My reference to insulting superhero fans was directed to Aaron Kashtan's post directly above mine, which was why I led off by quoting his last paragraph. (Sorry, but I don't know how to do the "quote in an orange box" thing.)

As I stated earlier, I found your essay good enough but ultimately a rehash of the same old arguments. You were in no way insulting, though I will say that Comic Book Galaxy as a whole seems to drip contempt for superheroes and their fans. It's your baby, though, and I simply elect to follow my own advice and not frequent a site that's clearly not directed at me.

Again, then, I was referring to Kashtan's obviously insulting tone, and not to anything in your essay. Sorry about the confusion.

Does this mean that comics stores should continue to devote the majority of their shelf space to superhero material? Not necessarily; if comics stores devoted their shelf space to what sold the most, you might find manga filling up the racks and superhero comics getting the tiny rack in the corner. (The Barnes and Noble at the Mall of America now has a full shelf of manga and one little section of a shelf of American superhero comics.) But they should cater to what their customers want, whatever that is, and plan their floor space accordingly.

How is "insulting people for continuing to enjoy the same characters many of us loved as kids" in any way "the truth"? That's just being mean, and there's enough of that already in the world.

The success of the comics industry in the U.S. seems intricately tied to the success of superhero comics (at least the big two publishers, anyway), for good or ill. Is that mean? Well, it's the truth!

Just want to say "hear hear" regarding Diamond's level of service to comic shops in the South. I live outside of Greenville, SC, and my local shop (Borderlands -- Hi Stan!) is a nice, good-sized-but-not-really-big shop which sells comics and wargaming materials. But it seems that at least once a quarter, Diamond simply forgets to ship them part or all of a week's order for no discernible reason -- a problem I never had back in New York.

I guess I don't have the same experience as a lot of other readers regarding "Android's Dungeon"-esque comic book shops. The first one I ever frequented in NY was run by a nice older couple, and was cramped only because it was a small building they were in, but otherwise was kid friendly. Then, while in college, I got my comics from a shop which sold pretty much ANY printed material you wanted (They were called the Newsstand, and that moniker fit). And now that I have moved up here, Borderlands is a really nice shop with a small but professional group of guys staffing it. They carry some manga, but I don't know how well it sells down here, but they have lots of kid's books, and they don't rack "Super Erotic Adventure" next to "Superman," either.

Regarding ADD's article... I'm not all that happy with the perjoratives, but I think we can all agree that the current distribution system doesn't make a whole lot of sense. The question I've always had is how to market these lesser known, non-superhero (or similar) titles. I mean, the lesser known titles I read are still pretty "above ground," so I'm okay on that front. It's all well and good to have product on the shelves, but you can have racks and racks and racks of titles I've never heard of, and unless one of them's got a kickass cover, I'm probably not going to pick it up. Superheroes are relatively easy to market in that sense, but smaller, lesser known titles don't have the brand identity to most readers to sell themselves. At least, that's my take on it, I may very well be wrong.

Pointing something out is not the same as insulting someone. Or as an insightful former co-worker of mine used to say, "It's not mean if it's the truth."

No one is saying superhero comics shouldn't be published anymore, or that people should not have access to them. Rather, their presence in professionally-operated comic book stores should be no more or less evident and obvious than the presence of any other viable comic books and graphic novels that attract and interest the widest possible range of readers. It's in the long-term interests of both the comic shop and comics as an artform.

In the 1980s and early 1990s it made a certain kind of sense to emphasize superhero comics in a retail environment, but times have changed and smart retailers that want to sell comics to everyone that wants to buy them from them need to change as well.

You know what? Some people just like superheroes. Some people like manga. Some people like anything Fantagraphics puts out. I like Doug TenNapel books and Marvel Essentials myself. Let's stop insulting people for continuing to enjoy the same characters many of us loved as kids (or did you read Dan Clowes as a six-year-old?) and realize that this wonderful "diversity" you worship is going to include things you don't like. Like, you know, Republicans.

Are a lot of superhero comics crap? Lord, yes, but there's an incredible amount of crap in every genre. Read what you like. Shop where you like. Avoid books and places that you don't. As someone mentioned, Amazon and other sites allow you to get virtually anything you want at a significant discount, so there's really no reason to face the dreaded direct market if you don't want.

