For quite a while I’ve had some strong opinions about comic books. My biggest concern is that comics cost too much. The average price of a monthly comic book is $3.99. That’s too much for the amount of entertainment you get. Considering that it takes less than 10 minutes to read a 22-page comic book, it’s the most expensive form of entertainment I enjoy. In comparison, I pay $14.99 a month for an Audible membership and for that, I get one audiobook. I get hours and hours of entertainment for my $14.99. Currently, I’m listening to a book that’s over 17 hours in length.
The truth about Comicsgate
I learned over time Comicsgate was about all sorts of things I didn’t agree with. These things included:
- Anyone who doesn’t agree with Comicsgate is called names. If you’re not down with Comicsgate, you’re a social justice warrior (SJW). Men are called cucks, soy-boys, radical leftists, or some other derogatory name. Women are called cum dumpsters, fake geeks, diversity hires, or worse. Since most supporters of Comicsgate hide behind fake names, they throw these insults towards people while protected by anonymity. I take a dim view of fake name people attacking real name people.
- Comicsgate supporters claimed to want politics out of comics. That turned out not to be true. They were fine with politics if it was Trumpian in nature. I’ve watched live streams on YouTube with Comicsgate people and they never grow tired of bashing Hillary Clinton or anyone critical of Donald Trump. I reluctantly voted for Hillary Clinton and I’m critical of Donald Trump. When Comicsgate creators bash Hillary Clinton supporters and people critical of Trump, they’re bashing me.
- Comicsgate supporters wanted comics to be more affordable until they didn’t.
The straw that broke the Comicsgate camel’s back
Everything changed for me when the people looked to as the leaders in Comicsgate, Richard C. Meyer, Ethan Van Sciver, and some of the others began asking people to help fund their independent books. These books were even more expensive than traditional comic books. A lot more.
Comicsgate related books
Jawbreakers: Lost Souls, Richard C. Meyer, 112 pages, $25 + $10 shipping.
Cyberfrog: Blood Honey, Ethen Van Sciver, 48 pages, $25 + $10 shipping.
Red Rooster: Golden Age, Mitch and Elizabeth Breitweiser, 40 pages, $25 + $10 shipping.
There are others, but these are the most popular books among supporters of Comicsgate. These books are described as graphic novels. Most people associate graphic novels with five or six issues of a floppy comic that have been bundled together into a book. Most graphic novels have at the very least 120 pages (5 floppy comics). The graphic novels offered by the Comicsgate crew have fewer pages. In some cases, a lot less.
What I find to be especially obnoxious is the $10 shipping. Since these books are only available through the IndieGoGo crowdfunding platform, the only way to get one is to have it shipped to you. The price should then be rolled into the cost of the book.
Have Comicsgate creators never heard of Amazon?
These creators could have used Amazon to fulfill orders, allowing Amazon Prime members to pay nothing for 2-day shipping. I’m currently listing my old graphic novels on eBay. It costs only a couple bucks to send a graphic novel U.S. First Class Mail. If it’s too heavy for that, I send them U.S. Media Mail.
I ship them in padded envelopes I purchased in bulk at Sam’s Club. I can do this because the books I’m selling are actually graphic novels. Most of the graphic novels sold on IndieGoGo are not really graphic novels so they need something more substantive than a padded envelope. I imagine at the very least they will need to be bagged and boarded and sent in something more rigid than a padded envelope. That’s what I do when I ship a single floppy comic.
Since the buyer is paying to ship when they buy a graphic novel from me on eBay, I make it as cheap as possible to send it to them. I get the impression these Comicsgate creators never even considered making the shipping as affordable as they could. They seemingly just don’t care.
IndieGoGo is a terrible place to sell comic books
This IndieGoGo business model is beyond stupid. These books are far too expensive even without the extortionate cost of shipping. Any success these creators enjoy will be shortlived. Show me a consumer willing to pay $35 for a 40-page comic and I’ll show you a consumer who will probably never do it again.
I know I won’t.
By charging $35 for a 40-page graphic novel, these Comicsgate creators are making comics even more expensive then they are now and they’re being rude to the fans. Charging fans $35 for a 40-page comic is rude. Comicsgate followers don’t realize how poorly Comicgate creators are treating them. That doesn’t mean they’ll never realize it. Just wait for them to get their wafer-thin $35 “graphic novels” and they begin to realize what $35 could have got them on Amazon.
I’m done supporting hashtag movements
I won’t associate myself with a hashtag movement ever again. I have my beliefs and I’m perfectly capable of expressing those beliefs without the aid of a hashtag. The problem with these types of movements is when a leader in said movement goes on national TV with a Hitler haircut and admits to calling a former editor at Marvel Comics a cum dumpster, it not only reflects poorly on him but everyone else associated with the movement. I don’t think Richard C. Meyer considered anyone else when he agreed to appear on the Jim Jefferies Show. I think he was more concerned with selling poorly written $35 graphic novels.
I have a generally dim view of comicsgaters…if anyone even iDENtifies with that term. I have heard someone associated with diversity and comics named ‘Zach/Zack’ say that he never, ever told his followers to harass, diss, or otherwise bother retail stores and their staff who had publicly chosen not to support the Jawbreakers comic. So…who knows?
I had no idea that these comics coming out from these comicsgater folks (‘there is no comicsgate. there are no members of comicsgate. the first rule of comicsgate is…there is no comicsgate. by the way, we hate the liberal agenda and SJW memes.’)…whoever they may be, cost so much money. Yah, up until 2013 or so I was working as a manager of a comics shop, more or less, and managed to continue to read comics for free…but when I quit, prices reached up to $3.99, I had pretty much had it and had no more interest in spending that kind of money. I ultimately just used the library, haunted used bookstores with good graphic novel selections, and eventually found…other sources online. I have no difficulty reading comics in digital format. Doesn’t bother me at all. I no longer have a fetish for the soft paper, and I still have 8 short boxes and more of my original collection. Sorry this is so rambling. I think there is a hella lot of conservative, anti-progressive sentiment in the comicsgate view of the world, sad to say. I just read comics I enjoy, I don’t kvetch about the ones I don’t. Or that my creative efforts weren’t good enough for DC or Marvel. Keep on keeping on.