Yesterday we published the first part of our two-part public Q&A with Keith Giffen and Marvel Editor Andy Schmidt, the minds behind Marvel's big cosmic event, "Annihilation." Over a one week period you, the readers, submitted your questions to the guys over on CBR's Annihilation Forum and Keith and Andy happily answered each and every question you guys posed to them. There were so much good stuff, we had to split it up over two articles.

Before we move on to their responses, there's some additional business we need to attend to. In making our thanks yesterday we forgot to thank some very important people: you! Big thanks to all of the CBR Forums Members who participated in this Q&A. Without you all, this wouldn't have been possible. And for those of you who haven't checked out the CBR Forums before, what are you waiting for? Hop on over, create yourself a free account and join in the discussion on any of our numerous message boards. The CBR Forums is one of the largest and most active comics communities on the Web and we invite you to participate.

"Annihilation: Prologue" #1 "Annihilation: Prologue" #1 Sketch Variant

CBR: Allright guys, break's over, it's back to work now. We resume the line of questions with one Jack Flash, who has questions for both of you:

Who are your favorite cosmic characters in the marvel U?

KG: Drax. Thanos. Ronin. Skreet.

AS: I have a soft spot for Genis (the second Captain Marvel) because I liked his book as a reader and then it became the first comic I was full editor on. So, I love that guy. I also like Beta Ray Bill, Gladiator, Qusar, and Nova a good bit.

What's your favorite Marvel story dealing with these characters?

KG: I can't answer that without sounding like a raging egomaniac. Thanos has rarely been better than in "Infinity Gauntlet" though…

Now the nitpicky questions!

Will the Dire Wraiths play a part in this? The Space Knights? Amphibian? Karolina from "Runaways" and her he/she skrull bride/groom? Lyja the Lazerfist? he Shi'ar imperial Guard? Death Bird, who has been missing for way too long?!

Thanks!

KG: The Dire Wraiths? Weren't they a New Wave rock group? Amphibian? No. And who the hell are all those other characters!? Way to make me feel inadequate!

AS: Jack Flash, wait and see.

CBR: Allright, guys, on to the next question. Lord S has a simple question for you:

Any chance we'll see Adam Warlock or Mephisto?

AS: Not if I can help it.

KG: Could be.

AS: Don't talk back to me, Keith. Bottom line, Adam Warlock is a firm and definite maybe.

CBR: IPW wants to know:

I was wondering if "Annihilation" ties in with the rumoured New Skrull-Kree War from "Young Avengers?" Are the events of "Annihilation" what sets off this new war? Or are they totally unrelated events?

AS: A bit of column A and a bit of column B. "Annihilation" takes place after "Young Avengers" #12, I'll tell you that much.

CBR: Expletive Deleted is back with another question:

If Red Shift (the Herald of Galactus from "Galactus the Devourer") shows up, will he get a new look? Because his old one was pretty dorky.

AS: Noted. Red Shift looks dorky, please redesign. I'm on it.

KG: Ha! See that? " Dorky!" I'm not alone!

CBR: Agreement all around, it seems. Wait, who could it be? That's right, eh_ver is back! You guys may have officially hit the big time with your own staker (once again, in a good way!). He wants to know:

I just saw the "Super Skrull" #2 cover and I have to ask, is that the Skrull from the old Hercules mini? I can't remember his name and I almost think he was from the future, but it could be him.

Are we going to see any other "spotlight" skrulls? Lyja from DeFalco's FF? The telepath from the "New FF" (FFv1 #347-349)? Professor X's mutant skrulls? The "pure skrull" from Blackwulf?

AS: No, it's not. And no, you won't. Sorry to disappoint. A lot of cool new characters come out of "Super-Skrull." Javier, the writer (one of the writers on ABC's hit series "Lost") is doing an amazing job with "Super-Skrull." But, if it helps, there is a reason why these guys don't appear.

KG: Skrulls? We got Skrulls!

CBR: Tricksterpup asks:

Would we ever see the return of Magus, the other Adam Warlock? That would be interesting.

AS: I'm sure, someday, Magus will return.

