Why Do People Quit Reading Comics?

On many occasions, I've written a post about the rather lackluster state of comics from the big two and invariably, the post will generate comments from people saying they've completely given up on comics "...ever since they cut off the Joker's face, or Avenger's Disassembled or DC 52, or..." you get the idea.

 

 I totally sympathize with the frustration people might feel about the lack of quality coming from Marvel and DC (though the actual change in quality might not be as huge as you think it is, all things considered.) What I don't understand, is how this leads people to just give up completely on the genre itself.

People don't quite watching television shows because they didn't like how LOST ended. So why is it that so many people quit comics altogether because Doctor Octopus is now Superior Spider-Man?

 I suspect the answer is that a large part of the readership isn't really that enthralled with the genre in of itself. That's why independent titles languish, but umpteen Batman titles reign supreme. It's not the genre that people like, but the idea that Batman and his universe is something they are partaking in.

The problem with that comes when writers do something with Batman that no longer fits with how you perceive his universe. Then you are left with nothing.  Which is sad, because in many ways, we are currently in a new Golden Age of independent comics.

I would definitely encourage anyone who has "Given up on Comics!" to try some new independent comics.  You might find yourself really enjoying the experience of discovery all over again!

- Jim

Rainbow Godzilla vs Iron Man 3

I had planned to go see Iron Man 3 yesterday, but due to circumstance beyond my control, I found myself casting about for cheap ways to keep my daughter and her friend entertained all day. My solution: take them to Free Comic Book Day! 

As it turns out, that was the right choice as they both got a lot of free comics and were enthralled with the guest artists drawing sketches at the event. Check out our friend Sean McGuiness as he accepts the dubious challenge of drawing a Rainbow Godzilla. 


We actually ended up making two trips to the event (it was either that or go to Build-A-Bear which is sort of like the antithesis of Free Comic Book Day) and during both visits, I was impressed with how many kids were in attendance. Also impressive was how well the shop seemed to be doing on back issues and graphic novels. There was always a line at the register with people waiting to buy stuff.

As for Iron Man 3, from what I hear, it will be in the theaters for a while, so I'm sure I'll get to it eventually.

- Jim

A Robot fighting a Winter Troll

Here is a piece of art from a new project I'm working on. It's an all ages comic called NorthStars which will feature a favorite Flashback Universe character of mine, Artifact, as well a ton of new characters.

This illustration is by my partner on the project, the phenomenal Laurianne Uy, creator of Polterguys.

The story takes place in a world that is an extrapolation of the fantasy elements found in the old Rankin Bass holiday specials which have always intrigued me...

...with the lighthearted action of Asterix and Obelix...

...and the grand adventure you might occasionally see in classic Uncle Scrooge stories (where it seemed they were discovering lost cities and ancient civilizations every other issue.)

This has been a concept I've been wanting to work on for quite some time as the seeds for this story stretch far back into the original days of the Flashback Universe. As a matter of fact, if you were a keen reader of the Saturn Knight Christmas story, you would have noticed a rather odd Easter egg on one of the pages. Check it out here:

What that strange metal sarcophagus is will be explained in the story but let's just say, the adventures of Artifact span many worlds. ;)

- Jim

My Top Ten Herb Trimpe Hulk Covers

One of the posts that seems to be a favorite among people who stumble upon this blog for the first time is my article on the villians created by Ross Andru during his Spider-man tenure. To many old school fans, Andru became synonymous with the character he drew. I think that is also true of another one of my favorite artists from that era: Herb Trimpe!

Herb Trimpe is a bit like Kirby in that some people just don't like his stylistic approach. A far cry from the photo realistic Bryan Hitch clones that seem to be the norm of today, Trimpe's art embraces a simplicity and dynamism that you rarely see now. His style has been praised by many comic luminaries including Erik Larsen.

Here are some of my favorite covers from his prodigious seven year run on the Hulk with some reasons why I like them.

159 – Two Years Before The Abomination




In all fairness, this cover isn't on this list because of the art. (It's actually one of the poorer examples of Trimpe's skills.) The reason I picked this one was because this was first modern Hulk comic I ever bought during my collector

phase of my life. (I had sampled a few issues as a wee lad during the late 60's, but nothing had stuck.) This was issue wherein I experienced reading a story that referred to events from several years ago.


Year spanning continuity?! At the time, the idea that these stories could go on for years was staggering.

Also, this cover added the tagline At Bay! The next time we see that tagline was also an issue that featured the Abomination. (We'll get to that cover in a bit.)

160 – Nightmare At Niagara Falls



This is a MUCH better example. Check out the the way we are viewing the scene from such a distorted angle here.

164 – Phantom From 5,000 Fathoms!

 

Trimpe uses the technique of having a character break proscenium on this cover and he will use it again on 166 and 172 And Canst Thou Slay... The Juggernaut? (another one of my all time favorites.)



169 - Disaster Eight Miles High



This is cool because of how the transformation scene gets played out on the cover.

171 – Revenge!



Easily my all time favorite issue from this time simply because of the battle royale between Hulk, Rhino and The Abomination. The cover is great too because it almost has a 3D effect with the way perspective has been used to heighten the drama.

173 – Anybody out There Remember...The Cobalt Man?



Trimpe tilts the ship in this cover to make the fight scene more
exciting. As a result, it gives him room to draw the figures a bit broader than a regular horizontal plane would have allowed.

