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    Spawn (Simmons)

    Character » Spawn (Simmons) appears in 1430 issues.

    A highly trained assassin, murdered by his employer and former friend Chapel. Albert ''Al'' Francis Simmons sold his soul to Malebolgia, one of the many rulers of the Hell, in order to see his wife Wanda Blake again. Malebolgia had other things in mind for Al and sent him back to earth with no memory as a Hellspawn, one of his soldiers, to do his bidding. After realizing what he had lost, Al swore revenge, and became the vigilante known as Spawn.

    Whatever Happened To Spawn?

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    ReverseNegative

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    #1  Edited By ReverseNegative

    Spawn was so big back in the 90s. Almost as well known as Batman back then. What the hell happened? (pun intended)  
    He's almost completely vanished from popularity.

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    MajinBlackheart

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    #2  Edited By MajinBlackheart  Moderator
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    ReverseNegative

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    #3  Edited By ReverseNegative
    @jloneblackheart:
    I mean popularity.
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    c0l0nelp0pc0rn1

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    #4  Edited By c0l0nelp0pc0rn1
    @ReverseNegative: It became irrelevant as a story when Vertigo started, because they pushed the envelope farther than Spawn was willing to go or was able to keep up with. All in my opinion, of course. Spawn may have some more depth, other than being "edgy".
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    ReverseNegative

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    #5  Edited By ReverseNegative
    @c0l0nelp0pc0rn1:
    What kind of characters does Vertigo have? I've heard of Vertigo, but I haven't heard of any of thier characters.
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    ReverseNegative

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    #7  Edited By ReverseNegative
    @aztek the lost:
    Swamp Thing was Vertigo? I always though it was DC...
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    MrMiracle77

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    #8  Edited By MrMiracle77

    Spawn survived as a result of its connection to McFarlane and his ability to attract popular writers to his indie book.  But with DC and Marvel starting to take their flagship characters more seriously, it was only a matter of time before the chinks started to appear in Spawn's 2-dimensional characters.

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    ReverseNegative

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    #10  Edited By ReverseNegative
    @aztek the lost:
    I had no idea.
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    mcrmy13

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    #11  Edited By mcrmy13
    @ReverseNegative:  Swamp thing is owned by Vertigo,though,
    DC Owns Vertigo so,in a way they kindda like both own swamp thing
    well thats what i think at least......
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    Mutant God

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    #12  Edited By Mutant God

    Its because he is not in DC or Marvel, the more popular comics.

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    wickedflagon

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    #13  Edited By wickedflagon
    @ReverseNegative:
    The '90's were good times. I remember reading the comics, playing with the early series of toys, and listening to The Crow movie soundtrack. :D
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    MarkPar

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    #14  Edited By MarkPar

    i think most people lost interest in spawn when he gave up or lost his omnipotent powers

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    Winfield

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    #15  Edited By Winfield

    I think Spawns popularity was mainly driven by McFarlane and Image's popularity.  
    McFarlane's own popularity faded as he put out less work in comics. I'd say his credibility was also damaged by his collection of balls and the ongoing fiasco with Gaiman.  
    Image's popularity decreased because they were very closely linked to the speculators boom and subsequent bust of the 90s.  There is also the stigma of being an artists company while everyone else was beginning to really focus on writing. 
    With creator and company going off the boil, and the industry as a whole shrinking Spawn faded into relative obscurity.

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    Mediant

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    #16  Edited By Mediant
    @Winfield: I think you basically hit the nail on the head. Image's popularity, the 90's bust, McFarlane's relative withdrawl, the law suits-- they all hurt the series. 
     
    That's not to say the series, universe, or character are by any means dead, but he certainly isn't anywhere near the height of his popularity now. I'd definitely say he is an appropriate avatar of the 90's in comics.
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    ReverseNegative

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    #17  Edited By ReverseNegative
    @Winfield said:
    " I think Spawns popularity was mainly driven by McFarlane and Image's popularity.  McFarlane's own popularity faded as he put out less work in comics. I'd say his credibility was also damaged by his collection of balls and the ongoing fiasco with Gaiman.  Image's popularity decreased because they were very closely linked to the speculators boom and subsequent bust of the 90s.  There is also the stigma of being an artists company while everyone else was beginning to really focus on writing. With creator and company going off the boil, and the industry as a whole shrinking Spawn faded into relative obscurity. "
    I see.
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    -chapel-

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    #18  Edited By -chapel-

    I dunno bout all that other stuff, but I personally loved Spawn and remember buying the #1 ish in a tobacco store withe my father when I was like, I think 13. I only bought it (well made my Dad buy it for me) because I thought the cover was effing cool. I had been reading alot of comics before that but just Marvel and only Bats from DC. So when I read Spawn I was like, "WOW" and instantly loved the character and have ever since. I remember whilst at a readlight, my Dad read through the profanity filled scene in ish #1 where a girl was about to be raped and ol' Spawny came to save her. I thought my Dad would take the book away from me, but he thought it was morally right and he said, in a trying to be down voice and slang, " Hey thats pretty cool" and handed the comic back to me. He gave me a quizzical look and then the light turned green. I will never forget it and I will forever love Spawn. As I got older I identified with Spawns losses and the reason why he came back and loved the character even more. And yes Spawn kinda embodies the popularity of innovative new direction in comics that started in the 90s.
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    ReverseNegative

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    #19  Edited By ReverseNegative
    @MarkPar said:
    " i think most people lost interest in spawn when he gave up or lost his omnipotent powers "
    When did that happen?
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