Baseless Speculation? Dreamwave.

Post by **spiderfrommars** » Sun Dec 26, 2004 5:14 pm

So, either Dreamwave have gone bankrupt, or they're so bloody inept that they can't take 5 seconds to write an email to put the rumours to rest just because its the xmas holidays.

I could believe either explanation.

Optimus Prime Rib · Post by **Optimus Prime Rib** » Sun Dec 26, 2004 5:17 pm

How about DreamWave is so inept that they cant take 5 seconds to write that rumors about the holidays have caused them to go bankrupt?
Ok Ill give it a rest

*badumbum*

KingMob · Post by **KingMob** » Mon Dec 27, 2004 8:28 pm

Rich has some actual details:

The rumours about Dreamwave going bankrupt have been circling. Certainly, there was suspicion and speculation after numerous creators were refused payment and this increased as more prominent creators found themselves unpaid.

As for now, Dreamwave's answer machine says that they've closed for the holidays. A Lying In The Gutters reader popped by the Dreameave office for a look-see and, although closed, everything looks normal. All furniture and computers are there, big painting in reception, it's clean, even a Christmas tree is standing.

However I also understand that Pat Lee told Dreamwave employees before the holidays that the company was going into receivership. Everyone's been publicly keeping that under their hat save for Ben Yee. And the company's message board has been closed down/hacked.

Currently, Pat is working miracles moving debt, reorganising and using other companies in a McFarlane style to ensure a Dreamwave in some form exists in the New Year. A new company created in the beginning of December when Hasbro gave Dreamwave a deadline for license payments. Amid unconfirmed rumours that Hasbro has already asked Diamond for Dreamwave assets, and cancelled books, naturally, the Transformers license has not been renewed. It seems ironic that the very property, which enabled Dreamwave to launch independently from Image and take the top selling comic in the industry spot, would be cause of its eventual decline. Is there a Transformer called Nemesis? There should be.

It's not unlikely that Devil's Due will grab Transformers, and the likes of DC and Marvel may hoover up the top creators there. But also expect Pat Lee's vision to keep rolling on, with a number of creators owing him much loyalty.

It wasn't that long ago that Dreamwave were publishing the number one book in the industry and it was selling out. However, heavy licensing costs, natural reader wastage, combined with an inability to transfer that readership to other properties and costs from being a top-heavy company have led to the current position.

On Sunday night, John Ney Reiber, writer of "Transformers Vs. GI Joe" and "Killzone," wrote me to add: "Dreamwave is apparently preparing to close its offices. A press release is forthcoming, I'm told. Neither Pat nor Roger Lee have confirmed this--to me, anyway. Which could be very naturally attributed to the holiday season. Or just as naturally attributed to any number of less jolly causes. But I can say with absolute certainty that this was a bleak Christmas for at least one freelancer who was assured earlier in the month--*after* your announcement of the McDonough/Patyk lawsuit against Dreamwave-- that they would be paid on time for the work they had turned in (and would, subsequently and credulously, turn in)."

To quote Pat Lee, "IF THERE WAS ANYTHING I COULD TELL SOMEONE ABOUT SUCCESS.. MY WORDS WOULD BE, LIFE IS ABOUT BALANCE. WE FAIL JUST AS MUCH AS WE SUCCEED AND TO LOVE LIFE AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE BEFORE IT ENDS..."

http://www.comicbookresources.com/columns/?column=13

Moo Hoo Ha Ha?

Post by **Kaylee** » Mon Dec 27, 2004 8:45 pm

Wow. So it really is the end.

Shame really, as in the beginning I think they genuinely were fans trying to make good. Shame it all got swallowed up in beaurocracy and turned into a petty 'old-boys' club.

But then again it sounds like the titles will survive, and I'm sure we haven't seen the last of Pat Lee. Good luck to him, I hope he finds a project which he enjoys doing and which everyone will enjoy seeing him do; he does have talent as an artist. Maybe he could move into drawing manga, which he loves and I for one wouldn't mind him doing.

Hound · Post by **Hound** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 12:03 am

Feel kind of odd about this, even though I was not really impressed with any of the DW TF output I still supported it and bought it.

Hopefully someone worthy of the licence can snap up transformers and turn it into a real force in comics.

Post by **spiderfrommars** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 12:33 am

However, heavy licensing costs, natural reader wastage, combined with an inability to transfer that readership to other properties and costs from being a top-heavy company have led to the current position.

Er, and a lot of the comics were just plain bad. Which didn't help.

Post by **Denyer** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 4:21 am

Yeah... producing a high percentage of sh*te never exactly helps, does it?

the company's message board has been closed down/hacked.

This is something I do find off-putting about Rich's writing style- he says things such as this as if they mean something.

