…and it’s not Augie De Blieck Jr.. Nope, in fact it’s pretty much as opposite as you can get from Augie. Wizard has hired Scott Gramling who was the former editor of FHM.
Look forward to many more Power Girl articles.
Well, I can’t say I’m surprised. Disappointed, maybe, but not surprised. FHM was a widely successful magazine, and while I went for the easy joke, it doesn’t necessarily mean Wizard will become full of T&A, the guy probably has some great ability and experience in publishing magazines.
Sigh — I still say Make Mine Augie!
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Yeah, keep hope alive that the mag won’t go further down the drain. It’s all false hope. I expect we’ll see actresses from comic movies still appearing on the cover, but now they won’t be in their movie costumes. Hell, they may not even be wearing much at all. . .
That is a bad thing, right? Them not wearing much at all, is bad? Because otherwise it could be a picture of Wolverine. I am confused.
This story sucks but maybe now Wizard can just go away and die. Then something could takes its place. Maybe a group of three or four guys and their intern can come up with something to fill the void. Maybe
Wizard are probably going to try and be a more geek oriented version of Maxim…and you know what? More power to them. If people want to buy it, they will. You can’t fault them for going for a larger audience. But then, there will be nothing left for comics fans.
Jeez the bitterness of some people is amusing and surprising!
I didn’t really see any bitterness.
Although it is indeed the easy joke, I do think it is funny as all get out that they guy from FHM gets the job. I agree with Josh, I think people are still going to buy it, and perhaps even more. If so, they made the right decision for their company.
I would also agree that it would be good to have a magazine that focused on comics that wasn’t too esoteric.
I’d have voted for Augie too, but no one asked me, nor apparently the ifanboys.
Who’s bitter?
I like Power Girl…
But seriously, didn’t FHM just go under?
I could have sworn I saw a cover at the gas station that said it was the final issue.
I do like Power Girl though…
Sorry, should have used a different term than “bitter”. Just surprised that the hiring is already being poo-pooed before any ideas have been put forth. I think Wizard is lucky to have him. He’s got a tough task ahead of him.
FHM is a pretty successful international men’s mag, being published in about 27 countries. The print version of FHM in the US is being discontinued in favor of a webzine.
To be completely honest, I really enjoyed the last issue of Wizard. I found it to be pretty close to what I would want out of a comic mag.
I think time will tell. It seems a little rushed to prejudge the guy based on a JOB, maybe he’s a geek at heart with great editorial skill. Maybe he’ll be professional enough to see what’s good of the source and exploit that…or maybe this will all go to hell and the worst that happens is more T&A on the covers(boohoo).
Amazing Heroes, Mark Waid’s b/w, mostly-text mag from the 80s still beats Wizard on its best day. The interviews were better, there were good articles, and it was fun to read w/o being totally vacuous. So it wasn’t the slickest thing on the market. So what. We need to let Wizard ride off into the mainstream, but it would be nice to see something fill it’s void for all of us fanboys.
Fair points all. If you like it, then good. It doesn’t speak to me that much.
But hey, you’re right, anything can happen. But I can fairly safely make the assumption that they’re going to continue to go broader than a focus on comics. But I guess we’ll see.
Well, actually, I’ll be told most likely.
This reminds me a little about what cartoon network is going through…turning from a cartoon network to a more teen real live oriented channel. Someone said it
Not saying i
What happened to niche markets???
More money in a wider audience.
i think iFanboy should start their own comic magazine!!!! forget wizard, make mine iFanboy!
I’d get an iFanboy mag. But with the podcasts and the video show, that’s alot of demand from the 3. So it shall be run by Gordon, and he shall still be an intern.
The first thing the ex-FHM EIC should do is bring back the Brute and Babe feature that Wizard had years ago. That would be playing to his strengths at least. And maybe we’d see FHM regular Brooke Burke on a Wizard cover…no. I still wouldn’t buy it.
I’ll still buy it. I have for years anyway , and I apreciate you guys for making your points without looking down on those who still read it. That said, if it starts to slip further away into the mainstream I may have to rethink my decision.
I have no real problems at all with Wizard magazine. When you think about the fact that at least they are trying to put out a comics magazine for us, you have to give them a chance. The only thing I don’t really like is that they seem to try and stear the market and make certain titles the money grabbers. Beyond that though I like Wizard. They have a small comics convention in Texas each year and for me it’s the only way I can get to one. I have a carlot and I can’t take a week off to go spend a couple thousand in California or New York (would be nice) at one of the major cons.
It’s easy to complain about stuff not being what we want it to be but it’s a whole other thing to actually get off your tukas and make an alternative. The boys here at ifanboy have at least given us comic book geeks a forum to rant and rave.
So to wrap, even though it isn’t everything I want it to be I enjoy the magazine, the features, and yes.. even the hot girls. Did I fall into a wierd alternate universe where geeks don’t like to look at pictures of attractive ladies?
Anyway thats my short version of that discussion.
Here’s the problem with the hot girls. And I like hot girls.
BUT, comic readers are perceived as being immature and mostly male. So, the magazine, being a main spokesman for the industry perpetuates that stereotype. And by perpetuating that stereotype, the negative aspects of comic readers are reinforced, driving away potential new readers, like women, for example. Now, from my point of view, I want comics to be taken as seriously a form of storytelling as movies or books, or television, and none of those forms of entertainment carry a stigma about the people who enjoy them like comics do.
I’m saying comics can be great, and they can be for everyone. But Wizard is saying, in a much louder voice, BUT THEY’RE REALLY FOR CHILDISH MANBOYS.
But I overthink things.
hot girls…. nice
hot illustrations of girls(cheesecake)…. nice
putting a hot illustration of a female in a newstand magazine about comic books & comic book related stuff & saying this is the type of female illustration male comic readers like & fantasize over…… bad.
comics journal would be great if the didnt hold thier nose so damn high & ignored the main stream the way they do & tear down anything that didnt meet thier high high standards.
comic buyers guide trudges on & tries every few years to update to be more catchy to the newsstand, but just dont have that one thing that will push them over (& i got no idea what it is, i just know its missing)
tomorrows publishing is putting out the best niche comic related mags out there (back issue, draw, write now, rough stuff, the jack kirby collector)if only they were more availible to the newsstand w/o having to SEEK them out to get a issue…
but this is just how i see the comic mag biz right now so take what you will.
i also remember in the 90’s when hero’s illustrated was giving wizard a good run for thier money, too bad they lost that war & we dont have two mainstream comic mags on the racks now…
BUT, comic readers are perceived as being immature and mostly male. So, the magazine, being a main spokesman for the industry perpetuates that stereotype. And by perpetuating that stereotype, the negative aspects of comic readers are reinforced, driving away potential new readers, like women, for example. Now, from my point of view, I want comics to be taken as seriously a form of storytelling as movies or books, or television, and none of those forms of entertainment carry a stigma about the people who enjoy them like comics do.
What drives women away from comics is the cheesecake actually in the comics, not Wizard. Actually, it’s probably not the cheesecake. Soap operas have quite a bit of cheesecake in them. Girls just don’t like superheroes as much as guys do. (How do I phrase this?) Fanboys themselves, not iFanboys(tm), but fanboys in general tend to drive women away. When you’re at NYCC, just look around. Not exactly chick magnet central. Wizard probably helps the profile of the comic reader.
I think that’s too broad a generalization of comic readers. There are certainly a lot of persons lacking social grades at comicons, but there are also a lot of people who are just regular intelligent folks. I wasn’t kidding at the crowd at the BKV signing. There’s a market here for mature, smart people who like comics.
Sure there’s cheesecake in comics, but not all comics. Not even most comics. And there are a lot of other comics than superhero comics.
I guess I’d be less down on Wizard if they didn’t say they were the “Comics Magazine,” but rather something more specific of their target market. My wife reads a whole lot of comic books, but there’s not a page in Wizard which would speak to her, and that’s my problem with it.
Wizard probably helps the profile of the comic reader.
*HEADSPLODE*
I think that’s too broad a generalization of comic readers. There are certainly a lot of persons lacking social grades at comicons, but there are also a lot of people who are just regular intelligent folks. I wasn’t kidding at the crowd at the BKV signing. There’s a market here for mature, smart people who like comics.
I guess I’d be less down on Wizard if they didn’t say they were the “Comics Magazine,” but rather something more specific of their target market. My wife reads a whole lot of comic books, but there’s not a page in Wizard which would speak to her, and that’s my problem with it.
Well, that’s not my perception of comic readers, that’s the perception of the world at large.
Their coverage is reflective of comic book sales. They shouldn’t spend a lot of time on stuff like True Story Swear to God. Their agenda is not to advance the artform, but to sell magazines.
*HEADSPLODE*
You saw the 40 Year-Old Virgin, didn’t you?
Denial is not a river in Egypt! (Sorry for that.)
You saw the 40 Year-Old Virgin, didn’t you?
Yes. And that’s exactly the kind of comic book fan image that Wizard promotes to excess.
Their agenda is not to advance the artform, but to sell magazines.
They’d sell a lot more than they do now if they were a better magazine. As Augie said in the show we did, Wizard should be “must reading” for everybody who reads comics and it’s clearly not.
I’ve been reading comics for years. I’m far from a social outcast. My comic reading friends, and folks on this site prove that stereotype wrong, time and again.
