What do you hate about comic books?

[The Bruce]

Big universe spanning events - With the need to buy tons of crap just to understand the whole story.

Just give me one comic with it's own story.

 

[Watchman]

The pictures

 

[gn6196]

I've been collecting comics for over 35 years and the 3.99 price tag has just about stopped my collecting.

 

[Hound55]

I hate that you'll be hard pressed to find a single issue being a full story anymore. Same goes for 2 or 3 parters. Seems like everything needs at least 6 issues to be written anymore.

I also hate back to back to back events.

Agreed. It also restricts the flow of new fans and means that marketing becomes more dependent on word of mouth - people reading a few borrowed issues from a friend, say, in order to get enough of an idea as to what's going on in order to get into the idea themselves.

Short of trades, which are expensive, there are few self-contained issues for people to get straight into. This also affects old fans trying to get back into it...

 

[Tron Bonne]

Yeah, the decompressed nature of comic storytelling nowadays has gotten out of hand. Seems like there are very few writers who really use the time and space they have for a single. The whole trade system really is a double-edged sword in that way.

 

[E-Man]

I hate how there are too many books featuring the same character. I know I don't have to buy them, but when there are so many events back to back and cancellations I end up having to "get" the books I don't care to read just to keep up. Wanna read about a certain character? Well we canceled her title because it wouldn't sale. That's okay though because you can read her every month on Wolverine: Bandits With Cutting Weapons Just Because We Can!

I hate how fans of the genre don't give new characters a chance. That's why we have most of the top 50 comics monthly that feature the same 20 characters. They won't buy anything besides all the appearances of one or two characters they like, so new books don't have a chance to sell unless they're tie-ins or they have popular creators on the title.

I hate how they logically don't put powerful characters in limbo. If you're not going to use a character because of sales that's fine, but if they're one of the most powerful characters in your universe there should be a reason why they're on the sidelines when all the major events happen. Monica Rambeau is probably more powerful than Thor himself, or at least in his range. Why hasn't she been using her light speed power to deal with the Skrulls? With Shadowland coming up, how come she isn't helping to deal with whatever is going on? If you're going to put her in limbo because she's not popular that's understandable, but at least give a reason why this powerful character who could solve a lot of problems isn't being used. Say she stopped using her powers after she accidentally got someone killed, or give her an important task that requires her to be far away from the action. Don't just not give her anything to do and then not use her at all because she doesn't sell. /rant

 

[Matt Mortem]

I hate the Dr. Strange isn't the Sorcerer Supreme anymore. DUMB!!! I also agree with E-Man about super powerful characters being sidelined because they're not popular enough. You make terrific points.

 

[E-Man]

Dr. Strange will eventually be the SS again. It's only a matter of time before he reclaims the mantle. Maybe Voodoo will not feel worthy, or he could die soon. I think it depends on how much Bendis likes him, but eventually Strange will be that guy again.

 

[Matt Mortem]

Well I hope Voodoo loses it soon. It didn't sit well with me at all that he Strange gave up his title. I hate it when comics do gimmicky weird things like that to characters. Like ****ing up Beast. Why on earth did he need to become cat-like????

 

[Visceral]

One thing I hate about comic books is when a comic book character comes back from the dead
If thay are going to kill off a character I think thay should stay dead.

Reason #1 to stop reading is that all the ingenuity and dramatic poise of a story go out the window when you have characters that cannot die.

 

[Matt Mortem]

Reason #1 to stop reading is that all the ingenuity and dramatic poise of a story go out the window when you have characters that cannot die.

Which is why when a character dies they should stay dead. Even though I didn't like that they killed off Captain America and I liked it it even less that they brought him back. The dead should stay dead.

 

[Max J Power]

Dr. Strange will eventually be the SS again. It's only a matter of time before he reclaims the mantle. Maybe Voodoo will not feel worthy, or he could die soon. I think it depends on how much Bendis likes him, but eventually Strange will be that guy again.

I'm no Bendis hater (I like most of his work), but it does kind of annoy me that the main storylines and continuity of the Marvel universe (and maybe DC too, but I don't follow it as closely) is primarily determined by what a few writers want.

