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Quality Time with Ron Marz

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Posted by Ron Marz on Sep 16, 2009

Tags: marz, quality time, top cow, witchblade

Ron Marz is joining BF from 3-4pm Eastern (12-1pm Pacific) today to answer your questions in this week's edition of our live, hour-long Q&A session, Quality Time!

Post all of your most burning questions in our comments box below, and stay tuned as Ron answers them live...

Note: You have to be signed in with your BF member account to be able to post your questions and interact with Ron. If you’re not yet a registered member of the BF community, sign up here to participate.

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Comments

  • Frederik Hautain

    Frederik Hautain Sep 16, 2009 at 2:59pm

    Hello everyone! Whew. Another week has flown by! We're all geared up for another edition of Quality Time, this time with Witchblade scribe Ron Marz. Hit it off!

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:00pm

    Thanks for having me, Fred.

  • Bart Croonenborghs

    Bart Croonenborghs Sep 16, 2009 at 3:03pm

    hey Ron, welcome to the BF! Guess I'm first :) Since you wrote DC vs Marvel back in the day, what do you think about the current going on's at DC and Marvel? Do you think this is an exicting time for a freelance like you?

  • Steve Kanaras

    Steve Kanaras Sep 16, 2009 at 3:04pm

    Hey Ron, you've written both Silver Surfer and Green Lantern...which "cosmic" Universe do you prefer, Marvel's or DC's? Did one or the other provide you with greater freedom or conversely more restrictions?

  • Bart Croonenborghs

    Bart Croonenborghs Sep 16, 2009 at 3:05pm

    And since you were among the first to deconstruct the Green Lantern mythos, reducing the Green Lantern Corps to ... well, one person :) What's your take on the iconic status of A Green Lantern and the current multiple colour lanterns?

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:06pm

    Bart, I think there are quite a few good books out there, but I find it hard to follow a lot of it because of "event mania." I'd much rather pay attention to a self-contained series than something that sprawls across an entire line.

  • mohaps

    mohaps Sep 16, 2009 at 3:07pm

    Hey Ron, when are we going to see the next SAMURAI story? and what can we expect from our favorite globetrotting lovelorn swordsman?

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:09pm

    Steve, I think Marvel's cosmic uni is much more fleshed out, thanks in large part ot Kirby. I think there are more and better concepts at Marvel -- stuff that seems more "cosmic." At DC, the GL Corps is great, but there's not a huge amount after that, at least in the present day (not counting the Legion of SH).

  • GrannySpray

    GrannySpray Sep 16, 2009 at 3:10pm

    Wow! Ron Marz... I've been following you since your Green Lantern days. One of the best stories I felt you did was Sojourn. How difficult was it having to leave that book behind when CrossGen went belly-up?

  • Steve Kanaras

    Steve Kanaras Sep 16, 2009 at 3:10pm

    Any characters/series out there that you are dying to write?

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:12pm

    Mohaps, the first few issues of vol. 3 of Samurai are written, and waiting for Luke Ross to draw them. Unfortunately, Luke is tied up at Marvel, on Captain America among other projects. He was supposed to have time in his schedule to work on Samurai, but it hasn't worked out that way. But ... hopefully sooner than later. The story is set in the Caribbean ... and that can only mean PIRATES!

  • mohaps

    mohaps Sep 16, 2009 at 3:14pm

    Ron, have you ever thought about branching beyond comics into "prim n' propah" fiction? when can we expect to see the Marz Magnum Opus?

  • Eric Lindberg

    Eric Lindberg Sep 16, 2009 at 3:14pm

    Ron, when you wrote the Ion miniseries, was it intended to be the new status quo for Kyle Rayner (if sales had been better)? Or did DC always have other plans for the Ion concept? I rather liked that book and thought it could have given Kyle a unique role in the GL Corps.

  • Andy Oliver

    Andy Oliver Sep 16, 2009 at 3:15pm

    Ron - I'm told by friends in the biz that one of the (few I guess!) drawbacks of being a comic creator is it can be a sometimes solitary experience in terms of the working day. With that in mind what was it like working in a studio setup at CrossGen and did you find seeing your co-creators on a more regular basis inspired the creative juices to any greater degree?

