The Four Color Media Monitor

The Star Ledger's website in New Jersey has a brief item about Wonder Woman #4 Vol. 3 that's coming out...yep, belatedly, and that's what's in discussion here:

Over the past few years, comic book publishers have been falling over themselves to enlist Hollywood talent to write their books. Both Marvel and DC have signed up their fair share of screenwriters, TV producers and film directors, most of the time with positive creative results. The one drawback to these relationships, especially with this week's "Wonder Woman," is chronic lateness.

Allan Heinberg is a busy man. While executive producing the hit show "Grey's Anatomy," he's been trying to, unsuccessfully, write a monthly issue of "Wonder Woman." While he had a few lateness issues on his last book, "Young Avengers," it was nothing compared to the near glacial pace of his current "Wonder Woman" run. Since relaunching the book in June 2006, Heinberg has only managed to turn out four issues, the most recent of which hit stands this week.

And when a moviemaker or a TV producer can't commit to a full schedule in writing comic books, he/she shouldn't be hired at all. Period. However, recalling just how bad J.Michael Straczynski's run on Spider-Man turned out to be, as well as Kevin Smith's Black Cat miniseries, that's why I disagree that some of these Hollywooders have had positive results. And Geoff Johns first came from the movie biz where he first worked as assistant to Richard Donner on Lethal Weapon, which could explain for some of his own obsession with violence in the comics he's writing, which has gotten worse and certainly more questionable over the years. Joss Whedon* is probably by far the most successful, but he's still just one of a few who're actually respecting what makes the characters he's assigned to work.

One thing that's certain is that there needs to be not just a toning-down of violence and promiscuity in comic books, but the companies also need to be looking for more "homegrown" talent. That they've fallen head over heels in search of moviemakers and novelists instead of getting more people from a simpler background is one of the biggest errors they've been doing lately.

* This reminds me that I wish I could've written about the latest comic book to movie projects lately, including for WW, which Whedon was almost attached to write/direct, the Flash, and also Iron Man, but I've been so busy I haven't had the time to think of what I could write. Oh well, with any luck, I'll find the time to write something about the latest movie adaptations of comic books, including more on Spider-Man 3.

Labels: violence