I Traded in 50 Blackest Night Comics and All I Got Was Deadpool in a T-shirt

As we mentioned last week, Marvel has informed retailers that they can get a free variant-cover copy of Siege #3 in exchange for fifty stripped copies of various unsold DC books that happen to be Blackest Night tie-ins. Reactions to this announcement have run the gamut from delighted retailers shredding books to disgusted conspiracy theorists tired of the perceived brinksmanship. Our own thread on the subject was certainly a hotbed of controversy, puzzlement, and apathy that people chose to express when they could have said nothing.

Throughout the week's debate, however, none of us actually knew what this variant cover was supposed to be.

Specifically, it turns out, it is supposed to be this:




Do any of you readers recognize this character? Could you write in and let me know who this is? I can't say I've ever seen him before.

As a marketing initiative or goodwill gesture to retailers, the plan itself appeals to the devil on my shoulder for its cheekiness while seeming a bit too combative. Leaving all that aside, and just taking the above for what it is, namely a cover for Siege #3? There is no part of that image that does not make me tired. But then, the very fact that the market for a Deadpool Siege variant cover exists proves conclusively that I don't know anything about this business anyway.

What do you think? Is it a good cover? Would you deface fifty copies of R.E.B.E.L.S. for it? Would it have killed them to use a character that's actually in the story the book contains? Does even asking that question make me sound 75 years old? What say you?

Comments

  1. So not only are they providing a completely unrelated cover in exchange for tearing up their competition’s merchandise, they’re offering a completely unrelated sexist, vaguely racist cover!  Lovely.

  2. Stoke those flames of dissent Jimski!

  3. Oh wow. This cover is hot. I’m going to bring my Blackest Nights to trade for this cover. =)

  4. I think its hot in its rediculousness.

  5. yeah it’s bad.  I still stand by the hilarity of Marvel’s offer though.

    but while we’re here, does anyone know why Marvel’s February (and one or two in March such as the above) releases are littered with Deadpool variants? 

  6. @ABirdseysView

    I’m pretty sure it’s because, on a Venn diagram of "people who think Deadpool needs to have three titles a month" and "people who buy every variant cover" has a pretty big middle section.

  7. It looks like this cover began its life as a swipe of an Ali G image.

    Maybe it’s an homage. Maybe that image is famous to people who aren’t me.

     

  8. @Jimski I get the Ali G thing, but I notice a lack of fawning women in their underwear surrounding Sasha Baron Cohen.

  9. For some it could have been anything on that cover.  The fact that its the rare retailer only blah, blah, blah cover is what makes it.  It could’ve been Sleepwalker on that cover and I doubt reactions would’ve been much different.

    Point being, the image used for the cover shouldn’t have changed the mind of anyone who had an opinion on this promotion.

  10. no, I’m actually curious.  I know last May there was a reason for the large amount of Wolverine-related variants and this April will see a large amount of Iron Man-related variants.  I was simply wondering if there was a solid reason for the Deadpool variants, if anyone actually knows.

    and it’s J. Scott Campbell, would we expect anything but fawning women in their underwear ?

  11. Blarf.  Who would want that on the cover of a Siege comic?

  12. so marvel is like that conpany out of the devil’s own, right?

    that’s to say, they are the devil

  13. @DarthDuck I’ve thought it was a juvenile move on Marvel’s part from the start, but this cover adds insult to injury.  I’d find it offensive if it was just a normal variant without the cover-stripping promotion, and I’d find the cover-stripping promotion juvenile even if the variant was the most amazing art I’d ever seen.  The combination raises the poor taste of the individual components exponentially.

  14. Marvel is trying to poke a little fun, maybe learn a few things about the market. that is all.  people at DC are the ones that have said they have a legitimate issue with some of the top brass at Marvel.

  15. I’d rather buy 50 copies of REBELS.

  16. Isn’t that the actual "westside" gangsign?I mean I know it’s kinda been desensitized but isn’t that still a problem?

     

    Also, has J. Scott Campbell ever been around an actual woman? His art just disgusts me. 

  17. See, this variant cover is even stupider than I imagined it could be and I was pretty sure it was going to end up being Deadpool with a word balloon. Oh well…. this whole situation dropped from sleazy but clever business move to juvenile fratboy pranks. "Yo, look dawg, it’s an Ali G reference! It’s so kewl!"

  18. Amazing.  I don’t see how this is anything other than embarrassing for Marvel.  It will need to make them some serious money to offset the implicit cost it.

  19. While I don’t really agree with what Marvel is doing, that’s a funny little cover.

  20. This cover is well drawn. To bad it’s for a stupid idea that has nothing to do with siege.

  21. I’m as sick of Deadpool as the last guy (erhm, so long as the next guy isn’t one of the fifty-thousand readers he has for each of his 20 monthly books), but the cover made me smirk. Then again, I’m more juvenile then most. I think the image was fitting and keeping in the general irreverence Marvel has taken towards their Distinguished Competitor. Their strategy with releasing such a cover was probably trying to further undercut the macabre and austere current Blackest Night has been pull new readers in with. Not the smartest move marketing ever made, but I don’t anticipate it hurting them in the long run either.

  22. and the two hotties are in black! they’re black lanterns! it’s symbolism people! Marvel should be ashamed of themselves!

  23. I’m with @throughthebrush; it’s the convergence of the promotion with the image they chose that puts in focus what exactly the mentality was that was involved with this.  As somebody said when we were talking about the SWORD cancellation (maybe it was part of Jimski’s article) — if Marvel would put as much energy into promoting actual comics that they do come up with frat-boy ‘suck it’ publicity stunts — well, maybe we’d be having different conversations.