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:15pm

    Granny, I actually left Sojourn prior to CG itself tanking. I left with #24, which was "suggested" to me by the boss, which nobody understood, as it was the best-selling title we had. The CFO and sales guy went nuts. But there were "office politics" involved, especially with Alessi's fiance, who was the general counsel, and who wanted to do things her way.

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:17pm

    I actually didn't want to leave Sojourn, but I was writing 2 other books, plus supervising the comics-to-DVD initiative, so I was getting overwhelmed and something had to give. Definitely tougher to leave something that I had created from scratch.

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:18pm

    Steve, I would love to write Tarzan and/or John Carter of Mars. As far as Marvel or DC, Bats and Supes and the classics, and I really like Dr. Fare and Dr. Strange.

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:19pm

    Mohaps, I'll write the Great American Novel when I have time. Which with my workload, doesn't look to be anytime soon. ;-)

  • GrannySpray

    GrannySpray Sep 16, 2009 at 3:19pm

    So, if you say you were forced to leave Sojourn, can you divulge where you wanted to take the book next. Did Arwyn have, say, 50 more issues in her?

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:21pm

    Eric, Ion was intended to be Kyle's new identity, with a new status quo, etc. Sales were healthy, but just before #1 came out, someone at DC changed their mind and decided Kyle would NOT be Ion, and would be in the GL Corps book. So all the plans that had been mapped out had to be changed pretty quickly. A pitfall of a shared universe.

  • Bart Croonenborghs

    Bart Croonenborghs Sep 16, 2009 at 3:22pm

    You served as an editor at Virgin Comics and writer at Crossgen. I was also wondering about what your take was on how companies can avoid the pitfalls that they fell into. In other words, if you had a company, how would you do it the right way?

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:22pm

    Andy, good question. Yeah, you did get inspitred being in a studio with a bunch of like-minded creators. It was fun, and there was a lot of collaboration, rather than the assembly-line process that happens so often.

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:23pm

    Should I repeat the questions, or are you guys following okay?

  • Bart Croonenborghs

    Bart Croonenborghs Sep 16, 2009 at 3:23pm

    You asked for it since you mentioned Kirby :) What's your favourite Kirby character and why?

  • Frederik Hautain

    Frederik Hautain Sep 16, 2009 at 3:24pm

    I don't think it's necessary to repeat the questions. If you mention the name of the person who asked the question before answering, that's ok.

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:24pm

    Granny, Arwyn's story would have gone up through issue #50 or so. Then the plan was to take her off stage for a while, so other characters could come to the fore, and then bring her back in a few years. Still a series I'd like to go back to someday.

  • GrannySpray

    GrannySpray Sep 16, 2009 at 3:27pm

    Do you think it's possible you'll ever revisit the book, or any other CrossGen material now that Marvel is owned by Disney? That might open up some possibilities!

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:28pm

    Bart, both CG and Virgin can be summed up in "too much, too soon." Too many titles, too much expense, before the market was ready for them. It's tempting in publishing to do "more, more, more," but slow growth is much more sustainable. And as far as CG was concerned, a unified "universe" was a bad idea. If people want a connected "universe," they already read arvel or DC.

  • TimP

    TimP Sep 16, 2009 at 3:29pm

    Ron: since you seem to like Marvel a little bit better these days, any chance of you doing some work there? There's quite a few Top Cow artists that have gone on to work for Marvel (or back and forth)... Could the same happen with writers as yourself?

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:29pm

    Bart, ooh, I have to pick ONE Kirby creation? That's damn near impossible. Galactus is pretty damn cool, but I have a big soft spot for the Inhumans.

  • Steve Kanaras

    Steve Kanaras Sep 16, 2009 at 3:30pm

    Who are you favorite writers, inside and outside comics?

  • mohaps

    mohaps Sep 16, 2009 at 3:30pm

    Ron, what are your thoughts on comics as "storyboards for movies" school of thought? given the current economic situation and the general crunch in the funny books business, are we witnessing the death of mass market sequential art (as in the market will polarize into "to be made movies off" and "oh so intellectual" extremes)?

  • Malkavian

    Malkavian Sep 16, 2009 at 3:31pm

    I sure hope that Kyle will get the ION status again. Am loving the Green Lantern comics. And back tracking volume 2 and volume 3. And my love for the characters is still growing.
    I can imagine that when you made Hal go crazy, the fans weren't really happy. How did you experience this? Did you overthink your idea after the storm? Would you do it again?

