the geekocracy

I’d buy Rudy for a dollar… If only I could

If you haven’t read Rudy’s post below this one, read it. He talks about the probably price hike of our comic issues from $2.99 to $3.99. I wanted to mention a few things that, I feel, are a bit more important than just commenting on Rudy’s post, so here’s my own tacked on to his.

Lying in the Gutters has a nice chart that compares the prices of comics from the 70s to today compared to inflation. Numbers speak a whole lot, especially in this case, and it does seem pretty clear that comics in the least decade have increased at a higher rate than in previous years, above what seems sensical for inflation. Rudy mentioned the quality of paper and printing going up, but has anyone considered that the cost of paper has consistantly raised higher than the difference in inflation between years? Paper companies, especially in the last three years, have raised their prices quite a bit. To the point where printers, big guys like Quebecor, have had trouble staying in business.

Despite all that I still think $3.99 is too damn much. $2.99 seems too damn much!

I think we need to also look at the prices of trades. Depending on the price hike of trades, many faithful month-by-month customers will, all of a sudden, find themselves becoming graphic novel nerds. What if this is the future? That doesn’t seemed too far fetched that single issues will die (well not die, but I’ll talk about that in a second) and be replaced by trades. With the proliferation of web comics the past ten years, and Marvel and DC finally throwing their hats in the ring, monthly issues may be replaced by weekly web content.

Monthlies being replaced by large trades and weekly web comics seems very likely to me, and I don’t really mind the concept that much. I’m one of the few who doesn’t mind reading comics on their computer. Who knows, maybe the companies are even planning on sabatoging monthlies on purpose in order to make the transition! Well I never… Well, I doubt that. While I like my idea of the future, a future idea that others share and a future that seems likely, it does look like it’s a messy future. It’s hard to imagine that this transition will be made without losing a good deal of lifers, you know, the guys in their forties who have been reading since before I was born. I have a feeling the industry will be alright though, lifers will come back when they see their favorite stories on their computer screen… Eventually.

So, conclusion? Yes the price is going up, yes it’s unfair. Because of this sales will go down, more content will be provided for a cheaper price on the unternet, and more story lines will change from monthlies to bi-annual trades.

Sounds fun.