KG: Yeah. That would be interesting. If Starlin did it. Wonder if he'd consider a collaboration? hmmm…

Or how about the Dire Wraiths, AKA the other Skrulls? I know the Space Knights took care of them, but it would be interesting to see their return.

KG: Again with the Dire Wraiths? They were one hit wonders! Sultans of Swing then gone! Get over it!

AS: Well, you'll see the Space Knights…

And finally, Keith, I have always loved your stuff from when you started "Defenders" in the early days, love every thing you do. Will we ever see more March Hare?

AS: Keith, you don't have to answer that!

KG: Not if I can help it.

CBR: Keith's a trooper! Moving on, LucidLui wants to know:

Will we be seeing Gladiator and/or the Imperial Guard?

KG: I'm beginning to feel like a Magic Eightball… "Prospects are dim."

CBR: Andy?

AS: Possibly…

CBR: Eh_ver needs a clarification:

Is Andy Lanning no longer co-writing "Nova?" I was looking at recent solicits and saw only Dan Abnett's name in the credits. I know these guys have worked solo before, but it's been a long time since anyone's seen a comic written by just one of them.

AS: That must have been a mistake. Dan and Andy are writing "Nova."

KG: What's the big deal, anyway? They're both the same guy.

CBR: jazzhead has a question for ya:

"Nova" was what got me into comics back in the '70s and any time the character resurfaces, I'm in. My favorite incarnation of Nova was the first one and I've always missed the Peter-Parkeresque qualities of those early story lines, particularly when they were set against the cosmic backdrop.

The question: What will Nova be like this time around, and how much of the original storyline will be used to inform this 21st century retelling?

Thanks for the series and for your time in this forum!

KG: Let's just say Nova is the prime player and let it go at that.

AS: We're going back to the basics. Nova's still a kid at heart.

CBR: Would you look at that, the end is actually in sight! But don't leave yet, guys, because Mark Cardwell writes in to ask:

The great Ed Brubaker said over here that "I pitched this whole thing [his upcoming 12-issue run on 'Uncanny X-Men'] before I knew about 'Annihilation' and [editor] Andy Schmidt and I talked about it, and decided to give each other our space, literally, to play in. And I can't believe that no one has guessed the secret of 'Annihilation' yet. Seriously... ".

So, my questions are... how's about a clue to what this big secret he's referring to will be? And who exactly is facing the titular "Annihilation?"

KG: We stole the idea from Ed Brubaker. There. It's out.

AS: According to Joe Quesada, if "Annihilation" doesn't blow you guys away, I'm the one facing annihilation. No clues. You'll have to work it out for yourselves. Sorry.

Okay, yeah. That was the secret. We totally ripped off Ed. Oh, the shame of it!

CBR: Dermie has a handful of questions for ya:

1) Are Quasar and Living Lightning still operating the Avengers asteroid base (we briefly saw them still there post-Disassembled, in "GLA" #4), and if so is there a chance Miguel might make an appearance?

AS: GLA is gospel in my book, so they must be.

KG: Living who?

2) Any chance Una Rogg (Ronan's ex-lover who was exiled from the Kree Empire in "Captain Marvel" #25) might show up or get mentioned in either the "Ronan" mini or the main "Annihilation" book?

AS: Maybe…

KG: I'm up for it. She had a great rack.

3) Do the Kree still possess the new abilities they gained when they were evolved and calling themselves the Ruul in Maximum Security? Since Max Security ended, the Kree have gone back to their original name and appearance (presumably because they no longer need to hide their true identity since they've reclaimed their empire), but there has been no indication if they still have their evolved powers.

KG: Andy?

AS: That was undone already. Not my fault.

4) Will Mantis and/or her son Sequoia (the Celestial Messiah) have any role to play?

AS: Always a chance.

KG: Not even if it would help the space program…

5) Could we check in on Moondragon and Phyla?

KG: Absolutely!

AS: You know, I'd love to check in on Moondragon and Phyla! Good idea!

Thanks for taking the time to answer all these questions.

CBR: No, thank you Dermie. Moving on, Will.S is back with another question:

Will Paibok be appearing during "Annihilation" and will he come face to face with KL'rt?

AS: He appears. That's all I'm giving you.

KG: Yeah, Paibok's going to be lurking around.

