The Comics Reporter

February 9, 2012

Go, Look: Cody, Part One

posted 3:40 am PST | Permalink

Missed It: Ali Ferzat Joins Coalition Of Artists On Syrian Statement

Ethan Heitner caught this English translation of a letter that was published in Le Monde from a coalition of Syrian artists, including the cartoonist Ali Ferzat. The fact that a picture of Ferzat after his beating at the hands of pro-government thugs adorns the top of that letter in its reprinting gives an idea as to how prominently the Sakharov Prize winner is featured in the promulgation of that statement. His is one of the primary signatures. It's a powerful statement, even translated.

posted 3:35 am PST | Permalink

Go, Look: Puddle Complex

posted 3:30 am PST | Permalink

Go, Read: Kiel Phegley at CBR Talks To Marvel's Dan Buckley

Today's mainstream comics executive taking the major interview plunge is Marvel Publisher Dan Buckley, who talks to Kiel Phegley in this first of a planned two-parter over at CBR. I think it's a much better showing from Buckley than similar pieces I can recall from 2009 and 2010. I've been joking elsewhere about that site's employment of the word "exclusive" with italics as a sales point in presenting the interview, but I think it's sort of worth noting in serious fashion, too. That the leading comics news site is using the occasion of this kind of interview to draw distinctions between itself and its competitors -- that it's splitting the interview into two parts even -- underlines the fact that such interviews aren't only important for their content and the exchange of ideas but as items through which Marvel and the people that score such interviews do business.

Phegley does a nice job of beating on Marvel with the DC stick; you could make a joke that the interviewer sounds like he's dating Marvel's competitor its recent successes come up so frequently. Buckley does his best work trying to convince that Marvel cutting its line and emphasizing top titles by doing more than 12 issues a year with certain comics is a strategic move designed to best serve the nature of today's market; this not only justifies those strategies but helps explain away recent perceived Marvel slippage as a failure by the company to enact such strategies as effectively as they should. Buckley also has a nice line about Marvel's output vs. DC's output, although I wasn't aware that anyone was really suggesting Marvel was out-publishing DC on an eight to five ratio. The publisher's display of patience with Marvel's strategy of simply telling the stories it wants to tell as best as it can tell them, in trusting the content to bear Marvel through whatever relatively tough times exist, will likely buttress the spirits of some and deflate hopes a few others may have had that Marvel has a strategic or infrastructure-related ace or two up its sleeve.

Buckley is much less persuasive when it comes to articulating some of the details and implications of general Marvel strategy. I imagine there's a fine line to walk between extolling the virtues of a company's willingness to try a variety of digital strategies and looking like a company is just flinging stuff at the wall to see what sticks; Buckley does not make it any easier to see that line. If character death isn't a specific plot/sales point with grim implications and a limited shelf life but just another storytelling-driven outcome among many, what are the other storytelling points that worked the same way as Marvel killing off two of its prominent characters in 2011? Because I don't remember that media coverage or those sales bumps. At what point is focusing on major titles and giving the market what it will bear smart strategy, and at what point is it an admission that Marvel no longer has the ability it once had to shape the market in a way that serves a broader range of publishing goals, long-term plans, and character development aims? Gabriel also doesn't have a convincing answer for the price-point issue beyond the usual "hey, those comics we do that with sell, man" take, which I suggest doesn't take into account all the ways pricing your material at a higher point can have long-term effects on the marketplace and a specific company's place within it.

posted 2:40 am PST | Permalink

Go, Look: Some Primetime Whiz Comics Art

posted 2:35 am PST | Permalink

That Upcoming Heritage Comics Auction Does Look Pretty Amazing

It's hard for me to imagine that I'll be running every breathless update sent along by the PR people in charge of hyping the forthcoming comics art auction at Heritage, but a look at the event page does reveal it to be a pretty amazing collection of offerings from a broad range of comics-makers. I lack the context as to whether or not I can describe it as the greatest such auction ever -- I like to imagine there was some sort of super art auction in 1974 attended solely by Wimbledon Green types and lost to cultural memory -- but it's certainly considerable and worth a poke around if you haven't yet. Some of the art even seems affordable according to current bids, if you can picture yourself as the kind of person with lots of money to spend on original comics art. I don't think I've seen this bit of Kirby art before, and this piece is certainly a show-stopper.

posted 2:30 am PST | Permalink

Go, Look: More Jacky's Diary

posted 2:25 am PST | Permalink

The Never-Ending, Four-Color Festival: Cons, Shows, Events

By Tom Spurgeon

* it's mostly about guest lists this week.

