WLG #218: The Coming Bust?

By Michael A. Diaz

I've been writing this column for a while now (heck, almost five years, can you believe it?) and for the most part I try to make sure that I keep things positive. That's not dictated by editorial or anything, just a personal choice that I made concerning the direction of this column. I know I have said these things before so I won't go on and on about it again.

This week we're going to try something a little bit different. I'm not going to start ranting so much as just note some things that I have noticed as of late.

I have noticed that personally my interest in comics has waned as of late. It's not that I dislike comics nowadays, far from it. I still love comes (which is obvious by the $30 or more I spend a week on them), but I've noticed that this column has been highlighting fewer and fewer books as of late. Now, there are multiple reasons for this. I am sure that a part of this has to do with the fact that I now live with the woman that I love (and will soon marry). We moved in together in August of 2006. Then, in July 2007 we bought our house together. The fact that we live together hasn't directly changed my love of comics, but whereas on Wednesdays I used to head home and read comics all night after work I now come home and cook dinner while talking to my fiancee about our respective days. Short version: I have much less time to piss away.

In addition to that life change I went through another one, this one professionally. I took on a new job with an excellent company with international ties; that was exciting enough, but I was fortunate enough to move from one position to another. This meant more money, but also more responsibilities. I now carry an electronic tether (called a "BlackBerry") and could be called at any moment to take care of some system that might be having problems. This is AWESOME and I love everything about my job, but again, it is eating into my free time. When I was hourly I worked extra hours now and again, but now that I am salaried I could work at any point in time.

I'm not whining, just explaining some of the things that are taking up my free time.

But I still love comics.

I recognize that all of the above is going to have at least SOME effect on this column. Life is like that.

However, as I was going over this week's solictiations and peeking ahead more to the future I realized something else that is affecting my love of this medium: the same old, same old.

When I got back into comics about eight years ago now things were extremely exciting. Part of that had to do with the fact that Marvel was seriously in the red and that the speculator's bust had ended. The entire industry was looking for something new. Declining sales will do that. So what did we get? Creators like Brian Michael Bendis, Mark Millar, Grant Morrison, Garth Ennis, Warren Ellis, John Cassaday, Greg Rucka, Geoff Johns, Brian K. Vaughan, Bryan Hitch, and many, many more burst onto the scene with new ideas and new takes on existing ideas. From that we got Green Arrow back from the dead, The Punisher back on Earth, New X-Men, The Authority, Planetary, Barry Ween, Whiteout
Queen and Country, The entire Ultimate line, and so on and so forth. Comics were fresh and exciting again. I honestly can't remember the last time I had as much fun being a comic book fan.

I went to my first convention in 2000 and I never looked back.

Here's the thing: the comic book industry, like most any entertainment industry, is cyclical. Around every 10 years or so (sometimes less, sometimes more) what was once is again.

In the late 90s comics were in trouble because of incentive covers and the glut of far too many crossovers. I remember when Joe Quesada came to power as EiC of Marvel he said that there were far too many X-titles and too many crossovers within the company. So he decried that there would be no more crossovers (not ever, just for the time being) and he was going to cut some of the X-books. Back then we had TWO core X-books surrounded by many ancilliary X-titles. Now we have THREE core X-books and over 10 ancilliary titles:

• X-Men Legacy (formerly X-Men, then New X-Men, and then X-Men again)
  
• Uncanny X-Men
  
• Astonishing X-Men (soon to be Astonishing X-Men: Second Stage)
  
• New Exiles
  
• New Excaliber
  
• X-Force
  
• X-Factor
  
• Young X-Men (formerly New Mutants v. 2, then New X-Men: Academy X, and finally New X-Men, but not the New X-Men from above)
  
• Cable
  
• Deadpool
  
• Wolverine
  
• Wolverine: Origins
  
• X-Men: First Class

That's not including all of the various mini-series that are currently being published or will be published in the next year or so. That's well over 10 titles if you're JUST collecting X-books.

Another thing that Quesada said those years ago that there were too many crossovers. What have the last few years been like (this list includes both Marvel and DC crossovers)?

• Planet X
  
• Avengers: Dissassembled
  
• House of M
  
• Decimation
  
• Secret War
  
• Civil War
  
• The Initiative
  
• World War Hulk
  
• Endangered Species
  
• Messiah Complex
  
• Divided We Stand
  
• Secret Invasion
  
• Identity Crisis
  
• Countdown to Infinite Crisis
  
• Infinite Crisis
  
• One Year Later
  
• Word War III
  
• Countdown to Final Crisis
  
• Final Crisis

I admit, that some crossovers are fun to read. I've thoroughly enjoyed some of the above and I'm far from alone. Comic book fans love a good story, but for the most part we're collectors as well, and we don't want to miss a crucial part of the story. As such, crossovers sell.

That is, until they don't.

I'm not saying that will happen this year or next, but I look at the comic book tea leaves and see for the most part comics created by the same professionals that have been doing it for almost 10 years now (this doesn't mean that the current driving force of writers and artists aren't good, but any industry needs fresh blood now and then). I see also a GLUT of crossovers, and recently I've seen more and more "incentive" covers. Could another comic book bust be coming? Like I said, these things ARE cyclical so it is bound to happen again sometime. Not that there won't be good comics coming out if there is a bust. I'm quite excited about "In Blackest Night" coming from the Green Lantern titles, I'm just saying that I see a lot of things in common with the last big bust and I'm afraid of what the future holds.

I guess that is kind of a long-winded way for me to say that there really was not anything that really got me excited this week. I'll be buying comics, sure enough, but I think personally I might be hitting that somewhat apathetic level concerning some comics.

I don't deny that I have personal reasons for the lack of some of my interest, but looking at everything I noted above, is that bust coming?

What do YOU think?

I would love to hear what comics YOU are geeked about this week, especially seeing as I don't have any (this week). Also, what do you think, are we heading for the next bust? I admit I could be totally off base on this one, but is something to think about.

Share your thoughts by checking out the What Looks Good message boards (see link below).

Until then,

Peace!

-Diaz

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