Peter David's Blog, page 74

Here is how YOU can Help Peter

But first the daily Peter David Update: He was able with assistance to get up and sit in a chair where he spent most of the day. He worked with his various physical therapy and occupational therapy personnel on continuing to strengthen his arm and leg. The eye seems to be correcting itself a little but that’s going to be looked at in rehab as to what they can do besides a stylish eye-patch. He also revised an X-Factor script for his editor at Marvel, which I think made him feel good/more normal than he has been feeling.

Remember the waiting game? Well we MIGHT be moving him to his rehab facility but it is not a done deal because they don’t like some of the markers in various pieces of blood work. It may be an aberration and they are going to test him six ways from Sunday this morning to give us a go or no go on his going to rehab today. We have all the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle in place except the Doctor’s OK to go.

Hard to believe that one week ago all this started.

Now HOW YOU CAN HELP

Even though we have health insurance we have co-pays and the like. And since this stroke fell at the end of the year, we have all the new co-pays to deal with (I can honestly see those of you who have had to deal with this nodding your heads). And there are things that the insurance company just won’t cover (more head nodding). So we are at the beginning of what is going to be a very expensive year even though we are only 4 days in.

The most direct way is to buy his books from Crazy 8 Press or from Amazon or Barnes and Noble websites. These are books that he gets the money from directly and the most per book.

His currently Crazy 8 Books are

Pulling Up Stakes Part 1

Pulling Up Stakes Part 2 (Brand new)

This is one novel broken into two pieces. This is the cover blurb

Sick of vampire books? Movies? TV shows? Yeah. So are we. Sick of the entire unlife of vampires? Yeah. So is Vince Hammond. Unfortunately, Vince is in it up to his (wait for it) neck. Because Vince is a young vampire hunter who lives with his vampire hunter mother in an entire community of vampire hunters, who in turn are part of a cult of vampire hunters going back all the way to the French Revolution, which many believe to be an uprising of the poor against the rich but was actually a massive purging of vampires from the French nobility (hence the guillotine)

The Camelot Papers

A powerful ruler who’s considered by many to be simple-minded and vacuous and has serious father issues. A no-nonsense, polarizing woman who favors pants suits and pursues dubious agendas involving social needs. A remarkably magnetic leader of men with a reputation as a skirt-chaser. A scheming, manipulative adviser who is constantly trying to control public perceptions. A man seen as the next, great hope for the people, except there are disputes over his background and many contend he’s not what he appears to be.

George W? Hillary and Bill? Karl Rove? Obama?

Try Arthur Pendragon, Guinevere, Lancelot, Merlin, and Galahad.

Whatever you think of the state of today’s politics, The Camelot Papers shows you just how little matters have changed in the past thousand years or so. The Camelot Papers presents a fresh perspective on Arthurian legend by using modern day sensibility and combining it with a classic tale to bring a new insight into iconic characters.

The Hidden Earth Saga of which there are two published and the third is in the works.

Darkness of the Light (book 1 of the Hidden Earth saga)

Height of the Depths (Book 2 of the Hidden Earth saga)

These are science fiction mixed with mythological creatures and the fate of the Universe hangs in the balance. Big epic sweeping books with those great characters that Peter is famous for writing.

There are Print on Demand for all these books if you want a paper copy rather than electronic.

More HOW YOU CAN HELP

If you already have these or can’t purchase them for whatever reason, you can still help us a lot by getting word out all over the Internet about how they can help Peter. I am asking every blogger and people who have access to an audience to spread the word.

The more we sell of these books, the easier it will be for us to pay the bills as they start to pour in.

Buying his other books does help but that is very long term and isn’t much per books but it does help especially the Marvel graphic novels he has written.

I am talking to Glenn about a donate button or something but we don’t have the details worked out and I really want to get the ball rolling on getting this information out while Peter is fresh in everyone’s mind.

We do need your help to help him. He is working very hard at getting back to all that he loves to do and we are trying to ease his mind about whatever we can ease his mind about so he can do it faster.

We are now off to the Hospital to see what the verdict is about his moving today. I will update this when we know what is going on.

I am grateful to everyone who has helped or is going to help Peter.

I really Don’t Like the Waiting Game

Since the initial crises has passed and we now have just about everyone in the know (It is interesting reading e-mails from people that Peter has a business relationship with and they don’t know what is going on), we are now in the what is next portion for this saga.

