Post by Epitaph on Aug 1, 2007 17:39:12 GMT -5
July 28, 2007 - Throughout this past week IGN Comics has revealed the first finished art from Ultimates 3. Marvel released two covers, a "Heroes" side and a "Villains" side. At the time we couldn't get details, but now we have them. As you might have seen in our separate news story, Ultimates 3 #1 ships this December. Volume 3, which will feature the team of Jeph Loeb, Joe Madureira and Chris Lichtner, will be five issues long.
We had the pleasure of asking Loeb about his choices for the cast shown in the images released as well as how Ultimates 3 relates to his recently-announced Ultimatum series. As the series grows closer we'll no doubt have more information and imagery for you. For now, enjoy these first details!
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IGN Comics: I think the first reaction many will have when they see this new Ultimates roster is that Wolverine and Spider-Man are there. What was the decision process to bring those two aboard?
Jeph Loeb: I… -pause- I think people will be surprised in the roles that they play.
IGN Comics: Looking at Giant Man, in Ultimates Volumes One and Two, Hank is a wife-beater and actually betrays the team. Can you tell us or at least hint at why he'd be back on the team? Is this even Hank Pym?
Loeb: Let me answer it this way… Hank's problems continue to plague his life. They'll be dealt with in a very real manner. He has issues that go beyond domestic issues and they are important to the story. I'd be much more concerned about Hank Pym than Giant Man.
IGN Comics: Let's take a look at these fresh faces. We have someone who appears to be Valkyrie. Last time we saw her, Ultimate Valkyrie wasn't anything like this. She was more of a spoof in the Ultimate Defenders. Is the same person here that we saw before?
Loeb: … Nothing that we're doing… doesn't take into consideration what came before it. I had lots of talks with Mark Millar about who Valkyrie is and how she got to be the way she is. I will say, like many of the members of the team when we first see them, there is time that we have not privileged to see between when Ultimates 2.13 came out and when Ultimates 3.1 comes out. So there are some things that are mysteries that are alluded to in the first issue. There will be questions asked right in the first issue about who and how and why some of these people are they way they are. So yes that's important.
IGN Comics: That actually was my next question - the roster we see on the cover. Is this the roster we see right away or is this something that develops over time?
Loeb: I think it's more likely that people should take both pieces of the cover as what they're called, which is "Heroes" and "Villains". Don't get too hung up on who's on the team and when. There will be a formalized team, you'll absolutely know what that is, but that doesn't necessarily mean that there are people depicted on the covers that are on any particular team.
IGN Comics: We have to ask about the guy with the gun. He sort of resembles Hawkeye, but he has a weird symbol on his forehead which reminds us of Bullseye. Can you tell us anything about this guy?
Loeb: He's kind of the mystery guy. I can tell you that you would know more if it was from a different angle. That was a choice we made to sort of raise some of the questions people are already raising. By the time they get to the book, they'll understand in the first five or six pages as to who this person is and what's going on there. Just so everyone knows that I'm not just out there acting like some kind of cowboy, this was actually something I first pitched to Millar and he agreed that was the direction this character was headed. I'm really pleased and this character has become one of my favorites.
IGN Comics: We also have Black Panther on the team! Is this Ultimate Panther similar to his Core Universe counterpart, King of Wakanda and all?
Loeb: Again one of the things I'm looking forward to is we're just going to drop right in. Panther is on the team, but who he is, what he wants, all those questions are part of the ongoing mystery that is the first story. I hate to be all kinds of vague, but each of these characters has a secret. These are secrets during the time between Volumes Two and Three, but these are secrets that were planted earlier. They're all secrets that absolutely Mark and Bryan would have continued to pull if they were still pulling the strings. That's not to say you'd have to read the first two volumes to enjoy the third. We're trying to make it as reader friendly as possible. I do like the idea of dropping down. This is not an origin story. We're going to just drop down into the middle of the kicks.
IGN Comics: Let's shift to the villains. I think one reaction to seeing this roster might be that these are technically, more traditionally X-Men and Spider-Man fans, so why are they fighting the Avengers/Ultimates rather than more Avengers villains? Can you talk about the choice to involve these characters?
