Rob Liefeld has a campaign on both Indiegogo and Kickstarter that has gone for over a decade without fulfillment. It was surprising when he recently partnered with long-time friend and ally Marat Mychaels in what seems to be an effort to circumvent Kickstarter’s Terms of Service.
Marat’s company, Counterpoint Comics, just launched a new Kickstarter campaign for Avengeline, which has raised over $63,000. When we initially approached Marat about Liefeld’s involvement in the Kickstarter, he assured us it was just a standard licensing deal.
Imagine our surprise when, after the Kickstarter launched, there were suddenly Liefeld variant covers on the campaign. This indicates more than just a “licensing deal”—it suggests Rob is directly involved and profiting from the campaign. Liefeld’s track record of unfulfilled campaigns has resulted in hundreds of angry fans, Facebook groups dedicated to those who are out money from supporting Rob, and even a Better Business Bureau complaint.
Furthermore, smaller indie creators who work hard to maintain a great track record of fulfillment feel that this lack of delivery on Rob’s behalf drives fans away from their own campaigns, who lose trust in the crowdfunding model after being burned.
Fans have made attempts to reach Rob on Kickstarter, where there are over 1,000 comments, but most report being blocked, avoided, or simply ignored by Rob. Despite avoiding interactions with fans on his unfulfilled campaigns, it appears Rob has kept an eye on Marat’s Kickstarter campaigns over the years, even giving him a Twitter shout-out in 2021 that Marat retweeted. It reads: “My longtime Extrem alum @MaratMychaels has a great campaign going!” (October 5, 2021).
Between the Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaigns, Rob raised around $50,000. The question remains: what has he done with the money?