Comicscape - May 3, 2006

By: Kurt Amacker
Date: Wednesday, May 03, 2006

Greetings, and welcome to another week of COMICSCAPE, where I make sequential art matter. Last week, I expounded upon the relative merits (and lack thereof) of Marvel and DC's new plan to accept advertiser money for ostensibly discreet product placement in their comic books. Thus far, we know that Marvel has negotiated deals with Nike for the "swoosh" checkmark logo to appear, along with DaimlerChrysler's Dodge. DC will publish RUSH CITY soon, a miniseries featuring a new character called the Rush, who conspicuously drives Pontiac's new car, the Solstice (pentacles and sky-clad worshippers not included). Marvel has stated that the editorial staff would notify the teams of a number of certain items available in a given month -- one spot for Coke, one for Nike, etc. -- and the creators could elect to pick them up or not. Obviously, we don't know what will happen if creators refuse. As of this time, we don't know how DC will assign product appearances, other than the aforementioned miniseries.

A few of you e-mailed me on the subject. While a few are indifferent, I'd say the majority opinion seems to be against the idea of product placement in comics -- less for what it means now than what it could in the future. Here are your letters.

Stephen McConnell writes, "I don't really like the idea of product placement, but as long as it doesn't begin to drive the story I can live with it."

If you consider RUSH CITY, it's kind of happening already. Obviously, having a Nike logo shouldn't drastically alter a story, but with advertiser leverage, it could in the future. Whether that's a good reason to be concerned right now is up to you.

Sharon Mulloy writes, "Sorry, bud. The paranoid conspiracy doesn't require speculation. It has long been in place. That said, I doubt advertising in comics is going to add millions of customer swayed by seeing Spider-Man drink Coke. I worry far more about in school -- [i.e.] Taco Bell, our school has a license with Coke or Pepsi, etc. This is the age of pervasive advertising -- it's in the movies (not just product placement), but actual ads and I'm old enough to remember when product placement was it. Advertising is on your cell, on your home computer, everywhere!"

Let me wrap foil around my head and check for the unmarked black helicopters before I respond. Give me a second.

Okay, all clear. Yes, there is undoubtedly a corporate culture that seeks to advertise to you as often as possible. As I said, they'd advertise in your dreams if they could. And, overall, I find school sponsorship and advertising far more disconcerting than product placement in comic books. However, this is a comic column, and not really the place to discuss that issue. But, I wouldn't downplay the effectiveness of produce placement in comics or any other media. While millions of people won't rush out and buy Coke just because Spider-Man drinks one, the images add to the overall barrage we constantly experience -- one designed to leave us with a positive impression that leads many people to buy Coke. Advertisers wouldn't spend money on produce placement if it didn't work.

Tim writes, "When I first saw the pieces about product placement, I didn't think it would be a big deal. A certain amount of product placement grounds the book without being distracting, but if they are paying, it becomes a slippery slope. DC building a comic around a product is sketchy at best. Maybe it will be good, but it seems like the comic book version of creating a Saturday morning cartoon to support a new line of toys. You make a good point - how long before there is editorial input? Do you think that a company that is paying for placement is going to be happy with something like Booster Gold and how they use him to skewer the whole corporate thing?"

In its own right, RUSH CITY seems less worrisome than discreetly including corporate logos. While I certainly won't buy it, it's no more pervasive than any licensed comic or television show designed to push movies or action figures. Marvel published a GODZILLA comic in the 1970s, along with a STAR WARS comic. DC published ATARI FORCE, of all things. While past incidents don't excuse present ones, anyone buying a STAR WARS comic, or RUSH CITY for that matter, knows what they're buying. Hell, I still dig the Dark Horse ALIEN and PREDATOR books from the 1980s and '90s. But, no one buys an issue of AMAZING SPIDER-MAN to collect a particular instance of the Nike "swoosh" logo. Marvel and DC effectively blackmail the reader by saying that if you don't want to see more ads, you just shouldn't buy. Of course, that same logic has always applied for full-page ads, or anything else to which readers may object.

Jim Grayson writes, "Marvel and DC's decision to solicit paid product placement in their comics completely fails to be shocking. It's really just another step toward bringing the two forefront comics publishers into line with the rest of the entertainment industry. Product placement has been standard practice in film and television for years, and it's now becoming more accepted in printed fiction as well. It was only a matter of time before a deal got worked out in comics, and now that it has, I think the artistic landscape for comics will become more similar to that of film, music, and novels."

