Comic Book Herald

A Comic Book Reading Order Guide For Beginners & Fans

Opinion

Do Marvel Movies (MCU) Lead To Actual Comic Book Readers?

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I joked recently on Twitter about the absurdity of the worst voices on the fringes of comic book media who have made their grift all about “the death of comics.” The culture war doomsaying is especially laughable when I look at the absolute dominance of comic books in entertainment and pop culture. The shouty “comics are dying, we have to scream at marginalized groups until they are saved” crowd is a murky den of misinformation and misplaced rage, but like most topics these days, it’s also very much a *platformed” source of misinformation. So when comic fans – especially newcomers – are confused about the state of things, well, I can see why that might be!

Now, there are experts in the field much better suited to tell you about the state of comic book sales over the past decade, and moving forward. I highly recommend John Jackson Miller with Comichron, and David Harper’s SKTCHD frequently compiles some of the most insightful digs into the subject. The long and short of analysis from these kinds of experts is that comics as a medium are booming, just not necessarily from the single issue floppy serial comics that have been the mediums pulp-in-trade since the 1930’s.

Nonetheless, questions about comics’ longevity remain, particularly in regards to whether the likes of the MCU actually drives comics readership. To answer this in my way, I turned to the one unique thing I have no one else does: Comic Book Herald’s analytics. [Read more…] about Do Marvel Movies (MCU) Lead To Actual Comic Book Readers?

When the White Ranger Leads: On Whiteness in the Tokusatsu-Comic Trend

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The short term (as a concept) and the comics industry have had an incredibly complicated relationship throughout history. Short term pushes for short term gains, long-term losses from short-term bets, and short-term trends begetting long-term classics are just the tip of the iceberg. With short-term trends, especially ones with long-term consequences, there’s an inherent compulsion to categorize them as either “good” or “bad.” The post-Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles black-and-white comics boom? Bad. Buying five copies of Youngblood to try and put your kids through college? Bad. The Ultimate Comics imprint? Depends on who you ask. But as I write this, the comics industry is in the midst of yet another trend, one whose far-reaching consequences are difficult to discern.

There’s been a recent jump in the number of comics — mainly indie comics — that can be categorized as “tokusatsu,” a genre commonly associated in the West with Japanese costumed heroes and gargantuan monsters. With this trend at play, some questions arise surrounding the usage of the aesthetics as well as the creators who are currently using them. Is this trend bad or good? Should it be categorized as bad or good? What is lacking from this trend? Whose voices aren’t being heard, and who is being left behind as a result of this trend? So many questions, and so few easy answers. But in trying to find an answer, I only found myself asking more questions about the relationship that Westerners have with tokusatsu. [Read more…] about When the White Ranger Leads: On Whiteness in the Tokusatsu-Comic Trend

What’s Going On with Marvel’s Avengers Continuity?

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A Hypothetical Case Study of How Not to Handle Continuity

Let’s say you’re writing a largely self-contained ongoing comic book title within a much larger shared universe. Let’s call your book… Sergeant USA! During most of your long-running story, Sarge’s lost his superhero identity and his place in the… Revengers. How do you mesh that with the universe’s continuity? Cleverly, at the start of your run you don’t allude to anything else going on in this comic universe, so that you can go on with your long-running story for as long as you like, and when you DO have to link back to the universe’s continuity you get to choose when all of it fits, start to finish. You can have your thirty-part, two-and-a-half years-running self-contained story while justifying Sarge’s absence from the Revengers in-between any two Revengers issues of your choosing, in retrospect. Damn you’re clever!

And then someone else comes along and messes with your simple but genius plan.

*Some spoilers for Sarge… Captain America and Avengers follow*

[Read more…] about What’s Going On with Marvel’s Avengers Continuity?

The 10 Most Disappointing Comics of 2020!

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I tend to keep it pretty darn positive here on Comic Book Herald, but let’s face it, not all comics hit the mark. And some are huge letdowns, failing to live up to hopes and expectations and proving just how special a thing it is when a creative team fully clicks on a story.

Keep in mind this is not a “worst of 2020,” as with one notable exception (come on down, Three Joooooookers!), I don’t really hate-read anything (and if I’m not feeling it, there are way too many good comics to explore to waste that kind of time!). Instead, these are the comics that I (and critic Sean Dillon, who graciously joined me!) thought would be good, even contenders for my favorites of the year, and instead fell into the category of comics I like to call “I wonder if the library will take these as donations?” [Read more…] about The 10 Most Disappointing Comics of 2020!