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Western comic book industry in the late 1980s-mid 1990s vs the current slump going on since 2012 or 2013
Posted: 30 June 2019 05:32 PM  
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Its well known that the Bronze age of western comic books came to a close, things were changing big time. Not only were many comics outwardly being more mature in their overall themes, but new publishing companies were sprouting up, such as Dark Horse. In addition, the Manga market was starting to become popular among western readers outside of its old niche, and sales sagged from time to time. Eventually, things led to a major crash in comic book (and to a lesser extent, merchandise) sales, though comic book-themed TV shows and video games tended to sell at least moderately well. It was during this time when not only did DC barely scrape along for a while in terms of comic book and related merchandise sales(despite the Tim Burton Batman films being major successes both critically and financially), but Marvel was going through so much debt and employee layoffs that they outright DECLARED BANKRUPTCY IN 1996 ! Yeah, Marvel literally went broke and almost went out of business in the mid-1990s. This lead to some major restructuring within Marvel Entertainment, as well as selling the film and tv rights to a number of their characters, such as the Fantastic Four.


Then there’s the slump thats going on now. No doubt the MCU is still making money, as well as several installments of the DCEU, but its almost the opposite for comic book and graphic novel sales, especially for physical units. Not only are comic sales also in decline for many series for both DC and Marvel, but Dark Horse and IDW are bleeding licenses. You can thank not only bad business decisions, but also being too quick to hire people who are terrible to mediocre in their skills as inkers, artists, and/or writers. Link below tells of part of what’s happening in this new slump.
https://cosmicbook.news/rob-liefeld-dc-comics-driving-off-cliff

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Posted: 12 July 2019 09:00 PM   [ # 1 ]  
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Hey,
Anybody else want to weigh in? question

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Posted: 23 July 2019 03:21 AM   [ # 2 ]  
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Na’ah.
You pretty much hit a homer there.
Nuff said.

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Posted: 23 July 2019 09:10 PM   [ # 3 ]  
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Well, my two cents on this subject, I know very little about the Marvel/DC sales volume or why they have lower sales. What I do see in my observations of riding public transportation, is men in the 30-40’s reading the trade paperbacks of the comics not the single issue copies, when I have been able to discuss the subject of trade paperback of any comic the constant answer I hear is, well, the store where I used to buy comics doesn’t always carry my favorite, or I missed an issue so I need to wait for the trade copy to come out. a few have said why bother buying a single issue at 3.99-4.99 each when for 20-25 you can get the entire story, as one guy put it, “binge reading”. Many of them stated the lack of easy accessible news stands or bookstores has been a problem, others, say why read a story, when you can wait for the movie to come out.
others tell me that they read comics because they have kids and they need to read something to the kids each night that hold their interest for 5 - 10 minutes before bedtime.  Based on what I hear few people read the stories because they are “life long fans” this is what is losing the attention of people today, do to the arrival of the internet, and video games, and television, starting with the MTV generation of 3 minute window attention span, few people today, want to spend serious time waiting either a week or month for the next issue. back in the 1950’s reading was a way to learn about relationships, places etc, and get away from your problems escape, you didn’t have tv, or internet, only the comics and movies. the world was a different place and no matter where Superman was there was always Jimmy and Lois and Batman may have Robin, and look at Archie Comics how many times have they tried to reinvent the characters?  Look at what changes Sabrina and Riverdale tv show have done for the comics, read those comics Archie and Jughead and you will see that TV and Comics are very different. Each generation has tried to reinvent. Marvel and DC are no different its only the years and the writers that change I mean Jack Kirby, Bob Kane, Stan Lee etc.

just my two cents, based on observations of customers at comic stores, and public transportation.

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Posted: 14 November 2019 05:52 AM   [ # 4 ]  
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The sale of comics and graphic novelties has definitely gone into decline, but I do not think it will completely disappear in the next ten years. I used to love comics related to civil war. But then https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/civil-war/ acquired more relevance for me and video games became a way to relieve stress. And despite the fact that the need for free essay examples has already disappeared, but the comics still remain for me only a pleasant memory.

