What the F*&^%? So, Trades have no merit because they have no hyped after market value? That is the most idiotic thing I have seen posted on this thread yet. Are you reading the stories or are you hording monthlies in hopes of cashing in someday when youre 80? The collector mentality more than anything else killed comics in the 90's I dont think we need a revitalization of that mindset.

And if the industry wanted to lose some of its fan base, then yeah, take Mr. Davids advice and drag ass on releasing trades, all it will do is get me to abandon the hobby all together instead of buying crap pamphlets.

I am seriously rethinking my devotion to the artform, I am 27. I dont think that grown men should be this concerned over what type of colorful pictures and words he reads.

Grouchy? Yeah. A little bitter? You fanatics who apparantly don't want my business are turning me that way.

Lets see how well Mr. David is doing when people start dropping comics completely.


....

Why do you monthly readers feel so threatened by the TPB? And why has this all of a sudden become an issue?

Maybe. But if they're just keeping pace with the releases of the monthlies, its not much of an issue. No pun intended.

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It'd be nice to see people collecting the actual comic books instead of the trades which never really amount to anything worthy of collecting.

What does "collecting" have to do at all with reading? "Amount to anything worthy?" If its the same story, what's the difference? Why are you concerned with "collecting," I thought you cared about comics?

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Everyone should heed Mr. David

No. Just because he's got a name for writing comics doesn't make me obligated to follow his ideas at all. I am not a sheep. I am a thinking individual, and I think...

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and buy monthly.

...that I won't do that. I buy comics in a form that I find practical to my needs at the time of purchase. It just so happens that for me, the best format happens to be book-form.

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He had to set me right a few months ago in regards to Fallen Angel.

This sounds silly. And scary. "Set me right." It literally sends chills down my spine. I'm not trying to be an asshole, but you sound like you're brainwashed.

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Speaking of which, but Fallen Angel. It's super spiffy!

I'll keep an eye out for it, to see if its what you say.

New idea: Comics can take on any form they like, and I'll read them, if they interest me.

I go to the comic shop, and I'll buy a monthly, or issue-form comic if that's how it comes.

I read the funnies in the newspaper.

I read book-form comics from the "graphic novel" sections in bookstores.

I read webcomics on the internet.

I'll read a comic tattooed on your ass, if its any good.

But to claim that one form is killing another is ridiculous. It is the responsibility of the savy publisher to make their own publishing model work for them. No one's forcing them to publish in a manner that is detrimental to their business; if they do so, it is because of their own mistakes. Trades are not hurting monthlies anymore than DVD boxed sets are hurting television. So a few people pass on the monthlies in favor of the trades; big deal. The publisher, knowing that people will take this option, must adjust their perception of sales on the monthlies to take this into account. If a series gets cancelled because the publisher jumps the gun, that's the publisher's fault, NOT the fans.

It is shortsighted to fault a format (especially one which has shown monstrous growth in the past years, and shows possibilities to save the medium) for not allowing the current business model to move along at the same pace. Trades are a relatively new element in the comics market equation. You have to make some adjustments for a diverse element. Its not a problem, its just different.

I have no plan on cashing in on any of the books I own. I’ve been buying comic books since 1989 and have yet to sell a single one. I’ve learned over the years not to buy more than a single issue of anything since I’ll never sell the 2nd copy anyway. I never once said anything about collecting to sell. I bought the Watchmen trade because I wasn’t buying comics when it first came out. I’d much rather have the originals than the trade for my collection.


If you consider soliciting a trade after only two issues of a series is out keeping pace, then well… no comment.


Anyone can go out and buy a trade paperback. However, it takes some actual dedication to a title to pick up each individual issue. If all you care about is the same story, then skip buying any comic books or trades and read them at the library, book store, online, have your friend photocopy his for you, etc.


Heed - To pay attention to; listen to and consider

And let’s not forget, the title for this topic is Question for Peter David, so of course I’m going to tell people to heed.

That’s nice.


Or I listened to what he had to say, considered his opinion, and changed my mind on waiting for Fallen Angel to come out as a trade. Instead of waiting for the trade, I’m now reading it, enjoying it, and supporting it.

:rolleyes:

In closing, it boggles the mind that people don’t realize it’s a simple matter of economics. Supply and demand. If too many people jump on the waiting for the trade bandwagon, the publishers will end up canceling titles. If a series monthly supply isn’t in depend, then that series isn’t going to last very long.

1. Yes

2. I'd place my parents in the best facility I could afford.

3. Your question is redundant. No way in hell would an environmental friendly car cost only $100 more. However, being 6'10", I'd buy the car that I a) fit in and b) would be less likely to lose a leg or two in an accident.

Yes, anyone can go out and buy a trade paperback. That's part of why they're a good thing! Its good that the average joe can stroll by and pick up a comic. That's good for the industry.

