September 4, 2002
By Tom Grozan
Has anyone else noticed a void in comics-related news the last few weeks? Maybe it’s a post-San Diego lull, but other than the Chaos bankruptcy, it seems nothing much is happening. It could be just be that nothing “I’m” interested in discussing is happening. We all know that the comic industry revolves around me, at least within the space of this column. C’mon, Mark Millar, give us some more quotes about “planets dripping with space semen” so I can read Newsarama again with interest. Maybe that’s what Chaos needed, more semen in the stories instead of splattered on the pages … ba da bum! C’mon, I know I’m not A.K., but I try. Give me some leeway and feel my pain, I’m stuck with a box full of Lady Death and Chastity panties that are worthless now! There’s no visceral thrill in rubbing panties on your face that aren’t supported on the stands by a monthly comic book.
I’m really surprised that Chaos Comics lasted as long as they did. For those not in the know, Chaos Comics were one of the original publishers of “Bad Girl” comics featuring morally ambiguous heroines with large boobs and little in the way of costumes. They also produced ancillary merchandise like the aforementioned undergarments (really, they did). Chaos had a narrowly focused line of books with limited appeal and by all accounts they stubbornly held to that focus and image. It was only a matter of time before the natural erosion of their core audience made this outcome inevitable. They prospered off a fad and their inability to adapt after that fad faded did them in. It’s been kind of funny reading the comments lamenting the loss of Chaos “even though I never read their books” on the Newsarama message boards. Where were their condolences and words of sympathy for Crusade and Lightning comics? Are Shi and Hellina less deserving of eulogies by virtue of the fact that they went quietly into that good night? The last “Bad Girl” publisher left standing is Avatar, and they’ve drastically shifted their focus from straight T&A to veiled T&A marketed as creator-owned series by marquee names. This is not a sign of the collapse of the comic industry as some have been saying, it’s simply natural selection. The only loss is that this means we won’t get to joke anymore about unintentionally ironic merchandise like the Lady Death mini-bust.
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One of the more interesting aspects of this situation is the members of the fairer sex popping up to say that they read and were fans of Lady Death. This just confirms what I’ve slowly come to realize over the last few years, women not only read comics, they read all types of comics. I know right now thousands of guys who’ve been trying forever to get their girlfriend to read their INFINITY GAUNTLET trade don’t believe me. Trust me, comics HAVE broken the fabled and elusive estrogen barrier. According to my wholly unscientific and arbitrary research, a number of factors point to a large and growing female comics audience fully independent of the staff of the Sequential Tart Web site.
The Rise of Alternative Outlets to Comic Stores
Face it, even the cleanest and most well-run comic shops are essentially boys clubs, and most women feel as comfortable in them as your average guy does in Victoria’s Secret or Express. The advent of Web sites like eBay and Amazon and the expansion of graphic novels into mainstream bookstores have given women a way to buy comics without being stared at by socially maladjusted comic-store patrons and clerks. When I started selling comics on eBay, I was surprised to find almost half my customers to be female. A recent report stated that the best-selling graphic novels in bookstores were manga titles favored by women and younger readers. The same type of demographic that doesn’t regularly frequent comic stores. There’s an invisible audience out there not being served by the direct market and they are going to become more prominent as graphic novels and comics expand into mainstream outlets like the Barnes & Noble graphic-novel stores that have been speculated as being in the works.
Increased Diversity & Sophistication In Comics
Despite constant moaning in some circles of the preponderance of “pervert suits,” i.e., superhero comics, the industry has never been more sophisticated and diverse. Quality books from publishers such as Oni, Amaze Ink, Fantagraphics, Top Shelf, Drawn & Quarterly, Vertigo and manga publishers such as Viz, Tokyo Pop, and ComicsOne offer enough choices to appeal to even the most discerning readers’ tastes, both male and female. Even the face of superhero comics is changing, with innovative genre-expanding work from the likes of Brian Michael Bendis, Ed Brubaker, Kevin Smith, Grant Morrison and others.
The Rise of the Trade Paperback
Women by and large are less obsessive-compulsive about entertainment than men. If they like the X-Men, they just want to be able to read X-Men stories in a convenient and easily accessible package, and are not concerned with going back and collecting every issue in completist fashion. I’ve had a number of women I’ve known pick up and start reading my trade paperbacks only to give up when the trades ran out and they had to continue on with the monthly issues. It’s too much work and as casual readers they just don’t have the patience for it. Women aren’t going to be waiting for the comic store to open on Wednesdays after reading a couple of SANDMAN trades. They couldn’t care less about the rituals and customs perpetuated by comic fans and collectors. They just want a compete story in a single package and the growing popularity of trade paperbacks and graphic novels caters more to the needs of readers outside the subculture.
I know it probably seems very presumptuous of me as a guy to talk about the reading preferences of women. If I’m wrong, I’m sure you’ll let me know, but I think I’m pretty close to the mark. Comic companies and pundits have long bemoaned the lack of female readership. The problem isn’t comics themselves; it’s the archaic marketing and distribution practices. As those continue to be chipped away at, you’ll start to see a much more overtly diverse readership.
