One of the first questions that's worth asking is "Is anyone left?" It's hard to top the much-stated 5000+ characters contained in Marvel's IP, and it'd be a tough argument to suggest that there are any other comic publishers available who could offer anything even vaguely similar, especially considering that the larger companies that aren't DC or Marvel don't own the majority of their IP (Dark Horse, Image, and IDW all predominantly offer creator owned or licensed material); although purchasing one of those publishers may offer existing relationships with creators, it doesn't necessarily translate into anything that Disney (or any other company with large pockets) could immediately take advantage of.

(That said, if I were looking for a publisher purely for the IP rights and wasn't specifically looking for superheroes, I'd probably see if either Boom! Studios or Tokyopop were looking to be bought out; neither has an IP farm anywhere close to the size of Marvel's, but both have had some success coming up with new series and concepts that could easily be adapted into movies or television - at least, until Tokyopop's cutback "restructuring" last year, on their side. Or, of course, Rebellion, who own the 2000AD rights, which could definitely use some exploiting.)

If IP is really what's being looked for, Disney might want to follow Hollywood and go for toy and game companies; Hasbro has been positioning itself as more of a intellectual property generator than toy company since their deal with Universal Studios last year, after all, and with already successful properties like Transformers and GI Joe, they must be looking pretty tempting to any company wanting to buy an immediate in to existing markets right about now. Perhaps not as obvious, but arguably more worthwhile, a videogame publisher like Electronic Arts - owner of The Sims and Dead Space, amongst others - or Valve may not bring the instant brand awareness of Hasbro or Marvel, but unlike both, is currently creating new properties as successful as their Greatest Hits, which might be a better investment in the long run.

All of this conjecture, however, ignores the Bantha in the middle of the room: Lucasfilm.

The privately-owned Lucasfilm may not own have as many separate franchises as Marvel, but it has Star Wars and Indiana Jones, and there's definitely an argument to be made that Star Wars alone is worth as much as the entire Marvel Universe (Containing almost as many characters, and with the ability to spin out as many sub-franchises as it has, after all). More to the point, unlike Marvel, Lucasfilm is much more than an IP factory; alongside the movie studio, publishing arm, online division and animation department - all of which a self-respecting media juggernaut like Disney also has - it includes industry leaders Skywalker Sound and Industrial Light & Magic, making them almost unique in terms of value add (Yes, Marvel may be the industry leader in comic book publishing, but how important is that to Disney's core business?).

It's extremely unlikely that Lucas would sell Lucasfilm, especially as he seems to have become interested in the possibilities television offers to him and the company. But everyone has their price, as the saying goes. The question is just how high Lucas' price would be - and whether anyone could afford it.

It's a relatively solid week for new releases, with both Marvel and DC offering a raft of them. DC have Red Tornado, a new mini-series featuring one of the most defective, voyeuristic (as readers of Justice League of America know) and powerful robots in comics, and Magog, a new monthly series written by Justice League International's Keith Giffen, drawn by JLA's Howard Porter and starring a pro-active former soldier out to solve the world's socio-political problems by hitting folk. Marvel, meanwhile, have The Torch, and reviving the original (robotic) Human Torch. Plus Marvel Zombies Return is the first issue of an event that'll bring well-known zombie novelists into comics. There's an interesting bunch of collections, including a reissue of Hulk: Grey, Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's look back at the early days of the the gamma-irradiated goliath, and a new hardcover collection of the very enjoyable New Avengers: The Reunion series by Jim McCann and David Lopez, bringing back everyone's favorite superhero couple, Hawkeye and Mockingbird.

