2009 January
The cruellest month: DC Comics Solicitations for April 2009
Grumpy Old Fan
This is going to be an odd round of solicit-talk for me. I skipped the March solicitations because we Robot Sixers were on a break; and I’m writing this post having spent most of the day in the car. Therefore, I ask for a little bit of slack in this look at DC’s April books.
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- January 20, 2009 @ 08:08 AM by Tom Bondurant
Food or Comics | A roundup of money-related items
Final Crisis #5
• Despite a 12-percent gain in December, which bolstered the fourth quarter, sales of periodical comics in the direct market were still down 3 percent for the year. According to ICv2.com, the December increase was due largely to the return of titles such as Final Crisis and Secret Invasion, whose absence in November led to a 11-percent loss.
Sales of the Top 100 graphic novels were up 4 percent in December and for 2008. Brisk sales of Watchmen pushed graphic-novel sales for the second half of the year up 7 percent.
Total sales of graphic novels and periodicals in the direct market were down 1 percent from 2007. [ICv2.com's December overview; Top 300 graphic novels for December; Top 300 comics for December]
• Rich Johnston reports that Top Cow Productions has laid off Mel Caylo, vice president-sales and marketing, and Rob Levin, vice president-editorial. [Lying in the Gutters]
• Charts guru John Jackson Miller wonders whether all the long lines for The Amazing Spider-Man #583 — that’s the heavily promoted issue featuring Barack Obama — will lift direct-market sales for January, a notoriously tough month for comics. [The Comichron]
• Blogger Louis Holt casts a wider net, asking whether Obama’s appearance in countless titles, from IDW’s Presidential Material to Erik Larsen’s Savage Dragon to Rob Liefeld’s Youngblood, can give the comics industry a boost. [ComicBook.com]
• The Los Angeles Times links together a series of comics-related financial items — most of which have been reported in previous installments of “Food or Comics,” and elsewhere — to create some sort of snapshot of an industry beaten down by the economy: store closings, layoffs at Devil’s Due, the cancellation of Wizard’s Texas convention. Tom Spurgeon criticizes the article for a number of reasons, including its shoe-horning of events probably unrelated to the recession. Just as Wizard Entertainment’s problems began well before the economic nosedive, so, too, did Virgin Comics’.
There’s one bit of news to be gleaned from the article, though: At the end, there’s mention that a customer has bought Third Planet Comics & Games in Torrance, Calif., which closed on Jan. 5. The store will reopen with a smaller staff and “stricter standards for ordering.” [The Los Angeles Times]
Update: CBR Executive Producer Jonah Weiland, who was quoted by The Los Angeles Times, responds to the article in the comments below.
- January 20, 2009 @ 07:51 AM by Kevin Melrose
Dash Shaw profile on Meathaus site
Freeze Professor Panther!
The Meathaus site has put up an in-depth profile of Dash Shaw, creator of Bottomless Belly Button and numerous other comics. It also mentions an upcoming project Torture Hospital:
As for those upcoming projects, Dash’s slate is full. “I’ve finished BodyWorld, even though it’s still being serialized. So now I’m working on a new project, a murder-mystery comic, called ‘Torture Hospital.’ I did a short story with that name in 2005, but it doesn’t have anything to do with that. I’m just using the title again. This time is the most exciting time for me- starting something. I often have incredibly nerdy dreams of flipping through amazing comics and of course I wake up and they’re gone. How do you get one of these comics into the real world? Ha ha. I keep trying and failing but Hospital might be it. I have to think that, anyway.”
- January 20, 2009 @ 06:54 AM by JK Parkin
The five most criminally ignored books of 2008: No. 2, Rapunzel’s Revenge
Rapunzel's Revenge
As a critic, I tend to distrust the recent slate of graphic novels from big book publishers made “for kids.” I have good reason to. Most of these titles seem to be made purely in the interest of catching onto a trend or slapping together a tie-in to an existing franchise. Very few of the books I come across seem to have any true regard for the art form, let alone the audience.
Not so with Rapunzel’s Revenge. This children’s comic, by the husband and wife team of Shannon and Dean Hale and artist Nathan Hale (no relation), is a smart, thrilling and extraordinarily well-executed book. Continue Reading »
- January 20, 2009 @ 06:30 AM by Chris Mautner
Thin wallets, fat bookshelves: Random House’s outlook for 2009
X-Men: Misfits
Continuing our ongoing look at what various publishers have planned for the coming year, here’s a look at Random House’s line-up.
I should note this includes this list includes the Ballantine, Villard and Del Rey imprints. I am not including Del Rey Manga here, as I hope to list their offerings as a separate post in the near future.
