Several Titles will be shifting over to Digital Only starting May 13th

[Drops Of Venus]

based on this thread, I feel like the alternative may have been Marvel straight up cancelling these books https://twitter.com/AshcanPress/stat...19272272252929

I don't know about cancelled, but him saying that it wouldn't make logistical sense for the book to come out in print right now definitely makes it sound like the book was probably going to be shelved until Marvel felt like it was safe to resume their old publishing line in print format, and who even knows when that would happen. I know fans hate to have their collections interrupted, but fans also hate being left hanging and not knowing when a series is ever going to end. I prefer for them to seize any opportunity they have to publish those books while interest is still hot than to send them to limbo.

Funny thing is some people were predicting this a year ago! Many comic strips do this aready. Post them online then a real trade.

Marvel themselves predicted this when they did their Marvel Digital Originals line. And now that I think about it, it was just recently that they decided to republish the Jessica Jones digital comic in floppy format, even though it had come out in trade before. I have no idea why they did this, but it's evidence that digital>trade books can come out as floppies later on, so maybe not all hope is lost for single-issue collectors out there.

This is a problem Marvel themselves created. The entire industry is based on a system where customer tell their comic shops what they want to get, and the shop orders them based on that feedback. Shipping books that won't sell is (theoretically) impossible with this system. But Marvel overships constantly. It's their own fault.

I definitely don't disagree with this. Marvel made their own bed here. But regardless of whose fault it is, I'm just saying that I get why they're doing this. Let's see what lessons can be learned from this.

[Personamanx]

Looks like they're only going this route on mini-series.

Yeah, Ghost-Spider is the only ongoing announced that's doing it. With it being a not great seller in general, and having been effected in the middle of a story it might be a low risk test for titles in a similar state.

Runaways, and Champions might be in a better situation. With the first having concluded an arc in the latest issue, and the second already being a relaunch anyway it might be easier for them to hold off on publishing with the expectation that people will still be interested. Not saying they won't become digital only single issues, but I think they're easier to wait for and probably not worth risking as an experiment at this point.

[Snoop Dogg]

Marvel trying to convince people not to collect the new comic book and that less popular series are now even riskier investments because apparently we are no longer even guaranteed paper and staples is absolute clown shoes and the embarassment is definitely worth the digital sales that didn't save any of these in-progress books anyway.

[fin5]

Im sure its just the 2 weeks .And yes i think its just the mini- series and low selling comics but i dont thing its forever. so dont get upset anout it Marvel is doing the Best it can with all this happing

[Digifiend]

It'll be more than two weeks. We just haven't had announcements past that point yet. Obviously the subsequent issues of these eight books will be digital only, and then there are other titles such as Empyre tie-ins, the New Warriors and Power Pack books, Atlantis Attacks, and the remaining Iron Man 2020 tie-ins that could go the same way. All of those are minis.

[Dreaded Porcupine]

I actually collect comics. Boxes and boxes full of them. I don’t mind digital but I want Ant-Man #4 in a floppy. Not digital. Not trade. If I really like an arc I buy the trade to read over and over again. All these are sellable. Digital there is zero return ten plus years from now.

[fin5]

So if DC is shipping comics early and marvel is shipping soon.Where does it go iif the comic stores aren't open yet

[Digifiend]

They can wait for Diamond's shipments (the early ones are from other distributors). If they're still closed when Diamond is back, they can accept the delivery and do curbside pickup or home delivery.

[omegafix]

This really leaves a bad taste in my mouth, I have no plan to buy these books digitally and i will not be buying them in trade. Going forward this will affect what I buy from Marvel in the future. I will complete the mini series and books that I was buying before the Pandemic which will still be printed post Pandemic. Going forward however, I plan to cut down what I purchase to just their core Legacy titles. I understand what they are doing and I can piss and moan all I want, that wont change anything. Instead I will go forward voting with my wallet

[ohfellow]

Marvel is actually also showing Ghost-Spider #10 digital available 7/15 (originally to be on-sale on 5/27). Available for pre-order.

https://comicstore.marvel.com/Ghost-...omic/54616?r=1

That's the link to #9 but you can scroll to the right to see #10.

