Official George Perez Press Release (January 19, 2019)DATE : JANUARY 19, 2019
FROM : George Pérez
To all my loyal and kind fans who have supported me throughout the decades, In
recent months, there has been a great deal of speculation as to the
future of my career, my health, my ability to draw and my future
convention appearances. As a result, I would like to clear up everything
first hand so that, hopefully, any rumors, speculation and
misinformation can be laid to rest. With
respect to future published work in comics and such ... while I know
it’s been no secret that I’ve been dealing with a myriad number of
health issues (diabetes, heart ailments, vision issues, etc.), they have
indeed have forced me to, for all ...
Posted by Vu Sleeper
"Worth the Wait?"
written by George Nelson
published in COMICS BUYER'S GUIDE #1542 (6 Jun 03)
transcribed by Vu
related websites: www.comicsbuyersguide.com
Pérez promises late 2003 release for JLA/Avengers
Publishers of the long-awaited JLA/Avengers DC-Marvel crossover
should be closer to setting a release date within a few weeks, artist
George Pérez said at April's Pittsburgh Comicon. "This is going to be a
very, very intensive two months," said Pérez, who is penciling and
inking the crossover, written by his fromer Avengers collaborator Kurt
Busiek. "It will be very nice in 2004 to be able to draw one page a
day, five days a week, because that's all that CrossGen ever wants as
output from their artists." Pérez draws Solus for CrossGen.
The first two issues of JLA/Avengers are pencilled and inked, and
Pérez has pencilled all but four pages and inked 16 pages of #3.
Covers have been colored, as well as all of #1. the plot for the fourth
and final issue also has been approved. "The book is definitely coming
out the last quarter of this year," he told CBG. "As I've told many
people, I refused to have this as the cover feature for Wizard's 2004
preview. It's been the cover feature now for two years. I've got to get
that book out."
The Avengers have 81 members, honorary members, and hangers-on - and the
JLA includes more than 100. "As Kurt Busiek put it, when people say
the Avengers have pretty low standards for members, the JLA have none,"
Pérez joked. "And, as was my desire - and they're honoring it - I
wanted every single character who's ever been a member of either group
to be in this book." There may be another 200 characters who have
cameos. In the last issue alone, close to three dozen super-villains
appear who had not previously shown up in the story.
AVENGERS: HEROES REBORN, art by Rob Liefeld/Jon Sibal
WONDER WOMAN (Eagle Bodice), art by Pérez/Giordano
Though he would not disclose plot details, Pérez said the story - which
takes place, he quipped, on "Earth-$" - has time - and
dimension-spanning aspects that allow him to draw things that he would
not have had the opportunity to draw, if he had to stick to literal
timeline, such as Wonder Woman with an eagle on her bodice.
"When I was in issue #1, when I got to draw the Spectre, I said, 'OK at
least Hal Jordan does appear.' Little did I know what Kurt had in mind. I
get to draw the classic Green Lantern in the classic costume - even the
one without the shoulder epaulets and the V-shapes: the very, very
early version of his costume." Even Heroes Reborn versions of the
Avengers might appear. Yes, Kurt is going to try to make this as
logical as possible, but there's going to be some stuff you're just
going to have to, as Marv Wolfman said, spray the fairy dust on and let
your imagination run wild," he observed. "We're going to have fun with
this book. It's a lot of work, I hope it's going to be worth the wait
for you. For me, I'm just looking forward to not having to answer, 'When
is JLA/Avengers coming out?'"
Locations for the story include the Flash Museum, Asgard, Avengers
Mansion in its different incarnations, and the various headquarters of
the JLA. It also include nods to the original version of JLA/Avengers, started in the early 1980s but never published.
AVENGERS MANSION, art by George Pérez/Bob McLeod
ASGUARD, art by Ron Frenz/Brett Breeding
JLA SATELLITE, art by Chuck Patton/Romeo Tanghal
Announced in 2001, the crossover has been the subject of much
speculation regarding its eventual release, and Pérez acknowledged that
he had hoped the four-issue mini-series would have been finished sooner,
as well.
