Comments on: Cronin Theory of Comics - Good Characters Should Be Written in Comics http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/08/21/cronin-theory-of-comics-good-characters-should-be-written-in-comics/ Comic Book Resources Presents... Comics Should Be Good! Sun, 22 Nov 2009 23:54:14 -0800 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 hourly 1 By: Lynxara http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/08/21/cronin-theory-of-comics-good-characters-should-be-written-in-comics/comment-page-1/#comment-691494 Lynxara Wed, 12 Nov 2008 23:23:30 +0000 http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/08/21/cronin-theory-of-comics-good-characters-should-be-written-in-comics/#comment-691494 I dunno. If I had a dollar for every guy I talked to in an Artist's Alley with a rejected Blue Beetle or Blue Beetle and Booster Gold pitch, complete with sample pages, I'd buy a lot more comics. I think creators liked him and editorial just didn't, so he ended up as one of the handful of significant characters editorial would permit in an extensive death-oriented storyline that the creators actually wanted to write about. Remember that Dan Didio showed those Countdown pages to Kevin Maguire (so the legend goes), thinking that he'd be somehow flattered or entertained by... just seeing his characters in something, I guess? I dunno. If I had a dollar for every guy I talked to in an Artist's Alley with a rejected Blue Beetle or Blue Beetle and Booster Gold pitch, complete with sample pages, I'd buy a lot more comics. I think creators liked him and editorial just didn't, so he ended up as one of the handful of significant characters editorial would permit in an extensive death-oriented storyline that the creators actually wanted to write about.

Remember that Dan Didio showed those Countdown pages to Kevin Maguire (so the legend goes), thinking that he'd be somehow flattered or entertained by... just seeing his characters in something, I guess?

]]> By: T. http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/08/21/cronin-theory-of-comics-good-characters-should-be-written-in-comics/comment-page-1/#comment-691487 T. Wed, 12 Nov 2008 22:52:44 +0000 http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/08/21/cronin-theory-of-comics-good-characters-should-be-written-in-comics/#comment-691487 <blockquote>I could do a great Blue Beetle series….and that’s why he has to go.</blockquote> I just think that was something said after the fact to placate Blue Beetle fans, much like how after Countdown came out, so many issues of different books were now dedicated to talking about how awesome Ted Kord was, even though Countdown was dedicated to pointing out how much he sucked. I think the rationale was more like "He's important to matter, but sucky enough to get away with killing."

I could do a great Blue Beetle series….and that’s why he has to go.

I just think that was something said after the fact to placate Blue Beetle fans, much like how after Countdown came out, so many issues of different books were now dedicated to talking about how awesome Ted Kord was, even though Countdown was dedicated to pointing out how much he sucked. I think the rationale was more like "He's important to matter, but sucky enough to get away with killing."

]]> By: J-Man http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/08/21/cronin-theory-of-comics-good-characters-should-be-written-in-comics/comment-page-1/#comment-144709 J-Man Tue, 31 Jul 2007 01:29:31 +0000 http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2005/08/21/cronin-theory-of-comics-good-characters-should-be-written-in-comics/#comment-144709 I don't think it's silly at all. You're focusing on the wrong part of the story. You're focusing on the "we'll bring him back later" part, which is only half-serious anyway. What Winick was saying there is, "We're not just gonna kill some random suit and cape that no one even remembers. We're not just gonna kill Ace the Bat-Hound, or Acrata, and pretend like anyone cared. We're gonna kill a guy who isn't over the hill. We're gonna kill a guy who wasn't some one-trick pony we didn't need anymore. We're gonna kill a guy who didn't have a good reason to be dying right now, because this death is kind of supposed to be tragic." I mean, after all, isn't one of the things you say at an untimely funeral, "We'll never know the things he might have done." That implies that there are, in fact, things that he might have done. I don't think it's silly at all. You're focusing on the wrong part of the story. You're focusing on the "we'll bring him back later" part, which is only half-serious anyway. What Winick was saying there is, "We're not just gonna kill some random suit and cape that no one even remembers. We're not just gonna kill Ace the Bat-Hound, or Acrata, and pretend like anyone cared. We're gonna kill a guy who isn't over the hill. We're gonna kill a guy who wasn't some one-trick pony we didn't need anymore. We're gonna kill a guy who didn't have a good reason to be dying right now, because this death is kind of supposed to be tragic." I mean, after all, isn't one of the things you say at an untimely funeral, "We'll never know the things he might have done." That implies that there are, in fact, things that he might have done.

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