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| Growler's
State Of The Superhero Comic Book Publishing Industry |
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INDEX
<The
Irresistible Rise of Trade Paperbacks and Other Stories...|Witness
the Birth of Image Comics...>
This
is where I let loose my views on the current direction of the business
of superhero fiction found in comic books and graphic novels.
Taking
you behind the scenes of this exciting industry!
Rawle
Austin presents...
Enter
the New Challenger!
Please
note; the publisher detailed below (CrossGen) is no longer in business
and serves as a cautionary tale in the Comic Book Industry.
As
has been the case for many years, the main players in the publishing
arena of comic books are Marvel and DC Comics, the big two.
These
two titans have the history, the characters and the money to weather
the many changes that have occurred in the comic book industry over
time from their inception up to the present date.
However,
in 1992, seven of Marvel Comics hottest artists (pencillers) left
their employers for greater glory, financial and creative independence
to create Image Comics.
Which
for a time was the third largest comic book company after the big
two! More on this momentous event next time!
Click
here to check out Marvel Platinum: The Definitive Iron Man TPB (Marvel
Comics) by Stan Lee
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Then,
in 2000, a new company entered the scene.
CrossGeneration
Comics (CrossGen for short) based in Tampa, Florida, USA.
This
creation was the brainchild of entrepreneur Mark Alessi and was a breath
of fresh air in the industry.
He
was armed with a vision of producing comic books that were more
accessible to a wider audience that had been in the past.
The
mission was not to produce stories featuring traditional superheroes
but still using the themes of heroic fiction.
These
were explored using fantasy, mystical, sci-fi, mythological and
ancient historical settings with more on the way.
The
four original titles were Scion, Mystic, Sigil and Meridian and
they heralded a new era in comic book history.
The
emphasis has always been on writing fantastic stories that were
not instantly forgettable but rewarded the reader’s time and
provided value for money. In
the relatively short time CrossGen Comics has existed, they have
brought in major new initiatives that will benefit the comic book
industry in the long run.
Click
here to check out the Essential Fantastic Four: v. 4 TPB (Marvel
Comics) by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
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One
of the earliest was getting its titles published in many other countries
in conjunction with local publishers, particularly in China where comic
books are called manhua, as opposed to the Japanese manga.
This
is made possible by producing stories that are politically and religiously
neutral, thus avoiding causing offence.
Diplomacy is truly a virtue.
Also,
experimenting with size and format of their comic books they make
sure all back copies of their comic books are made available.
This
was done by producing regular trades (reprints containing about
six issues at a time) of all titles and keeping them in print.
The
new leadership at Marvel Comics, which also commenced in 2000, took
notice.
Joe
Quesada, Editor-in-Chief (EIC) and Bill Jemas, President, proceeded
to redesign all their comic books for trade format, thus following
CrossGen’s strategy.
This
was a great step forward as trades are more appealing to the wider
audience who would rather buy a complete story than a mere chapter.
Click
here to check out the Essential Fantastic Four Volume 5 TPB: (Marvel
Comics) by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
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They
reproduced trades in a smaller size calling them Travellers.
Comic
books of this size have long been popular in Japan and China and increase
portability as they can fit in a pocket or small bag.
They
are slightly larger than portrait A6 paper size (a quarter of A4, which
is standard writing paper size in England) while traditional sized comic
books are just smaller than A4 paper size.
Staff
wise, CrossGen had the unique idea to go back to the original way
making comic books by having all of its employees (creators) exclusively
working for the company under the same roof.
The
idea was for creators to inspire each other, rather than freelancing
and working from home for many other publishers.
They
also provided attractive financial benefits such as medical insurance,
a twice a month pay cheque, profit sharing from comic book sales
and merchandising and a share in the company.
These
were things that simply were not on offer at most other publishers
at the time.
Recently,
the big two have also been offering extensive, exclusive contracts
to creators to keep them for as long as possible. This
is great news for the employment of creators as these sorts of contracts
are more financially stable than working as a freelancer.
Click
here to check out Essential Fantastic Four: Volume 6 (Marvel Comics)
by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby
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CrossGen
has lured some of the great creative talent from the big two publishers
including writers Chuck Dixon and Ron Marz and artists George Perez and
Greg Land and with superior production techniques their books look fantastic!
Another
key goal was to ensure all titles came out on time.
Late and delayed comic books have been the bane of the industry.
The
comic book industry relies heavily on readers coming back every
month to read the next chapter of a particular story.
If
the next chapter isn’t out and is delayed for weeks or months,
interest in that title can nose dive spectacularly no matter how
good the creators are.
This
is a target that CrossGen achieves with flying colours.
CrossGen
has had collaborations with schools, libraries and bookstores, which
increases the profile of their comic books and is good for the industry
as a whole.
Upcoming
movie and TV projects will further enhance the company’s name
and if marketed right will boost revenues through merchandising,
which is where the real money is made.
The
best new idea however has to be comic book DVD’s.
Click
here to check out the Essential Fantastic Four Volume 7 TPB (Marvel
Comics) by Stan Lee and Gerry Conway
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Working
on the principle that DVD’s are a widely owned format, comic book
stories will be adapted to be shown, panel-by-panel, scrolling along with
sound effects added.
There
will be about six CrossGen comic book issues on one DVD and each will
have behind the scenes extras.
These
will include interviewing creators about making comic books and creator
commentaries on the stories provided.
This
is without a doubt the freshest new thing to happen to the industry
I’ve seen for a long time and if the idea takes off I can
guarantee all other publishers will follow suit.
The
potential worldwide audience is massive and will enable comic book
stories to be enjoyed on a whole new level. Look
out for these DVDs!
On
a more worrying note, CrossGen has been experiencing cash flow problems
of late (mid 2003) resulting in some employees (artists and writers)
not being paid and understandably up in arms.
This
is an issue that needs to be resolved quickly for the good of those
creators who make up CrossGen’s lifeblood and for the health
of the industry.
Click
here to check out the Essential Avengers Volume 5 TPB (Marvel Comics)
by Roy Thomas and Steve Englehart
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When this
problem is sorted I predict CrossGen to be challenging for the number
three spot in comic book publishing in a couple of years
They
will have gained a platform to assault the big two, Marvel and DC Comics.
Believe
me, when that happens, we the readers will be the victors.
That’s
a wrap for now.
Next time
I’ll introduce you to Image Comics!
See
you then!
<The
Irresistible Rise of Trade Paperbacks and Other Stories...|Witness
the Birth of Image Comics...>
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