What is next is in patient rehabilitation. We are working on the where, how, and who and still awaiting the when. And they can’t give us an exact when because a number things have to be in place and Peter’s vitals have to be consistently at a certain level before they will even think of releasing him. Until that happens, we are in a holding pattern.

Where is going to be dependent on the Insurance company. (You honestly don’t know how many times I have thanked G-d that we have insurance although this is going to be expensive endeavor no matter what kind of insurance one has) The Insurance company is deciding what they are going to pay for. We have two possibilities that both take our insurance. I am waiting to hear what the decision was from that to figure out the next step.

So we are in the waiting game for now.

Peter is doing better every day. Yesterday he was able to lift up his right arm by himself and the fingers are coming back a little more every day. He can stand up but still can’t walk and the standing only lasts for so long. His face is even more normal than the day before. And he sat up in a chair for the first time since Saturday which he was very happy about and I was thrilled. The more he can get up, the sooner he gets out and onto the next step of the journey.

Keep those good thoughts coming. Peter says it is both gratifying and humbling about the number of people who are praying for them and keeping him in their thoughts and he appreciates and is thankful to each and every one of you.

Caroline has gone into stoic mode and is holding up rather well all things considered.

My sense of time is shot. I had to look at the computer to see what day it was. Time seems to have expanded and contracted all at the same time.

I am grateful for progress on so many fronts.

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How do you tell a 10 year old that her father might never be the same?

New Years Day was again one of both ups and downs. The downs really sucked as we learn about Peter’s health and what is in his future. Nothing life threating however there will be major changes in how Peter is going to have to live the rest of his life.

The ups may seem minor but it is pretty big in my book. When Peter was asked to stick out his tongue after the stroke, it pointed to the right rather significantly. Today it was almost back to the middle. Also the droop on the right side of his face is not as pronounced. And best of all, he could grip my fingers tight enough that I could lift his hand off the bed which is an improvement from yesterday. I’ll take my wins where I can get them these days.

The big change was bringing Caroline into the loop as to what happened to her father and what the future held. How do you tell a very empathic and sensitive 10 year old that the father that she left at the Magic Kingdom is not the same father she is returning to?

It wasn’t easy but I did. I explained about the stroke and what had happened and, between the cascading tears, let her ask me questions. It was a long ride to Jacksonville trying to figure out how to tell her what was going on and a long ride back as I was driving so I couldn’t hold my sobbing daughter. She came up with a crazy theory that it was her fault because she wanted to come down to Florida, which I quashed quickly. I pointed out that even if we had just gone home from Atlanta, this would have happened sooner or later. Eventually she cried herself to sleep as I tried not to have tears fill my eyes as well since I was driving.

We got to the Hospital and I took her up to her father’s room. She stood in the room looking at him a little stunned. Ariel was sitting next to him and asked if Caroline wanted to sit next to Daddy. She nodded and fought back the tears that were welling in her eyes. Peter explained to Caroline what had happened and what he could and couldn’t do. Ariel explained how to stimulate the right hand and help Daddy with his “kung-fu grip”. Caroline was trying not to cry but Peter asked if she wanted a hug she nodded yes and as Peter hugged her the flood gates opened. I couldn’t understand half of what she was saying but she was pouring out all her fears to him. Peter told her that he understood and he was scared too. There were more hugs and assurances given to her.

In the end she understood what had happened and what was going to happen next. She is not happy about it but understands that this is all to get her Daddy back to her so they can do things together like they always did.

Since the blackout dates are past except Magic Kingdom, I took the girls to Disney Hollywood studios (at Peter’s insistence that we get out of there for a bit) and we rode Star Tours a couple of time and then build their father a Skippy the Jedi Droid with a pirate hat (because to solve the double vision, Peter has to wear an eye patch).

I am grateful for every improvement that Peter has shown since the stroke.

Happy New Year 2013

Peter update (I figure I will be doing these once a day for a while):

One of the scary things about stroke is that things can get worse before they get better. There is the initial stroke and then what I would best describe as aftershocks as the brain works through the trauma it is experiencing. So there can be a bit of a downward before we begin any upward. And with any good luck we are past the bottom of this and working our way back up the hill.

Peter was much more alert when we arrived yesterday morning. His eyes looked better even though he still has the double vision in the right. He seemed much more himself. He was not tiring as easily during the morning.