"When people ask why this book is taking so long, a lot of them don't
know that I'm inking myself - so, when they find that out, suddenly all
is forgiven," he said. He added that he has had to take on outside work
to be able to afford the project, noting that his income dropped 60%
during the year he worked on the series exclusively.
He acknowledged that fans might be tiring of news regarding the project
but said he thinks that will be taken care of, once an official release
date is announced. "There have been a lot of false dates. Fans have made
assumptions based on the Internet version of 'telephone', where news
was actually disseminated incorrectly that there was a release date.
No, there was a hoped-for date. I had hoped to get this book done
a lot sooner, but it became apparent that, if I wanted to earn a
living, doing this book alone without something to supplement my income
was going to be a financially disastrous for me."
He said the project is moving faster with DC Executive Editor Mike
Carlin stepping in as DC's editor. He described former Editor Dan
Raspler as "a bit of a tehnophobe," which slowed down approval of
coloring. "Another great thing about having Mike Carlin involved -
having nothing to do with Dan's ability or any disagreements - is that
Mike Carlin was the late Mark Gruenwald's assistant editor, when Mark
was the editor of the original JLA/Avengers, so Mike, is the only
other personal involved other than me from the original. Having
worked with Mike, I have a great, great respect for him as an editor:
the type of editor who believes that, if you hire good people, let them
do their jobs," he continued. "If he has suggestions, he'll be the first
to tell you, but in the end he says we all have to be happy with the
book."
Pérez said he is satisfied with the work by colorist Tom Smith and
remarked that working with Busiek reminds him of working with Wolfman:
"The greatest compliment I can give to any writer."
Andra Radiant, the hero of Heliotrope, is finally revealed to the
millions of curious watchers who have followed her adventures for years
in March's Solus #1 by Barbara Kesel and George Pérez. In issue
#2, Andra visits Ayden of Quin, who gives her a gift endowed with a
familiar orange energy, while in issue #3, Brath Mac Garen, from the
pages of Brath, finds himself confronted by a powerful stranger, and the encounter leaves him permanently changed.
Glory, the Hulk is pretty much plenty depressing enough on his own.
Throw him into a barren wasteland of a future and you might as well read
this thing on suicide watch at Bellevue. Banner gets tossed into the
future courtesy of a mohawked Rick Jones descendant only to find the
populace overrun by The Maestro, a graying, mean, old bastardy future
version of himself. Hulk is left to consider why he becomes such a tool
in the future, and it's up to him to put a stop to his evil self's
plans. This involves the Hulk punching himself in the nads, then
transporting him back to the site of the gamma explosion. Way to go.
Also: Ow.
2003 PREVIEW
written by James McDonough
transcribed by Vu
1. JLA/AVENGERS
WHEN: Summer 2003
MAJOR PLAYERS: Writer Kurt Busiek (Astro City) and artist George Pérez (The Avengers)
WIZARD: THE COMICS MAGAZINE #137 (Cover B)
(Feb 2003)
Wizard Press
COMICS' SUPER BOWL. Fans have waited 20 years to see this official, "yes-it's- really- happening" wraparound cover to JLA/Avengers by Pérez.
THE LOWDOWN: After 20 long years, it's finally going to happen. The
biggest guns in the Marvel and DC Universe will collide when the Justice
League of America and the Avengers go toe to toe in the most
anticipated comic book crossover of all time.
"It's the JLA. It's the Avengers," barks Busiek. "The premier
superteams of two worlds, together at long last. A threat big enough to
menace two realities. Cosmic action. Marvel heroes versus DC villains
and vice versa."
Featuring an amazing set of wraparound covers, the four-issue crossover
series can only be described by Busiek as "a full, 200 pages of
cross-universe, superteam Pérez-y goodness."
As for plot details, both Busiek and Pérez remain hush-hush in the hopes
the excitement and suspense will snowball even more than their high
expectations. However, they insist that one thing fans can bank on is
that the story will not focus solely on a handful of stars.
"Two teams, two groups, two pantheons of heroes," recites Busiek. "More
Avengers than you can count. More JLAers than the Avengers can count.
There's a reason we need 200 pages."
