What would YOU write?

CageNarleigh

So I've been writing for a long time. Attempts at novels, a few blogs, online articles for various places...hell, even poetry. Naturally, when I got into comics, I've had a few ideas I thought seemed ok. But it wasn't until recently that I thought up any idea worth pursuing. So, the other day, I thought of something pretty epic actually that fits perfectly into a 12 issue series. And I got to day dreaming after a day of some rough outlining.

I indulged and started thinking that this would be a breakaway hit and that publishing companies would start wanting to hire me and I'd be the next Geoff Johns. Hey, I'm 26 and naive and every now and then you need to just dream big.

So I got to thinking, "If DC or Marvel approached me and wanted me to write something for them, what would I go for first?"

Being a GL fan, I thought GL, but I'm probably too close to the source material. So I was thinking maybe Ragman or something.

Anyways, to you I pose the same question: If DC or Marvel approached you and wanted you to write something for them, what would you go for first?

AND, if it's not an idea you're committed to pursuing, what's your idea for the story?

Torchsong

In both camps I wouldn't bother with any of the flagship characters. I'd want to tackle the fringe/cult fandom characters:

DC - Arion, Omega Men, Warlord, Resurrection Man, Amethyst, Azrael, 'Mazing Man (I could bring him back!)

Marvel - Cloak & Dagger, She-Hulk, Inhumans

jaydee74

Nice topic. For DC, I would want to do Martian Manhunter that would be Noir Detective stories with a superhero flavor. I had always thought that something like that would be a cool story to write. It would be John, who while not human would see both the worst and the best of humanity while solving crimes for the NYPD as a private detective.

Greg

Just becuase this is what I would have fun with...

Either Marvel or DC - I would take a group of B and C list villains and do a series with them trying to pull off heists in the Ocean's Eleven, Italian Job and Thief of Thieves style, some jobs they may get away with and others would come back to bite them in the arse.


I would also want to a Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends book that was loyal to the show as much as possible. A direct continuation of the show with all of the bad jokes, the guest heroes and crazy plots worthy of saturday mornings.

mwhitt80

Torchsong said:

DC - Arion...

You love some Arion, but we both still know he is a second rate Arak. ;)

I have no desire to make the sausage, but if I did I think there is a good pitch in me for Archer from US-1 (Marvel), and a What The?! issue (Marvel).

CaptShazam

I would like to do a revamp of the All Star Squadron or JSA set in WW II. With the pre new52 designs/costumes but with no previous continuity attached. Plus I would like to open it up to include the Capt Marvel family and other characters. I am thinking of it being a silver age type book in tone. Of course, I doubt it will sell.

kfreeman

Greg said:

- I would take a group of B and C list villains and do a series with them trying to pull off heists in the Ocean's Eleven, Italian Job and Thief of Thieves style, some jobs they may get away with and others would come back to bite them in the arse.

That's a book I would definitely give a shot on. I have always had a soft spot for cheesy marvel villains. Who would be your Danny Ocean though?

Greg

kfreeman said:

That's a book I would definitely give a shot on. I have always had a soft spot for cheesy marvel villains. Who would be your Danny Ocean though?

I've been thinking about that all morning...I have to put much more thought into this now.

Matches_Malone

I would write an Elseworlds Batman/Wonder Woman mini dealing with the murder of a greek god for DC and probably a Ka-Zar story for Marvel. Seems like we don't here from the Savage Land besides when there's a disaster or when the X-men visit.

luke52

DC - I'd like to have a bash at Swamp Thing. Think you could do a lot of interesting thing with Swampy.
Marvel - Doctor Strange. You don't see enough of Dr Strange. I'd like to write a completely out there story with him.

luke52

I'd also love to do a Ghostbusters/Deadman crossover. Could have some fun with that.

kiwijase

Longshot or Alien Legion. I loved the original comics.

shroud68

Dream big. I would want the sandbox of a flagship title like Amazing Spiderman. Create the atmosphere and texture over a few years, playing the big picture with big results. Look at how well Hickman did playing the bigger game. If I could have a fraction of that ingenuity, I'd be happy. And I'd have him fight villains he has never seen before if that's possible.

ChrisBeckett

Phantom Stranger.

