James Gunn Once Pitched A Power Pack MAX Series To Marvel, But “Marvel Studios Nixed It”
Power Pack are a team of child superheroes created in the 1980s by Louise Simonson and June Brigman, whose ongoing series ran for 62 issues. Characters from the book, now grown up, continue to appear in Marvel comics, with Julie Power notably attending a support group for former teenage superheroes, and Alex Power joining the Future Foundation a few years back.
But Power Pack almost had a different kind of revival back in 2009, according to Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn. According to Gunn, he pitched Marvel an adult-oriented Power Pack MAX series back in 2009, and get this: Marvel was totally on board. Unfortunately, the series was “nixed,” according to Gunn, not by Marvel’s comic division, but by Marvel Studios.
He doesn’t elaborate on why the series was nixed, though Power Pack was one of the properties in the original funding document for Marvel Studios, which may explain why they didn’t want an “NC-17” equivalent comic floating around. Either way, Gunn’s vision was never realized. Gunn, of course, went on to direct Guardians of the Galaxy, one of Marvel’s most successful and well-received movies. Perhaps the now influential Gunn would have better luck if he tried again today.
How would a MAX series Power Pack comic even work? I mean, it sounds interesting but I can't see that not being absolutely terrible.
Henry Miller
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Andrew Jenkins
Oh boy, I'm ready for this trainwreck.
Kevin Williams
I have a feeling this would have made Incog's power pack look like the Marvel Babies version.
Josiah Howard
People asking how it would work are likely only familiar with the mini-series series from the last decade. The original 1980s Power Pack was actually pretty dark. It didn't dance around how shit the streets of pre-Giuliani New York was for a group of kids, even if they had super powers. That's not even getting into how the "friendly" aliens are dicks that mindraped their parents.
