DC Rebirth monthlies back at $3.99 in April

[Steven Caldwell]

For people saying 3.99, or even 2.99, are good prices for these comics, I wish you had been alive when comics were ten to 75 cents. You got a whole lot more story for a price that was designed for it to be cheap entertainment. Thanks to decompression and very high prices, comics are not a good value now. I am amused when young people commend DC or Marvel on the value of their comics in line with their prices. Perhaps if they had the historical knowledge of what comic books use to be (in regards to value and quality story telling), they would not be so happy to fork over their hard earned money. This is just my two cents.

[The Darknight Detective]

For people saying 3.99, or even 2.99, are good prices for these comics, I wish you had been alive when comics were ten to 75 cents.

Heh. The first comic I ever received was only 12 cents (yes, I'm old).

[JasonTodd428]

http://www.newsarama.com/32768-dc-s-...n-at-2-99.html
Digital will remain 2.99

Now that makes a lot more sense. Best of both worlds like someone already said.

Heh. The first comic I ever received was only 12 cents (yes, I'm old).

The first comic I ever read was also 12 cents and when I actually started collecting them they were 75 cents.

[MajorHoy]

http://www.newsarama.com/32768-dc-s-...n-at-2-99.html
Digital will remain 2.99

Best of both worlds imho.

I take it you don't own a comic book shop?

That two-tiered pricing may piss off quite a few comic book shop owners if they lose sales because somebody wants to pay $2.99 for a digital copy instead of the $3.99 for a hard copy.

Heh. The first comic I ever received was only 12 cents (yes, I'm old).

Same with the first comic books I was buying as a kid, though they were up to 20¢ on the newsstand when I started more seriously "collecting" (buying multiple books every month or whenever they came out).

[JasonTodd428]

I take it you don't own a comic book shop?

That two-tiered pricing may piss off quite a few comic book shop owners if they lose sales because somebody wants to pay $2.99 for a digital copy instead of the $3.99 for a hard copy.

Sure some people might move to digital to get the cheaper price but quite a few will likely stay in order to get both a hard and digital copy for 3.99. That is actually the better deal assuming of course that the digital copy is free and something they want to read. I was double dipping for awhile before moving to fully digital and I would have loved back then to have access to a digital copy by buying the hard copy. I would have saved a ton of money that way.

[The Darknight Detective]

The first comic I ever read was also 12 cents and when I actually started collecting them they were 75 cents.

Same with the first comic books I was buying as a kid, though they were up to 20¢ on the newsstand when I started more seriously "collecting" (buying multiple books every month or whenever they came out).

I started seriously buying comics in the summer of '76, so they were still 25 cents at than time.

[JasonTodd428]

I started seriously buying comics in the summer of '76, so they were still 25 cents at than time.

I didn't start actually seriously collecting until the 80s. Before that it was random issues from spinner racks at 7-11, drug stores and grocery stores or old issues that my uncle had collected before me. He had boxes of comics that my grandparents kept in the attic. He had been raised by them from an early age.

[RobinFan4880]

For people saying 3.99, or even 2.99, are good prices for these comics, I wish you had been alive when comics were ten to 75 cents. You got a whole lot more story for a price that was designed for it to be cheap entertainment. Thanks to decompression and very high prices, comics are not a good value now. I am amused when young people commend DC or Marvel on the value of their comics in line with their prices. Perhaps if they had the historical knowledge of what comic books use to be (in regards to value and quality story telling), they would not be so happy to fork over their hard earned money. This is just my two cents.

Comics also used to have a much larger audience with massive print runs, compared to the present day, where if a comic can sustain 100k units for 5 years, it is considered an unbelievable success.

Comics were printed on cheap newsprint and used a basic color pallet. Most panels and little to no background detail. Creators were paid basically nothing.

Comics cost more because we demand better quality paper, better quality art and that Marvel and DC pay their creators well.

[Lee Stone]

Sure some people might move to digital to get the cheaper price but quite a few will likely stay in order to get both a hard and digital copy for 3.99. That is actually the better deal assuming of course that the digital copy is free and something they want to read. I was double dipping for awhile before moving to fully digital and I would have loved back then to have access to a digital copy by buying the hard copy. I would have saved a ton of money that way.

Not to mention, friends could split the cost if one prefers print and the other digital.
This would bring it to $1.98 for each of them.

[Caivu]

For people saying 3.99, or even 2.99, are good prices for these comics, I wish you had been alive when comics were ten to 75 cents. You got a whole lot more story for a price that was designed for it to be cheap entertainment. Thanks to decompression and very high prices, comics are not a good value now. I am amused when young people commend DC or Marvel on the value of their comics in line with their prices. Perhaps if they had the historical knowledge of what comic books use to be (in regards to value and quality story telling), they would not be so happy to fork over their hard earned money. This is just my two cents.

You're not accounting for inflation. Yeah, with that in place, older comics may have still been a better value, but not to the degree you're implying.

Plus, as has been mentioned, comics today have better paper, better printing, and writers and artists are paid better.

[MajorHoy]

Plus, as has been mentioned, comics today have better paper, better printing, and writers and artists are paid better.

But there are too many cases where the writing and/or the artwork are far from "better".

[Caivu]

But there are too many cases where the writing and/or the artwork are far from "better".

Says you.

On the art front more about the time it takes to create a panel, anyway. I would be surprised if an average panel today takes less time to draw and color than an average one from the Gold or Silver ages. Modern comic art is simply more detailed on the whole.

[JasonTodd428]

Says you.

On the art front more about the time it takes to create a panel, anyway. I would be surprised if an average panel today takes less time to draw and color than an average one from the Gold or Silver ages. Modern comic art is simply more detailed on the whole.

I like the more detailed art of today but I also think there's something to be said for the clean simplicity of the older art style. I love that style of comic art too.

[hsalf]

I started with .60 comics, though they went to .75 shortly thereafter. As for the price change, I'also drop a couple that were on the edge for me anyway such as Hellblazer, Blue Beetle, and maybe Supergirl and Teen Titans.

Though I may start switching to some digital or trades for some titles. Space is getting to be an issue.

[Caivu]

I like the more detailed art of today but I also think there's something to be said for the clean simplicity of the older art style. I love that style of comic art too.

Sure, but the point is that the simpler style doesn't take as long to draw, ink, and color, and therefore costs less. Generally speaking, anyway.