* love this special guest list for the forthcoming convention in New Delhi.

* that is a stellar initial special guest list for the Alternative Press Expo in October. That could be all the special guests -- it could be all the guests, period -- and it would be a show worth attending. I believe APE is opposite the New York Comic-Con this year, which is interesting in that while the NYCC has enjoyed a lot of success with the number of attendees they attract, elements like British comics-makers taking the relatively short hop across the Atlantic and generally with New York-area publishing companies and pros, it's never found significant traction with alt-comics. They would likely disagree with this, and New York is going to attract some work and cartoonists of this type just by virtue of being in New York, but the two NYCC shows I've attended I could have been in and out in 10 minutes if seeing alt-comics were my only reason for attending. So I think there's room for both shows that weekend.

* Small Press Expo announced Dan Clowes and Chris Ware for their September show.

* Comic-Con International released its Annual last week, which means their special guests are solidified.

* there's not a lot out there that isn't guest lists, at least not that I'm seeing: here's a piece about the recent show in New Orleans that seems to suggest there's a natural relationship between comics being great and people wanting to dress up like comics characters, which I don't think is automatically true, but would endorse were it to become a general principle applied to all things. Also, something terrible happened to an English-style phone booth at Angouleme.

* finally, the hotel lottery for Comic-Con International goes live on March 29. Most people seemed to like how things worked out last year. I slept through it. Happiness is having a room in advance. Also: warm puppy.

posted 2:20 am PST | Permalink

If I Were In Portland, I'd Go To This

posted 2:15 am PST | Permalink

Forthcoming Comics-Related Events, This Month And Next

Go, Look: The Art Of Dan Clowes: Modern Cartoonist Preview

posted 2:05 am PST | Permalink

Random Comics News Story Round-Up

* Gabrielle Bell is selling posters at quite the bargain price.

* here's a bunch of information on what John Carter-related comics have been collected, giving me another chance to run this awesome John Carter image from Jesse Marsh.

* Johanna Draper Carlson on Princess #4. Greg McElhatton on Blabber Blabber Blabber. Todd Klein on BPRD: 1946 and BPRD: The Warning. Rob Clough on Pornhounds 2.

* not comics: I don't play role-playing games but me wanty.

* Michael Cavna talks to Stan Lee. Frederik Hautain talks to Robert Venditti. Vaneta Rogers talks to JH Williams III and Amy Reeder. Alex Dueben talks to Nate Powell.

* not comics: a very high-profile gig for Seth.

* Daryl Cagle editorializes about the "New York Times Wants Cartoons But Only If They Get Them Cheap" story.

* I don't know, Jessica, I can dream a lot of Birdseye Bristoe.

* whoa, Simon Gane.

* this discussion between Jog and Douglas Wolk is lengthy, indulgent and kind of awesome. There's even a mini-discussion of DC's recently-announced publishing initiative that's as good as anything that's been put out there about it.

