by Paul O’Brien

There’s a lot to talk about this month, as Marvel’s publishing schedule steps up a gear. July saw the launch of the much-hyped REBORN miniseries, the 600th issues of AMAZING SPIDER-MAN and INCREDIBLE HULK, the climax of ULTIMATUM, a crossover between DARK AVENGERS and UNCANNY X-MEN, and a second ongoing DEADPOOL title… plus the ongoing Dark Reign event and a bunch of other minis.

You won’t be surprised to hear that, once again, Marvel had the largest share of the North American direct market. This month, they beat DC by 43% to 34% in unit share, and 37% to 30% in dollars.

Thanks as always to ICV2.com for permission to use these figures.

1,9. CAPTAIN AMERICA
07/04  Captain America #29  -  40,221
07/05  —
07/06  Captain America #20  -  47,357
07/07  Captain America #28  -  89,721
=====
07/08  Captain America #40  -  79,317  (  -0.0%)
08/08  Captain America #41  -  85,035  (  +7.2%)
09/08  Captain America #42  -  75,574  ( -11.1%)
10/08  Captain America #43  -  72,405  (  -4.2%)
11/08  Captain America #44  -  75,493  (  +4.3%)
12/08  Captain America #45  -  71,186  (  -5.7%)
01/09  Captain America #46  -  73,184  (  +2.8%)
02/09  Captain America #47  -  62,850  ( -14.1%)
03/09  Captain America #48  -  62,108  (  -1.2%)
04/09  Captain America #49  -  63,874  (  +2.8%)
05/09  Captain America #50  -  72,708  ( +13.8%)
06/09  Captain America #600 - 123,152  ( +69.4%)
07/09  Captain America #601 -  87,844  ( -28.7%)
07/09  Reborn #1 of 5       - 193,142  (+119.9%)
                               6 mnth  (+163.9%)
                               1 year  (+143.5%)
                               2 year  (+115.3%)
                               3 year  (+307.8%)
                               4 year  (   — )
                               5 year  (+380.2%)

Two issues this month. CAPTAIN AMERICA #601 is something of a red herring - it’s essentially a fill-in story with art by Gene Colan, set during World War II. Of course, it also meant that there was an issue of CAPTAIN AMERICA in the July solicitations, which initially tried to create some mystery about what REBORN was.

As it turns out, REBORN is indeed the long-expected return of Steve Rogers, and the regular CAPTAIN AMERICA title will go on hiatus for the duration of the five-issue miniseries before returning with issue #602 later in the year. That effectively makes REBORN issues #601A-601E, and so I’m counting them as part of the regular title.

REBORN was always going to be a big seller, particularly given Marvel’s promise of mainstream media coverage. It wasn’t guaranteed to top the charts, though, because July also saw the release of BLACKEST NIGHT #1, DC’s latest crossover. As it turns out, they’re fairly close. REBORN was about 16,000 ahead. Intriguingly, though, Diamond’s chart lists BLACKEST NIGHT at number 1 in the dollar rankings - despite both books costing the same. I can only assume that this is because the extra sales generated by incentive variants (order ten, get one free) count for the unit sales, but not the dollar chart. Anyhow, it suggests that the two projects were closer together than the sales figures might first suggest.

Issue #601 has three covers; REBORN #1 has five (six, if you count a Dynamic Forces version), including 1:25 and 1:75 variants. Oh, and issue #600 also picks up a further 10,865 in sales. As usual, they’re added in above.

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Beloved art comix storyteller Brian Chippendale finds a missing page from this

and draws it. No lie.

As we head into the first weekend of the Third Age of Comics, much is still being written and pondered. Let’s check out the Google earth view, shall we?

* First, a succinct Tweet from Rob Liefeld:

Huge reason that DC got restructured is simple math, Marvel has had 10 years, 15 films, 11 hits, compared to 6 films and 2 hits @DC

* Diane Nelson is back with a new interview with Rick Marshall that covers some new territory, including the fact that she’s interested in Vertigo, and that people are already trying to “school” her — anonymously!

MTV: So, what’s the next step in getting acclimated for you? Are you taking boxes of comics out of the DC library? Reading through a few volumes of “Who’s Who in the DC Universe”?

NELSON: That’s funny, because right before I picked up the phone an anonymous package containing a book called “Comic Wars” arrived on my desk with no note. I believe it’s a nonfiction account of the history of Marvel—but yes, I’m reading everything I can get my hands on, and just trying to immerse myself and be respectful of how much I have to learn.