CBR: Jack Flash gets in just under the wire with:

What about Xaviers Cadre K? Any chance we'll see the Skrull Mutants team show up?

KG: Remember what I said about "helping the space program?"

AS: Never. Never ever.

CBR: And Expletive Deleted has some follow-ups for ya:

1. In Mark Gruenwald's "Starblast" crossover, the New Universe's earth was teleported into the main Marvel Universe and contained in some sort of cosmic force field. Is there any chance of any of those characters popping up along the way in "Annihilation?" I realize it's extremely unlikely, but I figure it doesn't hurt to ask.

KG: Way too much like work.

AS: With Warren Ellis launching his "New Universal," I've stepped away from that story line. Just seemed like it would be in poor taste to touch on that with what Warren's got going on.

2. Of the four mini-series, which is the most action packed? We seem to have a sizeable constituency on these forums of folks who like big superhero brawls, and I was wondering which mini would be the best to recommend for them.

KG: That's for you crowd to decide.

AS: Well, I'd say probably "Super-Skrull."

3. Of the four main characters (Ronan, Nova, Super-Skrull, Silver Surfer), which one do you think is going to be the "breakout star" of this event? The one that will have fans clamoring for a full-blown, post-"Annihilation" series.

KG: The one I'm writing. D'uh!

AS: Well, the Surfer and Nova already have more than five fans, so by that alone, no one expects much from Super-Skrull or Ronan. It's a toss up (see how diplomatic I am). They both set up really big things to come, but I just have a soft spot for a real bastard like Super-Skrull.

Definitely not Surfer. That Giffen guy suuuuuuuuuuuuks.

CBR: C'mon, kids, let's play nice. We still have another page worth of questions to get through! Lord S has another question before the questioning is over:

Another question: Will Thanos die?

KG: Better question: "Can Thanos die?"

Drax is back to his old self and his goal in life is to destroy Thanos...maybe this time he'll succeed. (I hope not).

KG: Could be…

AS: Drax hates Thanos? Dude, why doesn't anyone tell me these things! Keith! Can you rewrite the DRAX limited for the trade?

Yeah? Great. Just swap Thanos in for Lunatik. Problem solved!

CBR: And tricksterpup has a follow-up to Lord S's question above:

OR will Thanos become evil again?

KG: Yes. No. Maybe. Who?

CBR: Keith, are you OK over there?

AS: I like Evil. But I like motivated better. He has a purpose again, I'll tell you that much.

CBR: Dark Soul #7 (we still don't know what happened to the previous six) has another question for both of you:

What has been your favorite part in planning/writing this entire epic?

AS: Man, I've wanted to do this for years. I dig these characters and I just want to see them get some respect again. For me, I've loved working with all the writers and artists involved and planning out the overall structure of the thing. But if I had to pick one thing, it's been the overwhelmingly positive fan reaction. Seriously, the fact that you guys seem to be digging what we're doing is really awesome. Keith?

KG: Lying to Andy.

AS: That's okay, Keith. I've been lying to you about those "lost checks." They're not coming. Not today, not ever.

CBR: Kids, don't fight! If this interview means the end of "Annihilation" before "Annihilation" starts, I may never get over the guilt!

And I think it only appropriate that Eh_ver finishes out the questions here. He wants to know:

I just read an article about Ronan that mentioned "Tellos the Tamed." Is there something we should know about Terrax? Is this a result of Silver Surfer gathering the ex-heralds?

AS: That was a misprint. Telos the tamed is a Skrull. Terrax the tamer is still out there taming. And no, Terrax did not tame Telos.

KG: Nah. Tellos just got married and, as any man knows, tamed ain't far behind. Is there really a character called Tellos the Tamed? Who does he hang with, Icarus the Impotent?

CBR: And that does it! Thanks to both of you for taking time out of your weekend to answer the questions our members posed to you. We here at CBR appreciate your time and enjoyed your answers.

AS: Thanks, to everyone for coming to the board and asking questions. We hope you enjoy the books!

KG: Whatever…

You can discuss this interview right here on CBR's Annihilation Forum. And if the above isn't enough to satisfy your "Annihilation" jones, then check out these related stories: