JMS74

May 6, 2010 3:40 pm

ElFurioso, I'm sure the concept could be applied to the comics industry.

Let's be perfectly honest- regardless of the specter of online piracy, sales numbers for comics are low.  Period.  They were low before the age of Napster and they're still low now.  I'm all for any kind of digital initiative that could increase sales and increase interest in the medium, and I do believe that this rather renegade attempt is probably a precursor to such a thing.

I'll admit to having visited the site when I initially heard about it, and I actually didn't go back.  The pages loaded very slow, too slow for me to have the patience to read even a whole book.  What book did I look up?  Action #1.  Because I'll never see or read that book in my life and it's probably the most talked about comic in the history of comics.  I missed the reprint and obviously any copy left on Earth is going for at least half a mil.

I do find it pretty silly that many here have dismissed this out of hand.  I buy my books, I believe in supporting good material.  But like it or not, music, movies, comics, books.. they are free.  You just choose to pay for them.  Technology and time moves inexorably forward and there have been and will be more casualties in business as those in charge fail to adapt.  So the publishers shut this down today and are getting lawyered up- They are wasting their time and money.  It doesn't make an inch of difference, as these existing comics are still out there, FREE for anyone who dares to download or filetrade.  The publishers, labels, studios, etc. really ought to move forward and find their way to monetize the behavior that is already going on.  As it's been more than a decade since the dawn of Napster, my personal patience is growing thin with these businesses trying to maintain a status quo where sales are poor ANYWAY.  Make no mistake, content creators and providers should be paid.  But building the better business model is also up to them.

For the customer?  We're on the path to really exciting options for consumers.  I'd really like to see the day when we get there.  I believe it could be soon if we can all change our thinking about these issues a bit.

April 27, 2010 5:26 pm

Yeah, the Devourer was one mean dude- he came around right around the tail end of a really good run of Conan the Barbarian.  Pretty much around the late 160s, when Fafnir's with him, through when his buddy Kiev is turned into a gigantic green shag carpet monster, then the girl Tetra joins up with Conan and develops a serious crush on him, through all the stuff that goes down with the Devourer through issue 200- it all is pretty awesome reading that I remember very fondly.

I go back a little further with Conan the Barbarian, I read the Conan-Belit issues from my older brother's collection, and then got in myself on the early 100s.

April 26, 2010 5:17 pm

Flashback's not bugging me too much.  I just wanted to comment and say that your Devourer of Souls icon is the coolest f-ing one I've seen on this site.  Kudos to you, sir.

April 26, 2010 3:53 pm

@JumpingJupiter Awesome!

#1 of this series marks my first foray back into wider collecting.  I was strictly reading Daredevil & Conan titles during what amounted to about a 10 year "break" from anything else.  Now I have about a 20 title pull list, which is probably bigger than I ever had.

April 26, 2010 3:40 pm

I've been reading this title since #1 so what's on the cover couldn't matter any less to me.

But a double-sized issue starting a new storyline right when the movie comes out?  Probably going to be the first book I read this week.  Pretty cool Marvel's had this series line up so well with the films.  #1 came out with the last movie and now a #25 as a good jumpon pt. now.  I'm not a fan of haphazardly & over-zealously done marketing but this attempt feels right.  One big reason why is the series has backed up the marketing push- it's been a consistent and good series.  This book is like clockwork.

I hope the book picks up some new fans, and maybe brings some new people into comics (don't wel all.)  I'm happy that Marvel seems to be making the most of the opportunity presented by these Iron Man flicks on the comics side (when a movie's out, the comics should be strong and accessible to new + entertaining to longtime readers).  Win-win for all.

March 26, 2010 3:46 pm I think you hit it on the head.  I like- not love, (yet)- this book, but something good is going on here that's keeping me coming back.  I surely could come to love this.  In any event I'll be on this book for a while.  I certainly don't get all the hate.  This issue had me right at the first page, when the layout and panel composition mirrored issue 1, page 1- that was awesome and it kept rolling from there.

February 19, 2010 10:09 am

The last 2 issues have seen some pretty awesome developments to the story.  I loved this issue, great building up of the inner workings of the Hand and building on the whole DD universe and history of the Hand.  5 stars and probably my POW. 

As for the art, I'm enjoying it even on this fill-in issue.  Is it Maleev or Lark?  No, but I'm giving it some time and my opinion might change.  When Lark took over I didn't think he was as strong as I thoought later into the run.. I think the same could be true of De La Torre.  I really like De La Torre's work so far.  Plus- the colors have made any transition of artist on this book less jarring over the past 10 years.  DD looks dark & gritty regardless of the artist.

February 17, 2010 2:54 pm I dropped this after being underwhelmed with Gauntlet so far.. my tack on this title is to pick it up sporadically if there's a plot thread that grabs me or a creator I like.  This one has both in Lark & Black Cat.

February 3, 2010 12:23 pm Big fan of Jordi Bernet on this book.  Hex is on a roll at the moment.

January 27, 2010 4:56 pm I haven't read 504 yet, but I couldn't agree more about Diggle's run on DD so far.  I haven't read his other stuff, but so far I am enjoying these past few issues more than a lot of the Brubaker run.  Will I still feel like that when Diggle's done?  Who knows.  Maybe..