  24. I love J. Scott Campbell.

  25. Lighten up. If you can’t have fun with something like this, well, it’s just not for you. I don’t like Deadpool, but I get the joke. Yes, it’s an homage to Ali G; yes, it adds the women, but "women fawning over a horribly disfigured, ridiculous man" is one of the cornerstones of Deadpool humor. Jumping right to "racist" and "sexist" is, for lack of a less combative word, laughable. 

  26. That is a totally, totally goofy cover concept hahaha 🙂

  27. Racist may be strong, but it plays off stereotypical images of rappers, which are racially charged (and without the satirical edge that Ali G gives to those images); and if scantily clad women being drawn into an image for no discernible reason doesn’t fit your definition of sexist, I can’t argue with that, but it does fit mine.  

    My view is that, in order to play something that’s ‘ridiculous’ and ‘over the top’ as a joke, you can’t routinely use those same types of images unironically to sell your product, which is something that comics companies do.   

  28. both SWORD and Doctor Voodoo had a fair amount of publicity.

  29. I’ve seen far more sexist comic book covers than this. Gotham City Sirens anyone?

  30. Do an image search for Ali G and you will see images almost exactly like that with fawning women also. It’s a satirical cover, it’s comparing Deadpool to superheroes as Ali G to actual Rappers by making Deadpool Ali G.  

    It’s not meant to be taken seriously and I think it intentionally saying what people are accusing it of. It’s satire.

    As for who would want it. It’ll be the most desired issue, in the short term 1-5 years for collectors and completists everywhere. You’ll see the price of this issue end up being twice as much as just about anything else put out by DC or Marvel (I exclude Image due to 1st Edition Chew, not sure how that will play over time.)

    It’s not for everyone, it’s aimed at a demographic and it will make that demographic very happy. The great bonus for Marvel is… everyone will talk about it. Good on them too.

    Me I won’t even read Siege, not my thing, I don’t have the coin to start getting more books. 

  31. @birdseyeview I had no idea the Doctor Voodoo ongoing (Whoops, I mean retroactively billed Mini Series) existed until a friend made an offhand mention of it and I read a fair amount of well known Marvel books.

  32. You’re right.  If this fails to be the most sexist comic book cover in history, there’s no point in talking about it.

    I apologize for mentioning it. 

  33. @drakedangerz When DC starts offering Gotham City Sirens covers as an incentive to rip up the competition’s product, let me know.

    And this is, for the record, coming from someone who primarily buys Marvel books each week, and will continue to do so because the creators deserve my money, even if the top brass does not.

  34. @crucio – What exactly is this Satirizing? An homage to something that is satyrical doesn’t make this satire, at least not by my standards. Satire actually has to make a statement. This is just… Deadpool… in a track suit. 

  35. @throughthebrush-I stated in my previous post that I don’t agree with Marvel doing it in the first place. However, I am not letting my disappointment in their decision influence what I think of this cover, which is what everyone else seems to be doing.

  36. @drakedangerz – I’m kind of in the middle of this whole controversy. I don’t think it’s a terrible business move, and it comes off as a slap in the face to DC… but that’s not a big deal. These companies take shots at each other all the time. This cover is just terrible. J Scott Campbell shouldn’t be allowed a comic cover that represents a company. If people are going to complain about Greg Land, but not Campbell, that blows my mind. The cover is an outdated reference with little to no cultural relevance at this point. Poor decision. 

  37. The cover isn’t that bad. I see worse every week. What it needs is a word balloon from Deadpool saying "Suck it down, DC!"

  38. @Anson17-Homage and swipe covers have featured old movies, TV, etc. for years and yet no one complains about how they are no longer culturally relevant. 

  39. I was just saying I don’t think this is satire. At all. I’m fine with homage and whatever, but don’t get how Ali G has anything to do with Siege… unless he’s one of the journalists in embedded. Then I’m done with it.

     @throughthebrush – I keep seeing the "ripping up of the product" listed as a problem. This is how venders return unwanted merchandise. You strip the cover. Used to do it at work all the time. They are also accepting whole issues. Don’t know why people see that as an extra affront to DC. 

  40. @Anson – I believe it’s commenting on Deadpool’s role in Marveldom of the fool trying to be hero. In the same way Ali G is the fool playing at being a Rapper.

    It’s making it in a very obvious way, he as a character is not to be respected or cast as the hero. Some real people seem to hero worship Deadpool, he’s a fool though and a constant loser. You can enjoy him and his stories, you can even love him as a character but respecting him is respecting something that is supposed to be folly.

    I think the picture is saying something and intentionally. It is neither Racist or Sexist. It’s commentary, maybe even commentary on fans or the industry, I think some might read that into it also. 

    Sadly I think most will take it at face value as being funny or stupid and maybe I’m wrong and one of those, funny or stupid was the only intention. I just like seeing more in art and maybe I’m reading into, but I see intent.

  41. This is the perfect character/cover for this publicity-stunt (that’s working, everyone’s talking about it) because Deadpool fans will like it/want it & Deadpool haters will hate it/talk about it.

  42. @crucio – I still don’t get what this is saying. It’s just describing Deadpool’s character? How’s that satire? Say whatever you will about the cover, I just don’t think it makes any kind of statement beyond "This is Deadpool. He has scantily clad, poorly drawn women around him. This is his track suit."

    Screw it. I’m dropping it. There’s no way to persuade Deadpool fans. I’ve tried far too many times. 

  43. @Anson17 I’m well aware of the book-stripping practice; my mother worked part time for a book distributor for most of my childhood.  But the practice usually involves sending the product back to its publisher.  This request involves rendering a product unsaleable that doesn’t belong to Marvel in the first place, and that’s problematic.

