The iFanboy Letter Column – 09.24.2010

Friday means many things to many people. For some, Friday means movie night. For others, Friday means pure unbridled hedonism. For some, it’s both. For others, neither.

At iFanboy, Friday means it’s letter column time.

You write. We answer. Very simple.

As always, if you want to have your e-mail read on the any of our shows or answered here, keep them coming — contact@ifanboy.com

What do you do when your favorite series ends? I just heard that Daredevil is changing/going away with issue 512. Daredevil is my rock. My first comic as a kid was Daredevil #200 and the Kevin Smith run pulled me back into comics while in grad school. I really consider Daredevil to be the roots from which all of my other comic buying has grown. It has been consistently good for years and I find myself worried that without Daredevil around my comics tree will topple. Has this ever happened to you guys — have you lost your favorite series and lost your comics mojo?

Doc Alright

You know, Doc, I can’t say that I’ve ever felt your pain. Actually now, that I think about it, I haven’t felt your pain because I don’t have that one favorite comic book. Sure, historically speaking it would be Detective Comics, but that book wouldn’t even enter into my Top 20 right now. But then again, I would never drop that book no matter how bad it got so I guess it qualifies. So in that sense I’m lucky because my favorite comic book is never getting canceled. It’s the flagship book of DC Comics (what do you think “DC” stands for?) and it stars their most popular character.

Well that was a really long way to go to say, “no, I’ve ever lost my favorite series.”

But your question did lead me to ponder what I would do if indeed Detective Comics were canceled. The answer is: nothing. I mean, I’d be shocked and I’d probably write an outraged article for iFanboy… but then I’d move on. To use your tree metaphor, the roots of my love for comics run too deep to hinge on one book.

And, hey, Doc! Do not despair about Daredevil. The book is not canceled and Daredevil is not gone for good. They’re just telling a story, a story where Matt Murdock goes away (figuratively? I dunno — I’m not following the story) for a while. And when that story is finished, Matt Murdock will be back busting heads and wallowing in Catholic guilt all over Clinton Hell’s Kitchen. That seems to be the trend these days — Superman leaves his book for a while and Mon-El takes over. Bruce Wayne leaves his book for a while and Dick Grayson takes over. And Daredevil leaves his book for a while and Black Panther takes over. Eventually, everything will be set right again.

I say ride it out — read the story. Hell, maybe it’ll be good! We know it’s going to look amazing.

Conor Kilpatrick

A few years ago you guys answered one of my questions about how you store your ever growing library of comics, and how you get rid of what you just don’t need or want anymore.

Well, a short time later I decided to switch to trades on a full time basis. I got more enjoyment out of them, and as there was no comic shop near me it was the best way to read a satisfying amount of stories. But then life got in the way and slowly I’ve just stopped buying comics altogether. I’ve reread my bookcase of trades a couple of times now, but money and just an overwhelming sense of what I’ve been missing and where to jump back in has kept me from getting back on the comics horse with both guns a-blazing. Your podcast and other websites are the closest I get to reading new comics these days.

I guess the ultimate question is this… is the digital market worth jumping into at this point? With the new iPad around the corner, I’m thinking of getting one, but mainly as a way to save shelf space and still keep up with books, magazines, and now comics. Is the infrastructure there yet? Or is it still in its infancy? I think digital is the best way to go for me even with an amazing comic store nearby. So, is digital ready to go, or should I just go back to trades?

Beau from Charlotte, North Carolina

It’s a good question. In the end, it’s really up to you. The smart answer for me is to say, “Yes!  Of course! Graphic.ly offers dozens of amazing comics for your digital enjoyment!” (Because they’re our parent company). So does ComiXology, iVerse, and the various publisher apps. These selections will only grow over time, and honestly, I think it’s an incredibly valid way to consume comics. Personally, if I could get all my weekly books straight to my iPad right now, I’d sign up for it immediately. I find it an incredibly convenient way to read, store, and transport comics. Say you get on a plane or a train, and you want to bring a bunch of comics, they’re like the bulkiest, heaviest thing ever, far more than even novels when it comes to reading time per pound of actual weight carried. If I want to read at night, I don’t need to switch the light on, and I can plug in my headphones and listen to some tunes while I read. Can’t be beat, right? The sum total content of those apps would probably keep you reading for years.

Here’s the downfall though. As I said, for most people, the lack of day and date releases is a dealbreaker. That doesn’t sound like a problem for you, but for me, well, it’s my job. Further, while there are many, many stories available, it’s far from comprehensive. There’s some stuff you just can’t read on there. Actually, there’s a gigantic amount of stuff that isn’t on digital, and we don’t know when it will be. The iPad itself (or phone if you’re into that, and want to read on a tiny, tiny screen) isn’t cheap. It’s a big investment to start. It was worth it for me. Soon enough, the thing I paid $600 for will be obsolete, and 5-8 weeks after that, it will be even more obsolete, and so on. To a lot of people, they don’t like that, and they don’t like the closed system. Buy something on iVerse, and it’s no good on Graphic.ly, or ComiXology, etc. A lot has been happening, but most of the publishers have only made their first moves in the last year. Saying digital comics are in their infancy is dead on correct. We have no idea what will happen in terms of distribution or technology. But it’s only the beginning, and things are bound to get much better.

The thing is though, a well balanced comic book life is the one that’s best for you. If you want all digital, make it so. A nice mix might work for you. Maybe you only love paper, then paper you shall have. It just depends on what you want and how you want your comics experience to be.

But yes, you’ll have plenty to read. Promise.

Josh Flanagan