And scroll left - issues #1 through #5 are being sold for $1.99. Does Marvel usually discount older issues like that?

Now, if the TPB starts with #9, that wouldn't be too bad, but no way to know that this far in advance.

Hmmm it says the age rating for Ghost-Spider is 9+ and I guess that explains why the book is what the book is. I didn't know the rating, but did tell my LCS that I thought it was quite juvenile. I needed a push to jump off, and no more floppies may be it.

[Digifiend]

That date is meaningless. 7/15 is the first date Marvel haven't announced the print titles for, so Comixology is listing all solicited and postponed books as being on that date unless an earlier date was already announced. I think issue 10 will probably be out in June.

[omegafix]

Marvel is actually also showing Ghost-Spider #10 digital available 7/15 (originally to be on-sale on 5/27). Available for pre-order.

https://comicstore.marvel.com/Ghost-...omic/54616?r=1

That's the link to #9 but you can scroll to the right to see #10.

And scroll left - issues #1 through #5 are being sold for $1.99. Does Marvel usually discount older issues like that?

Now, if the TPB starts with #9, that wouldn't be too bad, but no way to know that this far in advance.

Hmmm it says the age rating for Ghost-Spider is 9+ and I guess that explains why the book is what the book is. I didn't know the rating, but did tell my LCS that I thought it was quite juvenile. I needed a push to jump off, and no more floppies may be it.

Ghost Spider's second TPB will include 6-10 so thats 3 issues that were floppies and 2 that were digital only. it looks like Ghost Spider was going to be canceled with #10 since #11 was missing from June's original solicits before the Pandemic. I dont know why they couldnt just print the final 2 issues, oh well like i said above, this will affect my Marvel spending going forward

these books will never see the light of day as single floppies,

2020 IRONHEART #1
2020 IRONHEART #2
ANT-MAN #4
ANT-MAN #5
AVENGERS OF THE WASTELANDS #4
AVENGERS OF THE WASTELANDS #5
GHOST-SPIDER #9
GHOST-SPIDER #10
HAWKEYE: FREEFALL #5
HAWKEYE: FREEFALL #6
MARVEL’S SPIDER-MAN: THE BLACK CAT STRIKES #4
MARVEL’S SPIDER-MAN: THE BLACK CAT STRIKES #5
RAVENCROFT #4
RAVENCROFT #5
STAR #4
STAR #5

2 issues each and they would have all been wrapped up

[CentralPower]

It is not fair to blame anybody in the industry for this. All of the blame (and there is much to answer for) is outside and above the industry.

Objectively, it makes sense to release one-shots, limited series or low-selling series as digital. Those are less likely to directly harm future sales than creating a gap in a higher selling ongoing series.

The industry needs to plan for this in the future (more flexible production, distribution and storage of stock). But, the current problem is beyond anything the industry could have predicted.

[charliehustle415]

Yeah, the only one of these I'm getting is Star. I buy physical comics partly for the fact that I'm keeping it as a collection. Now I have half a series and the rest is digital. I've bought digital first series (Jessica Jones, Cloak and Dagger, Luke Cage), but I haven't switched from physical to digital mid-series before. I guess the only saving grace is the free digital copy so my digital library won't be incomplete (unlike that time they stopped doing the free digital copy).

Yeah it's unfortunate the only thing that can be done is re-buy it in trade.

This just reminds me of orphaned TPBs & Omnibuses; why do publishers not want my money!?

[ohfellow]

That date is meaningless. 7/15 is the first date Marvel haven't announced the print titles for, so Comixology is listing all solicited and postponed books as being on that date unless an earlier date was already announced. I think issue 10 will probably be out in June.

Thanks for the correction. It didn't make much sense for them to skip June, but I thought anything was possible. I'm not familiar with how Comixology lists postponed books.