“Heroes, Villains, and Me” is a periodic article on Geeky KOOL by Larry Litle about the world of comic books and my reaction to it. “Heroes, Villains, and Me” is not a comic book review article. I will write about current events, speculation and rumors, or my own wacky thoughts about the world of comic books.
It is Summer time. Summer has always been my favorite season. I love the sunshine and the warm temperatures. It is time to enjoy cook outs, the beach, the pool, time with family, and the great outdoors.
Summer can bring undesirable things: Mosquitoes; humidity (at least in Missouri); and sunburns. It also bring summer comic book crossovers.
Back in the 80s, Marvel and DC launched their first big Crossover events. Marvel started with a 12 issue series, Secret Wars. DC set out with Crisis on Infinite Earths. Both of these events were epic and huge. They were awesome. The stories were fun and they had major impact on both universes.
For years, Marvel and DC would use the crossover occasionally and sometimes very effectively. It wasn’t a yearly event. The story dictated when the events would occur. But eventually it evolved to a yearly event for both companies.
Since Marvel’s Civil War in 2006, both DC Comics and Marvel Comics have tried to one up the other with their Crossovers. They use these yearly events to increase their sales. Sales often skyrocket for the start of the crossover but these results ae usually just temporary. The sales for both Civil War II and DC’s Rebirth are large this summer.
These events come across as huge deal. Often they start with a KOOL premise which draws me in. But the story never holds up. Many times the consequences of the stories don’t even last.
I always get sucked into these events. I know better than to jump in and hope for a great story. I usually love the first few issues. But closing the story seems to be a problem.
Hey Marvel and DC. I have a novel idea. Why don’t you forget the summer crossovers. Instead of using these as a method to sell more comics, why don’t you tell better stories. There is a lot of great comic stories out there. Just tell those stories and the sales will come.
Stay Geeky My Friends!