You talk about "dedication" to a comic title, as if that gives you stripes. That makes no sense; all buyers' dollars are created equal. I mean...you're dedicated to the title, good for you, what does that make you, an elite comics reader? Talk about elitism; how can people want the industry saved, and yet still not want to "share" it with people who aren't as slavishly devoted to it as themselves?

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If all you care about is the same story, then skip buying any comic books or trades and read them at the library, book store, online, have your friend photocopy his for you, etc.

Please, try to take this conversation seriously.

I'm 100% serious.

As for your other comments:

If you're reading this message board and have over 1000 posts, you are not the average Joe. Which all of a sudden you seem to be representing. Sure, trades are great for people who aren't currently in to comic books. However, the average Joe has nothing to do with anything I've mentioned earlier.

AND

As stated above:

Supply and demand. If too many people jump on the waiting for the trade bandwagon, the publishers will end up canceling titles. If a series monthly supply isn’t in depend, then that series isn’t going to last very long.

My post count has nothing to do with this discussion.

Also: recognize the difference between my caring about the average joe who might buy a comic and my claiming to BE an average joe. I never claimed the latter. The survival of the comics medium and industry is a matter that concerns me greatly. That is my only reason for even being involved in such discussions.


On that note, and regarding the cancellation of series: I think its just unfortunate that publishers are not taking their own publishing plans into consideration when they put said plans into motion.

Of COURSE people are going to opt for one format or another, given a choice. Having two publishing formats for the same material is going to naturally draw people who are interested in the material one way or the other. But the point is that the publishers should be adjusting their sales expectations to take these movements into considerations. "Gee, I wonder why Title-X isn't selling as much?" I dunno, mr. publisher, maybe because you haven't considered that people might be interested in the material, but simply waiting for another format, which you offer?

If they wrongfully cancel series that people are interested in, yet waiting for, the blame falls squarely on the shoulders of the publishers, not the buyers. They have to figure out how to market their product and gauge the sales trends.

Trade paperbacks are good for comics. Let me count the ways:

1) visible to a sector which doesn't visit comic shops. They are out in places where non-devotees go. Visibility is crucial to selling product.

2) they are convenient for people who are interested in the product, but don't have the inclination to follow the serialization. In short, many people just want the comic, and none of the baggage (waiting for new installments, regular visits to specialty shops, remembering to keep on schedule...).

3) They're easier to keep track of.

4) Publishers can (and do) keep them in print rather easily.

5) They're not periodicals. Therefore, they can be shelved indefinately, not only for a small stretch of time.

6) They're relatively inexpensive. And contrary to what's been said in these two threads time and again, their price point is not entirely dictated by the original monthly's revenue. Many original graphic novels are similarly priced.


This is not to say that issue-format comics are bad. They have their own set of attributes. The point is that people who opt to wait for trades are not the cause of the comics industry's woes.

Your right.
So why doesn't Marvel, the one who has the vision to market to that great new TPB market, have the confidence to do even one original graphic novel in the last few years?
Their marketing their reprints to you fine young mavericks in search of something "new".
The real money is in monthlies.
And if Marvel is to be believed, their monthly readership is up.
For all your yelling that TPB's are the way of the future, their still just an ancillary market to the publishers. a growing venue, but not enough of one to make them quit on their monthlies.
And if your arguments that TPB sales help monthlies, what happened to black panther?
the trades sold well, but the books didn't sell well enough to bother making more collections.
as to your "end product" statement, Are you saying "24" or "Sopranos" should've just come out as a DVD collection, and not bothered being a TV show first?
Thats all TPBs are, collections.

So what your saying is the industry has made mistakes, so now they must embrace those mistakes.

They have not factored any such thing. the only thing that helps a weak theatrical run is a strong over seas run.
Video and DVD are still considered found money.



To continue you movie analogy, no film makes more on video. studios only hype movies that have already proven their profitability in theaters, and retailers only order what they know will be in demand. does Blockbuster have anything in their "guaranteed to be in" section that didn't make over 100 mil.?



Blankets wasn't his day job.



I don't want everything in TPB, I don't even want everything I read to be in TPB.
I like JSA and Thor, I don't need a TPB of them on my shelf.
If I discover a comic late, a TPB is a good way to catch up.
And if I really like a run of a book, I'll probably pick up the TPB to have on my book shelf for looking at or re-reading later.
If most people wanted everything in TPB, it would be.



If all you're buying is trades, what do you care when they were printed as crap pamphlets?



I can't listen, but damn it I can think!



You make perfectly good sense.



You should've quit whiel you were making sense.
DVD boxed set don't hurt TV because no one stops watching the shows to catch them on DVD. if people stopped watching the shows, they'd be cancelled.



So their just supposed to know which books are selling poorly, and which are selling poorly right now because some guys are waiting for the TPB?
so how many TPBs should they order of that title no one really wanted to buy?



Your first five points are good, but it's not how well the monthlies sell that makes TPBs cheap, it's that you've already paid the artist and the writer and the rest of the production crew. Do you think it costs as much to release a greatest hits CD as an original one?