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Inspired by comments in the “Aquaman” thread:
>the industry slit its own throat when they went to direct sales only
>Arguably they saved themselves by going direct.
Well.... I think there’s a double edged sword there. “The Industry” is more than Marvel and/or DC; an important distinction when discussing the “direct market” distribution model, since the comic shop system came about in the early 80's as a result of the independent/underground movement. There were significant numbers of fans who wanted stuff you COULDN’T get at the newsstand.... stuff like First, Warp, Eclipse, Rip Off Press, Fantagraphic. They attracted a different audience.... or at least a more diverse audience. Problem was, they also attracted a lot of cartoonists of minimal talent, leading to the “B&W glut” of the mid 80's. Store owners didn’t know what would hit, and couldn’t afford to stock it all and started falling back on the old standbys; the Marvel and DC books. Around that time you also had the speculator boom, which brought more attention to the old characters and drew hoarders back into comics.
The 90's put the kibosh on things. More shelf space was dedicated to the (at the time) mainstream stuff, which saw many of the independents readers go elsewhere. (Such as the burgeoning mail order system.) A substantial percentage of the comic buying public were speculators, with a smattering of diehard, old school fans. The mainstream companies began catering to these groups more and more, which scared off new fans. A new reader would have to slug through dozens of issues of back story.... and increasingly dozens of tie-in issues just to follow the stories. By the 90's “designer comics” were the thing: books sold strictly on the name of (usually) the artist, bought mostly by speculators. This shifted attention away from the actual CONTENT of the books, further alienating the readers. Eventually the seven-dozen variant cover with hologram signature and short-packed ashcan editions fatigued the speculators; who realized a book isn’t “rare” if every collector has ten poly-bagged copies secreted away. When the speculators moved on to action figures it left a huge void in the comic buying public. The Big-Two-and a Half had been catering increasingly to the comic shop crowd, with their tie-ins, designer books and “special events” and had alienated a generation of potential new readers. (Who DID find comics they liked, and bought ‘em in droves. They just weren’t “mainstream” comics.) The old readers were getting tired of the same old, and many moved on. (Although it seems like many MORE hung on and began venting. Constantly.) At any rate, the direct sales market was decimated. (And that’s not taking into account the brou-ha-ha over Marvel and DC buying distributors....)
So I would have to say that the direct sales market gave the Big-Two-and (eventually) a Half a new chance, and a lot of cash; but they squandered it on short term thinking. As their audience aged, they were ill-equipped to maintain them. The problem being twofold:
-Mainstream books are perpetual. There has to be a new one every month, and the marketing department will FREAK if you ACTUALLY change anything. There’s a brand to maintain! (Hell; look how many folks are upset by the pics of Spidey with gold eyes. How much more troubling to a person who’s PAID to fret the details?) So you’re pidegeonhoiled into a very small box, and the longer a fan sticks around the more likely they’re gonna notice recycled ideas and the ol’ “bait and switch.” IS Batman dead?!?!? No, you’re already soliciting for the next three books.... It’s tough to maintain an audience acutely aware of the lack of consequence.
-....and adding to that, mainstream books have always shot for a “general” audience. Not a term I like, since it conjures up images of kiddie fare any more; but it’s used to refer to an expansive audience: nothing too nasty for the kids, but nothing too simple for the grownups. A “PG” kind of vibe. But even THAT can cause problems, since a grownup mind sees things differently. A grownup knows what happens when a building falls down: mass casualties. You can only watch Superman rescue SO MANY infants from falling buildings before you ask “why did mom leave the kid?” If you’re not willing to deal with things like that you’re not going to be able to hold onto a more mature mind. Even when they DID venture into “mature audience” stuff, it was done with much hand wringing and foot shuffling. (“PG-13") “We felt this was the tasteful way of doing the scene” became the euphemism for “we wanted to SAY it was a grownup story, but didn’t want to actually DEAL with the topic.”
>Since there is no longer any central distributed fr digital content like their monthly print output, it really doesn't make any sense for them to release their proprietary digital numbers
Oh, there is: hype. If they sold a million digital copies they could proudly wave the “we ARE the future!!!” banner. I think publishers are still really nervous about digital ‘cos they don’t understand (or control) the distribution system and they’re deathly afraid of piracy. For the old boys like Marvel and DC I think there’s also the problem of mixed messages from their base: newer fans might be okay with digital comics, but the vocal oldsters are always raising Cain about them. Since it’s the loudest folks they hear, that could put them off the format. (It could also help explain their rapidly changing, and seemingly schizophrenic editorial decisions.)