Just realize that if you do choose to shop at a comic store, it's those superhero books you hate so much that keep them in business. Whether that's right or wrong, it's the way things are. Work to change things -- as we all should -- but don't just sit up on that pedestal raining derision on anyone who doesn't agree with you.

God knows there's enough pissing and moaning already.

As long as there are myopic, poorly educated comics fans who willfully blind themselves to the incredible diversity of the comics medium, there will be a need for articles that criticize this mentality.

So open-minded. Hope YOU aren't a teacher.

..God, if only they actually would. I read the piece, it's great, and I agree with every word. I started reading the comments here, and after about the third person who clearly HAD NOT read it and instead just sounded off about what they THOUGHT you'd written, I just tuned out.

(I mean, where in that article did you say anything about the QUALITY- as opposed to broad sales potential- of current super hero comics? because I missed that bit. If it IS in there, it's a very small and basically inconsequential part of a long and insightful essay. And it has no bearing on whether or not you're right about the wider point... you whining fanboy )

You should repost this on the engine.maybe then we can have a proper conversation.

Not another draft, another essay. And it's been up all day.

Thanks for reading what I had to say, everyone.

I find it interesting when people immediately get defensive though, and start ranting and raving about "whining," rather than actually addressing the issues. If you can't actually debate properly or critique constructively, then there's not much point in posting, except to troll.

"Does being a democrat make me a good teacher? No, being a good teacher makes me a good teacher. "
Hell, you could be a Libertarian or a Facist and I'd be cool with it as long as you were a good teacher. Just no Republicans.

But there are a lot of tangents in there, and worse, they're all loaded in at the beginning before the reader has a chance to figure out what the column is about. A discussion of the shortcomings of direct distribution, an anti-superhero comics rant, a vague complaint about "poorly written comics", a long and irrelevant discussion of Diamond's sales data and its relevance to understanding the industry's sales profile, and a frankly ludicrous claim that the general public associates comics with 'Elfquest', 'Cerebus' and 'Love and Rockets' all serve to confuse and irritate the reader. By the time the article actually gets into its real point, a lot of people have tuned out.

If I was Alan Doane, I'd actually consider doing another draft of this article, focusing less on the complaints about the general comics industry (which may very well be accurate, but aren't germane to this specific article) and more on the complaints of poor comics stores. Instead of using anecdotal evidence of the coming collapse of the comics industry, I would use specific examples of trends in comics stores that turn away customers, based on actual experience. I might try including the opinions of other readers and even comic store employees and owners--as it is, the article suggests a lot of changes that might appeal to the author (more independents, less mainstream superhero merchandise), but that might run the store out of business (just because you don't like X-Men doesn't mean you don't have to acknowledge that it's paying your rent.) Getting more hard data might make the article seem a little less arrogant.

But, y'know, that's just me.

It's worth noting that this particular bookstore is located directly beside one of the biggest multiplexes in the city.

The big-box bookstore closest to me has more manga than all other comics put together.

I'm just saying.

Still and all, ADD, there’s really nothing here we haven’t seen many times before. You lay things out well, providing a coherent and cogent argument, but in the end it’s the same old argument.

There's a certain merit to taking the time every so often to point out the obvious, although it does sort of set the writer up to be that week's tackle dummy around here. Every time *I* say this -- that we are an increasingly marginalized minority, that superhero comics are getting ridiculously insular, etc., etc. -- I feel like the villagers are coming with pitchforks and torches.

That second line is exactly the kind of stereotyping I am talking about. I realize Ian is being tongue in cheek here, but using such a blanket statement to describe something, be it teachers or comic books is not conducive to growth or change.

By the way, I am a teacher, and I am a democrat. I do not object to being labeled as a democrat. I do object to being stereotyped.

Does being a democrat make me a good teacher? No, being a good teacher makes me a good teacher.

Well, duh. Exactly why should I value the medium more than the content?

I like superhero adventure fiction. Comic books happen to give that to me. If comics stop giving me what I want, I don't particularly feel any reason for the medium to continue.

I would also dispute the notion that a "minority of comics readers" enjoy super-heroes. There's a chicken-and-egg situation here. Super-heroes are the dominant genre right now, so it's more reasonable to assume that the dominant audience likes that genre. If you talk about the POTENTIAL audience that might be gained with greater diversity, then yes, the super-hero fans might be a minority. But currently I find it hard to believe there's more people reading non-super-hero comics.