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Marvel Hits the Big Time: The Small Screen

By Cindy Davis | Posted Under Trade News | Comments (33)

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Comic book writer and television producer Jeph Loeb (Heroes, Lost) has been named as Executive Vice President of Marvel’s new television division. Loeb seems a great pick with his experience, and I’d love to see some live action television versions of our favorite comic book heroes. Having come off two big shows that started out fantastic and gradually lost their way, I’d hope Loeb has learned valuable lessons about what to do and not do. And I don’t know if any of you have seen the previews for No Ordinary Family, but it looks like a steaming pile, so I don’t see much competition if Marvel can put out a great show or two.

I can’t be alone in wishing for better than Tobey Maguire as Spider-Man, so that’s what I’d love to see. What Marvel character would you want to see serialized?









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Comments

I'd love to see Emma Frost in a serialized format... Easily my favorite Marvel character.

Posted by: Kevin at June 28, 2010 5:20 PM

Wolverine. He's got the most backstory to work from and of most marvel charicters he has the tons of depth. Though it would probably just turn into something akin to the '70's Hulk TV with our anti-hero Logan reluctantly going around helping people in need.

They could do an Exiles TV show. That would be pretty whacky, but it would lead to limitless possibilities.

Posted by: Michael W at June 28, 2010 5:22 PM

Because it would make ZERO sense to the movie going public and would need far longer than 2 hours... how sweet would an "Age of Apocalypse" tv show be, if done right. Shit, imagine it done band of brothers style. I would be all over that shit.

Posted by: Mike at June 28, 2010 5:31 PM

RUNAWAYS

Posted by: PyD at June 28, 2010 5:32 PM

I almost mentioned Runaways last time I did an article. America needs more velociraptors on television!

Posted by: Optimus Rhyme at June 28, 2010 5:33 PM

"Jeph Loeb (Heroes, Lost).."

BIG. RED. FLAG.

Posted by: BarbadoSlim at June 28, 2010 5:46 PM

Please tell me I'm not the only one hoping they can put these on FX or AMC?

There's too much to type but this is what we can start with:

*The Runaways. 24 episode/ 20 min per. A story about how children don't always become what their parents want them to be. Thrown in the middle of a sinister group compromised of their parents - they break the mold, rebel, learn secrets, attempt to control new found abilities, all while they foil evil-doers plans. Comedy/drama. Guest appearences by King Pin, Punisher, random X-men.

*Wolverine. 13 episode / 45 min series. This is the perfect way to encompass stories we want to see and the general public would even find interesting. There would be no need for continuity as this man is old. One season can be set in Fuedal Japan while the next is a modern day tale that starts out in Canada speaking with Alpha Flight. The following season? Old Man Logan.

*The Exiles could be America's Dr. Who. 13 episodes / 45 min per. It's a tall order, I realize that. But, with the Exiles ability to port wherever, whenever, to whatever universe - it would keep the show fresh. Make an over-arcing scheme for a villian (Apoc for season 1? Evil Bishop? Non-616 Blink?)

(Back to work, let me think of some more. It'll be hard to pull off some things like X-men. We need to keep in mind that they won't want to break the 2mil/episode most likely, so, heavy effects wouldn't be a constant. I.E. Why Age of Apoc would be so hard to do. That, in itself, would have to be a mini-series on a station that allows gritty material while also dropping extra cash on some thing they will only use once. Of course, they over-all arc, this is excluding Excalibur and all the awesomeness that came from side-issues.)

Posted by: Zerath at June 28, 2010 5:49 PM

Jeph Loeb, if I remember correctly, only had a hand in the first season of Lost. While, it was the first half of Heroes season 1 he dealt with.

(Again, I may be incorrect but he did not go to season 2 with those shows if memory serves. Which is not a Big. Red. Flag.)

Posted by: Zerath at June 28, 2010 5:50 PM

A lot of Marvel characters really wouldn't work as live-action TV series because they'd be too expensive to do justice to on a weekly basis. For live action, you'd need a concept that isn't just "villain of the week."

I'd go with:

Doctor Strange and Clea. Sexy guy. Hot babe. Mystical mysteries and a year-long, world-threatening big bad. Like Doctor Who in Greenwich Village. With Ken Leung as Wong.

Werewolf by Night. Hot guy searches America for the werewolf that sired him so he can be cured. Meets people. Gets in adventures. Constantly waking up in the woods naked. Starring Josh Holloway.

Daredevil. Blind lawyer fights street-level crime and gangsters. Law and Order meets The Sopranos. With Kung Fu.