    @WadeWilson I adored all 50 issues of Cable/Deadpool.   People can be Deadpool fans and expect Marvel to show a modicum of dignity at the same time.

  44. @throughthebrush – 

    You do know it is standard retail procedure to tear covers off of books, magazines, newpapers, etc when you return them, and just send the covers in while you recycle the remaining book (it saves the retailers on shipping and it is against the law to sell a book, magazine etc without the cover).  They are just asking the retailers to "return" the books, not destroy merchandise.  When you return a book, all you return is the cover.

    Knowing that, it makes sense as a promotion,  a lot of these retailers got stuck with a ton of books they could not sell, and Marvel is just saying return them to us.  They are not saying destroy some DC merchandise and we will reward you.

  45. @robkristie: She said she knew as much in the comment right above yours.

  46. as far as the promotion………Good on Marvel!!! They are getting their asses handed to them by DC’s Blackest Night event. They are DC’s competitor so why wouldn’t they attempt something like this?!?! And all the people that are like "Oh Marvel low blow, low blow, bad taste!!" THEY DON’T CARE ABOUT YOU!!!! They care about making MONEY, or in this case, taking some away from DC. Anywho, just this mans opinion.

  47. The people who are saying "low blow, bad taste" are also part of their potential customer base.  I guarantee you no one else cares.

  48. I think the fact that it’s so polarizing makes it in a way interesting. I mean, look what it did…It has people talking about it, so much that there will surely be some collectors that will pay whatever the retailer asks merely because of the exchange that was made. Has this happened before?

  49. @Joshua I’m a shareholder in Disney, they better care if I’m disappointed.

  50. @Prax if you’re a shareholder then you should be THRILLED they are doing this, this is only generating more buzz for your company.

  51. Wow. That makes this whole situation with Marvel makes them look even more like idiots.

    I mean if it was Deadpool fighting…..Hawkeye or Ms. Marvel….I could understand. Cause it relates somewhat to Seige. But this?….THIS is the cover that makes LCS owners trade away DC comics for this pathetic variant? THIS was the brilliant idea by Joey Q and the other big wigs at Marvel?

    Seriously, people on this site know people from Marvel. What the hell are they thinking of man!?

  52. Jim McCann and Agent M know you guys. I want to know if they felt all of this crap was worth it.

  53. @Joshua – Pissing off your fanbase is never a good idea.

  54. That is one hell of an idea from the House of Ideas….

  55. MadMarvelGirl said something I completely agree 100% with.

    Marvel will put the time and effort to piss the fanbase off, by offering this idiotic offer and then show what the prize is. But they can’t take more time to advertise their smaller books and let them grow with the fans? Why? Why does this plan work for Marvel? Cause they still outside more then DC and it pisses me off to no end.

    Marvel has had very little to show in good news or anything good in their comics lately…..but yet they still outsell DC books!! Gah!!!

    Sorry….again madmarvelgirl had it right.

  56. 1. Amusing image. Not a good idea for a Seige cover, but an amusing image nonetheless. Sexist? Arguably. Racist? Not in the least.

    2. If this variant makes retailers money, it was a good idea.

    3. I don’t think Marvel pisses of its fanbase. Marvel may piss off some customers, but if this sort of thing makes one say, "I’m done with Marvel," I sincerely doubt such a person qualifies as a fan. 

     

  57. Eh? You kids have fun with your Deadpool varient, im going back to sipping tea and reading Daytripper, cheerio.

  58. @anson: I’m not a fan of Deadpool, he’s up their with Lobo in my books, something that was supposed to be a joke that just went on way to long. I’m not defending Deadpool, I’m defending the artwork. 

  59. @throughthebrushI’m just saying most DP fans wouldn’t take this type of publicity-stunt seriously (because they probably don’t take comics too seriously) & DP haters would be more likely to be "offended" & get angry/hurt & talk about it, which is giving Marvel free publicity. Either way — Marvel wins.

    Obviously, every single person is a special unique magical snowflake — I’m speaking in general.

     

  60. I can’t even begin to fathom why this is generating any passion.  No retailer is being forced to do anything with merchandise that they, not DC or Marvel, bought and currenty own.  Marvel is just choosing to create publicity by offering merchants a way to unload merchandise that they already own that may be "dead," and in the process obtain new merchandise that might sell.  And any retailer who’s happy with his/her current inventory doesn’t have to do anything. And if a consumer thinks it’s an ugly or offensive cover, or over priced, or whatever, then said consumer can simply choose to not buy it.  I’ve read through the whole thread and simply can’t understand what there is to get even the least bit fired-up over.  And as for sexist or racist content, I don’t see anything in the image above that I don’t see weekly on some product or products already on display at my local comic shop.  What am I missing?

  61. It’s like Marvel thinks it’s being funny, but it’s just sad. You know what might actually have been funny? If there were copies of ripped off Blackest Night tie-in covers strewn at Deadpool’s feet. Just make it a full-on dick move and embrace it.

  62. Any one else notice all the rings he’swearing. That a shot or am I reading too much into it?

  63. DC’s counter offer is if you hand in 5 variant copies of The Siege, Geoff Johns comes to your house and reads you Blackest Night after tucking you in bed and feeds you milk and cookies.

  64. @epog thats what I thought, seems quite blatant to me

  65. The offer itself is disgusting, and then this?

    How low can you go, Marvel? They’re not even serious!

    One of the iFanboys(i’m really not sure who[i’m sorry] but I think it’s Conor) said on their POTW podcast ep. 200 that he wants to get rid of insanely expensive variant covers. Well, look where we are now? It’s not just money. It’s not competition anymore, It’s humiliation. 

