March 13th 2013 ¢ Over the Edge A BEER WITH BEN: COMICS 2.0 BEN FILIPKOWSKI COPY EDITOR About two years ago, before I was the copy editor here at OTE, I submitted an article to the last creative team about DC's then-upcoming New 52 relaunch event. In perusing the articles for this issue, I read a contributor's thoughts on the New 52 and Marvel's own relaunch (branded Marvel NOW!). This got me thinking about my earlier article and my current feelings on comics. Having spoken about this interest of mine a few times before, what, you may be asking, could I add to it now? For almost two years, Marvel and DC have been vying for market shares. It's swung back and forth in favour of either, and it goes without saying that when DC relaunched, DC dominated the market, and when Marvel relaunched, Marvel dominated the market. The dollars and cents of business have dictated creative changes and controls this past little while, but it seems now the market has stabilized once more, with Marvel and DC each eking out a very comfortable living that is (generally) fairly even. Smaller companies fill the spaces of the pie, and independent titles are playing a completely different game. The thing is, though (and this is where I disagree with Mr. Colin Slark, whose article is well worth a read and can be found in this very issue), all this has been fantastic for the industry in the long run. Marvel's competition with DC's relaunch has forced DC to reconsider some questionable moves, not to mention DC's relaunch forcing Marvel to shake things up themselves. It's healthy competition, and to be fair, neither can really be described as "better." Marvel has a cohesive vision now; everything is clicking into place, and all the pieces are becoming visible. This wasn't always the case. To me, it would appear that Marvel's current status is comparable to that of DC in the early 2000's; that's the feel I get when I read their titles, at least. As one company flourishes, the other is bound to suffer some. DC has yet to have a cohesive, clear vision for its own lineup of title, but I'm sure that will change. It's not really a question of creative quality, though. Both companies field Chief Creative Officers (an odd title if you ask me) and both have had troubles with getting editorial staff and talent up and running. Marvel's made some excellent moves lately, but eventually things will swing back in favour of DC, then back to Marvel, then...well, you get the picture. Creative decisions made by these companies are done because they hope to make a profit. If something doesn't sell, too bad, it gets cut, hence the emphasis on marketing and brand power. DC has had to court a few disastrous things these past two years, and for the most part has succeeded - they're even showing signs they've learned a thing or two. In the end, this is just a brief lull. It happens to everyone, every company, every writer. Don't believe me? Here are some words that would jog a comic fan's memory: Civil War, Ultimate Marvel, One More Day, House of M...I could go on! At the end of the day, they're companies engaged in a never-ending cycle of business, and they both know how to play the game. MARVEL NOW! VS. THE NEW 52: DIFFERENT APPROACHES TO RECONSTRUCTION COLIN SLARK CONTRIBUTOR In 2011, looking at the higher sales of their biggest competitor, DC Comics decided to start fresh. All of their superhero books were cancelled following their issues in August 2011, even the longest running comic of all time, Action Comics, which had lasted 73 years and 904 issues. The following month, DC launched 52 new comics. These books featured most of the same characters but in new costumes, new situations and most of their old adventures had never taken place. Deaths were undone, marriages were erased and decades of character development were gone just like that. It ended up being very popular, making DC’s comics surpass Marvel’s comics in the sales charts for the first time in years. In response, Marvel comics cancelled many but not all of their books in September 2012, including the Amazing Spider-Man which had just celebrated 60 years and 700 issues. The following month, these characters reappeared in new books with some having new names and costumes. However, there was a big difference in Marvel’s approach to revitalizing their product line. The same characters existing in the same continuity were given new directions and new costumes, but they were importantly, the same characters. DC Comics thought, “Oh my. No one is buying our wheels. We need to make some new wheels with the same coat of paint.” Marvel thought, “Oh my, our wheels could be selling more units. How can we make them better?” Marvel’s approach to the problem has led to products that are of far better quality. DC’s books often lack direction with creative teams coming and going and with some of those creators complaining about editorial interference rewriting their books. Many of DC’s characters are now young twenty- somethings who don’t play well with other and who break the rules regularly. This character type is permeated through most of their titles and it is boring. It is dull to pick up five comics every week that are full of the same person repeated over and over again. Many of DC’s books seem less like stories and more like formulas crafted by marketers in order to increase sales. That’s not to say every DC book is bad, but the bad outweighs the few. There is also a problem of the writers and artists who produce the best books of the line moving on to new companies, leaving a creative void that is not being filled with enough new talent. Many of DC’s books started out new and exciting, but have become more and more monotonous after time. Marvel Now! is a better product because Marvel realized that people didn’t think their characters were broken. What they needed were new stories and new approaches to capture attention. Time travelling X-Men, dimension hopping Captain America, vigilante Hawkeye and evil Spider-Man might sound silly, but they have succeeded in making stagnant franchises worth checking up on. Marvel’s relaunch has only been active for five months compared to DC’s almost eighteen months of new material so things could change but at the moment, Marvel is making better comics. Are you a sertbhe at heart? Maybe you love photography? Or you know website design or GRAPHIC ARTS? 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