But the real work—not work, fun—will occur when I go to New York and get to know the people there and figure out where we go from here.

You can say THAT again!

* Today’s MOST popular parlor game: who will be DC’s next publisher? Names being mentioned: Jim Lee, Hank Kanalz, John Nee, Bill Jemas, Jimmy Palmiotti .

* Looking back, while most people chose the occasion of Paul Levitz’s departure to say nice things, a few took the other tack. (There were several ex-DC employees doing the happy dance on Wednesday, we can assure you.) Dirk Deppey delivered a classic Glasgow Kiss, although we’re not sure he should be THAT happy over the arrival of Nelson. It’s not like she’s going to put Ai Yazawa on TEEN TITANS and Charles Burns on JLA. Although that would be cool.

* Valerie D’Orazio did another kind of happy dance:

You can only place my reaction in context of the massive amount of misogyny I’ve witnessed or heard reported about in selected sectors of DC Comics during the time I’ve worked there. During those four years, I had seen strong women again and again be censured, criticized, grumbled about, and disparaged. I’ve watched my department be emptied out of females one-by-one. I was warned on literally the first day I worked there by two different people to watch my back because I was a woman and not to make any waves. I was told by one boss that females just didn’t have the natural aptitude to edit comic books.

I am absolutely thrilled that the buck now stops with a woman at DC Comics. I am overjoyed – nay, almost orgasmic – that certain men will now have to regard Diane Nelson as their boss. It is karma working on the most basic level. Let these men explain to Nelson, who has worked with one of the most famous female fantasy writers in the entire world, how women don’t have the natural aptitude to edit and create comic books. Let these men explain to her the employment and dismissal history of female editors in the DCU over the last ten years. Let these men explain to her the plot of Final Crisis – I dare them.

Although there are quite a few females in Editorial even in the DCU these days, we know exactly who delivered some of the putdowns D’Orazio mentions because we heard ‘em too, so, yes, that is gonna be fun

* Finally, here’s one interesting take on the whole thing from an anonymous blogger named Whiskey who is alarmed by the dangerous tidal wave of entertainment aimed at females and thinks DC may be our only hope for a world where men rule, or something:

DC Entertainment has the ability to develop such new talent, without much risk, and test drive new characters, storylines, situations, and plots that appeal to young men and boys. Currently, there seems to be very few writers and producers who know this audience, as Hollywood has become more oriented towards the female audience (in Television) and the adult art-film audience (as Oscar bait in movies). The few producers, directors, and writers who had the knack, seem to have lost it forever, as anyone who sat through “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” can attest. Michael Bay can reliably generate a large younger male audience (”plus” women, girls, and of course older audiences) but relies on big effects and/or built-in 80’s nostalgia (”Transformers.”) Comics because of their low risk allows DC Entertainment the ability to “try out” many new writers, and develop ones it finds compelling. Since this makes complete sense, however, I expect DC Entertainment to ignore the possibilities and focus on the same aging, shallow pool of comic book writers as Marvel does. With about the same results: a buying pool of comic book readers well shy of half a million, and creative stagnation.

In a post on the Disney/Marvel deal there’s even evidence of the dreamed feminist-homosexualist axis at play:

Disney’s Rich Ross is listed as one of the more powerful openly gay men in Hollywood by After Elton. It is questionable how well he and other execs operating in the very gay friendly and female-oriented Disney empire understand and relate to boys concerns, let alone straight male concerns and desires in entertainment. Disney has been successful in creating girl-friendly series and movies, featuring Selena Gomez and Demi Lovato. But neither Lovato nor Gomez have been able to break out to the degree that Miley Cyrus has, hampered by a down economy and the miscues of Disney expecting a large Hispanic contingent of fans. A critical error given that Hispanics consume Spanish Language media, most of it from Mexico (Telemundo and Univision).

It’s hard not to roll one’s eyes at someone who seems to think that “any” equals “too much” where entertainment for girls is concerned, but if you can squint between the blinds on the compound windows, there is some cogent analysis here.

We know that you are all tired of Disney Marvel mash-ups, but Is Animator Jeffrey Thomas’s Twisted Princess portfolio close to how Marvel might handle classic princess characters?

NOTE: We really screwed up when we first posted this. We picked it up from another blog that called it how Marvel would handle Disney Princesses, but it’s a completely independent project from earlier this year. It is kinda funnier with the attribution, though. Anyway, very nice concept designs!