    If you cannot beat/pirate the talent that Geoff Johns is, (to quote Ron) DEAL WITH IT! 

  66. @epog and wulfstone: sigh, the ring are irrelevant.

    it’s just what the kids call "bing" if the kids are a pack of morons that is

  67. and i just realised rob liefeld must be turning in his grave over his character being used as such a balant marketing gimick!!!

    of course, the grave is a metaphor representing his career

  68. typically bad stuff.

    considering the classless move by Marvel to get this cover in to the shops (and out on to ‘da streetz?) its a very apt image.

    you know what’s obviously missing from the comics game? progressive comedic talent, or even comedic talent full stop.

    what gives!?!

  69. it’d be a great cover if they just got rid of Deadpool

  70. it seems some people are thinking that this cover was designed specifically for this trade-in deal.  several Marvel books will have Deadpool variants in the coming weeks.  they range from being direct spoofs of the exact issue cover to being random Deadpool images.  this was probably planned months ago.  for whatever reason, probably because it’s a name like J. Scott Campbell, this is the one that was assigned to Siege.

    then they came up with the Blackest Night offer, probably a matter of weeks ago.  Siege, and this random variant, was chosen because Marvel assumes it will be their top seller anyway.

    and anyone talking about DC beating out Marvel in sales, Marvel still has held a greater percentage in market share despite DC having more top 10 books than usual.  yes I’m going by the Diamond information available on the internet, but that’s all any of us have to go by. 

  71. oh and @PraxJarvin- I heard about Doctor Voodoo from reading/listening to Rick Remender talk about it on Newsarama, CBR, iFanboy, Word Balloon, and Marvel’s own podcast, as well as ads in other Marvel books, so I don’t know what to tell you.

  72. Instead of doing this, Marvel should be giving out real X-man bling with orders above 1000 copies of sword and Doctor Voodoo. 

     

  73. @TheNextChampion   Thanks for quoting my quote, but I’m pretty sure I was quoting Jimski :).

    @everyone — Look, saying, "There are covers that display this level of objectification of women every week," is NOT actually a defense against this cover being sexist.  It’s evidence of the larger comics world containing a lot of sexism.  And that is, certainly, a larger and different issue than what we’re talking about with the variant covers.  However, there are plenty of products out of all the major comics companies that do not display those attitudes, and those are the ones that I, personally, like to see highlighted.  The reason that the sexism of this is relevant to the discussion of this promotion is that it shows something about the mindset that was involved in this promotion.  If Marvel had run the exact same thing, and what they had offered was some kind of unique art that actually had something to do with SIEGE, I might feel differently about it.  But essentially what this is saying is that the beneficiaries of the promotion (or depending on how you see the advisability of spending $75 for this kind of cover, the suckers being taken advantage of by this promotion) should be people who don’t give a damn what is inside their comic books as well as long as there are half-naked ladies on the cover.  Give me a break. 

  74. (and, addendum, the ACTUAL beneficiaries of the promotion may be those  retailers who see nothing wrong with playing into those attitudes among their customers).  

  75. I am the only person on the internet that had no interest in this whole promotion, until the artist was revealed as Campbell. Now I want it bad, and I have no problem paying a hefty fee for it. Anyway, I’m glad that 99.99% of the population isn’t interested in this. It should make me tracking one down a lot easier.

  76. well with Moonstone, various Asgardian ladies, Ms. Marvel, Victoria Hand, Jessica Drew, and several others, the possibilities of half-naked ladies being somewhere in the pages of Siege is pretty good, I’d say

  77. When Chew #7 came out several weeks ago, people who are calling this image tasteless or suggesting that it’s exploitative in this thread, were making glib and humorous comments about "boobies" in that thread.  And while people observed that the cover to Chew was pandering, no one blasted it.  The emotion here feels misplaced.  And if the subject of the exploitation of women or minorities in popular culture deserves a thread, then it probably deserves its own thread – unless people are suggesting that this marketing gimmick is meant to be inherently sexually or racially exploitative.  And comics are not the worst offender in the pop culture landscape, by far.

     

    From a business perspective, high-end variant cover sales are sagging so it may not make sense for most retailers to "buy" into this offer.  And from a speculator perspective it seems unlikely that buying this at a high sticker price will pay dividends.  So for most, it’s a question as to whether this cover has much intrinsic art value, which is an individual matter of taste.  I’ll vote "no" with my money, assuming my local retailer even gets a copy.  I got to see it on-line; if I care for the image I can copy it to my hard drive for practically nothing, and that’s about the value I place on this image as art.  But if it floats your boat, I say enjoy (I’m looking at YOU Noto!).  I doubt that Campbell’s depiction of these women (or of Deadpool) is going to inspire anyone to assault an actual woman, so I see it as an innocuous reflection of a pre-existing social perspective.

  78. I love how Marvel has already blown away Deadpool’s over-exposure saturation point before his movie even starts filming. 

  79. Heh. I am amused by this cover.

    I certainly understand why people are getting so upset about this, but I’ma have to agree with @rwpos in saying that it generates absolutely no ire from me. Sure, maybe it’s a cheap shot against DC, but the ring promotion was a cheap shot against consumers. As for the cover being offensive… there are certainly grave problems, and not just gender related ones, plaguing our favorite medium in terms of the representation of various groups of human beings, but I find it a bit misguided and hilarious that THIS specific cover is being used and an example of it.

    Anyone who likes/appreciates this cover is not doing so for the ladies, in my opinion. They are there as part of the joke, which takes humor from the inanity of popular rap culture at large and the fact that Deadpool is a moron.

    Let us laugh together.

