Marvel Comics General

"Newstands" covered stuff like the comic rack in barnes and nobles. And apparently Marvel is done with that.

Ah. That sucks.

Weird they are losing money now. I mean, even if the situation was not improving, I wouldn't think it is actually deteriorating. With all the movies and all.

(though, now I think on it, I don't remember seeing Marvel comics in B&N last time I was in US. I found manga there, but that is it.)

edited 16th Apr '14 1:27:04 PM by Heatth

They're losing money on print comics, because no one reads print comics anymore.

And sadly, because of Continuity Lockout, the movies aren't bringing in new readers like they'd hoped.

It's why they made the Marvel NOW! and All-new Marvel NOW! Initiatives. Next year, they'll have the This Time For Sure Marvel NOW! initiative.

edited 16th Apr '14 1:28:00 PM by Frishman

People prefer to buy and read digital comics? Really? That seems just weird to me. Is the price any different digital?

I think its a bit cheaper because you don't have to pay the ink and paper costs.

Digital comics are more or less pure profit, since all you have to do is pay the people who made it rather than the publisher or distributor. And there is a price reduction. I'm looking at trade paperbacks on Kindle that are about what a regular comic costs nowadays.

But I think they're only really turning a profit on the movies at this point, and the merchandising that goes with it.

I ask because I aways found comic prices in US to be fairly excessive. I buy this stuff for the equivalent of half the price that where I live. Which is fairly noticeable, because pretty much everything else (including books) is cheaper in US (that is half the reason we travel there).

edited 16th Apr '14 1:33:43 PM by Heatth

I definitely prefer to have comics in print. I like the book in my hands, and I think it's best to see the page as a whole, so that the eye naturally flows over everything. At the same time, I own a lot of comics digitally, just because it's more convenient to carry my phone around and download whatever I want wherever I get service.

It's becoming increasingly popular for casual readers since you don't have to deal with the possible stigma of going into a comic shop and being made to feel uncomfortable. That and a lot of comic shops are becoming harder to find.

A hard reboot, I think, would kill Marvel. It wouldn't bring in any significant numbers of new readers, and it would turn away a whole lot of older readers.

I think Continuity Lockout is exaggerated, and that it's the perception, not the reality, that turns people off. You want to know what's happening in a comic you pick up? Read the recap page. Read the issue itself. Everything you need to know is there. Everything you need to know is explained, and if it's not explained, you don't need to know it. A lot of long-time comic fans have convinced themselves that, in order to understand what happens in this issue of this comic, you need to have read that issue of that comic from 15 years ago, and that is such a load of bullshit. But because people who really should know better spew that bullshit, people who can't be expected to know any better believe it, and so they don't bother.

As far as why you should care about the characters, I suppose you should care about them while they're written by writers who make you care about them. I couldn't care less what happens to Storm in Wat XM, but I care about what happens to her in X-Men, because Brian Wood is making me care. Jonathan Hickman can't make me care about characters I like, but Al Ewing is making me care about characters I never cared about. Follow the writers you like, ignore the ones you don't.

One thing I do like about your argument, Frish, is the "mandatory legacy characters" thing. How I'd do it is, over decades real-time, introduce a supporting cast member, hero-in-training, or whatever, then slowly but surely increase them in prominence until, thirty or so years on, the original hands off the mantle to them. It allows the originals to move on without creating a big nostalgia backlash against the new one.

The Marvel movies actually drove me to comics actually.

I really wish there was more distribution, at least to big newstands and maybe toy stores, Marvel is doing a disservice to the public. Or maybe the way to go is more derivative adaptations.

Whoops.

edited 16th Apr '14 4:15:31 PM by HamburgerTime

Maybe the bump in readership is minor, but at the least, the Marvel movies have changed the perception of comics. I have been constantly amazed at how I'm suddenly the cool guy in the room for being up on Avengers continuity.

About the Continuity Lockout thing: I always wanted to try comics but was afraid I wouldn't know what was going on if I did. It wasn't until a certain cartoon came out that I decided to take a stab. I knew that Nova and White Tiger were new characters, so I decided to see what they were like in the comics. Went with Nova first due to the fact his series was fairly new and had decent reviews. I'm glad I did. Really loving Nova right now. Anyways, that opened the gateway for me to try some Spidey stuff. Anyways, I find myself not having trouble following any the comics I'm reading right now. Sure, there may be some stuff I don't know, but that's what the Internet is for.

