The Wednesday Comics Experience Part 2

In reading issue two of Wednesday Comics, the initial excitement has only worn off a little. Usually the honeymoon stage for comics is about one issue and then most comics endure the dreaded sophomore slump. This week's issue carries a lot of momentum with it because it's only ONE WEEK later. The first issue hasn't really had time to settle in. When I went to read this week's issue, I actually remembered the plot of all of the story lines. If this was being released monthly there is no way it would be readable, but since it's still fresh in my brain I'm able to enjoyable juggle sixteen separate stories at once. The price tag is definitely sinking in. When I bought this and Blackest Night (which was good!) and my bill is almost ten dollars...something is wrong.

Sandy over at I Love Rob Liefeld did some number crunching and pointed out that the entire run will cost a grand total of $47.88 . There are too many stories worth reading in here for me to drop it though. Superman, Batman, Strange Adventures, The Flash, and Hawkman are shaping up to be great, while several others are very solid. There are a few clunkers, but really it's only .31 cents a story, and I can't wait for this week's issue.

BATMAN by writer Brian Azzarello and artist Eduardo Risso
Another really solid page for Batman. The panel work and pacing are excellent. Especially the the recurring statue panel. The ending is a final, period-like ending the page but also, a sort of a twist and a lead in to next week. Mrs Glass is introduced as a one-dimensional gold digger but the last panel shifts her interests from money to darker desires connected to romance and presumably manipulation.
KAMANDI by writer Dave Gibbons and artist Ryan Sook
For whatever reason, this felt like more of an origin story than the last Kamandi page. The plot of the rest of the story is outlined which is kind of a bad sign. The story almost treads into narrative overload territory. I like the tone that the narration is striking, but too many words per panel makes things way too dense. The page works best when the words are kept to a minimum as in the second panel and the final two panels.

SUPERMAN by writer John Arcudi and artist Lee Bermejo
What happened to the art? Maybe there was a problem with the printing but the page looks washed in green. Batman is portrayed as really over the top especially in the art. I understand that they are trying to contrast the two characters here but drawing Batman like an actual demon/gargoyle is a little jarring especially after reading the Batman story first. The writing I thought was well-done again. Batman, although insensitive, is basically right and outlines what, presumably, Superman will discover through the course of the story. Even though he is right, Batman is only reinforcing Superman's problem that humans are sort of violence-loving loud mouths. Quick, smart complex stuff.
DEADMAN by writers Dave Bullock and Vinton Heuck and artist Dave Bullock
The biggest surprise of Wednesday comics is Deadman. I really like the art and the page layout. The dark background gives it a Batman: The Animated Series feel. The simple plot, with the focus on Deadman's character works well. The panel with the giant green lady and the last panel are highlights.

GREEN LANTERN by writer Kurt Busiek and artist Joe Quiñones
Another big disappointment. I like the art but the layout and even the angle of the characters in the panels are boring. When it's done well it's great, like the "Holy--!" panel but others are just standard stuff or at awkward angles. I still have my fingers crossed that this ones picks up.

METAMORPHO by writer Neil Gaiman and artist Michael Allred
Ok, so they really switched it up on me here. A huge one page panel with some time lapse stuff going on in there. Gaiman seemed to dominate the last weeks page with a flopped attempt at throwback camp humor, but this week Allred's more genuine gee-whiz-like mentality shines through.

TEEN TITANS by writer Eddie Berganza and artist Sean Galloway
This one is even more bland than the last one, and the art choice really doesn't help. It doesn't give it any excitement which is pretty important for a superhero, action-based story. I still enjoy the art but it's not well suited here.
STRANGE ADVENTURES by writer/artist Paul Pope
I like Pope working in the circles in this one. The best part of this for me, is just going back and looking at the details in the art like the background blue monkey warriors and the striking facial expressions. Just another Flash Gordon-like adventure story but Pope's art elevates it to the next level.

SUPERGIRL by writer Jimmy Palmiotti and artist Amanda Conner
If this took anymore than five seconds to read this would be a waste of time. As it is now, it's entertaining filler especially after reading something intense like Adam Strange.

METAL MEN by writer Dan DiDio and artists Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez and Kevin Nowlan
Continues in the same style and similar quality as the last page. Jokes are funny and not ironic. The last panel is where the Metal Men are standing is where the art stands out. Leaderboard for favorite so far: 1. Lead 2. Gold 3. Iron 4. Tin 5. Platinum 6. Mercury.