I'd start by revealing he's not the only "Stranger" walking the world, which would bring all of the various takes on the character into continuity (pre-new52 continuity), and then I'd use him the way Neil Gaiman utilized Dream in Sandman. Keep him aloof and above it all, keep him on the fringe of the title some time and use him as the main protagonist others, have his choices (judgment really, in the way he comes in, fixes things, then moves on) have repercussions, and provide a human link in a secondary character - both to readers and to the Stranger - that would allow the Strange to grow as a character and become more human in the process.

chris

ChrisBeckett

And if I could bring back Jim Aparo to draw that - it'd be gold.



chris

SolitaireRose

To be honest, if I were to given a pass at Marvel and allow3ed to write ANYTHING, I'd write a maxi-series where the Martians from Killraven finally invade, and how the heroes of Earth fight them off.

I'd also want to play with the obscure, kind of do a "Forgotten Heroes" type series at Marvel where a team is made of characters like Skull the Slayer, Mordred the Mystic, and other obscure 70's characters who've dropped off the radar.

Then again, a Scarecrow series using the REALLY obscure Scarecrow from "Dead of Night" would be fun,m as I had tons of ideas for that character as a kid.

mwhitt80

SolitaireRose said:

I'd also want to play with the obscure, kind of do a "Forgotten Heroes" type series at Marvel where a team is made of characters like Skull the Slayer, Mordred the Mystic, and other obscure 70's characters who've dropped off the radar.

Can Ghost Rider be in it? Cause that might be the only place I see him for the next 5-6 years.

It could be like a good version of the 90's book Darkhold

Torchsong

As to ideas...hmmm:

Arion - still the arch-mage of ancient Atlantis that is still above the sea-level. However, after repeated attempts by those swarthy Greeks, Romans and other assorted barbarian hordes to siege the city and its tech for their own nefarious uses, we end the series with Arion sinking the city (transporting it to where current day Atlantis sits) and giving those who choose to stay with her the ability to live and exist underwater.

'Mazing Man - Seigfried Hutch wins the lottery, but doesn't come forward to announce it to the public. Instead he uses his finances to better the immediate world around him as a 'poor man's Batman'. The book would be the shining example of "Think Global, Act Local."

Cloak & Dagger - The drugs that gave them their powers are back on the street, in a more potent and powerful form. Can they save other runaways from ending up like they have? And what happens when THEY fall victim to an overdose of the new drug? Enhanced powers, but with a drawback - they can never separate from each other.

Inhumans - What happens when your royalty is stripped from you? Scientists develop the "Anti-Terrigen" Mist and decimate the Inhuman population with it. Black Bolt can speak. Medusa is just another redhead. Welcome to normalcy, Inhumans. Hope you survive the experience.

Superchino

I'd love to write The Shade (even though he's a James Robinson exclusive), Doctor Fate, or Constantine in the DCU. It would be cool to write any of these three with a touch of the magical realism of post-colonial Indian literature where you cannot fully trust the narrator/protagonist of the story to tell you the truth. In a Doctor Fate or Constantine book, it would also be fun to leave clues a la Mind MGMT throughout the book for the reader to figure out how the magic is executed without ever fully/explicitly detailing that part of the narrative. I'd really enjoy writing The Shade as the primary provocateur in all the discord in the Middle East and show that his agenda is to deconstruct and rebuild the world's religious and ideological antagonisms–that have deep roots in the area–to achieve a much more harmonious global community. I know it's hippy bullshit, but I'd like to write a quasi-bad guy making the world into a better place to live with a happy ending in store at the conclusion. I'm a little tired of the grim realities of war, poverty, hunger, etc that the world forces upon us every day and I'd enjoy the escapism of writing a getaway from it all.

In the Marvel universe, I'd like to write Black Panther. There is so much going on within the massive boundaries of the African continent, and he could be such a great mouthpiece for awareness in an uber-liberal political/social drama. Like Star Trek meets West Wing with a lively Afro-pop sensibility to the art and landscapes that show Africa as more than just jungle or grasslands where monkeys and lions live.

Superchino

@ChrisBeckett, I would read that book in a heartbeat!

CageNarleigh

luke52 said:

I'd also love to do a Ghostbusters/Deadman crossover. Could have some fun with that.

Ummm...HELL YES!

DoctorDoom

Death's Head, yes?

Steeven

I'd do Ted Kord Blue Beetle. Big action, big adventure, big tech, not too serious, but serious enough when it counts.

To me, Ted Kord is basically the anti Batman. He's super smart, he's rich, he's got all the tech, but he's bright and colorful and fun.

RickM

DC - Kamandi, or Adam Strange

Marvel - Fantastic Four