Digital Debate

By: Kurt Amacker
Date: Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Hail and well met, my heroes and villains. Welcome to another Wednesday and another COMICSCAPE. Last week's column on digital and web comics generated several letters of civil disagreement. Thankfully, everyone kept my mother, my wife, and my personal hygiene out of this debate. Upon reading everyone's responses, I stand no less convinced of the material advantages of digital comics. Read that sentence again. I never doubted them, nor do I begrudge anyone that creates or reads them. My personal feelings seem to have confused the issue for some people. Ultimately, I accept that digital comics will become a significant part of the market in a few years. I hope they can coexist with their print counterparts, but I fear the market may dictate otherwise. But, if that's what people want to buy, I can't stop them. I still can't warm up to digital comics after having read a few, but my voice ranks as one of many and you should support what you like. Free speech and civil discourse are beautiful things. Here are your letters.

Michael Andereck writes, "Greetings. I just finished reading your article about the web comic/print comic debate. I myself draw and put online a small comic strip (readers numbering almost to a dozen and being hosted on Geocities) as a hobby."

I'm glad you have a sense of humor about that. Hopefully, I've just given you more.

"I have plans to produce two comic books, also to go online, one by the end of the year and the other sometime after that. While I would love to see my work in print (which is where it belongs), I'm happy with it where it is now. I have no grand aspirations as other artists do. I draw my comic simply for the entertainment of myself and my friends. As just a hobby, a way to pass the time, online works great (and leaving out the small readership makes it sound cool enough for a great pick-up line)."


It's right up there with "I'm in a band."

"But even with my own work that which I see in all stages from pencil to ink to on-line finished product it looks best when I take the finished work and print it out on some paper. In short, while paper copies look best, for someone who just does this as a hobby with no intention of going pro, online is a blessing."

As I said, I don't fault anyone for publishing online comics. In fact, I can read comic strips on the web with little trouble. When I played video games, I loved PENNY ARCADE. I just don't want the market to focus on digital comics at the expense of printed ones.

Victor DiGiovanni writes, "Hey.... I agree with most of your points (am indifferent about others), in that reading comics digitally is still not here. However, I really believe it will be one day soon."

I assume you mean the market focusing on digital material over print.

"This will happen whenever a truly viable e-book reader is developed that catches on. There will eventually be an iPod for books that will make reading text on a screen not such a chore. It's coming. A full-color one will be a bit later in the pipeline, I'm sure. Whatever it is, it has to have size and heft of the media it's trying to replicate."

You can read a book on your laptop right now. Hell, you can turn the pages and everything. While you could always listen to mp3s that way, iPods allowed you to do so without carrying your laptop with you like one of those old cell phones. But, some sort of portable e-book reader would only trump laptops for a significant difference in cost, size, and portability. And, it would need a viable service like iTunes to provide easy access to popular titles. Still, you may be on to something.

"Comics will be a bit trickier in that, for it to truly succeed, I think there needs to be a dynamic way of presenting the images not animation, but something that takes advantage of the medium. I'd like to see something that allows the reader to step through dialog boxes or word balloons on a page. The art would be full-screen for that page or panel, and the word balloons and other text would pop in and out where needed. This would allow for more text on a panel than would normally be possible (not that that's always a good thing), and allow the art to be featured more prominently. This would also allow for more footnoting, writer and artist commentary, links to glossaries, character databases for catching up, etc."

Joe Quesada made some of the same points a couple a weeks ago at Newsarama. All of those things sound cool, but I really don't feel that my reading experience wants for all that. Still, I can't say I wouldn't check something like that out a few times before dismissing it.

"Imagine when you buy or download your usual pile of comics, you also get free with that previews of dozens of other comics, just like what WIZARD offers on their site. But this would be right there on your eComic reader or whatever it will be called."

I already see enough advertisements. I don't need more invading my reading space.

"Say for a comic like 52 or CIVIL WAR, the comic you are reading references an event in one of the tie-in comics. You just click on that footnote and it takes you to the relevant panel or sequence from that comic (assuming you have that comic) or to a publisher-provided recap page."

All right, that's kind of cool.

"But, I totally agree that merely porting over comics to a digital format is pointless. I'd rather sit with my stack of comics and savor them one at a time. But when the time comes that there are truly dynamic comics that take advantage of portable e-book technology, and when there is a content portal as simple and ubiquitous as iTunes, digital comics will take off. And just like how the Internet is opening up possibilities for people who want to produce video and music, new internet comic book superstars will also be created. Thanks for opening up discussion on a fascinating topic."

