Daredevil: Behind The Scenes!
Plus: pretty things!
Okay, it’s been a little bit since my run on DAREDEVIL ended, so I can finally share some bits about the ending. I’ve stated before that I had a lot of the major beats planned out pretty far in advance. Some things shifted or expanded or condensed, but a lot of what I envisioned made it onto the page, which is a miracle in monthly comics, lemme tell you.
After I got the job writing MR. BATMAN, I was invited to a Marvel Summit. Now, for those of you who don’t know, Marvel Summits are when a bunch of the writers under contract head to the greatest city in the world—or the worst city in the world if you’re someone living in a Marvel comic—New York City to talk about future plans. Of course this one was during the pandemic, so it was going to be on Zoom, the saddest substitution in the world.
I felt like I couldn’t ethically attend the Marvel Zoom Summit because I already knew way too much about what was planned at DC, and I don’t trust myself with top secret story information. Like, I’d probably blurt out, “Superman’s mullet is coming back!!” at some point during the Zoom. But the problem with not attending is that then my editor would tell everyone what I have planned and all the writers would give “helpful” suggestions without me being there to say “fuck off, Hickman” and then my editor would tell me that I need to change my story.
So, I needed to really make sure to dazzle them with my pitch. And the best way to do that is with VISUALS. So, I made a little comic to be presented at the Summit.
Spoilers, obviously, for the end of DAREDEVIL:
And that’s the story of how I ended my Daredevil run.
PRETTY FUNNY THAT THE NEXT THING YOU DID FOR MARVEL WAS A HOWARD THE DUCK STORY
I … fuck
Oh, hey! AVENGERS: TWILIGHT #1 sold out and has gone back to press for a second printing!
Super grateful that people are enjoying this. I’ve been getting some really nice emails from fellow comic creators which is extra special. I love writing Steve Rogers as an old man!
I care, Steve. I care.
Out this week is NEWBURN #14! This is the one you’ve all been waiting for: THE ORIGIN OF EASTON NEWBURN! Jacob and I are really proud of this one.
One other thing this week! With KAPTARA finally ending, Kagan has released a ton of pages for sale! The way he works is incredibly cool, using coloured washes for the tones. If you’re a fan of the book, or know someone who is, snatch one up!
Okay! That’s it from me! Bye!
UPCOMING BOOKS
AVENGERS: TWILIGHT #2 — Jan 31
BATMAN #142 — Feb 6
BATMAN #143 — Feb 13
BATMAN #144 — Feb 20
AVENGERS: TWILIGHT #3 — Feb 28
NEWBURN #15 — Feb 28
BATMAN #145 — Mar 5
AVENGERS: TWILIGHT #4 — Mar 13
NEWBURN #16 — Mar 27
BATMAN #146 — April 2
UPCOMING SIGNINGS
EMERALD CITY COMIC CON — Feb 29 - Mar 3
Aww chip, don’t feel bad at all. Anyone who was complaining that your run on DD was bad clearly is lacking in refined taste. Were some of the initial arcs slower for some people’s tastes? Maybe, but that’s subjective. Overall it’s one of the most enjoyable runs on the character, especially for me, since the days Ed Brubaker was writing for him. And the place you left him off at, I’m surprised no one ever thought to do that before. So kudos for an incredible tenure on the Man Without Fear.
Also with the success that Batman has been, I’d imagine it’s MARVEL who’s gonna come running to lock you in exclusively before DC does. Seriously, Failsafe through Mindbomb has been amazing, and I can’t wait to see what Joker Year One has to offer.
Also, dude, if I wasn’t bummed about you having to pull out of MegaCon already, then the thought I can’t shake your hand for such a great first issue with Avengers Twilight definitely did it. I mean, wow! What a start! And the art is definitely appropriate for the future setup this series takes place in. I am very eager to see how the rest of this is going to turn out.
Also if this is anything to go by, and DC doesn’t lock you down for an exclusive, I definitely want to see you tackle an ongoing main avengers series.
Side note: while back you offered some advice about how to write dialogue boxes and how to separate them. Can I ask, how do you script out internal monologue boxes in your scripts? Do you have a separate way of denoting them from regular dialogue bubbles? Cause I’m trying to figure something easier for myself than what I am currently doing.
Ex. Character A (VO): blah blah blah
The VO stands for Voice over for me.
Anywho, looking forward to all the upcoming releases Chip!
any zdarsky book is improved by the addition of a grouchy old man