Loeb: Well, I think it's a little bit crass. But this is part of a larger plan. I think we have to remember that there is more than one mutant on the team. The Brotherhood and Magneto have an agenda. Those agendas are eventually going to collide at some point. Certainly the situation that's presented by the end of the first issue, people will understand exactly why that group of people got together.
IGN Comics: Can you talk about… well, I'm not sure… maybe…
Loeb: -laughs-
IGN Comics: Is there any way you can comment on Venom's presence or is that something we'll just have to learn over time?
Loeb: We're going to come up on that particular case, the reasons for it and where it goes… I can just say that hopefully what we're doing in this first issue is intriguing the reader enough that they want to continue and by the same token create storylines where people expect one thing… the Ultimate Universe, once upon a time, was born out of doing things that were unexpected. It wasn't that long ago, actually five years ago, that Ultimate Spidey was only 16 years old and that he was in high school, Gwen was alive… Oh my God, the Earth was going to spin off its axis! People were buying pitchforks and axes! They were going to storm Marvel Comics! Demand the head of Brian Michael Bendis on a spike! And the world didn't come to an end and Brian still has his beautiful, sweet head. It's actually turned out to consistently be one of the most excellent books out there - certainly for Spider-Man fans, one of their most favorite books.
So what we're hoping to do is recreate, with Ultimate Origin, Ultimates and Ultimatum, a return to that kind of "What?! They can't do that!" It sort of feels like in the Marvel Universe and Ultimate Universe, when you present the unexpected, it pays off with great stories and great fan reaction. Again, it wasn't that long ago that putting Spidey and Wolverine was, again, blasphemy. The end of the Avengers! And now those books are more popular than the X-books! I never thought I would see that. I'm a huge Avengers fan. I used to terrorize Joe Quesada. I'd say, "You've fixed the X-Men and Spider-Man! You created the Ultimate Universe! But you're just letting the Avengers languish out there!" And he'd just say there's plan. "I don't care! I don't want a plan! I want Avengers!"
Fans also really grumbled through Disassembled, saying he was ruining the world. And now we're all standing around asking who's a Skrull. It's very Skrully. It's almost as if there was a conspiracy! People in high places are being replaced by Avengers fans! I think that's what Brian and I are reaching for. Part of what's happened in the Ultimate Universe is that while there was a steady hand for the first couple years, between Mark and Brian. I think everyone else has contributed has done an amazing job. The beauty of that universe is that it's so well-contained. It can be easily coordinated by just a couple guys and Quesada. I think right now Brian and I are trying to take stewardship of that universe and how we can next best make it into the unexpected.
IGN Comics: Something just occurred to me so I'd like to jump back to Spider-Man. Over in Ultimate Spider-Man, Nicky Fury made it very clear to Peter Parker that once Parker turned 18, he belonged to the government. Now we have Spidey on this team, but he's definitely not 18. Is Peter's involvement in this series of his own free will or did Fury somehow change his position?
Loeb: I think people should pick up Ultimate Power because if you read one through six you'll see that Fury has stepped in some serious doo doo. And what I'm trying to construct issues #7 through 9 to be are the last chapters of this story but still reader friendly enough so that if, for some ungodly reason, if you didn't read one through six, that you can still pick it up. I can guarantee you that there are consequences for Nick's actions that will play heavily into the Ultimate Universe. Again one of the things I've been trying to do is… the readers and retailers have been asking us that if we're doing something big, and there's going to be bread crumbs that will help get readers interested ahead of time, just tell them. Tell them New Avengers #31 will be important. So we're saying start with the last part of Ultimate Power. Go to Ultimate Origin. Pick up Ultimates 3. All of that will be important to what will happen in Ultimatum (see related interview regarding this series!).
IGN Comics: Any last words you'd like to add regarding your Ultimates run with Joe Madureira?
Loeb: I've said it in the past that I'm a huge fan and in awe of Mark and Bryan's run on the book. I spent a lot of time talking to them, before coming on and after, going through every single one of the characters. I really felt that Mark does that political satire stuff almost better than anyone. It made no more sense for me to try and do that than it made sense for Joe Mad to try and ape Hitch. So it will still be a book that will deal with controversy and it lives in a real world. It will still be a book that does outrageous things that make us smile or be outraged. But I believe there are other issues going on, in this country in particular, that don't have to deal with America's political leanings. Again what I can tell you that this first arc with Joe Mad is called "Sex, Lies and DVDs".