Reviews
AMERICAN CENTURY #’s 10-16
Howard Chaykin, David Tishman, Marc Laming, Luke Ross, John Stokes
Vertigo/DC Comics
I notice lately that quite a few people online have written off AMERICAN CENTURY and that it doesn’t have the buzz it did when it launched. The book is about Harry Kraft (formerly Block), a veteran WWII fighter pilot who changes his identity and life after becoming disenfranchised with the soulless hypocrisy of the burgeoning postwar suburbia. He now travels from town to town, staying just long enough to get involved in whatever the local predicament is, and then moving on when it’s over. In the beginning, I think many of you had two problems with the book. One: the fact that the protagonist Harry Kraft is the prototypical Chaykin hero, a good-looking Jew who lays so many women that guys writing letters to PENTHOUSE would question the believability. This wish-fulfillment (the characters are obvious stand-ins for Chaykin himself) has been going on so long it’s almost become a self-parodying cliché. Two: the stories seemed complicated and convoluted.
While Chaykin’s schtick is not as fresh or boundary-pushing as it was in the days of AMERICAN FLAGG, it’s still entertaining and Harry Kraft is more than a one-note character. He’s smart, witty and likable, but also flawed and not as in control of things as he thinks. Just when you think you have him figured out, he does something unexpected, like fall tragically in love in the “White Lightning” arc or get duped by people who are not what they seem in “An American in Paris.”
Secondly, the stories aren’t as convoluted as you think. As befits the central premise, the series is episodic and each arc should be read as a whole. Chaykin and Tischman are more concerned with the overall picture than with spoon-feeding the story to the reader issue by issue. As such, the story twists and myriad of characters moving in and out are best absorbed in one sitting. The writers have settled into a nice comfort zone and these two arcs are much stronger than the first two, with engaging settings and characters married to interesting and original plots. I assure you, you won’t read other comics dealing with moonshine and stock-car racing (“White Lightning”) or a counterfeit art ring dealing in forgeries of paintings illegally seized by the Nazis (“An American in Paris”). The sex is still there (this is a Chaykin book) but it’s been more believably integrated to the plots. I recommend giving this series a try or a second look. I’m glad I stuck with it, as it’s been getting better with each successive story arc.
ROBIN #’s 100-105
Jon Lewis, Pete Woods, Andrew Pepoy
DC Comics
Jon Lewis’ arrival on ROBIN was a much-heralded changing of the guard after Chuck Dixon’s tenure as sole writer for the series up to that point. Lewis, known exclusively for his indy comics work such as TRUE SWAMP, promised to bring a new sensibility and was acclaimed by no less than fellow Bat-writer Ed Brubaker, who proclaimed that readers would be “blown away” by Lewis’ opening storyline. Having finally read that story (the concluding issue came out last week), let’s just say the finished product didn’t have quite the impact on me as it did on Bru.
First off, let me say that Lewis does seem to have a good handle on the personalities and voices of the main characters, Robin and his girlfriend Spoiler, despite a tendency to clutter pages in long florid internal dialogue captions. His main problem is setting up a reasonable conflict for them to handle. His languid plotting is in sharp contrast to the rigid three-act action stories readers of this title had grown accustomed to from Dixon month after month. While I’m certainly not opposed to experimenting against the grain, this is a straight superhero title, so it’s not unreasonable for its readers to expect a little action. Even Grant Morrison has stuff blow up every once in a while in NEW X-MEN.
His first antagonist is a woman, Natalie Mitternact, whom Robin and Spoiler encounter at an open mic night, and who is apparently the human equivalent of L.S.D., causing some audience members to be euphoric and others to experience a bad trip. After determining that the effect is caused by pheromones she unknowingly exudes, they have to save her from a deranged fan who’s been adversely affected. Not the worst plot ever devised, but not enough to be stretched out over six freakin’ issues. Especially since we’re not given even a vague attempt at background information on Mitternact, a.k.a. Nocturna, until the last issue of the storyline, testing the patience of even the most diehard readers.
That said, Lewis is not a bad writer, and there’s no doubt that he has potential. This is one of the few instances where you can see a bad editing decision. Lewis was allowed to flail around helplessly on a story that should not have been allowed to go beyond three issues. He can bounce back, but readers are going to be wary after experiencing the ill-conceived villain and coma-inducing plot of his first story.
In Case You Missed It…
BOX OFFICE POISON
Alex Robinson
Top Shelf Productions
A quick In Case this week, as I don’t think there is much more I can add to the long list of positive reviews this book has garnered in the past year. Hopefully I can tip you over the edge if you’ve been on the fence about picking it up. Purchasing this book was my contribution to the “save Top Shelf” effort and I’ve never been so satisfied by an impulse buy.
BOP is about a group of friends dealing with jobs and relationships, but it’s much more than a slice-of-life book. It seems that way at first, before it sucks you in and you realize 600 pages have passed and you’ve just read a fully realized novel. It’s one of the most emotionally aware books (notice I didn’t say comic or graphic novel) I’ve read in a long time. I can’t really do justice to it in this short a space. There’s something to resonate with everyone in this book, as Robinson is quite astute in his examinations of the impact of people and places on our lives, even if we don’t realize it. This is one where I say just buy it and trust me. If you need further convincing, read EIC Chris Ryall’s excellent review from last year here.
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