We, the readers, will ultimately determine where the market goes. No one can force us to buy anything, and sometimes the next big thing turns into a joke and an afterthought. Anyone remember the Divx format Circuit City pushed to compete with DVD? How about Minidisc? That doesn't mean that some sort of iTunes for books and comics couldn't succeed, but apparent usefulness doesn't always dictate how people react. Thanks for writing.

Paul Betancourt writes, "I'll speak generically to you on 'The Advantages of Digital Comics...' column as I do not have the intention of changing your mind (nor would it probably happen)."

Thanks, I get confused when people speak to me too specifically.

"As a 'nerd,' I am as smitten with comics as I am computers neither is foreign to me nor are their methods of use and distribution of media."

You're a nerd? Do you still get shoved into lockers by football players? Anyway, I freely admit that my personal preference doesn't negate the advantages of digital comics. I think the column made it clear that I understand as much. I just don't enjoy reading them.

"With that out of the way, I'll start by noting my observation that it seems you are 'old school' and don't seem to want change to what's coming down the pipe, not that there is anything wrong with that."

Old school? Hell, I was born old. Just because people embrace something new doesn't make it better. Just because they live with it and think it's necessarily doesn't make it so.

"I, too, note the collectible nature of the paperbacks and sometimes open the box to smell old paper in plastic bags and the times they will take me back to. I have to say, though, that while you may never like digital comics, I do."

That seems clear enough. That doesn't change my preference. That sounds akin to saying, "You voted for Bush? Well, I voted for Kerry! What do you think of that?"

"I see both of these mediums together in the future, possibly enhancing each other. Say, short stories or side tangents to a currently running Batman book that delves into the criminal a bit more, if you're interested in that sort of info. Also I do like the idea of old collectables being shared with people on a DVD or something similar, after all, not everyone was around for many of the 'good ol' days' and want to catch up with what's going on."

Well, sure having a DVD with 500 back issues of X-MEN certainly beats not having them at all.

"Good for you if you got the physical book, perhaps one day I, too, can collect those, but would it be fair to not offer it to me in a digital format that I can take on vacation to read when I get a moment?"

I never said you couldn't have them. Knock yourself out. By ten copies and stay up all night with a 12-pack of Mountain Dew reading from your laptop. I just said I didn't enjoy reading them.

"You already touched on the cheapness of user-created comics for the web, something that I agree with you on. Much like anything else on the web, much of it can be seen as low quality, but there are some that rise to the top, like PENNY ARCADE. Many offer long engaging stories also, and many, unfortunately, waste space on your screen. But they are outlets that many would not normally be able to pursue due to cost. Who knows? The next superhero may start digitally and be picked up to run on paper."

Several comics have made the leap from digital to print, if only in collections. I don't know of any outside of PvP that have followed with original content in print, though. If anyone knows of others, let me know.

"I guess my general thoughts are that it's not all bad, and perhaps you feel like paper comics are going away. I don't see that at all, and I think they will co-exist like books and audio-books."

Tell that to record stores everywhere.

"The web seems to 'threaten' many things we are used to, possibly changing what we like, but you have to remember that typically the people creating and doing things on the web are fans of comics or any other topic out there. You have to trust that they love paper comics as well as want the ability to add to the medium. I think in the future you might be happier to have more people to speak about comics with, because they got involved digitally and read the back stories, than blaming them that you can not collect paperback books anymore."

I always enjoy finding new people to despise.

Jamie Robertson writes, "Good editorial. I enjoyed reading it. This is an argument I have heard time and time again, and one I happen to agree with even though I have a web comic of my own. Still, here is something to consider. A few years ago a girl wandered into my forum, introduced herself and said how much she liked my comic. I thanked her, the others welcomed her. She continued that she was surprised that she liked my web comic because she didn't like comics. We asked her why. She replied that she just didn't like them. Someone asked, 'Not even SANDMAN?'

"'What?' she replied.

"The poster then went on to tell her about Neil Gaiman's Sandman and the girl fell in love with the whole notion right there."

Good God, that has to be the millionth time someone's had that conversation. "I don't read comics, but I like SANDMAN" has to be the most tired cliché in the book, second only to "I'm spiritual, but not religious" and "I'm straight, but I make out with my girlfriends sometimes." Actually, I kind of like hearing that last one.

"And I can't tell you how many times I've gotten an e-mail that reads, 'I don't generally like comics, except for a few Vertigo titles, but...' The point is that just as you don't like web comics for whatever reason, there are others who don't like comic books for whatever reason, but do enjoy web comics. Web comics are simply an extension of the comic form. The internet has not replaced television and web comics have not replaced comic books or comic strips. They may all fuse together one day, but for now they are just different."