 

[E-Man]

Which is why when a character dies they should stay dead. Even though I didn't like that they killed off Captain America and I liked it it even less that they brought him back. The dead should stay dead.

This is why I don't really care too much when it's advertised that a person is going to die. Chances are that death won't last, and if the character is a D-lister their death with just end up being a gimmick anyway.

I'm no Bendis hater (I like most of his work), but it does kind of annoy me that the main storylines and continuity of the Marvel universe (and maybe DC too, but I don't follow it as closely) is primarily determined by what a few writers want.

I like Bendis' Daredevil a lot, so I'm no hater either. I dislike how things revolve so much around who and what he likes. So many great writers are really held back by editorial but he gets pretty much free reign. I know he sells, and I understand why he has more pull with the editors than other writers. When you're a proven seller you should have more of a say in what you write, but they should really limit that so that it doesn't have too big of an impact on the whole Marvel U.

 

[Chris Wallace]

I hate gimmickry more than anything else. Nobody wants to tell a good story anymore. It's all about grabbing attention, grabbing headlines, the next stunt. The 90's were big on cover image gimmicks and costume revamps, killing people off. replacing the character with somebody else, bringing back long-dead characters. Now we've still got the killing and replacing, public unmasking, stupid retcons and on top of all of that, this Hollywood-inspired movement toward "realism".

 

[Matt Mortem]

I hate gimmickry more than anything else. Nobody wants to tell a good story anymore. It's all about grabbing attention, grabbing headlines, the next stunt. The 90's were big on cover image gimmicks and costume revamps, killing people off. replacing the character with somebody else, bringing back long-dead characters. Now we've still got the killing and replacing, public unmasking, stupid retcons and on top of all of that, this Hollywood-inspired movement toward "realism".

Agreed. There needs to be more focus on just telling a good story

 

[Alastor]

I hate when people take comics and the characters too seriously. Or when they demand that there be this rigid, exact interpretation of a character, as if it is THEIR character. For example, all the b****ing and moaning about Spider-Man's marriage. "He isnt the real Spidey! its some alternate universe!! WHAAAA!!!". ****, its a comic book. Or people who despise Morrison's Batman run because he isn't beating up gangsters and thugs, and Morrison has the GALL to show Batman in a more superheroic light. **** and go buy one of the other thousand Batman comics out their showing the grim dark Batman fighting for his festering, evil city. "I want BRUCE as Batman in the MAIN batbooks!! GRRR". ****, you simpleton.

 

[Chris Wallace]

That's not comics themselves; that's the fans. And people like what they like. Fans have been wanting things their way for decades, and are notoriously resistant to change. Now part of the problem is, many of these changes-the ones you cited in particular-are the result of the aforementioned gimmickry. WHich makes some of the protests justified.

 

[Keyser Soze]

Grant Morrison on event fatigue:

Of course I’m aware of a perpetual and chronic discontent from a particular jaded minority on the internet but I try to overlook their constant expressions of dissatisfaction on the grounds that it’s depressing and often personally abusive.

Surely part of the fun of comics includes following stories across titles? If you like comics, what’s so awful about buying another one to see what happens next? And if you don’t want to buy it, don’t bother. Do something else. Buy cigarettes or booze or bananas. I don’t know!

Every time I read about the agonizing pains of ‘event fatigue’ or how ‘3-D hurts my head...’ or how something’s ‘incomprehensible’ when most people are ‘comprehending’ it just fine, it’s like visiting a nursing home. ‘Events’ in superhero comic books FATIGUE you? I’m speechless. Admittedly they do tend to be a little more exciting than the instruction leaflets that come with angina pills but... ‘fatigue’?

Superhero comics should have an ‘event’ in every panel! We all know this instinctively. Who cares ‘how?’ as long as it feels right and looks brilliant?

 

[Tron Bonne]

Surely part of the fun of comics includes following stories across titles?