  80. If it was Steve Rogers instead of Deadpool, I would find that image to be one of the funniest covers ever.  But since it is Deadpool, I just don’t care much more than a passing smirk of recognition.

  81. "Supposed to be this"  Meanng this cover is not official??

    Marvel is personifying themselves as the pimp of comics. Looks like they’re sending a message to DC… well, to me anyway. haha

  82. The cover is retarded and has nothing to do with Siege. I like variant covers by good artists and that actually have something to do with the book in question. The move by Marvel is idiotic at best. If I was a retailer… I would have told Marvel to shove it.

  83. More likely if you were a retailer you’d get it anyway because there has got to be at least ONE person coming into our store each week that either loves Deadpool that much or thinks it’ll be worth more than what you’re selling it for and want to buy it.  I actually like Campbell but think this cover is ridiculous but I get that its all part of a large joke essentially.  Is this site full of people whose relatives worked on R.E.B.E.L.S. and Doom Patrol?  I don’t understand how this is having such an effect on everyone.  I have no new feelings on Marvel or DC before, during or after this ‘promotion’.

  84. @Mister J

    Have you ever seen this?  I think it’s appropriate for this thread.  Things Captain America would do versus things Deadpool would do:  http://i667.photobucket.com/albums/vv36/throughthebrush/bfdpb11nastynat3iw.jpg

    Is this something "Deadpool" would do, were he a real human being?  Certainly.  But by releasing this cover, instead of a (relevant!) cover of Steve Rogers being, you know, a superhero, Marvel’s making a pretty square statement about which character they’d rather emulate.

  85. @ABirdsEyeView   All of those women are characters with names who actually appear in the comic.  Believe me, I’ve had some things to say about the way those characters have been drawn (particularly in Dark Avengers) but there’s still a reason for them to be there, unlike the Deadpool chippies.

     

    Okay, for real, I’ve said my piece and if you want to read what I have to say, you can read what I’ve already said.  We have different perspectives on this and I think they’re worth discussing but I’m not gonna drag my role out in this anymore.   

  86. I understand that sexism is prevalent in comics, and that it’s deep rooted in its history. However, I also understand that they are many creators out there who go out of there way to de-objectify women in comics (Greg Rucka, Gail Simone, Amanda Connor, etc…). What I’m trying to get at is that sexism in comics isn’t going untreated, and there seems to be a better balance nowadays. So to get all up in arms about this seems alittle futile and tiring.

  87. And I can’t help thinking it’s interesting that bringing up a subject that is relevant to the topic at hand, and developing in detail why I think it’s relevant, should be referred to as being ‘up in arms.’  I raised it the way I would raise anything else I felt was relevant.  And now I’m really done.

  88. The promotion: juvenile and mostly worthless to the customer & retailer. The cover: tacky and sexist with racists undertones, especially for those not familiar with Ali G, plus way too expensive.

    How this helps retailers in the bad economy: It doesn’t. (Unlike, arguably, the rings boosted tie-in sales.)

    How it helps the customer in the bad economy: It doesn’t.

    Disclaimer: I’m a feminist with no humor and throwing up a lampshade so you don’t have to.

  89. @ComicBookChris Yes, as I said earlier, there are many, many creators who are doing great things in comics, and they’re the reason I still plan to give Marvel my money.

    However, none of those people were given this high-publicity, high-priced stunt cover to draw.  Which means that things will never change in the industry as long as the higher-ups would rather pander to that crowd than put the same effort into promoting the creators who are doing progressive things.  And tiring as it may be, I’m happy to keep fighting, and calling things like this out, until that changes.

  90. I can’t fathom the outrage over the promotion.  Marvel’s taking products that are taking up space off of ratailers’ hands and giving them something they can charge good money for.  Assuming that they have 50 copies of Booster/R.E.B.E.L.S./Doom Patrol (All B-titles at best, and that’s not a shot at quality but the major reason retailers would have bought a ton of them is the rings, not the books) they’ll probably go into $1-$.50 bins.  You’d have to think a cover this rare will appeal to variant fans/Deadpool fans enough to spend at least $51 dollars on the book which means the store is making a profit on the deal.

    I’m taking this idea from another podcast, but once the cover’s off just donate the books to a children’s hospital or a charity of some sort.  It’s good PR for the store and they can make more money off a single variant which will take up far less space than 50 issues of books that may or may not sell.

     As for the actual cover…meh?  It was announced that it would be a Deadpool cover so I’m not sure what anyone was expecting.  If people want to get offended by Deadpool being a rapper, fine, but there are so many more important things to be outraged by that I can’t really muster much.  It’s not really funny, but if it makes a LCS money then whatever.

  91. @edward I know what "bling" is and it is very relevant. It’s like DC doing an BN variant

    with Ambush Bug holding a hammer

  92. Yeah, I completely agree with Notsoevilsteve. He just beat me to posting. I don’t see this as being bad for retailers. Clearing shelf space and making money in the process is a good thing. It’s not like DC cares, they’ve already got their money. And I personally don’t think it’s a low blow by Marvel because hey, they are in competition with DC. They are the big 2. Occasionally poking fun at each other is funny for consumers and just something that is bound to happen.

    The cover… Yeah, I think it’s vaguely sexist, I guess, since it’s an homage to something else that is sexist. Not something that I’d pay $50 for, but somebody will, and that will probably help that retailer.

  93. DC should just send in a bunch of their own comics in second print and pick up a shit ton of those books to sell 🙂

  94. what’s funny is we wouldn’t all be talking about this if Marvel hadn’t made the offer to retailers.  but if the offer hadn’t been made, it would still exist, sexist, racist, juvenile, or not.

