DC Announces Price Rollback to $2.99, Marvel Follows
DC Comics announced last Thursday, the day before New York Comic Con, that they would be lowering their base price for comics to $2.99 for 20 pages of story from $3.99 for 22 pages of story. Longer books with double features will be returned to the shorter length and lower price. As of 2011, only a few rare special issues will remain at the currently common price of $3.99. It has been speculated that this may bear some connection to ICv2's recent study suggesting that higher price points are hurting the industry.
Soon thereafter Marvel announced that they too will be moving to the lower price, but only for books new for 2011. Ongoing titles will remain at the same price.
NYCC 2010 DC
At New York Comic Con this year, DC announced that Hank Kanalz, until recently the Vice President
and General Manager of the now-defunct DC imprint Wildstorm, has been named DC's Senior Vice President of DC's Digital Entertainment division. Among their bigger news, the publisher announced they will be bringing out a new comic from celebrated chef and author Anthony Bourdain entitled Get Jiro as well as bringing out a second Cinderella-as-superspy mini-series set in the Fables universe. DC will turn the futuristic mini-series Batman Beyond, featuring an elderly Bruce Wayne and his young apprentice Terry McGinnis, into an ongoing title. Vertigo will produce a new 4-volume Annotated Sandman collection, with notes and commentary on each page from Annotated Sherlock Holmes creator Leslie Klinger.
NYCC 2010 Marvel
Renowned Powers team Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming will, with the addition Bendis' daughter Olivia Bendis, bring out a new all-ages superhero comic from Marvel's creator-owned Icon line. Entitled Takio, the book is about young bickering superhero sisters.
In other new Marvel news, The Losers writer Andy Diggle and Iron Man artist Adi Granov will be teaming up for the mini-series Astonishing Captain America for Marvel's Astonishing line. The five part will focus on today's high tech warfare and Captain America in his role as soldier. Meanwhile, in Ultimate Comics: Captain America by Jason Aaron and Ron Garney, the Ultimate Universe Steve Rogers will face his Vietnam-era successor. Invincible Iron Man 500, written by Eisner winner Matt Fraction, will involve a storyline featuring Tony's father's era as well as a time 40 years into the future and is said to be a jumping on point for new fans which will involve "three generations of Starks".
Last San Diego Comic-Con Marvel released a teaser strongly implying that they would be publishing Crossgen titles. Now, having confirmed that connection, they have released another teaser, this time for NYCC, Mark Waid's acclaimed quasi-Sherlock Holmes fantasy comic Ruse in particular. More details are available on Marvel's official NYCC tag on Marvel.com.
NYCC 2010 Dark Horse
Dark Horse's biggest news was their unveiling of Dark Horse HD, their new digital comics platform. Dark Horse HD will first be released as an online site and iTunes app and soon thereafter an Andriod app which is still in production. The program is proprietary and created in house which will allow Dark Horse to publish digital comics without getting Apple's approval or sharing revenue with Marvel.
Dark Horse also announced that they will be publishing the popular webcomic The Adventures of Dr. McNinja in print, as well as a sequel to Baltimore: The Plague Ships entitled Baltimore: The Curse Bells from the original team of Mike Mignola and Christopher Golden. Dark Horse will also be relaunching their title Criminal Macabre with a Free Comic Book Day story next spring and a crossover with Eric Powell's The Goon.
NYCC 2010: Richie Rich Returns
APE Entertainment has announced that they have secured the rights to Harvey Comics favorite, adventurous and altruistic boy billionaire Richie Rich. APE's plans involve all-new stories with an updated incarnation of the character.
This Week @ Good Comics For Kids
This week School Library Journal’s blog Good Comics for Kids had reviews of Dragon Puncher and On The Case With Holmes & Watson andthe 10/06 listing of comics suitable for all ages.
This Week @ The Beat
This week PWCW editor Heidi MacDonald’s blog The Beat covered New York Comic Con 2010 – and other people's thoughts on the subject – in depth, Editor Nathan Cosby leaving Marvel, indie comics creator Josh Neufeld's new State Department gig, the August indie comics month to month sales numbers, and comic publisher Arcana's acquisition of Devil's Due Productions characters.
