Mike Choi comes with the logic that most fanboys always want to ignore when arguing against Wizard's practices (linked above).
Now, I'm all for being giddy about Wizard possibly going the way of the dinosaur if you project them selling their property as a sign of the end (with all sympathy to those that would be out of a job, naturally). But you can't blame Wizard for producing a magazine that people buy. It's like knocking Marvel for putting Wolverine in so many books when so many keep buying anything he shows up in (as Choi pointed out) or knocking DC for having so many books featuring Batman & Superman.
I said I'd be giddy for them to go, though, and that's definitely true. It's part the hope that whoever fills the void will be more like Comic Foundry (who Choi praises even in his defense of Wizard) and part because the fallout from Wizard disappearing would be damned interesting to observe.
- Where would the Big Two turn for print coverage of their events and major properties?
- Would CBR or Newsarama attempt to come out with a print publication?
- Would there even be an attempt to fill the void or would coverage just get that much more focus online?
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Coverage should turn online because the future of this medium is online.
ReplyDeleteThat's a good point. The Direct Market is stunting the medium's online growth, though, so there still might be some attempt to fill the void if Wizard were to disappear.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you base this on? Only because they are selling their offices? Isn't it possible that they just want to move out of Congers?
ReplyDeleteI'm not saying they are definitely going under. But they've been recruiting more and more free workers online, have had considerable debt reported by Rich Johnston, and now appear to possibly be selling their biggest asset to settle up debts. It's not the sign of a safe and secure business, at the least.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy reading Wizard every month. It's pure propaganda, sure. But comic previews, interviews with creators, and retrospects on classic books are all great to read, no matter where you read them.
ReplyDeleteWizard gets a lot of exclusive stuff. If Wizard left, someone else would get it.
I enjoy holding a book in my hands just as much as I do a comic book.
Would I ever read comic books online? I might, but not ONLY online.
I love printed things. As everything keeps going forward, the printed world is slowly faded out. Yeah, it's costly, and uses resources. I guess I'm just old-school.
Wizard is blatantly plugging Valiant, since they own all of the backstock of books, in an attempt to move the merch. And sure, that's sad.
Wizard hypes up certain things that makes you believe that they're on Marvel or DC's payroll.
Wizard has turned more pop-culture to lure more readers. Can you blame them?
That's what happens when you get big. You try to get more of an audience. You "sell out", as much as I hate that term.
It's all good business. As long as the magazine is entertaining for me to read, then I'm happy.
I wouldn't be SAD to lose WIZARD, I'd be sad to lose a monthly comic mag.
I'd like to see more comics, more comic previews, less movies and games and crap, and more of a price guide.
Remember Hero Illustrated? That was a good one.
I've read wizard for a long time. Almost all 200 issues.
They've been accused of so much crap, and like earlier, I recognize some of it.
I honestly don't see what all the hate is about, concerning it.
Seems like everyone wants them to fail.
Remember, outside of G4's LIMITED mentions, it's the biggest Comic media outlet in the US.
Not everyone can log on to Newsarama.
But everyone can go into Waldenbooks and pick up Wizard.
ohtestify.blogspot.com
"Not everyone can log on to Newsarama.
ReplyDeleteBut everyone can go into Waldenbooks and pick up Wizard."
Huh? That's like the complete opposite of the truth. My neighborhood doesn't even HAVE any bookstores ...
Hero Illustrated was better...but if they had been the one to survive, who knows if they'd be much better.
ReplyDeleteAnd SpiderTour has a point. The internet is much more readily available than a magazine rack with Wizard in it, these days. Libraries, schools, and home access...the reach is far more thorough.
I think that, believe it or not, the issue is just that only a percentage of the comic book reading or interested public even knows that Newsarama or CBR exist. If print coverage falls off the face of the Earth, then I'd hazard a guess that you'd see a few big ad buys from CBR or Newsarama in books from the Big Two to help rectify that. Honestly, I'm surprised that they haven't done that.
I don't really care if they go under or not. But I hate the whole "the future is the internet" bit, while yes that is certainly true, taking a frigging laptop into the can just doesn't cut it with me.
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