* finally, a tiny bit of shelf porn. More like a Shelf Showtime Original Series, really.

posted 2:00 am PST | Permalink

Happy 58th Birthday, Jo Duffy!

posted 1:00 am PST | Permalink

Happy 53rd Birthday, David B.!

posted 1:00 am PST | Permalink

Happy 50th Birthday, Sarah Byam!

posted 1:00 am PST | Permalink

Happy 56th Birthday, Tim Truman!

posted 1:00 am PST | Permalink

February 8, 2012

Go, Read: Bob Levin Reviews Yiddishkeit

Bob Levin is my favorite writer about comics, wrote the best book ever published about a cartoonist, and is a top three contender for the greatest-writer-about-comics-ever overall crown. Any time he has new work up it's must-reading for me, and I hope it becomes that way for you. He reviews Yiddishkeit today at TCJ, and I'm headed over right now.

posted 7:00 am PST | Permalink

This Isn't A Library: Notable Releases To The Comics Direct Market

Here are the books that make an impression on me staring at this week's no-doubt largely accurate list of books shipping from Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. to comic book and hobby shops across North America.

I might not buy all of the works listed here. I might not buy any. You never know. I'd sure look at the following, though.

*****

OCT111062 BERLIN #18 (MR) $4.95
The latest issue of Jason Lutes' long-running series all by itself would get me into a comics shop today, were one within two hours of where I'm sitting. I really like this as a comic book, even, more than the collections that have been release so far.

NOV111115 GTO 14 DAYS IN SHONAN GN VOL 01 $10.95
This is a manga property with which I'm largely unfamiliar -- besides always getting a chuckle out of the "guy becomes teacher to have an in with young girls" initial concept -- that I will give a shot because of the publisher involved now (Vertical). That's not a statistically significant sample, I know, but it happens. This is the sequel to the popular late 1990s series.

OCT110026 STRANGE CASE OF MR HYDE TP $14.99
I wanted to pull this one out because this was a classic mini-series of comics to trade publication comic, starring what is to me unknown talent. I think it's worth noting when a publisher like Dark Horse does that, because it doesn't happen as much as it used to. The thought of Jekyll/Hyde as half of a Victorian buddy cop duo -- I'm guessing -- makes me pine for a comic where Jekyll and Hyde are the entirety of a Victorian buddy cop duo, but I'll withhold judgment until I get to a funnybook shop and take a peek at the work.

DEC110058 LOBSTER JOHNSON THE BURNING HAND #2 (OF 5) $3.50
DEC110079 MURKY WORLD ONE SHOT $3.50
NOV110235 NORTHLANDERS #48 (MR) $2.99
DEC110623 NORTHANGER ABBEY #4 (OF 5) $3.99
DEC110939 ADVENTURE TIME #1 $3.99
Not a bad week for comic-book comics, even when you leave out the higher end stuff of interest from Marvel and DC. The Lobster Johnson is the latest comic from the unstoppable Mignola-verse. The Murky World title is Richard Corben, and everything Corben is at least worth a pick-up and look-over in a store. The Northlander comic I haven't read for a few years but my memory is that it was a solid funnybook in the Vertigo vein, and is now heading towards Valhalla. I dont' have any intention on buying Northanger Abbey, but seeing books like that on Marvel's list always makes me laugh. The Adventure Time property isn't something I've caught up to, yet, but I'd look at the funnybook if I could get to one before it sold out.

SEP110334 TORPEDO HC VOL 04 $24.99
If I had a normal person's job, I'd buy all these Torpedo volumes, and there will be a point down the road I'll probably have them all in my bookshelf and be grateful they were published.

DEC111170 AMERICAN SPLENDOR LIFE & TIMES OF HARVEY PEKAR GN NEW PTG $20.00
OCT111102 LIFE & DEATH OF FRITZ THE CAT HC $19.99
Work you probably have in one form or another. If you don't have them, you should probably want them. The Fritz book is handsome; I haven't cracked my copy yet.

DEC111048 JINCHALO GN $19.95
In a week without a new issue of Berlin, this stand-alone fantasy by Matthew Forsythe drawn from Korean myth would place an image right at the top of this post. I thought the last work of this type from the cartoonist was a total charmer, and it was one of those books where I ran imagery on the blog and people kept e-mailing me to ask what the hell it was.

NOV111113 WALLY WOOD STRANGE WORLDS OF SCIENCE FICTION DLX HC $69.95
OCT111099 YOUNG ROMANCE BEST SIMON & KIRBY COMICS HC $29.99
Two comics veterans on the Mount Rushmore Of Perpetual Interest, plus the late Joe Simon, who's no piker. I have a decided lack of reading experience with romance comics, so I'm hoping the Young Romance book is effectively curated.

