So.... what DO you want?

[Brazoo]

Don, so do you think a lot of this is down to different types of buyers?

Like, you mentioned you're a "reader" not a "collector", and I've heard people say things like "I follow artists and writers, not characters". Those kinds of distinctions must make a difference no?

Maybe comic buyers don't exclusively fall 100% in category A or B, but it sounds like reasons for why they're buying the books is a major influence in how they enjoy it.

[ctc]

>so do you think a lot of this is down to different types of buyers?

I think it'd be correct to say that it SHOULD be. What whacked the big Two and a Half was that they started (back in the late 80's) to cater to an increasingly specific crowd: the "comic shop" crowd. This group was comprised of a couple different types; notably the speculator and readers, but they became increasingly inbred as they continued to partake of an increasingly limited variety of material. Hence the 90's, where everything coming out looked pretty much the same. (“If it’s not Jim Lee, it’s CRAP!!!”) Both sides of the comic shop crowd were dealing in the same material; speculators ‘cos these were the “hot” books, and readers ‘cos over the last 5 years or so the companies had distilled the popular books into a “winning” formula. (“Make it like the X-Men, but EVERYBODY’S Wolverine!”)

....but nothing lasts forever. The speculators realized that a book with a 750,000 print run that EVERYBODY bought two copies of wasn’t going to be worth anything, ever; so they moved on to ruin action figures. The readers got bored, ‘cos you can only see the same “GRRRR!!!! I’m ANGRY!!!!” panel SO MANY times.... but there was nothing else for them.

‘Course, books like Archie were immune, ‘cos they continued chugging along apart from the hype and maintained more genuine levels of readership; as opposed to the inflated comic shop levels, which burned brightly but for a shorter time. And the Japanese and European stuff swooped in ‘cos the folks buying those books were readers, mostly kids, who bought what they liked, and not what they were TOLD to like. (Entirely, anyhoo.) This created a shift in how comics were consumed, (IE: in bookstores) which then gave a lot of the indies an outlet, and new life as compilations. So a whole NEW realm was born. One which a lot of the comic crowd missed since it happened well away from the world they knew. (Which is ironic, since it was an exact parallel to how the Big Two came back from the 70's slump.)

Tragically, the same mentality that whacked the Big Two and a Half (for a while, anyhoo; ‘cos it’s all cyclical and they’ll be back) spilled into these NEW publishers, and you can see THEM getting progressively inbred. (Even good ol’ Archie has been playing the non-event game!)

Properly there’s no reason ALL these different comics can’t cohabitate the world of fandom. They did, back in the 60's and 70's, but I think modern marketing requires a “winner.” Hence everyone following the same formula once one seems to pull in the fans. (Dear Archie: nobody REALLY thought Arch and his family was going to leave Riverdale forever.)

>it sounds like reasons for why they're buying the books is a major influence in how they enjoy it.

Oh, definitely; but there seems to be a few recurring ineffective coping strategies inherent to different branches of the comic fan community. That’s what started this post four pages ago. I’d never poo-poo someone for liking something they LIKE; I found it weird that so many people persist in purchasing stuff they DON’T. If you genuinely enjoy “Weird Mutant Super-Thrills,” by all means keep with it. It’s no stupider than “Big eyed kids collect stuff” or “America’s 75 year old teenager.” But if all you do is gripe about it every month, move on. And for two years at the comic shop (and 10 online) I’ve seen plenty of folks who just can’t let go.

Don C.

[Blue Meanie]

I've heard people say things like "I follow artists and writers, not characters".

This is what it's coming down to for me. Give me ANYTHING done by George Perez or Jim Starlin and I'll buy it. As for Characters I follow...I think the only 2 books that I will follow are books that have The Spectre (Jim Corrigan please) and the JSA...problem is DC has done everything to completely ruin both for me.

[samurainoir]

This is what it's coming down to for me. Give me ANYTHING done by George Perez or Jim Starlin and I'll buy it.

[The Toyroom]

^ Daisy Chain looks cool

[johnnystorm]

I've decided that I don't want to be dead....

[bobws]

I like this list....in fact I like it so much put me down for the same....

Add me the the list

[boynightwing]

I found it weird that so many people persist in purchasing stuff they DON’T. If you genuinely enjoy “Weird Mutant Super-Thrills,” by all means keep with it. It’s no stupider than “Big eyed kids collect stuff” or “America’s 75 year old teenager.” But if all you do is gripe about it every month, move on. And for two years at the comic shop (and 10 online) I’ve seen plenty of folks who just can’t let go.

Don C.

I feel like that's me right now. I really should move on. I think I just needed somebody to put it in those simple terms. It's hard because I've literally been buying Batman comics since about 1986. I've missed a few months here and there of the Batman or Detective titles but every month since I was 10 I've bought a Bat related book. Now...I hate the direction they are going for the first time (I didn't much care for Contagion or that big Gang War that Steph Brown started) and really I'm at a loss for what to do about it. I think I'll jump ship on the Bat books cold turkey starting today and see what happens.

Sooooo anyone have any suggestions as to what to read instead?

[boynightwing]

I've decided that I don't want to be dead....

aww I didn't know if I should laugh or cry when I read that. :(

[ctc]

>I think I'll jump ship on the Bat books cold turkey starting today and see what happens

I've bailled on a LOT of comics over the years. It's not a big deal, and if they DO start running stuff that you like, you can always get back into it. If not, no biggie.

>anyone have any suggestions as to what to read instead?

I got a bunch, but I don't know what you're looking for. I think nowadays you could just hit the bookstore and pick up something at random. Get something you'd normally never try. Off the cuff, I'd suggest:

Amazon.com: Grimjack Omnibus (9781600106019): John Ostrander, Tim Truman: Books
Amazon.com: Zot!: The Complete Black and White Collection: 1987-1991 (9780061537271): Scott Mccloud: Books
Amazon.com: Judge Dredd: Case Files 01 (9781906735876): John Wagner, Pat Mills, Brian Bolland, Ian Gibson, Mike McMahon: Books
Amazon.com: Death Note, Vol. 1 (9781421501680): Tsugumi Ohba, Takeshi Obata: Books

...but my tastes are different from most.

Don C.

[ctc]

>Stop with adding jackets and pouches to super hero costumes.

Say.... I just realized why all them pouches were so irritating: I can't remember a single character ever taking anything OUT of one! Except Judge Dredd.... but he was sporting the look WAY before Cable popularized it.

Don C.

[johnnystorm]

Sooooo anyone have any suggestions as to what to read instead?

The Walking Dead (way more than the zombie book you might think it is)