The long wait between major MCU movies is now in full swing. Marvel Zombies is coming soon from Marvel Animation, and Wonder Man later this year from Marvel Television, but there is no trailer yet for either project. So naturally, many fans (myself included) have decided it is the perfect time to head back to the very beginning, with Captain America: The First Avenger, to begin a complete MCU rewatch. Less ambitious fans may choose to start with the Multiverse Saga. To help with that, Robby and I released our first pass at the Friends From Work Multiverse Saga Watch order last week. Here it is in one nice, simple chart. Happy watching!

Kyle and Robby will be taking some well-earned vacation time during the upcoming week, but FFW+ subscribers will have new exclusive podcasts each of the next two Mondays. Tomorrow, the guys will dive deep into the state of the MCU box office and the MCU release schedule, and next week, they’ll be breaking down the best twists in the MCU.

Now let’s catch up on all the news you might have missed over at…

THE WATERCOOLER

THIS WEEK IN THE MCU

• Collider published an exclusive interview with Bryan Andrews, the showrunner for Marvel Zombies, now coming earlier than expected on September 24th. Andrews talked about the level of violence and gore on the show, why the show was developed as a four-part miniseries instead of as a movie, and the surprises that he hopes the audience will be able to enjoy along the way. According to the report, episodes will be released weekly.

• After much speculation, Marvel Studios finally revealed that Thunderbolts*, The New Avengers will be coming to Disney+ on August 27th.

• After skipping San Diego Comic-Con this year, Marvel Television and Marvel Animation will be present at New York Comic Con in October. According to Entertainment Weekly, Marvel will preview upcoming projects at a 1:30 pm panel on October 11th.

• Ben Fritz, reporter for The Wall Street Journal, published a lengthy piece earlier today about how Marvel Studios has effectively shut down its operations in Atlanta, Georgia, to relocate its productions overseas to London, where labor costs are significantly cheaper. With comic book movies no longer the box office draw they once were, the studio needs to reduce costs wherever possible. Fritz also spoke to the middle-class crew workers in Atlanta affected by the studio’s exit.

• Earlier this week, Ryan Reynolds created quite a stir online when he posted an image of the Avengers logo with the “Anarchy” Avengers logo spraypainted over the top of it. On Friday, The Hollywood Reporter reported that their sources say he will return as Deadpool for Avengers: Doomsday. Published only in their emailed newsletter, but not on their website. In a rare instance of the trades disagreeing, Deadline then rebutted the report, saying that Reynolds had not been on set and wasn’t expected to appear in the movie. So who is right? The Wrap has a good breakdown of the situation here.

• Alan Cumming, who will reprise his role as Nightcrawler from X2: X-Men United in Avengers: Doomsday, recently wrapped filming. He spoke to People about his experience on-set.

BEYOND THE MULTIVERSE

• With summer winding down, let’s take a look back at the biggest movies at the global summer box office (movies that released between Memorial Day weekend and now):

TRUE BELIEVERS RUMOR OF THE WEEK

• Sadie Sink has arrived on the set of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, but it is still unclear what role she is playing in the movie. According to Nexus Point News, she is currently working under the codename “Annabelle Adams.”

PANEL BOUND COMICS PICK OF THE WEEK

Spider-Man: Zdarsky Edition

Hi there! Robby here with a slight twist on our usual segment.

This was a fun week on the pod as we got the chance to interview one of my favorite comics creators working today: writer/artist Chip Zdarsky. But just because something is fun to record doesn’t always mean it’s fun to listen to. So it made me very happy to see all the messages from folks who enjoyed Thursday’s episode. I was even happier to see a lot of messages asking some version of the following: “I’ve never read any Chip Zdarsky comics, but now I want to. Where should I start?” Great question.

If you’ve been subscribed to this newsletter for a while, you will have seen me plug several of Chip’s books here in the past — the “Daredevil Vols. 1 & 2” omnis (collecting the entire run) and the “Spider-Man” by Chip Zdarsky omni (collecting all the Spidey stories he’s written to date). It’s telling that those have all since sold out on the website formerly known as Organic Priced Books.

That’s right- Organic Priced Books is now Panel Bound Comics! Change is good! And don’t worry. Same folks. Same books. Same prices. Same FFW discount. But also, if you go to organicpricedbooks.com, it will redirect you to the Panel Bound Comics website anyway. So if you'd like it to stay OPB in your head canon, you go right ahead.

For having only been on the scene a decade or so, Chip has logged a surprising number of hits— from blockbuster books like “Batman and “Avengers: Twilight” to critically-acclaimed indie series like “Public Domain” and “Newburn”. It can make it hard to know where to start. And that's why I decided to put together a little Chip Zdarsky starter pack for the Chip-curious among us. Over the next few weeks, I’ll highlight different must-read books from the Zdarsky catalogue. So be sure to come back if you want the full set. This first one is a doozy.

SPIDER-MAN: LIFE STORY

What if the last 60 years of Spider-Man comics played out in real time -- with the webhead aging at the same rate as his readers? That's the question “Spider-Man: Life Story” sets out to answer. Teaming up with legendary Spidey artist Mark Bagley, Chip tells the story of Peter Parker’s life across six decades — beginning with a radioactive spider bite in 1962 and continuing to modern day.

In preparation, Chip went back and read every issue of “The Amazing Spider-Man” to date (around 800 issues at the time), and it shows. Every era of Spider-Man comics is represented here — both in form and in substance. Reimagining classic stories in often surprising ways, Chip also adheres thematically and tonally to the decades in which those stories first appeared. But instead of trying to tell one continuous story (like the fun but overstuffed “Grand Design” books or Waid and Rodriguez’s “History of The Marvel Universe”), “Life Story” gives us six vivid snapshots drawn by one of the greatest Spider-Man artists of all time. The result is a heart-wrenching triumph of a comic that works for longtime fans and new readers alike.

The updated edition comes with a later-released bonus issue telling the story from the perspective of one J. Jonah Jameson. It's a great issue that works perfectly as a sort of epilogue. You can get the collection at PBC (new acronym drop), and you should! Just don’t forget to use code FRIENDSFROMWORK to get an additional discount.

See you next week!

RE

Thanks, Robby! I think “Life Story” was the very first Zdarsky comic I ever read, only a year or two ago, and I second your recommendation.

And thank you to everyone who takes the time to read the newsletter each week. I never take that for granted. I hope everyone enjoys these last few weeks of summer!

-Greg