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How Dan Buckley changed Marvel Comics’ stance on long runs and embraced regular relaunches
At least one Marvel executive is known for his approach to ending comics series when the creators depart, says Brian Michael Bendis
NewsbyGeorge Marston, Contributing writer
Published on Tue Jul 21 2026
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Writer Brian Michael Bendis spent years as a Marvel-exclusive creator, giving him unique insight into the inner workings of the publisher, including how at least one key Marvel executive decides when and how to end a title, namely long time Marvel president Dan Buckley.
Bendis compares Buckley’s thought process to a “BBC” style approach in which it’s often seen as appropriate to bring a story to a close when the main creators depart rather than attempting to fill their shoes. The writer first encountered Buckley’s philosophy when his Ultimate Team-Up title came to an end after Bendis moved to spearheading a new status quo for the Avengers franchise.
“About that time is when Avengers started cooking, and it was like Avengers is going to take up an insane amount of time. Do I hand this book off to someone else or do we wrap it? And then Buckley smartly was like, I think we got it in heads our like the BBC. Like, it’s cool and it’s over, right? He said that about [Matt Fraction and David Aja’s] Hawkeye too. It’s like, ‘You guys are done. We’ll just be done with it. Onto other things you know,” Bendis tells Direct Edition. “At first I wanted to continue because I would like to continue to see this book exist. Instead, it’s this trade paperback that’s out there. It’s got all 16 issues plus the triple-sized finale we did.”
That philosophy of finding definitive endings for big stories is still at play today, with Buckley taking a hand in the recent conclusion of the relaunched Ultimate Universe, which brought the line to its end, though elements of the Ultimate Universe will continue in the mainstream Marvel Universe.
Buckley is now on his way out at Marvel after decades at the publisher, with new leadership coming in from the Marvel Studios side of the equation. He’ll stay on till 2027, however some more immediate changes have come to Marvel’s executive structure with longtime editor-in-chief CB Cebulski departing his position, to be replaced by Steve Wacker, who has his own decades-long career with Marvel across different parts of its operation.
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George Marston: George Marston is a media critic and journalist who has specialized in superheroes and comics for nearly two decades. Along with focusing on comics and superhero media at Newsarama, George has honed a critical voice exploring TV, movies, and video games with bylines at Total Film, SFX Magazine Online, Space.com, GamesRadar+, and more. During George’s time at Newsarama, the site received the 2020 Tripwire award for Best Comics-related Website / Publication. (They/Them)
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