• Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!

Why don't you people read comic books?

Status
Not open for further replies.
watchmen-cover.jpg


This is probably the only comic book I'll ever read.

Magnificent.
 
Mistouze said:
Or maybe publish several stories in a single big monthly issue as Famitsu or 2000 A.D. do.
Click to expand...
Yea I think that's something that needs to be explored more. Marvel is trying that right now with the bi-monthly Amazing Spider-Man Family where you get several stories plus a reprint of an old Spider-Man issue for five bucks.
MC Safety said:
Comics are too expensive. It used to be that if you bought a comic and it sucked, well, you were just out a quarter, 50 cents, dollar, whatever. Now, you can get two comics for the price of an average movie matinee and if you get a sucky issue, man do you ever feel burned.
Click to expand...
Actually the price of comics has only kept up with inflation and the cost of living so they're comparable to how they always cost.
 
I honestly think comics have a broader range now then they did when I was younger.

I read comics as a kid and teen. Stopped for a while. Started again within the last five years or so. The writing has improved in a lot of areas.

I think there are still people who think they will be branded by reading them, I think there are people who just don't really 'read', I think there are people who think comics are still aimed at a G audience only.

It is funny, though, that some of the folks who frown at comics will watch the animated series based on them, or the hit movie adaptation that comes out.

Or you know, play video games and post on internet videogame message boards. :D
 
neight said:
Actually the price of comics has only kept up with inflation and the cost of living so they're comparable to how they always cost.
Click to expand...


Hm.

I just did a quick computation using Amazing Spider-Man #248 and the Web site http://www.westegg.com/inflation/ . I won't claim it's 100 percent accurate, but it does tend to suggest comic prices are overinflated -- even discounting the upgrade from newsprint to modern comic paper.
 
MC Safety said:
Hm.

I just did a quick computation using Amazing Spider-Man #248 and the Web site http://www.westegg.com/inflation/ . I won't claim it's 100 percent accurate, but it does tend to suggest comic prices are overinflated -- even discounting the upgrade from newsprint to modern comic paper.
Click to expand...
You have to keep into account the gradual rise in other costs in society in which case the current cost of comic books is not overinflated. Someone once did a comparison in which a comic book in the golden age cost the same as a hot dog and a coke in NYC and that's still the case today.

Edit: Here it is from none other than the creator of my favorite comic book series.
Some perspective here:

Back when comics were a dime, you could buy a single comic for about the price of a hotdog and coke from a NYC hotdog vendor. Now days you can buy a comic for about the price of a hotdog and coke from a NYC hotdog vendor. Many other examples abound.

The price may indeed go up, but the cost is still about the same.
Click to expand...
http://www.clockworkstorybook.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=22&hilit=coke
 
backflip10019 said:
They're largely uninspired and/or boring? I've grown out of comics.
Click to expand...
Exactly. Not to mention there is just too much shit and people to keep track of, and after you follow someone for awhile, they will just go ahead and reboot the series or something
 
You can only read about the same hero's daily musings over and over again before hungering for closure. American Comics fail at closure, but at least Warren Ellis is on the right track.
 
I still read some but the intertwining between the series got really annoying. When I had to buy like 5 different x-men comics because they would just drag the story through 5 different series is retarded. Plus sonic comics suck now so I usually don't buy them until they're in a collection of some sort. I don't know why you care so much though, some people just don't like them. Get over it.
 
The medium is completely under-utilized, and the comic industry is a creative wasteland. Mainstream comics are made by hacks marketing garbage to adolescent boys or pathetic men who have never grown out of adolescence. Unfortunately this has perpetuated the stigmata that comics as a whole are filled with nothing but lazy writing, and condescending subject matter. The glut of genre material has taken over the medium and made people hesitant to read comics, consequently this has also scared away any truly talented artist who may wish to work in comics. They aren't cheap anymore either. Collecting monthlies is a lot of money considering the content contained within them nowadays takes less than fifteen minutes to read through.
 
That's it I've decided, I'm going to pick up issues through the rest of the year and then I'm done with it. Thanks OP.
 
Read some manga!

I read manga as an alternative to reading books, because I read so many college course books~
 
I used to read manga but I don't like how much shelf space they've taken away from my beloved comics in book stores so I stopped buying 'em. Plus I got sick of the anime/manga art styles. Only one I still buy is Berserk. :]
 
neight said:
http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/1850.html

Comics are selling at their lowest in the 2000s out of their entire history. They used to sell in the hundreds of thousands but now a comic is considered to sell well if it sells around 25k.
Click to expand...