I'd honestly prefer that comics retain their originality and their ability to depict subject matter less common in film and television. Obviously, NEW AVENGERS isn't usually on the cutting edge with sex, violence, and controversial storytelling, but other Marvel and DC titles are.

"Product placement has certainly failed to produce controversy in the filmed adaptations of our favorite comics. How long was that Dr Pepper logo onscreen in the scene immediately before the X-mansion attack in X-2? Thirty seconds? More? If you'll remember, Peter Parker's first deliberate test of his web slinging abilities in SPIDER-MAN was also on a Dr. Pepper can. The 'Unity Day Festival' in that film also served as free advertising for every company with a billboard presence in Times Square. And it was all incorporated into the story, we all enjoyed ourselves (or at least a whole lot of us did), and once the credits rolled, we went on with our day."

As I've said, no one thinks that seeing a Nike t-shirt in the background will make everyone run to the mall and buy sneakers. It's more subtle than that. And, the same logic still applies to product placement in movies. Hollywood sold its soul years ago and, short of boycotting mainstream movies, there isn't much we can do about it. I'll admit that "they" pretty much have us where they want, because I'm sure as hell not skipping X-3 just because there's some product placement. I think the outrage stems from corporate advertisers finding yet another outlet to target consumers. It seems there are fewer and fewer places to avoid advertising these days.

"I expect this is going to be largely the same thing. Possibly the comics titles that solicit product placement will tame their content a bit to keep from frightening away advertisers, but there is a strong argument that the major publishing houses aren't pushing the cutting edge of comics art in the first place."

Now they'll have even less incentive to push the envelope and try more experimental, innovative storytelling. Can you really see Coke wanting to include a placement in something like ARKHAM ASYLUM, KABUKI, or SANDMAN?

"With this development, there will be one more defining difference between the corporate publishers who produce safe, money-making, and still perfectly entertaining stories, and the independent publishers who have the freedom to go absolutely nuts and invent new ways of telling stories with comics, either to succeed or fail without the protection of a corporate umbrella. Ultimately, if the comics lose quality due to exaggerated product placement -- 'Boy, I really need an ice-cold, refreshing Coca-Cola before I go off to fight evil!' -- then it's up to the readers to stop buying the comics. For most of us, our only communication with the publishers is through the contents of our wallet."

That depends on if you find safe stories entertaining. And now, they have the potential to be even more safe. But, you are correct -- this won't change unless readers stop buying comics. And, I admit I probably won't, unless it becomes so pervasive that it distracts from the story. Once again, fans have to decide whether or not this matters to them.

"As long as it's companies paying to have their products placed in stories, rather than demanding a license fee every time a product happens to show up in the background for the sake of realism, I'm not too concerned. Wolverine is going to have himself a soda, and if by choosing to have him drink Dr. Pepper instead of Coke, Marvel is able to make a little money from someone other than the readers, I see no real harm in it. Advertising is part of our cultural landscape. Looking around while I type this, I see no less than ten different product brands without bothering to stand up. It might just be that product placement will actually make the comics more reflective of our society, but that's an argument for the literature student of the next century."

I think that's a rather positive spin on what could, at best, be seen as a necessary evil. As you quite rightly pointed out, the difference between Wolverine drinking a Dr. Pepper rather than a Coke is negligible. And, I want Marvel and DC to profit from their work. Despite how it sounds sometimes, I actually still enjoy reading comics and I want these publishers to succeed. However, while I don't care which soda Logan drinks (and we know he likes beer, anyway), I don't want the sponsor to suggest that perhaps he not kill so many people in a given issue -- wouldn't want to associate the good name of Dr. Pepper with mayhem and bloodshed, would we?

"The final concern raised in your column is that outside interests are now going to have leverage to influence the stories which Marvel and DC publish. I don't think this is a change at all. The companies which advertise in comic books already have that leverage, and paid product placement is just going to provide another measure by which the publisher can quantify which advertiser has the loudest voice. The communications channel will still run from the advertiser to the boardroom at the publishers, down to the editorial staff, and finally to the creative teams. The actual creators will still be receiving their instructions from the same place as always: their editors. And we all know that editors are what's truly wrong with every aspect of the entertainment industry, right?"