I trust Wonko's instincts more than editorial.

It seems ironic that the very property, which enabled Dreamwave to launch independently from Image and take the top selling comic in the industry spot, would be cause of its eventual decline.

Bull. Poor business management, casting aside in-house books... and what the hell happened to the revenue generated from comics that raked it in powerfully for a least a year?

saysadie · Post by **saysadie** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 5:50 am

"It wasn't our fault... it's the comic/property/whatever the terminology would be."

It's evil I tell you! Why just this morning I dropped my toast on the floor and it landed jam-side down.

And it's all that damn comic's fault.

Denyer wrote:and what the hell happened to the revenue generated from comics that raked it in powerfully for a least a year?

Now this is just a guess, but I'm thinking it paid for Pat Lee's photos.

Optimus Prime Rib · Post by **Optimus Prime Rib** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 5:59 am

saysadie wrote:"It wasn't our fault... it's the comic/property/whatever the terminology would be."

It's evil I tell you! Why just this morning I dropped my toast on the floor and it landed jam-side down.

And it's all that damn comic's fault.

Denyer wrote:and what the hell happened to the revenue generated from comics that raked it in powerfully for a least a year?
Now this is just a guess, but I'm thinking it paid for Pat Lee's photos.

maximized · Post by **maximized** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 6:17 am

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIINTERESTING.

Well, it's not like DW had that much going for it outside its TF license, even though I really, really do not care for the comics much now.

As someone said, it would be interesting to see if Marvel or Image picks up the license.

Optimus Prime Rib · Post by **Optimus Prime Rib** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 6:20 am

I have said it once I will say it again, lets get our pennies together people.. we can do this

Post by **Best First** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 9:34 am

Hmm. I really rather dislike DW on the whole - to me they never mastered the basics of producing a good comic and sadly displayed a certain arrogance that meant they were never going to. I'm not particularly suprised by any of this.

However it is still saddening - Energon was fun, Don was good, WW was good. BW was looking promising. And it looks like its all going to end in rather messy fashion, which is a shame.

Plus i rather suspect that the freelancer RJ mentions may be Mr F.

BB Shockwave · Post by **BB Shockwave** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 11:46 am

I think he was refering to himself, he was writer of the Joe/TF crossover - perhaps he was asked to do the second volume first?

Shame, though. I would have wanted to see the end of Energon, and Age of Wrath, naturally. Hopefully Simon will tell us the story if DW does crash.

Metal Vendetta · Post by **Metal Vendetta** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 3:00 pm

Best First wrote:Plus i rather suspect that the freelancer RJ mentions may be Mr F.

Hope not. But it looks that way.

Post by **snarl** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 6:47 pm

DW are twats, [composite word including 'f*ck'] them.

It's sad that their freelancers are getting screwed, but as Mr First said, they are clueless and arogant.

They've made their bed.

Optimus Prime Rib · Post by **Optimus Prime Rib** » Tue Dec 28, 2004 7:08 pm

snarl wrote:DW are twats, **** them.

It's sad that their freelancers are getting screwed, but as Mr First said, they are clueless and arogant.

They've made their bed.

and went passed out in it smoking a cigarette after drinkin a few fifths of jack

Impactor returns 2.0 · Post by **Impactor returns 2.0** » Wed Dec 29, 2004 12:05 pm

Mad - I think bad buissness has ****** them over here - ok we didnt like alot of thier material. but there were quite a few ppl who did, so they must have made some cash - wheres it gone?

BB Shockwave · Post by **BB Shockwave** » Wed Dec 29, 2004 1:02 pm

You read the posts Seibertron? They mostly still think its not true.

Well,we better wait till 2005 when Pat will make another "OMG how great we are" press interview.

Post by **Computron** » Wed Dec 29, 2004 7:23 pm

BB Shockwave wrote: Well,we better wait till 2005 when Pat will make another "OMG how great we are" press interview.

Everything is fine, nothing is ruined! We're preparing to launch yet another title here at DREAMWAVE! This time Unicron is up to his old tricks again in Transformers: Crapathon! But will an old nemesis bearing a biblical name and a scar over his eye make an entirely unpredictable and shocking return? Mad Brick and Rob "Ow, my eyes, the goggles do nothing!" Ruffalo join forces with sexy beast PAT LEE to bring you the next horribly unfulfilling comic series in DREAMWAVE'S "Comedy of Errors" 2005 lineup!

Señior's Covenant · Post by **Señior's Covenant** » Wed Dec 29, 2004 7:27 pm

Computron wrote:...Rob "Ow, my eyes, the goggles do nothing!" Ruffalo...

Best part of the whole post.

Post by **Kaylee** » Wed Dec 29, 2004 8:22 pm

Señior's Covenant wrote:
Computron wrote:...Rob "Ow, my eyes, the goggles do nothing!" Ruffalo...
Best part of the whole post.