Splash Page catches up with director Edgar Wright to suss out rumors of Pixar-related interest in his ANT-MAN movie.:

“The news that Pixar is involved [with ‘Ant-Man’] is not wholly accurate and a little premature to comment on,” Wright said. “I love Pixar’s work more than anyone and indeed would love to collaborate with them.

“I’m not sure though that they would want to do a ’shrinking’ film as a Pixar animation—since ‘Toy Story’ and ‘A Bug’s Life’ already cover this territory to some extent,” he continued. “My spin on ‘Ant-Man’ is very different than a straight superhero origin—and very much live action.”

Regardless of Pixar’s attachment or lack thereof, Wright said that he certainly plans to get back into the swing of things with “Ant-Man” as soon as time allows.

Hm, could this have been someone remarking in passing, “Ant-Man? Neat!”

At any rate, Wright, currently wrapping post on SCOTT PILGRIM, is still interested in a light-hearted live-action take on the tiny little superhero and is talking to Kevin Feige about it next week.

We don’t run every press release we get, but once in a while one tickles us, such as the announcement that STRANGE TALES #1, the indie-anthology from Marvel, has gone back to press Whatever the realities of these sell-outs, it’s cool that an alt.comix book is getting the treatment. The new printing will have a B&W version of the Paul Pope cover. Contributors include PAUL POPE, PETER BAGGE, MOLLY CRABAPPLE, JOHN LEAVITT, JUNKO MIZUNO, DASH SHAW, JAMES KOCHALKA, JOHNNY RYAN, MICHAEL KUPPERMAN, NICK BERTOZZI, NICHOLAS GUREWICH & JASON

Check out this list of the top 20 grossing films of the last decade.

Discuss. We’ll be back here tomorrow for a wrap-up of the 10 Days That Shook The Multiverse.

[Thanks to KW for the link.]

While the timing was not ideal, today’s Cup O’ Joe Q&A does give Joe Quesada a chance to tell what he can about the new Marvel. Such as his impressions of Bob Iger.

My initial feeling about Bob was that I could see right away why he’s been so successful and a visionary for the company. He’s incredibly smart, relaxed, personable and extremely likable. He was really interested in our group, our staff and what we did for a living and was looking to us, as the shepherds of our content, to continue doing what we do. He kept stressing several things, content is king, quality-quality-quality, it’s about people and that he wants Marvel to be Marvel in the same way that Pixar remains Pixar. We have our culture, it has been successful for us and he wants to preserve that. And at the end of the day, isn’t that the smart thing to do?

To that point, Bob was just here on Thursday and addressed the New York staff. It was a fantastic meeting as Bob took questions from staff members about the merger and what it would mean to Marvel. Once again, he stressed that he was looking to those of us here for guidance as to how to continue to run our business in the same successful manner it’s always been run.

There are many areas that Quesada can’t speak on, but this exchange with Kiel Phegley on the viability of the original graphic novel as a money making enterprise is interesting:

I’ve stated publicly on many occasions that I’ve never seen the benefits of original graphic novels. The economics just don’t work and are poor for both the publisher, retailer and the creator, especially during this Marvel regime when so much of what we do gets compiled into a collected edition anyway. While I would never discount doing one, I don’t see the outward benefits nor does the model work.

Just look at it from the eyes of the uninitiated, or the neophyte who walks into a comic shop or bookstore. When they decide on a hardcover, do you think it matters to them or that in some cases they even know that it’s an original graphic novel or a collection of a six-issue story?

Yet from an economic point of view it makes tons of sense to release the material in serialized form first because it then allows you to sell the product in several different formats. Also, from the point of view of a creator having their material reach the widest possible audience, the price of an original graphic novel can be too steep for many. That’s why you don’t see OGN’s selling in the hundreds of thousands of copies. Yet, if the story is strong enough, you can certainly serialize it and have that many eyeballs looking at your work in installments. At the end of the day, you can work for a year on a mini series that gets collected later or spend that entire same year on the OGN. I promise you, more people will read your mini series when it’s all said and done and that year of your life will have been spent in reaching the widest possible audience. And from an exposure and marketing point of view, you work for a year on a graphic novel, it comes out and you get one big promotional push and then it’s done. If it’s serialized, you get a push every month a new issue hits the stands and then another when it becomes a trade and then another for the hardcover.

While you can’t fault Quesada’s logic based on the business model that Marvel pursues, Disney’s publishing strategy includes many, many books that people work on for months and then promote once. We’d guess that as the merger evolves, the Disney pocketbook and resources would allow more experimentation in that direction, if suitable projects could be found.

