It's hard to say why kids prefer manga over comics. Maybe it's simply portability and price.

Both manga and comic graphic novels are available in big chain bookstores -- often right next to each other.

Both manga and comic graphic novels are serialized stories -- often comics are even less serialized because a trade reprints an entire story arc, so you're getting a full story with a comics trad, which one would think would be an advantage.

Plus, comic graphic novels are in color, which, to me, is a big selling point and one reason I never got into manga.

But, I think consumers, even young consumers (and certainly their parents) buy things based on price.

A 3-in-one Dragon Ball manga sells for $15 before discounts and has almost 600 pages. Plus, they're easier to hold and carry.

Maybe DC should start experimenting in putting out comics material in black and white manga-sized format and see if that sells.

Another reason kids aren't getting into superhero comics is that perhaps superheroes are so ubiquitous right now on TV, animation, and movies that these media adaptations of superheroes are enough to scratch that itch.

There's anime, of course, but it's not as present on TV and theaters as superheroes.

Also, perhaps manga is more attractive because there's more variety in the storytelling. With manga, you have Attack on Titan and Dragon Ball, which are very different plus tons more, but with comics, it's all very superhero based.

I think, in addition to targeting younger readers at the bookstore with DC Kids, DC also needs to expand the genres they're telling stories of.

Create new manga-sized black and white graphic novels of Challengers of the Unknown, Sea Devils, Kamandi, Arak Son of Thunder, Arion Lord of Atlantis, Amethyst Princess of Gemworld -- even Space Cabbie -- have bookstores rack them next to the mangas if not intermingled with them, and see if they sell.