Long Beach Comic-Con 2022
September 3-4. 2022
It’s been a minute (specifically, three years!)… Glad to be back in Long Beach with friends and fans!
Author: Greg Goldstein
Greg Goldstein is a veteran publishing and media executive; most recently, he was the Chief Operating Officer, President and Publisher of IDW Publishing, managing all aspects of the company’s book and games business from 2008 to 2019.
Throughout his career, Greg has developed creative and profitable publishing programs for dozens of the world’s best-known entertainment brands including Star Wars, Transformers, Star Trek, James Bond, TMNT, Spider-Man, Batman and Godzilla.
In 2013, Greg led IDW’s acquisition of Top Shelf, an independent publisher best known for Congressman John Lewis’ March trilogy, which has become the most lauded non-fiction graphic novel series in the history of the medium.
In 2011, Greg won an Eisner award for his editing on the first-ever collection of Bob Montana’s Archie newspaper comic strips. (Published under IDW’s Library of American Comics imprint.)
Prior to joining IDW, Greg was VP of Entertainment and Gaming for Upper Deck, responsible for the company’s blockbuster slate of games, including Yu-Gi-Oh, World of Warcraft and The VS Superhero system. During his tenure, he created Marvel Ultimate Battles, the first-ever trading card game that focused exclusively on Marvel’s popular mass media characters.
As VP of Brand Development for Activision from 2000-2002, Greg established strategic partnerships with the largest Hollywood studios, and worked closely with Marvel Entertainment to successfully develop Spider-man into one of the biggest blockbuster licensed videogame brands in interactive history.
Greg’s career has also included a successful stint at Topps, where he helped launch and manage Topps Comics in the mid 1990s.
Additionally, Greg serves as an adviser for to the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund (CBDLF). He is also a frequent guest lecturer at San Diego Sate University and has presented at dozens of panels and conferences throughout the US.
He is also a well-known collector of original comic book art and rues the day he sold his collection the first time around in the late 1990s.
Ron Lim — Maximum Carnage
Spider-Man Unlimited #1, May 1993
Carnage organizes a group of like-minded maniacs (Shriek, Carrion, etc.) on a murderous spree in the infamous 1993 crossover event from Marvel. In the intro issue, Ron Lim delivers this terrific splash as Spider-Man tackles Doppelganger, an evil near-mindless version of Webhead created during The Infinity War saga.
The “Comics Code” was completely superfluous by now, if not an outright joke. This storyline, which is the basis for a video game, and influenced the second Venom film, features so much bloodshed and violence its pretty much impossible to keep a bodycount.
The Green Goblin is a pussycat compared to these guys.
Scott Koblish — Goblin City
Spider-Man Spectacular #1, August, 2014
The only thing that freaks out Aunt May more than the Green Goblin? Spider-Man, of course.
Scott Koblish provides pencils and inks for this story set early in Spidey’s career. In this drama-filled penultimate action page, The Green Goblin’s glider indeed comes back to him — but not in the way he would like.
Meanwhile, a terrified May Parker figures she’s next since she believes Spidey has already murdered her late husband. Ah, irony.
(Based on the notation in the top margin, the story was originally intended for a French Panini magazine, and ended up in an American one-shot instead. It’s later reprinted in a Brazilian Panini mag, but I’m not sure there ever was a French version.)
Leonard Kirk — The Gorilla On The Cover Trick
Spider-Man Family #4, October 2007
It’s Spider-Man vs. Agents of Atlas on this fun cover, and check out the featured player: It’s Gorilla-Man, an obscure 50s character who eventually made his way into Marvels Agent of Atlas, a team made up entirely of obscure 50s characters.
During the 50s and 60s, word over at the “Distinguished Competition” (DC Comics) was that gorillas on the covers sold more copies. (And purple gorillas apparently outsold ordinary-colored gorillas, but as always, we digress.)
