Industry Insider Whistleblows On Culture Of Fear Surrounding Editor Tom Brevoort And Marvel Comics’ Summer X-Men Relaunch
Fans are nervous about the line-wide X-Men relaunch coming this summer. While the last several years with the Krakoa storylines have been an unmitigated disaster for Marvel Comics and the X-Franchise as a whole, the little information editor Tom Breevort and Marvel have parsed out in anticipation of the reset has not looked inspiring for the X-Men’s future. Industry insiders are talking about a full-on revolt within the Marvel Comics X-Offices.
The X-Men relaunch was first unveiled by X-Men editor Tom Brevoort in December 2023, with an image that said “From The Ashes” and teased “July 2024”. Fans flocked to reply in the comments, with one concerned about identity politics being the focus of the relaunch as it has seemed to have been during the Krakoa era and the preceding several years in which the X-Men have been pushed into LGBTQ politics repeatedly. Tom Brevoort callously replied to the concerned fan, “It’s X-Men. The message is the premise.”
Since this incident, we’ve learned that Marvel Comics is canceling all X-Men books in May, with the exception of Wolverine, which is reaching a milestone issue #50. All other titles are wrapping up their storylines for Marvel Comics to achieve an artificial sales boost in July with “all-new issue #1s” across the line.
Marvel Comics has been resetting their universes faster and faster over the last several years, with their writers like Steve Orlando admitting book sales are struggling. In a post to X, the Scarlet Witch writer pointed out that it’s difficult for a book even to reach issue #15 before Marvel Comics resets the book. For Scarlet Witch, Marvel Comics went ten issues before trying a #1 issue relaunch, even with the same creative team. They used to at least wait for runs to complete to push the reset button, which is an ominous sign for the industry.
However, inside the X-Men department, some employees are fed up with how comics and the work are treated. An industry insider who requested to remain anonymous told Fandom Pulse, “They feel the amount of pages required out of the X-Office is B.S.”
Tom Brevoort’s X-Men relaunch strategy appears to be to flood the market with new titles, a tactic Marvel Comics has done for decades, and usually resulting in disaster for the quality of stories when it’s done. “They want 10-12 series a month, making around 40-50k in sales,” the insider said. “No way good stories come out of that.”
Another insider recently told Fandom Pulse that Marvel Comics doesn’t want to pay good talent. They rely on a couple of big names like Jonathan Hickman to build their lines but then cheap out the books closely related to it, hoping those books will garner sales on the coattails of their few successes. This is precisely what happened with the Krakoa storylines, which led to X-Men’s current fall, which necessitates the line rising “from the ashes.”
Still, with the way the comic industry operates as a giant whisper network, insiders are scared to speak up. “No one involved wants to call out Brevoort for Marvel. Possibly in a few months into their runs if their sales don’t go well like they expect,” Fandom Pulse was told.
The culture of fear of retaliation for speaking out against bad business practices, pitching ideas, or even talking to the “wrong” media outlets are part of the major problem for X-Men and Marvel Comics. The comic industry has become so cutthroat they will throw anyone under the bus in the name of job security. However, it’s led to a culture where good stories are not the priority for mainstream comics, which only exacerbates recent problems.
The Marvel Comics insider also informed Fandom Pulse that the “X-Office is becoming the place of the desperate for work.” It appears Tom Brevoort isn't inspiring quality talent to come to the line.
All of this bodes ill for the little we know about the upcoming X-Men relaunch. Tom Brevoort might get a small sales boost from the #1 issues, but unless they drastically change course to prioritize good stories over politics again, Marvel Comics is going to have another bomb on its hands.
What do you think of the industry insider dishing the dirt on Tom Brevoort’s X-Men corporate culture? Is Marvel Comics in trouble? Leave a comment and let us know.
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The X-Men has frequently been the flagship money series for Marvel. I think it sounds like they're in trouble.