While a project of this magnitude - not to mention the high
expectations- is daunting enough, it's the two superteams' distinct
philosophies on taking on baddies that provided Busiek with one of his
toughest challenges.
"I expect we'll see ways in which the teams are different, as well as
some of the similiarties they share," explains the writer. "The first
thing we did is pitched a DC villain [Starro] at the Avengers that the
JLA usually have to puzzle out a solution to and a Marvel villain
[Terminus] at the JLA that the Avengers usually have to smack down big
time, and see how each team handles it. But that's just the start.
After that, things gets stranger and far more dangerous.
And that stranger danger may result in the icons from both squads pitted
against one another. But which encounter has fanboys salivating the
most?
"Going into it, the one conflict I was asked about the most was Batman
and Captain America," relates Busiek. "I think it's a perfect clash and
not what people will expect. But Cap's got more to deal with than the
Caped Crusader."
Legion of fanboys worldwide aren't the only ones pinching themselves over this dream event.
"I never dreamed of tackling a project like this - not for real," laughs
Busiek, who heard about the original crossover while working for a fan
magazine that initially announced the event nearly 20 years ago.
"I hadn't broken in as a writer yet, so I figured the crossover would be
long-finished and published before I wrote comics professionally,"
Busiek recalls. "Even when it fell through, I never expected to
actually get the assignment to write either book regularly, much less
both of them in the same project." Many years and several false starts
later, Busiek's career is coming full circle now that his wildest
fantasy is coming true as he finds himself in the driver's seat of this
massive project.
And speaking of anticipation, not even the most hardcore fanboy seems as
excited about the project as veteran artist George Pérez.
"I'm so jazzed at some of the stuff that Kurt has come up with," giggles
the Florida-based artist. "Believe me, I'm glad this project is
causing such a stir. I know realistically that JLA/Avengers has had 20 years of anticipation which I hope I live up to."
Busiek has no doubts the modern-day master of the superteam has the only
choice to take on a project of this visual size and scope.
"He was born to do the ultimate superteam crossover. He's one of the
best artists ever on both series," gushes Busiek. "Plus, he's been
champing at the bit to do this book - and do it right - for 20 years.
It's hard to compete with that kind of energy. George was there first,
and when he's going pedal-to-the-metal, nobody else could keep up."
Pérez sees the project as a labor of love long in the making. "For a
man who's been working in this business now [for 29 years], to be able
to work on stuff I really really want to do, to do the ultimate
superhero book - I've been very lucky," marvels Pérez, who's quick to
admit he's even found a way to work in his beloved Teen Titans, which he
co-plotted and illustrated during the early '80s. "Hey, I have certain
things I must do."
PROJECTED SALES: No. 1 at 150,000 copies for each issue. There's no
better marketing tool than 20 years of fanboy anticipation. Plus, with
Busiek and Pérez taking their time to ensure this book stands out as one
of the greatest crossovers of all time, it's an event that will appeal
to readers across the board.
WIZARD: THE COMICS MAGAZINE #137
On sale December 18, 2002
Wizard: The Comics Magazine #137 is our annual Year-Kicker
issue! Our giant 2003 preview will present over 25 pages of the most
exciting comics and more including Neil Gaiman's 1602 from Marvel,
Michael Turner's next Top Cow series, JLA/Avengers, Hulk: Gray by Jeph
Loeb and Tim Sale, Superman's 10 cents Adventure along with news from
Image, CrossGen, Dark Horse, Ultimate Marvel and everyone else.
One of the biggest movies of 2003 will undoubtedly be X-Men 2
coming next May. Visit the set of the film in Vancouver as we interview
director Bryant Singer on what to expect from the new film. This issue
will feature on exclusive "X-Men 2" Wolverine photo cover with actor
Hugh Jackman.
Vote for your favorite
creators and characters in the annual Wizard Fan Awards. The biggest
ballot in comics will be in this issue. The winners will be honored at
the Wizard Fan Awards ceremony at Wizard Wolrd Chicago next year.
___Magazine (Ultimate Jean Grey/Mary Jane/Storm cover by Joe Linsner)
..........
$4.99
___Magazine (X-Men 2/Wolverine photo cover)
..........
$4.99
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