Quote Originally Posted by Frontier View Post
At the same time I think comics have been able to approach themselves in a way they couldn't have in those medium that have helped them thrive to the point where they could reach successes in outside media.
I hate to but I gotta disagree with you Front-o. there are very few characters that benefit uniquely, in a storytelling context, from being in the comic book medium that they couldn't benefit from in another medium. you look at characters like John Stewart and Hawkgirl on JL:AS/JLU or Cyborg on TT & Doom Patrol, they weren't particularly "thriving" from the approach that was being taken with them in the comics when they were pulled into the fold. What made them resonate with people weren't the things that come from the comics, it's the elements of complex contemporary storytelling and character work that made them work; storytelling they probably never would've gotten (and still don't more often than not mind you) in comics because the storytelling culture of DC is always behind. they are always affirming and reaffirming old ideas, whether it be because of a big reboot or because some writer or editor is feeling nostalgic and wants to do yet another "loveletter" homage to a bygone era.

there probably was a time where storytelling in comics was a bit more forward-thinking (for the time) and considerate with their stories but, even though there were always shades of this issue before, it feels like at some point in the 2000s DC stopped caring about that sort of thing, and it shows. if you look at indie comics, look a the culture of storytelling in manga, it shows that if you are considerate of how storytelling evolves over time and let your creatives move these characters and narratives forward, you never have to worry about fans losing interest; maybe then you won't have to reboot every few years to trick people into reading the same characters and stories again.

at this rate, we're not too far from mainstream comics no longer really being a storytelling medium but simply an IP far for mediums that know how to tell the stories modern audiences actually want to experience. that's probably a bit hyperbolically alarmist but I'm just saying, maybe the death of print isn't the only reason comics have been taking a hit across the industry. but, admittedly, maybe that's just the way I see it because I'm not really a "comic book nerd", I'm more of a general storytelling/pop culture nerd.