- January 20, 2009 @ 06:00 AM by Chris Mautner
Williams unveils cover art for newly announced Absolute Promethea
J.H. Williams III's color cover art for "Absolute Promethea," Vol. 1
DC Comics’ April solicitations, released yesterday afternoon, confirm what some of us began speculating a couple of weeks ago: that the publisher is releasing Promethea, by Alan Moore and J.H. Williams III, as Absolute editions.
Yes, the listing for the first of three volumes is there, somewhere between the new edition of Point Blank and the first issue of the Seaguy: The Slaves of Mickey Eye miniseries. (Although listed with the April comics, Absolute Promethea won’t be released until September.)
There’s one problem, though: The art paired with the solicitation isn’t the actual cover art. Thankfully, Williams quickly fixes that oversight by rolling out the real cover art — in color and black-and-white versions. He says the final slipcase cover will have gold-embossed ink.
- January 20, 2009 @ 05:13 AM by Kevin Melrose
Food or Comics | A roundup of money-related items
Comic Charge
• I’m not sure it’s possible to overstate how big of an effect the increase in Diamond’s minimum-order benchmark will have on small publishers. So, even though I only just posted an item on the subject, I’m leading off with it in this “Food or Comics” roundup. It’s the biggest comics-related money story of the day, the week, the month, and well beyond. This signals a major change in the direct market, one that will force many publishers to rethink what they release and how they release it. That means it also affects creators, retailers and readers.
• I neglected to include in my initial post on the subject something SLG Publisher Dan Vado mentioned in his email to The Comics Reporter: SLG Publishing plans next month to launch a website on which retailers can reorder the company’s books. He’ll now offer some publishers the opportunity to list their titles, “in essence trying to become a distributor myself.” [The Comics Reporter]
• Citing a slump in the publishing industry, Japanese company Kadokawa Shoten is ceasing publication of its two-year-old Comic Charge manga magazine with its Feb. 3 issue. A new magazine may take its place. [Anime News Network]
• Paul Gravett has “Ten Tips for Thrifty Comics Consumers” [Paul Gravett]
• Meanwhile, the Bevery Hills, Calif., home of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles co-creator Kevin Eastman has been on the market since August. The price of the five-bedroom, six-bathroom 5,458-square-foot house has been slashed from $3,995,000 to $3,495,000. [SFGate]
- January 19, 2009 @ 11:00 AM by Kevin Melrose
Diamond raises order threshold for publishers [Update]
Diamond Comic Distributors
In a move that will have a significant, and negative, effect on small publishers, Diamond Comic Distributors is increasing its order minimums from $1,500 to $2,500.
The distributor also will eliminate its Previews adult supplement in printed form, but continue to offer it as a PDF to retailers.
Diamond brand managers began informing publishers of the changes last week; the news became public on Friday in a blog post by Simon Jones of Icarus Publishing.
I contacted Diamond for comment late Friday, but I haven’t received a response. According to Newsarama, Diamond last changed the order minimum in September 2005.
The increase of the purchase-order threshold means each book needs to generate at least $2,500 of revenue to be listed in Previews. In an email sent over the weekend to The Comics Reporter, SLG Publishing’s Dan Vado points out that figure means “a little over $6,000 in sales at retail based on the discount we give to Diamond.”
That means the average $3 comic would have to sell more than 2,100 copies — a rare feat for many small publishers. (The number of copies varies depending on the discount offered to Diamond.)
- January 19, 2009 @ 09:15 AM by Kevin Melrose
Obama, the Mayan calendar and … Jack Kirby?
