• Marvel’s editor-in-chief Joe Quesada mentions Bendis in his regular Friday column for Newsarama, which actually only appeared on Monday. (Even Marvel’s COLUMNS are late — har, har.)
• Comic Book Bin reviews New Avengers: Illuminati #1
• An interview with Bendis collaborator Brian Reed (somehow I missed this one a couple weeks ago).

This entry written by…Me.

That said, it sounds pretty cool. Here’s one no-spoilers part:

“The conspiracy will be revealed this year, in this first story arc coming up. People have waited long enough. This isn’t the X-Files where we say it’s coming but it’s not coming because we don’t have it. We’re not just jerking people around and getting them angered. No, this story is a story with an end with a shocking reveal after shocking reveal and we’re ready to build towards it for a few months right after Civil War because there’s a lot that needs to be addressed. The characters dive right back into that main story, some of them not even realizing they’re diving right back into the story, but what they (and readers) want to know, they will find out, and it will set up an entire new agenda for the book about who they are fighting, why they’re fighting, and what the people they’re fighting against want.”

This article written by…Me.

He said, “There is nothing better in the whole history of literary fiction than a guilt-ridden Peter Parker, and we have the ‘King Kong’ of guilt-ridden Peter Parker’s now, on this team, trying to make amends for all the damage that was done and all the damage he did in outing himself and dealing with the disastrous implications of what happened since.”

And yes, it starts with Spidey in the black costume.

There’s some cool art, too, so check out the whole article.

This article written by…Me.

I’ve only ever been able to find low-res versions of it… until now!

Click on the thumbnail to see the cartoon in hi-res glory! I especially like the bit about smelling like ramen noodles…

This entry written by…Me.

Bendis has obvious really delved into Luke’s personality through his appearances in Alias, The Pulse, Daredevil and New Avengers. Here’s part of what he said to Newsarama about him: “Luke Cage will now rise to be the leader of the team. He almost had a …hmmm, let’s says a ‘King Arthur’ heaviness in him in New Avengers #22, where he made decisions to fight for what he believes in no matter what the cost to himself or his family. And now here he is having survived the war and kind of being put in position to lead the team to where it needs to go. He is, of all of them, the biggest believer in that what happened to the New Avengers in the first arcs – in the Savage Land, discovering there is something rotten in S.H.I.E.L.D. – is all connected, all the way from House of M, to the Secret Wars, to Civil War … that there has been something pulling at them this whole time, and they’re going to get right back to trying to figure out what it all is and putting it all together.

Iron Fist

Bendis said: “I’m glad we’ve put them together as a reveal because…Yes, the ‘Heroes for Hire’ [see below] are back together again. Danny went through a lot during Civil War. He’s got his Rand Corporation and we’re discovering a lot about him in his series by Ed [Brubaker] and Matt [Fraction], and this is the book where you get to see that information effecting the Marvel heroes in his life. This is a really good time to be an Iron Fist fan and a ‘Power Man & Iron Fist’ fan. They are going to achieve a lot in the coming months.

This entry written by…Me.

One day after the lame-o “Meet the new New Avengers” article on Newsarama about the oh-so-mysterious Wolverine, Bendis is back in form with some great observations on Spider-Woman, a character we all know is near and dear to him.

He said, among other things: “The spy without a home. Ex-Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., ex-Agent of Hydra… this is the only place she can go, and she is one of those who feels someone was pulling her strings through out this entire year. She also has an unrevealed relationship with Nick Fury, who is still underground. And what his connection to all this is will be revealed this year.”

This entry written by…Me.

I mean, it’s Wolverine. Guess we don’t know anything about HIM!

I’m sure it will be better tomorrow.

Seriously, it just about has to be!

Bendis said, ““Another character not in the crux of the major war, but was part of the New Avengers because of the deal he made with them. He’s kind of the eternal underdog. He and Luke Cage have similar beliefs in regards to what’s going on in the Marvel Universe right now and Wolverine sticks with the group to see if through, because he made a commitment to them…”

This entry written by… Me.

Day One: Echo/Ronin
David Mack’s creation from Daredevil (two different stints on the book)
Here’s what Bendis said about his friend’s creation:?
“Echo is the character who’s been in the New Avengers who has the most unanswered questions surrounding her. She had a one arc storyline and in this arc Captain America picked her to stay in Japan and deal with the growing threat of the disorganized Japanese underworld, which she took a heavy interest in being part of. We still don’t know a lot about how she got from Kingpin assassin to New Avengers ally, and why she wears the Ronin suit – why she dresses up like a man. I know a lot of people want to know this. So all of this will be answered in issue #27, which not only answers all these questions, but also debuts this new team of New Avengers.”

Day Two: Ronin
Bendis: “Once Echo is done is Japan, there will be no need for her to be Ronin anymore. The suit – the identity – will have served its purpose. There will be another person in the Marvel Universe without a theme… without a motivation … or who may have lost their desire to wear the costume they were wearing, and this person will don the costume as the masterless samurai of the Marvel Universe for the time to come.”

So, I guess, it’s a different Ronin? I bet on Elektra.

Day Three: Dr. Strange
It’s apparently now the Defenders or something. I don’t think I like this, but I’ll trust BMB to pull something off and surprise me.
Bendis: “Doctor Strange, as has been shown in issue #6 of Civil War, kind of sat it out. He kind of took a Gandhi stance, and when the war pans out the way it pans out, it really shocks a lot of characters in the Marvel Universe to the very core of their beings and results in them changing their minds about a lot of things. And once Doc Strange sees the results of the war in reality, and not just in theory, it shakes him, and he realizes his ‘Gandhi-status’ may have been a huge mistake, and now he’s in a position to try to at least rectify that and he blames himself and his inaction for what the end results are.”

Day Four: Jack Bauer
Just kidding.

More to come!

This entry written by…Me.