Moderns Have Finally Passed the Benchmark...

[carcrawfordfan]

I also believe there are stories being written right now that will be just as good 10-15 years from now as well.

 

Sure, but not from Marvel or DC. All those lamers are doing is looking back and trying to keep the adult fanboy, retconning past events, stealing from What If storylines, and attempting to link the POS of today with quality work of yesteryear.

 

It's just pure unadulterated backwash crapola.

 

The real inventive and ground-breaking stuff is happening outside the Big 2, and something like Bone will be read and appreciated for decades to come.

 

I 100% agree. The only big 2 titles I read anymore are Batman and Detective. 99% of what they make is garbage. I do read some Vertigo and Icon titles that are technically big 2, but the mainstream superhero stuff is junk. Invincible is 100 times better that most superhero books now.

[mica]

The real problem is that there are no longer any "entry-level" comics for young children, and therefore no way to bridge the gap to pre-teens. I have a great personal example of this.

 

My kids got the set of Harvey TPBs for Christmas (I was lucky to find an old OOP Richie Rich sitting in a bookstore) and recently got the 5th volume in time for a birthday. They absolutely love them, and even took them to school a few times. Afterwards, I got calls from parents asking where I got the books, as their kids were asking for them.

 

Just this weekend, my daughter was looking through the cover gallery, and asked me what those were and why they said "10-cents", and I told her those were old covers from the original comics. That was a bit of a surprise, especially when I told her the age of these comics.

 

She immediately wanted to go out and buy more Little Audrey and Little Dot comics.. right that instant, and I had to tell her that they stopped making those years ago. She asked why, and I just said they no longer make comics for little kids.

 

Her reply: "That's stupid, kids still like reading comics."

 

From the mouthes of babes.

Joe. I thought I'd quote your post in case some people have you on ignore. This was well said, and echo's my son's feelings.

[Broken Shakespear]

I think something about comics has rapidly accelerated faster than inflation would dictate. I think part of this may be an increase in the material costs to produce a comic (paper, ink, gas for transportation, etc.) has outpaced inflation. Another part is that the price paid to the talent has greatly increased, far beyond matching inflation. The third factor is a drop in readership as comics compete with other forms of home entertainment such as TV, Movies, and Video games (keep in mind that most homes didn't even have VCR's until the mid-80's, when readerships started to fall).

 

Material costs are a small part of the cost of a comic, but they do add some cost. For example, since 1980, the cost of paper has increased at a rate of about double inflation because of supply and demand. Add to it that comics switch from newsprint to premium paper, and you have paper costs that are 3.5X more expensive today than 20 years ago. Gas @ $2.00 a gallon is about on par with inflation, but @ $4.00 per gallon is double the inflationary rate. So for the past few years at least, that component has been higher.

 

Material costs are really a small part of the expense of a comic though.

 

I think the cost paid to talent has caused a signifigant increase in the cost of a title. It is well known that comic talent was paid horribly in the past. However, by the early to mid-80's, I think they were making a fair rate. Writers could make $20-$30k per year, depending on their popularity. And before the 80's many writers that did comics didn't do it full time. They picked up a few thousand extra dollars writing one book in their spare time. Pencillers were making $30-$45k annual per title depending on how popular they were and what book they were on. Inkers and colorists made less, maybe 50-60% of pencillers (but they could juggle two books and make the same annually). Letterers made around $5k per title per year.

 

Keep in mind that back then, this work was freelance and the creators really weren't getting any benefits (health or retirement).

 

So inflation adjust that, and today writers whould be making $36k-$54k annually, writing at least two books. Artists would be making $54-$80k annually. Letters would be making about $9k per title and should easily be able to do 4 titles (unless you are hand lettering), probably more if necessary.

 

However, mid-level writers like Chuck Dixon and Ron Marz can make $80k annually writing 2-3 monthly books. Top guys like Waid can earn $250k per year writing 3 monthly books. A contract penciller with Marvel or DC will make at least 6 figures and really top pencillers can make $200-$250k, drawing one monthly and maybe a 4 issue mini each year. Inkers and letterers have also outpaced inflation, but nothing like what has occurred with writers and pencillers. Plus, all the contract people are getting benefits now, further driving up their cost to the publisher.