Posted by: The Mutt at June 28, 2010 5:52 PM

(Again, I may be incorrect but he did not go to season 2 with those shows if memory serves. Which is not a Big. Red. Flag.)
Posted by: Zerath at June 28, 2010 5:50 PM

-----------------------------------------------

Oh reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally?

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0517188/

I'll grant you his minimal involvement in Lost. Not so on Heroes, he was all over that train-wreck.

Posted by: BarbadoSlim at June 28, 2010 5:59 PM

Daredevil. Blind lawyer fights street-level crime and gangsters. Law and Order meets The Sopranos. With Kung Fu.


-----------------------------------------------
"In the Criminal Justice System the people are represented by three separate, yet equally important groups. The police who investigate crime the District Attorneys who prosecute the offenders and the blind Defense Lawyers with secret identities who fight crime in their spare time These are their stories."
DUM DUM!

Posted by: BarbadoSlim at June 28, 2010 6:05 PM

"Jeph Loeb (Heroes, Lost).."

BIG. RED. FLAG.

No. Fucking. Joke.

God damn Heroes, man. Talk about fucking up a no-brainer concept.

Posted by: The Other Agent Johnson at June 28, 2010 6:05 PM

Heroes for Hire

Iron Fist and Luke Cage tearing up NYC? Check!

The New Incredible Hulk

It writes itself.

Gambit & the X-Ternals

C'est la vie, mon cher

Wolverine Fights Ridiculous Shit for 45 Minutes At a Time!

Zerath is one the money, but the only problem is that Jackman is Logan. I'm not sure I'm ready for another Wolverine.

Posted by: D-Day at June 28, 2010 6:18 PM

Joss Whedon should be the show runner for a television version of his Astonishing X-Men run.

or the Supreme Powers comic, which is a perverted/realistic take on the Superman mythos. . . essentially what would happen if Clark wasn't raised by the Kents, but government agents that posed as his "parents" and to be raised on patriotic propaganda.


How about we just skip this and begin a petition for DC Universe serialized stories. . .

I'm still waiting on that Sandman Maxi-series on HBO.

Or fuck, how about Swamp Thing, based off Alan Moore's run in the '80s. Or Hellblazer, only actually british and actually the character of Constantine as he was written.

Posted by: adam at June 28, 2010 6:22 PM

Or how about!? A series where the superheroes live their adventures outside the screen. The show would just focus on their everyday lives. You know, doing laundry, paying bills dealing with that pesky, neighbor, going to the corner coffee shop etc. It practically writes itself!

Posted by: BarbadoSlim at June 28, 2010 6:31 PM

...Loeb helped with season 2-4 of Heroes? Holy shit. I apologize. My assumption was the reason it went to hell was because he left. I'm willing to forgive that train-wreck as he's written some pretty solid runs in the past few years that I've enjoyed.

Maybe it was my wishful thinking side? Much like there is no such thing as a Planet of the Apes movie made by Tim Burton. It was never made.

Posted by: Zerath at June 28, 2010 7:03 PM

Loeb also wrote for Smallville.

Posted by: Turtle at June 28, 2010 7:08 PM

Heroes for Hire and Dr. Strange sound like great ideas. But, please, Lord, no more Wolverine. He's more exposed than Lady Gaga.

There's no reason why any comic book, which is after all a serialized storytelling format, wouldn't work. Except "One More Day." That shit is garbage no matter the format.

Posted by: Tracer Bullet at June 28, 2010 7:14 PM

Loeb? Blergh.

I think they should go for the more grounded and urban characters like the Punisher and going to the more obscure ones maybe even Cloak & Dagger (I was just thinking about how cool a well-done Cloak & Dagger series could be). Another good one might be Doctor Strange.

Runaways could be good, but I'm afraid it would end up too Dawson's Creek.

Heroes for Hire is another good one!

Posted by: zito at June 28, 2010 7:19 PM

Zito - The frustration that comes from Runaways veering towards a Dawson's Creek style shouldn't be there if they stuck towards the original source material. Yes, there is some drama. To be fair, the company would want that in - ratings is everything for shows. Some thing that Smallville proved originally, people that hate comic books loved that show. Case in point - several of my female friends hate anything that has anything to do with fantasy/comics/super powers but they love Smallville.

Thunderbolts. The "new" team when Bullseye/Venom/Pennance took over. The openning episode can be the exact reason Civil War started. Handi-cam for the first 10 minutes, small nuclear explosion, cut to protesting soccer moms, to the senate passing a bill, Osborne putting together a new Thunderbolts under Government control. This opens the show up to the possibility of being an episodic show to multi-episode situations. Characters can come and go, several operations at once, even through in our favorite Bad Guy Killer - Punisher. This would be an easy show to make 24 episodes.