Atlas (Marvel) clearly didn’t get that message in 1954, because the zombies get top billing in the issue with Gorilla-Man’s first appearance. But this was 1954 of course, and zombies were doing pretty well in the comics biz, at least for a few more months anyway.
Fifty years later, with the mass market for comics nearly extinct, I don’t think it matters for sales whether a gorilla is featured on the cover or not.
But fun, anyway.
Bret Blevins — Web Of Confusion
Sleepwalker # 5, October 1991
Spider_Man. Nearly drowned. Trapped in chains. On a table. Prone before Kingpin and a group of other assorted criminal goons. It’s a terrific final splash.
In “real life”, it’s game over, as most of the goons would quickly pull their guns and start blasting away. Spider powers do not include invulnerability.
But in comics, especially older classics, it’s… continued next issue!
And I am absolutely there for it. (And we know Spidey is going to get out of this — the joy is the “how?”)
Pencils and inks here both by Blevins, who drew most of the early Sleepwalker issues, following his terrific run on New Mutants.
Terry & Rachel Dodson — Underwater
Marvel Knights Spider-Man #10, March 2005
Terry and Rachel Dodson provide the art for this dramatic and splashy page featuring ol’ web head in action underwater. Not your typical place for a spider, but hey, they do come up through the drain pipes one in a while, so why not?
(Apologies for that imagery to any of our readers that have arachnophobia.)
Marvel Knights was a lifesaving imprint for Marvel, which was in the middle of bankruptcy turmoil when the brand was launched in 1998. Original intended for grittier and “lesser” characters (Daredevil, Black Widow, Punisher et al), the brand was so successful that bigger stars of the Marvel Universe were ultimately incorporated, including our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.
Until, that is, the brand was completely folded into the main Marvel line.
But that is a story for another day.
Ron Frenz & Sal Buscema — Family Ties
Amazing Spider-Man Family #1, October 2008
Here is a great action page from Ron Frenz and Sal Buscema, one of my favorites superhero art teams of the 21st century.
The story is set in the “Spider-Girl” universe (Earth-982) but May Parker is only a baby in this timeline as Spidey comes out of “retirement” to deal with Curt Connors turning into the Lizard again.
Story is by Tom DeFalco, completing the creative trifecta from the long running solo Spider-Girl title.
Not so fun fact: Normally I’m a fan of painter Avi Granov’s work, but this specific cover? Ooof. Nuff said.
Will Conrad — Drowned in Thunder
Cover, Spider-Man Novel, Brazilian Edition (Novo Seculo), 2014
Ah, superheroes on a rooftop. Perched on a gargoyle… or other ornamental edifice. At night. In the rain. Or snow. I promise an entire post on the subject in the future.
In the meantime, we have this great cover by Will Conrad, who most definitely has a penchant for rain-soaked superheroes. Terrific mood and detail, some of which is obscured by the coloring of the published cover. (See below.)
Someone get that man a towel.
Steve McNiven — Brand New Day
Amazing Spider-Man #547, March 2008
Spidey takes a cue from his pal Captain America and shatters some (a lot, actually) glass in this dynamic splash from Steve McNiven.
It’s from the second issue of the Brand New Day storyline, the controversial reboot in which the world has forgotten Spidey’s secret identity, and he himself has forgotten his marriage to MJ. Following the Mephisto-led events of “One More Day.”
Of course, some version of this storyline is now destined for the MCU — and, as noted previously, I still think Mephisto (or Nightmare) is secretly behind much of the events of Spidey 3, Doctor Strange 2 and the Vision and Scarlett Witch TV series.
Apparently, I’m determined to stick with that crazy idea until at least phase 7.
Ron Garney — Hero Worship
Amazing Spider-Man #537, February 2007
Here’s a key splash page from Marvel’s Civil War. Captain America has convinced Peter that the resistance is on the “right” side of this epic crossover conflict.
When the conversation is over in this tie-in , Garney treats us to an epic splash of Spidey swinging into action.
Birds, and all.
