Ten amazing graphic novels that deserve TV adaptations
By Ashley Hurst
In a couple weeks, @neilhimself, Andy Kubert, Richard Isanove & Todd Klein’s “Marvel 1602” will be 15 years old.
— Comic Book Yeti (@ComicBookYeti) August 1, 2018
It’s a work of art.
If you haven’t read it by now, you should definitely fix that. pic.twitter.com/i1lS0Wu3H7
Marvel: 1602
Few names in comics are as big as Neil Gaiman, and perhaps no publisher — except for DC Comics — is as big as Marvel. When the two worked together in 2003 on a limited eight-issue story that reimagined many of our favorite superheroes as existing in the Elizabethan era, fans were stunned by how well it worked.
It’s the year 1602, and England is ruled by her Majesty Queen Elizabeth I. Suddenly, there emerge mysterious beings known as “witchbreeds” that hold tremendous power, and some of Marvel’s most well-known heroes must fight to save the universe.
What sets Gaiman’s 1602 apart are the exquisitely unique approaches to the cast of heroes, including Spider-Man, Nick Fury, the X-Men and the Fantastic Four. Gaiman worked alongside artist Andy Kubert on this series, and fans loved it so much that it spawned three sequels and a short story.
While I still hold out hope for a TV adaptation, Gaiman said on Twitter that he pitched a series in 2018, but the people at Marvel “weren’t interested.”
I asked Marvel TV about me making 1602 last year, but they weren't interested. Such a pity. https://t.co/9LH7mxC5wa
— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) June 27, 2019
It’s probably unlikely that Marvel will want to go back on its word and order a series. But we can hope.