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Princess Di in X-Statix: Marvel backs down

sleazenation

21:26 / 10.07.03

From comicon's the pulse Marvel has decided to pull the xstatix storyline featuring princess Di after a "storm" of contoversy.

I am disappointed. I wanted to read this. Maybe it never existed beyond some dummy covers (ala xstatix 1) but still, i wanted to read it... Any chance Pete would publish his script?

Warewullf

21:37 / 10.07.03

*pffff*

Pussies.

Why pull this now? There are few enough people buying that book as it is, so what if a few more people boycott it? Hell, all that bad press just insured a sales increase.

Ah, maybe you were right, maybe it was never real to begin with.

Dave Philpott

02:03 / 11.07.03

I remember reading the copy for the solicitation and thinking "this'll go over like a turd in a punch-bowl".

NezZ the 2nd

09:27 / 11.07.03

I heard on the radio today, something along the lines of - a company in america is using princess diana's image and this was causing her charity problems - i wonder if this is the marvel/x-statix debacle. i don't think the story was that bad an idea, as long as it treated her with respect i didn't see the problem.

sleazenation

09:41 / 11.07.03

No the story you heard was this one...

waxy dan

09:42 / 11.07.03

i wonder if this is the marvel/x-statix debacle.

Nah, just spotted this on the bbc: "The memorial fund set up in the name of Princess Diana has been forced to freeze its funds because of a costly legal battle with a US souvenir firm".

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3058367.stm

I'm Rick Jones, bitch

11:02 / 11.07.03

Oh fuck.

I was really looking forward to this. I hope some higher power delivers kicks to the balls of all concerned in this disgusting retraction.

FinderWolf

12:56 / 11.07.03

NNOOOOO!!!!!!! I can't believe they pulled out of this!!! I was so looking forward to this, and I'm sure Milligan's script would have silenced most of the naysayers!!!!

AAAuuugghh. This sucks. I guess the legal costs were too much to bear? But they must have ironed that out beforehand. So I guess they just caved in to people being offended on 'good taste' grounds? Bleh.

Matthew Fluxington

13:33 / 11.07.03

This is just silly.

They made a comic that was begging to get outside attention.

They make the announcement before the comic even comes out, and get the outside attention.

Then they decide not to release it, even though it would have sold significantly more copies than the average issue of X-Statix.

Why did they even bother in the first place?

FinderWolf

13:56 / 11.07.03

I'm guessing that they THOUGHT they had all the legal hurdles cleared and really thought they'd seriously dotted all their "i"s and crossed their "t"s, but at the last minute they got some legal interference that they just couldn't fight and didn't anticipate. (Maybe from this charity some people are talking about?) I doubt they're withdrawing it out of a desire not to offend people, the more I think about it, since they seemed pretty determined to bear that risk.

Regrettable Juvenilia

13:56 / 11.07.03

I tell you what's really weird - it sounds like the storyline is still going ahead, just without Diana. So who will it be instead? A thinly-veiled analogue isn't going to work...

No doubt Milligan will work this whole thing into the story.

The Falcon

14:03 / 11.07.03

Or, alternatively, abandon a rapidly sinking ship.

Maybe she can have the superhero name Impossible Princess... I'd like that.

FinderWolf

16:53 / 11.07.03

>> I tell you what's really weird - it sounds like the storyline is still going ahead, just without Diana. So who will it be instead? A thinly-veiled analogue isn't going to work...

I thought that too when I read the article. Verrrry interesting.

The Strobe

19:41 / 11.07.03

This even got into the Sun, under the wonderful headline:

SICK.

That was a good day.

bio k9

22:20 / 11.07.03

They made a comic that was begging to get outside attention....they get the outside attention....they decide not to release it....why did they even bother in the first place?

They still got all that outside attention...

All Acting Regiment

20:23 / 12.07.03

So it's really bad that a dead princess is in a comic? Hey, what about all the dead innocent bystanders, palace guards, dictatorship goons, and second romans on the left who's memory is routinely defaced by comics, tv, films and culture in general? Eh?

finger n' thump

21:32 / 13.07.03

chris, tell me:

are you an exercise in 'shit'?

penitentvandal

11:49 / 14.07.03

I doubt Marvel would be that worried about the Diana Foundation - according to the news, they haemorrhaged all their money on trying to sue the people who make those nice, tasteful collectible plates.

Maybe Marvel are worried that the victory-glutted Franklin Mint will go on some Hulk-like legal rampage and destroy everything in its path that dares to use the Diana image...

Our Lady of The Two Towers

12:14 / 14.07.03

Thanks for making Flyboy a 'Fighter' I tell you what's really weird - it sounds like the storyline is still going ahead, just without Diana. So who will it be instead? A thinly-veiled analogue isn't going to work...

JFK? In a skirt if necessary.

And it's not the first time Milligan has had problems using famous people's images, Elvis in Shade comes to mind...

SavageFistsOfFengshui

13:50 / 14.07.03

Why isn't a thinly veiled analogue going to work?

The Falcon

15:01 / 14.07.03

It may work for us, because we'll just know.

But I think the majority of X-Statix readers' won't. And also all references to the Monarchy have been excised, which could cost a few tasty jokes and that.

The Falcon

15:04 / 14.07.03

Feel free to insert a geeky Wildstorm/Marvel crossover joke about my above post if you fancy.

sleazenation

16:07 / 14.07.03

I don't think it overly optimistic to think most readers of comics will also be aware of the British monarchy...

Warewullf

09:45 / 28.07.03

I thought they weren't going to do this?

From Popcultreshock:
X-STATIX #15
Written by PETER MILLIGAN
Cover & pencils by MIKE ALLRED
"DI ANOTHER DAY" pt. 3 (of 5)
Princess Diana is back from the dead and on her comeback tour - and driving the X-Statix crazy! Can the fame-hungry team of super-mutants take a backseat to Ms. Spencer's white-hot celebrity - especially when she becomes team leader?
32 PGS./MARVEL PSR…$2.99
UPC: 5960605332-01511
· NOMINATED FOR ZERO 2003 EISNER AWARDS!

Ganesh

10:10 / 28.07.03

Is that Jill Dando?

Our Lady of The Two Towers

16:17 / 28.07.03

I don't know anything about pcs but did the climbdown happen too late for their copy to get changed? Maybe Milligan's going to do a Chris Morris and the story is going to be about manufactured media outrage to increase the X-Statix team's media coverage?

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