Don C.
>the industry slit its own throat when they went to direct sales only
>Arguably they saved themselves by going direct.
Well.... I think there’s a double edged sword there. “The Industry” is more than Marvel and/or DC; an important distinction when discussing the “direct market” distribution model, since the comic shop system came about in the early 80's as a result of the independent/underground movement. There were significant numbers of fans who wanted stuff you COULDN’T get at the newsstand.... stuff like First, Warp, Eclipse, Rip Off Press, Fantagraphic. They attracted a different audience.... or at least a more diverse audience. Problem was, they also attracted a lot of cartoonists of minimal talent, leading to the “B&W glut” of the mid 80's. Store owners didn’t know what would hit, and couldn’t afford to stock it all and started falling back on the old standbys; the Marvel and DC books. Around that time you also had the speculator boom, which brought more attention to the old characters and drew hoarders back into comics.
The 90's put the kibosh on things. More shelf space was dedicated to the (at the time) mainstream stuff, which saw many of the independents readers go elsewhere. (Such as the burgeoning mail order system.) A substantial percentage of the comic buying public were speculators, with a smattering of diehard, old school fans. The mainstream companies began catering to these groups more and more, which scared off new fans. A new reader would have to slug through dozens of issues of back story.... and increasingly dozens of tie-in issues just to follow the stories. By the 90's “designer comics” were the thing: books sold strictly on the name of (usually) the artist, bought mostly by speculators. This shifted attention away from the actual CONTENT of the books, further alienating the readers. Eventually the seven-dozen variant cover with hologram signature and short-packed ashcan editions fatigued the speculators; who realized a book isn’t “rare” if every collector has ten poly-bagged copies secreted away. When the speculators moved on to action figures it left a huge void in the comic buying public. The Big-Two-and a Half had been catering increasingly to the comic shop crowd, with their tie-ins, designer books and “special events” and had alienated a generation of potential new readers. (Who DID find comics they liked, and bought ‘em in droves. They just weren’t “mainstream” comics.) The old readers were getting tired of the same old, and many moved on. (Although it seems like many MORE hung on and began venting. Constantly.) At any rate, the direct sales market was decimated. (And that’s not taking into account the brou-ha-ha over Marvel and DC buying distributors....)
So I would have to say that the direct sales market gave the Big-Two-and (eventually) a Half a new chance, and a lot of cash; but they squandered it on short term thinking. As their audience aged, they were ill-equipped to maintain them. The problem being twofold:
-Mainstream books are perpetual. There has to be a new one every month, and the marketing department will FREAK if you ACTUALLY change anything. There’s a brand to maintain! (Hell; look how many folks are upset by the pics of Spidey with gold eyes. How much more troubling to a person who’s PAID to fret the details?) So you’re pidegeonhoiled into a very small box, and the longer a fan sticks around the more likely they’re gonna notice recycled ideas and the ol’ “bait and switch.” IS Batman dead?!?!? No, you’re already soliciting for the next three books.... It’s tough to maintain an audience acutely aware of the lack of consequence.
-....and adding to that, mainstream books have always shot for a “general” audience. Not a term I like, since it conjures up images of kiddie fare any more; but it’s used to refer to an expansive audience: nothing too nasty for the kids, but nothing too simple for the grownups. A “PG” kind of vibe. But even THAT can cause problems, since a grownup mind sees things differently. A grownup knows what happens when a building falls down: mass casualties. You can only watch Superman rescue SO MANY infants from falling buildings before you ask “why did mom leave the kid?” If you’re not willing to deal with things like that you’re not going to be able to hold onto a more mature mind. Even when they DID venture into “mature audience” stuff, it was done with much hand wringing and foot shuffling. (“PG-13") “We felt this was the tasteful way of doing the scene” became the euphemism for “we wanted to SAY it was a grownup story, but didn’t want to actually DEAL with the topic.”
>Since there is no longer any central distributed fr digital content like their monthly print output, it really doesn't make any sense for them to release their proprietary digital numbers
Oh, there is: hype. If they sold a million digital copies they could proudly wave the “we ARE the future!!!” banner. I think publishers are still really nervous about digital ‘cos they don’t understand (or control) the distribution system and they’re deathly afraid of piracy. For the old boys like Marvel and DC I think there’s also the problem of mixed messages from their base: newer fans might be okay with digital comics, but the vocal oldsters are always raising Cain about them. Since it’s the loudest folks they hear, that could put them off the format. (It could also help explain their rapidly changing, and seemingly schizophrenic editorial decisions.)
Don C.
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