During the day we got both some good news and some bad news. We had some movement forward and a little back but this is totally normal for someone who has suffered the brain injury that Peter has suffered.

However before midnight we got some great news or rather saw some great news. He was able to grasp and squeeze Ariel’s hand and my hand. This is great because 24 hours earlier he could do neither. He says the most frustration thing about all this is that he can feel the limbs and he knows they are there but he can’t get them to agree to move for him when HE wants them to. He isn’t in pain just extremely frustrated.

Shana, Gwen, and Ariel have been great through all this. Shana is taking care of Caroline which frees me up to take care of Peter. Gwen is helping with all kinds of things including some information gathering that we needed. Ariel is being a rock in front of her dad even though she is very scared inside. She has been very helpful.

We all agree that Caroline is going to have to be brought into the loop sooner rather than later. We are working out how that is going to happen. She is coming back to Orlando today and she will see her Daddy.

We are still in a hold on what is happening when next.

Again keep the good energy coming. He is coming back but it is going to be a long road ahead.

I am grateful that he started the New Year by being able to hold my hand.

In the Blink of an Eye

As stated yesterday on his web log, Peter had a stroke. So we are at the beginning of what is going to be a long road. We have a diagnosis, which is a small stroke in the Pons section of his brain. Now we have to figure out where we go from here and how we get Peter back to what he was before the stroke. We know that a total recovery is slim because damage to the brain doesn’t go away but the brain can be trained to work around the damage and give Peter back what he has lost.

I am dealing with a lot of woulda, coulda, and shoulda issues right now. But we are where we are and we are working out a plan of recovery.

What happened was that we were in Disney Hollywood Studios having just had lunch at the Prime Time Café. We were walking to the front gate because we were off to Animal Kingdom to see a friend of ours perform in the Finding Nemo Show. Peter had been tired and also not sleeping well the past week or so. He had been taking naps in the afternoon to catch up on the sleep that was eluding him at night. He told me that he had blurry vision in his right eye. The way he described it to me sounded like an ocular migraine so we took him back to the Hotel and went onto Animal Kingdom. We got back and he was working on his next novel. We decided to go to dinner but he was still having a slight vision problem so I drove.

While at dinner I thought his speech was a bit slurred. He put it down to fatigue and his face always looked like that. That morning he couldn’t get his right leg to move correctly. He told us later that he had gotten up because he couldn’t sleep and tried to type and couldn’t get his hand to work correctly but he didn’t want to wake me up and alarm me. I called my mom with the laundry list of things. My mother said get him to a hospital NOW. We loaded him into the car and took him to Celebration Hospital at the recommendation of some friends.

Celebration Hospital did a great job of getting him in and starting treatment. His blood pressure was scary scary high so their first job was to get it back to closer to normal. They did some tests and a CAT scan to check for a stroke. The CAT scan didn’t show anything but they were going with their observations and the evidence that his blood work was not good and getting worse. The decision was made to transfer him down to Florida Hospital in downtown Orlando where they could do an MRI and some other tests Also Florida hospital has the best cardiac unit and they were worried that he had a heart attack or a cardiac episode (having told Peter that he might be having a cardiac episode, he put on his best comic guy voice and said, ”Worst Episode Ever.” So Ariel got to take “ride in an ambulance” off her bucket list as she went down to the hospital with Peter while I dealt with getting us out of our hotel room.

So I am betting that in this point of the narrative you, if you know our family, are asking where is Caroline while this is all going on. She was and is in Jacksonville with her sister and Peter’s eldest daughter, Shana. Currently we haven’t told her what is going on but that is going to change in the next couple of days. So she is having fun with big sister and her playmates in Jacksonville. Shana has been a rock in all this and a champ about taking care of her little sister while all this has been going on. I have been able to concentrate on Peter right now.

He went into the Florida Hospital in the Cardiac Care Unit as they try to ascertain what exactly happened. They did an MRI about midnight along with some other tests. They came to the conclusion that it was not a heart attack but a stroke and moved him to the neurology unit where he is now.

As he stated, he has lost most of the use of his right arm, his right leg is incredibly weak, the vision in his right eye is blurry, and the right side of his face is drooping slightly. But the brain is there with all its quips and quick retorts. He has had the nurses laughing a lot.

Today we figure out what the next step is and where it is going to happen. Tonight the New Year Begins and for us it is a very different beginning than we thought we were going to be having.