Unfortunately, in trying to mass market art and entertainment, you'll always have someone interfering with the creators. Talk to anyone that's written a produced screenplay and they'll tell you that they have to constantly defend their work against suggestions like, "This needs more gags." I don't like that sort of meddling in the creative process, but it's a necessary evil if you have a major corporation looking for a return on its investment. That doesn't mean I have to like it, but that's the way it is. But, you are indeed correct about advertisers already exerting influence. That much hasn't changed, though it may worsen as of this development. We'll have to wait and see.

Adam Brinklow writes, "Well I have no problem sounding conspiratorial or left-wing (and probably couldn't stop myself even if I did), so I'll just come right out and say that product placement in comics accomplishes pretty much the same thing as product placement in movies: bringing us one step closer to a society where advertisers have their hands in damn near everything."

Advertisers aren't noted for their restraint. If they were, ethics alone would've kept them out of the public school system.

"Am I the only one who grows weary of an advertisement being pasted onto every flat surface that can be rented out for a few dollars a month? I often wonder what the longest amount of time that I as an American have gone in my life without anyone trying to sell me something."

Nine months, right at the very beginning. After that, you were all theirs.

"I'm sure I sound whiney and tiresome, and naturally I have to admit that advertising is usually a necessary evil in pretty much any form of mass media, but I don't care. There are limits to good taste, good business, and good advertising, and I think they're being crossed."

I agree with you. I love the free market just as much as the next guy, but restraint, good taste, and good sense should trump profit from time to time.

"People make the claim that product placement has no effect on the quality of a story. I disagree. Take the Michael Bay box office bomb THE ISLAND, for example. The sheer absurdity of seeing advertisements and corporate logos being presented to people who would have no means or need to purchase anything for themselves puts a big dent into the plausibility of the flick (which was on shaky ground to begin with I suppose, but what the hell, it's a movie)."

I hope you weren't looking for restraint in a Michael Bay movie --or common sense, for that matter.

"Advertising in the wrong context can really hurt a story. It's one thing if Peter Parker is illustrated drinking a Coke, but what if one day we're subjected to the image of the Silver Surfer downing a refreshing beverage with an eerily familiar logo on it whilst he's off in some distant galaxy? What happens when a greedy editor decides that the next issue of Batman should consist entirely of a fight scene set in a mall just so that he will have more advertising space to sell?"

I'm not sure if the editor would profit quite so directly from the advertisements, but maybe I'm wrong. I don't know the logistics of who earns what. But, your examples are the kind of thing that worry me.

"At what point will readers have to question whether Frank Castle is taking part in this particular car chase so that he can catch bad guys or so that Marvel will be able to collect a check from the makers of whatever model of car he's driving? Someone is going to turn around and say 'Well of course they'll only place a product in a context that makes sense,' but when have you ever known advertising executives to be people of good sense, or people who know when enough is enough? Taking miles for inches is the way they do business."

I wish I had something really positive to say in favor of the advertising business to counter that, but unfortunately, "further encroachment" best describes their mentality. While product placement in comics certainly doesn't herald the end of the industry, it could signal a movement towards the more tepid art and entertainment that pervades the rest of popular media. But in the end, whether it affects the quality of stories remains to be seen. I don't like this, but I'll gladly reserve judgment until we see the results a couple of years from now. That's it for this week guys. Thanks for reading. Next week: the big, scary, be-all-end-all INFINITE CRISIS retrospective. Get the tissues, because things are going to get hot.

New This Week
By Al Brown and Kurt Amacker

Unless Kurt wants to name something the most ass-kickinest book of the week this week, I'm gonna discontinue that feature. There just isn't always a book that I feel that strongly about. In its place I'm gonna start a new and far less useful feature: Random "your mom" comment of the week. This should be much better stupider.

DARK HORSE

Archenemies #2 (of 4) $2.99
Al: In this issue, Kurt hides a boxing glove on a spring in my mailbox - but I duck just as I open it, and it totally punches him in the face instead!
Kurt: Dude, I'm way over here keying your car. That was your mom my glove just took out. She looks like a guy.

