Return of ROM

EtriganBlood

In the free issue that marvel put out, Avengers: The UItron Inititave, the bad guys were asking about the spaceknight, now sword was there, so it's definatly extraterrestrial. There's an explosion, and ultron's in the place of this weird statue the baddies were calling the spaceknight. Sooooooooo....Is/Are the spaceknight(s) back? Or was this just a fan easter egg?

DoctorDoom

A Space Knight was in the Avengers .1 issue.

EDIT: Nevermind, the comic you described is a reprint of that .1 issue.

SolitaireRose

They've used the Spaceknights before, they just can't use ROM, so we won't see the character design from that comic.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaceknights

LibraryBoy

The Spaceknights, Galador, and I'm pretty sure even the Dire Wraiths are all Marvel property, sort of the same way Marvel can still use concepts like the Microverse, Captain Universe, Bug, and even Commander Rann and Marionette if they wanted to even though they no longer have the Micronauts license.

And that's a damn shame, because I would love to see what someone like Matt Fraction or Kieran Gillen or Jeff Parker or even Bendis would do with a story using Baron Karza as the villain!

Torchsong

Rann, Bug and Mari all showed up Incredible Hulks: Enigma Force a year or so back.

WetRats

I can't believe Marvel/Disney couldn't scoop up the rights to a 35-year-old failed toy from a company that only manufactures board games for a song if they wanted to.

raven

a spaceknight was in annihilators

JohnathanConstantine

@raven is right. Space Knights are connected to the end of Thanos Imperative and Annihilators, I think. It's not a spoiler or anything, more like that 20 seconds teaser at the end of a Marvel movie. It points to the next thing on the horizon

As for ROM, unless the copyright holder of the toy decides that ROM can be used again, then he will never appear again. I'd suggest either get the old issues because I don't think it will ever been collected in a trade. The Space Knights will most likey appear again because they were Marvel creations.

Greg

Marvel/Disney could probably get the rights pretty easily and maybe even for a bargain price. Parker Brothers is probably never going to anything with ROM ever again and may be talked into selling it to Marvel or at the least renew the license.

SolitaireRose

Marvel/Disney could probably get the rights pretty easily and maybe even for a bargain price. Parker Brothers is probably never going to anything with ROM ever again and may be talked into selling it to Marvel or at the least renew the license.

I don't know. Parker Brothers is a VERY big firm, and most of those style of companies hold onto their copyrights no matter what. Let's say they DO sell it to Marvel/Disney and Disney makes a big feature film out of it....whoever the executive at Parker Brothers is who sold it would not be a very good position to keep their job.

Greg

That's true but they shouldn't be sitting on a property and letting it rot either.

Hex

And that's a damn shame, because I would love to see what someone like Matt Fraction or Kieran Gillen or Jeff Parker or even Bendis would do with a story using Baron Karza as the villain!

I like that idea. Baron Karza still creeps me out. He ranks right up there as both crazy AND powerful in the same vein as Thanos (who, for some reason, is VERY popular right now).

Hex

As much as I look back on ROM with nostalgia, Marvel doesn't need him. Pretty much everything that was cool about the book was created, and is owned by Marvel. I say let another Spaceknight take the spotlight and move the mythology forward. Similar to what DnA are pushing with IKON in Annihilators.

JohnathanConstantine

That's true but they shouldn't be sitting on a property and letting it rot either.

But remember that it wasn't a very successful toy and they are looking at that part, not the comics part.

As much as I look back on ROM with nostalgia, Marvel doesn't need him. Pretty much everything that was cool about the book was created, and is owned by Marvel. I say let another Spaceknight take the spotlight and move the mythology forward. Similar to what DnA are pushing with IKON in Annihilators.

Yeah, there is so many Marvel properties they can go on with other stuff. But they should probably try to get together some form of trade collection for those who would like to collect it.

Greg

Yeah the toy was a flop and PB may have been and maybe still are ignorant to not look at the comics side of it. It is now many years later. Renew the license with Marvel, get a collected edition out there, maybe do some new stories, put a better toy line out there, maybe even a video game...try to make some money off the character instead of letting it sit. Marvel can still do generic spaceknight stories without ROM (which I'm fine with and would buy), but if/when they do that, people will be asking for ROM, I think its something that should at least be explored.