A day after the world was rocked by Matt Brady’s announcement that he would be stepping down from his position of Comic Internet’s Favorite Whipping Boy at Newsarama.com, rumors are circulating that there must be more to this shock resignation than meets the eye. Despite his farewell address clarifying that “this is a decision I made, and am leaving the site at my own time, on my own terms,” many commentators have seized upon the unexpected nature of the announcement and dazed and, at times, just plain high appearance of Brady at his e-press conference yesterday. Watch video of Brady’s resignation press conference here
While tributes poured in from peers and former colleagues alike, some questioned the timing of the resignation, suggesting that perhaps he was simply trying to do it while Rich Johnston was asleep and not looking for something to put online at BleedingCool.com. In a statement, Brady said “I guess what I have to say is that for the past 18 years, I’ve been honored that the comics industry took me into its family…it’s community. Thank you for allowing me to have a go at this crazy job and succeed, despite insane conditions, challenging competition and the occasional weeks and months of uphill battles,” before explaining that he had chosen not to embrace the traditional lame duck status in this particular climate of comics as usual, adding that only a dead fish knows when to pass the ball or something.
After the announcement, CBR’s Jonah Weiland blasted Brady’s decision, complaining that now they wouldn’t get to hang out in Chicago’s scariest neighborhoods for dinner and watch Batman movies being filmed, before boasting about the size of his “pork thing” in one of the strangest innuendoes it’s ever been our misfortune to read.
A source close to Newsarama.com said that the site would continue under the new leadership of Lucas Siegel, who has already claimed that steering the site through the choppy waters of comic journalism is his dream job, showing that his subconscious really needs to think bigger at times. Siegel has literally seconds of calm to look forward to before people start accusing the site of being biased towards DC thanks to his marriage to DC editorial’s Janelle Siegel.
In an interview last month with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, Brady said he was unsure about his future in internet journalism about funny books because he needed to focus on his state and his family, and also because he wasn’t sure whether Tom Spurgeon would approve of the amount of time he spent preparing for conventions.
“So, no decision yet on San Diego prep time for either 2010 or let alone 2012?” Blitzer asked.
“No decision that I’d want to announce today,” Brady responded.
Matt Brady will be missed by the internet, but happily reuinited with his family and “real life.”
Below: Brady, fielding calls while surrounded by Boom! Studio’s Ian Brill and famously round-headed popstar Moby back in 2007:
(Enjoy the lack of people giving you shit, Matt. You deserve it.)
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I have a picture of Jonah with his pork thing from that night. I can prove
it was no innuendo. It was FACT. It was HUGE.
[...] Joe Paterno, and the only way they would leave their jobs is if they dropped dead doing the job. Graeme McMillan, a former Newsarama contributor, leaves a very enjoyable note on Brady [...]
It’s like Matt doesn’t even know he’s in that picture…
[...] § You will not read anything else like Graeme McMillan’s Farewell, Matt Brady. [...]
Matt knows that he’s in that picture. Matt knows that you’re thinking about him. Matt’s like Santa Claus, except with a giant freaking hammer.
Content © Graeme McMillan, 2008-2009.
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Very nice inclusion of my Tweet; a nice, funny tribute. I know when Matt comes back on the internet in a couple of months, he’ll appreciate it.