Rob Liefeld has gone in on Marvel for what he considers a “train wreck” in the X-Men office, among other things. Don Simpson’s Megaton Man project has been allowed on Kickstarter. BOOM! Studios will collect Becky Cloonan and Garth Ennis’s The War.
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Episode Transcript:
Rob Liefeld slams Marvel.
Don Simpson’s Kickstarter returns.
The War gets collected.
This is Comic Book Club News for April 24, 2025.
Rob Liefeld Slams “Train Wreck” X-Men Line, Marvel Execs:
Rob Liefeld may have already publicly announced his permanent exit from Marvel, but he’s so over them that he’s taking to social media and also an entire podcast to explain what he considers a “train wreck” of the X-Men line, and why multiple Marvel execs should be fired.
Per The Beat, Liefeld recently explained on social media that his DMs are filled with comic book professionals lamenting what a “train wreck the X-Men office is. Sad.” Not only that, but Liefeld in the same thread demanded that the guys at the top — CEO Dan Buckley, SVP of Business Affairs and Talent Management David Bogart, and SVP of Sales and Marketing David Gabriel — all “have to go” because they “have no new moves.” Furthermore, “Marvel QuotaVerse is what is crushing publishing. Always a slew of new #1’s with limited life, quick cancellation. We are closer to all new #1’s each month, every month.”
He then released an episode of his Robservations podcast with more robservations in this direction.
While a lot of this may come off as sour grapes, as usual, there’s a glimmer of truth inside Liefeld’s blustering. Specifically, as we previously reported, while Marvel is dominating market share in the comic book industry, a lot of that can be chalked up to what he is terming the “Marvel Quotaverse.” To be clear, nobody is trying to make bad comics, and in fact, are actively attempting to make good comics. But it is clear that the amount of variant covers, new number ones, and non-stop legacy numbered anniversary issues are creating a chokepoint in comic book stores similar to blockbuster movies filling up every screen in the cineplex. While we’re currently seeing growth in sales across the industry, it’s a smaller bubble than it was decades ago, and that bubble bursting would be all the more cataclysmic.
Don Simpson Kickstarter Project Allowed To Continue:
In a follow-up on yesterday’s story about Kickstarter denying Don Simpson’s Megaton Man Kickstarter because one of the artists is from Iran: never mind.
Per Bleeding Cool, Kickstarter reversed its decision, and Megaton Man: Multimensions is now live on the platform — and half-funded as of this recording.
Kickstarter did respond and explain their call to Simpson and company, noting that they would “never decline a project based on a creator’s heritage,” but are “required to comply with U.S. trade restrictions, including sanctions.” In this case, Kickstarter thought the project would fall under those sanctions, but on further investigation concluded it did not.
So there you go! Case closed. Megaton Man: Multimensions will be available to pledge until May 22.
Garth Ennis And Becky Cloonan’s The War Collected:
The War, a story of a group of friends falling apart in the specter of nuclear war, has been one of the breakout hits of BOOM! Studios‘ Hello Darkness anthology. And now the dark tale is spinning out into its own limited series.
“As the world around us slides further into ruin, what better time to revisit the cheery subject of atomic obliteration?” said co-creator Garth Ennis via a press release. “And who better to accompany me on this joyous journey than the wonderfully talented Becky Cloonan?”
Created by Ennis and Cloonan, The War focuses on New York City dwellers worried about the state of the world when their worst fears come true: nuclear war. Rather than post-apocalyptic battles, the story is about the real, human cost of a devastating event like this, and how they all deal in different ways.
The War #1 will collect the first three parts of the story in an oversized, 37-page issue. With, presumably, subsequent parts collected in the following issues. It will hit stores on July 30, 2025.
For Comic Book Club News, I’m Alex Zalben. And here’s a robservation: maybe Liefeld could move on from Marvel like he said he would? Just a thought, I bet he’d be happier.
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