BPRD Universal Machine #2 (of 5) $2.99

Concrete The Human Dilemma TP (MR) $12.95

Eden Vol 3 It's An Endless World TP (MR) $12.95

Lullabies From Hell Vol 1 TP $12.95
Al: Actual Lullabies From Hell include Smashmouth's "All Star," and "My Humps" by the Black Eyed Peas.
Kurt: I vote for "Work It," by Missy Elliot. I'll never forgive you Mtv. I hope Johnny Cash haunts you from beyond the grave.

DC COMICS

Action Comics #838 $2.50

Batman Journey Into Knight #9 (of 12) $2.50

Bizarro World SC $19.99
Al: Ohmygod! Infinite Crisis makes sense! Bizarro!

Blood Of The Demon #15 $2.99

Blue Beetle Second Ptg #1 $2.99

Detective Comics #819 $2.99

Exterminators #5 (MR) $2.99
Al: Know what would make this better? If it was about Daleks.

Gotham Central Vol 3 Unresolved Targets TP $14.99

Hard Time Season Two #6 $2.99

Infinite Crisis #7 (of 7) $3.99
Al: I've seen the last panel of this. Batman wakes up next to Catwoman and says, "Thank heaven! It was all just a dream."
Kurt: Then, he wakes up again, only this time laying next to Robin. Aw yeah, I went there.

Infinite Crisis Second Ptg #6 $3.99

JSA #85 $2.99

Justice League Unlimited #21 $2.25

Looney Tunes #138 $2.25

Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere #7 (of 9) $2.99
Al: I know the girls love you and all, Neil, but you can't just go making words up willy-nilly.
Kurt: Dude, he's Neil Gaiman. He can run for freakin' president if he wants. It doesn't matter that he's not a U.S. citizen, ass-clown! Shut up!

Outsiders #36 $2.99

Sandman Mystery Theatre Vol 4 The Scorpion TP (MR) $12.99
Al: Why yes, this is the dudes from Mystery Science Theater 3000 and Sandman sitting around together, making fun of Marvel's Annihilation books. Good guess.
Kurt: If that isn't a fan-film wet dream, I just don't know what is. Wait, yes I do -- the Buffy girl and Kate Beckinsdale in Underworld having a naked tickle-fight followed by a little make-out session.

Supergirl #6 $2.99
Al: "Hey Mark, can you think of a way to make Supergirl's backstory even more convoluted?" "How's moving her 3,000 years into the future sound?" "Perfect!"
Kurt: Man, thank God she's hot. I mean, thank God.

Supergirl Variant Edition #6 $2.99

Superman Cover To Cover Superman Special #24 Statue $55.00

Swamp Thing #27 (MR) $2.99
Al: Actual name of Swamp Thing bad guy: The Floronic Man. Hee.
Kurt: Not to be confused with the Flouridator, who cleans your teeth while you're asleep. Bastard.

Team Zero #6 (of 6) $2.99

Teen Titans #35 $2.50

Teen Titans Second Ptg #34 $2.50

Testarotho Vol 4 (MR) $9.99
Al: I believe that's the name of the new steroid Jason Giambi's on.
Kurt: No, it's just the name of my industrial/black metal hybrid project that will make everyone on planet Earth throw up the goat horns. Anyone that can't stand that much rock will keel over and die, overwhelmed by my sheer awesomeness. All right, I made all that up.

Tower Of The Future Vol 3 $9.99

Women Of The DCU Catwoman Bust $45.00
Al: Heh. Bust.
Kurt: I know what I'm doing this weekend.

Y The Last Man #45 (MR) $2.99

IMAGE

Book Of Shadows #2 (of 2) $3.50
Al: Who makes a two-issue miniseries, anyway? Somewhere Brian Bendis is freaking out.
Kurt: Yes, we call that "economy of images" and "compression." Once upon a time, these were essential for good comic storytelling.

City Of Heroes #13 $2.99

Necromancer #5 $2.99
Al: Nothing says "Nerd" more than the word Necromancer.
Nerd: Some call me...Tim. Will someone please go out with me?

Rocketo Journey To The Hidden Sea #7 $3.99

Sam & Twitch Brian Michael Bendis Collection Vol 1 TP (MR) $24.95
Al: Oh yo, this was actually pretty good.