Yes We Will
In anticipation of Barack Obama’s inauguration tomorrow, Shooting War creator Dan Goldman created a short webcomic for Tor.com that plays off of the end of Barack’s first term and the end of the ancient Mayan calendar — Dec. 21, 2012 — or, as X-Files fans might remember, the day before the aliens come. Throw in a little bit of Jack Kirby’s Fourth World for good measure, and you have to wonder when we’ll see the first Motherbox in the White House …
- January 19, 2009 @ 08:23 AM by JK Parkin
Comics A.M. | The comics Internet in two minutes
Box Office Poison
Publishing | Several creators, including Alex Robinson, discuss what efforts they took to get their comics read: “I think more than the financial price is the frustration that can set in from not having your work recognized. Being at a convention trying to get people to buy your work is one of the most depressing experiences in the world. It combines the humiliation of working at a shitty retail job with the added bonus of personal rejection and without even the minimum wage pay.” [iFanboy]
Publishing | Digital Manga Publishing confirms it will release Osamu Tezuka’s Swalling the Earth in June. The company announced at last year’s New York Comic-Con that it had secured the license for Tezuka’s adult series. [Deb Aoki]
Publishing | Paul Gravett runs down the most-anticipated books of the year, including 20th Century Boys, Pluto, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Century, and Spider-Man & Doctor Strange: Fever. [Paul Gravett]
Creators | Author and comics writer Matthew Sturges talks about Vertigo’s House of Mystery, and his upcoming fantasy novel Midwinter, which he describes as “sort of The Dirty Dozen with elves.” [BookSpot Central]
Creators | Shaenon K. Garrity lays out why Dykes to Watch Out For creator Alison Bechdel is her “number-one role model as a cartoonist” [comiXology]
Art and design | Ren and Stimpy creator John Kricfalusi compares the composition and staging of artist Frank Frazetta with that of director John Ford. [John K Suff]
Publishing | Writer Brian Wood releases a series of promotional images for the Northlanders storyline “The Cross + The Hammer.” [Brian Wood]
Industry | Contract negotiator Katie Lane launches a blog dedicated to helping artists deal with clients and business. [Work Made For Hire, via Colleen Coover]
Art and design | Designer Mike Essl briefly discusses working with artist Dave Gibbons on Watching the Watchmen. [WatchmenComicMovie.com]
Weirdness | Five of the most absurd superhero origins. [Mania]
- January 19, 2009 @ 07:30 AM by Kevin Melrose
Strangeways: The Thirsty – Page 027
As promised. On time, even. But don’t get used to it; daddy needs his beauty sleep.
Written by Matt Maxwell. Art by Gervasio and Jok.
Look for some bonus features and behind-the-scenes peeks between your regularly scheduled pages on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Oh, and head right over to the Strangeways archives if you missed a page and want to catch it from the beginning.
- January 19, 2009 @ 07:25 AM by Matt Maxwell
Talking Comics with Tim: John Arcudi
B.P.R.D.
John Arcudi has been working in the comic book industry since the mid-1980s. Most recently he has bolstered his fanbase as one of the writers (along with Hellboy creator Mike Mignola) of the various B.P.R.D. miniseries for Dark Horse. I recently caught up with him for a succinct, yet informative and entertaining email interview.
Tim O’Shea: How do you and Mignola break down the writing chores on B.P.R.D.?
John Arcudi: It changes from series to series. Sometimes Mike hands me a loose plot and I flesh it out, sometimes Mike writes some of the series and I write some (that’s how we did our first, “The Dead“) and sometimes I do most of the writing with some contributions from Mike. There is no standard procedure.
O’Shea: What attracted you to delving into the dark and complicated, while at the same witty, Hellboy universe?
Arcudi: Actually, a chance to work with Mike and Guy Davis was all the motivation I needed. But it is nice that I get to have a little fun with the characters. Most comics are so serious, so it’s nice to have a laugh now and again.
- January 19, 2009 @ 06:16 AM by Tim O'Shea
The five most criminally ignored books of 2008: No. 1, Most Outrageous
Most Outrageous
Every year there are those comics that, for whatever reason, don’t get their just due. Perhaps it’s the subject matter. Perhaps it’s because the book seems to be targeted at a niche audience. Perhaps it got buried under a ton of other releases. Perhaps it’s just dumb, bad luck. Whatever the reason, a book or comic that otherwise deserves acclaim receives little attention at all.
This week I’m going to try to rectify that. Each day I’ll be looking at what I feel were five criminally ignored or little regarded books. They weren’t necessarily titles that would have made it to my year-end “best of” list. Just works that I felt for whatever reason didn’t get their fair shake, either saleswise or in the press.
- January 19, 2009 @ 06:00 AM by Chris Mautner
Random publishing news of note
Baker does Barack
– Last last week Kyle Baker announced over at his site that he is in the midst of working on a biography of President Barack Obama, to be published by HarperCollins.
My publisher told me to stop work on my Toussaint biography and make a comic about our new president. We know there are already Obama comics out there, but trust us. This book will be a totally different take on the material.
– Jim Woodring announced on his blog that he is working on a new, 96-page Frank story, to be released later this year (found via Flog).
– And via Heidi we learn that Colleen Doran has redesigned her Web site and has turned her long-running series, A Distant Soil, into a Webcomic.
- January 19, 2009 @ 05:30 AM by Chris Mautner
Hanuka brothers’ The Dirties
The Dirties
Tomer and Asaf Hanuka, twin brothers and creators of the award-winning Bipolar, have posted a new comic called The Dirties on their blog. Go check it out.
- January 19, 2009 @ 05:20 AM by JK Parkin