Persepolis sold more than a million copies and Jimmy Corrigan sold 100,000 copies just in hardback.

Or are you talking about floppies? I've been getting quite deep into graphic literature in the past year, but I probably will never buy one. Floppies can't be stored on a shelf and give less entertainment than an episode of Tim and Eric. The mindset of the core comic audience that buys them is alien to me.

And I agree with everything Big Icarus said. The extreme focus on superheroes in American comics is myopic.
 
You guys should try reading more self-contained comics. Those are where the true quality is found. Jason, Adriane Tomine, Craig Thompson, Daniel Clowes, Brian Wood and the rest of the gang produce top-notch storytelling that truly takes profit of the medium.
 
leroy hacker said:
Persepolis sold more than a million copies and Jimmy Corrigan sold 100,000 copies just in hardback.
Click to expand...
Well those aren't most comics. But trade paperbacks do well enough to have been called the savior of the comics industry. They have a much longer shelf life than the monthlies and being a TPB any book store can stock them so they are available to more people. The TPBs of Vertigo titles are especially noted for their long shelf lifes.
 
neight said:
Well those aren't most comics. But TPBs do well enough to have been called by some the savior of the comics industry. They have a much longer shelf life than the monthlies and being a TPB any book store can stock them so they are available to more people. The TPBs of Vertigo titles are especially noted for their long shelf lifes.
Click to expand...

My problem with TPBs is that they force writers to work in arcs. This tends to create a very artificial flow and doesn't allow them to write in their own pace.
 
joey_z said:
My problem with TPBs is that they force writers to work in arcs. This tends to create a very artificial flow and doesn't allow them to write in their own pace.
Click to expand...

Many TPBs are self-contained rather than part of a larger story, though. Like the previously mentioned Blankets and Persepolis.
 
7Th said:
Many TPBs are self-contained rather than part of a larger story, though. Like the previously mentioned Blankets and Persepolis.
Click to expand...

Hate to be 'that guy' but here's what wikipedia says:

"In comics, a trade paperback (TPB or simply trade) refers to a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles"

On that basis, I don't think Blankets would be referred to as a TPB.
 
A single title is allowed to only have one arc. :D
 
RevenantKioku said:
A single title is allowed to only have one arc. :D
Click to expand...

Nope. Ultimate Spider-man for example usually runs on 4 to 6 issue arcs.

Edit:
Thought I might as well try to get some people to read this. It's a look at Berlin during the World War era and dives into multiple characters each having their own little story all running in tandem.

berlin-cityofstones-jasonlutes-cover.jpg
 
neight said:
What are you talking about manga has arcs too my favorite arc in Berserk is the Golden Age arc.
Click to expand...
I thought he was saying that that one book couldn't be classified as a TPB becasue it didn't fit the standards he listed, and I was just saying one arc would let it fit. What did I say that had anything to do with manga or Spiderman? O_o
 
neight said:
I was looking at a sales chart and am saddened at how pathetic they sell compared to their glory days and am trying to understand why so many have abandoned the industry. Why do those of you that don't follow comics don't read it? I know comics face competition from videogames but they cost so little buying one or two monthlies won't break the bank especially seeing how many of you shrug off DLC costs as chump change.
Click to expand...
This is just me, but once the Ultimate stuff rolled out, I pretty much bailed. I hate having to root for the main continuity. Xmen when from mutants vs some other evolutionary step to a bald chick posing as Professor Xavier or something. (Sigh)
 
neight said:
You have to keep into account the gradual rise in other costs in society in which case the current cost of comic books is not overinflated. Someone once did a comparison in which a comic book in the golden age cost the same as a hot dog and a coke in NYC and that's still the case today.

Edit: Here it is from none other than the creator of my favorite comic book series. http://www.clockworkstorybook.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=22&hilit=coke
Click to expand...


While this may be accurate, it is still much more costly now to follow your favorite characters. Admittedly, this started back in the 1990s, but buying every Spider-Man book now is much more expensive than buying every Spider-Man book in the 70s, as an example.

Personally, after having taken a long break (since the Spider-Clone shit fest) I picked up comics again a few years back. I quickly got back out of it because I was spending $30+ every week for maybe an hour's worth of reading at best. Moreover, I find that among the mainstream comics they only seem to be able to either recycle stories (most often because they retconned the original telling) or completely mucking with the important parts of characters you love.