Thank you everyone for your good wishes, prayers and kind words. They do help. And BIG thank you to our Orlando buddies who have taken us into their houses and helped us deal with what is going on.

Continue to think good thoughts for Peter. This is not going to be easy for him or us but we will get through this together.

I am grateful that my husband is still alive.

I have had a Stroke

We were on vacation in Florida when I lost control of the right side of my body. I cannot see properly and I cannot move my right arm or leg. We are currently getting the extent of the damage sorted out and will report as further details become clarified.

PAD

“The TruBatman Show,” Part 1

Originally published July 10, 1998, in Comics Buyer’s Guide #1286

“The TruBatman Show”

We have a world that is possessed of infinite capability for amusement. Our people can sit for hours, even days, wrapped in worlds of holovids and endless possibilities. And I, one of the greatest scientists of our age—have decided that that is wrong. That we have lost touch with reality. Because we have become so enamored with fiction—we have lost sight of the simple, enriching joy of fact. This was my first, greatest concern when I embarked on this grand adventure which has captivated millions. We wanted it—and we needed it…

Bruce Wayne sat at the edge of the lake, looking down at the sky. It was a perfect, cloudless day as reflected in the lake’s flat surface. Bruce stared at his own image for a time: the straight black hair, the squared-off jaw. When he was a child, he would try and move faster than his own shadow or reflection, endeavoring to see if he could trick it somehow. Now Bruce raised his hands and clapped them together with his reflection. Nope. Still hadn’t managed it.

Then he heard something from overhead: The telltale whistling of something falling. He looked up and saw a plummeting white form, apparently a goose. It was coming directly at him, and Bruce backrolled out of the way as the goose crashed heavily to the ground, feathers flying from the impact.

Bruce crouched down and examined the bird’s carcass. Something seemed off somehow, although he wasn’t quite sure what it could possibly be. He lifted the goose’s head, stared into its eyes…

“What the—?” he murmured.

There appeared to be some sort of apparatus in the goose’s eye. With slight trepidation, Bruce touched the eye. It was hard and cool, and Bruce started tapping on it with more confidence. Yes, it was definitely a mechanism of some sort. He pried at the eye and it came out in his hand. A clear lens peered out at him.

“A camera lens?” he said in surprise. He hadn’t been entirely sure what to expect, but it certainly hadn’t been that. A quick inspection of the goose revealed what he had already surmised, and that was that the entire creature was mechanical. It was a remarkably sophisticated device. This wasn’t some limited-action mechanoid like one would find at the average theme park. The goose, when it had been operational, would have been capable of flight, of simulating life down to the smallest detail—everything.

What fascinated Bruce beyond what the creature would have been able to do was the materials with which it was made. It wasn’t possible to be absolutely sure just with a preliminary glance, but it seemed to him that the goose was constructed not from Earthly design or materials. Then he noticed what appeared to be some sort of label on the inside, but it was with lettering that was not even remotely Terran. Bruce was quite sure of that; he had passing familiarity with practically every language spoken on the planet, and these letters were completely foreign to him.

Nonetheless, they looked—familiar.

Alfred was clearly rather startled when Bruce entered the Batcave minutes later, the mechanical goose slung under his arm. “I was unaware that you were bringing a guest for dinner, sir,” he commented.

Bruce didn’t answer, instead spreading the mechanical goose upon an examining table. He sliced it completely open to get a better, unobstructed view of its innards. As he did so, he pulled out a miniature camera and took several close-up photos of the unusual lettering.

“May I ask, sir, what is the purpose of this?” Alfred inquired with his customary politeness.

“I think,” Bruce said, “this thing was spying on me. But I’m not sure what it is, or where it came from.”

“It seems a waste of your time and talent to fiddle with it any longer than necessary, sir,” Alfred said. “In fact, you may simply want to put it aside…”

Bruce wasn’t listening. Instead he jacked the camera into the computer, downloaded the images into the database and ran a comparison. “I know that lettering,” he muttered. “I wonder if it could be…”

A moment later, the computer gave him his answer. “I was right. It’s Kryptonian. I’ve seen enough of it the times I was at Superman’s fortress.”

“Perhaps we should bring the item to Superman. Better still—I shall arrange for him to have it immediately.” Alfred started to gather the assorted parts. “There are several excellent shipping companies who will bring it to him quite promptly…”

“Alfred, what’s the matter with you? Put it down; I’m not done.” Bruce was busy running the lettering through a decryption program.