With the comics industry being shaken up on a minutely basis, if you want to step away from your computer for a little bit, you’ll want to be back at 4 pm E.D.T./1 p.m. P.D.T. when Marvel e-i-c Joe Quesada’s account of the Disney acquisition and Iger site check — with details and anecdotes! — will be posted at Comic Book Resources.
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Top Five Most Iconic Kitty Pryde Covers via Comics Should Be Good!

• Bob Iger held a meeting with Marvel folks yesterday morning, and by all accounts, it went over very well. C.B. Cebulski tweeted :

“The essence of Marvel, that lives mainly in its comic books, will remain as is.” - Disney’s Bob Iger speaking at Marvel this morning.

And then, the usually unstoppable tweeter Cebulski….fell silent for the remainder of the day.

• Rich Johnston had an excellent piece on the European situation. Basically, Disney is an overseas powerhouse, and the biggest publisher in many European countries — however, its market share has been slipping of late. BUT, Marvel is distributed by Panini, a rival of Disney’s Italian office and a company that was once OWNED by Marvel but came out of the deal one of the biggest comics licensors in Europe. This one is going to be rough!

• It has been a busy week! I recorded two interviews yesterday! One with Mike Melia for the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer’s Art Beat blog.

And another with Scott Hinze for Fanboy Radio , who also nabbed Rich Johnston, Rick Marschall, and Media Professor, Dr. Derek Kopare of SMU’s Meadows School of the Arts.

via The New York Times:

Correction: May 31, 1998, Sunday A picture caption last Sunday with an article about the battle for control of the Marvel Entertainment Group misidentified a Marvel Comics character that visited the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in 1995. It was the Thing, not Iron Man.

Offered without comment.

Did you know that Marvel Comics is still publishing comics RIGHT THIS VERY MINUTE? It’s true! STRANGE TALES #1 — chock full of indie/Marvel goodness — goes on sale tomorrow, in fact, and here’s an exclusive preview of the Paul Pope Inhuman tale that resides within. Click for larger versions.

Thanks to Jody LeHeup and Arune Singh.

Technorati Tags: Paul Pope

Obviously, this is going to be a big story for, like, well…forever. Although Marvel has been acquired and batted around many times in its 70-year history, Disney is…the final redoubt. Once you enter the House of Mouse, you stay there, especially when they flew you out for $4 billion. The acquisition/merger is even being seen as a kick start for the entire economy — it’s certainly the biggest deal of the post Great Recession world. CNN writes:

But if Monday’s mergers are the start of a trend, that might be an even stronger signal from Corporate America that the worst could be over. “It has been a slow period for mergers and it’s not that different from other recessions. But we’re cautiously optimistic about the deal pipeline. Hopefully, Monday’s deals portend good things to come,” said Mike Shannon, co-manager with the Merger Fund, a mutual fund that invests in stocks involved in takeover situations.

Yet, it’s with a bit of sadness that we contemplate the end of Marvel the rebel, Marvel the renegade. Marvel, whose public stock offerings and financials were readily available at a moments notice. The Marvel that hired Michael Kupperman and Jason and Johnny Ryan. That Marvel may stay around for a while, but it is far less likely to be a priority under the guidance of the biggest IP corporation on Earth.

We’re still collating reactions and speculations, but here’s a little cheat sheet:

• Movies: The NY Times has details. Current deals will stay in place, thus Marvel’s remaining five picture distro deal with Paramount — but Disney will want its piece of that pie.

Over the long haul, Paramount has the most to lose, as Disney works Marvel into its system. Only last September, Paramount, a unit of Viacom, announced an agreement to distribute five Marvel films, including two “Iron Man” sequels, over several years.

Disney said it would honor Marvel’s studio contracts, but the goal was clearly to bring “Iron Man” and others in-house over time.

“We believe Viacom is unlikely to retain distribution rights to Marvel films after the agreement,” Michael C. Morris, a UBS analyst, wrote in a research note.

In addition, the piece points out how Marvel was having some difficulty financing its own films — obviously a deal with Disney will clear that problem right up.

• TV: Here things look golden, as

Disney XD, a new cable channel aimed at boys, already licenses 20 hours of programming a week from Marvel. As Disney seeks to expand that channel, particularly overseas, Marvel will play an even greater role.

Disney was hoping to snag more boys with Disney XD, but until Marvel came along wasn’t doing too hot. Marvel has lots of TV deals but they are more short term and Disney’s existing TV animation infrastructure will be a boon here.

