Posted in: Comics | Tagged: dan slott, fanboy rampage, wheel of stories

Fanboy Rampage: Dan Slott Vs. Rich Johnston Over Comic Book Journalism

It's a brand new year here at Bleeding Cool, which means it's the first time in 2017 that we're spinning the Bleeding Cool WHEEL OF STORIES!

Let's give it a spin and see where it lands…

*spins wheel*

Ah. Dan Slott Fanboy Rampage. It's about time.

We're only two days into 2017, which means we're overdue for a Dan Slott Twitter tantrum complaining about Bleeding Cool, which he has sworn off reading approximately 5,672 times in the past two years.

"I can't quit you baby," Slott told us the last time he vowed to never read the site again. "So I guess I'm gonna put you down for a while. I said I can't quit you baby. I guess I gotta put you down for a while."

But with yesterday's article highlighting six comics that made 2016 fun, plus Civil War 2, Slott was back, and with a vengeance.

Let's review what we had to say about Civil War 2:

I didn't read this comic, and I certainly don't encourage you to do so. But nothing was more fun than making fun of it this year. Seriously, this comic exceeded all expectations. Completely rehash the same story from Civil War 1? Check. Turn Carol Danvers into a fascist? Check. Kill a black hero for shock value? Yep. Kill another hero later to overshadow it? Check again. Fundamentally ignore decades of characterization to make Hawkeye a bloodthirsty murderer? Of course. Have a buttload of overpriced tie-ins to interrupt the momentum of all the just-recently-relaunched ongoing comics? Check. Get delayed, repeatedly, screwing up the rest of the line,and require an extra issue, proving that Marvel's editorial department is inept at their jobs right for the second year in a row? Oh yeah! This provided countless fodder for articles mocking Marvel, and so, simply by existing, Civil War 2 was one of, if not the, most fun things in comics in 2016.

It's kind of a compliment! We said it was "fun."

But let's look at the claims we made. Are any of them false? Did we need to read the comic to know any of that? That's just how efficient Marvel has become at producing super-mega-crossover events. You don't even have to read them. You can just guess what will happen when they first announce it, and be 100% correct. If you don't like it, Dan, tell your bosses to produce less predictable super-mega-crossover events. Or, even better, stop producing them altogether. Just let comics tell their stories for more than six months without an event or a relaunch.

But none of that is really the point. Bleeding Cool Rumormonger-In-Chief Rich Johnston took the bait and responded to the tweets:

Slott's followers were happy to tell Johnston exactly what's wrong with Bleeding Cool, however: this reporter!

Johnston responded…

He enjoyed Rich's writing? Well, clearly this guy's opinion holds no weight. Still, Rich didn't miss a chance to pimp his own work:

And fight some more:

He would if the grieving had the scoop on a Frank Cho outrage sketch. Just sayin'.

Anyway, despite selling out this reporter, for Dan Slott, the enemy of his enemy is not his friend – because he is also his enemy.

This, of course, prompted more bickering:

https://twitter.com/8BitD00dski/status/815718344263344129

https://twitter.com/8BitD00dski/status/815721351809998848

https://twitter.com/8BitD00dski/status/815723293722427392

Damn, Rich, do you get paid for plugging that?

https://twitter.com/8BitD00dski/status/815723977645686784

https://twitter.com/8BitD00dski/status/815725031720415232

The drama continued…

And…

Journalist? Not a journalist? What difference does it make? If Marvel can call editorially-mandated, transparent cash-grabs like Civil War 2 comics, and Dan Slott can call recycling Doctor Who episodes "writing Silver Surfer," then Rich can call his rumormongering whatever he wants to call it. Fair is fair, after all.

Fanboy Rampage was a blog by Graeme "Graham" McMillan dedicated to the funniest, most ludicrous and most inappropriate comic book back-and-forths online. McMillan has moved on now, becoming a proper journalist for the likes of The Hollywood Reporter and Wired but he gave permission to Bleeding Cool to revive his great creation.

Enjoyed this? Please share on social media!

Stay up-to-date and support the site by following Bleeding Cool on Google News today!