And on a completely unrelated note, got Nova #16 today. Oh, Sam. You're an idiot, but you're a loveable idiot. I'm going to be sad when you finally grow out your newbie phase. (Assuming you do...) Anyways, this issue was a lot of fun. Not quite sure where to begin since there was a lot of great moments, though I'll think go with Sam throwing the super-weapon into a star in order to "destroy" it. Beta Ray Bill's reaction to when he found out what Sam had done was great. "And what would you suggest we do with Skaarn? Should we toss him into the nearest black hole?" "Yes?" "NO!"

Also, we have a part where Cosmo mentions that he misses the old Nova. At first I thought that he was talking about Rider, but it turns out that he was talking about Sam's dad. Can't tell if that is just Duggan messing around with the Rich fans or something else. I remember reading about some crazy theory someone on another forum mentioned about Rich being Sam's dad. Or something.

edited 16th Apr '14 5:29:41 PM by sparkykandy

On another topic, Ms. Marvel #3 was awesome. As expected. This is on its way to being one of Marvel's best titles. I also still love the little minor visual gags Alphona slips in. For example, Kamala has an article on her wall from Fluffington Post. I want that to be a real website. She also eats a bowl of GM-O's cereal. "Listen to your gut, not the lawsuits." Another article headline: "High school cannibalism experiment proves disastrous." A poster on a lamppost: "Start a fight! Save our prisons!" Bruno's notes on an experiment: "1. Get the stuff. 2. Mix the stuff." Alphona just fills the book with little stuff like that. Things you really have to look for. It's great.

Yeah, but Designated-Love-Interests Brother is a real idiot..."Unloaded" my posterior.

I found Journey into Mystery at my library. :D Unfortunately... I can't tell what order to read them in from the catalogue. The titles for each book are given as "Fear Itself", "Fear Itself Fallout", "The Terrorism Myth", and "The Manchester Gods".

Where will I start?

Fear Itself. just do it in the order you listed. plus they should have volume number somewhere on the book wether the spine or inside.

I think that might actually be the order. Fear Itself definitely comes first, followed by Fallout. Then Terrorism Myth. After that actually comes Exiled, a crossover with New Mutants. Then The Manchester Gods. And finally, Everything Burns, a crossover with The Mighty Thor.

And then you'll have read one of the finest stories in comics. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll have so many feels.

After that is the Sif ones, Stronger Than Monsters and Seeds of Destruction.

Okay yay! I was guessing based on the titles and summaries, but they're both kind of messed up, so I'm kind of surprised that was correct.

I'll have to order the crossovers too, then. Thanks for letting me know about them. :D (What are "the Sif ones"?)

Thank you!

edited 16th Apr '14 7:21:03 PM by Noaqiyeum

After Kieron Gillen finished his run writing Journey Into Mystery, Kathryn Immonen took over, and turned the focus to Sif. Thor's off-and-on girlfriend. You remember her from the Thor movies. It was only 9 issues, but it was fantastic.

Kieron Gillen's run, on the other hand, was brilliant. Everything in it ties together in really subtle, clever ways, with Loki often having to deal with the fallout of his own schemes. He's a classic Guile Hero, a trickster who has nothing to rely on but his own wits.

And then there's the ending. Holy shit, that ending. It was truly shocking.

The essential problem with any attempt to deal with Continuity Lockout is that you either create a new continuity which quickly Locks people out again or you remove continuity entirely which leaves any event bereft of meaning as it by definition will have no impact.

I think Marvel's best bet is to continue the push with digital comics and cross promote by giving out codes for say a week of Marvel Unlimited with tickets for opening weekend of the Marvel universe movies. Especially if the were to say put a highlight list for major characters so someone with the service could hit the important parts of there history.

Ms. Marvel has now reached one of my favorite parts of a superhero origin, the Power Incontinence phase. And given that Kamala's power is shape-shifting, it especially fun.

I haven't been watching Marvel.com's "The Watcher" series, but this episode about Original Sin was pretty funny. Maybe I should watch it more often.

Had a question- I've come across this panel◊ in the past of Luke Cage and Jessica Jones seeking a babysitter and was wondering if someone could identify everyone in the picture.

I recognize Squirrel Girl, Molly of Runaways, Deadpool, and Carol Danvers. The green skinned one is Mantis, right? And the truck driver is Rick Jones? Is the guy with the pink helmet Goliath?

What appreciate someone's expertise.

edited 18th Apr '14 1:36:54 PM by Hodor