It's easy to imagine why Apple would want to bring comics to the iPad – and thanks to Steve Jobs, it has an inside track to make that happen. Photo illustration: Jon Fortt. Photo: iPad, Apple. Comic book cover, Marvel.

Now that we've all seen the iPad and debated its design merits, let's cut to the chase: This thing will rise or fall on content. If Steve Jobs can get a bunch of cool books and apps on the thing, we'll want one. If not, we won't.

Where will His Steveness get some of those books? I say the same place he's gotten so many movies and TV shows for iTunes in the past: Disney (DIS).

When Jobs needed movies for iTunes, Apple (AAPL) got them from Disney. When he needed TV shows? Disney (which owns ABC) was among the first to sign up. Why all the Disney love? Remember, Steve Jobs was the CEO of Pixar, which had a very lucrative movie distribution deal with Disney. Things only got cozier in 2006, when Disney bought Pixar for $7.4 billion, turning Jobs into the Mouse House's largest individual shareholder.

But wait, you say. Disney isn't exactly a major book publisher.

Oh, yes it is. Disney just bought Marvel, remember? More