Punisher Creator Gerry Conway “Cancel Every Existing Superhero Comic”
https://bleedingcool.com/comics/punisher-creator-gerry-conway-cancel-every-existing-superhero-comic/
They made the heroes all gay, etc. That is why they are failing. Go woke, go broke.
Super heroes were always pro-American. Not any more, as far as I can tell.
It’s past time to cultivate some newer, younger comic book readers. That means giving them their own new sets of heroes and villains. That means holding back the trembling damn that separates material for children and early teens from material suitable for adults.
When selling to kids, keep race, sex and gender issues to a bare minimum. Race, sex and gender issues should not be THE story. Keep the stories about weaponry, science fiction, early romance or humor. A little well placed violence can go a long way in such stories. Stay outta the Bushes!
There is a comic called Pigman about a superhero who fights a war against Islam but as you might Imagine he has a hard time marketing it.
Modern creators are all about deconstruction.
That doesn’t lend itself to traditional super hero tales, which are basically modern interpretations of ancient mythology.
It’s hard to tell morality stories when you have none.
One - comics use to be for kids and early teenagers.
Two - the stories had heroes with decent values.
Three - the violence was there but not over the top like today. No breaking necks, pulling out hearts, etc.
Four - many characters were retconned or made woke. A woman wears the Iron Man armor, Captain America was portrayed as always being HYDRA, the FF were broken up, the Hulk was killed off and someone named Amadeus Chou became the new Hulk, Superman renounces his American citizenship, the golden Green Lantern and the Rawhide Kid are retconned as gay, comics became too political - trouncing Republican/conservatives and showcasing Obama as a superhero.
Five - sold only in specialty stores and not at local news stands or drug stores, like years ago.
Six (this was not mentioned) - the artists in my opinion have serious hangups concerning women. Large breasted, scantily clad female villains and heroes, art that looks it should be in Playboy or Penthouse. I get the impression that just like movies and television, the writers and artists are not creating stories for boys or men but for themselves and their peers.
There was a Human Torch (Fantastic Four torch) story written by Stan Lee in the early 60's. The villain turned out to be a newspaper publisher. Could that story be written today?
Comics are, ideally, (or were, realistically) a form of Romantic escape. It’s a way to tell fantastic stories of (mostly) righteous smiting without invoking religion. People don’t get tired of listening to those stories, even though they know they aren’t real. They nevertheless give people ideals, values, and virtues to strive for.
For the last several decades, they’ve become props of the Left and yet another media stream for dispensing their poisonous propaganda.
How come US comics are dying, whereas Japanese manga and Korean manwha are going gangbusters?
By comparison, US comics are a “closed shop”, but the Oriental versions are wide open to anyone with graphic and writing talent. Their comics are divided between action and romance, but there is huge ground for creativity and uniqueness.
Many manga and manwha can be read free online with English (often fan) translations. And some of them are top notch for their art and writing.
I have a collection of over 50k books. All I buy now is 1989 and older.
The Diamond distribution monopoly took books out of drug stores, groceries, dept chains, etc. and went all direct to specialty shops. Two generations of kids never saw a comic till they were a teen. As a result print runs dropped from 100s of thousands on main issues in the 70s to 10s of thousands by late 80s.
Asingle floppy has gone to around 4-5 dollars. Partly due to use of glossy paper, low print runs, and gimmicks like multiple covers [a repeat of the dreadful 90’s].
Writing went to crap for the most part, with the only decent stuff focused strictly on adults. Any kid stuff is written for a 4 yr old while little is written between those two.
Some of the modern art is beautiful, but it’s a select few and the really great ones don’t do interiors.
Take it back into general stores on newsprint, target kids with adventure, heroism, and a drive for good. Margins will be smaller, but positive, and volumes will pick up. DC has broken with of Diamond in past year and had some success with Walmart, but waiting to see if they will go that route.
My 2 cents.