Posted in: Comics, DC Comics, Marvel Comics, Spider-Man, Superman | Tagged: brad meltzer, mark waid, Spider-Man/Superman, Superman/Spider-Man

The Note From Tom Brevoort To Mark Waid That Saved Superman/Spider-Man

The Note From Tom Brevoort To Mark Waid That Saved Superman/Spider-Man, and why he didn't get to write Lex Luther/Norman Osborn

In a recent appearance on John Siuntres' Word Balloon Comics Podcast, Mark Waid shared an details behind-the-scenes detail about the upcoming Superman/Spider-Man crossover one-shot, set for release on the 25th of March, 2026, from DC Comics, with a Marvel companion issue, Spider-Man/Superman, to follow in April, written by Brad Meltzer. During the interview, Waid revealed that Marvel Executive Editor and Senior Vice President of Publishing Tom Brevoort was not involved as an editor on the project, but as a friend, which made for a major change.

First, on choosing Brainiac and Doctor Octopus as the villains for his Superman/Spider-Man story through DC. "Blind panic because I had written a plot and everybody approved it and it was all awesome and it used the same exact villains as Brad Meltzer did. I was using Lex Luther and Norman Osborn and Carnage, and so at the 11th hour and 50th minute, right? Forget Christmas, we don't have time for Christmas this year. Sit down and just start from scratch, but it ended up being a much better story that way."

So how to the two Big Bads get together? "We open with Doc Ock just being surly just being he's working on something in his lab, and he's just talking to himself. He's bitter because he asks Grok on his phone, right? Who does the world consider the greatest radiation specialist in the world? Bruce Banner. Well, who's the greatest robotics guy in the world? Will Magnus. This is something we forget, he was well known for radiation. That was his field of study back when he first started, a world-renowned authority on that, world-renowned authority on robotics, and he's cranky because no one remembers his accomplishments… And as he's sitting there, suddenly his arms come to life without his prompting, and they're grabbing stuff in the lab, and they're putting stuff together, and then it ends up being a Brainiac head and
Brainiac has a message for him, and there's your opening two pages."

As for Spider-Man and Superman, who are also in this comic, remember, "Peter and Clark are working as reporters on something, and that's how they are introduced in the story. It becomes a story not just about superheroics but about truth and about journalism and about, you know, facts and what is the difference between facts and truth? What are the responsibilities of a journalist? How do you punch Brainiac out of the sky if you're Spider-Man? all that kind of
stuff."

And then an 11th-hour, 59-minute and 40-second change. "I thought I was done with the script, and I turned it in, and everybody was fine with it. Marvel and DC… and then Tom Brevoort had a note, and goddamn him, it was a great note, and he was like, "Look, I have no skin in this game. I'm not editing this book. I'm just, as your friend, I'm giving you this note if you want to take it, but don't feel indebted to take it. And god damn it, I had to tear up the floorboards on the whole act three. What I had was what I ended up having, in the end, Superman and Brainiac are over here. Doc Ock and Spider-Man are over here. And as Tom says, and it's so obvious in retrospect, "I can see Superman fight Brainiac anytime. When do
I get to see Superman fight Dr. Octopus. When do I get to see Spider-Man fight Brainiac?" I'm like, god damn it. So,
that was just tearing up the floorboards, but it made for a much better story." We'll find out in March, I guess…

• DC MARVEL SUPERMAN SPIDER-MAN #1
  (W) Various (A) Various (CA) Jorge Jimenez
  LEGENDARY CREATORS TAKE ON THE MAN OF STEEL AND YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN! Written by Mark Waid, Tom King, Matt Fraction, Sean Murphy, Gail Simone, Christopher Priest, Greg Rucka and Jeff Lemire Art by Jorge Jimenez, Jim Lee, Steve Lieber, Sean Murphy, Belen Ortega, Daniel Sampere, Nicola Scott and Rafa Sandoval The Last Son of Krypton meets your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man! When journalists Clark Kent and Peter Parker find themselves chasing the same story, the conspiracy they uncover could change the world–especially if Brainiac and Doctor Octopus have anything to say about it. (And we bet they do!) Good thing our intrepid newshounds are secretly Superman and the amazing Spider-Man. Brought to you by legendary storytellers Mark Waid and Jorge Jimenez. And don't miss these bonus stories: Tom King and Jim Lee tell a tale of Lois Lane and Mary Jane Watson. Matt Fraction and Steve Lieber revisit Superman's pal Jimmy Olsen…and Carnage! Sean Murphy, meanwhile, takes us to the future with Superboy (Legion) and Spider-Man 2099. Gail Simone teams up with Belen Ortega for a look at what happens when Power Girl meets Punisher. Christopher Priest and Daniel Sampere show us a time when Superboy Prime (who reads all the comics) decided to visit Spider-Man right after he got the black suit. Greg Rucka and Nicola Scott take us on an exciting race–between the Daily Planet and the Daily Bugle. Plus, we finally get to answer the age-old question of who would win in a fair fight, Pa Kent or Uncle Ben! Just kidding, those guys are too nice to fight each other, but Jeff Lemire and Rafa Sandoval will take us deep into the past to see the two men bond in the face of adversity. Celebrate 50 years of DC/Marvel crossovers with eight new original stories by some of DC's top talent! $7.99 3/25/2026
• MARVEL/DC: SPIDER-MAN/SUPERMAN #1
  BRAD MELTZER, GEOFF JOHNS, DAN SLOTT, LOUISE SIMONSON, BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS,
  JASON AARON, JOE KELLY & MORE! (W) • PEPE LARRAZ, GARY FRANK, MARCOS MARTIN, TODD NAUCK, SARA PICHELLI, RUSSELL DAUTERMAN, HUMBERTO RAMOS & MORE! (A)
  THWIP, THWIP AND AWAY!
  • Fifty years ago, DC's Man of Steel met Marvel's friendly neighborhood wall-crawler, and the world of comics has never been the same! In celebration of that historic milestone, thrill to ALL-NEW tales of SPIDER-MAN and SUPERMAN and their friends and foes!
  • Brad Meltzer and Pepe Larraz pit Spider-Man and Superman against LEX LUTHOR and NORMAN OSBORN as their greatest villains exploit some of their greatest weaknesses!
  • In the shadow-laden 1930s, SPIDER-MAN NOIR encounters the original Golden Age SUPERMAN as told by Slott/Martin!
  • A crisis ensues as Johns/Frank bring the Super- and Spider-families against each together at the summons of MYSTERIO…but is their true foe an ally out of control?!
  • SYMBIOTE hordes invade METROPOLIS as a new War of the Realms ignites in Aaron/Dauterman's epic.
  • Co-creator of STEEL Louise Simonson hammers out the tale of John Henry Irons' clash with the HOBGOBLIN, as drawn by Todd Nauck!
  • Kelly/Ramos take us on a campus crossover between GWEN STACY and LANA LANG!
  • MILES MORALES (SPIDER-MAN) teams with Superman, as Bendis and Pichelli re-team!
  All this, and more than a few super-surprises you'll be talking about for the next Fifty years!
  72 PGS./ONE-SHOT/Rated T+ …$7.99

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