It is, first I'm hearing of it

Eh, it doesn't matter how much creators and writers defend them, I've still kind of tired seeing these mega status quo altering events. I don't hate them, but one every 6 months to a year feels like overkill to me. And, yeah, that's why I don't buy them, but obviously I'm one amongst none

 

[Keyser Soze]

It is, first I'm hearing of it

Eh, it doesn't matter how much creators and writers defend them, I've still kind of tired seeing these mega status quo altering events. I don't hate them, but one every 6 months to a year feels like overkill to me. And, yeah, that's why I don't buy them, but obviously I'm one amongst none

Actually, you earn my kudos. You're not interested in the events, so you don't buy them.

THAT'S one of MY pet peeves. The fanboys who complain, "ARGH, another event with loads of tie-ins! Now I have to buy all these extra comics!" Umm... no you don't. No one is holding a gun to your head. With Blackest Night, I only bought the tie-ins I wanted to buy. With Siege, I only bought the main series #1-#4 (and Thor, but only because I buy it monthly anyway rather than because it was a Siege tie-in) yet I understood what was going on just fine.

People who buy every single comic with the title of the event on a banner along the top of it, then complain about how the comic was irrelevant to the main story and a waste of money, are suckers. It's not the comic publishers' fault that you're a sucker. If you don't approve of all the needless event tie-ins, speak with your wallet. Don't buy them.

 

[SuperFerret]

What Soze said. Though while I'm not a fan of the status quo changing events (which unless you want to be lost, you do have to at least know about what happens in them), events themselves are fine. Take the original Secret Wars for example. Cool stuff happened, but in the end, things were essentially the same.

 

[Mario_Galaxy]

Actually, you earn my kudos. You're not interested in the events, so you don't buy them.

THAT'S one of MY pet peeves. The fanboys who complain, "ARGH, another event with loads of tie-ins! Now I have to buy all these extra comics!" Umm... no you don't. No one is holding a gun to your head. With Blackest Night, I only bought the tie-ins I wanted to buy. With Siege, I only bought the main series #1-#4 (and Thor, but only because I buy it monthly anyway rather than because it was a Siege tie-in) yet I understood what was going on just fine.

People who buy every single comic with the title of the event on a banner along the top of it, then complain about how the comic was irrelevant to the main story and a waste of money, are suckers. It's not the comic publishers' fault that you're a sucker. If you don't approve of all the needless event tie-ins, speak with your wallet. Don't buy them.

I remember after Disassembled, you couldn't walk into the Marvel boards without seeing death threats for Bendis over killing Hawkeye. But then every Wednesday they'd buy the next part. What? If you want to send a message then stop buying the book.

 

[Alastor]

First, I 100 percent agree with what Morrison said. Secondly, what Soze said is also true. Anyone who feels like they HAVE to buy EVERYTHING even if it sucks are addicts.

 

[Max J Power]

I remember after Disassembled, you couldn't walk into the Marvel boards without seeing death threats for Bendis over killing Hawkeye. But then every Wednesday they'd buy the next part. What? If you want to send a message then stop buying the book.

I think the majority of issues fans have with comics would be solved if more people did this.

 

[E-Man]

I understand what Morrison is saying, but part of the problem is that these big events take over so many books that it is hard to steer from them. In Marvel most books are affected by a major event besides the Brubaker books, Cap and Daredevil. Same thing with DC. How many books were affected by a Crisis or Blackest Night? It's no so black and white that you could just not buy the books that are event tie-ins. Also, many people like the major popular characters like Spider-man, Batman, Superman, etc. You really think that it's easy to just drop those titles that are always featured in the big events?

There's also the issue that it's fatiguing in terms of hearing the same thing over and over about how the universe is going to change. Nothing is ever going to be the same and all that jazz. With the way that events happen every 6 months to a year, it doesn't intrigue you to read about them. These events would be really cool to see if they were not so frequent, but hearing about events all the time makes me yawn. Doing the same gimmick over and over again is not being innovative, and that's where I understand where some people's frustration comes from.

Yeah, there are people who whine just to whine. Those people will never be satisfied, and there's no point in listening to them. But when you have a small niche market that is nowhere near as popular as it used to be and their doing the same thing over and over, telling people that they don't have to buy the events is not doing favors for long term growth. The whole idea behind voting with your dollars only seems to be said when it favors doing the same thing. Millions of readers have voted with their dollars years ago by ditching the comics industry for good, but no one talks about bringing them back into the fold.