• Theme parks: Universal’s Adventure Island may be on shaky ground here. Perhaps when existing licensing deals run out, the Hulk ride can be rebranded as the Jolly Green Giant? Obviously, Disney will want to get the Marvel characters into its domestic parks (internationally, Marvel does not have deals in place) but it could take a long time.

On the other hand….can you imagine what Disney’s Imagineering could do with Galactus and the Silver Surfer? WOW.

• Publishing: Well, that’s a good question. We’ll have more on that tomorrow.

For a more informed take on all the above, check out Marv Wolfman’s blog. Wolfman is a former Marvel E-i-C and is the founding comics editor for Disney Adventures, so he has a good take on the bigger picture:

Publishing. Well, that’s the big one, isn’t it? At least for us. Actually, only for us. The big ones in reality are movies, TV and video games. One major video game hit can make more money than 95% of all movies. But let’s talk comics. What division will that fall under? Publishing? Movies? Consumer Products? Something else? What happens to Marvel Comics will depend on which Disney company it falls under and as of 1:30PM, I don’t know the answer to that.

On Wall St. reaction has been surprisingly mixed. Some people think Disney paid way too much for Marvel. The Motley Fool, however shares our sadness, and Tom Beyer, a long time Marvel stock enthusiast, is downright mournful, titling his post Mickey Mouse Robs Spidey

I’m going to make a lot of money today, and I’m happy about that. But as it so often happens with the very best businesses, this one is being taken out too soon, at too cheap a price.

Another poster on this financial message board rivals a Newsarama poster for outrage:

This is like disgusting in many levels……..

Disney has always been in their entire existence to buy out the competition or aquire it and then ruin the foundations it was based on. Although it may be a “sweet deal” to everyone who has stock Marvel will forever be a Disney product and I will not buy anything from Marvel again. 4 Billion is “chump change” to Disney, Marvel will “lose” out again in making more money on their own!!!!!!

I think this is a “bad” idea for Marvel to “sell out” to Disney I mean the reason Marvel is doing well is because of us “kids” who are now in to their 40’s and 50’s who still appreciate the characters we grew up with and totally support all of the merchandise involved with Marvel heroes.

Also, although Disney is the world beater in terms of licensing IP might, as this story on Disney’s handling of the Muppets, from the NY Times shows sometimes, licenses fall out of fashion despite the best efforts of all involved.

Ms. Breier said recent focus groups indicated that some children could not even identify Kermit and Miss Piggy, much less ancillary characters like Fozzie Bear and Gonzo the Great. The wisecracking, irreverent Muppets (a combination of puppets and marionettes) also don’t fit that neatly in the Disney culture, as they differ from most of the company’s bedrock characters in two big ways: Kermit and coterie were primarily created to entertain adults, and they live in the real world. Henson was so insistent that they stand apart from his “Sesame Street” creations in personality and tone that he (misleadingly) titled the 1975 pilot that would boost their careers “The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence.”

The linkage on this story will soon over take the world, but here’s a few more to keep you going:

Brian Heater looks at how Marvel might profit from Disney’s online might

Both companies would do well to invest themselves more fully in the digital space, as print media continues to decline. While most diehard Marvel fans are no doubt frightened at the concept interference that might result at the hands of a company like Disney (the term “Disneyfication” was not coined in a vacuum), Marvel could work such an acquisition in its favor.

After all, Disney no doubt wants a return on the estimated $4 billion it’s shelling out to buy the comics publisher; it’s certainly in the company’s best interest to see Marvel succeed. What Disney brings to the table in such a deal are tremendous resources in a number of areas, not the least of which is the digital space. From ESPN.com to Club Penguin, The Disney Interactive Media Group is a tremendous undertaking with the knowledge of what it takes to succeed in the online space.

• A David Lewis makes with the photoshop, from which the above image was taken. More good stuff in the link.
• A prequel: Sorry, Marvel — Disney’s the Superhero Stock
• An animation observer’s take
• Craig Yoe rolls’ out Jack Kirby’s take on Mickey

Two from the indispensable John Jackson Miller,
A Marvel Comics Timeline

And a concise, educational history of the history of Marvel’s attempts to become their own studio. A must read to get more historical context.

To think this day started out with Future Mr. Beat shaking me and saying, “Heidi, you’ve got to get up! Disney bought Marvel!”

Quick thoughts off the top of my head:

§ Disney has always wanted strong boys properties. They rule the pink world with their princesses, but have had a historic weakness with older boys that they’ve tried to bridge. This is obviously a slam dunk for that.

