“Cup O’ Joe” returned to the New York Comic Con (fans at Wizard World: Los Angeles last month saw “Cup O’ Jeph” instead). The panel, a conventional regular, consists of Marvel Comics Editor-in-Chief making announcements and fielding questions from fans. Quesada was joined late Saturday afternoon by Marvel Comics publisher Dan Buckley, marketing’s Jim McCann and C.B. Cebulski.

The first slide shown was of Steve McNiven’s pencils from his upcoming Wolverine run with Mark Millar. Next up was a slide announcing the two newest Marvel exclusives: Mike Choi and Sonia Oback, who will be part of a rotating art team on X-Force.

Quesada discussed Punisher: MAX, and the upcoming arc by writer Gregg Hurwitz, to be followed by five issues by current Cable writer Duane Swierzynski The latter writer joined the panel and briefly talked about his arc.

Next up was Marvel Apes, which Quesada didn't give many details on but was apparently serious about. Astute fans will recall the concept first being mentioned by Quesada - apparently a suggestion by a fan in a panel much like this one - at a comic book convention a couple of summers ago.

Buckley briefly mentioned the merits of Marvel's Digital Comics Unlimited, before Quesada turned the panel over to Q&A (while hinting towards another announcement at the end of the panel).

The first question concerned whether Captain America is deliberately written to touch on real world events, but Quesada said that it's just fortunate timing, as the stories are planned well in advance.

Yet another question concerning when Marvel is going to "slow down" with the big, status quo-changing "events" was asked. "You mean when are our books going to suck again," Quesada joked. The question raised some boos, and Quesada answered that "At the end of the day, what it means to me, is that our stuff is so compelling that you want to get it. My job and Dan's job and all our jobs here are to make you want to buy everything we put out."

He then added, "If you think it's tough holding out on books now, wait until you see what happens after Secret Invasion."

A young fan got a lot of applause and laughter asking why an idea he floated at a convention panel last year involving the Hulk and Venom fighting hasn't happened yet. "I think it has to happen now," Quesada joked, before adding that there aren't any Hulk-related plans for Venom, but plenty of plans for Venom, specifically in the Spider-books.

Quesada then plucked Amazing Spider-Man and Avengers: The Initiative writer Dan Slott out of the crowd to do his Ben Grimm impression. Slott obliged.

A fan asked about Quesada's comments in yesterday's "My Cup O' Joe" column concerning Speedball's return, asking if it would indeed be the "Robbie Baldwin Speedball," to which Quesada said, "yes".

A fan asked if Marvel would be interested in publishing Superman comics, presumably based on the ongoing legal issue involving Sigel and Schuster’s heirs. Buckley said that someone asked him once what DC character he would want, and his answer was "It would be nice for Captain Marvel to have his name back," so he said "I'd pay for Captain Marvel, but not Superman."

A fan wanted to know more about Stephen Colbert running for president in the Marvel Universe. Quesada joked (well, it was probably mostly a joke) that it was only a ploy to get back on "The Colbert Report."

Any chance of a new Ant-Man series? Quesada: Not at this point.

When asked about the Ultimate line, Quesada reiterated that he wants to keep the line small, and that there's some "huge upheaval" coming within those titles. He also described the Ultimate universe as a "testing ground" for things that might happen in the Marvel Universe proper.

Senior editor Axel Alonso then joined the panel.

Quesada was asked if there was a chance that the Ultraverse could return, a la the New Universe being revived in newuniversal. Quesada said, without going into details, that the Ultraverse is "problematic" legally. He expressed an interest in the concept and integrating the Ultraverse into the Marvel Universe, but that it's not something they can work with at the moment.

Alonso then discussed the Gregg Hurwitz arc on Punisher MAX, saying that it'll have a character familiar to old school Punisher fans, calling it "an oh sh*t moment if ever there was one."

Moving on to Swierzynski's arc, Alonso said the story's about Frank Castle being injected (cue the syringe image below) with a poison that will kill him in six hours. He then talked about the subsequent Victor Gischler-penned arc, called "Welcome to the Bayou."