  95. That cover is funny. Clearly, some people just don’t appreciate humor. I hate living in a PC world, where people can’t take a joke. Anyone who would call that cover sexist or racist probably has some personal problems that they need to work through.

  96. Anyone who would pay $100 for this would’ve probably just spent the money on crack anyway.

  97. @wulfstone: dude, it’s a homage of an ali g image. ali g wore rings in that image. and it’s like ABirdsEyView said it was just a random image assigned as the varient

    totally irrevelant

  98. @ohcaroline : "if scantily clad women being drawn into an image for no discernible reason doesn’t fit your definition of sexist, I can’t argue with that, but it does fit mine"

    that’s all I see any time I see a woman in a superhero comic. don’t see how this is any different. 

  99. Personally, I think it’s a terrible cover. I may not be a fan of Deadpool, but I can appreciate good covers. That’s not one of them.

     

    If retailers are meant to be charging customers in excess of $100 for this "ultra-rare" cover, then surely Marvel could have gone to the effort of making it a mind-blowingly awesome cover.

  100. Ali G was satirizing the sexism inherent in hip hop culture, and this is just a reference to that. It’s totally irrelevant to The Siege #3, but it ain’t sexist.

  101. @wondermanfan. Yeah, we all have personal problems we need to figure out because we don’t like how women are depicted in comics.

     I agree with Josh in saying this might not be "sexist" but that doesn’t mean I have to like it’s depiction of women… or it’s use of deadpool (or D Pooly if you read his beanie) 

  102. @deadspace. Maybe I just read your comment wrong, but are you saying that anytime a female character shows up in a superhero comment, they are there for "no discernable reason"?

  103. @Josh Ali G does his satire in context.  A still image outside of that context — and in a medium where scantily-clad women are often depicted in the same poses completely unironically — is problematic.

    http://www.comicbookmovie.com/images/news/iron-man/Iron%20Man%20Viva%20Las%20Vegas%201.jpg

  104. So does that mean the cover to Power Girl is sexist this week?

    Cause it shows a half naked woman with HUGE breasts in full view.

    Sorry I just find it funny people think this is sexist. I mean if you feel like that then go for it, but to say this is sexist considering a lot of comics from the 1940’s to now have have naked women on the cover….that means the entire industry has been sexist since day one.

  105. @Anson17 – the "no discernable reason" is referring to them being "scantily clad". you see a woman in a comic and chances are it’s all tits n ass.

  106. @TheNextChampion The Power Girl cover?  You mean the one where the headlining star of the book, drawn by a female artist, is punching someone while wearing her superhero costume?  Yes, that’s totally comparable to two nameless women in their underwear clinging to Deadpool.

    Yes, the industry has been sexist since day one.  Yes, it’s getting better.  But it’s also still — as deadspace so eloquently put it — frequently "tits and ass," and when that happens, the only recourse is to bring people’s attention to it, in the hopes that it won’t happen in the future.  The problems being widespread is MORE reason to be upset about this "reward" cover, not less.

  107. "…that means the entire industry has been sexist since day one."

    YES.

    Wade: This is a great way to boost my sales!
    ImaginaryCable: By being sexist and racist?
    Wade: Yes! It works for Hollywood! You should turn everyone blue again!
    ImaginaryCable: It’s offensive to–
    Wade: Who? Women? Ffpt. Everyone knows women don’t read comics and are always looking for something to complain about!
    ImaginaryCable: What about some of your fanfic writers?
    Wade: If they were REAL fans, they would ALWAYS drape scantily clad women over me! I’m the Ali G of comics! Weren’t they complaining about not having more women in comics? Well, now here are TWO more.
    ImaginaryCable: I don’t think that’s what they meant.
    Wade: Damned if you do, damned if you don’t. It’s so hard being me. My own fans don’t get my sense of humour irony satire smell.
    ImaginaryCable: Smell?
    Wade: I have very delicate nose. Also, 1) my cover isn’t any worse than Wolverine’s! Why aren’t you bothering him?! And 2) I didn’t MEAN to be sexist or racist, so there!
    ImaginaryCable: Yes, this is a great start to Marvel’s Year of Women.
    Wade: Oh, don’t worry about that. It doesn’t start until April. Plenty more time for Marvel to screw up!

  108. @throughthebrush: Oh okay that makes more sense:

    So when it’s a woman with a name, drawn by a woman, and her breasts are bigger then her head, half naked on the cover. It’s okay!

    But two unknown women, with a man drawing them, half naked on the cover. It’s bad!

    I totally see why it’s okay now!

    ….Or not.

  109. @edward so they just happened to choose an image of a guy with lots of RINGS on his fingers

    you believe that then I happen to  know a guy selling a bridge

  110. Jimski, why on Earth would this bother you? Are you being forced to buy this cover for $100? Does the fact that other people (myself included) like Deadpool really speak ill of the industry? For chrissakes I love Deadpool AND R.E.B.E.L.S. and 20th Century Boys and The Unwritten and Echo and Box Office Poison. This is the second time in as many weeks you’ve overgeneralized and sought to demean other comic fans to make yourself seem somehow superior. REALLY bad form.

    And FWIW, I’ve never bought a variant cover that wasn’t a 50/50 variant where it was the same price and I just got a choice. And I’m buying this variant. Just because so many people seem to give a shit about not liking it. Makes no sense.

     

     

  111. @TheNextChampion If you can’t tell the difference between a female superheroine in a position of power and an implicit prostitute clinging to her pimp, I’m really not sure what more I can say.