You know, I don’t even think Wizard should change. I think it should continue as it is, and let the marketplace decide it’s fate. But I’m not paying for it.
I’m saying comics can be great, and they can be for everyone. But Wizard is saying, in a much louder voice, BUT THEY’RE REALLY FOR CHILDISH MANBOYS.
But I overthink things.
No, I think you’re pretty spot on. I think Fables is one of the best books that’s been published in years, but I can’t see that getting any serious coverage or analysis in Wizard, and that’s a book that I think could bring in new people by showing the diversity and maturity that comics can show.
I’ve been reading comics for years. I’m far from a social outcast.
Yeah I get that, and forgoing any of my ‘coolest guy in the computer science program’ jokes, you’re right. There are some socially retarded people with Asbergers, but that’s not all of us.
No, I think you’re pretty spot on. I think Fables is one of the best books that’s been published in years, but I can’t see that getting any serious coverage or analysis in Wizard, and that’s a book that I think could bring in new people by showing the diversity and maturity that comics can show.
I’m reading Fables because it was a “Book of the Month” in Wizard. Y the Last Man and Ex Machina too.
I think what we agree on is that there should be two magazines. Wizard is not, nor has it ever been, the book that some want it to be.
Nor will it ever be.
I agree with that.
What drives women away from comics is the cheesecake actually in the comics, not Wizard.
But does having a headline like “dead sexy: 25 hollywood hotties who will kick your butt” really improve anything? For the record, I used to buy Wizard, but dropped it with that issue, not because of that headline but because of the interior feature where you had to guess the superheroine based on a close-up of her ass. I just don’t know wtf they were thinking with that one.
Girls just don’t like superheroes as much as guys do.
I could not disagree more.
“Girls just don’t like superheroes as much as guys do.”
“I could not disagree more.”
Nor could I. *Wink*
“the interior feature where you had to guess the superheroine based on a close-up of her ass-I just don’t know wtf they were thinking with that one.”
Lindsey D: I don’t really want to know, but I can guess one thing — there were lots of men and probably no women in the room when that dumb “ass” idea was thought up.
Broadening your audience can be a good strategy, maybe, but it can also be a very risky one, because you assume everyone is thinking and liking the same thing, and you always have to think and guess ahead as to what that mass herd (if it exists) will like. From what I’ve seen, the “mass general audience appeal” approach is good for only so long; the masses get finnicky, they flirt with the magazine, then within a month they drop it like a brick.
With niche marketing, you know exactly (or make it your business to know) who exactly your audience is or could be, and a niche audience will always be loyal if faithfully served — its all about audience retention.
And for the record, I think there are women out there (come out come out wherever you are) who deserve some attention as comics consumers, but remain invisible not because “they stay quiet” but people always ignore them so badly, or fail to notice that a woman might actually be there, watching and maybe even buying your product, if you don’t instantly drive them away with badly done cheese cake and the example Lindsey mentioned. And, there are tons and tons of female characters these days in the super hero stuff that appeal to both men and women on a level that is far deeper than mere cheese cake.
So you watch yourself, Mr. Tony Stark — that suit ain’t as “iron tough” as you think it is…
Interesting choice. Former editor of FHM magazine? Okie Dokie. I’m disappointed. I’m scared of what will happen to the magazine now.
I read Wizard Magazine. It ocassionally has a good story. I like the covers on ocassion. Its not something I would exactly recommend to people. But what other comic magazine has the money and coverage that Wizard has? I don’t see Comic Book Artist Magazine on news stands or bookstores.
Try meeting someone and when they ask what you like and you say “comic books”, what is the reaction that you get? I’ve gotten the dumbfounded look or “I used to collect those in high school” and the almighty quote “those are for kids”. So I wouldn’t say it out loud. I kept quiet. The silence got to me. I said screw it, I was not put upon this earth for acceptance. I should not hold back. I have to be me for me and no one else. 🙂
“Girls just don’t like superheroes as much as guys do.”
I’ve got one word about that: Bullshit!
pandering to the herd never permanently works because the herd is fickle and stupid
my apologies to the herd
“Girls just don’t like superheroes as much as guys do.”
I’ve got one word about that: Bullshit!
You can use one word or a million. The numbers don’t lie. Show your work.
“The numbers don’t lie.”
Is there a marketing survey that accurately measures male/female buying habits? Show me that. I’ve seen far too much marketing stats based on what companies want to target, but less on who is actually buying. Number of copies printed are a horrible measurement, unless unsold inventory and (more importantly) cases of high demand for something that sells out quickly (unanticipated demand) is counted, which is very difficult if not impossible to do.
As someone who does not fit the stereotype, things I want are constantly selling out way too soon, both in the shop and online. Where are the numbers on that? And there you find the women, I’ll bet.