Alan Moore’s Awesome Comics is a time people don’t talk much about. Mostly because they focus on his time with the Supreme comics. But how many know about Youngblood or Glory? Wait; who even are these characters? Most of them came from this Rob Liefeld guy. And most of these titles prematurely ended because of Liefeld too. Moore even had to have Glory change publishers just to prove it existed. But were these all that great to begin with?
Alan Moore’s Awesome Comics vs. Liefeld’s
Taking most intel from Atop-The-4th-Wall, Liefeld had to leave Image over some controversies. From his late deadlines, mismanaging his imprint, and trying to embezzle money from different parties. So Liefeld started his own company, Awesome Comics. But it’s around this time that Liefeld calls on comic auteur Alan Moore after working with him on the comic 1963. Because if anyone can get his virginal publisher publicity, it’s the guy who helped popularize the Iron Age of Comics.
Moore’s first success before he and Liefeld left Image is Supreme. But I’ll let these videos explain.
Roasting The Carrot Tops
As the videos hint, there was some friction between Liefeld and Moore. Arguably that’s best seen with Moore labeling Liefeld’s Supreme as “Mean” and Judgment Day.
Alan Moore’s Awesome Comics separates themselves from Liefeld’s with subtle roasting of their source material. I mean, Judgment Day practically calls Liefeld’s storytelling a series of bad action movies. In fact, it looks like the A-Plot trial is a Liefeld concept at odds with Moore’s MacGuffin backstory B-Plot. But then again, I could just be talking out of my end.
If not for this (more specifically the Youngblood part):
But did Moore spend all of his time trying to show up Liefeld by mocking his creations? Well yes, but not by sounding pretentious about it. Moore’s comics actually had plot structures and character arcs. Just about all of them were tributes to their classic comic counterparts with Youngblood being more like Marv Wolfman and George Perez’s New Teen Titans. Meaning easily digestible issues and story arcs developing in the background. Wait does Shaft’s behavior mean he was going to become a Deathstroke with his own Terra? Would the rejection by Twilight be that bad?
Don’t tell me this wouldn’t happen, Moore was ready to make Shaft a villain since 1963.
Old Habits (Redacted By Trademark)
In any case, maybe Moore had something going for his roasting. Because while Alan Moore’s Awesome Comics do well enough to get attention, his other plans freeze. Not directly because of Liefeld, but rather his mismanagement. Youngblood got into one of its delay periods after the first issue and near the end of 1999, only released three issues. The last one had to go under a different title: Awesome Adventures and even that ended on a cliffhanger. A treasure hunt for villains loot ends with Youngblood apparently dead from a trap. Which doesn’t sound too far off from reality.
Liefeld admitted in an interview that he lost the rights to most of his creations to someone named Andrew Rev. This guy used to own the original publisher of Matt Wagner’s Mage and Grendel and couldn’t keep the rights. So he bought the rights to a few titles like Elementals and Youngblood for his own publisher. Even if it looks like Terrific Production is getting heat thrown its way over even worse business policies. Okay yeah, Liefeld could still get permission to do Youngblood (and Supreme) series but not Alan Moore’s.
With the loss of control of Awesome Entertainment’s flagship titles and a number of other financial problems, Moore left before the company’s total collapse in 2000.
Alan Moore’s Awesome Comics In Other Publishers
Some time during or just before Awesome Comics closing down, Moore would go to Jim Lee’s Wildstorm Productions. There Moore gets his own imprint America’s Best Comics (ABC) for creator-owned works. These include League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Top 10, and his most personal series Promethea. But Liefeld was a bit peeved, claiming that some of these were pitches for Awesome Entertainment. But if that’s true, why would Moore do two Wonder Woman derivatives?
In addition to Promethea, Alan Moore would publish Glory (his last Awesome Entertainment series) in Avatar Press. Granted it’s not for a long time, probably due to legal issues… with Terrific. Besides, Moore got found his way to pay everyone back. While the apocalypse in Promethea is a great sendoff to ABC, it’s also petty vengeance against Image’s sellouts.
The Spore Of Corporate Madness
Alan Moore’s Awesome Comics isn’t simply about making mediocre titles great, but passionate creators who couldn’t find common ground. For all of the new and fresh perspectives, there are jabs at what brought them there in the first place. That of course being the bane of Alan Moore’s existence: corporate greed. Not just from companies but executives who refuse to communicate and hoard everything including Liefeld.
What about now? Moore has more or less retired from comics to focus on things only he owns. His indie movie The Show has gotten critical acclaim and his short stories in Illumination has gotten great attention. Partly because despite Moore’s rants about the comic industry in prose form, there are bits tributing the people he met and admired in his career. To no one’s surprise, Liefeld’s not one of them.
Thanks for coming to the end, and as always remember to look between the panels.
This is so confusing. Rob Liefeld had nothing to do with 1963 other than it was published by Image and at no point did Alan Moore own Awesome.
Liefeld was still part of 1963’s production, even if it was only by association since he was a business partner. And I don’t remember saying Alan Moore owned Awesome or ABC for that matter. The title’s supposed to mean the comics Alan Moore did at Awesome Comics, but you know catchier title for the SEO.