  112. @WulfStone: yup, that’s exactly what happened

  113. Group hug!!

  114. Dear Marvel,

    You make me sick.

     mansuper

  115. @wulfstone- because of how far in advance these things need to be planned, it is safe to assume that this was going to be the Deadpool variant cover to Siege #3 WAY before the offer for the Blackest Night tie-ins was made.

  116. "Idealized" male and female forms in comics.

    If men had a tendency to wear less clothing than they do in real life, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.

  117. That’s "ideal" Women’s bodies don’t curve in like that.

  118. @handyhunter  I love you.

    @throughthebrush  Context is for the weak! 

  119. I mean, I wouldn’t want this, but if someone else does, and they like it. That’s good for them.

  120. Also, @deadspace — I was referring to the very existence of the characters being there for no reason; you’re right that there is often (though by no means always) a phenomenon of women being scantily clad for no reason.  

  121. I didn’t realize this thread blew up so quickly. I feel like I am piling on at this point, but I can’t help myself.

    To everyone calling this cover "racist": How does mocking (on a few levels, including self-referentially) a particularly ridiculous period of hip-hop define something as racist? Judging from the tone of the iFanboy boards, I would wager that I am among the most knowledgeable hip hop fans in the iFanbase. (Which, of course, reads like "I have black friends; I’m not a racist!! Whatever.) Anyway, among fans of the genre this style and the era that spawned it is typically made the butt of jokes. The problem arises when there is an assertion made that all of hip hop is jewelry and misogyny, but I see nothing in the image that leads me to believe that’s the intent. There *is* a tacit assertion along those lines in a few Marvel books now and then; I just don’t see it here. Not every jab at goofy 90s rappers is a referendum on all of hip hop or all black people.

    The conversation has been leaning heavily on the Ali G source material itself, and the image’s relation to it, but the spirit of the humor is true to the source. There seems to be some imaginary sanctification of Cohen’s pieces that makes the "context" acceptable. The man’s entire career is one big Smash Cut. He takes one thing (aggressive gay man, aggressive late-90s rapper, aggressive foreigner) and he puts it into situations where it has no business being. Like, oh, say, a comic book cover of a very high profile event. 

     

     

    @ohcaroline

    I understand your points about the scantily-clad women, but I take issue with your claim that Marvel as a whole does not have the footing to make over-the-top jokes. The entire creative output of the company does not come from one source, and it seems to me that this image isn’t in that vein. It is misguided to take the stance that because there are other things, like the Psylocke crotch shots, etc., that this is image is therefore not demeaning. It is simply my opinion that the joke is layered such that it makes no offensive statement. I know a bit about Deadpool despite the fact that I really, really don’t like his books, or really his character. This is clearly one of his delusions, and the punchline is that this ridiculous man has wildly unattainable fantasies that don’t fit his place in the world at all. Is it sophomoric? Sure! But so is Deadpool in general, along with Deadpool fans and comic fans in general. 

  122. @kndouobleu   As I mentioned  above, I’m done making substantive comments to this thread, because there are only so many ways for me to rephrase the same thing, but I appreciate your perspective.

  123. To the point about the pulping of the comics.. I’m not sure that I understand where the outcry is coming from. Is there any call for stores to ruin books that they otherwise could have sold? I was under the impression that the only books that would be destroyed were ones that would otherwise be destroyed anyway, only the stores would send them to Marvel instead of DC and be compensated with this book instead of whatever fractional refund that DC offers. Is that not what is happening?

    It sounds like people are mad because they think Marvel is trying to sabotage DC’s sales numbers or something, which doesn’t seem to line up with the terms of the offer, which seems to be playing off of the assumption that there will be a ton of unsold copies collecting dust (which is to be expected, but it’s also an in-good-fun cheap shot). Am I missing something? Because if that’s all it is, I feel like everyone’s panties are way too twisted.

  124. nope, that’s pretty much the long and short of it

  125. @kndoubleu As far as I know, comics, unlike magazines are non-returnable. This is why we have dollar and quarter bins. A retailer gets nothing back if they can’t sell the merchandise.

  126. @throughthebrush/ohcaroline: Well the only thing I can say that, your taking this way to seriously.

    Sexism is not even close to what the problem is with this variant. This topic has derailed into something pretty off topic and I have no idea why this is still a discussion. Jimski didn’t even bring it up in the original article!

  127. @ABirdseyeview: believe what you want to believe I’m done with this topic

  128. what I want to believe?  if there are many many Deadpool variants coming in February and March, wouldn’t you think it was planned way ahead of time?

  129. It was alright, but it should have really been Steve Rogers in a blue tracksuit and beanie, with a scantily clad Tony Stark and Thor draped over him.

  130. Wmatrix. I woulda bought that. I also would have paid good money for it.

  131. @ABirdseysView: no way, man, marvel’s been planning this since Geoff Johns left Avengers

  132. @wulfstone Ambush Bug > Deadpool

  133. My name is Jason and this is retarded.

  134. I didnt read this whole thing but… is it ironical that comic book readers lack a sense of the comedical?! I think its a wonderful promotion! Is not like there are any kids reading these comics so… Deadpool is the joke and its own punchline! Its self sustained!And variant covers are the punchline to the joke that comic book readers are. Good on youMarvel, you take that money from those pesky, 40 year old kidz!

    "Flame ON!"

  135. @Tele:  Oh you mean it’s self-aware? How clever! My mind is blown. Never before have I seen such comedic intellect!

  136. @Matrix I would pay lots and lots of money for that cover.  THAT would be satire.

  137. I find this as sexist as Ali G. As in, not sexist. I find Power girl more offensive and I couldn’t give 2 shits if she’s in a position of power. The fact she’s drawn by a woman makes my mind boggle. But comics seriously needed a female character with hardly any clothes on with tits the size of her head so I’m glad it was started.

