wally West.
“but maybe throwing Hitler and a swastika on a cover right now may not be particularly wise”.
Maybe, BUT on the other hand, I think SOME people need reminding that the guys with the swastikas are the BAD GUYS, HERE THEY ARE, THIS IS WHAT THEY LOOK LIKE. They do their salute like, well, look at Elon.
“capybara”.
You need to create a superhero named Capybara. And then have him appear at Marvel, so we could all read CAPYBARA VERSES WOLVERINE.
“Enuff Z’Nuff”.
Ugh, I never liked them.
“A sequel by Claremont to the 1985 Kitty and Wolverine mini by Claremont”.
GIMMIE GIMMIE GIMMIE!
(A Wolverine After Midnight).
RIP Jules Feiffer.
I was just re-reading “The Outer Space Spirit” stories the other day by Feiffer, Will Eisner, and Wally Wood.
Jules Feiffer, Acerbic Cartoonist, Writer and Much Else, Dies at 95 – The New York Times https://search.app/aYwoyW7nrDzqx8nV6
@ Snark Shark
Agreed that The Flash movie was terrible. The only good thing about it was seeing Michael Keaton as Batman once again–and the Power Girl-esque take on Supergirl was interesting. But it would have been far better to just get a Keaton Old Man Batman film that that Flash fiasco.
Re: DC Special no. 29 “The Untold Origin of the Justice Society” –that is a classic comic and should definitely get a facsimile edition! Also, somebody should do a satiric recreation of that classic cover with the JSA in the background and Musk in the foreground…instead of the Spear of Destiny he could be clutching a copy of Wernher von Braun’s sci-fi novel “Project Mars” while giving his oligarchgasm salute…
We have already reached critical mass on Taylor Swift, and it’s all downhill from here – the sheer fact this was mentioned shows how woefully behind the comics book market is on the times.
” seeing Michael Keaton as Batman once again”.
That DID look cool!
“Keaton Old Man Batman film”.
That would get my vote!
“Jules Feiffer, Acerbic Cartoonist, Writer and Much Else, Dies at 95”.
Gawddammit!
Wait…. did you say that Tom King writing a character “can’t hurt”?
… Have you READ anything by Tom King? It most certainly could hurt; it most certainly WOULD. Hurting character is what Tom King DOES.