The difference will come if and when Marvel or DC decides to move into primarily digital comics. It will likely start with a web-only comic you can pay to download. Then, other titles could shift online and out of print. Right now, most online comics remain free. Anyone wanting to check them out doesn't have to shell out much money or, God forbid, go to a comic shop. As I said, I don't deny the benefits of web comics. I just can't get into them like I can print comics. Thanks for writing.

"Dahn Lee writes, "As for the future of paper vs. online comics, I can envision a 'live and let live' compromise if the comic industry follows a business model similar to the motion picture industry. Movies are first released in theaters and then, about six months later, released for home viewing."

Or, if you know where to look, they're available five minutes later for home viewing. However, I doubt the MPAA sees that as much of a compromise."

"Ideally, I'd like to see paper comics continue to be sold through comic shops, but I would also like to see the major comic companies maintain online libraries that contain entire runs of all their titles. New comics could be posted to this online repository approximately six months after the release of the paper versions. Marvel, DC, Image, etc. could then charge a monthly subscription fee for access to this entire body of work. Even if digital rights restrictions were enforced to the point where none of the comics could be permanently saved to a hard drive, it would still be well worth $10 15 a month just to browse at will."

They could put them up in Flash if they wanted to prevent downloads. CrossGen offered something like that called COW Comics on the Web. You paid a dollar for unlimited access to their growing library of back issues. It seems like they probably bought it online a few years early, given that the industry hasn't jumped on the same idea yet.

"Love the column; you and Al keep up the good work!"

As long as Al and his mom keep blighting humanity, I'll fulfill my duty to humiliate him online and elsewhere. Thanks for writing.

David C. Simon writes, "I enjoyed your article at Cinescape about 'The Advantages of Digital Comics and Why I Will Never Like Them.' I understand the points you make, and I agree with many of them, but as the publisher of my own web comic, Crimson Dark, I feel the need to come out in defense of digital comics.

Ten paces with pistols then? I accept.

"The vast majority of web comics are not published on a monthly basis, but weekly or even daily. And these aren't just the gag strips like PENNY ARCADE or PvP, they're also the graphic novels and ongoing serials. Though people have the option of reading through the archives in a single hit, the usual practice is to read each installment as it is uploaded. This means that people are taking several minutes each day to read their favorite comics instead of several hours each month - much easier on the eyes."

I don't doubt that. But, I don't care for reading a story so incrementally. Reading them monthly already drives me crazy. I usually save arcs and miniseries before reading the story. But, if your readership likes reading a page every morning with coffee, more power to them.

"You said it yourself, most web comics are free. I, like you, would prefer to relax in a comfy chair and read something physical, but I simply cannot afford to buy comic books on a regular basis. The online world is my only source for this kind of entertainment, and though imperfect, it is far better than nothing at all. I'm not alone in this, as some of my readers have told me that they stopped reading comic books due to cost concerns, but turned to web comics as an alternative."

I'd still rather buy a movie on DVD than wait for it to come on network television. Granted, not everyone can afford a monthly comics addiction (or DVDs), and I'm glad web comics let them enjoy the medium.

"The protections associated with purchased digital comics (which I don't subscribe to, for financial reasons) are not all that different from physical comic books. The difference is that physical comic books are much harder to duplicate, re-brand and redistribute - so the publishers don't need to attach various conditions. I don't believe that online comics will ever replace physical comic books. E-Books haven't replaced real books, iTunes hasn't replaced live music and COUNTERSTRIKE hasn't replaced paintball - these things simply provide convenient alternatives for those who seek them."

iTunes hasn't replaced live music, but digital downloads have threatened CD sales quite a bit. Granted, I feel less pity for the RIAA than I do comic book publishers, but you can't argue that digital music and CDs have danced hand-in-hand for the past few years. E-books probably haven't replaced paper ones for all the reasons we've discussed already. And, there are probably way more people playing COUNTERSTRIKE than paintball. People use cell phones, but there are plenty of ham radio enthusiasts out there. I don't think paper comics will die, but I think their digital counterparts could dominate the industry several years from now. At some point, we may not have a choice as to what format we read. But for now, I'll stick with print comics, and those that enjoy web comics should support them. Ultimately, we, the readers, decide the direction the industry moves. Thanks to everyone for writing.

The Spinner Rack
By Al Brown and Kurt Amacker

DARK HORSE COMICS

Banya Explosive Delivery Man TP $12.95
Explosive Delivery Man: Okay, just sign right here and OH GOD NO BLAM!Kurt: It's like Scanners, but with delivery guys! Rock!

Conan #32 (MR) $2.99
Kurt: Tim Truman takes the reigns from Mike "Just a Fill-in" Mignola after Kurt Busiek's epic run on the title. I'm still on board.

