DC Comics's deal to distribute graphic novels and collections on the Amazon Kindle Fire is a step in the right direction. This will become more attractive if DC goes day-and-date on their trades, too -- there might be collections I'd buy digital for cheaper, but not if I can buy the physical book sooner. Also I'd like to see the publishers adopt a universal digital format that's not beholden to one app or device, but I know that's a long ways off.
Dan DiDio to DC's Crisis: Not in my 52!
Tempest in a teapot the other day when Dan DiDio announced DC's various Crisis events were no longer in continuity. I'm not sure I thought they were still in continuity anyway. After Crisis on Infinite Earths, the Silver Age "Crisis on Earth-One" wasn't still in continuity, and even Crisis's status was fuzzy in the modern age until Infinite Crisis brought it back. Not too big a deal, I think, but I'd as soon see DC break new ground from here than use this as an excuse to produce a new updated version of Crisis.
Beware who the Huntress's related to!
What suckers we are, how excited I was to learn that Paul Levitz's new Huntress miniseries will have ties to the new Justice Society title. The problem is, DC needs to forge ahead, and re-using character aspects like Huntress's connection to the Justice Society is backward-looking (not to mention, if the Huntress of "our" Earth is connected to the Justice Society of the new Earth-2, that's more evidence that DC might unfortunately be planning to re-tell Crisis on Infinite Earth, yet more backward-looking material). And yet, my interest in the Huntress miniseries grew exponentially when I learned about this ...
Teen Titans by Geoff Johns Omnibus no more!
Our friends at ComicList broke the news that DC cancelled orders for the Teen Titans Omnibus by Geoff Johns hardcover volume (see one of my own favorite posts, "Have a Geoff Johns Omnibus, why don't you?"), stating, "This material will be resolicited at a later date in a different format." My initial guess was that we'd see this in a more sedate paperback format, perhaps because DC realized a $75 collection of a series of already-collected books now completely out of continuity might not be a bestseller.
However, word just a few hours ago from Dan DiDio that this will be "rescheduled and beefed up. Want to make the omnibus feel like an omnibus." Originally the volume was to contain twelve to fifteen Teen Titans issues, plus the four issue Beast Boy miniseries and a couple of backup stories. If the new book will be more "beefed up" than twenty-or-so issues, that'll be a sight to behold, indeed.
I suppose they're going to collect Johns' Teen Titans run in two omnibus volumes now. The first volume could cover the first 4 TPBs (A Kid's Game, Family Lost, Beast Boys and Girls and The Future is Now), while the second would cover the last 4 (The Insiders, Life and Death, Titans Around the World and Titans East).
ReplyDeleteSo about thirty five issues? Interesting. That would be larger than the New Teen Titans Omnibus, which we thought was large on its own.
ReplyDeleteSpeculation abounds. Has DC found that these omnibus series sell worse the longer they go (thus Justice League International having to switch to paperback)? Is the push to "hold the line at $2.99" extending to more economy (or bang for buck) in trades, too? And how might this affect omnibus series in process, like Flash by Geoff Johns, or those to come like Hawkman by Geoff Johns? And where's my JSA by Geoff Johns Omnibus series, anyway?
If this Omnibus is being beefed up, does this mean we can expect the price to be beefed up aswell?
ReplyDeleteI know theres been a lot of issues with the way DC do omnibuses, from the way they bind them, to the lack of contents pages...maybe this delay will help them improve on these issues?
In regards to the kindle fire, did you read that Barnes and Noble are pulling 100 DC graphic novels from their stores as DC refused giving graphic novel rights to B&N's own ereader?
Corrent me if i'm wrong, but isn't B&N the biggest bookchain in america today? Is this something that should worry DC?
No offense to Bleeding Cool, which is a site I enjoy, but I've yet to see a sourced article that confirms this move by Barnes and Noble, despite the report being reprinted 'round the internet. Closest I could find was this, which quotes someone from Barnes and Noble but doesn't address DC Comics specifically:
ReplyDeletehttp://cnnmoneytech.tumblr.com/post/11141640153/barnes-noble-pulls-every-graphic-novel-exclusive-to
If true, I'd think it was childish on Barnes and Noble's part, a "cutting off their nose to spite their face" scenario. I'd say the graphic novels at my local Barnes and Noble are in terrible condition anyway, and full price, such that I'd sooner buy from my local comic book shop or Amazon -- so I don't know who Barnes and Noble is hurting with this other than themselves.
On the Teen Titans Omnibus, I think it would be a wise move by DC to add more content and keep the price at $75. More than $75 begins to get unreasonable, I think, for a regular-size (not deluxe or Absolute) hardcover, and keeping the price the same while adding more content would go toward DC's attempt to be known for keeping their prices down.
I live the idea of 2 Omnibuses with Johns run (other writers included).
ReplyDeleteThe New Teen Titans Omnibus was big, but if they dear to go a bigger with Teen Titans (by Johns), I say... Yeah boy!.
Marvel is making a lot of cool Omnibuses, and quite frankly, that has made me cancel lots of DC trades in order to pay the Marvel Omnibuses. X-Men: Fatal Attractions or Absolute Identity Crisis?. I went with X-Men.
Taking that into account... go bigger, DC!
I don't think (if true) Barnes 'n Noble's move is childish. I think is a business move with an angle.
ReplyDeleteBeing the biggest bookchain in America, they have certain amount of power. By being cut from a deal they think they should be part of, they themselves will give preference to the competition and cut titles from the greedy companies, reducing distribution and profit margin. In other words... "You HAVE to give me a pice of the cake"
You were concerned about the binding of the New Teen Titans Omnibus, I think; does the binding of the Marvel omnibuses hold up pretty well?
ReplyDeleteI'm basing my judgment of Barnes and Noble anecdotally off my own buying habits, but I don't think Barnes and Noble wins the day by suggesting all their graphic novel sales will favor DC's competitors. The embargo isn't online, only in store, and I bet that's a tiny part of DC's business, especially as compared to Amazon.
On the other hand, I bet Hastings is thrilled ...
Marvel Omnibuses binding is awesome. Sewed. Think Absolute Edition quality. You can open a book full spread without pages falling. Mines are just a couple of month old, so those doesn´t count, but my friend have Ironman Omnibus, which have like 2 years or so and still is in great shape.
ReplyDelete