    I reckon the people at Marvel are literally rofling at this whole variant thing. Maybe it’s funny cos it’s a ridiculous cover? People sending in 50 DC comics for a cover that’s slightly stupid looking never mind irrelevant? People buying it? Marvel using Deadpool to say "bling bling"? That’s kinda funny. 

  138. @Matrix  If I were emperor of the world, you would now be in charge of variant covers forever.

  139. This cover is weak-sauce all around.

    1) Ali G. jokes are PLAYED. What’s next, Spuds McDeadpool? 

    2) "Sexy women" in and of themselves aren’t problematic, but the two no-name, non-descript "hot girls" hanging over Wade here are. It’d be at least cute if they were dressed like him. Or if Wade looked as surprised as the reader’s supposed to be that they’re hanging around. But instead JSC – and Marvel – went for the cheap joke

    3) Is this supposed to be part of Marvel Women? How does this cover fit in with Her-Oes and Girl Comics? Or is feminism only convenient as a selling point for this company in specific "specialty" titles? 

  140. @deadspace: Seriously, that is spot on. Can’t agree more.

  141. I  am torn between : i dont care because it s just a gangsta deadpool (again… sight… sight…) especially by campbell, boring!…

    and

     a missed opportunity to have campbell simply drawing (at least one) gorgeous marvel her-oes on(/around/upsidedown/uknowwhatimean) a siège (means also a chair in french).

  142. @deadspace Power Girl drawn by Amanda Connor is all about confidence and has nothing to do with her being in power. 

  143. This is being taken way too seriously. Is it stupid? Yes. Is it racist? No. Is it satirical? Technically, yes. Is it effectively satirical? No. It’s just stupid. I don’t blame Marvel for capitalizing on this bizarre Deadpool fan following at all! Deadpool variants will be "the thing" for the next 6-10 months, just like zombies and apes were, and there’s nothing that any of us can do about it besides hope that our respective LCS’s don’t pull them for us and sell out of the normal cover before we get there.

    I just realized that the two words that sum up the 90’s in terms of comics for me are "Deadpool", and "variants". Yikes…

  144. That cover is hilarious – Aaaaiiieee!

  145. This whole trade-in thing is wild. I honestly don’t know what to make of it.

  146. @Valo my comment was referring to throughthebrush’s comment that powergirl is "a superherione in a position of power" 

  147. Ughhh…  All of these dumb Variant covers, 3 ongoing comics (which are meh at best) is really making wonder why i’m a DP fan.

  148. Can the next variant be Deadpool as a member or Run DMC or the Fat Boys? I’d also accept Coolio or Afrika Bambaataa.

  149. I might actually pay for a cover featuring the Fat Boys.  It seems like Bouncing Boy (from the Legion of Superheroes) would be a natural fit.

  150. @Jurassicalien – Ooh! Ooh! Or Busta!

    Also, I know it’s sophmoric, but I can’t help but giggle any time anyone writes that they’re a "DP fan." Bad Casey!

  151. I wasn’t really upset about this to begin with, it always felt tongue-in-cheek rather than nasty. I figured they were poking fun at their rival.

    Also, they have a point– DC got inflated sales of certain books, when they were really selling merchandise. It was all about the rings. Could Marvel sell a $25 dollar comic, with a free shirt, and count that as a comic book direct sale? The rings promotion was all about skewing the sales charts.

    Anyhow… After seeing the image they are using, it all makes even more sense. Look at all of Deadpool’s fancy rings, people! 

  152. @IanX  I get that this was the point of the promotion, and Marvel’s not wrong about DC using the rings to inflate sales numbers.  But from what I understand Marvel has created similar bulk-buying incentives for their crossovers (civil war tie-ins, etc) and with those you didn’t even get a ring.  So, I see what Marvel was getting at, but I don’t think it’s as clever as they thought it was.  

     

  153. this cover is awesome!  I will never see it in real life or have the chance to own it because it will be sold for the price of a house mortgage and hoarded like Golem does his ring, but yeah they should totally keep making covers like this and only releasing them in riduculously limited supply! And with gimmicks! I want hologravure and foil next time!  This cimmick cover nonsense really needs to stop.  I get 50/50 covers, etc – but its the retailer incentive stuff that stinks.  Had this been a really cool cover or something story related – you still wouldn’t be able to get hold of it.  And how is this "green"?  this encourage people to order comics, strip them, and then toss them.

  154. Oh, and seriously, the hate for the content of this cover is ridiculous.  Marvel, DC, Dynamite – all have had way more covers with much more graphic content than this.  If you don’t like because you don’t like Deadpool, just say it and stick to it.  God, if you are so offended by this, what did you think about the Jim Lee covers on Transformers in the 90s that metal clad bikini women cavorting with robots? Or any current xmen cover? Or Powergirl?  Or Red Sonja?  Or how about comics in general? 

  155. It looks like at least somebody is clamoring for these covers, if Tom Brevoort is to be believed.

     

     

  156. @jimksi – bwahaha… my favorite bit is actually the commenters below that story, who suggest that Marvel actually faked those photos.

    I haven’t commented on this particular thread because everyone’s already said everything about the cover itself. 

    Bottom line for me: it doesn’t really matter whether I like the cover or not. As it pertains to the deal, it’s going to be rare. And it’s drawn by an artist who DOES have a following.  Whether it’s for the scarcity or the art, there ARE people who want this item (even more now as it’s been talked up on the internet), and thus there will be retailers who will try to cater to that. Especially if they’re sitting on copies of books that they deem un-sellable.

  157. I might trade in 100 ripped copies of R.E.B.E.L.S for this!