Many of you, like myself, might've noticed a few old trends once again
gaining momentum in the comic book industry. Those trends are TV based
comics and Manga. Manga has always been highly popular throughout Asia,
but it has only seen mild success in the United States and throughout North
America. TV based comics proved themselves to be very viable years ago
when the X-Files comic was released, which was incredibly popular for quite
some time. Xena and Hercules comics followed and both of them saw moderate
success. After the debut of the Xena and Hercules books, it was quite some
time before another TV based comic hit the stands. Currently, some of the
hottest comics on the market are TV based comics and Manga comics. Buffy
The Vampire Slayer from Dark Horse, Pokemon: The Electric Tale of Pikachu
from Viz, Dark Minds from Image, and Battle Chasers from Cliffhanger are
among them. I'd be remiss if I also didn't mention KISS: The Psycho Circus
from Image. While it's not a TV based comic or a Manga comic, it's
definitely a comic based a significant piece of popular American culture
and is not your normal comic book fare. What makes these comics so
popular?
I think the most obvious explanation for the popularity of these comics is
that they cater to an audience that doesn't usually go for comics. Books
like Buffy: The Vampire Slayer and Pokemon: The Electric Tale of Pikachu
attract fans of those respective shows who want to enjoy Buffy and or
Pokemon in another form. In all likelihood, most of the people who watch
Buffy and Pokemon don't read comics. That's the wonderful thing about the
Buffy and Pokemon comics. They attract people who haven't really given
comics much consideration and they probably turn some folks onto the
medium. Many may start reading Buffy or Pokemon and find that they really
enjoy the comic format. They then try other comics and pretty soon there's
one more diehard comic fan out there. This is exactly what the floundering
comics industry needs. All comic publishers should take notice of the
immense popularity of Buffy and Pokemon and realize that they've been
neglecting a very significant potential market niche. I wouldn't be at all
surprised if the Buffy and Pokemon comics are only the beginning.
I'm also fairly certain that many of you have taken notice of the currently
thriving Manga comic market. Joe Madureira's Battle Chasers and Dreamwave
Studios Dark Minds are among the most popular Manga comics in North America
right now. Other books like Dark Horse's Blade of the Immortal are also
very popular. I think the primary reason that these Manga titles are
popular is because they, like the Buffy and Pokemon comic, tap a relatively
untapped market niche. Anime, which is essentially Manga in cartoon
format, is extremely popular in Asia and in North America. Manga comics in
both markets are nothing new, but the prominence of books like Battle
Chasers and Dark Minds has caused fans of those titles to take a look at
other Manga titles, and thus we have a surge in Manga popularity on North
America.
The TV and Manga comic trends are nothing but good for the comics industry.
They appeal to non-comic fans and turn them onto the comics medium. In
order for comics to thrive again, the various comic publishers are going to
have to find ways to attract people who aren't comic fans and make them
comic fans. For too long the content of comics has remained fairly
consistent, and the long term survival of the comics medium is contingent
upon the medium periodically reinventing itself. In doing so, comics will
appeal to a previously ignored audience. TV and Manga comics are an
excellent start, and might perhaps be one of the first steps toward a
thriving and healthy comic marketplace.
