JLA/AVENGERS CROSSOVER
CREATORS: Kurt Busiek and Mark Waid, writers; George Perez, penciller
THE DEAL: Nearly 20 years ago, a JLA/Avengers crossover almost saw the light of day. A script was written, and penciller Perez drew more than 20 pages of the proposed comic. When company politics between DC and Marvel mucked up the works, it looked like all hope was lost for the ultimate superteam crossover.
But word on the street'll give you some hope. Although nothing's been confirmed, rumors are flying that upcoming JLA writer Waid and Avengers writer Busiek have been talking about bringing Marvel's and DC's greatest heroes in a toe-to-toe crossover.
And - get this - the pair wants to take place in the pages of Avengers and JLA. That's right. No mega-company crossovers. No "Age of Amalgam". No continuity-bending gimmicks. Just the JLA and the Avengers slugging it out across their respective universes.
WILL IT HAPPEN? Nothing is official yet, but something's up. Waid and Busiek won't comment on the project. While JLA editor Dan Raspler says a crossover like this has a good chance of happening, he adds, "If it was, I couldn't comment on it."
But Perez, penciller on Avengers, says the writers have been planning. The companies' editors are interested. And - because Perez has always been regarded as the only artist on the project - he's ready to go.
Raspler admits there's buzz about the project. "I know this is a project Kurt and [Avengers editor] Tom Brevoort would love to do," he says. "It's just a question of getting the companies to sit down together and work it out."
Remember, neither company has officially announced anything yet. But, as Raspler says, it would be a comic fan's dream.
"They're great characters, on both sides of the street," he says. "How great would it be to see an in-continuity adventure where Superman goes up against Captain America in a moral dilemma? Or a Martian Manhunter/Vision confrontation?"
Perez knows how great. "As a fan, it's terrific," he says. "As an artist, it would give me a sense of fulfillment, a sense of closure. It's almost been 20 years since I drew the first JLA/Avengers story. It would be great to revisit that."