Back Issue Spotlight: Ultraverse

Post by **JohnMayo** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 10:03 am

Bob and I are thinking about possibly doing a Back Issue Spotlight on the Ultraverse in the not too distant future. If you have a favorite Ultraverse storyline that you'd like to discuss, let us know and we might have you on as a guest. All you need in a passion for comics and either Skype or a phone.

So, do anybody have a favorite Ultraverse storyline they want to discuss with me and Bob?

Fnord Serious · Post by **Fnord Serious** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 10:21 am

I was a fan of the inital rollout but quickly became overwhelmed by the sheer amount of product and dropped the books. I have since been assembling a collection of the Ultraverse books out of the quarter bins. I remember enjoying Prime, as I am a fan of Breyfogle's art. I have a bunch of the Ultraverse back issues and would be up for joining in on a discussion, but I don't have any favorite storylines that leap to mind.

I've been enjoying the podcast. You and Bob make a good team.

Post by **JohnMayo** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 10:27 am

See, that's the thing. I liked the Ultraverse overall but I can't really think of a single storyline that was really, really good and worth doing a discussion on. Maybe "Break-thru" but even then...

What I'm looking for is someone that can convince me that there is a specific Ultraverse storyline that is worth centering on episode around. While a lot of the Ultraverse was good, I'm looking for a great storyline and having a hard time thinking of one.

Lobo · Post by **Lobo** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 10:57 am

The obvious choice is Firearm by James Robinson (pre-Starman).

I even have the Firearm #0 VHS!

Steve Gerber's Sludge was very good (and grossly underrated) too.

I think I have most if not all of the Ultraverse titles, including the Ultraforce issues written by Warren Ellis.

I think I have Skype too.

BobBretall · Post by **BobBretall** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 12:04 pm

My favorite Ultravers title was "The Strangers" I got a kick out of their San Fran origin, and they had a guy named "Atom Bob"

I also really liked Prime, Mantra, & Hardcase. Later titles like Solitaire (I collected all 4 playing cards from issue #1) & Firearm (I have the video somewhere too) were other that I have good memories of.

This line quickly devolved into drek after Marvel bought them.

Post by **JohnMayo** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 12:07 pm

I wonder if I can put my hands on the Firearm #0 VHS. I'm sure I got it when it came out. I thought the idea of a live action lead in for a comic book was interesting but the execution was a bit disappointing in places.

I've never been a huge fan of the James Robinson Starman series. I thought it was fine but it never really hooked me the way is has a lot of other people. I may need to reread that series someday and give it another chance. But I've got way too much on my back issue "to read" list as it is to add that series to it now.

Sludge had Aaron Lopresti on the art for a while and he did a great job.

Which issue of Ultraforce did Warren Ellis do? It has been forever since I read those issues. Was that when George Perez was doing the art?

And while the titles were good, did any have sort of a defining story arc that really stands out?

Post by **JohnMayo** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 12:11 pm

JLAFan wrote: This line quickly devolved into drek after Marvel bought them.

What? You didn't like Spider-Prime?

The way that Marvel completely dismantled the line after buying it was amazing. I understand that the way the Ultraverse contracts were set up gave certain rights or royalties to the creators and that is why we haven't seen those characters since. It simply doesn't make financial or business sense for Marvel to revive them.

BobBretall · Post by **BobBretall** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 12:15 pm

Really good Lying in the gutters article about creator's rights re: Marvel's buyout of the Ultraverse can be seen here:
http://www.comicbookresources.com/colum ... ticle=2177

According to this article, there are very minimal royalties owed the creators when Ultraverse characters are used. This would not make them unprofitable, but the allegation is that Marvel has more of a philosophical difficulty with paying a creator anything under these terms (even though they signed up for them in the buyout).

Post by **JohnMayo** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 12:49 pm

I could be that even that small amount they'd have to pay the creators could make a title unprofitable these days. Those contracts were orginally drawn up at the high of the Image boom period. Sales these days are a fraction of what they were back then.

I'm not sure how the Ultraverse titles sold back then but these days I think sales of 20,000 to 30,000 might be possible, if somewhat optimistic.

Based on the terms outlined in that article, I have to wonder how the Break-thru title did since they would have had to pay out to each creator that had characters in it.

BobBretall · Post by **BobBretall** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 1:09 pm

I think the specific details of the royalty are never going to be public. I think what we can take from this is that we are not likely to see the Ultraverse characters coming out from Marvel....

BobBretall · Post by **BobBretall** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 1:13 pm

Back to the topic @ hand: What story to focus on for the Ultraverse

I agree that no specific storyline really stands out. There was the "Break-Thru" 2 issue event published in Dec '93 & Jan '94, and then the "Godwheel" crossover (that had Thor in it) in Jan-Feb of '95, but by this time, the Ultraverse had already started it's decline.

What I think may be interesting is to review a whole bunch of #1 issues that came out in the early days. We could examine:
* Story & art quality
* How do they hold up on introducing a new character?
* Did they make you want to read the next issue?
* Did they make you interested in the universe this new character is a part of?

I'll do some research on titles & debut dates and put them in a follow-up post.

BobBretall · Post by **BobBretall** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 1:26 pm

Debut Month - June '93
Hardcase #1 (26 issues)
Prime #1 (26 issues)
Strangers #1 (24 issues)

2nd Month - July '93
Mantra #1 (24 issues)
Freex #1 (18 issues)

3rd Month - Aug '93
Exiles #1 (4 issues)
Prototype #1 (19 issues)

Good point for 1st choice of a cut-off for the review. 6 core series have debuted by this point. Pretty much all these books can be had for $1 or so.

4th Month - Sep '93
Firearm #1 (19 issues)
The Solution #1 (18 issues)

5th Month - Oct '93
Night Man #1 (23 issues)
Sludge #1 (12 issues)

Month 5 is probably a good 2nd choice point for a cut-off on the review activity. The last series with longevity (Night Man) debuted here.

Nov '93 Solitaire #1 (12 issues)
Jan '94 Rune #1 (12 issues)
Jan '94 Wrath #1 (9 issues)
May '94 Warstrike #1 (7 issues)
Aug '94 Ultraforce #1 (11 issues)

Post by **JohnMayo** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 2:22 pm

The "sampler" approach makes sense. That way we can give an overview of the entire Ultraverse.

Fnord Serious · Post by **Fnord Serious** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 2:26 pm

johnmayo wrote:The "sampler" approach makes sense. That way we can give an overview of the entire Ultraverse.

I agree. Not only would it make a good discussion, it would give the listener a good idea of which of the Ultraverse books would appeal to them the most, if they care to go bin diving.

adampasz · Post by **adampasz** » Thu Nov 08, 2007 3:57 pm

I stopped buying comics in the mid-90s, so I don't know a thing about the Ultraverse. I guess for me, and Ultraverse 101 would be the most useful. I'm particularly interested in the events around Marvel's acquisition of Malibu.