IGN Comics: Thanks so much for your time, Jeph!
Loeb: Talk to you later. Take care!
We had the pleasure of asking Loeb about his choices for the cast shown in the images released as well as how Ultimates 3 relates to his recently-announced Ultimatum series. As the series grows closer we'll no doubt have more information and imagery for you. For now, enjoy these first details!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
IGN Comics: I think the first reaction many will have when they see this new Ultimates roster is that Wolverine and Spider-Man are there. What was the decision process to bring those two aboard?
Jeph Loeb: I… -pause- I think people will be surprised in the roles that they play.
IGN Comics: Looking at Giant Man, in Ultimates Volumes One and Two, Hank is a wife-beater and actually betrays the team. Can you tell us or at least hint at why he'd be back on the team? Is this even Hank Pym?
Loeb: Let me answer it this way… Hank's problems continue to plague his life. They'll be dealt with in a very real manner. He has issues that go beyond domestic issues and they are important to the story. I'd be much more concerned about Hank Pym than Giant Man.
IGN Comics: Let's take a look at these fresh faces. We have someone who appears to be Valkyrie. Last time we saw her, Ultimate Valkyrie wasn't anything like this. She was more of a spoof in the Ultimate Defenders. Is the same person here that we saw before?
Loeb: … Nothing that we're doing… doesn't take into consideration what came before it. I had lots of talks with Mark Millar about who Valkyrie is and how she got to be the way she is. I will say, like many of the members of the team when we first see them, there is time that we have not privileged to see between when Ultimates 2.13 came out and when Ultimates 3.1 comes out. So there are some things that are mysteries that are alluded to in the first issue. There will be questions asked right in the first issue about who and how and why some of these people are they way they are. So yes that's important.
IGN Comics: That actually was my next question - the roster we see on the cover. Is this the roster we see right away or is this something that develops over time?
Loeb: I think it's more likely that people should take both pieces of the cover as what they're called, which is "Heroes" and "Villains". Don't get too hung up on who's on the team and when. There will be a formalized team, you'll absolutely know what that is, but that doesn't necessarily mean that there are people depicted on the covers that are on any particular team.
IGN Comics: We have to ask about the guy with the gun. He sort of resembles Hawkeye, but he has a weird symbol on his forehead which reminds us of Bullseye. Can you tell us anything about this guy?
Loeb: He's kind of the mystery guy. I can tell you that you would know more if it was from a different angle. That was a choice we made to sort of raise some of the questions people are already raising. By the time they get to the book, they'll understand in the first five or six pages as to who this person is and what's going on there. Just so everyone knows that I'm not just out there acting like some kind of cowboy, this was actually something I first pitched to Millar and he agreed that was the direction this character was headed. I'm really pleased and this character has become one of my favorites.
IGN Comics: We also have Black Panther on the team! Is this Ultimate Panther similar to his Core Universe counterpart, King of Wakanda and all?
Loeb: Again one of the things I'm looking forward to is we're just going to drop right in. Panther is on the team, but who he is, what he wants, all those questions are part of the ongoing mystery that is the first story. I hate to be all kinds of vague, but each of these characters has a secret. These are secrets during the time between Volumes Two and Three, but these are secrets that were planted earlier. They're all secrets that absolutely Mark and Bryan would have continued to pull if they were still pulling the strings. That's not to say you'd have to read the first two volumes to enjoy the third. We're trying to make it as reader friendly as possible. I do like the idea of dropping down. This is not an origin story. We're going to just drop down into the middle of the kicks.
IGN Comics: Let's shift to the villains. I think one reaction to seeing this roster might be that these are technically, more traditionally X-Men and Spider-Man fans, so why are they fighting the Avengers/Ultimates rather than more Avengers villains? Can you talk about the choice to involve these characters?
Loeb: Well, I think it's a little bit crass. But this is part of a larger plan. I think we have to remember that there is more than one mutant on the team. The Brotherhood and Magneto have an agenda. Those agendas are eventually going to collide at some point. Certainly the situation that's presented by the end of the first issue, people will understand exactly why that group of people got together.