Conan & The Songs Of The Dead #3 (of 5) $2.99
Kurt> Joe R. Lansdale continues to see how much you can take.

Dwight T Albatross The Goon Noir #1 (of 3) $2.99

Ghost In The Shell Vol 2 Stand Alone Complex Novel $8.95
Al: Boo! I would consider this if it were a stand alone simple novel. If I wanted complex, I'd try to figure out Kurt's genealogy.
Kurt: I don't know, is Pure Evil a country? Because if it is, I'm totally from there.

Ju On Novel $8.95
Al: Next: Ju On Pop
Kurt: Ju On crack, Al.

Kotobukiya Princess Leia Soft Vinyl Model Kit $99.99
Kurt: Soft vinyl? You don't say. I know what I'm doing this weekend.

Lonely Heart Art Of Tara McPherson HC $19.95
Al: This sounds suspiciously like a whole lot of pictures of unicorns.
Kurt: Just like on your Trapper Keeper!

Perhapanauts TP $15.95

Playboy Interviews The Directors TP (MR) $22.95
Al: Yeah, that's what we want from Playboy. Interviews with the fat guy behind the camera.
Kurt: There are many things I want from Playboy, but this isn't one of them.

Satsuma Gishiden Vol 1 TP $14.95

Star Wars Knights Of The Old Republic #8 $2.99

Vampire Hunter D Vol 5 Stuff Of Dreams Novel (MR) $8.95

DC COMICS

100 Bullets #76 (MR) $2.99

52 Week #20 $2.50

Batgirl Destruction's Daughter TP $19.99
Al: Please, please, please let her name be Destructette...
Kurt: Been watching the Smurfs again?

Batman Chronicles Vol 2 TP $14.99

Birds Of Prey #98 $2.99

Catwoman #59 $2.99

Checkmate #6 $2.99
Al: Suicide Squad returns.

Claw The Unconquered #4 $2.99

Deadman #2 (MR) $2.99

Fables #8 Poster $7.99

Flash The Fastest Man Alive #4 $2.99

Hellblazer #224 (MR) $2.99

Ion #6 (of 12) $2.99

Krypto The Super Dog #1 (of 6) $2.25
Al: Krypto is a dick.
Kurt: Any dog that could fly would be.

Mad Classics #10 $4.99
A Tale of Two Cities: It's simply the worst of times.
Ivanhoe: Yea and verily!
Sense and Sensibility: I find this most disconcerting. Oh, when will I marry?

Moon Child Vol 4 $9.99
Carl McCoy: Lower me down! Lower me down! Moonchiiiiiiiild! Lower me down!
Kurt: Without using Google or Wikipedia, e-mail me and explain that reference. He that so doeth shall stand as my brother on the battlefield.

Princess Natasha #4 (of 4) $2.25

Quitter SC (MR) $12.99

Robin #154 $2.99

Scooby Doo #112 $2.25
Al: From the solit: "There's a bogeyman on the baseball field!" Guest-starring, I assume, Gary Sheffield.
Kurt: Jesus, that was so low my feet hurt.

Shadowpact #5 $2.99

Skye Runner #4 $2.99
Kurt: I imagine sky running only works for a few seconds before it becomes ground dying.

Superman #656 $2.99

Testament #10 (MR) $2.99

Wetworks #1 $2.99
Al: Mike Carey and Whilce Portacio relaunch Wetworks. Whatev.
Kurt: "Whatev"? Who is this 12-year-old girl that has replaced Al? Wait, don't answer that. I know about Hard Candy.

Wetworks Var Edition A #1 $2.99

Wetworks Var Edition B #1 $2.99

Y The Last Man #23 Poster $7.99

IMAGE COMICS

Covenant Movie Set $19.99
Al: Yes, this is actually the set. Shipping and handling is $150,000.
Kurt: I'm going to buy this and throw mad Goth parties on it.

Godland Vol 2 Another Sunny Delight TP $14.99
Al: Yay Godland!

Looking Glass Wars Hatter M #3 (of 4) $3.99

Negative Burn #4 $5.99

Occult Crimes Taskforce #2 (of 4) (MR) $2.99

Sea Of Red #12 (MR) $2.99

Walking Dead #31 (RES) (MR) $2.99

Witchblade #101 $2.99

MARVEL COMICS

Astonishing X-Men #17 $2.99
Al: Uh...chick fight!
Kurt: Are they going to make out afterwards?

