Marvel Fresh Start: All Books Announced So Far

[Drops Of Venus]

That's great you started reading comics because of LGBT representation but in general not enough people care about comics to buy them. Diversity makes a such a minor blip in sales. I don't mind reading diverse representation but let's not pretend it will sustain sales or attract enough new readership. Comics are in trouble and it's not because of using the same old white males like a few claim.

I wasn't trying to make a point about sales, just countering someone who claimed diversity didn't attract people. But since you've brought it up: I'm aware diversity alone is not gonna make waves in the comic book industry, but it can help if you know how and where to target it. Squirrel Girl, Moon Girl, Ms. Marvel and Cho!Hulk are diverse titles that have thrived outside of the direct market, which is proof that there are sales and readership for books like these when you promote them outside of the box. I mean, even IN the direct market we had some breakout diverse figures like Jane Foster, who was more than capable of sustaining sales and attracting a new readership. And recently a user here in the CBR forum posted some news about a book store owner offering a very different POV from LCS owners, talking about how it was easier for them to get a new readers interested in comics because of newer, less traditional titles like America (which crashed and burned in the direct market and it was a quite hated book in the online community). And what about others markets where books take longer to arrive, like Marvel Unlimited and international markets? Those are markets with a very real potential that rarely are brought to consideration when we talk about sales, largely because it doesn't even look like Marvel themselves prioritize them as much as the direct domestic market. So, as you can see, sales are also not black and white and there are many ways in which diversity can be used in their favor. I'm not expecting any queer solo other than Deadpool to burn up the direct market charts and last for more than 12 issues, but if Marvel had a queer character they could publish through Scholastic? Yeah, that would be a whole different story. And I think that should be the fate of a lot of the diverse books from now on; they should be diverse not only in content, but also in the way they are promoted.

Also, just pointing out, the queer-positive book that got me into comics (Young Avengers) had a very strong debut in the DM, outselling Captain America, X-23 and Black Panther at the time (which was the early 00s, a time that would be considered more conservative, even), three characters who are still being pushed to the forefront of the MU today because they were successful. Gillen's run sold less, but it still held up quite decently, specially compared to how D-list titles are selling today (and I also think it was a hit outside of the DM, but I could be wrong about that). So, you know, Marvel HAS LGBTQ-led IP that sells; I'm just waiting for them to get their heads out of their asses and goddamn use it.

[Winter_fury]

Diversity does attract people and you need good writers. Look at ms marvel and jane. Both attracted people and both have good writers and bendis is always going to have fans and be new reader accesible. i think marvel did great with diversity with ANAD. They went overboard with marvel now 2.0 when they started just trowing everything at the wall to see what stick some of the book during that time. And thinking that every write could pull a ms marvel.

[skyvolt2000]

That's great you started reading comics because of LGBT representation but in general not enough people care about comics to buy them. Diversity makes a such a minor blip in sales. I don't mind reading diverse representation but let's not pretend it will sustain sales or attract enough new readership. Comics are in trouble and it's not because of using the same old white males like a few claim.

Well when we start talking about those OTHER factors instead of attacking POC, LGBT & women lead books-we can have that NEEDED conversation.

https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/...d-in-2018.html

Declining Foot Traffic
Julie Sharron, staff, the Secret Headquarters: I’ve talked to friends with different kinds of retail stores, not necessarily comics, and it’s the same thing for them this year: people just aren’t coming in; it’s a wider retail thing.

Leef Smith, owner, Mission Comics: My sense is that consumers are being more careful about their spending, and shifting spending online. There are a lot of people worried about the future and the economy suddenly tanking. I’ve seen many people trying to save more money, picking up three books and putting back two.

“A Content Crash” and the Need for Diversity
Pifer: I think a content crash is happening now. [Comics writer] Ed Brubaker, for instance, happens to be a great seller for us. His stuff is fantastic, but even he’s away doing TV and film, etc. He really wants to do comics but [the money isn’t there].