*****

The full list of this week's releases, including some titles with multiple cover variations and a long, impressive list of toys and other stuff that isn't comics, can be found here. Despite this official list there's no guarantee a comic will show up in the stores as promised, or in all of the stores as opposed to just a few. Also, stores choose what they carry and don't carry so your shop may not carry a specific publication. There are a lot of comics out there.

To find your local comic book store, check this list; and for one I can personally recommend because I've shopped there, albeit a while back, try this.

The above titles are listed with their Diamond order code in the first field, which may assist you in finding comics at your shop or having them order something for you they don't have in-stock. Ordering through a direct market shop can be a frustrating experience, so if you have a direct line to something -- you know another shop has it, you know a bookstore has it -- I'd urge you to consider all of your options.

If I failed to list your comic, that's on me. I apologize.

*****

*****
*****

posted 5:00 am PST | Permalink

Go, Look: Rescue Pet

posted 4:35 am PST | Permalink

Analysts Weigh In On January 2012 DM Numbers

The comics business news and analysis site ICv2.com has offered up their usual array of lists, estimates and analysis regarding the performance of comic books and graphic novels in the Direct Market of comic and hobby shops, this time for January 2012.

* Overview
* Analysis
* Top 300 Comic Books
* Top 300 Graphic Novels

My favorite numbers cruncher John Jackson Miller at The Comics Chronicles has posted his analysis of the month here.

So things get curiouser and curiouser. Two things seemed to leap out at everyone in discussing these numbers as they were initially released: DC monopolized the entire top 10 in comic books with fifth issues of their New 52 initiative, and Marvel only had a couple of books above the 60K sales mark. In overall terms, DC led unit sales while Marvel won dollar sales. Over in graphic novels, a Batman collection from the pre-New 52 initiative showed there was a bit of life in trades from that period (some fans have worried that this period would glossed over in terms of trade availability). Compared to last January scary-ass, apocalyptic sales numbers, the month looked pretty darn healthy both on a month-to-month an January-to-January basis.

I think what I take from these articles is that people are still waiting for a major Marvel response to the New 52 that's likely not going to happen, at least not any time soon in the way people conceive of such a response. I suspect what we're seeing with Marvel is a whole bunch of factors working in relationship to one another: the fact that they're years into their current conception of how they approach their general storylines, the fact that they don't have the institutional and structural ways to support their books that DC does, the general perception of price point and value, and their difficulties in establishing second-line books in a dependable way. If this were TV, Marvel would have a lot of decent-performing shows in their eighth to tenth seasons but not a lot of time-slot winner past those reliable brands. I think it's more of a challenge given specific things about Marvel more than an insurmountable challenge facing Marvel right now, so the next year could be quite compelling. They don't have a lot of margin for error in terms of execution, I don't think, and could be immensely helped by coming out with comics that exceed fan expectation in terms of how they nail their story points -- that hasn't been a recent strength, at least not in a way where a plot development has become a positive talking point in the way that drives sales. I know people will disagree with that.

There's a related way to worry about the market more generally in that we don't know how much Marvel's scramble in terms of finding sales and dollars and DC's more general all-in approach to its New 52 stunt are masking egregious weaknesses in the broader marketplace. In other words, how much are these comics selling because they're solid performers delighting their readers and just happen to have early-issue numbers, and how many readers do they have that are just sort-of committed for a while to get to a certain issue a few months away? That seems fraught with a lot of dangers, not all of them immediately apparent. For instance, it makes sense for Marvel to reduce their line, and they have, but does having multiples of big-brand comics increase the overall reading pool or just squeeze more money out of a devoted fandom at the expense of other comics? DC's latest Watchmen-related publishing initiative, at least right now, sounds more like something a certain kind of existing comics fan will want to buy and less like something that will add anything to the overall comics-buying populace. All of the ways to do that may not come with PR blasts and coverage in mainstream media.

posted 4:30 am PST | Permalink

Go, Look: Shut Up About Cats

posted 4:25 am PST | Permalink

Go, Read: ICv2.com's Interview With Marvel's David Gabriel

The hobby business news and analysis site ICv2.com has a three-part interview up with Marvel Senior Vice President -- Sales David Gabriel on various issues facing the comics company in 2012 and on various holdover issues and news items from 2011. It's fascinating for anyone with an interest in that part of the overall comics market.

