DC's plan to fix comic sales slump

[palitoy]

Interesting. Discuss.

http://io9.gizmodo.com/dc-has-an-epic-plan-to-save-itself-from-the-comics-apoc-1797174893

[Spyweb007]

I think they have the right idea. When I was working on my comic years ago I thought of doing it in a landscape format so that each page would be closer to the shape of a movie screen, with nice quality paper, kind of a "wide screen comic". And I think it's tough to hook new readers when it only takes 10 or 15 minutes to read a monthly comic, it's just not enough material when you want to sit down and read something, you have to buy a whole stack of comics just to get a good amount of story.

[Earth 2 Chris]

They've kind of already done this with the Earth-One graphic novel line. But those tweaked the characters a bit beyond their "classic" versions. Continuity at DC doesn't make a lick of sense anyhow nowadays, so it's the perfect time to just go "classic" with stuff and let each story kind of fall into it's own little niche. Almost a Golden Age-like approach. They didn't worry about that stuff back then.

Chris

[TomStrong]

They've kind of already done this with the Earth-One graphic novel line. But those tweaked the characters a bit beyond their "classic" versions. Continuity at DC doesn't make a lick of sense anyhow nowadays, so it's the perfect time to just go "classic" with stuff and let each story kind of fall into it's own little niche. Almost a Golden Age-like approach. They didn't worry about that stuff back then.

Chris

I agree, go with more classic recognizable versions - contained stories -and maybe people will feel like they can just pick up a comic and read it. I've always preferred reading comics after they've had a chance to bundle it into a paperback. Heck I would even argue for longer stories less often. Maybe the quality would go up.

[TomStrong]

Oh and more Alex Ross..

[hedrap]

I've read a few articles covering that talk and I have no idea what Gizmodo is talking about. They actually made it sound more nebulous than it is. Didio is giving free format to creative teams. If anyone should benefit from this, it's the Milker of Megos.

...and CBR must be razed and its ground salted. What an abomination.

[Starroid Raiders Dagon]

Meh, in what other industry would you have sales suffer so badly and still have the same guys at the top and running the show? Not sure what the endgame is, but pretty sure someone does and is heading there on purpose. I'll continue to purchase stuff I like, but the industry can save itself.

[emeraldknight47]

Marvel actually DID publish a landscape issue of FANTASTIC FOUR #252 courtesy of John Byrne's still wonderful run on that title...

[Earth 2 Chris]

^There was a landscape issue of McFarlane's adjective-less Spider-Man too.

...and CBR must be razed and its ground salted. What an abomination.

I have a friend who does artwork for their "The Line It Is Drawn" feature, but I rarely check it out, because the insane amount of pop-up ads is just too much. That used to be such a great site.

Chris

[hedrap]

I have a friend who does artwork for their "The Line It Is Drawn" feature, but I rarely check it out, because the insane amount of pop-up ads is just too much. That used to be such a great site.

Chris

I had no idea they were bought out. It looks like an uproxx/whatculture knockoff of CBR. I had to check the url twice.

[Brown Bear]

If the main key characters had a comic with a retro vibe and 70's style art and story, letters page etc I'd buy them again. I personally don't care for today's style and graphic images. I like the kiddie books better because comics should be simple and bright in my opinion. I think DC should bring back the classic vibe for old school guys like me.

[enyawd72]

If the main key characters had a comic with a retro vibe and 70's style art and story, letters page etc I'd buy them again. I personally don't care for today's style and graphic images. I like the kiddie books better because comics should be simple and bright in my opinion. I think DC should bring back the classic vibe for old school guys like me.

I agree with this completely. If you look at the bronze age covers...especially those of Marvel, there was an excitement, a drama to them that is sadly missing in today's comics. They were bold in their simplicity, and they told a story. Most if not all had dialog balloons and/or exciting blurbs on the cover. The simpler color palette and bold lines were more visually striking and drew your attention right away.

That's one of the things I dislike most about the look of today's comics. The muted colors and overdone shading/effects really obscure the line art.

[thunderbolt]

Well, DC had a Batman 66 comic that was old school and it has been cancelled presumably due to sales.

[enyawd72]

Well, DC had a Batman 66 comic that was old school and it has been cancelled presumably due to sales.

I never thought of the Batman 66 comic as old school. It seemed very much to me a modern presentation of an old subject matter, and as such had a limited lifespan, just as the TV series itself.

[thunderbolt]

To me it read like a silver age comic which it seems everyone in our age group is wanting, but no one else it looks like. I doubt the 40-50 year old crowd can carry the comics sales for them any more than the teen to twenty year olds can.