The Phantom Is Back!

[Greg Cox]

Captaindemotion wrote:

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^ I agree. A period piece superhero in an era we've never seen would be great. Most modern movies are set in the present day and we've had 30s-set ones like the previous Phantom or The Shadow. But that's really it.

I suppose you could count the likes of Zorro & Robin Hood as period piece superhero movies. But with The Phantom you can set it in numerous eras that haven't been seen onscreen before in a superhero movie. Why not take advantage of that to distinguish your movie from the herd?

Like (ahem) the French Revolution . . . ?

[Captaindemotion]

^ What a brilliant idea! I wonder what genius came up with that one.

Oh, I know. The creator of The Scarlet Pimpernel ...

[Greg Cox]

Captaindemotion wrote:

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^ What a brilliant idea! I wonder what genius came up with that one.

Oh, I know. The creator of The Scarlet Pimpernel ...

The original period superhero!

(I'd argue that, say, Robin Hood or King Arthur are more folklore and mythology.)

[KB24]

That you Demotion! There's plenty of places less familiar than the French Revolution for The Phantom to play in!

[Captaindemotion]

^ From your mouth to the movie producer's ears. (Or Greg's for that matter ...)

[Greg Cox]

Captaindemotion wrote:

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^ From your mouth to the movie producer's ears. (Or Greg's for that matter ...)

Too late! My Phantom versus the Reign of Terror story is already on sale!

In my defense, I should point out that Moonstone specifically asked for a story about the 12th Phantom, which put me squarely at the end of the 18th Century. The French Revolution was the obvious way to go--and, as far as I know, was largely unexplored territory as far as the Phantom was concerned.

(The 12th Phantom himself is pretty much unknown, having only been mentioned in one previous storyline.)

[KB24]

Well damn Greg I'd still rather have him in the Revolution then some modern teeny wearing a motorcycle. Make a movie already! The whole point is that its a historical comic with a historical hero or so 'the ghost who walks' seems. ;0)

[Captaindemotion]

Greg Cox wrote:

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Too late! My Phantom versus the Reign of Terror story is already on sale!

In my defense, I should point out that Moonstone specifically asked for a story about the 12th Phantom, which put me squarely at the end of the 18th Century. The French Revolution was the obvious way to go--and, as far as I know, was largely unexplored territory as far as the Phantom was concerned.

(The 12th Phantom himself is pretty much unknown, having only been mentioned in one previous storyline.)

Nooooo, Greg, you've picked me up wrong. I wasn't complaining about the setting or timing of your new outing. I was simply saying that I'd like to see more historical tales with the various Phantoms from over the years.

Whether that's in a movie or one of your comics or novels, I'm in agreement with KB24 that I'd rather see an historical story than a modern pouting teen assuming the mantle (though I'll still check this miniseries out when it airs over here). The reference to your ears was just to voice the hope that you'll do more in this vein, whether that's the Reign of Terror or American Civil War or whatever.

[stj]

Why was it necessary that the twelfth Phantom be a monarchist?

[Christopher]

Captaindemotion wrote:

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Whether that's in a movie or one of your comics or novels, I'm in agreement with KB24 that I'd rather see an historical story than a modern pouting teen assuming the mantle (though I'll still check this miniseries out when it airs over here).

This Kit isn't a "pouting teen," really. He's pretty well-adjusted -- has a wild side, but loves his family and has the self-discipline to buckle down with his studies, so he's neither too irresponsible to buy as a potential hero nor too perfect and clean-cut to be likeable.

[Greg Cox]

stj wrote:

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Why was it necessary that the twelfth Phantom be a monarchist?

He wasn't. But there was this beautiful French countess who wore the Good Mark . . . .

He was fulfilling an ancient obligation to her family, as the Phantom has always done. One of her ancestors had saved a previous Phantom, so he was just returning the favor by rescuing her from the guillotine.

He wasn't fighting against the Revolution, just the Terror.


P.S. Don't worry, Demotion! I'd love to do some more historical Phantom stories myself.

[stj]

^^^Sounds better. The chances of me seeing this are pretty slim, though.

On a historical note, I would like to point out that there is a strong likelihood that without the Terror, the Revolution would have been defeated. And that, when the Revolution had defeated the worst of its enemies, the Terror was halted. Cause and effect. There are lots and lots and lots of people who love stories about how authority figures have to make the hard choices and dirty their hands with various crimes. But those are crimes to maintain the accepted order, which really should be able to chug along. I mean, if it's an ongoing thing, isn't the accepted order more of a permanent war? But when the issue of revolutionary violence comes up, suddenly opinions change. I think it would have been both amusing and affecting if the Phantom was in Paris because of the moves to abolish slavery (affecting slave raids into Africa,) and crushed an emigre plot!

[Greg Cox]

stj wrote:

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^^^Sounds better. The chances of me seeing this are pretty slim, though.

Did I mention that a trade paper compilation is in the works?


The pro-Terror angle is interesting, although I'm not sure I could have pulled that off in 3,000 words. Or that King Features would have approved it.

I was just going for an old-fashioned, swashbuckling adventure . . . .