IGN Comics: Can you talk about… well, I'm not sure… maybe…
Loeb: -laughs-
IGN Comics: Is there any way you can comment on Venom's presence or is that something we'll just have to learn over time?
Loeb: We're going to come up on that particular case, the reasons for it and where it goes… I can just say that hopefully what we're doing in this first issue is intriguing the reader enough that they want to continue and by the same token create storylines where people expect one thing… the Ultimate Universe, once upon a time, was born out of doing things that were unexpected. It wasn't that long ago, actually five years ago, that Ultimate Spidey was only 16 years old and that he was in high school, Gwen was alive… Oh my God, the Earth was going to spin off its axis! People were buying pitchforks and axes! They were going to storm Marvel Comics! Demand the head of Brian Michael Bendis on a spike! And the world didn't come to an end and Brian still has his beautiful, sweet head. It's actually turned out to consistently be one of the most excellent books out there - certainly for Spider-Man fans, one of their most favorite books.
So what we're hoping to do is recreate, with Ultimate Origin, Ultimates and Ultimatum, a return to that kind of "What?! They can't do that!" It sort of feels like in the Marvel Universe and Ultimate Universe, when you present the unexpected, it pays off with great stories and great fan reaction. Again, it wasn't that long ago that putting Spidey and Wolverine was, again, blasphemy. The end of the Avengers! And now those books are more popular than the X-books! I never thought I would see that. I'm a huge Avengers fan. I used to terrorize Joe Quesada. I'd say, "You've fixed the X-Men and Spider-Man! You created the Ultimate Universe! But you're just letting the Avengers languish out there!" And he'd just say there's plan. "I don't care! I don't want a plan! I want Avengers!"
Fans also really grumbled through Disassembled, saying he was ruining the world. And now we're all standing around asking who's a Skrull. It's very Skrully. It's almost as if there was a conspiracy! People in high places are being replaced by Avengers fans! I think that's what Brian and I are reaching for. Part of what's happened in the Ultimate Universe is that while there was a steady hand for the first couple years, between Mark and Brian. I think everyone else has contributed has done an amazing job. The beauty of that universe is that it's so well-contained. It can be easily coordinated by just a couple guys and Quesada. I think right now Brian and I are trying to take stewardship of that universe and how we can next best make it into the unexpected.
IGN Comics: Something just occurred to me so I'd like to jump back to Spider-Man. Over in Ultimate Spider-Man, Nicky Fury made it very clear to Peter Parker that once Parker turned 18, he belonged to the government. Now we have Spidey on this team, but he's definitely not 18. Is Peter's involvement in this series of his own free will or did Fury somehow change his position?
Loeb: I think people should pick up Ultimate Power because if you read one through six you'll see that Fury has stepped in some serious doo doo. And what I'm trying to construct issues #7 through 9 to be are the last chapters of this story but still reader friendly enough so that if, for some ungodly reason, if you didn't read one through six, that you can still pick it up. I can guarantee you that there are consequences for Nick's actions that will play heavily into the Ultimate Universe. Again one of the things I've been trying to do is… the readers and retailers have been asking us that if we're doing something big, and there's going to be bread crumbs that will help get readers interested ahead of time, just tell them. Tell them New Avengers #31 will be important. So we're saying start with the last part of Ultimate Power. Go to Ultimate Origin. Pick up Ultimates 3. All of that will be important to what will happen in Ultimatum (see related interview regarding this series!).
IGN Comics: Any last words you'd like to add regarding your Ultimates run with Joe Madureira?
Loeb: I've said it in the past that I'm a huge fan and in awe of Mark and Bryan's run on the book. I spent a lot of time talking to them, before coming on and after, going through every single one of the characters. I really felt that Mark does that political satire stuff almost better than anyone. It made no more sense for me to try and do that than it made sense for Joe Mad to try and ape Hitch. So it will still be a book that will deal with controversy and it lives in a real world. It will still be a book that does outrageous things that make us smile or be outraged. But I believe there are other issues going on, in this country in particular, that don't have to deal with America's political leanings. Again what I can tell you that this first arc with Joe Mad is called "Sex, Lies and DVDs".
IGN Comics: Thanks so much for your time, Jeph!
Loeb: Talk to you later. Take care!
