tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4778276361957351199.post2589051389813754978..comments2024-02-29T14:12:01.955-05:00Comments on Flashback Universe Blog: Does the Comics Industry really need saving?Jim Shelleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05006833955333061262noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4778276361957351199.post-50158337753969070062013-07-21T09:59:24.729-04:002013-07-21T09:59:24.729-04:00good point cash. good point cash. Jim Shelleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05006833955333061262noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4778276361957351199.post-41214828880167617592013-07-20T18:03:48.665-04:002013-07-20T18:03:48.665-04:00Not sure who's in charge of the statistics, bu...Not sure who's in charge of the statistics, but the first graph has a total of 101%. cash_gormanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12071052539938367439noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4778276361957351199.post-82464266622486005442013-07-17T07:44:03.581-04:002013-07-17T07:44:03.581-04:00@Matt - I think a lot of comic fans feel the way y...@Matt - I think a lot of comic fans feel the way you do. In thinking about people I know who have stopped buying comics from comics, a number I could think of, like you, have stopped buying them altogether.Jim Shelleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05006833955333061262noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4778276361957351199.post-89069639491150127572013-07-16T10:37:54.365-04:002013-07-16T10:37:54.365-04:00The art-form and the industry as a whole is more o...The art-form and the industry as a whole is more or less okay but could be better. I think creator-owned ala Kirkman with Walking Dead is going to be the template for the future. <br /><br />Really it's the Big Two that need saving. From themselves. ..and their obsession with making over-priced fanzines that have all the earmarks of awful fan-fiction. You will never get a customer base that extends beyond the usual crop of die hard Wednesday-Warriors with that. <br /><br />What's the old Roger Stern adage? "The first story you write as a fan should be the last story you write as a pro." <br /><br />I have not had a pull-box in over a decade because I reached a point where even though my love of the characters was still there I could not justify paying out to keep seeing them done badly. I can't just buy a book because Superman or a guy wearing a Spider-Man costume is in it. My love of those characters is not a brand-loyalty. <br /><br />I want a good story. I want good art (I realize that one is subjective) and I want to feel like the company and the creative staff can be arsed to respect these long-lived and long loved characters they've inherited. MattComixhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14015552734150732758noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4778276361957351199.post-88361767937671363232013-07-15T07:12:42.650-04:002013-07-15T07:12:42.650-04:00@Trey - Yep, there are a lot of ways that Gross sa...@Trey - Yep, there are a lot of ways that Gross sales data can be deceiving, especially in this day of variant covers and 4.99 cover prices. <br /><br />Your question about overhead is a very good one. Since one of the main costs (that stores have little control over) is shipping, how has that changed in this era of 3.50 a gallon gas? <br /><br />I will say this - the store I am most familiar with has reduced staff over the years from 6 employees down to 2, which doesn't bode well.Jim Shelleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05006833955333061262noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4778276361957351199.post-67968134081579796202013-07-14T15:15:50.380-04:002013-07-14T15:15:50.380-04:00Gross sales data says so little. Cover prices are ...Gross sales data says so little. Cover prices are up over the past 10 years, aren't they? I'm curious about the actual number of comics being sold.<br /><br />Also, what's overhead like? Has it become more expensive to run a comics store in the present day?Treyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04647628467658839351noreply@blogger.com