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Posted by:

mytymark

Date:

June 4th, 2009 3:25 AM

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An Open Letter: Support Monthlies, Don't Wait for Trades

Bulletin:

Most of us here discovered the wonderful and colorful world of art, mostly from our exposure to comics.

I grew up on em. Comics. Eversince my uncle first gave me a box of Batmans, Flash's, Supermans, Greenlanterns, Thors, Fantastic Fours, and Spider-Mans on my 7th birthday, some 22 years ago. Yes, my love affair with this medium has been that long. Thru its ups and downs, thru thick and thin, in sickness and in health. And I'm sure I wouldn't be a graphic designer by profession, if it weren't for comics. It played a big part in my life, and is still continuing to do so, in the present and to the future.

There came a time when I lost interest in picking up monthly titles, in exchange for trades. Yes, Trades are more convenient to get, often more affordable, and looks better for the library. And the extra goodies were all fun. The "waiting for the trade" mentality bit me, and it was all good. But I came to a realization early this year, that I'm doing more harm than good to my beloved medium, and the industry I'm in with this action. Yes, I'm saving money with the collections, as well as shelf space, and time...but at the cost of the titles' future. And I felt fear. For the first time in my many years of comics, I felt actual, rational, non-fiction fear. The writing’s in the wall, and the signs are just everywhere…comics was nearing critical condition. And so I made a resolution. A decision that I know if I acted on now, and spread it like wildfire, can save the medium.

So I started picking up comics again that appealed to my preferences. There was some spending to be made, but it was gonna be for the survival of my passion and industry. That alone made it very worth it. Rick Remender’s Punisher, Ivan Brandon’s Viking were only the start, and soon I was sampling some of the best current comics, I swear I wouldn’t have enjoyed if I just scouted the catalogues for trades. It was fun, getting all excited again for monthly comics, much like how I felt during the early years.

This, I would want to share with you guys. Almost all of us owe who and what we are right now, where we are…we owe it bigtime to comics. So it’s time give back and show support to the medium. DON’T WAIT FOR TRADES, KEEP THE MONTHLIES ALIVE!!! If you wait for the trades, sooner than later, the titles you follow will die, and you won’t have more collections down the line, and you won’t find out what the creative teams have planned from start to end of the book. Japan is the best example, with Manga ruling over all forms of media and entertainment, to the point that the Japanese government is supporting the Manga industry, and pushing it to the whole world.

A few while back, Timothy Callahan, CBR Staff Writer wrote in his When Worlds Collide column a good essay bout the stage of comics, along with it the TEN "UNDER-THE-RADAR" COMICS YOU SHOULD READ. Visit the link and read more…it’s a good eye opener, and starting point: http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=21406

Remember, this is only a small world. What affects the smallest comics/creators/publishers, will have a ripple effect to the entire comics medium and industry.
Rush out and pick up monthlies.
Save the monthlies, Save the future!

Take care you all, and see you in the monthly pages!

-Mark
currently reading Josh Dysart’s Unknown Soldier #7 and Mike Carey’s The Unwritten #1, with a cup of hot coffee on a very rainy Thursday.

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