Image Comics, meanwhile, launch Fall Out Toy Works - the first issue of the sci-fi series co-created by Fall-Out Boy's Pete Wentz. Dynamite offer up the collection of the underrated Dead Irons, which takes Universal's classic monster movie monsters and puts them into the Wild West with creepy and understated results. If you're looking for something a little more upbeat, IDW has the first collection of GI Joe: Origins to give you the secret origin of the little paramilitary group that could at the box office, even though you didn't believe it.
The two most interesting books of the week come from the crossover side of creatordom. DC/Vertigo's Sweet Tooth, by Jeff Lemire, brings a different take on familiar (post-apocalyptic, stranger in a strange land) themes. And Marvel's Strange Tales shows the strength of Disney's new IP farm by letting a whole bunch of awesome indie comic creators loose to cause trouble, kick some ass and take some names while they're at it.

If you're looking to pull a mini-Disney and buy some comics instead of a comic company, then kindly direct your attention to the Diamond Distributors Shipping List for the week to see what else is available, besides what's listed above, before heading out to your local comic store to find some IP to invest in. And remember: It's now that much smaller of a world, after all.

Written by TF master Simon Furman and drawn by Carlos Magno, Nefarious follows up on Michael Bay's hyper-successful movie by introducing new human characters who aren't only aware of the Transformers' war on Earth, but plan to retrofit all the robot's hardware and software for their own shady purposes. Editor Andy Schmidt explains:

The latest Transformers movie added several very cool elements to the tapestry — Soundwave and Ravage being my favorites — and we're keen to explore them... Our story tracks a new organization with ‘nefarious' designs on the robots in disguise. Their technology gives them a tactical advantage not yet seen in the films.

What kind of tactical advantage? You'll have to wait until early next year, when the series begins, to find out.

No Templesmith-illustrated Doctor Who comic has been officially scheduled yet, but if it looks this good all the way through, we're willing to call it the most beautifully-illustrated Who comic ever.

The Good Doctor And Martha [Ben Templesmith]

According to our comics expert, Graeme, the Terminator franchise actually has four different licenses in comics. Dark Horse has a license to publish comics based on the original film. Dynamite has a license to do comics based on Terminator 2. And IDW has a license to do comics based on the upcoming movie Terminator: Salvation. Who has the license to do comics based on The Sarah Connor Chronicles TV show? We're not sure. Maybe you, if you act fast.

It's not clear what the Dark Horse series will focus on. The Dynamite series, written by Simon Furman, will feature tons of time-traveling shenanigans, including Terminators trying to kill Kyle Reese as a teenager before he can father John Connor. The IDW series will tie in with the movie. No creative teams, or details, have been announced for the new Dark Horse series. Dark Horse's Terminator comics, at their best, featured more of a horror feel, as you can see from the image above. The creative teams have included writers like Alan Grant and James Robinson.

The big question is: Does the revival of the Dark Horse Terminator comics mean we'll get another Aliens. Vs. Predator Vs. Terminator showdown? [Pop Culture Zoo]

Terminator's prequel series, the dully-titled Terminator: Salvation Movie Prequel jumps audiences ahead ten years to lay the groundwork for Christian Bale's debut as the future of Edward Furlong:

The year is 2018. With John Connor as the voice of the resistance, the scattered remnants of humanity find themselves united against their common enemy—Skynet and its Terminators. Through a patchwork system of radio transmitters, hacked satellite phones, and encrypted computer networks, resistance leader Elena Maric in Detroit and Nigerian mining engineer Bem Aworuwa have formed an unlikely friendship and drawn up battle plans to take the fight to the Terminators!

Much more interesting to this particular fanboy is the first issue of Star Trek: Countdown, which is plotted by the movie's JJ Abrams, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman and promises to start the story of the movie months before it hits theaters:

The countdown to the motion picture event of 2009 begins here, in the exclusive comics prequel to the upcoming blockbuster STAR TREK! JJ Abrams, Roberto Orci, and Alex Kurtzman present the origin of Nero, the mysterious Romulan who will ultimately threaten the survival of the entire universe. Don't miss this first chapter in the story that brings STAR TREK back to the big screen!

IDW has many other books appearing in January, and of particular note should be the sixth issue of Doctor Who: The Forgotten, purely for the amazing cover art by Ben Templesmith - Someone should really get him working on a complete Who comic as soon as possible:

IDW Comics For January 2009 [Comic News I]