Wise: I’ve read a lot of complaints this year about the concept of diversity [encouraging the proliferation of characters, books, and creators that reflect a variety of ethnic backgrounds and social experiences] and how it’s hurting retailers. That just sounds ridiculous to me. Your store should be welcoming to anyone who wants to read comics. Whatever your politics, all of these categories are a growing demographic for our product, and if you don’t want to sell to them somebody else will. Send them to my store—I’ll take the business.

Jeff Ayers, general manager, Forbidden Planet:I have never agreed with [the antidiversity arguments] that retailers are making. We do quite well with titles like America [about a Hispanic superheroine] and Moon Girl [a black preteen superhero series created by Amy Reeder]; that is not what’s bringing down sales. Lady Thor comics sell better than when regular Thor was in Thor.

■ Sharron: Some of the same dudes have been working on the same DC books for 30 years. Maybe shake it up a little. I think Marvel’s done a better job [creating diverse characters] but it’s still like five dudes who write almost every Marvel book.

There’s this African-American girl who shops here regularly, she’s probably like eight or nine now but has been shopping here for a while. I always remember the day she found out that Moon Girl was coming out and she was in here, literally jumping up and down. She said to her mom, “Mom, there’s a superhero who looks like me.” That’s important. That’s how you get a fan for life, right?

Ayers: The $4 comics periodicals are very inaccessible to consumers, sometimes, and it’s just hard to attract new customers to single-issue comics. Stuff like Fence #1 (Boom!) and America (Marvel)—those are titles we can get new readers into. We can sell them to people who don’t normally read single-issue comics.

Wise: But pay attention to the world outside of the [comics shop] market [which is dominated by books from superhero publishers]. If you don’t have it in stock I guarantee you Barnes & Noble and Amazon will. Don’t order that 17th Deadpool special or nonessential big event [superhero] crossover this month, and put some of that money into something that may attract a new readership.

These are owners who are saying it's not diversity killing business. It's price, access, same old creators, restarting of books, not knowing where to start reading and the economy.

Yet we will still get attacks on POC, LGBT & women lead books. Lead by the same folks who never read the books that they bash.

[Tiamatty]

Times are changin', man. Comics are gonna have to change too if they want to survive. And when I say 'comics', I mean the big two. That's just how it is. Readers are just not being replaced at the rate of depletion and if they want to cultivate today's kids, they need to diversify their rosters. That doesn't mean any particular title is good or that I like legacy heroes -- I actually don't -- but Marvel and big two comics in general are in a terrible catch 22 with that. There are a /ton/ of other issues to go right along with these.

And this is actually a pretty crucial distinction, one that too many people miss. Comics are doing fine. It's the direct market that's having problems. People are buying comics, just not at comic shops. They buy them at bookshops, or online, or borrow them from libraries. Comics are in a pretty strong place right now.

If you focus only on the Diamond estimates, then things look bleak. But Diamond was never the whole picture, and that's especially true now. Comics are doing just fine, as a whole.

[Garbledarber]

For the record, Jane Foster Thor is the best selling female hero right now, outselling Wonder Woman. So that title is not contributing to any "decay."

Legacy heroes like Laura Kinney, Riri Williams, Amadeus Cho and Miles Morales have also all proven to be successful, often outselling some "classic heroes" from both Marvel and DC.

All of them, except Jane have sold worse than their original heroes though. This doesn't mean that they're failures but it does mean that they aren't as popular as Logan, Tony, Bruce or Peter. Still Laura and Miles have done well enough to show that they can last.

[Ra-El]

And this is actually a pretty crucial distinction, one that too many people miss. Comics are doing fine. It's the direct market that's having problems. People are buying comics, just not at comic shops. They buy them at bookshops, or online, or borrow them from libraries. Comics are in a pretty strong place right now.

If you focus only on the Diamond estimates, then things look bleak. But Diamond was never the whole picture, and that's especially true now. Comics are doing just fine, as a whole.