A fan started by complimenting Dan Slott for his approach to continuity, before moving on to a question/complaint about "One More Day," specifically that Spider-Man's identity being public didn't last as long as this fan apparently would have liked.

Quesada clarified that he never said it was going to last 10 years of 5 years, just that it wasn't going to be undone at the end of Civil War and that it did indeed have lasting implications.

"I'm not an elected official, at the end of the day," said Quesada.

McCann added "If Spider-Man hadn't been unmasked, 'One More Day' wouldn't have happened, and then 'Brand New Day' wouldn't have happened, which is still going on, so we're still feeling the effects of Spider-Man's unmasking."

A similar question was next, the age-old chestnut "How does a writer break in at Marvel?" Cebulski answered that it's a lot trickier than for an artist, as it's harder to see if a writer has talent right away to work long-term. He repeated the common answer that it helps tremendously to be published somewhere else, or self-publish, first. Alonso added that ashcans are important, as they'll often read them.

While Alonso was still talking about this issue, Marvel Comics icon Stan Lee joined the stage, saying "Who here is responsible for Spider-Man being single again?"

He then added that he thought it was "a great idea," and then gave Quesada some compliments before leaving.

Quesada said he sometimes gets phone calls from Stan Lee out of the blue, and that the other day he got one with Stan asking, "I just read the last couple months of Marvel Comics. What the fuck is wrong with you?" A fan asked why the symbiote storyline in Mighty Avengers wasn't longer, and Quesada answered that, very simply, Brian Bendis had it plotted as a three-issue story only, and Secret Invasion was right around the corner.

While a fan was asking about a possible Ares/Thor fight, Queada feigned taking a call on his cell phone saying, "Nope. Haven't seen it. Not for months." Upon completion of the call, he said "That was Dan DiDio looking for his market share."

Quesada then returned to the question, saying that Marvel know has four "very heavy hitters" in Thor, Ares, Hercules, and the Sentry, and that the fan might be on the right track. "There's some definite, long-term plans there," said Buckley.

An admirer of the '70s character asked about Deathlok, and Quesada said it was also one of his favorites. Alonso said there may be something coming in the future.

Plans for another Halo mini-series? Buckley: "Yes, there are plans."

After buttering up Quesada by saying that he's one of the best Marvel Editor-in-Chiefs ever, a fan then complained about the Sentry and his psychological issues. "That's one of the beauties of the Sentry," Quesada said. "It adds a dimension to the all-powerful super hero that we've never seen before."

Another seemingly obligatory convention question - the arrival date of more Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk was brought up. Quesada says he has all of Damon Lindelof's scripts except for the last one.

Any chance Thor will join the Avengers? Quesada said that JMS has his own plans for Thor, which doesn't include that at the moment but may in the future.

A fan that called Cable and Deadpool the "funniest comic ever written" expressed upset feelings over the title being cancelled. "It's sales," Buckley said.

Will the new Captain Marvel play a role in Secret Invasion? "Read Secret Invasion," Quesada said.

A fan asked about the status of Young Avengers and the character Gravity. "There's going to be a really surprising twist involving a character from Gravity," said McCann.

Quesada said something with Young Avengers was in the works but he couldn't say what.

When can we expect Ultimate One More Day?" a fan asked in an apparent attempt at humor. Quesada just laughed the question off.

A fan asked about any more Marvel work from Joe Madureira after Ultimates 3, with Buckley saying that there's no plans yet and he's working on finishing that run.

Quesada ended the panel with a black and white image of a man with a long hair with wolves and human skulls at his feet. "I can't say what that it is yet, but it's going to be huge," Quesada said.

Speculation among fans leaving the panel immediately flew in the direction of (given representation of mass death and wolves as companions) the image being of Randal Flagg, the antagonist of Stephen King's The Stand. King announced on NPR that Marvel will be adapting the novel into a graphic novel in March.

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