Sea Of Red #9 (RES) (MR) $2.99
Al: I'm not all that into this series, but this particular issue features vampires, Nazis and Jesus. And you may have heard of the Comic Awesomeness Theorem, which states "Any comic book featuring any three of the following - ninjas, robots, cavemen, Billy Dee Williams, Nazis, cannibals, Vikings or Jesus - must automatically be considered awesome."
Kurt: This probably doesn't come as a shock, but I'm actually into this series so far.

Season Of The Witch #4 (of 4) $3.50
Al: As a public service announcement, I feel like I should mention that if anyone were to write a comic book featuring all eight of the things above, the universe would implode that would be extra-awesome.
Kurt: However, comics that use the same name as the third Halloween movie will not make the universe implode. They just make people roll their eyes.

Shadowhawk #11 $3.50

Strange Girl #8 $2.99

MARVEL

Annihilation Silver Surfer #2 (of 4) $2.99

Civil War #1 (of 7) $3.99
Al: For a special treat, I've hired Axl Rose to come over and sit in my living room playing his seven-minute opus "Civil War" while I read this. It's gonna be so sweet.
Axl Rose: AAAAAAAAAH!

Civil War Turner Sketch Variant #1 (of 7) PI

Civil War Turner Variant #1 (of 7) $3.99
Al: That reminds me, they should schedule "Chinese Democracy" and the next issue of Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk to come out on the same day. Just to blow your mind.
Kurt: Just talking about that makes my skull expand a bit.

Doc Samson #5 (of 5) $2.99

Essential Classic X-Men Vol 2 TP $16.99
Kurt: I think this is supposed to be the really early X-Men stuff, like, actually starting at the first issue instead of when Chris Claremont and Wolverine showed up and made everybody care.

Exiles #80 $2.99

Fantastic Four 2nd Ptg Hitch Var #536 (PP #711) $2.99

Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #8 $2.99

Fury Peacemaker #4 (of 6) $3.50

Hulk Visionaries Peter David Vol 3 TP $19.99

Marvel Adventures Spider-Man #15 $2.99

Marvel Romance Redux I Should Have Been A Blonde $2.99
Al: Your mom should have been a blonde. Ta-dah!
Kurt: Your mom was, after I dunked her head in bleach. She's into some kinky sh-t, man.

Marvel Team-Up #20 $2.99
Al: Hey, have you checked this book out? It's just Robert Kirkman being allowed to do whatever he wants. The results aren't totally consistent, but they veer into loopily-awesome territory remarkably often.

Marvel Zombies 4th Ptg Var #1 (of 5) $2.99

Punisher #33 (MR) $2.99

Punisher Max Vol 5 The Slavers TP (MR) $15.99
Kurt: This story arc proves that Garth Ennis simply isn't f--king around with Frank Castle. If you ever thought Castle had a shred of sanity left in his mind, this book will make you think differently.

Sentinel Squad One #5 (of 5) $2.99
Al: In this final issue, all the Sentinel Squad robots form into one Mega Super Sentinel Robot and then I miss Voltron.
Kurt: I only liked the one with the lions. The other one was freakin' lame.

Spider-Man Unlimited #15 $2.99
Al: I'd never thought about this before, but...what's "Unlimited" supposed to mean? Is it just making it super-clear that it's not a limited series? Because that's lame.

Ultimate Marvel Flip Magazine #12 $4.99

Ultimate Spider-Man #94 $2.99

Ultimate Tales Flip Magazine #12 $4.99

Ultimate Wolverine Vs Hulk Directors Cut (PP #709) $4.99

Ultimate X-Men Fantastic Four TP $12.99

Uncanny X-Men Omnibus Vol 1 HC $99.99

Uncanny X-Men Omnibus Vol 1 HC Variant $99.99

Underworld #4 (of 5) $2.99
Al: The problem with this book is that it doesn't have Kate Beckinsdale in PVC.

X-Men Apocalypse Dracula #4 (of 4) $2.99
Al: Same problem with this book.
Kurt: I agree. Man, Underworld: Evolution had hands down the hottest sex scene to not actually show boobs ever. I mean, it was a colossal tease and everything, but jeez.

X-Men The End Men And X-Men #5 (of 6) $2.99
Al: And this one.
Kurt: Amen.

For more crap from Al, visit Pasteurized Ilk, where you can...uh, learn his real name. Questions? Comments? Let us know what you think at comicscape@cinescape.com.