There’s no Marvel Comics without New York City. Founded in 1939, the Manhattan-based comic book publisher turned multimedia empire has drawn on NYC’s pool of talented illustrators and writers from day one. What’s more, Marvel has put a fictionalized New York center stage for its fantastic array of colorful characters. And no one understands how important the City is to Marvel better than its current editor in chief, C.B. Cebulski.
Tasked since 2017 with managing Marvel’s modern mythology, Cebulski faces challenges a superhero might have difficulty balancing. He’s custodian of characters who symbolize an always-shifting city, where innovation pervades every industry and art form. Fortunately, both NYC and the Marvel Universe thrive thanks to residents who prioritize our shared humanity. Ahead of New York Comic Con, Cebulski sat down with us to explain why Marvel is New York.
What makes New York City the ideal canvas for the Marvel Universe?
C.B. Cebulski: The City is cool. It’s still the center of the world in many ways. It’s where a lot of these superheroes—not just where their adventures should take place, it’s where they should live. A number have that kind of New York attitude? [laughs] For better or worse, let’s say.
Marvel’s not so much about the superhuman as it is the human, and I think that the City is integral to the alter egos. Our comic books may be Captain America and Iron Man and Spider-Man, but at their core, it’s Steve Rogers and Tony Stark and Peter Parker. When they go from their day jobs to moonlight as heroes, they bring the spirit of protecting New York and the New Yorkers that live here.
Stan Lee wanted people to read the comic book, put it down, look out their window and imagine that Spider-Man would swing by or Iron Man would fly by. We uphold that legacy. New York City is a character in our comics. One of the ways that we test new artists is by their ability to draw the City: not just cardboard boxes with windows, not drawn as squares, but actually add the dirt, the grit, the feel, the awnings, the architecture—especially water towers.
New York is always changing. How do you evolve the characters with their environments, when, say, a place like Hell’s Kitchen no longer resembles 1980s Daredevil?
CBC: For the most part, I’d say we live up to the history. We all know that Hell’s Kitchen is different now. The Hell’s Kitchen that [Daredevil’s alter ego] Matt Murdock lives in is still that Hell’s Kitchen of old. Yes, the architecture might be updated a little and there might be some dialogue about that trendy coffee shop or hot new Thai restaurant, but in look and feel, it maintains that classic environment.
One thing we try to push is to get out of places that we’ve seen too much. An interesting one, which is New York City adjacent, would be Kamala Khan. Ms. Marvel is from Jersey City. When Kamala comes to the City, we make sure the routes she takes are different. Making the most of diversity in New York, not just in population but in location, is an important factor.
Many of these characters were created by second-generation immigrants. How do you engage with the City’s role in the American dream?
CBC: We’re not afraid to shy away from real-world events—albeit in a fictionalized way, because Marvel comic books have to be escapism. It’s a very fine line to walk sometimes, politically, religiously, socially. Our writers and our editors are masters at making sure that, while reflecting real-world issues, we’re not just regurgitating the news. So when someone picks up a Marvel comic, they can be entertained and enthralled.
What Stan did with some of the drug issues back in the day, what J. Michael Straczynski and John Romita Jr. did in Spider-Man after 9/11, in The Black Issue—we were the first company to reflect that, not just in the tribute book but in the actual story. And we continue to do that with things that are going on outside our windows.
C.B. Cebulski. Illustration by Goodman Yamada
Do any New York locations have particular meaning to you as a comics fan and creator?
CBC: I grew up in Connecticut, and I would come into the City quite a bit. I was a huge Cloak & Dagger fan, so wandering over to Port Authority was a big deal to me when I was a kid.
I always liked Times Square. Back when I was a teenager, it wasn’t what it is today. It was a place where you could get a fake ID without too many questions asked. The name on [my] ID was Logan Summers [a mash-up of X-Men Cyclops’ and Wolverine’s real names]. No joke. I still have it. My parents found it and cut it up; they gave it to me for my 40th birthday because they kept it. That’s how deep my love of Marvel goes. I actually wanted to be a Marvel character.
Which Marvel films best capture NYC?
CBC: For me, it’s still Avengers. I was the associate editor at the time on The Ultimates, Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch’s masterpiece. That book was so reflective of New York. I remember helping gather some reference for [UK resident] Hitch back in the day. Seeing my hard work in capturing New York…[Avengers director Joss Whedon] acknowledged The Ultimates, and seeing it from that scope really made it that much more personal for me.
I’ve done a couple interviews with international news crews and TV shows who want to go to [the Park Avenue Viaduct], and put people where the Avengers [circled up for battle] and then spin the camera around, because it is so iconic.
And then there’s the Statue of Liberty with the three Spider-Men [in 2021’s No Way Home]. It’s one of the greatest action scenes, with New York City as clear a character as in any of the Marvel films.
What Marvel media would you recommend to a fan who wants a sense of New York’s character?
CBC: Although they were based in Westchester, I was a huge X-Men fan; they gave me a sense of what New York was. There’s the classic issue where they come to Rockefeller Center, with the ice-skating rink in winter. The X-Men’s proximity to New York resonated with me because I was an hour away in Connecticut, and New York City was a trip that I knew and could make, so I could put myself in those shoes.
Frank Miller’s Daredevil is great. Dave Mazzucchelli uses the heavier black-and-white tones in his Born Again artwork; it’s a masterpiece for that. The Man Without Fear, too—John Romita’s depiction of New York City is second to none. He really captures the scope and scale in those double-page spreads with Daredevil on the rooftops, and captures the cityscapes beautifully in his artwork.
You have an alter ego of your own, as a food blogger turned influencer. With New York Comic Con coming up, what NYC spots to eat would you recommend to first-time attendees?
CBC: For the ultimate Hell’s Kitchen experience, go to Rudy’s Bar & Grill; with every drink you can get a free hot dog. That is a classic New York dive bar. Any of the Thai restaurants up and down Ninth Avenue are absolutely fantastic. There’s also a great Filipino place, Tradisyon. José Andrés has a couple of very nice restaurants in Hudson Yards if you’re looking for something fancier.
I’m going to give up one of my secret spots. The best bagel with lox and cream cheese in New York City is Best Bagel and Coffee on 35th Street, a close-enough walk to the Javits Center.
Also, Old Town Bar—where so many comic creators do hang out and spend their time—especially for the chili.
How about other attractions?
CBC: It’s fun to walk around with the Marvel Universe in mind. You can see where some of the classic Marvel buildings were originally based and what’s there now. The original Avengers Mansion, at 890 Fifth Avenue, right across from Central Park, is The Frick. The Baxter Building [fictional home to the Fantastic Four] was on 42nd and Madison. Even walking around the Lower East Side, you’re on the same streets where Jack Kirby grew up and where Captain America spent his formative years.
Which Marvel character would make the best NYC tour guide?
Spider-Man, Peter Parker. Given Peter’s Spider-Man abilities, the fact that he is a photographer and that he has seen New York from every single angle and perspective, good and bad—he would be able to give insight into this beautiful place that we live better than anyone.
After interning at Marvel and DC Comics, Brendan McGinley worked for Wizard and wrote a few comics of his own. Since then, he's interviewed creators in the medium, while also covering food, drink and travel for CBS, Thrillist, Tasting Table and others.