Seconded AND nominated for best nominating post of the year award 2005!

Metal Vendetta · Post by **Metal Vendetta** » Wed Dec 29, 2004 11:38 pm

What can I say but ROFLMAO?

Post by **spiderfrommars** » Thu Dec 30, 2004 12:58 am

Karl Lynch wrote:
Señior's Covenant wrote:
Computron wrote:...Rob "Ow, my eyes, the goggles do nothing!" Ruffalo...
Best part of the whole post.

Seconded AND nominated for best nominating post of the year award 2005!

Compy's funny.

Impactor returns 2.0 · Post by **Impactor returns 2.0** » Thu Dec 30, 2004 3:36 am

you had to love that Iraq dude didnt you?

Professor Smooth · Post by **Professor Smooth** » Thu Dec 30, 2004 5:06 am

BB Shockwave wrote:You read the posts Seibertron? They mostly still think its not true.

fixed

Shanti418 · Post by **Shanti418** » Thu Dec 30, 2004 5:42 am

If this DOES turn out to be true, even though we may not all like them, I'll be saddest to see the current storylines not come to fruition. It was great how we got a true ending to the G1 & G2 comics. It'll be tough to swallow not knowing what happends in G1 (although God knows where it was about to go) and AOW.

BB Shockwave · Post by **BB Shockwave** » Thu Dec 30, 2004 9:07 am

Compy, you're the best (first...)!

Yeah, that Iraqi dude was funny. I was expecting an american soldier coming into view and tapping his shoulder...

At (sorry for the typo) SEibertron Josh (the DW colorist) said that Hasbro owns the storylines... so whoever picks up after DW can reprint or continue the current stuff. And whatever comic company will pick it up,they would be stupid not to hire Furman and Don. Of the terrible duo, (Mad Brick and co.) I'm not so sure.

Dead Head · Post by **Dead Head** » Mon Jan 03, 2005 5:38 pm

BB Shockwave wrote:Shame, though. I would have wanted to see the end of Age of Wrath, naturally. Hopefully Simon will tell us the story if DW does crash.

Yes, maybe the WildFur site of JoeNgs site could host the remaining pages as a commercial online comic.

snarl wrote:DW are twats, **** them. It's sad that their freelancers are getting screwed, but as Mr First said, they are clueless and arogant.

Again, let's remember that "DREAMWAVE" is essentially two core people - PAT LEE and ROGER LEE.

It is these two chancers, Pat Lee and Roger Lee, that are not paying people their due wages and are playing with peoples lives and livelihoods. They should spend less time getting photographed in cool poses with cigarettes and sticking out their tongues giving homeboy hand salutes, and if they hand any real integrity, any sense of fair play, any backbone, any sense of doing the right thing then they would have huge trouble sleeping at night, would publicly set the record straight, would sincerely apologize (publicly and privately) to the relevant parties, and very importantly would ensure that their workers are paid their dues with interest, sooner rather than later.

Otherwise the Lee Brothers should be boycotted by the rest of the people in the comic book industry, and sued for every owed penny by their former Dreamwave employees. But alas, they can hide behind the fact that "DREAMWAVE the company" stole their money, instead of the two core individuals. Sigh.

KingMob · Post by **KingMob** » Mon Jan 03, 2005 6:13 pm

Compy, are you really Rich Johnston?

But, with the cheers of "Transformers" addict Frazer Irving, Candice Chan took the star prize for insisting that creators were changed on "Transformers" to keep things fresh and that everything was okay and hunky dorey, while simultaneously sending out private instructions to take action against these new ex-employees. Our judges were equally impressed by her insistence that Dreamwave were just closing down for the holidays.

It's useful to know that after he's freed, Comical Ali can have a long and fruitful career in comics, should he wish it.

http://www.comicbookresources.com/columns/?column=13

Shanti418 · Post by **Shanti418** » Mon Jan 03, 2005 8:43 pm

From the same article:

88MPH were instantly disqualified for only not paying a few people, as were MVC for not paying a few more people, but that's because they too had not been paid by another contender and at least were being open and honest about it. Dreamwave managed to do it all over the world, but kept a lid on most of it. In fact, as of this week Dreamwave assets and employees were shifting over to a new company called DreamEngine, started by Roger Lee, Pat's brother.

The dreamengine.ca domain was registered in Roger's name on the 9th of December, to the same address that DreamWave is registered to.

I'm told Pat's promised that everyone owed money will be paid, but to be fair I've heard that before.

So it sounds like Dreamwave is dead. Long live DreamEngine??

I take it G1 #11 and AOW #3 are still a ways off. At least there's a good chance they're coming, though.