 

I think the cost of talent is the bulk of the cause for price increases. Which, if you want top talent, you have to pay for it, or the same artists will go to ad houses, video game companies, movie studios, etc. and make near 6 figures or more in those places. So it is partly fans demands that they will "only buy a book if Warren Ellis writes it" that makes the company pay these creators more and more. A publisher could easily say, the salary cap for a writer is $60k per year, and for a penciler it is $80k per year. They would still have no problem finding talented writers and artists who produce good books, but they may not be able to keep them from leaving if fans only buy a book because they are on it. Such caps would still pay a living wage, and would greatly drive down the cost of comics, at least from the big two. You might see the return of $1.95 cover price (comics should be about $2.00 now had they matched inflation).

 

The final main component in my opinion is the loss of readership and ad revenue. Fewer ads mean less dollars from a book, which the publisher just passes the loss on to readers. If comics start selling half as many issues, the loss is passed on to the readers. This is also a large component, maybe equal to the rise in the cost of talent.

 

Consider a scenario where the talent on a title cost (with caps in place), $230k annually, material costs were $.25 per issue, they were paid 35% of cover price by the distributor, and company overhead was 20% of costs.

 

If the average book sells 50k issues per month in todays market, that is 600k copies annually on average. So the cost is $230k talent (including editorial+marketing costs) + $150k material/printing + $76k company overhead. That would be $456k in costs. At $2.99 per issue, they would take in $628k in revenue, or $172k profit @ $2.99 cover price. Most businesses shoot for a 20% profit margin, or $91k in this example. Today, the additional $81k that is made is being sucked away by the spiraling cost of talent. It could be used to lower cover price from $2.99 to $2.60, with salary caps. Switch back to newsprint and cover could go back to $2.50.

 

This doesn't even take into account what you will make in trade sales, which are almost all profit because the talent cost is near $0. A six issue trade priced at $15 that sells 10k copies a year is another $52k in revenue, and probably about $32k profit. So a years worth of trades is another $64k in profit. The extra $91k was enough to drop cover by $.40, so you could drop it another $.25 factoring in trade revenue.

 

Then if you can increase you print run size through better marketing and having a more desirable product (and I think a lower price would make it more desirable to at least some), you can either make more profits, or further decrease cover price.

 

The main problem is that this is an entertainment industry, and on a professional level, entertainers make more that what they are worth because fans feel they must have them at any price. You pay $50 for a crappy seat at a pro football game, to subsidize paying some guy $4 million a year to knock another guy around. The same seat in a lesser league is $10 or less. Then are still knocking guys around, but maybe not quite as hard.

 

You pay $9 to get into a movie so they can pay George Clooney $12 million, when another actor might be just as good, and do it for $3 million (and another stage actor might be just as good, and do it for $150k). But we gots to have us our George Clooney, or we won't watch it, even though the other choices could turn in an equally good performance.

 

An in comics we pay $2.99, and now $3.99, because we have to have Bendis write the book, and Alex Ross has to do the art, or we won't buy the book. Never mind that John Doe and Joe Schmoe might be able to entertain you just as well (probably in a different way) for half the cost.

 

If fans would stop buying books that cost over $2.25, and tell publishers that they are willing to take whatever talent changes neccessary to have have $2.25 books, then at least Marvel and DC could start publishing $2.25 books tomorrow, but they won't have the big name talent on them. They might have some mid-tier names you know and some new guys you have never heard of, and they could still be very entertaining stories.

 

When I was a kid, I just wanted to read a Captain America comic. I didn't care who was writing or drawing it as long as it was entertaining. Today though, people only want to read Captain America if it is written by Waid, Brubaker or Bendis and drawn by Epting, Land, or Ross. And this change in thinking is at least half the reason why prices are so high now.

[PhiGam-migration]

i'm not concerned...look at the list of releases for march..

 

nothing big at all

[Mr. Zipper]

When I was a kid, I just wanted to read a Captain America comic. I didn't care who was writing or drawing it as long as it was entertaining. Today though, people the adult audience only wants to read Captain America if it is written by Waid, Brubaker or Bendis and drawn by Epting, Land, or Ross. And this change in thinking is at least half the reason why prices are so high now.

 

Great analysis!

 

See my bolded section. I submit that kids still aren't fussy about talent... but the shift to "adult" readers has resulted in the "talent driven" modern market.

 

 

[TheShadowKnows]

I agree with you to some extent, but the Phoenix/Dark Phoenix storyline could hold its own any day. It isn't nostalgia, it's just good story writing.

When I was reading moderns there were tons of great storylines.The phoenix saga you mentioned.Just after that there was the days of future past 141,142(?),Miller daredevil,batman year 1,Killing joke,Dark knight,and many more.

I really dont see that kind of quality anymore.