In
a previous blog where I checked a fanboy I stated that comic book publishers do
not value their customers.
I
don’t take that back. Because it’s the sad but horrible truth.
The
comic book industry regularly shits on its customers giving them poor quality
products for their money. The comics Marvel and DC charge $3 and $4 for don’t
have the same entertainment value of the comics of thirty years ago.
Now
way back in the 1970’s and 1980’s when I started collecting the customer was
valued by the industry. Story arcs ran three to six issues, and comics cost 75
cents to $1.50, even $1.75 to $2.00 for some high end publishers like
Fantagraphics Books and some NOW Comics.
But
the reader always felt like they got their money’s worth. At the end of the 32
pages, the reader got a complete story. A beginning, a middle, and an end.
Short exposition, a sublplot then an inciting incident but then the hero went
into action and kicked some ass or in the case of Archie, or some of the indies
I read, worked towards resolving the conflict. Characters stayed in their place
and did their thing. By the 32nd page there was a resolution to the
main plot and the subplot and the story arc moved forward towards its
conclusion.
Today
what does the reader get? Decompressed stories where a single 32-page issue is padded
with exposition. Entire books where people just sit around talking about doing
stuff or what they want to do. At the last page a hero going to put their
costume on. Then in the next issue instead of going out to kick some ass, we
get more exposition and more bullshit. Stories stretched out to meet the quota
for print pages in trade paperbacks. In some cases the first volume of a series
of trade paperbacks. Milking the customer for all their worth without giving
them anything of value.
I
can’t see how comic fans waste $30, $60, even $100 on this shit. And I can’t
see how they’d defend companies where the people who work there regularly take
down their pants along with their skid mark draws and shit on them.
Seriously,
how much does a company value its customers when it makes them pay $3-$4 for a
32 page book that goes nowhere? How does it show that a company appreciates its
readership by making them pay for close to 100 issues to see a single storyline
pay off at that price? And how does a company show its gratitude to the loyal
customers who dedicated themselves to supporting its products by constantly
cancelling the titles they follow and restarting them at a new #1 issue every
24-36 months or in the case of DC Comics destroying the entire universe they
follow and starting completely over on a regular basis?
Do
you think Honda would do that to its customers? Do you think Apple would do
that to its customers? Do you think Toyota would do that to its customers?
HELL
NO.
Why?
Because they value their customers. They know that every person who buys an
Accord, an ipod, or a Corolla will come back and buy another in a year or a few
years. Moreover, they’ll tell their friends to buy one too.
They
understand that word of mouth builds a brand and a reputation. But no one in
the comic book industry understands this.
Because
its customers don’t value themselves enough to speak up by voting with their wallets.
And
because comic fans don’t value themselves or their money, The comic book
industry doesn’t make any efforts to improve their products.
In
the comic book business the customer is just an ends to a means. Most of these
writers and artists these days are just auditioning for screenwriting and
storyboard jobs, and looking to break into Hollywood (Thanks Ricky for the insightful observation). They could care less
about the craft of comic books or the comic medium. So they publish glorified
fanfiction instead of well-crafted stories and laugh all the way to the bank these days.
Here’s
the horrible truth comic fans: Your money doesn’t mean shit to these comic book
publishers. Dan Didio and Axel Alonso wipe their ass with your dollars.
Because
they know you’ll be stupid enough to put up with whatever shit sandwich they
serve you and come back for another freshly plated turd.
I
look at the way comic book publishers treat customers and it boggles my mind. I
wish that any other businessperson could get away with acting all smug and
aloof at a panel where they addressed the public. I wish they could get all
sarcastic and condescending when asked a simple question. I wish they could sit
around and delay a product or be late with a product.
Because
their customers would HAND THEM THEIR ASS.
And
the competition would capitalize on their ratchet ass behavior by telling the world
how unprofessional they are while offering their customers their products.
In
the rest of the business world, customers don’t put up with bullshit. But in
the comic book industry bullshit is standard operating procedure.
Why?
Because the customer buying comic books is the biggest BITCH out of all the
consumers in America.
They
don’t have the BALLS to DEMAND BETTER for their dollars. They give the
publisher power over them. They never TAKE THEIR RESPECT.
Which
is why they get the least value per entertainment dollar out of any
entertainment medium out there. The comic fan spends hundreds of dollars for
five minutes of entertainment while people in other industries pay far less and
get more. They make the manufacturer work for their dollars, but the comic fan
just hands theirs over like lunch money to a bully.
Comic
fans, your money is valuable and your time is precious. Don’t waste either on
companies like Marvel and DC that don’t value you enough to give you their
best. Ask yourself: Why should you drop $30, $60 $100 or $300 a month on books
that you don’t like then bitch on message boards about them? Why should you
take money you busted your ass for and drop it on product that you feel is
absolute garbage?
If
these comic book publishers don’t care enough about you as a customer to give
you a quality reading experience why should you care enough to spend money on
it?
Comic
fans need to Man Up. Because if you settle for less, you’ll never get the best.
People never have to step up their game if you keep accepting shit that’s lame.
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