Where do your hard earned dollars go? I mean the
ones you still have after paying bills, taxes, and other daily expenses that
continue your life perpetually forward. The extra that should be left over,
what nectar of life do they purchase? Is it a new wardrobe, a good meal, or
maybe a few drinks with friends on the days off that seem to be too few in
life? If you're reading this I either got lucky you are here or like me you spend
the remainder of what's left every week on comic books.
Comic books are a lot more expensive compared to when I started to collect. A$3.99 cover price today is up about 565% from the days when my allowance bought me my weekly drug. I never thought about the politics of publishing a comic book, I bought what I liked, I still do, but I don't have to speculate what sells and what doesn't. I don't need to figure out which variant cover should be cost optimized by quantity purchased or if I send a book into CGC for grading then my profits will catapult towards my rent being paid by one book. My pleasures are a bit simpler. Is the comic book good?
DC and Marvel are the big two and have been so since the silver age. My first LCS was set up in four sections, Marvel, DC, Back Issues, and everything else. As I grew up independent publishers started clambering for more shelf space. Dark Horse and Image come to mind predominantly but First, Innovation, and Valiant are others that were always competing with Spider-Man and Superman. The market expanded, constricted and exploded again.
DC tried something, something that has been tried before, but never on such a scale. They took one final moment, one Flashpoint, and started over. Marvel waited and finally felt after the success of DC had they should start their own revolution and instead of leading, followed suit, creating their new world negating years and years of story continuity. The problem is my dollars have not expanded or have grown exponentially, in fact they remain stagnant. The new number ones were supposed to be a fresh beginning, a beginning to allow readers to jump on and not be lost, or as with some titles, it gave me the chance to jump off.
Marvel began again but so has Valiant, three companies are battling for my dollar and as I tighten my purse strings I realize it's Marvel that has the most to lose because that is the majority of what I collect. I gave Iron Man the first story arc but fear it might go. Cable and X-Force couldn't get past to #2 and Morbius sat on the rack as I walked on past. Give me a collected universe with ten books a month with story and art and you'll have my money, but if things keep progressing the way they have I fear I might just continue to go to my LCS and buy some books from the silver, bronze, and copper age.
Thanks for Reading
Comic books are a lot more expensive compared to when I started to collect. A$3.99 cover price today is up about 565% from the days when my allowance bought me my weekly drug. I never thought about the politics of publishing a comic book, I bought what I liked, I still do, but I don't have to speculate what sells and what doesn't. I don't need to figure out which variant cover should be cost optimized by quantity purchased or if I send a book into CGC for grading then my profits will catapult towards my rent being paid by one book. My pleasures are a bit simpler. Is the comic book good?
DC and Marvel are the big two and have been so since the silver age. My first LCS was set up in four sections, Marvel, DC, Back Issues, and everything else. As I grew up independent publishers started clambering for more shelf space. Dark Horse and Image come to mind predominantly but First, Innovation, and Valiant are others that were always competing with Spider-Man and Superman. The market expanded, constricted and exploded again.
DC tried something, something that has been tried before, but never on such a scale. They took one final moment, one Flashpoint, and started over. Marvel waited and finally felt after the success of DC had they should start their own revolution and instead of leading, followed suit, creating their new world negating years and years of story continuity. The problem is my dollars have not expanded or have grown exponentially, in fact they remain stagnant. The new number ones were supposed to be a fresh beginning, a beginning to allow readers to jump on and not be lost, or as with some titles, it gave me the chance to jump off.
Marvel began again but so has Valiant, three companies are battling for my dollar and as I tighten my purse strings I realize it's Marvel that has the most to lose because that is the majority of what I collect. I gave Iron Man the first story arc but fear it might go. Cable and X-Force couldn't get past to #2 and Morbius sat on the rack as I walked on past. Give me a collected universe with ten books a month with story and art and you'll have my money, but if things keep progressing the way they have I fear I might just continue to go to my LCS and buy some books from the silver, bronze, and copper age.
Thanks for Reading
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