Rant: Have You Heard? Bendis is Coming

When it was announced that Brian Michael Bendis was moving over to DC Comics there was a lot of discussion. For some it was good news, others bad news, and even some saw it as the greatest upset to Superman since losing his underwear. Personally, I am looking forward to see what fresh stories he brings to the bullpen. Bendis has been hot and cold for me, but when he's good he writes some of my favorite storylines. I try and sell anyone on his New Avengers run because I think it's one of the best Avengers stories.

Despite my positive outlook toward the big changes, there is one thing that has beset me and many other readers. A giant, two-page spread to advertise the news everyone is already anticipating. BENDIS IS COMING! Guys did you know? Did every comic book news outlet, twitter thread, or fanboy in your local comic book shop not inform you ad nauseam? He's coming to DC!

Now I understand this has been done before. For those unfamiliar, it harkens back to when Jack Kirby made a similar move from Marvel to DC. You can see it below in the ad for Jimmy Olsen. I'm not going to make the argument that Bendis is or isn't on par with Kirby. You can make your own decision there. But I do have a problem with the actual function and use of the ad itself.

Two pages?! Did you really need to interrupt the flow of the latest action packed issue of whichever book I picked up this week with a spread? A two-page spread, mind you, that is 75% white space. It is excessive! It is belligerent! It is wasteful!

The waste of space, however, is only part of my problem with this obnoxious advertisement. Jack Kirby had help on the series of Jimmy Olsen, most notably Al Pastino and Murphy Anderson who assisted on art. But primarily, Kirby was both writer and artist on the project, which was noteworthy at the time. Kirby's inspiring work warranted the advertisement.

Bendis, on the other hand, isn't drawing his multiple runs on Superman. Between Man of Steel, Action Comics, and Superman he's working with more than ten different artists. Remember all of that empty, white space taking up those two pages? Why aren't there names in big, bold letters? It's a major problem in comic books that you hear from artists, colorists, and letterers all the time. Credit isn't equitable.

Ivan Reis, Doc Shaner, Ryan Sook, Kevin Maguire, Adam Hughes, and Jason Fabok have all been slated to work on the Man of Steel mini-series, let alone the numerous artists on Action Comics #1000. A few of their names couldn't have been listed in all of that white space on a two-page spread? I'm not saying DC shouldn't shout from the rafters that Bendis has moved over to their team, but they can use it as a way to highlight other inspiring creators just as vital to the upcoming projects.

Jack Kirby chose Jimmy Olsen to be one of his first entries in DC because it was their lowest selling book. It had no creative team assigned at the time. He didn't want to take a job away from another creator. Kirby understood the importance of not bogarting the spotlight with his fellow creators. That was 64 years ago and DC Marketing hasn't gotten the message that more than one person makes a comic book.

I'm jaded enough to the industry to understand that paying attention to the creator making headlines is what sells. Bendis was on everyone's mind when the news was announced, so definitely DC should take advantage of that attention. They just made an empty decision to focus solely on one creator. It would have been simple to place a few other names on that gigantic (did I mention two-pages?) spread, so that the other creators could share in some of that spotlight.