WONDER WOMAN by writer/artist Ben Caldwell
Ok, this one lost me. I was a big fan of the previous page, but if this is going to be Finding Nemo every week count me out. There's too much work reading the thing to have such a thin storyline. It needed to go into a real storyline about young Wonder Woman hanging out on Themyscira or even sneaking off to the real world.

SGT. ROCK and EASY CO. by writer Adam Kubert and artist Joe Kubert
Joe Kubert's art is really intense when it's large. The first two panels are affecting by giving off a feeling of dread that even the panels of Sgt. Rock getting beat up don't give. Special Bonus: Easy Company portrait at the bottom!

FLASH COMICS by writers Karl Kerschl and Brenden Fletcher and artist Karl Kerschl
The dual strip really adds a tension to the comic. Iris is seperate and has her own strip, giving her equal footing with a superhero. It wouldn't be that outrageous if they broke up and she was going on dates as the Flash was going around saving people. Time travel is introduced and, despite my normal dislike, it was done well. It's always best where no weird paradoxs are discussed and it's more like a normal thing that's just happening.

THE DEMON AND CATWOMAN by writer Walter Simonson and artist Brian Stelfreeze
Still setting up the story. Is this just going to be Catwoman vs. The Demon? I have no idea how this is going to be interesting for sixteen pages especially when they are losing me at number two.

HAWKMAN by writer/artist Kyle Baker
The art and the writing are definitely in a nice harmony. Baker interjects some humor, and it works well, but the story's real strength is Hawkman as a warrior/general. His smiling thumbs-up gives a great contrast to the complete confidence he exudes in the last panel. The tiny details in the art helps make the silhouetted panels of Hawkman breaking into the plane and bodies flying out even more compelling.

COMICS: The Future of Comics

A week ago I talked about losing my job and how it has impacted my comic book addiction, and Vee showed me this article from CBR, the author discussing what he wants from a comic store, and on a base level the industry.

Something that struck me about the article is that he talks about Comics as strictly a form of entertainment, and unfortunately that's how I think most people see it. I've talked about the negative aspects of collecting before, but it's also what keeps us weekly single issue buyers buying.

His dream comic store exists minus one aspect, the accessibility of the store, which is something I don't have a problem with, and I can't be alone. I'm very spoiled in this aspect, even my local library carries great trades, ranging from indies like Daybreak to all the major super hero titles. I have the opportunity to always be around comics in one way or another, and all of the shops in my area are thriving.

For me part of comics is getting into a friend's car, driving to a store that we hardly ever go to and looking for that one issue you haven't been able to find anywhere else. No one wants there to be a world where everything we read is on a screen, the printing world may be losing popularity but it isn't dying. It's "neat" to read on an e-reader but it's not comfortable, and it's not the same as carrying around a book or having a book shelf and seeing the landscape of spines. It's the same as records or even CDs, no matter how many times people have said that the end is near, people love a product, an in hand item they have and hold.

It seems like a lot of people see digital comics as a way of propelling Comics into the future, and while it may keep the media alive, who cares of the quality of the content decreases? Music is currently battling with digital taking over, the flood of new bands with easily downloadable songs from Myspace or itunes reflects their careers, you just can't stay in the game long when there are a thousand more behind you waiting to take your place that one week you don't produce a new song. Souljaboy Tell'em is a great example of this, that boy hasn't stopped working in years and is on top because of it, other rappers similar to him have just fallen apart because they haven't released something new each week.

The kinds of comics that won't be able to survive are books like X-Men, that rely on a comics readership that will stick with them through thick and thin, and are willing to remember years and years of information. Continuity in comics isn't always a positive thing, it becomes confusing and elitist, new readers are left in the dark when every character in a book seems to know someone you've never seen before. But continuity is what keeps us reading comics, we love seeing new artists and new writers take on our favorite characters.

One way most comic stores stay alive is by starting to carry non-comic items, such as role playing games, nerd board games like Utopia and cards. Most stores that have started to carry these items become more successful, but stop concentrating on comics, shrink the comics side of the store and usually become unorganized. It's not that they should stay comics only focused, but there is never a good balance, you only seem to be able to have one or the other.

