Conception and unrealized plans
It was reported in Amazing Heroes #160 (March 1, 1989) that both Marvel Comics and Blackthorne Publishing had secured rights to produce comics in the A Nightmare on Elm Street universe; Blackthorne's would be eight issues of 3D adaptions of the films and Freddy's Nightmares, while Marvel Comics' would be magazine-sized, black-and-white, and was never specified to have a finite number of issues.[4] Steve Gerber said that several writers were contacted by Marvel, and he had submitted a 3-4 pages treatment that they approved of. Rich Buckler illustrated the first 23 pages of the first issue but left due to - as Gerber speculated - "editorial conflict or financial problems", and was replaced by Tony DeZuniga for the remainder of Dreamstalkers. Gerber explained that he intended for the Dreamstalkers storyline to return with issue 5.
According to Gerber, he had created an antagonist to Freddy who would return as a recurring character; since Dr. Juliann Quinn was killed off, this would mean Allison Hayes, who was left at a cliffhanger ending. He also implied that there would have been further appearances of Allison past the fifth issue, saying "we'll pick up her story in #5 and probably after that again for a little while". Gerber reasoned that when it's (what was supposed to be) a regular monthly comic book series as opposed to films released at longer intervals, the series cannot only have its antagonist being a recurring character, but needs a recurring protagonist as well.[3] According to Marvel Comics, the plans for the series prior to cancellation was that
Gerber stated that issue three and four would be written by Buzz Dixon and the sixth issue would be written by Peter David and illustrated by Sam Kieth.[3] The Dixon issues were to be pencilled by Bob Hall and inked by Alfredo Alcala,[6][7][8] while Joe Jusko, the artist behind the cover art of the two released issues, had also finished his cover for the third issue, and later posted it on the Internet.[9] Hall and Kieth were already involved in the art for the second issue, as Hall provided two and Kieth one illustration of Freddy for it.[2]
Marvel Comics apparently planned for there to be a "pen pal" section in future issues for fan mail, with one of the illustrations by Bob Hall being used as art for the invitation.[11] Buzz Dixon had also suggested a "Freddy Request Page" where the readers would be able to post requests on who they would like to see Freddy kill next, inspired by DC Comics leaving it to fan input to decide whether Jason Todd should survive the Batman: A Death in the Family storyline or not.[3]
The fourth issue was going to contain two separate stories, one by Dixon, Hall and Alcala and the other by Peter David and Bret Blevins.[12] Peter David claims he wrote all of issue 5, with art by Dan Lawliss and Alfredo Alcala. David also wrote a shorter 6-page story in the previous issue as a companion to Dixon's story.[13]
Andy Mangels has stated that he had sold a plot to Marvel Comics for the fifth issue,[14] and was going to do some work on the later issues.[15]
- "The comics series will begin with one long ELM STREET story spread over the first two issues, with forty-four page installments in each. After that, each issue will contain a NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET story of about thirty pages in length, and there will be back-up stories by other creative teams."[5]
- "Has Freddy become a good guy? That's what it looks like! He's befriended a depressed, lonely teen-ager and is showing her why her life is worth living! But why does he really want her to live?"[8]
Cancellation
In October 1989, it was reported that the comics had been cancelled, after an article in Comics Buyer's Guide where Marvel Comics spokesman Steve Saffel elaborated that
The Dixon and David issues had already been finished and submitted to Marvel by the time of the cancellation; according to David, "The cancellation order took a lot of people by surprise".[17] Steve Gerber later wrote to the bulletin board-based magazine Reading for Pleasure and explained that Marvel Comics had cancelled the comics not because they had been criticized for it, but because they might eventually be criticized for it, saying
Gerber had also noticed that the comics already came with a "suggested for mature readers" disclaimer, and no direct pressure had yet been made on Marvel Comics about the series at the time.[18]
Tim Webber on Comic Book Resources mentions a New York Times article from April 30, 1989 as a possible catalysis for the cancellation, in which Joe Queenan wrote about the increasingly violent content of primarily Marvel and DC Comics, such as the Joker of DC Comics brutally murdering Jason Todd in a Batman: A Death in the Family in late 1988.