Astonishing X-Men Sketch Var #17 $2.99

Blade #1 $2.99
Al: Once more into the breach! Marvel has tried a few times to revive this property - and it really shouldn't be that hard, considering the success of the (first two) movies. (Not to mention their incredible friggin' awesomeness.) I've never cared for Howard Chaykin's writing (Bite Club), and while I love Marc Guggenheim (Wolverine) I'm not sure he's a good match for a vampire book, so my hopes aren't high this time either.
Kurt: Every time Marvel relaunches this, I buy it. And every single time, I'm disappointed. I don't see how this could be that hard. Blade is a cool character that hacks vampires to bits. How can you screw that up? But, every time it seems like someone gives Marvel a freaking shotgun to kill a guy with no legs, they just blew their own foot off.

Civil War #4 (of 7) $2.99
Al: Many of us were a bit dubious when Marvel said they'd make either side of Civil War a valid choice: while in the real world a Superhero Registration Act would be a no-brainer, it's too established as a bad idea in the Marvel Universe, where we've been making excuses for heroes to wear masks for decades. Our fears have turned out to be founded: the pro-registration side has come off as such unreasonable lunatics that it's strained our suspension of disbelief past the breaking point. Tony Stark might very well be in favor of registration, but he should be way too smart to allow it to come to violence; he would never support an act that left him forced to hunt down Captain America. This series has been a lot of fun to read, thanks to the art and Mark Millar's flair for The Big Moment, but half the Marvel Universe are currently acting frustratingly out-of-character and I hope Millar's got an explanation up his sleeve. Sorry...end rant.
Kurt: If you look at the issues in the dark, you can see What If? glowing in big letters over the title.

Civil War 1 For 75 Turner Sketch Var #4 (of 7) PI
Kurt: If you look at this in the dark, it just glows with the word "Sucker."

Civil War Amazing Spider-Man Decisions $5.99
Kurt: Pro registration or anti? Awesome traditional costume or lame-ass Iron Spider outfit?

Civil War Turner Var #4 Of(7) $2.99

Civil War X-Men #3 (of 4) $2.99
Al: David Hine's been writing the epic saga of Bishop, Mutant Town and the 198 more or less monthly since District X began, and it's been consistently boring. Here comes more of the same!
Kurt: Boring? That's my favorite!

Exiles #86 $2.99

Fantastic Four Visionaries John Byrne Vol 6 TP $24.99

Ghost Rider #3 $2.99

Iron Man #12 $2.99

Marvel Adventures Avengers #5 $2.99
Al: Not only is this series a total blast, but this issue features Fin Fang Foom. You really can't go wrong with that guy.
Kurt: I bet you read it to your victims, you chickenhawk.

Marvel Adventures Fantastic Four #16 $2.99

Marvel Masterworks Human Torch Vol 1 HC Var ED 66 $54.99

Marvel Masterworks Human Torch Vol 1 New ED HC $49.99

Marvel Spotlight Stan Lee Jack Kirby $2.99

Moon Knight #5 $2.99
Al: I wonder if this is gonna get moving any time soon.
Kurt: Man, I'm just going to sit back and enjoy your disappointment.

Ms Marvel Vol 1 Best Of The Best Premiere HC $19.99

Nextwave Agents Of Hate #8 $2.99

Runaways #20 $2.99
Al: For those of you who...uh, read this column but absolutely nothing else on the internet...Joss Whedon has been tapped to take over the series from Brian Vaughan. We'll find out if he can put a book out on time or not. I have perfect faith in his ability to keep the series up to Vaughan's high standards, though.
Kurt: NOOOOOOOOOOOO! God, I'm going to go break something. That's one more nail in the Marvel coffin, right next to Civil War delays and X-Men: The Last Stand.

Sensational Spider-Man #30 $2.99

Ultimate Fantastic Four #34 $2.99
Al: Mike Carey and Pasqual Ferry's run got off to a pretty good start last issue.

Ultimate Marvel Flip Magazine #17 $4.99

Ultimate Tales Flip Magazine #17 $4.99

Uncanny X-Men New Age Vol 5 First Foursaken TP $11.99

Union Jack #1 (of 4) $2.99
Marvel: Because you demanded it! No, wait, that's not why. Because...uh, actually, we can't remember why. We were a little drunk when we greenlit this. Sorry.

Wolverine #46 CW $2.99

X-Factor #11 $2.99

X-Men Apocalypse Dracula TP $10.99
Kurt: This was, in fact, as lame as it sounds, I'm sorry to say.

X-Men First Class #1 (of 8) $2.99
Al: So, this is the ten millionth time we've had a series like this.
Kurt: Those newfangled muties with their make-out parties and iPods and digital comics! What's this world coming to?

Questions? Comments? Let us know what you think at comicscape@cinescape.com.

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