The Top Two understand their position in the entertainment world, so the newly overpriced $3.99 comics are strategically chosen. The comics that are priced at $4 aren't each issue, or even books like The Might Avengers or The Amazing Spider-Man, they apply it to the event books like Secret Invasion and Final Crisis and oneshots. They hold out to use it on books that non-comics people will buy, the people who walk into a comics store and want to know where the newest and best Batman comic is.

We who have been reading comics for years feel threatened by the recent changes to our world, with huge blockbuster movies turning heads our way and bringing new interest. Comics, and all media, are changing and we aren't ready to change with it. We often forget that not all children want to read their comics online, and manga is proof of that, it is keeping some stores alive and while some comics dudes want to write it off completely, it's a whole new world for those of us who have seen everything.

My little sister, age eight, reads tons of comics ranging from Bone and Tintin to Princess Kalala and One Piece, and when I showed her some web comics she may be interested in she didn't care. She wanted to be outside while reading, and although that can be achieved with an e-reader, it's not the same for a kid.

We're all old and grumpy, we fear for our hobby (as dumb as it is to call it that), and forget comics are changing for us as adults, kids like my sister are still experiencing them and will continue to buy single issues of Sabrina the Teenage Witch because she can't wait for the collection.

More and more comics will be online, they will be available in ebook form and more comics will go straight to trade, but they won't replace single issue comics because that is what tells them what is popular and what people want. My little sister reads her comics in issue form because she understands what makes comics exciting is the week to week beauty of waiting, and she can always have three bucks for her fix. She understands this better than most adults and she reads Disney's Fairy Adventures.

Being Broke

Last week I was laid off from my job at one of the largest book retailers in the nation, me and a couple hundred friends across the country are filing for unemployment, applying for jobs, and hoping we can pay the rent. Once all of the "important" stuff had been taken care of, I looked at my comics and had the realization that my weekly addiction may have to be put on hold until my bank account is a little fatter.

The subscription cubby with the name "Sammy Rules" over it at Cosmic Comix rarely has more than six or seven books in it, I only spend about twenty to forty dollars a week on new issues. To those who don't buy weekly that may seem steep, but with all of the crossover events and mini series coming out on a weekly basis from artists and writers you're interested in, some comics buyers (readers and collectors alike) purchase practically every title. Secret Invasion is a perfect example of this, any missed issue across nearly the entire Marvel line could have meant a reveal you'd have to find out about after the fact.

Our little form of escapism isn't expensive if you can be frugal, it's easy enough to find three bucks in change for one more issue. The thing about "one more issue" is that it quickly becomes two or three, you just want to read Cable but have to read X-Force to get the complete story-line. Waiting for the trade paperbacks saves you a little bit of money, but by the time you've read them you're behind on the current issues and are left having to play catch up.

With other mediums there's always a way to have the experience without the actual purchase. Movies and video games can be rented, books can be borrowed from the library and music can easily be downloaded. New issues of comics can be found online, but it's not the same as going to the store and leaving with a brown paper bag filled with new books. With a lot of the older issues, the trades aren't even available, so even attempting to get some history on characters you're unfamiliar with isn't an option if you don't have a lot of cash.

Even if you're only buying one or two new issues a week and only pick up older issues at dollar sales, you end up with a lot of comics you've only bought to read. A question I am constantly asked is if I actually reread comics that I buy, and the answer is yes. I have stacks and stacks of things that I read on a monthly basis and some comics I weekly open up to take in again. Attempting to resell these older issues, no matter how lightly read, is almost impossible. Outside of the rarities and variants that people actually want, most comics aren't worth shit. Even on eBay, unless something is twenty years old, chances are your "investment" is only worth three dollars, sometimes even less.

When you get to a point that you decide to cut some comics, you start to think about why you read the titles you purchase. You have to begin considering if you care about what happens in that issue or if you only care about the outcome of the "universe" as a whole. I've found myself buying Black Panther even though I don't care about who this new female Black Panther is, I just knew it was a part of Dark Reign. I didn't want to miss what was happening, and that's what Marvel and DC want. We want it too, as fans we love these huge events, even if it's just to talk a lot of shit about how much we don't like them.

The prices of comics inevitably will all be $3.99, and that one dollar difference makes a huge impact on what you buy. New mini series that may be interesting are left on the rack, number one issues don't sell and three issues later the book is cancelled. I don't know how bad the Comics' Industry is doing right now, or with all of the movies coming out if they are doing bad at all, but flooding the market with Wolverine comics and a new series coming out each week just makes you resent the comics, and look else where for cheaper entertainment.