Marvel should start some imprints like DC is doing. DC have Young Animal, Wild Storm, Black Label, Bendis is going to curate his own imprint soon and Vertigo is about to get some kind of relaunch. These imprints usually appeal to a different kind of audience of the more traditional superhero comics.
My opinion is that Marvel should be aiming to launch their own imprints, something like Marvel MAX.

[Tiamatty]

Marvel should start some imprints like DC is doing. DC have Young Animal, Wild Storm, Black Label, Bendis is going to curate his own imprint soon and Vertigo is about to get some kind of relaunch. These imprints usually appeal to a different kind of audience of the more traditional superhero comics.
My opinion is that Marvel should be aiming to launch their own imprints, something like Marvel MAX.

Probably a good idea. It'd be worth trying.

[Frontier]

Marvel should start some imprints like DC is doing. DC have Young Animal, Wild Storm, Black Label, Bendis is going to curate his own imprint soon and Vertigo is about to get some kind of relaunch. These imprints usually appeal to a different kind of audience of the more traditional superhero comics.
My opinion is that Marvel should be aiming to launch their own imprints, something like Marvel MAX.

A lot of the stuff Marvel aims more directly at the Scholastic crowd would definitely fit something like DC's upcoming DC Zoom imprint.

And they're more direct about not relying on comic sales at all, since they're deliberately aimed at a different audience and don't have the hangup of needing to sustain floppie sales since they're coming out in trade or graphic novel format.

Though Marvel is already putting several young adult authors onto their main titles like DC is doing with DC Zoom/Ink, so...

[classicgmer]

I think more books are coming for B list and below are coming minorities included but i wouldn't be surprised if a lot of that comes in the formatt of the mini series and that's not really a bad thing imho. Quicksilver, Antman & the wasp, Captain Marvel have all been announced in this formatt ( heck even cosmic ghost rider who Marvel seems to be really high on is only getting a mini) so i expect more mini series...Only real surprise who got an ongoing instead of a mini is Sentry which admittedly is suprising but hey that's the way it goes sometimes.


I also expect people will feel slighted that their favorite character is only getting a mini but to me they really shouldn't as the last couple of publishing initatives have clearly shown not every character can sustain an ongoing.

[Digifiend]

A lot of the stuff Marvel aims more directly at the Scholastic crowd would definitely fit something like DC's upcoming DC Zoom imprint.

And they're more direct about not relying on comic sales at all, since they're deliberately aimed at a different audience and don't have the hangup of needing to sustain floppie sales since they're coming out in trade or graphic novel format.

Though Marvel is already putting several young adult authors onto their main titles like DC is doing with DC Zoom/Ink, so...

Yeah, they could break the line into five brands. Star Wars, MCU (preludes and movie adaptations), Marvel Comics (mainline, equivalent to DC Universe), Marvel MAX (parental advisory stuff like Punisher and Jessica Jones), and Marvel Universe (would include books like Moon Girl, Squirrel Girl, Marvel Rising, Champions, Ms Marvel, and any cartoon adaptations - the name is currently only used for the adaptations).

[Thor-Ul]

To all who are protesting on the lackof female representation, seems like Gail Simone could have news for monday (as an author, not idea about what is she going to write):

https://twitter.com/GailSimone/statu...52614872100864

[Colossus1980]

My biggest worry involving Marvel comics is if the company is only doing ONE comic on the Avengers when Infinity War is coming out and is arguably the first or second best selling team title then I keep thinking Marvel is really going to tone down on the monthly output. Although I did think they were too aggressive I fear they might be too conservative with the output for now.

[anyajenkins]

The whole discussion might be a little premature. All we really know is that the movie avengers are coming back (in time for the movie, that was probably always the plan) and a handful of random things.

[Frontier]

To all who are protesting on the lackof female representation, seems like Gail Simone could have news for monday (as an author, not idea about what is she going to write):

https://twitter.com/GailSimone/statu...52614872100864

She also doesn't specify which company it's for, so it's hard to say.

[Tiamatty]

She also doesn't specify which company it's for, so it's hard to say.

Though I am very much on board for her Domino mini. That should be great. And David Baldeon's a great artist, too.