Pri¢e Point$

Marvel proudly announced a rise in their comics’ prices recently. In a struggling economy, however, retailers and long time readers question such a decision.

One aspect that has kept comics as viable entertainment has been the promise of affordability and collectability, and right when reader’s are re-examining their pull lists to fit their budgets, Marvel reaches out to those same readers to pick their pockets.

A look at Diamond’s January 2009 Previews shows the startling contrast; more than 45% of Marvel’s line is more expensive than $2.99; 4% of those comics are more expensive than $3.99. More than forty books from marvel’s line that exceed the standard $2.99. DC prices more than 86% of their products at $2.99 or less; in fact, unlike Marvel, DC has a price-point below $2.99!

Be sure, if we as readers hand our wallets over to Marvel now, the other larger comic book publishers will follow suit and increase their prices as well, not to mention the likelihood of independent comics soaring to $4.99 or $5.99 a book.

A clear message needs to be sent to Marvel that this increase in price of books is the exact opposite of what the comic industry needs right now. It’s important that we make the statement clear for the out-of-touch Marvel still lauding the Brand New Day Spider-Man debacle as well-received.

So how do we send a clear message to Marvel and other companies eyeing the new price-point? We have to affect their bottom-line, severely, if Marvel will ever listen to us. Obviously, if the plummeting sales of Amazing Spider-man, now about half of pre-Brand New Day sales, haven’t been enough to change bad editorial mandates, our response must be even more severe.

A drop in revenue might be misinterpreted as a reflection of the economy, so the severe message must also be clear; not only must Marvel notice a drop in their sales, but they must also experience a loss of market share. In December, Marvel held it’s top ranking with the largest market-share for Comic Book publishers. To send a clear message, we must award the greater market share to affordable publishers.

I recommend we readers should boycott Marvel’s $3.99 books, and to direct the rest of our budget to other excellent publishers in the industry. DC Comics has a great, full line of comics with many books at $2.99 or less, as does Dark Horse Comics. Top Cow even made a pledge to readers last month that all the Top Cow titles will remain at $2.99 an issue for 2009.

It is important to remember that we are trying to save the industry from itself, not kill it; even as we send our message of disapproval to Marvel, we must still support our local comic shop, the life-blood of the industry. If we stop buying from our local comic shops, they’ll close, and the comic industry will dry up.

So, if you can’t find anything new outside of Marvel to read, buy back issues; buying back issues will enable you to support your local shops without contributing to Marvel’s market share. This would also be a great time to pick up a Graphic novel you might have been meaning to try from another publisher, or read a classic stories like DC’s Kingdom Come and Crisis on Infinite Earths, even try a manga like Deathnote, or ask your local comic retailer for more suggestions!

Let’s help save the comic industry from itself; say “No!” to $3.99 an issue, but say “Yes!” to the comic book industry’s continued prolific publications for the years to come.



Or you can make yours Moneygrubber.