Suddenly Tim Drake charged into the Batcave. “Bruce, the signal. The signal’s in the sky. We’re needed.”

Under ordinary circumstances, this announcement would have been more than enough to pull Bruce away from whatever he was doing. But as he started to rise from his chair in front of the computer, he caught something out of the corner of his eye. He saw Alfred look…

…relieved.

Slowly he turned and fixed Alfred with a steady gaze. He was about to say something—but then thought better of it. “Tim, we’ll head out in a few minutes.”

“But Bruce!” There was surprising urgency in Tim’s voice. He didn’t sound excited as he normally did. He sounded—nervous.

“I said, in a few minutes.” He turned back to the computer…

…and to his astonishment—it had frozen. All work had come to a halt.

“Oh dear,” Alfred said sadly. “The computer seems to have developed a… Bat-bug. I shall endeavor to attend to it while you respond to the signal.”

Bruce tried to restart the computer, but it resisted his efforts. He let out a sigh, then reached for a pad and pencil. “Have to do this the old-fashioned way. I remember some of the letters—should be able to get some of this worked out…”

“Bruce!” Tim was pulling at his shoulder. “Will you c’mon! We’ve got to…”

“I think it’s the Joker, sir,” Alfred said gravely.

But Bruce wouldn’t be distracted from his chore. It wasn’t as if Kryptonian was a direct letter-for-letter code, corresponding to any particular Earth language, but there were some root similarities to some of the more ancient forms of writing. Bruce had always wondered whether there weren’t some early Kryptonian colonists or explorers, centuries agone, who had come to Earth for who-knew-what-purpose. Kryptonians who might have provided the basis for assorted myths of mighty strong men. Perhaps the titan who brought fire to mankind had done so with heat vision from his eyes. Who would ever know for sure?

After a few minutes of trying assorted letter combinations and good old fashioned wracking-his-brains, Bruce stared at the paper, covered with cross-outs and scribbles. “It doesn’t make sense,” he said.

“What’s it say, Bruce?”

“It says,” and Bruce looked at them with narrowed eyes, “One Goose—Property of The TruBatman Show.”

“It’s a joke. That’s got to be it,” Tim said, looking to Alfred for confirmation. “That’s all. It’s just a joke of some weird kind.”

“Really.” Bruce rose from his chair and stared thoughtfully at Tim and Alfred.

“Come on, Bruce, let’s get going.”

“All right,” he said after a moment’s thought, “but after we’ve attended to whatever we’re needed for—I think I’ll be doing some further examination of this ‘joke.’ ”

We had no one but ourselves to blame, I suppose. We had trained him to be The World’s Greatest Detective. We should have realized that, given the slightest opportunity—he would start to see through it. There had been close calls before—most notably the Bat-mite nightmare when that uncontrolled pest got into the middle of the show. But this—this mechanical failure had brought us to our greatest crisis. And it was going to get worse—unless we could stop it.

—To be Continued—

Peter David, writer of stuff, can be written to at Second Age, Inc., P.O. Box 239, Bayport, NY 11705.

 

Merry Christmas the 2012 Edition

I woke up on my own about 6:30 and went to check on Caroline who was awake and ready to get up. We snuck quietly downstairs to check out the tree. Ariel joined us shortly thereafter.

Last night we performed the rituals that I have done since I can remember.

This morning we open presents, eat eggs benedict, and enjoy being in each other’s company.

Later we are going to go see Les Miserables with my sister Sheila. Or at least that is the current plan.

This evening I will be visiting with friends and catching up on people’s lives that I see only a few times a year and they don’t blog or use social media much.

Tomorrow I am going to see my brother and his family and then we are off to Florida to see Shana and a few other folks as well.

There is a comfort in knowing what the next couple of days are going to be and what will be happening. There will be adventure and surprises along the way with not knowing how things are going to play out but that is part of life.

Right now I am watching my daughter read her new Monster High book and, occasionally, share passages with me that she find very funny. She is curled up on the couch like I use to do with my new book(s) as Christmas enjoying herself. And the circle continues.

I wish you all a good holiday and a pleasant day.

I am grateful for my mother’s Eggs Benedict. It is really really good.

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The Illusion of Change

Originally published July 3, 1998, in Comics Buyer’s Guide #1285

“The illusion of change.”