182 - Between Hammer and Anvil



This issue uses a bit of the same perspective and angle we saw on 171. Notice how the prison is a bit distorted to add to the perspective (and echo the lines of the logo.)

189 - None So Blind



Great use of framing here.

And finally, probably the most remembered (and homaged) Hulk cover from this era.

181 - And Now, The Wolverine!



The curious thing about this issue is Wolverine only appears in just a few panels is this issue which was odd after making such a big deal of him on the
cover.



I hope you enjoyed seeing those even if you aren't as enamored with the Trimpe style as I am!

- Jim

The Secret Origin of Rick Jones!

I was recently asked to contribute to How Would You Fix... a blog edited by Nathan Adler. It's an entertaining site which posts theories and continuity patches for the various holes in the Marvel universe. For my contribution, I chose the The Secret Origin of Rick Jones, a normal teenager who has somehow been able to wield both the Destiny Force and Cosmic Awareness at various times in his life.

My apophenia driven entry reveals how Arnim Zola, Moon Boy and Korvac all played a part in the events that have led to the rather auspicious life of Rick Jones.

While I haven't ever tried my hand at such a speculative article, I found reviewing the history of the Marvel universe and connecting the dots to be a fun challenge.

I hope you enjoy it!

- Jim

The Computer Chair Rule

I've got this rule about sitting in a chair all day and working on the computer.
Basically, I try not to do it.
And since I was working all day yesterday on new comic book project, I'm going to cut my computer chair time short today by going light on the commentary and simply post some great unseen artwork from old projects from the Flashback Universe.

First up are two pages from our defunct Kharon, Scourge of Atlantis project, which was picked as a nomination Zuda, but sadly did not win that month. (Click to see this at full size.)







Over the past couple of years, I've had the fortune of running into other Zuda contestants online and like me, they often lament the lack of such a competition today. Mostly because it was a cool way to get exposure for a project and if you got picked, DC would pay out for the pages you submitted. The one thing most people didn't like was the marketing aspect. Basically, you had to do you own marketing, which is hard for people. I think Kickstarter strikes people this way too.

Next up is a cover for a Godspeed vs Lady Nemo comic that was written by Jason Wright. The script was completed but Pierre got busy with another animation project (a part time gig that turned into a promotion and then a career) so the comic was unfinished.



Finally here are two images from another Zuda project I worked on with Pierre. This was going to be another League of Monsters story that had some flashbacks to the WW II era of heroes. This image was simply used as a background image in the story, but it's such a awesome piece that I thought you might enjoy see in at full size.



This next one wasn't really part of the story, but Pierre created it to sell me on the idea of having a WW II story.



Any of you guys ever work on a project that never was completed?
I would love to hear about it and find out what happened.

- Jim

Graphing Out the DC 52 18 Months Later

When the DC 52 launched 18 months ago, it impressed everyone with the huge sales boost it brought to the entire line. 18 months later, how much of that boost has been retained? Using the data from comichron.com, I've created some graphs to answer that question.

First, here is how the first month sales broke out for the top 20 books. Missing from this chart is Justice League International (with sales around 60K) I excluded it because it didn't make it the the full 18 months.


The first thing that will jump out at you is just how the Batman Family books dominated. Nice showing for the first issue of Flash, aye?

Now look at the change 18 months later. The red circle area is the deadly cancellation zone.

The range between books has diminished in an alarming manner. Also, a lot of books are creeping up on the cancellation zone.

Because of DC's initial policy of making the initial months of books returnable, it's not unexpected that we would see some loss between the first month and now. Unfortunately for some books, that rate of change has been very dramatic. Here are the biggest losers.

It's hard to look at this chart and not think DC just isn't handling the Superman books very well. Also, it's sad to see the Flash loose so much of its initial sales over time.

The overall rate of change for the entire line reveals a surprising fact (to me at least) Nightwing readers are very loyal! Of the top 20 books, Nightwing has had the least amount of change in sales over the last 18 months. Aquaman has held strong too which is not something I would have predicted. The Green Lantern Family of books are definitely losing steam.

Finally, looking at current sales numbers for Feburary 2013, I see a number of books that look to be candidates for a 4th wave of cancellations (I'm using 12K as the point when book will get targetted for cancellation, though in many cases, the number has been higher.)

Questions:

• Why is the Superman line in such a dire state? With Man of Steel coming out this Summer, you would think DC might have some grand event to generate interest in the Superman mythos, but they've sort of just squandered the whole brand. Notice that with all the Batman family books in the top 20, there were only 2 Superman family books. Neither Supergirl or Superboy made it into the top twenty.
  
  
• Why the hell is Savage Hawkman still around? DC Universe Presents I can see as it allows DC to use it for copyright renewal or to generate interest in characters that couldn't sustain their own titles. I, Vampire probably does okay in the book market. But Savage Hawkman just confounds me. Why is that book given a lifeline when other books weren't (Frankenstein, OMAC, Justice League International)
  
  
• Is the Legion of Superheroes brand completely dead? Where does DC go with it from here? If it were up to me, I would just give up on trying to modernize or reboot the title. There have been a number of fine writers (including Mark Waid twice) who have tried to ressurect that franchise, but it never sticks.

When I look at these numbers, it's a bit hard not to think we won't see another top down edict that forces DC to make a drastic changes in its publising strategy within the next year. I would look for a major change about 3 months after the Man of Steel movie.
- Jim