Anyways last post I was talking about Variant Covers and how it was helping to inflate the Comic Bubble and potentially may be hastening the bubble burst. I didn't? Well, it is. But just what is the comic bubble, and what are my worries? I guess I should somewhat explain what I be talkin' bout.
 | ||||
| Not this sort of bubble |
 |
| More like this sort of bubble, the fragile kind that when you "KAPOW" it, it just pops |
See, the comic industry like any industry which relies on speculative value and work to expand influence. Basically the comic industry like all industries will grow and deflate over time, and when it happens with comics it tends to be extreme. But it's not because that's just how people are (though it has something to do with it) it's because how some in the comic industry are looking to turn a very quick buck. In my previous post I talked about variant covers and market glut, and this is a huge part of it. However there are other factors such as saturation of product, visualization, outlets, publicity and so on and so forth.
Let me try to organize my thoughts into a slightly more coherent view and start at the bottom.
The basic market for all comic book companies are the primary comic book fandom. These are people who generally buy comics and will spend more and take risks on different series and stories as they grow as fans and collectors. From here comic companies test their products and see how dyed in the wool fans respond. Then comic companies reach out to kids with toys and cartoons, and more recently the public at large with movies and tie in deals and food company advertisements and all sorts of stuff. The merchandising aspect of comic book characters is insane and even the movies make far more money than comic books because movies are easier to get into and don't require a monthly investment. Comic books do. And that's where comic companies are having a hard time right now with converting movie watchers and other fans into comic purchasing fans. This is reflected with how comic books actually begin to reflect their cinematic counterparts, such as Iron Man getting the Robert Downey Jr. effect in Keiron Gillen's relaunch of Iron Man (pre Guardians of the Galaxy which was pre Superior Iron Man). Cap's new costume, the entire lineup of the Avengers, the Chituari becoming a Skrull subspecies as opposed to being alternate universe Skrulls, the entire Guardians of the Galaxy being changed from a cosmic horror team into a more lighthearted space adventure, the prominence of DC teams and characters who are getting movies (though it could be argued DC is simply trying hard to generate interest in these characters from two fronts). Okay, so Marvel's a little worse about it. But let's face it, Marvel is happy to whore it out to whomever pays up. That's the Disney/Marvel way. And not that this is particularly bad in some ways, but it is bad in the whole "Bubble" aspect, and here's why: Comic Character Movies are a fad.
Sure, comic movies have been popular to some degrees since the 70's with a few successful and critical Superman films, the first couple Batman films, the first two Raimi Spider-Man/Singer X-Men films, and the Nolan Dark Knight Trilogy. These were far from the only comic films as several were rolled out during the 2000's, but none of them really managed to catch on like the Nolan Trilogy which truly changed everything in 2005. When Batman Begins hit, the movie going public and greater public in general began to more seriously contemplate and pay for superhero movies. This was a big change in the industry after X3, Spider-Man 3, and Batman & Robin pretty much kept shoving superhero movies back down into the gutter. But Batman Begins proved that the public was ready to embrace comic book characters as action heroes and Batman Begins launched them to the big time. After Batman Begins, superhero movies were the big thing. And not to say all superhero movies were as well received as the very next year with Superman Begins, the public wasn't as receptive. However, Marvel found unexpected success (from many fan's at least) with Iron Man. And from Iron Man, we all know how prevalent the superhero movie is every year now. So for a decade starting next year, superhero films will have dominated cinema releases alongside YA movie adaptations for a decade. It will not last. And the comic industry is going to crash again when the movies fold?
"I don't see why the movie industry folding will crush comics, Mak. You just said the industry has a hard time making readers out of viewers, and the readers should remain so stop being a bitch."
Wrong. Why? Because readers will ditch for the same reason viewers will: Burnout.
In the 90's, comics crashed due to things like oversaturation of covers, terribly written sensational stories, fatigue, and the fact you couldn't turn around without superheros trying to insert themselves into something. Also Rob Liefeld should get some personal blame since Image (and his work in Marvel) were pinnacles of what was wrong. And we see this now repeating with modern times with companies re-employing heavy usage of variant covers, TWISTS!! TURNS!! EXTREME RETELLINGS!!, redrilling into terrible 90's ideas, ridiculous changes to characterization, and the fact they have an Earth shattering big event every single year, sometimes more than one a year. This is not to say comics are ONLY doing this. When the burst happens this time, it won't be as bad as companies are doing their best (through pressure of the public) to branch out and try to appeal on levels that aren't simply extension of movie fun. With women and minorities getting an expanded role, comic companies will not hurt as bad when they crash. But crash they most likely will, because riding a boom on the very edge of it for a quick buck ensure that when the bubble bursts, the fall is just that much further down. I do want to talk more on this and explain why these herald a dark time, but maybe not. We'll see.
 |
| The man who drew this, Rob Liefeld, was the highest paid comic writer and artist of the 90's. 'Nuff said. We're also sort of returning to this mentality. 'Nuff said...? |
No comments:
Post a Comment