Can Wolverine Make Nice with Bambi?

"I've talked a couple of people down off the ledge who've come in," said Commuter Comics owner Jeff Peters, who observed that the customers reeling from the sale are in their 20s and 30s, while children and teens are unfazed.

Peters has made an effort to calm people by pointing out that Disney's portfolio includes Miramax, which made "Monster's Ball"—a far cry from the typical Disney movie—and that Pixar, acquired by Disney in 2006, is still producing quality films. On top of that, he notes that Time Warner has long been the owner of DC Comics. He anticipates that the only immediate change will be an expansion of the licensing of Marvel characters, which Disney has been forthcoming about, causing the images of Spider-Man and Captain America to become even more ubiquitous.

One of Peters's customers, Chuck Kaslow, 18, of Maplewood, said he was initially unsettled by news of the sale but then stopped to consider the range of Disney's holdings, including ABC, the producer of "Lost."

"I realized it's probably not that bad if one of my favorite shows is controlled by Disney," he said.

From a business perspective, Peters thinks a little Disneyfication along the lines of toning down violent and sexual content wouldn't be the worst thing for Marvel. Of the dozen Wolverine titles at his store, only one is appropriate for children—and just for those 13 and older.

"The worst thing that could happen is that Disney says, 'Let's get a little more creative, let's get a little less lazy with our writing and make a product that's appropriate for everyone,'" he said.

Maplewood resident Derek Bacharach, who runs SimplySuperheroes.com, a Web site specializing in superhero merchandise for children, says he doesn't anticipate the sale to have any immediate impact on his business, since upcoming Marvel movies, including "Iron Man 2" and "Spider-Man 4," through 2013 will fuel interest in superheroes. However, he worries about Marvel potentially being subsumed into the corporate identity of Disney in the long-term, sacrificing unique assets like its Webby-nominated Web site.

"It remains to be seen whether consumers are going to benefit too," said Bacharach, who thinks Disney has done well with Pixar.

Reflecting on the somewhat muted local reaction to the sale, Peters noted South Orange and Maplewood's strong ties to Marvel rival DC Comics with the company.

"There's definitely a lean toward DC here," he said.