§ Marvel has been rumored to be for sales for years and years, and Disney was a frequently mentioned potential buyer for the reason cited above. With Marvel making a ton of money and successfully launching their movie studio — and September the usual time for stock plunges, and the market still uncertain, there was never a better time than now.

§ After some tentative starts, Disney had become more enamored of the comics/graphic novel medium of late, including not only their licensing deals with Boom! for kids comics, and Ahmet Zappa’s Kingdom Comics line, but their own in-house comics division. However, the real gem at Marvel was the licensing.

§ Pure speculation: Although Disney has become a lot looser in recent time, launching non-character branded businesses like Hyperion and ESPN, their handling of licensed characters is still pretty traditional — and hugely hugely successful. Although Marvel had risen quickly to become the fourth largest brand worldwide, with $5.7 billion, they are dwarfed by the #1 Company, Disney, which logged $30 billion in licensing revenues.

§ UPDATE: Johanna Draper Calrson offers thoughts on the conference call.

We’ll keep updating this post with reactions as the biggest comics story of, well, the century ripples across the industry.

Yes, it’s true.

UPDATE: CBR has a breakdown of the conference call.

UPDATE: The Hollywood Reporter has a story with comments from Diseny head Bob Iger: Basically, Marvel’s current movie deals — including five more pictures with Paramount — will stay in place. Pixar’s John Lasseter met with Marvel top brass recently - the deal began to fall into place about two months ago — and it’s predicted that “Sparks will fly.” In a good way.

UPDATE: The New York Times suggests the obvious: We’ll soon be seeing Marvel’s characters at Disney Theme parks, and the story also underscores the holes Disney has to plug in:

The acquisition comes as Disney, with its vast theme park operations and television advertising business, has been struggling because of a lack of hit DVDs, soft advertising sales at ABC and drooping consumer spending at theme parks. Disney’s profit in the third quarter, which ended June 27, dropped 26 percent.

Over all, Disney’s net income fell to $954 million, or 51 cents a share, from $1.28 billion, or 66 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Revenue fell 7 percent, to $8.6 billion. Earnings per share for the current quarter included a one-cent restructuring charge related to an accounting gain.

UPDATE: Kingdom Comics’ Christian Beranek has issued a “No Comment” Statement.

Joe Quesada twitters this morning:

G’ morning, Marvel U! Welcome to this moment in history. Everyone relax, this is incredible news and all is well in the Marvel U.

I haven’t seen this much excitement in the Marvel halls since… well, ever!

Everybody take a deep breath, all your favorite comics remain unchanged and Tom Brevoort remains grouchy

If you’re familiar with the Disney/Pixar relationship, then you’ll understand why this is a new dawn for Marvel and the comics industry.

It feels like Christmas morning.

Update: Marvel Stock prices jumped 25% to $48 after the opening bell.

Building on its strategy of delivering quality branded content to people around the world, The Walt Disney Company /quotes/comstock/13*!dis/quotes/nls/dis (DIS 26.24, -0.60, -2.24%) has agreed to acquire Marvel Entertainment, Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!mvl/quotes/nls/mvl (MVL 48.73, +10.08, +26.08%) in a stock and cash transaction, the companies announced today.

Under the terms of the agreement and based on the closing price of Disney on August 28, 2009, Marvel shareholders would receive a total of $30 per share in cash plus approximately 0.745 Disney shares for each Marvel share they own. At closing, the amount of cash and stock will be adjusted if necessary so that the total value of the Disney stock issued as merger consideration based on its trading value at that time is not less than 40% of the total merger consideration.

Based on the closing price of Disney stock on Friday, August 28, the transaction value is $50 per Marvel share or approximately $4 billion.

An investor’s conference call is located here.:

Marvel freelancers are being told to call either C.B. Cebulski or David Bogart to answer questions .

We’ll keep updating this post with news and links.

Technorati Tags: WHAT THE F–?

Brian Chippendale is blogging.

This Brian Chippendale.

But he’s blogging about…DAREDEVIL.

Matt Murdock was the second most important character in this mega-issue. Master Izo has shown us his legacy and we are happy he invited us in. finally, why not a drunken kung fu master to brighten the day with mixed up morality. Marvel should have introduced this off-kilter warrior 35 years ago. Frank Miller(in his saner years) gave us Stick, Murdock’s mentor, and now Stick has a mentor of his own and we are all the wiser. Izo, the many-hundred year old ex-leader of the Hand. It seems that writers since Miller have been unconfident to push FM’s additions to the DD mythos till now(other than Electra). Even Turk gave us a glimpse of humanity in this issue. Tis a sad day that Brubaker has given us his best story and packed his bags all in one. Like Immortal Iron Fist, the subtle grasp of character and history may plummet with his departure. Michael Lark, i fear what follows, your solid composure illustrated a sordid dark gritty New York. A textured city. A balanced graceful Daredevil. I have i think 450 of these 500 issues in my possession. small treasure. Daredevil, Man without Fear, must I fearlessly collect the last 50 or so floppy format comics, from that ugly section of history known as issues 300-380. those cheap days better be over. DD 500 is a prize.