That’s what Stan Lee always said was the secret to Marvel storytelling. Make it seem as if things were changing in the life of a character… but, in point of fact, have them remain exactly the same. It’s a terrific theory, and creators and publishers still abide by it.

However, at this point it may have led to a readership that is so jaded that it’s hard to convince readers that anything matters anymore.

There is, of course, something to be said for maintaining the illusion. Why commit oneself to genuine change when by simply pretending to change things, one doesn’t have to risk finding oneself stuck with a character who has lost those elements that made him appealing in the first place.

Look, for example, at Peter Parker.

Originally, he started out as a student with girl problems, a sickly aunt, and money difficulties. (Although why a young man so brilliant couldn’t make money selling designs for his web-shooter to makers of–oh, I dunno–mountain climbing equipment is completely beyond me. Actually, I do recall an issue where he tried to sell his web-fluid adhesive, except that the people he went to couldn’t see any use for something that was only a temporary adhesive. As if Peter couldn’t have come up with a way to make it permanent.)

Over the years, Stan and Steve (and later John) put him through changes. But when you get down to it, they satisfied the concept of illusionary change. Peter went from high school to college… but he was still a student. Betty Brant and Liz Allen gave way to Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson, and nemesis Flash Thompson stepped aside for nemesis Harry Osborn. Otherwise, though, he was pretty much the same guy. Sure, he got a motorcycle, which was the ultimate in cool… but he wound up having to sell it, thereby bringing the money problems back to the forefront. It was evolution, but 360 degrees’ worth. Same old Spider-Man, same old Peter Parker, same old problems at the core.

That was why there was so much internal resistance to the concept of Peter Parker getting married. “It can never be undone,” said one spider-writer. “He can never be single again. If we kill off Mary Jane, he’s a widower. If they get divorced, he’s a divorced man. Spider-Man will be irretrievably older in the eyes of the fans.”

It was ironic, then, that the spearhead behind this permanent, non-illusory change in Peter Parker’s status was none other than the champion of the illusion of change, namely Stan. Stan became enamored of the notion of Peter getting married both in the comic and in the comic strip, and more or less steamrolled it through by going public with it before any of the powers-that-be could talk him out of it. Me, I thought it was a nifty idea, but no one ever accused me of being excessively smart.

By giving Peter Parker a life-mate–a loving babe and successful model who accepted his dual identity–he was so permanently and irretrievably away from his roots as nebbish and loser that Marvel felt he had totally lost whatever identification the younger fans might have with him. The illusion had been shattered. Consequently, the Powers-That-Be felt that extraordinary measures should be taken.

Their feet inevitably set on the road to personal growth, those self-same feet became cold. So they did the comic book equivalent of cracking open an odometer and rolling back the mileage: They came up with the Spider-Man clone. Free of any of the baggage the character had accrued since the death of Gwen, he was supposed to reconnect the audience to Spider-Man. The problem is, all writing is a magic trick. You try to pull fast ones on the audience so that they don’t look too closely. In this case, it was easy to cast Marvel as Bullwinkle, announcing his intention to pull a rabbit out of his hat, and the fans as a skeptical Rocky loudly proclaiming, “That trick never works!” And it didn’t.

Because fans don’t like to be treated as if they’re stupid.

That’s the problem with illusion of change.

There are all sorts of shades of philosophies in between, I would surmise, but if we take two schools of thoughts as the basic extremes: There are those creators who believe that anything goes as long as it’s not too completely out of left field and as long as it tells a good story. There are others who believe that any change should be transitory, serving only to provide a story arc but otherwise leaving matters exactly as they are. The latter mindset might be ideal when dealing with mainstream superheroes, since these characters are the properties of large companies and have to be kept nice and spiffy for whoever might come next. What becomes problematic is mustering any continued fan interest in the fates of these characters, because it’s becoming perceived that there is no fate that is irrevocable, no development that cannot be undone inside of twenty-two pages.

Look at Alan Moore’s take on Swamp Thing, for example. As the character was conceived, he was a muck-encrusted Alec Holland. Moore changed that irrevocably. Alec Holland, said Moore, was dead. Gone. Had been for a real long time. A writer at the time commented that he didn’t see the point of it; that it seemed a simple sleight of hand that had no real meaning. He mistook genuine change for the illusion of change, and consequently didn’t see why everyone was making a big deal about it since it just seemed business as usual.

