Marvel VP of Sales blames diversity for falling comic book sales

[Moralgy]

Sometimes yes and sometimes no. It's all incredibly confusing and part of the reason comics are so difficult to get into.

Ahh okay, I can see that. If I were to get into something I would want to read about how, for example, Captain America deals with the aftermath of something Thor did or vice verse. I like continuity in things like this.

[Immitis]

Random question, is everything in the respective comic book universes cannon to each other or do they branch out into different stories that don't relate to each other what so ever.

sometimes they dont matter but they all happened. secret wars is the first time any sort of reboot has ever happened with marvel and even that left 99% of things the same and mostly just took the few alternate universe characters they liked and brought them into the main one permanently.

dc however reboots their shit like every couple years and its very hard to tell what is and isnt canon for each respective reboot until we find out and even then it may not have happened exactly as it did.

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Ahh okay, I can see that. If I were to get into something I would want to read about how, for example, Captain America deals with the aftermath of something Thor did or vice verse. I like continuity in things like this.

sometimes stuff like that happens, not all the time though. would depend on how "big" the thing thor wouldve done is or if it happened in thors solo book or in the avengers book. however, regardless of whether or not they talk about it, said thing thor did still happened

[NineSpine]

Good on you. Seriously.

I have not the time, energy or drive to try and enact real change concerning violent behavior. I will never be a cop, politician or activist. I am at best an idea guy. I like to point out ideas that I think are good or bad.

Philosophy is way more interesting to me than governance.

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What part do you disagree with specifically? Genuinely curious. We've gone back and forth about what I think for awhile now, without getting into what you think. Also, my responses are going to get more sporadic. This artifact power isn't going to farm itself and mage tower is up.

I said I don't disagree!

[GreenJesus]

That is because Anime/manga > US comics

And just making a female superman or a female spiderman for the sake of being diverse is just fucking stupid.

[NineSpine]

How about those who died at the nightclub? Are you able to comprehend the very apparent and obvious motive or will you try to act the apologist as most leftists did? That a big enough pile of bodies for you there?

He was inspired by one of two things:

1. He was gay and enraged by it.

2. He was an Islamic extremist.

If it is 1, that is a product of right wing thinking. If it is 2, that is also right wing.... so I'm curious what point you think you are making.

Also stop trying to make everyone else out to be triggered when we're on a forum. It's a real sad attempt at turning the table.

I said comics had a homogeneous and insular fanbase, which is a fact, and was told that means I hate white straight people. If that isn't being triggered, I don't know what is.

[PC2]

Demographic retcon should not be too obvious. I think we can call it argumentum ad zeitgeist.

[OrcsRLame]

I said I don't disagree!

I'm dyslexic as fuck!

Bad brain! Bad! *smacks*

[Doombringer]

Maybe Marvel should stop changing established characters and write some new ones.

We don't need Captain America the Paraplegic, or Goodie Two-Shoes Deadpool in a Blue Suit, or Gwen Stacy as Spiderman, or Alternate History Wolverine. Cap was a WWII soldier who they juiced up, he's not an Afghanistan vet. Deadpool is in red and is a wiseass. Gwen Stacy wasn't bitten by a radioactive spider, and I want Wolverine with adamantium claws, not Pez dispensers or whatever. THAT'S IT.

Write some original stories and characters with paraplegics or women leads or whatever... THAT will catch my interest.

[A dot Ham]

Haven't we heard this before?

-Daredevil movie does poorly: "People must not like Daredevil movies"
-Catwoman movie does poorly: "People must not like female superhero movies"

Comparing the poorly produced movies, to the entire successful franchise is entirely different.

In theory the success of the Marvel movies under Disney's care, should have increased comic book sales. It hasn't.

Well no shit Einstein. No one wants a female Thor, nor a black teeny female Iron Man.

Basically this. No one wants to see their favorite character replaced just for the sake of diversity. Not only that, but its beyond lazy... rather than create something new, fresh, or exciting. You're just going to change the character entirely? Tony Stark = Iron Man. Iron Man = Tony Stark. You can't separate the alter ego from the superhero and call it a day.

Going back to the OP and the article, my personal stint with comic books was fleeting. Mainly because they are/were expensive. Its also completely overwhelming, so you like Captain America... which series/universe are you interested in? Its a bit to keep up with. Most of my obsession/interest/knowledge of super heroes comes from whatever cartoon/tv adaption that was made.

As a parent who got my son interested in super heroes far earlier than I ever was, its difficult to find genres that have continuity with the movies (which is what he knows). Iron man on netflix for example... was a 3D animated series... that has tony as a teen.

