Guest Dan Slott talks writing Marvel Comics, Iron Man 2020, Spider-Man and more

THE NEWS:

1. DC Social Media Ad Accused of Endorsing Political Change in China - Report
2. Former MARVEL CCO Joe Quesada's New Title Confirmed
3. Dark Horse Feb 2020 solicits, Bang #1, Hidden Society #1, Tomorrow #1
4. New Mutants name drops upcoming X-men book 
5. Three Jokers artist says ending is the “gutsiest” thing DC has done with Batman in 80 years
6. Tom King makes a “controversial” statement about Batman on Twitter.
7. Black Mask Returns in Feb 2020 solicits

TOP BOOKS OF LAST WEEK:

1. Dave
   1. X-Force #2 (W: Benjamin Percy, A: Joshua Cassara)
   2. Venom #20 (W: Donny Cates, A: Iban Coello, Jose Carlos Silva)
2. Forrest
   1. John Constantine: Hellblazer #1 (W: Si Spurrier, A: Aaron Campbell)
   2. New Mutants #2 (W: Hickman, Brisson A: Rod Reis)

TOP BOOKS FOR NEXT WEEK:

1. Dave: Batman #84 (W: Tom King, A: Jorge Fornes) 
2. Forrest: Spider-Man & Venom: Double Trouble #2 (W: Mariko Tamaki, A: Gurihiru)
   
    

JUDGING BY THE COVER JR.:

1. Dave: Annihilation: Scourge - Fantastic Four #1 (Josemaria Casanovas) 
2. Forrest: Buffy #10 (Rebelka)
   
    

Segment: Interview Dan Slott, writer of Tony Stark Iron Man, Fantastic Four, and coming soon Iron Man 2020 

• I recently got the chance to read the Spider-Man Magazine (Spider-Man Radioactive) collection and you have two stories in there, one featuring Mirage and another featuring Mesmero, were those characters you wanted to write or did they ask you to use them?
• How do you go about generating new ideas or angles for storied characters like Spider-Man or the Fantastic Four? 
• Do you have a strong memory of any particular story that made you think “I can’t believe nobody else has touched this?” 
• Dawn of X has taken the world by storm and I have to ask, if you had a choice in a title/team would you take the job and what would it be?
• Is the current story “Point of Origin” a story you’ve had in your cap for years?
• At Fan EXPO Boston you showed me a few of the superhero designs for characters that defend Spyre, and now they’re out there. What’s it like creating a character that may (or may not depending on your story) last for decades in the Marvel universe?
• You’re working with Christos Gage again on Iron Man 2020, I’m always curious how two writers collaborate whether they split up pages, or one does dialogue and another plot, what is your working relationship like?
• Spider-Geddon, last year’s sequel to Spider-Verse, was drafted by Christos Gage from an unfinished script of yours and his. How much of that event’s DNA would you say is your original vision and how much is new?
• As the writer of FF, do series like FF: Grimm Noir need to be approved by you?
• If you had the opportunity to do the inverse of a Superior Spider-Man style story where a hero becomes a villain, which would it be?
• What is your workspace like? What time of day do you typically do your writing? Is there something on your desk that inspires your writing?
• Has social media changed the way you write or think about comics?
  • Do you ever shift a story or idea after gauging feedback you might read on the internet
  • Last but not least, is there anything you can tell us about Iron Man 2020? 

Off topic top shelf: Dan Slott talks Mandalorian, The Crown, Ducktales and streaming services.