From "Virgin" to "Civil War"

A big comic-book morning for me. I talked to Steven T. Seagle about his “American Virgin” and took part in a Marvel teleconference about “Civil War.” Mark Millar, writer of the “Civil War” miniseries, was the guest of honor; I loved hearing his Scottish accent. Editor Tom Brevoort was also on the line and echoed a thought I’d been having about “Civil War” vs. DC’s big event, “Infinite Crisis.” “Infinite Crisis” is about the DC universe and parallel worlds and shifting realities. “Civil War” reflects real-world arguments about civil rights vs. public safety. Don’t get me wrong — I love DC’s characters. But the two books do reflect the companies’ differences. Marvel’s heroes, as Brevoort noted, have always been grounded more in the real world.