[Via Dan Nadel]

The ultimate Hulk vs Wolverine comic. Via The Top Shelf Blog:

We totally stole this from Glenn Hauman at ComicMix who got it from the FailBlog, but it has to be seen by all. It’s an ad for a water park in Korea, and what water parks have to do with Spider-Man shooting webbing out his ass is…one of the great mysteries. We would not like to go to a water park frequented by people who shoot things out their ass. Just sayin’.

Marvel launched its first all-original downloadable motion comic on iTunes yesterday, and according to the press release you are about to read, it was a hit, debuting at #1 on the Television-Animation chart and #2 on the Top Television Episodes chart. Created by Brian Bendis and Alex Maleev, the project certainly has the creative pedigree to be competitive. Could this be yet another venue for the Marvel empire to expand?

Official PR below:

Marvel is pleased to announce that the first episode of Spider-Woman Motion Comic has conquered iTunes, debuting as the #1 episode on the Television-Animation sales chart and as the #2 episode on the Top Television Episodes sales chart. The New York Times Best-Selling team of Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev (Halo Uprising) present Marvel’s first ever original motion comic as Spider-Woman embarks on a new mission that’ll change the Marvel Universe forever! With national coverage from MTV to the LA Times, everyone’s talking about the first episode of the Spider-Woman Motion Comic, available now on iTunes!

“To wake up this morning and see Spider-Woman ranked so high on the iTunes charts is crazy insane to me,” gushed Brian Michael Bendis. “Thanks to all the readers, and especially the motion comics first timers, who tried us out and than hit the subscribe button. To quote the Stan: you ain’t seen nothing yet!”

“I’m thrilled to see fans responding so enthusiastically to Marvel’s first motion comic,” said Alex Maleev. “Thanks to all the fans who’ve purchased Spider-Woman and I can’t wait till you see what’s next!”

John Dokes, Vice President, Sales and Marketing- Digital Media said, “Everyone at Marvel is proud of the Spider-Woman motion comic and this superb launch has exceeded all our expectations. Brian and Alex, have re-energized the geek in me—you have to see this for yourself!”

Fans can purchase the first episode of Spider-Woman on iTunes here now! For more information on motion comics please visit Marvel.com

at www.marvel.com/motioncomics

According to the NY Post, the immensely complicated and expensive — $45 million — Spider-Man Broadway musical, has shut down production because it ran out of money. Directed by Julie Taymor with music by Bono and The Edge, the musical — entitled SPIDER-MAN: TURN OFF THE DARK — promised to be a spectacle like nothing ever launched on Broadway. Evan Rachel Wood and Alan Cumming had been cast, and the show was set to begin in February, 2010. But…

Last week, production crews at both the Hilton Theatre and the scene shop where the show was being built were put on “hiatus” because the producers ran out of money. Assistants in the scene shop “ran to the bank to cash their checks because they weren’t sure they’d clear,” a source says.Now comes word that the actors have been released from their contracts, with no incentive (i.e., money) to hang around waiting for the production to get back on track.

Meanwhile, ticket agents are desperately trying to get refunds for deposits from theater parties that booked early previews.

Author Michael Riedel blames inexperienced producers — Sony, Marvel and lawyer David Garfinkle — and Taymor’s grand but hard-to-pull-off vision for a Cirque du Soleil-like extravaganza. Although some still think she show will open February 25th as promised, the financial tale is grim: the show would take five years of sold out houses every time to just break even.

Perhaps more to the point, there is a letter in the comments from one J. Jonah Jameson:

So Spider-Man, a well-known criminal mastermind, makes off with $45 million dollars and all you want to do is blame the producer of a stage show?!? Wake up and arrest this web-slinging menace before he strikes again!!! Oh, and Bono, how about a front page interview with the Bugle about how Spider-Man pulled off this heist??

