Saturday, April 03, 2010

Jim Lee: My Digital Comics Comments Were Misconstrued

At a Wonder Con panel, Jim Lee suggested that his comments on digital comics were taken to mean that DC had no interest in pursuing them.

Given that he said they were talking to software companies, I find it hard to understand how that happened.

What I took his comments to mean, though, was that DC's answer is the same as it has been for years: we're always looking into it, but we don't see anything all that exciting about it, so we're not making it a priority.

Would it be misconstruing his comments to think that DC Comics is, officially, still adverse to change and progress in how they make their product available?

How long has Marvel's digital offering been around while DC has made no apparent strides? When a killer device/app comes along, they still basically say that print is where it's at? That they can't just offer scans of books because that's already (illegally) out there?

I read Jim Lee's comments as being tone deaf on the issue of digital comics. Pretty sure I didn't misconstrue them.

4 comments:

  1. Not to disagree, but in the grand announcements of DC's reshuffling, didn't digital initiatives fall under someone else's umbrella? Separating digital from print decisions in fact as well as figureheads may be the case, and, arguably a dumb move. Perhaps Nelson's team hasn't quite gelled yet?

    I was also surprised by Lee's statement, and I wonder if DC wasn't in a conference call with Nelson by 8:15 Monday morning.

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  2. I get that digital comics might not be Jim Lee's responsibility, but normally, when that is the case, the answer given includes some sort of acknowledgement that the executive answering it doesn't have ultimate power in that area. Like Dan Didio responding in the past to questions about IPs that previously appeared in the DCU but are now in Vertigo or questions about DC Comics movie developments.

    But we're definitely on the same page in our overall reaction to Jim's statement.

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  3. Yeah, agreed. Even if Jim Lee isn't overseeing that part of the business (which, seriously, its 2010, ePublishing should be right there with hardback and paperback as a format), then one would assume these guys talk often enough to know the scoop.

    Just a really weird thing for him to say as the entire world sort of paused to look at shots of Iron Man on the iPad.

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  4. Would it be misconstruing his comments to think that DC Comics is, officially, still adverse to change and progress in how they make their product available?

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