Posted by: Zerath at June 28, 2010 7:48 PM

Fuck...Lobo is DC...goddamn't.

Posted by: DeistBrawler at June 28, 2010 8:50 PM

Jeph Loeb is one of the worst and most successful comics writers of all time. He doesn't write stories, he just cobbles together random sensational events. Kinda like that joke about Family Guy and the idea balls, actually. I want him to retire.

Posted by: Lucas at June 28, 2010 9:04 PM

Or how about!? A series where the superheroes live their adventures outside the screen. The show would just focus on their everyday lives. You know, doing laundry, paying bills dealing with that pesky, neighbor, going to the corner coffee shop etc. It practically writes itself!

It was called Seinfeld, Slim.

Jerry: Super Annoyer
George: MegaFuckup
Elaine: Wonder Skank
Kramer: The Nutcase

Mind you, it wasn't a Marvel property.

Posted by: Uriah Creep at June 28, 2010 9:59 PM

Zerath

If you keep that up, you may get a call for help from Jeph Loeb himself.

Posted by: Uriah Creep at June 28, 2010 10:02 PM

Marvel Zombies is my go-to dream Marvel movie, but a TV show? Uhhh...

Given that The Punisher and Wolverine have already been thrown out, what about Deadpool? He's his own comic relief so he's accessible to the non-geeks that aren't aware of the character. He's a free rogue agent, so he can go anywhere and do whatever he wants. Consequently he has like a bazillion books out, one in the zombie universe with a T&A scientist chick and Headpool (the disembodied head of his zombie alternate) and another in Vegas where he's running a complicated protection scam involving casinos, Grizzly, Weasel, and giant power suits. Also he's aware of the narrator and the editor. I think that's what the deal is with the third voice.

Plus last time I checked at the comic shop everybody loves Deadpool so there's a built-in audience.

Posted by: HappyGobo at June 29, 2010 12:13 AM

How about Guardians of the Galaxy? Maybe take aspects from the 31st century version and the present day one and come up with a proposal that's not too knees-deep in Marvel continuity.

It could be Battlestar Galactica...but with superpowers.

Failing that, Werewolf By Night. They already want to make it into a movie, just turn it into an episodic Fugitive style show and throw in some Tomb of Dracula stuff to liven the format. The Twihards and True Blood freaks would be all over it.

Posted by: Somnopolis at June 29, 2010 1:00 AM

What about a Nick Fury/SHIELD show? If they're thinking about rebooting Alias, why not just replace Sydney Bristow with Sharon Carter (Captain America's girlfriend), or Mockingbird, throw in some Hawkeye and Nick Fury, and you've got a show that can easily live past it's prime!

Posted by: Dr. Spaceman at June 29, 2010 1:34 AM

Lucas is right, this guy is the fucking Michael Bay of comic books. This asshole will seriously damage the public perception of comic books. Someone needs to stop this shit.

Posted by: AmbroseKalifornia at June 29, 2010 1:44 AM

Just googled it.

Cowgirls from Hell.

Hands DOWN!

http://marvel.com/universe/Cowgirls_from_Hell

Posted by: Camilla at June 29, 2010 3:35 AM

Idris Elba as Moon Knight. Make that shit happen.

Posted by: Tracer Bullet at June 29, 2010 7:12 AM

If it's gonna be done, make it done right and by Joss Wheadon. But for the love of all that is pure and right in the world, do not let it wind up on Fox or NBC. they hate Wheadon. take a look at Firefly and Dollhouse. and the deaths that resulted.

I think that Inhumans should get something made about them, or Civil war turned into a series. just because Hell, who wouldn't love Civil war? after all, Marvel Ultimate Heroes or whatever that 360 game was that came out this year focused on Civil War and Registration Act.

I'm a big fan of Runaways, and it should be made into a tv series, but lets see if the movie (which is in production) gets made, is done right.

Posted by: LordNinja at June 30, 2010 2:13 AM

How about a single series adaptation of 1602. That could be fun.
OR Civil War, but that got a bit faggy at the end.

Posted by: supafly at July 1, 2010 12:02 PM

Give the Torch his own show, like he had his own comic way back in the day (while the FF has their own movies now). Make it light-hearted and often dealing with what a fuck-up he can be. Break the third wall for wisecracks.

Otherwise? Dr. Strange is the best idea above.

Or Moon Knight, if done right. The multiple personalities schtick would play well in episodic television. But Idris Elba? I dunno, Moon Knight seems profoundly WHITE to me. Maybe I'm too old school.

Steer clear of ALL the fanboy favorites.

And Jeph Loeb, for that matter.

Posted by: Thorne at July 5, 2010 12:33 PM