Except it wasn’t. Swamp Thing thought he was alive; he wasn’t. He was a ghost with delusions of being alive. Moore inflicted Swamp Thing with a terminal illness–death itself–thus allowing him to take the character through Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’s arc of reaction to terminal illness: Shock, fear, denial, anger, bargaining, despair and, finally, acceptance. Acceptance of not only his death, but of his new “life.” It was only upon that final acceptance that Swamp Thing was led to a sort of resurrection as an elemental force.

The thing is, Moore was so thorough in his presentation of the material that there was simply no going back. Fans didn’t read those stories wondering how the status quo was going to be restored; they read them knowing that they were seeing the inevitable and permanent evolution of the character, and wondered about all the possibilities that Moore was presenting.

Contrast that with virtually any other of the major superheroes, and you see the difference. The illusion becomes plain. All too often, the work of producing superhero titles harkens back to Paddy Chayesfsky’s newsman in Network proclaiming, “We are in the boredom-killing business.” Batman’s back breaks, but we know he’ll be back. Superman dies, or becomes an energy being, but we know that–sooner or later–he’ll be back the way he’s always been. Fans perceive the changes simply as an array of gimmicks concocted to maintain interest in characters who have as much growth potential as Garfield.

The illusion of change has raised the threshold of what will grab and hold an audience. Genuine change becomes extremely problematic because in order to make it really stick, you have to do something drastic just to get the reader’s attention. So Hal Jordan goes completely and indisputably nuts and winds up getting killed off. That was no illusion; it really happened (or at least it was as real as fiction ever is.) It outraged fans beyond imagining. But at least it wasn’t as badly executed as the Spider-clone, because Hal Jordan hasn’t been the only holder of the power ring for decades, so at least there’s some precedent for bringing in a new Green Lantern.

In the pages of the Hulk, I walked a fine line. I made changes in the character that were, to my mind, permanent, but they were also illusional. I knew that I would never return the character to the mindless, “Hulk smash” Hulk because I found that limiting and simply not inspirational for storytelling. However, none of the changes that I made were irrevocable. Indeed, the last irrevocable change to the Hulk’s status was made by John Byrne, when he married off Bruce Banner and Betty (placing Bruce in the “can’t ever be single again” category that Peter Parker fell into.) In my penultimate issue of the title, I knocked off Betty. And by today’s standards, even that change was illusional; I had no intention of ever bringing Betty back for as long as I was writing the title, little realizing how short a time that would be.

However, I hedged my bets; I left a “trap door” to bring Betty back, a clue in the series that could easily be utilized to reinstate her, presuming a subsequent writer wanted to do so or even if I suddenly decided that I’d totally blown it and wanted to bring her back (even though her demise had, in fact, been foreshadowed back in Future Imperfect.) Killing off Betty was one of the most personally emotionally traumatizing stories I’d ever done; yet any number of jaded fans remained unmoved, announcing with conviction, She’ll be back. Maybe they’re right. Who knows?

Over on Supergirl, I still get people asking when the “angel storyline” will run its course. Except I’d never conceived it as a simple storyline. Her new status was intended by me to be permanent. That’s a hard notion for fans to wrap themselves around, and I can’t entirely say I blame them. They keep waiting for her status quo to be restored, just as they waited for Superman to stop being an energy being. Why should changes or development in Supergirl be, by their nature, any more permanent than anything in any of the “S” titles?

The illusion only works for so long. The problem is that on the one hand fans want real change, want a sense that something has long-term meaning; on the other hand, as creators we’re boxed in. Things intended as changes in the status quo are seen only as the latest in an endless succession of unconvincing and temporary morphs, unless they’re dramatic enough that they can’t possibly be undone… at which point the fans go nuts and demand not only the reinstitution of the status quo, but the heads of everyone who had anything to do with the change in the first place.

What’s the answer to it all?

Well… the only thing that comes to mind is that all the current incarnations of the characters are yanked out of existence and the characters are completely rebooted into all-new, anything-goes versions of…

Hmm. Or, well, maybe the characters can be relegated to another version of earth entirely and a whole new set of characters with new powers and identities, but the same names as the originals, could be brought in to…

Hmm. Or we could clone all the…

Ah, forget it.

That trick never works.

(Peter David, writer of stuff, can be written to at Second Age, Inc., PO Box 239, Bayport, NY 11705.)

 

Is the world over yet? No?

Shit.

Now I have to pay my bills.

PAD