I've lost track of my thoughts... and interest.... you get the idea.

[Alfador]

When you manage talent poorly, over-saturate the market, and price out customers, don't blame product diversity as the cause of declining sales.

http://io9.gizmodo.com/marvel-vp-bla...ump-1793921500

Hmm, Gizmodo... about as credible a channel for comment on this as a bucket of rocks. Actually I take that back. The rocks do less hypocritical agenda-pushing. The professional virtue signalers at Giz have done a pretty good job convincing everyone that it's some nebulous problem with the way they market when the truth of it they tried to hard to please the very people now calling them liars and it didn't work.

The truth of it is that "diversity" is the root of the problem. Where Marvel misses the target is that it's not the existence of diversity that is the problem, merely the way it's implemented. Token replacements without context that replace someone's favorite character just alienate them.

[Wewlad]

He was inspired by one of two things:

1. He was gay and enraged by it.

2. He was an Islamic extremist.

If it is 1, that is a product of right wing thinking. If it is 2, that is also right wing.... so I'm curious what point you think you are making.



I said comics had a homogeneous and insular fanbase, which is a fact, and was told that means I hate white straight people. If that isn't being triggered, I don't know what is.

Leftists apologize for Islam. Alt-Right is against Islamist extremism. Get your fucking motives right.

And to be triggered is to be Trigglypuff or all the screaming harpies when Trump won. Not making a text-only post on a forum where emotion is not immediately apparent.

[Moralgy]

Leftists apologize for Islam. Alt-Right is against Islamist extremism. Get your fucking alignments right.

And to be triggered is to be Trigglypuff or all the screaming harpies when Trump won. Not making a text-only post on a forum where emotion is not immediately apparent.

So is all of Islam considered Islamist extremists or something, because your comparison is kind of moot otherwise.

[Wewlad]

So is all of Islam considered Islamist extremists or something, because your comparison is kind of moot otherwise.

I'll just say Islam because the Quran is far more despicable than the Bible (which is terrible itself). It should be watered down as Christianity was but that may well be impossible.


[Infracted]

[Ivanstone]

Basically this. No one wants to see their favorite character replaced just for the sake of diversity. Not only that, but its beyond lazy... rather than create something new, fresh, or exciting. You're just going to change the character entirely? Tony Stark = Iron Man. Iron Man = Tony Stark. You can't separate the alter ego from the superhero and call it a day.

Except for that time when James Rhodes was Iron Man.

I keep on hearing the term "for the sake of diversity" but the opposite of that is keeping the status quo for the sake of what? Some random nerd's comfort zone?

Interesting writers will write interesting comics. Bad ideas on paper can be interesting if successfully executed.

Thor is interesting because anyone worthy of wielding Mjolnir can be Thor. It could be white male drunken Norwegian. A woman dying from cancer. A horse from space.

Iron Man is a suit of armour and isn't necessarily defined by the drunk who usually wears it.

A couple of things:
1 - Most people like Jane Thor because they like Jason Aaron's writing. So far Marvel has failed to drive him nuts so I guess that's a plus.
2 - My customer who is most fascinated by Jane as Thor is a young girl who's favourite hero is now a woman. I think its very nice that she's happy with it but some people aren't. I challenge those people to explain why she's wrong.

[Deleted]

Honestly there is a case for Marvel Hi-jacking their old established character names to market a bunch of diversity strangers being a questionable/seethrough ploy, but I don't honestly think this is where their problem is.

Their real problem lies in how they seem pathologically unable to keep their story focused on one single character and it's immediate acquaintances, and develop that, without endlessly resorting to multiverse/crossover.

Take Spider gwen: Neat art, neat idea, neat costume, neat Alternative universe ripe to be explored.

What does Marvel do? They endlessly mire this fireflash of a random idea/success in storylines drowned in multiverse travel, blatantly ship her with some of their other characters and create crossovers making it impossible to keep track of stuff if you don't buy from a comic line you're actually not interested in.. and puts the storyline you actually have bought into on hold as they do.

If they could just stop, get their bearings, and actually develop something, they would be in a much better shape. They have no confidence in their characters capability to carry their own plotlines, it's so frustrating!

[Damajin]

Why would Marvel attempt to charge people for shit Tumblr gives away for free?

[Wixwix]

It's almost like people dislikes the leftist agenda.

[Elba]

So neckbeard man children want the same tired old shit that has been churned out for 50 years? Color me surprised.

[gyrados]

as long as it tells a good story who gives a shit what they look like i mean i know people are use to it being one way but sometimes change is good

[Elba]