 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
 |
| From Retailer Resources |
Superman and Spider-Man have not shown any signs of weakness - yet. But they are facing one of the biggest foes in their comic books histories: a bad economy.
"We are seeing a little bit of a backlash to the bad economy," says Dave Allread, owner of Heroes Comics. "We will know a little better in a few months whether a person who was buying eight to 10 comics each week drops down to five or six."
Roy Gallagher, owner of Visalia's Collectors Choice, has seen a small dip as sales are down about 4-5% from a year ago.
One reason for concern is the rising price of comic books. The average price of a comic book is $2.99. But Marvel Comics, the publishing company behind such costumed comic characters as Spider-Man, X-Men and Iron Man, will raise the price of six of its monthly titles to $3.99. That is an increase in the price of 33%.
No such price increases have been announced at DC Comics for its main line of comic books, such as those featuring Superman, Batman or Wonder Woman.
Top Cow Productions, the comic book company that produces such titles as Witchblade and The Darkness, has a plan it hopes will lure comic book readers to their titles.
"I think almost all comic publishers are looking at how we can bring new readers in" says Filip Sablik, publisher of Top Cow Productions Inc. during a telephone interview from the company's Los Angeles office. First, the company plans to give away thousands of comic books for free over the course of the year at participating retailers in the U.S. and Canada.
Each month, 25 stores in both countries will get 200 free comics. Comic book readers locally should be able to take advantage of the free offer in the next few months.
These free comics will not be special slimmed-down versions of their regular line. Sablik says consumers will be able to pick up free copies of the same editions of its comic books Witchblade and The Darkness that also will be sold to consumers.
Top Cow also plans to keep the price of its regular-size books at $2.99 in 2009.
"We looked around and saw a number of companies were raising prices and taking steps obviously to safeguard against a recession. We hope this will be an opportunity for readers to branch out and try new stuff," Sablik says.
Allread applauds the moves by Top Cow. But he remains skeptical about persuading comic buyers to leave longtime favorites such as Batman or the Fantastic Four that they have been buying for years just to buy a different title.
"We understand we are fighting against inertia. Comic readers tend to be creatures of habit. It is going to be hard to sell to a guy who has been collecting Spider-Man that maybe he would enjoy this [other comic] more. That's one of the main reasons for doing this. It is a calculated risk," Sablik says.
Other efforts to keep consumers happy are to get comic books out on schedule. Allread says it is frustrating for some readers to start a six-part series and after only two monthly editions, face a three- or four-month gap for the rest of the series.
And it is not just short series that get delayed. Main titles also fall behind.
Giving away comics, holding the price levels and better delivery schedules are necessary moves to help foster the next wave of comic book fans. Children younger than 8 are reading comics because their parents are buying the books. Parents will often bring their children into the store and introduce them to comic book reading.
Gallagher says most of his comic book shoppers are those who have been collecting for years. But he and other retailers see a big gap of buyers among the ages of 8-15 because they are playing video games or are using on their computers.
Artist Dave Gibbons has seen the comic book world change dramatically during his 35 years in the business. The British artist, who has worked as an illustrator on comic books from "Green Lantern" to "Captain America Lives Again," is best known for his work for the much-heralded "Watchmen" series.
During an interview to talk about the film version of the comic book series that is scheduled to come to theaters March 6, Gibbons talked about what he sees as the future for comic books.
"I saw the other day there were going to be $4 comics. That is a lot of money for a person who buys 10 titles a week," Gibbons says.
"What I think is going to happen is that comic readers will buy the first book in a series. Then, if they like it, they will wait until all of the books in the series are combined into a graphic novel."
Graphic novels generally are bound collections of an entire comic book series, such as "Watchmen." There were only 12 comics released in that series. Or they are collections of certain story lines or years of a publication. The idea behind graphic novels is that they are a way for readers to get caught up on a comic book if they missed any or all of the individual comics. They are often cheaper than the cost of buying each individual comic book in the series.
Gibbons is certain there will always be a place for graphic novels even if the traditional comic book format goes away.
He believes there is a real probability that a day will come when new comic books first will be released only in an online version. Then, a bound copy of the series would be released as a graphic novel.
"There will always be people who want to hold something when they read it," Gibbons says.
The question will be how many different comic book titles will consumers want to hold as prices rise and the economy slumps like Superman after a Kryptonite cocktail.
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Top Cow Productions, Inc. announced today that their “Let Us Win YOU Over” initiative would begin in February and the inaugural title in the program would be the highly anticipated anniversary issue – The Darkness #75.
The “Let Us Win YOU Over” initiative is a yearlong campaign by Top Cow Productions to give out free copies of its regular comics to potential fans in the U.S. and Canada through participating comic book stores. Each month, a different set of stores, each month a different free comic. The stores vary by geography and demographics. Top Cow has partnered with ComicsPRO to bring this promotion to fans and all of the retailers are members of ComicsPRO.
The publisher decided to launch the program with a special celebratory anniversary issue of one of their flagship titles, The Darkness #75. The issue, which is an over-sized 48-page comic, commemorates the 75th overall issue of the series regardless of volume. The list of artists includes: Michael Broussard (current series artist), Jorge Lucas (Pilot Season: Ripclaw), Dale Keown (Pitt), Joe Benitez (Justice League of 
“This initiative our most ambitious attempt yet to recruit new readers,” explained Filip Sablik, Publisher of Top Cow. “We wanted to kick it off in a big way and what better way than one of our biggest books of the year, both literally and figuratively. This is a great jumping on point for new fans as it is a standalone story, featuring the best art we have to offer, and an awesome value.”
A list of the participating retailers during the month of February (listed alphabetically by state) is included below (list omitted). Additional information can be found at the official online home of the “Let Us Win YOU Over” initiative – www.topcow.com/freecomics. Customers who currently purchase The Darkness at the stores below will be able to purchase an extremely limited “All Beef” Edition (limited to just the stores listed below) at the regular cover price. Fans are encouraged to contact the specific retailer they wish to visit for specific details.
Atomic Comics will be giving away 200 copies of Darkness issue #75 on Wednesday at its Mesa store, 1120 S. Country Club Drive, No. 105.
The violent, mystical mob thriller — think The Godfather meets Supernatural — is an oversized 48-page comic that would ordinarily retail for $4.99. It features artists who have worked on characters like Superman, Batman and the Hulk and explores a dark future world with an ancient, unholy power named The Darkness.
Top Cow’s Productions publisher Filip Sablik said he hopes the promotion will build excitement and help potential comic-book readers find entertainment despite a tough economy.
More than 200,000 comics will be given away nationwide this year by Top Cow Productions, which also publishes Witchblade and Wanted.
“We feel strongly that Top Cow titles are the best they’ve ever been and it’s important for to invite readers and retailers to discover why,” said Sablik. “While our competitors are straining the wallet of the average fan, Top Cow is making it easy to try new comics.”
“Retailers are eager to support this innovative promotion, with the hope of proving that new ideas can lead to new readers for quality titles,” said Joe Field, president of the comics retailer group ComicsPRO. “Our mutual goals with this program are to expose thousands of new eyes to Top Cow’s singular brand of comics and to lead more readers to enjoying Top Cow comics and buying them from ComicsPRO member stores.”
Atomic Comics head honcho Mike Malve said the Mesa store will be open on Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. To get the free comic, he said, you will need to be there to pick up a copy — you cannot call and reserve one or order it from the Atomic online store.
