Forum - View topicRE: Jump 2 review(Marvel rant)
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GATSU
Posts: 15713 |
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"Marvel comics recently announced that they're going to be launching their 'Tsunami' line to try to capture some of the manga audience that Viz and Tokyopop have had such great success with. Marvel's 'manga-esque' comics, however, are still tied to decades-old continuity and cost between $2.25 and $3 for 22 pages of story." When readers can enjoy such thick, affordable books as SHONEN JUMP, though, I'm not sure why manga fans would look to American publishers for additional sequential art entertainment. Why not just pick up another manga collection that's probably (1) thicker, (2) cheaper, (3) and easier to jump into?
First of all, color comics cost more than black and white comics, no matter which side of the Pacific you buy them from. (Just try getting the import Ghost in the Shell series for under $10, for example.) Second of all, Marvel has said their "Manga-verse" line has been quite successful in trade paperback form among growing female consumers who shop at book stores, rather than comic stores. That's who the Tsunami line is catering to, not Marvel fans in general. And because Marvel takes more chances than Jump, it only makes sense that they sell their comics at the prices they do, because not all artists and writers are going to sell. In Japan, editors of manga magazines force writers to be successful by making them change the story and art to suit the reader's demands. Third, there's just as much continuity in certain Japanese manga as there is in certain Marvel comics. (Just look at titles like Golgo 13 and Crayon Shin Chan.) I used to be "anti-Marvel" once too, cus it was the cool thing to do, but comics are comics, and should be respected and reviled equally. |
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Zac
ANN Executive Editor
 Posts: 7912 Location: Anime News Network Technodrome |
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Gatsu, you're behind. You haven't complained about the Argento Soma or Getter Robo reviews yet.
-Zac |
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John Jakala
 Posts: 60 |
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GATSU -
Thanks for the reply. For the record, I wouldn't call myself "anti-Marvel" - if you visit my Delphi forum, you'll see that I do read and review (and enjoy!) Marvel comics. My questions weren't meant to be an anti-Marvel bash. I intended them as more skeptical than savaging. I don't know how Marvel's Tsunami line (or any of their other publishing initiatives) will work out, but I am skeptical that they'll snag the American manga-reading audience that they've said they're after. I'm not the only one who's raised similar doubts - Paul O'Brien over at NinthArt just posted a column today that seems even more pessimistic about the Tsunami books than my brief comments were. As for your other points, I don't think there's anything I disagree with. I don't doubt that color comics are more expensive to publish than black & white comics. But if that's true, why doesn't Marvel try publishing some of their comics in B&W and lowering the price? (To be fair, Marvel did say that they're not sure why manga sells, so they're planning on experimenting with various factors on the Tsunami books, so maybe B&W will be something they try in the future.) As for Tsunami's target audience, you're right that Marvel is more interested in the bookstore crowd, so maybe I should wait to see what format Marvel comes up with for the trades. Rumor is that the TPBs will more closely resemble the smaller format used by Viz and Tokyopop for their trades. I'm still skeptical that manga fans will cross over to the Marvel Tsunami books, but I certainly wouldn't mind if Marvel found the success they're after. After all, it's possible that Marvel will miss the existing manga and direct market audiences, but find support from a completely different segment of the population. And that would be fine with me - as a long-time comic book reading geek, I'm happy when any comics find their way into the hands of the larger 'mainstream' public. Thanks again for the comments! |
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