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:31pm

    Granny, I suppose revisiting CG material is more possible now that it was 3 weeks ago, thanks to the Marvel purchase by Disney. I've been told Disney really had no idea what to do with th CG stuff, so maybe they'll just hand it to Marvel and say, "Here. Do something."

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:32pm

    Tim, yeah, since I started at Marvel, it'd be nice to go back and do some stuff there. But at the moment, my plate is pretty full with multiple Top Cow projects, and various creator-owned projects.

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:34pm

    Steve, fave writers: Alan Moore, Charles Dickens, Stephen King, Frank Miller, Dan Simmons. Really like what Bru and Kirkman are doing right now.

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:35pm

    Mohaps, "comics as storyboards" is inevitable, but so are people doing comics because they love them. There's room for everything.

  • Bart Croonenborghs

    Bart Croonenborghs Sep 16, 2009 at 3:36pm

    Marvel is mentioned a lot here and we just read Inhumans as favourite Kirby creations, since War of Kings at Marvel is almost over, maybe there's a pitching opportunity here. Marvel, are you reading this?

  • Bart Croonenborghs

    Bart Croonenborghs Sep 16, 2009 at 3:38pm

    A bit more on the serious side here but one of my fave questions: Ron, what has life in comics taught you?

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:38pm

    Malkavian, Emerald Twilight was an editorially-driven concept, but one that I executed. We had to hit the ground running in terms of deadline, so there wasn't a lot of time to overthink or rethink the process. I've said before, I wish we had six issues, instead of three, to tell that story. Lots of fans weren't happy, but somehow sales went up a lot, and stayed there. I think Kyle being a "ground floor" hero was the way quite a few people were introduced to the DCU.

  • Frederik Hautain

    Frederik Hautain Sep 16, 2009 at 3:41pm

    I'll get a question in of my own. :) If Marvel would offer you the chance to pick up one CrossGen book: which one would it be? Sojourn, The Path, ...

  • Andy Oliver

    Andy Oliver Sep 16, 2009 at 3:41pm

    As long as Marvel didn't do an "Ultraverse" on the CrossGen concepts that would be a very intriguing proposition indeed. ;) I loved the CG Universe and still feel saddened that circumstances meant we left the characters so abruptly. Thinking about that Disney CG buyout Ron, were you surprised that ABADAZAD didn't find a place in the kids' books market? I thought it would be a surefire winner (and my young niece LOVED the hardcovers a few years back!).

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:41pm

    Bart, I dunno that I can separate "life in comics" from life in general. Writing comics is obviously a huge part of my life, but by no means the only part. I've been able to make a good living at it for two decades so far, and I enjoy the hell out of it. But more than anything, I value the friends I've made in the business. The vast majority of my friends are fellow pros, guys from all over the world.

  • TimP

    TimP Sep 16, 2009 at 3:42pm

    What creator-owned projects are you referring to? When will they be announced?

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:43pm

    Fred, it would depend on who the artist was going to be. I don't feel like I got to "finish" any of those series, though The Path at least got some closure. Probably come down to Sojourn or Scion.

  • Arthur askey

    Arthur askey Sep 16, 2009 at 3:44pm

    Write a message?who is your favorite green lantern villian?

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:44pm

    Andy, yeah, I was kinda surprised Abadazad tanked. Great concept ... and now the books are in the $1 bin at Borders. However, the weird comics/prose hybrid was a bit strange. I think they would have done better as straight prose will spot illustrations.

  • Malkavian

    Malkavian Sep 16, 2009 at 3:44pm

    Again a GL question from me. You created Kyle, so i wonder. Which Story/Story arc is the one that defines Kyle as a lantern for you. A must read for every GL Kyle lover.

  • Bart Croonenborghs

    Bart Croonenborghs Sep 16, 2009 at 3:46pm

    I'm always looking for good books to read so I was wondering if you could recommend some of your favourite books through the ages, regardless of the genre ...

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:46pm

    Tim, Samurai: Heaven and Earth at Dark Horse; Pantheon City at Dark Horse (which will be out next year); Dragon Prince at Top Cow; and some others that are not announced yet. I'll also be debuting a new creator-owned book at the Baltimore Con next month with a preview book. Vampires!

