Will It Work?

[Prof. Warren]

Calling Marvel's potential customers 'bigots' over quality control concerns isn't helping sales either. At some point customer service needs to take precedent over ideological purity, otherwise people are just going to take their money elsewhere. These relaunches are another example of Marvel's bad PR. This could've been an opportunity to acknowledge the failure of the original Wasp and Iceman runs, the customer is always right after all. Alas though, Marvel has just ignored the problems and negative headlines, which will really only highlight those same shortcomings even further.

Marvel didn't call any potential customers bigots, I did. And some of those "potential customers" absolutely are.

It's not some phony concern for "quality control" that drives some fans to complain so loudly about books like Iceman, it's fear, prejudice and paranoia.

If the fact that a book aimed at young girls or at the gay community exists in a publisher's line-up is enough for someone to take their money elsewhere, even though the vast majority of that publisher's slate is very traditional, then that person clearly has a problem.

And yes, the customer is always right. Clearly Marvel heard from enough customers who discovered both Wasp and Iceman in trades and are responding to that demand with relaunches.

[Username taken]

Wasn't there a pretty long and detailed post on why "diversity" books weren't killing Marvel?

Aaron's Thor was consistently one of the top books and there are dozens of "non-diversity" titles that sunk pretty badly.

It was a myth that diversity "killed" Marvel.

They've consistently sold more books than anyone in the market for the last few years (outside of a few months of DC domination) and the "diversity" comics did find success (as you rightly mentioned, Thor with Jane Foster was pretty big success for the entire duration of her run). Heck, even Invincible Iron Man with Riri Williams (which based on the sales rankings both digital and in print did better than Infamous Iron man for her entire run), Miles Morales (who's getting a very good looking movie) and All New Wolverine were rather successful.

It's something that's been discussed to death here but the fact is that things and society at large are changing. I understand that some people are firmly opposed to these changes but Marvel HAVE to try and diversify it's audience. What people fail to understand is that it's not a zero-sum game, Marvel publishing minority/female led titles doesn't take away from the likes of Captain America, Thor, Hulk and Iron Man, it just means that people that don't want to read these characters are catered to.

[Username taken]

I can't help but feel like Disney didn't really like Roseanne to begin with. I mean, it wasn't just this one tweet. The woman had been posting weird stuff for years and I assume that she wasn't the most pleasant person to begin with.

Well, that's true.

Roseanne Barr pretty much "jumped the personal shark" a long, long time ago.

[Skedatz]

As long as the pond has enough fish for feed the fisherman.

That's what they're hoping for at least.

It'll be interesting to see if the audience who enjoyed Nadia's story is willing to make the jump to monthly comic purchases instead of the increasing reliance on trades.

[The Dying Detective]

That's what they're hoping for at least.

It'll be interesting to see if the audience who enjoyed Nadia's story is willing to make the jump to monthly comic purchases instead of the increasing reliance on trades.

Well it better for Marvel's sake anyway that would would depend if they actually care enough to go to a comic shop to buy Nadia's book.

[Sutekh]

I honestly don't want to engage in the political argument again (because everyone these days chalks up everything they disagree to some insidious political agenda) but Disney is a very...left leaning company.

As a very left leaning person, who grew up on Disney shows about children who have fathers, but no mothers (because adult women are icky, I guess?), and gay people didn't exist, and colored people or native people were often 'magical negroes' who could talk to animals and stuff because not being white means being primitive and closer to nature and not being civilized, I would be delighted if Disney turned into a slightly more *balanced* company, or leaned even *slightly* left after so many decades of leaning *strongly* anywhere-but-left.

[Skedatz]

Well it better for Marvel's sake anyway that would would depend if they actually care enough to go to a comic shop to buy Nadia's book.

It may not be retailers, but online sales and other than direct market sales they're looking at. The Direct Market will still get comics like they always have because that's how stores work, but Marvel might not lean on them so much for this title.

[The Dying Detective]

It may not be retailers, but online sales and other than direct market sales they're looking at. The Direct Market will still get comics like they always have because that's how stores work, but Marvel might not lean on them so much for this title.

Then they are better off selling them online than to retailers. I doubt even retailers want them.

[Skedatz]

Then they are better off selling them online than to retailers. I doubt even retailers want them.

If they order them, they want them. For a retailer even if it sells a small amount it's still a sale to their store.

By limiting their outlet options Marvel would be limiting potential sales of the comic.

[Prof. Warren]

Then they are better off selling them online than to retailers. I doubt even retailers want them.

Different retailers have different clientele. It's up to individual retailers to decide what they think their customers want. I'm sure these titles do will do well at some locations and be complete non-starters at others.

[CaptCleghorn]

Then they are better off selling them online than to retailers. I doubt even retailers want them.

You do know that Marvel can and does sell their product through multiple forms and it's the sum of those methods that dictates the success or failure of a title. They aren't and shouldn't be limited to one format.

[The Dying Detective]

You do know that Marvel can and does sell their product through multiple forms and it's the sum of those methods that dictates the success or failure of a title. They aren't and shouldn't be limited to one format.

Sure they're not I just hope they know where the money is.

[CaptCleghorn]

Sure they're not I just hope they know where the money is.

Do you know that Marvel handles IPs worth billions and has been doing this for decades?

[The Dying Detective]

Do you know that Marvel handles IPs worth billions and has been doing this for decades?

With how things have been going in recent years and have completely wrecked them and the X-Men franchise has gotten rather stale. I don't think so.

[Michael Watkins]

Do they want it to work? I think they have purposely injected diversity in the most off putting way so the readership rejects it. This allows them to say that they tried and return to the status quo. Look at Darkhawk. They gave him a good writer and an excellent artist. Absolutely nothing controversial about the title. They even helped him out by putting Richard rider in the book.