Still, and this is a chicken or the egg sort of thing, but it is harder to buy comics now. Growing up you could pick up comic books in a grocery store, gas station, or Wal-Mart. These days? Not so much. When the largest retailer in the country doesn't sell your goods that has a big impact in the volume you'll do.
 
Because I read books, for free, from the library instead? I like wordy books, and never understood the attraction of comic books tbh. I don't mean for this to come off the wrong way (but it inevitably will), but I always thought comics were for those who didn't totally get to grips with reading at an early age, so at age 10ish they would rather pick up a comic book than a regular book. I know that's a very narrow-minded view, but it was formed at around that age based on those I knew who were into comic books, and some prejudices are hard to shake.

To this day, everyone I know who is into comic books is a very slow reader of regular books, although I can't say they actually have any difficulty reading. Maybe it's the nature of comic books to pour over each panel, but reading normal text slowly is a big hindrance in other aspects of life.
 
MisterHero said:
With both Marvel and DC these days you have to read a billion books to read all about a major storyline in the universe

Issue sales are low because people know that they can eventually buy collections later on.

It's less confusing for me personally if I stick to one corner of a given line-up, and for me it's Superman. Action Comics, All-Star, and Superman/Batman have all been really good in the last year.
Click to expand...


Plus any major events/deaths are usually reversed in a couple of months.
 
NZer said:
Because I read books, for free, from the library instead? I like wordy books, and never understood the attraction of comic books tbh. I don't mean for this to come off the wrong way (but it inevitably will), but I always thought comics were for those who didn't totally get to grips with reading at an early age, so at age 10ish they would rather pick up a comic book than a regular book. I know that's a very narrow-minded view, but it was formed at around that age based on those I knew who were into comic books, and some prejudices are hard to shake.

To this day, everyone I know who is into comic books is a very slow reader of regular books, although I can't say they actually have any difficulty reading. Maybe it's the nature of comic books to pour over each panel, but reading normal text slowly is a big hindrance in other aspects of life.
Click to expand...


That is absurd. I assume you also will talk trash about all other visual arts? Painting, movies, and the like?
 
Guybrush Threepwood said:
I could never do that in public. Way too embarrassing.

And if I'm at home, I might as well watch the anime.
Click to expand...

why would u be embarrassed to read manga? Nobody cares what u do :lol

anyways, that's not a good excuse! I know plenty of regular and cool people (from Japan and US) who have read stuff like Death Note or Dragon Head

it's fun!
 
NZer said:
Because I read books, for free, from the library instead? I like wordy books, and never understood the attraction of comic books tbh. I don't mean for this to come off the wrong way (but it inevitably will), but I always thought comics were for those who didn't totally get to grips with reading at an early age, so at age 10ish they would rather pick up a comic book than a regular book. I know that's a very narrow-minded view, but it was formed at around that age based on those I knew who were into comic books, and some prejudices are hard to shake.

To this day, everyone I know who is into comic books is a very slow reader of regular books, although I can't say they actually have any difficulty reading. Maybe it's the nature of comic books to pour over each panel, but reading normal text slowly is a big hindrance in other aspects of life.
Click to expand...

In my experience this is utterly incorrect.
 
Seth C said:
While this may be accurate, it is still much more costly now to follow your favorite characters. Admittedly, this started back in the 1990s, but buying every Spider-Man book now is much more expensive than buying every Spider-Man book in the 70s, as an example.

Personally, after having taken a long break (since the Spider-Clone shit fest) I picked up comics again a few years back. I quickly got back out of it because I was spending $30+ every week for maybe an hour's worth of reading at best. Moreover, I find that among the mainstream comics they only seem to be able to either recycle stories (most often because they retconned the original telling) or completely mucking with the important parts of characters you love.

Still, and this is a chicken or the egg sort of things, but it is harder to buy comics now. Growing up you could pick up comic books in a grocery store, gas station, or Wal-Mart. These days? Not so much. When the largest retailer in the country doesn't sell your goods that has a big impact in the volume you'll do.
Click to expand...

The egg came before the chicken. Everyone knows that.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

Guys, which comics do you read? Manga aside!
2
72
2K
L*][*N*K replied
Why Does Costco Turn “Normal” People Into Maniacs?
2
80
1K
LyricalShrike replied
  • Locked
Man kicked out of a board meeting for asking why the school library has sexual books.
10
326
Meicyn replied
Why Movies Just Don't Feel "Real" Anymore
2
69
2K
Major Insano replied
I don't understand why more people don't order their groceries online and have it delivered
2 3
105
3K
Sub_Level replied
Top Bottom