  • GrannySpray

    GrannySpray Sep 16, 2009 at 3:47pm

    Ron, about Witchblade: how does it feel still writing a book 50 issues in? Is Top Cow giving you free reign on the title?

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:47pm

    Arthur, of the GL villains I created, either Fatality or Effigy. Of ANY GL villains ... hmm, dunno. GL has not had a great rogues gallery to this point.

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:48pm

    Malkavian, hard to pick just one GL story. I recall liking #78 quite a bit.

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:50pm

    Bart, I love Simonson's Thor, Miller's Daredevil, Lee-Kirby FF, Wolfman-Perez Titans, as well as Hellboy, Nexus and Grendel, anything by Alan Moore.

  • Malkavian

    Malkavian Sep 16, 2009 at 3:50pm

    Thanks Ron . . . *Walks towards my GL Collection and picks out GL #78 and starts reading*

  • TimP

    TimP Sep 16, 2009 at 3:51pm

    More on GL: There's quite the fanboy craze about the color Lantern t-shirts. Do you have a favorite? And are you wearing one sometimes? :)

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:52pm

    Granny, I'm still having a great deal of fun on Witchblade, even after 50 issues, and a lot of those comes from Top Cow giving almost complete freedom. They let me do what I do, which is a great boon in this age of the endless event/crossover. It's the same on my upcoming Magdalena series, as well as the Angelus mini, and the Artifacts maxi-series. They trust me to do what I do.

  • Bart Croonenborghs

    Bart Croonenborghs Sep 16, 2009 at 3:53pm

    Sorry for the misunderstanding, this being a comic site and all :) But I meant to say favourite novels ...

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:54pm

    Tim, nope, I'm more likely to be wearing a NY Giants T-shirt. If I had to pick one, I'd go with ... green. ;-)

  • Andy Oliver

    Andy Oliver Sep 16, 2009 at 3:54pm

    You've worked on quite a variety of genres in comics Ron. If you could write just one inter-company crossover between two of the characters you've worked on what would spring to mind immediately as a cool (and possibly unlikely!) pairing...

  • Frederik Hautain

    Frederik Hautain Sep 16, 2009 at 3:57pm

    Only a few minutes to go folks.... get your FINAL questions in now!

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:57pm

    Bart, I re-read "A Christmas Carol" every year, but I'll set aside classics for now. "The Terror" by Dan Simmons is great. My fave S. King books ir probably "Salem's Lot" followed by "The Stand," "The Shining" and curiously "Christine." Chabon's "Gentlemen of the Road" was good.

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 3:59pm

    Andy, I would LOVE to do a Batman-Tarzan sequel, and I proposed a John Carter-Superman that never go off the ground. Beyond that, I supposed Witchblade-Batman.

  • Eric Lindberg

    Eric Lindberg Sep 16, 2009 at 3:59pm

    Not a question but I just wanted to say that years ago, I sent you a fan letter asking for advice on becoming a comics writer. You suggested hooking up with an artist and self-publishing or working in small press. I am now writing stories for AC Comics so thanks for the advice back in the day, Ron!

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 4:00pm

    Very cool, Eric! Congrats, glad to hear it. Glad I didn't lead you astray.

  • Andy Oliver

    Andy Oliver Sep 16, 2009 at 4:02pm

    John Carter/Superman would have been wonderful. I'll live in hope you get the opportunity one day. Thanks for your time tonight Ron!

  • Bart Croonenborghs

    Bart Croonenborghs Sep 16, 2009 at 4:02pm

    Dan Simmons is indeed great! Haven't read "Gentlemen of the Road" yet but have read other Chabon novels and found him to be a bit mixed, when he's on, he's on but when he is not I found him a bit ... too long. Thanks for the recommendations and it was great to have you here on the Frontier, thanks again and good luck with all your current future projects!

  • Frederik Hautain

    Frederik Hautain Sep 16, 2009 at 4:04pm

    That's a wrap, folks. Thanks for joining us, Ron. Hope you had lots of fun!

  • Ron Marz

    Ron Marz Sep 16, 2009 at 4:04pm

    Thanks to everybody for coming, and thanks for reading. I know sometimes the non-superhero books gets lost in the cracks, so I appreciate people picking up Witchblade and stuff like Samurai: Heaven and Earth, and Dragon Prince. More creator-owned on the way -- they're the real labors of love.

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