Marvel becomes a septuagenarian today, and several bookstores and comics shops nationwide are presenting special guests and signings. Check out Marvel’s website for more info, and click on the jump for store locations:

To celebrate its 70th anniversary, Marvel Comics will commemorate the milestone event on Tuesday, August 11th with special anniversary parties taking place around the world! Over 500 comic shop retailers will be hosting parties to celebrate the comic book giant’s 70 year history from 1939 to today.  These events will be offering: early on sale release of The Marvels Project #1, an all new series detailing the origins of super heroes in the Marvel Universe by the creative team behind the worldwide sensation The Death Of Captain America; exclusive limited edition variants, a remastered version of the very first comic Marvel published, Marvel Comics #1, special sales, and more.   To download a full list of retailers participating in Marvel 70th Anniversary parties, visit www.marvel.com/70thparty!  All retailer parties begin at 9pm local time.
 
In addition, at 7:00 PM local time, Barnes & Noble will be hosting five in-store events in Los Angeles, New York, Atlanta, Portland and Seattle, with appearances by some of the biggest names in the comic book world, hosting Q&A sessions and a chance to get your favorite comics autographed.  Also appearing at these events are some of the most beloved characters from the Marvel Universe.

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By Paul O’Brien

After a quiet May, things pick up a bit this month. The big event of the month, of course, was CAPTAIN AMERICA #600. Meanwhile, Dark Reign continued to sprawl over the rest of the Marvel Universe. The more notable tie-ins include WOLVERINE’s relaunch as DARK WOLVERINE, and the start of a crossover between UNCANNY X-MEN and DARK AVENGERS.

It’s a quiet month for new titles, though, with only one new book - the fortnightly X-MEN FOREVER.

Once again, Marvel had the largest share of the North American direct market by a comfortable margin. They beat DC by 51% to 29% in units, and 45% to 27% in dollars.

Thanks as always to ICV2.com for permission to use these figures.

2.  CAPTAIN AMERICA
06/04  Captain America #27  -  36,212
06/05  Captain America #7   -  47,160
06/06  Captain America #19  -  47,315
06/07  Captain America #27  -  99,108
=====
06/08  Captain America #39  -  79,387  (  +0.0%)
07/08  Captain America #40  -  79,317  (  -0.0%)
08/08  Captain America #41  -  85,035  (  +7.2%)
09/08  Captain America #42  -  75,574  ( -11.1%)
10/08  Captain America #43  -  72,405  (  -4.2%)
11/08  Captain America #44  -  75,493  (  +4.3%)
12/08  Captain America #45  -  71,186  (  -5.7%)
01/09  Captain America #46  -  73,184  (  +2.8%)
02/09  Captain America #47  -  62,850  ( -14.1%)
03/09  Captain America #48  -  62,108  (  -1.2%)
04/09  Captain America #49  -  63,874  (  +2.8%)
05/09  Captain America #50  -  72,708  ( +13.8%)
06/09  Captain America #600 - 112,287  ( +54.4%)
                               6 mnth  ( +57.7%)
                               1 year  ( +41.4%)
                               2 year  ( +13.3%)
                               3 year  (+137.3%)
                               4 year  (+138.1%)
                               5 year  (+210.1%)

Ah, comics. Where else would you find consecutive issues numbered #50 and #600? (When Marvel use a number, it means just what they choose it to mean, neither more nor less.)

Anyway, this was plainly Marvel’s biggest release of the month, promoted heavily (if elliptically) as a book that retailers really might want to consider ordering in very large quantities indeed. Marvel even offered to ship the book early, to tie in with expected media coverage.

Evidently, a lot of retailers took the bait. However, the media coverage turned out to be more concerned with the upcoming REBORN series. Now, it’s worth bearing in mind that the Diamond chart only deals with sales to retailers - it doesn’t tell us how many copies were sold on to customers. With an established title, the retailers should be able to make a fairly educated guess; with a book like this, the room for error is a lot higher.

A second printing of issue #50 adds another 5,780 to its sales; as usual, they’re added to the number above.
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Jim Milliot at PW summarizes Marvel’s latest financials, and they back up the idea of a softer 2nd quarter for comics publishing in general:

Publishing revenue at Marvel Entertainment was flat in the second quarter, slipping from $31.8 million to $31.7 million. Operating income fell more noticeably, dropping 6.8%, to $10.9 million. Lower level of high margin advertising and custom publishing sales were cited as the reason for the decline in earnings. For the first six months of 2009, sales in the publishing segment fell 1.4%, to $57.5 million, and operating income declined 17.1%, to $17.9 million. The company said it expects the publishing segment to finish 2009 with revenue between $115 million and $120 million; in 2008 sales were $125.4 million.