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Interesting interiew over on Newsarama with the writer of Young Avengers (a writer on The O.C.) about the book...he sounds like he's got good taste and has a clue...so maybe the book might be interesting after all?
>> AH: Well, when Brian got off the phone, I felt obligated to tell Joe -- as politely as possible - that, although I was incredibly flattered by the opportunity, I actually had no earthly idea how to write a book called Young Avengers. I also confessed that I would probably never even buy a book called Young Avengers unless it was written by a writer I knew and loved. And, let's be honest, nobody in comics knows or loves me.
>> So, we talked about it. I presented all my reservations about the book. That it sounded to me like a blatant rip-off of Teen Titans - a book I love written by Geoff Johns, who's a close friend. Then, even if you figure out a way to do the book that doesn't rip off Titans, there's the problem of who are these young Avengers? Where do they come from? Marvel has no established teen sidekicks from which to build a team. And if you create a team of all-new heroes, why should anyone care about them? And furthermore what right do these kids have to call themselves Young Avengers? Joe agreed with all my points, but he said he felt confident I'd find a way to address them. And if I couldn't, he promised we'd find something else to work on. He was incredibly cool about the whole thing.
That said, I still couldn't figure out a compelling premise for Young Avengers. I'd get frustrated, thinking, "If only the original Avengers had had teen sidekicks..." I kept having this terrible vision of readers at comic book stores across the country - myself included - seeing a book called Young Avengers on the stands and rejecting it out of hand, saying, "Who the hell are the Young Avengers?" And, without giving away anything, that question became the soul of my pitch.
NRAMA: Joe’s also been saying that your pitch for Young Avengers just blew him away, and that it’s the best pitch he’s read since he’s been in the EIC chair at Marvel. C’mon – tease….what are some of the beats that you put in there that freaked Joe out?
AH: Joe's been very kind about the pitch. I can't say much without spoiling the story, but new characters are introduced, old characters are reinvented, Avengers continuity is honored, and new readers won't feel left behind.
I know there are cynics online who are already saying that Young Avengers is a desperate attempt to capitalize on the success of Geoff and Mike McKone's Teen Titans. The truth is, I don't know how you can do a book about a team of teen super heroes and not be compared to the Titans. So, as a huge, lifelong Titans fan, I want the book to acknowledge its debt to Teen Titans even as it reveals itself to be something entirely its own. In the end, though, it's always comes down to characters and the storytelling. I'm hoping readers will give us a chance and allow themselves to be surprised. |
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