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So Joss Whedon is doing a comic now. Coming this June, Dark
Horse Comics is releasing Fray, the Buffy the Vampire Slayers
comic debut. Having never watched an episode of Buffy leaves
me completely unsure as to whether this is something I want to
pick up or not. Looking at the cover of the latest Previews
order guide a thought struck me though: "This book is going to
sell through the roof."
Take a look at other television and film writers who have
recently made the crossover into professional comic book
writing. J. Michael Straczynski has moved from the popular
television series Babylon 5 to conquering the industry. Always
riding high on the Wizard top ten lists, his comics Rising Stars
and Midnight Nation from Top Cow have gained much critical
and financial success. Now he is taking on the Amazing Spider-
Man, arguably at the most important time in the characters
history.
The most golden example of a crossover writer is Kevin Smith.
Although his work on various View Askew spin-offs from his
movies did fairly well, when Smith took over Daredevil it was a
smash hit with fans. Now Smith has taken on Green Arrow, the
first issue of which has sold over 100,000 copies and
immediately went into a second printing.
While the above examples are probably already well known by
most readers of this website, Im listing them to bring up a
question about these comic series. Are more of the existing
comic fans reading these titles because someone from another
field is working on them, or are these titles managing to draw in
new readers due to the associations with other media?
Taking the first issue, the one I feel is probably the case, long-
time readers feel a fascination as to what a writer from another
medium would do in the comics medium. Admittedly, when
Kevin Smith took over Daredevil I was wondering if the Clerks
type humor would sneak in or if the work would be a more
standard look at the character. Im not a big fan of Spider-Man
or Babylon 5, yet Im tempted to check out Straczynskis
Amazing Spidey book. Maybe Im assuming my own interest is
relating too much with other fans but most of their response Ive
seen has been pretty similar. Is there something about movie
and television writers that really brings an extra oomph for our
buying dollar?
Alternatively, its likely that fans of these creators are crossing
over from these other mediums and picking up their comic book
work. Whether this is the actual case or not, comic companies,
as well as the creators involved, would be smart to push for this.
We certainly dont seem to be bringing in enough new readers
to really be a boon to the industry yet. Perhaps bringing in talent
from other mediums and effectively advertising it will increase
readership.
Kevin Smiths new film Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back will
involve the Bluntman and Chronic mini-series being published by
Image Comics this summer, but will the fans be aware of it?
Working in a video store has given me the opportunity to meet
many Kevin Smith fans, but the depressing part is that so many
of them are completely unaware that Smith has been involved
with comics work. Imagine how much impact a brief 30 second
spot before the movie advertising Bluntman and Chronic could
have for the comic industry. Even if only 5 million people see
the movie, and only 1/10 of them go to buy a Bluntman and
Chronic comic, you are looking at 500,000 sales. The current
best-selling comics are only selling in the 100,000 range. Brief
spots on Bablyon 5 reruns or episodes of Buffy The Vampire
Slayer could have similar results.
Its hard to work in a hypothetical model but there is no reason
these 2 fanbases shouldnt or couldnt cross-pollinate.
Everyone is talking about how the current reader levels in
comics have reached a near desperately low level. If existing
comic readers are excited about writers coming in from other
mediums this seems like a great way to boost sales in the short
term. As far as long term sales boosts these creators provide a
way to tap into other mediums and draw in fans of their other
projects. We may all be fans of different things, but most of us
fans are pretty similar. Give us a new project by a creator we
love and its like shooting fish in a barrel.
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