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Posted: 15 November 2019 06:29 PM   [ # 5 ]  
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In a real sense, the decline of comic book sales is a result of the industry slowly pricing itself out of business. In the beginning, comics were a cheap and disposable commodity that everybody could get anywhere and fairly cheaply. When production quality went up, so did the price and comics began to gradually become the luxury niche item that it currently is. It’s no longer economical to anyone but serious collectors and that almost always end up being a small dwindling customer base that will be continuously charged more and more to keep the industry afloat as it goes along in its gradual death spiral. $4.99 for a monthly comic will eventually become the norm—we’re practically there now really—and it’s unlikely to go anywhere but higher in time.

The days when the top book sold a million copies ended decades ago. Now it’s a big deal if a book sells 100,000 copies. Pretty soon, 10,000 copies will seem like a lot. Digital comics aren’t going to save the industry because publishers will charge the same as printed comics to keep their bottom line. As long as their current business model stays in place, the current slump will only get worse until either the industry crashes or comics become only for the very wealthy, IMO.

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Posted: 17 November 2019 04:03 PM   [ # 6 ]  
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Pricing is a huge reason. Many of us bought comics as kids when they were cheap and displayed on the ol’ spin racks at various places. But today’s kids don’t see comics on display unless you go to a specialty store…and after that, you have to be picky about the ONE you are going to get cuz mom is not happy about spending 4.99 on a stupid, flimsy comic book. True, a lot of old-schoolers are holding out for the trade paperback.

But I also add that comic storytelling has changed. Less words, more dramatic whole-page or double page spreads…making most comic today very quick reads. They have become less literary and have lots of wasteful, banter and dialogue that just burns through pages. At least this is what I’ve seen from the more popular titles. I have a problem spending anywhere from $5 to $8 on something that is mostly adverts and lead-ons to get you to buy other issues.

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Posted: 26 November 2019 11:02 AM   [ # 7 ]  
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JRGJupiter - 17 November 2019 04:03 PM

...But I also add that comic storytelling has changed. Less words, more dramatic whole-page or double page spreads…making most comic today very quick reads. They have become less literary and have lots of wasteful, banter and dialogue that just burns through pages.

I think they used to call that decompression, but now it’s pretty much the norm, especially for Marvel and DC. Major stories that could be told in three or four issues are now expanded to six or even more with the same amount of actual content. Helps sells more individual issues and trade collections, but it does indeed make individual issues short reads. 4 bucks for something that takes only ten minutes or less to read really isn’t good value. Independent comics do it less, but even a few of them are utilizing the “writing for the trades.” decompressed storytelling.

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Posted: 07 January 2020 01:42 PM   [ # 8 ]  
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The comics industry these days is much diminished from its heyday. Beginning in the 1970s, corporate comics publishers moved away from selling through newsstands and grocery stores, turning instead to “the direct market,” which allowed buyers to purchase books straight from the publishers. This change both fueled the growth of specialty-comics shops and led to the corporate monopoly held by Diamond Comics Distributors, the middleman between retailers and publishers. In the 1990s, an issue of the popular The Amazing Spider-Man that sold around 70,000 would be considered a failure. The collapse of the comics speculation bubble in the mid 1990s—a bubble partially fueled by Marvel’s own encouragement of the speculator boom and flooding of the market—dealt a blow to the market it never quite recovered from. These days, what counts as a successful superhero book is anything that can sell a regular 40-60,000 copies. Most sell quite a bit less.
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As it happens, speculation is an inherent feature of the direct market. Unlike in traditional publishing, comics sold to retailers through the direct market can’t be returned for a refund. So retailers have to preorder comics months in advance, knowing that if they order too many, they’ll be stuck with the overstock. Marvel and DC largely judge sales based on these preorders, and a low number of initial preorders can lead a publisher to cancel a series before a customer ever gets a chance to buy the first issue. There’s an incentive for publishers to push out as much product as they think the market will bear, and a narrow window for feedback. Due to the preorder system, books that might reach out to new audiences—such as those starring minority characters—are at an immense disadvantage right out of the gate. As a result, books like David F. Walker and Ramon Villalobos’s Nighthawk or Kate Leth and Brittney Williams’s Patsy Walker, AKA Hellcat!, and even spinoffs of popular series like Ta-Nehisi Coates’s Black Panther, like rarely last long before being canceled.  Free essays and topics for students research and preparation for exams - https://noplag.com/free-essays/

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Posted: 08 November 2021 10:15 AM   [ # 9 ]  
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