JB,

You should write a book about all of this behind the scenes Marvel/DC insider stuff. I'd buy a copy.

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It's more about the writer being a pre-1969 reader, I would imagine. Not a bad thing, in and of itself (since, hey! I am one myself), but there comes a time when one must realize that box needs to be left closed!

Where would that "lost" story have fit in during your run? Between which issues?

••

When Dark Phoenix cut loose for the first time, I did a round-the-world flash of various characters (Spider-Man, Dr. Strange, etc) reacting to the sudden strangeness in the ether. One was the Silver Surfer, who sensed the manifestation from orbit.

For reasons beyond mere mortal comprehension, Chris, scripting that page, gave the Surfer a line that indicated he was going to zoom down to Earth and see what was going on -- even to offer assistance to this new creature, if needed.

Well, as you can probably imagine, there were a whole passel of readers who were NOT PLEASED when the Surfer did NOT show up in the next issue. Or the next. Or the next. And, of course, because we worked so far ahead in those days, it was months before Chris and I even KNEW there were people who were unhappy at being "cheated".

Cut to years later, and Steve Englehart had returned to Marvel for some writing. Shooter declared that Englehart deserved a "plum", and since the X-Men were the plummiest assignment (OMFG! My spellchecker does not know "superhero", but it knows "plummiest"???) Steve should have some kind of special X-Book to script. Steve protested that he did not know nearly enough about X-Men lore, so Shooter called me (to this day I know not why) and asked if I had an idea for an X-Men story Steve could write.

Now, mind you, it should be emphasized here that Shooter just wanted a plot from me. I was being offered neither the art job, nor the scripting!

Well, I thought immediately of the "missing" Surfer/Phoenix story. I worked up an outline, it bounced back and forth between Shooter and me a few times, and then. . . disappeared. Nothing happened.

So, when HIDDEN YEARS finally came to be, and Marvel was at the time insisting that every 12th issue be double-sized on all the books (resulting in the first and 12th issues of XHY shipping late due to editorial incompetence, TYVM) I decided I would do a "flash forward" for the 24th issue, finally telling the tale of Dark Phoenix and the Silver Surfer. It seemed like it would be a neat idea to get Terry to ink it.

Then XHY, still a profitable book, was canceled.

As to when the story would take place, basically between panels in X-MEN 136.

Damn.

Damn.

••

HIDDEN YEARS really was a dream come true, for me. When I started at Marvel, one of the first things I asked about, insignificant gnat tho I was, was if there was any chance of restarting the X-Men's book, picking up right where the last issue had left off.

I was told something was already in the works, with Len Wein at the helm. "Where is the art going?" I panted. "Cockrum," came the answer. Brief moment of vertigo. I was not really familiar with Dave's stuff then, so I heard "Cochran", which was a small town not far from Calgary, where I was living at the time.

Anyway, I did end up drawing the X-Men, eventually, but it was mostly the All-New, All-Different X-Men, and even tho Cyclops was still there, he didn't quite look like himself (different visor, much beefier), and I was told I could not alter that. (Remember when artists were required to work to model?)

Eventually I left the X-Men, and after a while I pitched my old idea again, now titled X-MEN: THE LOST YEARS. I was informed by the Powers that Were that "another book called 'X-MEN' would be too confusing." So it didn't happen.

But this was something I wasn't about to let die, so when the opportunity again presented itself, I pitched the book again, now titled X-MEN: THE HIDDEN YEARS. (I'd found out there was an ELFQUEST book called "The Lost Years", and I didn't want to step on Richard & Wendy's toes. Only later, after publication began, I found out the ELFQUEST book was. . . THE HIDDEN YEARS!)

Finally I had the book I had wanted since, as a wee small timorous beastie, I had first begun to haunt the halls of Marvel, looking for work. AND IT WAS ONE OF THE MOST FUN PROJECTS I HAVE EVER WORKED ON!

Sure, there were mountains of editorial incompetence to climb over, but it was the REAL X-MEN! That made up for a LOT! I had not been so happy on a book since FANTASTIC FOUR.

And then Joe Quesada became Editor-in-Chief.