Comic Code Authority

[WhiteQueenEmmaFrost]

Do you think we need another Comic Code Authority? Some of the focus was more on content, but there were also regulations about the number of words on a page. I think a part of what's wrong with comics (especially in the past year) is that there's so little content, but the price has increased. There's not much to actually read. The word count on a page is down and almost no narrative. The quality isn't there. Would a new CCA force companies to produce better quality books?

[The Dying Detective]

This is the wrong place to post this.

[The Dying Detective]

Theoretically it should make companies adhere to a set standard and make things more uniform. But how should this affect the content is what I need to know because the original one was a censorship code.

[MajorHoy]

Do you think we need another Comic Code Authority? Some of the focus was more on content, but there were also regulations about the number of words on a page...

The number of words on the page?!?

Can you cite what specific rule covers that, and how do they "count" the number of words? Did things like "a" and "the" get counted as "words" or not? What about partial words where a character's dialogue is cut-off in the middle of a word?

This link: https://comicvine.gamespot.com/comic...ty/4015-42382/ shows some of the more important stuff; I don't know if there are other rules as well that may cover things like "number of words" in general per a page.

And, by the way, I think regulating the minimum "word count" per each and every page would be a ridiculous restriction. If readers/consumers are that bothered by how many words on every page in the comic books they buy, there's an easier solution: don't buy those comic books!

[BatGlamorous]

This is more of an issue with the Big Two. Start looking into indies if you haven't already.

[WillieMorgan]

It regulated the number of words per page? Is that genuine? I've never heard that before.

How would that even be enforced? Employing people to count the amount of words per page of EVERY comic published?

I've noticed a decrease in dialogue in many of the DC titles in recent years. I'm certainly rifling through issues quicker. I'd attributed that to the fact that they're on a twice monthly schedule.

[WhiteQueenEmmaFrost]

It regulated the number of words per page? Is that genuine? I've never heard that before.

How would that even be enforced? Employing people to count the amount of words per page of EVERY comic published?

I've noticed a decrease in dialogue in many of the DC titles in recent years. I'm certainly rifling through issues quicker. I'd attributed that to the fact that they're on a twice monthly schedule.

There was something Stan Lee said in an interview about there being a certain ratio of content to words that made the comics qualify for the price they put on the books. It might not have been the CCA, but I couldn't remember what other authority existed to enforce that sort of thing.

[MajorHoy]

There was something Stan Lee said in an interview about there being a certain ratio of content to words that made the comics qualify for the price they put on the books. It might not have been the CCA, but I couldn't remember what other authority existed to enforce that sort of thing.

That doesn't sound like it would be an actual requirement for how many words your story has to have, though. Besides, you can always throw in boring, useless text articles that take up a couple of pages to pad out an issue and still meet any requirement for "x" number of words in an issue (which wouldn't improve the actual stories most people are buying the comic books for in the first place).
And if we're talking about something Stan Lee said, he doesn't exactly have the best memory, either. (There has been a lot he's said in the past that was outright wrong or just made no sense.)

[PaulBullion]

There was something Stan Lee said in an interview about there being a certain ratio of content to words that made the comics qualify for the price they put on the books. It might not have been the CCA, but I couldn't remember what other authority existed to enforce that sort of thing.

Aren't you sure he wasn't talking about the non-comics text pieces that had to be in Golden Age comics because of some rule?

[CaptCleghorn]

That doesn't sound like it would be an actual requirement for how many words your story has to have, though. Besides, you can always throw in boring, useless text articles that take up a couple of pages to pad out an issue and still meet any requirement for "x" number of words in an issue (which wouldn't improve the actual stories most people are buying the comic books for in the first place).
And if we're talking about something Stan Lee said, he doesn't exactly have the best memory, either. (There has been a lot he's said in the past that was outright wrong or just made no sense.)

Many comics had two page text articles/stories for some reason way back when. I'm not aware of what laws or regulations existed to make that happen, but I do recall there was a reason that they did appear.

[MRP]

Many comics had two page text articles/stories for some reason way back when. I'm not aware of what laws or regulations existed to make that happen, but I do recall there was a reason that they did appear.

It was to qualify for certain postal rates for mailing subscription copies and other things of that ilk that had nothing to do with the quality of content but the cost of producing the books and getting them to market.

-M

[Carabas]

There was something Stan Lee said in an interview about there being a certain ratio of content to words that made the comics qualify for the price they put on the books. It might not have been the CCA, but I couldn't remember what other authority existed to enforce that sort of thing.

This is the code, nd there is nothing in it about making comics wordy enough to be worthy.

And everything Stan Lee says in interviews needs to be fact-checked.

[MajorHoy]

One other thing about the Comics Code Authority and stuff: it may have made more of a difference back in the 1950s when children were thought to be a major audience and the comic books were sold on spinner racks in neighborhood Mom-and-Pop stores. But today, when a good portion of the buyers are older and comic books are probably sold more through direct comic book shops (at least here in the U.S.), would it really make any difference if comic books were "CCA"-certified or not?

[ed2962]

The Code was not an insurance of a standard of quality. Bringing it back wouldn't help things in that regard. Better artists would not be hired. Better writers would not suddenly apply for mainstream comics. Editors would not instantly gain insight.

[DrNewGod]

The CCA came into being for the same reason as The Hayes Office and The Motion Picture Rating System did in movies. Comics needed to look like they were moderating content that a powerfully vocal interest group found objectionable before somebody did it for them. IMO, the rest was details.

So unless the issues are as severe (in the market's opinion) as those percieved by The Legion of Decency in the 1930's, we're probably not going to see a meaningful regulatory body on comics content.