5 Tonys: Broadway Smash


4 Tonys: Off-Broadway Hit


3 Tonys: Touring Company


2 Tonys: Dinner Theater


1 Tony: Street Mime

Re: which of the current ongoing Marvel books is my favorite? Before I went to this question, I knew it was going to be a tough toss-up between CAPTAIN MARVEL and THUNDERBOLTS. Imagine my relief when I saw I didn't have to make that choice, as neither were offered on your list. Ah, well, I'd have to go with Marv in the end. But if Kurt Busiek was still writing THUNDERBOLTS, it would be a lot tighter.

I'm guessing you deliberately limited the list of titles to get information specifically pertaining to the titles you choose. Or maybe it was just because the list was long enough already... Occam's conclusion.

BLACK PANTHER. Christopher Priest is writing the best Marvel title bar none. Currently the arc is "Enemy of the State II," with Iron Man and Wolverine guest-starring.

On the last Tony Polls question, about which title I'd be most likely to pick up if written by you? I think you should have had an additional option: "Most likely? I'd buy any of 'em!"

But I picked Giant-Man and the Wasp. I've been intrigued by the idea of a mini-series or regular series featuring them since the first issue of the current AVENGERS run, and you're one of the writers on my short list for a "dream team" on such a mini-series. The others on that list are Roy Thomas, Karl Kesel and Peter David, so you're in good company.

Some of these questions were relatively tough to answer. Part of that was because I'm buying not much now and have distinct plans to cut back...to zero. This has nothing to do with the frequency; it has to do with the fact that the vast majority of comics coming out now are crap. Everything I read either has stories focusing on just how nasty "heroes" can be or art so bad I can't fight my way through it to get to the story.

I dumped all 2,468 X-Men titles about 15 years ago and never looked back. I never cared much for Spider-Man as a character, not even in the 60s and 70s. Too whiney. I always liked FF, but the current incarnation leaves me cold. I was buying Captain America, but they killed him and the "resurrected" series has the same crappy art as most of the other Marvel titles, so forget it. I stopped Iron Man a few years back because the comic became about the tin can rather than the guy in it.

That left the Avengers. Now I've reached the point with that series where (a) I hate the art and (b) I am so sick of this stupid Kang story that I can't stand reading it anymore. I haven't picked up the issue that came out last week yet, but I plan to have my dealer take it off my pull list when I pick it up. This, despite the fact that it is the only "new" comic left on the list. Everything else I am getting is reprints, mostly from AC and ACG, plus quite a few of the Marvel Essentials.

Just finished reading The Essential Ant-Man and, yeah, some of the stories were silly, some of the villains were sillier, but the stories were fun, and I didn't come away from reading the book feeling dirty, the way I feel when I read anything with Wolverine, the Punisher, Lobo, and these days even Batman. It was fun.

Obviously, the above has necessitated a few "other" answers to your poll. Question 4: I'm not even willing to buy 12 issues. You didn't include an "other" option, so I just abstained.

Question 9: I've never bought a MAX title, nor will I. These aren't the characters I grew up with. I don't want to know what slimeballs Luke Cage and Nick Fury turned out to be. So, again, I skipped this one.

What is there to look forward to in comics then? Easy...Sugar and Spike Replica Edition #1.

My choice for favorite current ongoing Marvel title is BLACK PANTHER. It's a very creative title, I never feel "written down to" if that makes any sense. Most issues are meaty enough to merit a reread.

Marvel's plan to increase the frequency of its top titles probably won't affect me, but it is sort of upsetting news. Most writers/artists probably couldn't keep up with double titles, and that could lead to fill-ins! Unannounced ones, probably. Still, based on the vote so far, this is good thinking "outside the box" for Marvel; they could very well get away with permanent biweekly issues regardless of fill-ins or rushed production.

How would I adjust my buying habits or lifestyle to purchase additional issues of my favorite Marvel titles?" If it were Black Panther or Captain Marvel, I would drop other Marvel titles. If it were other Marvel titles, I'd drop the title itself.

Which Marvel feature would I be most likely to buy in a mini-series written by Tony Isabella? I'd like to see you write a few issues of Marvel Team-Up. You'd obviously be good with Spider-Man, plus you could have carte blanche to pick his allies. A good mix of characters you've always wanted to try out, plus characters you've had good ideas for stewing in the back of your mind for a while! It's a can't miss idea!

Re: favorite current ongoing Marvel titles. If I remember correctly, your poll software is limited to 20 items per question. Which is too bad, because my two favorite Marvels--THUNDERBOLTS and CAPTAIN MARVEL aren't on your list.

Of the choices listed, I picked Grant Morrison's NEW X-MEN, but I wish I'd looked at the results first. Claremont and Larocca's X-TREME X-MEN only had one vote. X-TREME is very nearly as good as the NEW X-MEN--and it comes out on time. Marvel has done well by their flagship titles this year. One year ago I was reading zero x-books; now I'm regularly buying three.

Re: favorite first wave Marvel Universe title. I'm getting up there, but I'm not that old yet. Over the years, I've read most of these early Marvels in reprint. In my opinion, the only first wave Marvel that holds up by modern standards is Stan Lee and Steve Ditko's DOCTOR STRANGE. Lee and Ditko had something timeless there. To this day, no one at Marvel has figured out a way to make Strange work for a modern audience.

On the frequency questions, assuming the quality could be kept up--a big assumption--I would be happy buying a weekly comic. But if Marvel solicits on a more than monthly schedule without proving that they can actually deliver, I suspect that retailers will tend to cut their orders. Why tie up the budget on something that may or may not show up?

As for consistent creative teams, I think it is absolutely crucial for the same writer to do all the issues, but only somewhat important the same artist do all issues...not that anyone currently working at Marvel other than Bagley, Romita Jr., and Korday could pull off 18 to 24 issues a year. If comics are coming out bi-weekly or even more frequently, continuity of story is very important. But as NEW X-MEN has shown us, lack of artistic continuity won't kill a popular title if it is well written.

If Marvel did increase frequencies, I'd increase my comics-buying budget. I don't have a family that needs my money, so I've got a lot of leeway in my frivolous purchases budget. And I don't expect Marvel to be able to put out many titles more than monthly. They may solicit them more often, but I don't expect them to be produced that often.

My favorite MAX title to date is HOWARD THE DUCK. Hilarious. And the ESSENTIAL HOWARD THE DUCK shows how well Gerber's original run has stood up to time. ALIAS is also pretty good, but stronger on character and dialogue than plot.

Which Marvel features would I be most likely to buy in a mini-series written by you? TIGRA. It's that blue-sting bikini. What can I say?

I also think you would do well on GIANT-MAN AND THE WASP, but I suspect you would write them as a couple. Ever since the Shooter and Stern runs on the AVENGERS in the early 200s, I can't see them that way.

FYI, the big secret no one seems to being paying attention to, because as long as people are repeating [the late shipping stuff] it's true, is that Marvel has improved its on-time status. Since David Bogart's arrival, we have cut the late list by two-thirds. It's not perfect just yet, but Marvel has never had a perfect late ship week.