I Hope Tom King doesn't make every story arc a huge blockbuster size event like snyder did

[Kingcrimsonprog]

but how many of those alternatives were good?

Well, seemingly neither was Batman itself, if the long arcs are such a problem.

[TooFlyToFail]

i prefer shorter arcs where we get more character development....The first two years of new 52 batman gave us Owls And The Joker

Shorter arc = character development?

We got plenty of that in Snyder's stories.

[Carabas]

I don't have a problem with longer arcs but it would be nice to see a shorter one from time to time.

I love longer arc.
It's longer arcs that every other book is being derailed for with tie-ins that I can't stand.

[Deniz Camp]

It's not the arc length that matters, is the content of each individual issue. Decompression is expensive and unsatisfying even when everything is collected, for my money. Every issue should be crammed with something (which doesn't mean crammed with panels, text, dialogue, or action).

Tom King tends to deliver a lot of content per issue. The plot of Vision is moving along very languidly; every issue gives you, maybe, a moment. But there is a lot of CONTENT, thanks to the 3rd person narration. Grayson delivered a lot of plot per issue, though sometimes not much in the way of dialogue or text. Omega Men tended to give you a lot of action and world building every issue.

It's all about fine tuning that, and delivering a lot of SOMETHING.

[swing kinker]

Agree with o.p it makes it less special when everything is an epic. I love self contained stories for a while and then BANG we go into a blockbuster.

[Ragdoll]

I hope King's run has the same vibe as his Vision book at Marvel.

[Chrysalis_Changling]

Agree with o.p it makes it less special when everything is an epic. I love self contained stories for a while and then BANG we go into a blockbuster.

i just want some time given to other villains and characters instead of piling it on one character for a whole year.....The Joker Just wasn't interesting enough to follow for that long and the payoff sucked

[Bor]

i just want some time given to other villains and characters instead of piling it on one character for a whole year.....The Joker Just wasn't interesting enough to follow for that long and the payoff sucked

As long as the stories are good I dont care at all how long it is. Its not like there is not other bat-titles with the other villians. Why should they all appear in the same title if its not what the writer wants?
You think it sucked, Others disagree. Sales suggest many disagree. I think what would suck would be if Snyder used characters he didnt even wanted to write about just because some fans have a dislike against big stories.

[dan12456]

I much prefer long arcs. There are very few 3 or less issue arcs I consider amazing. And long arcs don't have to be these huge events, they could still be very character centered and small in scope.

[JAG2045]

Agree with o.p it makes it less special when everything is an epic. I love self contained stories for a while and then BANG we go into a blockbuster.

i just want some time given to other villains and characters instead of piling it on one character for a whole year.....The Joker Just wasn't interesting enough to follow for that long and the payoff sucked

I don't have a problem with longer arcs but it would be nice to see a shorter one from time to time.

I agree with all of these. I have been reading the Nu52 Flash recently and while its good its just one large story into the next with no breaks, I would prefer one or two issues spotlighting a specific side villain or something similar

[K. Jones]

Arc-length doesn't bother me. I mean generally, loosely I prefer short arcs but I also prefer absolutely sprawling runs on titles where suddenly at the end things from the beginning come full-circle back into play. Morrison's entire run is essentially "The Morrison Arc", right? Snyder's run, now we see the final issue, is pulling the same maneuver, going back to the beginning. Yeah, Batman and Robin was made of "three-issue-arcs" but come now, that was a 16-issue story, and all "arc" meant was different artists switched in.

I'm right there with those of you who just want lots of content per issue. But luckily! having listened to King on many a podcast, he's really gone on tangents about that very thing - about being a fan and wanting a single issue to deliver major content. Each issue to do something interesting, that sorta stuff. He's really into the issue of content-per-single-comic. And obviously those of us who've been following him fervently, reading Grayson, reading Omega Men, have been pretty satisfied with the amount of content he jams into issues. Grayson has been overflowing. Omega Men has played with classical forms and structures. I suspect he'll be giving me what I want, much the same way that Seeley on Nightwing will be giving me what I want, in that Dick Grayson's book should be the real place where the crazy Morrisonian stuff is going on. I mean I don't want to jump to the conclusion or elevate them too high on a pedestal as writers just yet, but our upcoming Batman and Nightwing writers are at least a little bit, as far as certain writerly sensibilities, kind of like having Alan Moore writing Bruce and Morrison writing Dick at the same time.

[Green Goblin of Sector 2814]

You end up losing some readers when you focus too much on making every story arc some massive 12 issue masterpiece

who the hell has the patience for that?

Um. I did. Firstly, not every arc Snyder did was 12 issues. They weren't all that long. Secondly, it doesn't take much patience when you simply like the issue. Then, it becomes less about the larger story and more about what happens in that particular issue and every issue I've read of Snyder's Batman has been entertaining for me on its own, not even necessarily as a larger arc because I felt there was enough substance there to keep me entertained. And thirdly, the Zero Year arc was broken down into several sub-arcs, so it didn't feel too overwhelming.

And to be fair, Snyder's run did have times when there were breaths of fresh air from the big arcs. Like that two-parter with Clayface, #34 with that serial killer story was a standalone, and now #51 is gonna be a standalone as well.

[Green Goblin of Sector 2814]

i just want some time given to other villains and characters instead of piling it on one character for a whole year.....The Joker Just wasn't interesting enough to follow for that long and the payoff sucked

Speak for yourself. I could read an entire series just focusing on Batman and the Joker.

(not really, but I was totally fine with the amount of time Snyder spent on that arc)