2. Spider-Man/Black Cat: The Evil That Men Do (Marvel)

First Issue: August 2002
Most Recent Issue: #6, March 2006 (final issue)
Longest Time Between Issues: Three years and three months - #3 (October 2002) - #4 (February 2006)

And here marks another Hollywood writer mucking up the publisher's plans to use their name as a massive selling point for a new book with a redhot character. At the time of Spider-Man/Black Cat's debut issue, the first Spider-Man film had just set the box office ablaze, and Marvel recruited fan favorite Kevin Smith to pen a new Spidey mini. To be fair, Smith had comic work under his belt previous to this, all that arrived on schedule, and has done plenty since. But for this mini-series, time was simply not on his side.

After the third issue, there was a three year, three month wait. Smith has admitted to his shortcomings, offering no excuse for the delay, but suggesting that the complete story turned out better with the delay than it would have had it pumped it out on time. And after all, at least it got finished. Which leads us to number one...


1. Daredevil: The Target (Marvel)

First Issue: January 2003
Most Recent Issue: #1, January 2003
Longest Time Between Issues: ...still waiting...

That's right. Nearly six years since this series first began, and not a peep on when it will ever finish. I think that at this point, it's safe to say never, but with Marvel's track record, you never know. Again the handywork of Kevin Smith (who has since declared this project his most disappointing in comics), the mini-series was setto coincide with the better off forgotten Daredevil film. Though there was some buzz arounf 2005 or 2006 about the series finally returning, that was pretty much the most fans ever got.

The most important thing to consider in a book that sees a massive delay like this is, are you going to support it? Clearly, Marvel (and DC too, for that matter) has enough vested interest in projects that see delays, sometimes years between issues, that they don't cut their losses and stop future issues. After all, they can always release the completed work as a hardcover or trade paperback, and sell them to new readers who probably have no idea about the book's troubled history.

The point is, should Daredevil: The Target #2 ever see the light of day and appear on your local comic shop's shelves one day, please: don't buy it.