Gabriel gives direct, spirited answers. I'm not certain all of them hold up to a lot of scrutiny, though, and I don't mean the initial, selective reading of 2011 generally, which is the kind of thing where one can expect qualifiers and spin. For instance, Gabriel's statement about Marvel letting some of their collections going out of print that retailers feel they could sell seems to crucially depend on his own definition of what constitutes evergreen, archival books. The fact that Marvel doesn't let best-selling recent collections go out of print really isn't a bragging point. Despite Gabriel's challenge that no retailer has ever been unable to order a book he defines as being a book they should be able to order, it took me approximately four seconds to find a retailer saying they weren't able to find a graphic novel that if it were a similar-status book from Marvel's main competitor would stay in print with greater consistency. Gabriel's right, I think, in suggesting that their trade program is pretty complicated and has a lot of different facets, but I really think when that argument is made against Marvel it isn't that they're flat-out crazy and letting their biggest books go out of print, it's that they're less devoted to keeping all of what many perceive as key books in print, thus leaving some sales on the table and generally frustrating some of their retail partners.

I also think Gabriel finesses the question about price points, by suggesting that their books with higher price points sell more than their books with lower price points. The key there is that overall sales of those higher price point books seem to be down. Price points are notoriously difficult to measure in comics because of the nature of hardcore fandom. Heck, not even hardcore, just regular fandom: that an Avengers book sells more than a book called, say, Stingray and Paladin even if the former costs a dollar more isn't really an argument for higher price points; it's an argument against teaming up d-list goofballs Stingray and Paladin. I've always maintained that there's rarely a one-to-one relationship to be measured when it comes to the effects of price points, and that what happens a lot of the time is that a comics reader will abandon the buying of serial comics altogether when the group of comics they tend to buy goes from $17 to, say, $24. But even leaving that notion off the table, and giving up on the suggestion that maybe some primary-Marvel readers have been nudged from the overall serial comics buying experience, noting how much anecdotal evidence is out there for fans moving off of Marvel titles to sample DC titles and the corresponding numbers on overall sales levels per property seems to me as close to that kind of one-to-one analysis as this market will ever yield. It's a dangerous game Marvel has been playing there, reducing pages and raising prices at this point in their current creative cycle, during a recession, at a time when DC is at a much fresher point in their own creative cycle. I think it doesn't all the way conform to reality to suggest this has had no impact on Marvel's recent results.

posted 4:20 am PST | Permalink

Even The Airboy Comics Were Enough To Give Me Nightmares

posted 4:15 am PST | Permalink

NYT Wants To Run Weekend Cartoons But Only At A Certain Price

Michael Cavna has the best write-up thus far on an issue surging through the editorial cartooning world right now: the New York Times plans to start running weekend cartoons again, but wants to do so at a drastically reduced price -- what one of the folks in Cavna's piece calls more of a reprint fee than what a publication like the Times should be offering for a first-run cartoon.

This is a delicate issue, because the nature of the market and the opportunity represented by the Times suggests that they can charge a low amount and still get what they want from the initiative: people are going to want that low fee and that showcase. You also have leaders in that field that want to move the Times towards that higher price point without scaring them away from providing this new market, basically by appealing to their better nature. I hope it works out on all ends.

Update: A tweet here indicates the pricing may have come from what they pay for illustrations, which opens up an entirely different avenue of discussion.

posted 4:10 am PST | Permalink

If I Were In New York City, I'd Go To This

posted 4:05 am PST | Permalink

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