State of Comics in 2023?

[GreyLord]

As far as demographics go, I would say that there's probably more younger people lately than there was for awhile. Many of my customers are the same people they've always been (for 30 years!) but the overall demographic has always been a range of ages. Not many kids, though. That's because they don't really make comics for kids, do they?

Which is a shame, because they used to.

It meant they couldn't get too adult with their comics (X-men being written today having 3 ways for example...that's just a wee bit more than I really want to read in a comicbook...I like things a bit tamer) back then as they were appealing to all sorts of ages.

Now, it seems they only appeal to those who have been reading comicbooks for the past 20-40 years. The older crowd. That's the other problem. Everything relies on you already knowing what's going on as well as what is happening in other comicbooks. You can't just subscribe to your favorite (I mean...you can...but you'll miss half of what is going on) comicbook. Crossovers started to happen in the 80s, got crazy in the 90s, died a little bit in the early 2000s, and now have gotten wacko.

They lost perspective of why the general audiences read comicbooks instead of the hardcore aficionados...IMO.

 

[Mistwell]

Comic shops are going out of business rapidly, etc...

Comic shops have been increasing, not decreasing, since 2020. They've seen an increase in sales. It's levelled off for 2023 but they had quite the boom cycle during the pandemic.

 

[MGibster]

Yeah, yeah. People have been saying THAT since 1978.

It's not entirely false. When I was a kid, I could get comic books at gas stations, grocery stores, or at the mall in stores like Waldenbooks or B. Dalton Booksellers. Sometime in the late 80s or early 90s, comic books started disappearing from those venues and if I wanted one I had to go to a boutique, the comic shop. This certainly made it more difficult for kids under the age of 16 to get into comic books and I wonder if this helped accelerate the decline in sales. Of course in the 90s we had a speculation boom and various companies had all sorts of gimmicks like gold foil covers, killing Superman, multiple cover issues, etc., etc., but then the whole industry just crashed.

And today, there are fewer comic book shops than there were back in the 90s. Here in the greater Little Rock area we had two, but one of them closed a few years ago after being in business for decades. I think the owner just decided it was time to retire. My old haunt in Dallas, Lonestar Comics, closed down all their locations sometime after 2000 and are exclusively an online retailer now.

But dying might be a hyperbole. While the specialty comic books shops might not be as numerous as they once were, I can buy a plethora of graphic novels at my local Barnes & Noble. At least for as long as we still have physical booksellers. And many little comic/hobby shops who diversify their stock can probably weather economic changes better than just a straight comic book shop.

 

[R_J_K75]

This collection is good, I remember reading it when it originally came out and theres a few bonus issues thrown in too.

Amazing Spider-Man: Kravens Last Hunt

 

[FitzTheRuke]

This collection is good, I remember reading it when it originally came out and theres a few bonus issues thrown in too.

Amazing Spider-Man: Kravens Last Hunt

That's certainly another thing one can do: Work your way through the top 100 graphic novels of all time. You'll have reading for ages, and while probably not all of them will wow you, the ones that make the list really are very good comics.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

I haven't followed the Superman titles regularly since the triangle era, but I'm tempted jump back in. Seems to be some interesting things going on in the extended family as well; a Power Girl ongoing, Steelworks by Michael "Worf" Dorn, and of course the Fire & Ice mini-series taking place in Smallville.

I've read Superman on and off for 35 years, and the Dawn of DC launched books are some of the best they've been (at least so far - I liked Rebirth at first, too, but it quickly turned into something that didn't wow me.) We'll see if it lasts, but I really dig them ATM.

 

[R_J_K75]

That's certainly another thing one can do: Work your way through the top 100 graphic novels of all time. You'll have reading for ages, and while probably not all of them will wow you, the ones that make the list really are very good comics.

That collection also included Spider-Man vs. Wolverine which was a special one-shot from that time period. I was very surprised to see it there

 

[Elodan]

I've read Superman on and off for 35 years, and the Dawn of DC launched books are some of the best they've been (at least so far - I liked Rebirth at first, too, but it quickly turned into something that didn't wow me.) We'll see if it lasts, but I really dig them ATM.

I had the same experience with Rebirth. The latest Marvel change didn’t really wow me.

Looking for good comics. If they’re DC / Marvel, that’s a bonus but not a must. Maybe I’ll check out Dawn of DC or work through some “Top # of x” list that are out there.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

I had the same experience with Rebirth. The latest Marvel change didn’t really wow me.

Looking for good comics. If they’re DC / Marvel, that’s a bonus but not a must. Maybe I’ll check out Dawn of DC or work through some “Top # of x” list that are out there.

That's a good idea. Also: Look to Image for something new. Stuff like the aforementioned Reckless books, or top-notch stuff like Saga, Paper Girls, or Monstress. Or cool new ideas like Department of Truth or Descender.

 

[LuisCarlos17f]

When I was a child me and my younger brother had got some action figures of Secret Wars. I watched Spiderman and some marvel cartoons from 60. I liked the 90's Spiderman cartoon.

I started in the 90's with Ghost Rider (Danny Ketch) and some G.I.Joe. I bought the "Sons of Midnight" when Blade was totally unknown, years before Wesley Snipe movie.

Yesterday I found a funny webcomic "Pepper and Carrot" about a teenage witch, with a very innocent humor for the current standards.

In the new city where I live now there is a comic shop, but mainly manga is sold.

I stopped to be interested after the event Secret Invasion. Too many events are bad for the industry because readers can't spend so much money.

In Spain Marvel has been more popular than DC. Batman was totally unknown before first Tim Burton's movie.

My opinion is the main mistake in the current comic industry is not being ideologically neutral, and they have lost too many readers.