TALKING SHOP: RETAILERS WEIGH IN ON ONE MORE DAY

[MattBrady]

by Vaneta Rogers

As Spider-Man swings from wedded bliss to swingin’ “macking” on the ladies bachelorhood, online fans have let their opinion be heard. But many have wondered if the displeasure voiced on the internet truly translates to a response at the store level.

Newsarama asked retailers what they've experienced, and the answer wasn't surprising. We asked retailers to be as objective as possible and report what their customers thought -- not what their opinion was about the story. According to local store owners, their customers, just like online readers, are sharing their distaste for the change in Spider-Man's status quo. In fact, one retailer compared his role to that of a bartender, listening behind the retail counter as customers pour out their hearts about their history with the character over the years and their feelings of being cheated upon having his continuity so suddenly altered.

Yet no matter how unpopular Spider-Man: One More Day may be seen to be online -- and how many customers drop the comic for now – most retailers recognize that the move to publishing Amazing Spider-Man three times a month will most likely have a positive effect on sales. And they also know that angry voices do not always translate to lower sales, with most shop owners being hopeful that curiosity and the potential strength of future stories can win out this time around and make the change a successful one.

Newsarama Note: The following questions were put to retailers this week, and were answered between January 9-10th.

"The fans are angry," said Charlie Harris, owner of Charlie's Comic Books, summarizing the feelings of most retailers that we polled. "I've had dozens of customers remove Spider-Man from their subscription lists and a couple remove all Marvel titles. The fans have made comments to the effect of 'Didn't they learn anything from the Clone Saga?'"

"We have not heard a single positive response for this story arc, only neutral and negative ones so far," said Lisa Lopacinski, co-owner of Neptune Comics in Waukesha, Wisc. "The reactions have varied: some people said it's 'a typical Marvel move' and shrug it off; others said that it's 'a lazy story-telling tactic' but they'll give the new creative team a chance; many people stated that they were confused about Peter/Spider-man continuity now; a few expressed frustration that so many Spider-Man stories they'd bought in the last five years were now completely undone; and several people said they're done with the series and won't buy it again."

"The responses have ranged from utter disgust to incredulous laughter," said Mike Wellman, co-owner of The Comic Bug in Manhattan Beach, Calif. "The general consensus from the customers has been to ask us 'So... did you read One More Day?' in much the same tone as 'So... did you see that accident on the corner this morning?' I can honestly say that not one person has said they liked it. It was the first time I personally had read Spider-Man in quite awhile just because it was quite the topic of discussion the last week or two. That said, I actually didn't have the violent reaction to it that I've been reading from many on websites and what-not. Like any good bartender, I try to quietly sit back and let my customers vent while I prepare them another round."

"My customers have been very negative," said Mike Malve, owner of Atomic Comics in Arizona. "They all seem to be taking this very personal in what Marvel did to Peter and to the overall continuity of the book. Most feel cheated by the fact that have vested 'X' amount of years into believing Spider-Man being married. So their time and money spent over that time makes most feel cheated."

"The overall response from my customers has been very negative. They feel that they are being cheated," said Jason Pierce, owner of Alter Ego Comics in Muncie, Ind. "I have heard the term 'reset button' followed by a few expletives on more than one occasion. They are confused about how this fits into the continuity of the Marvel U. Did Spidey unmask during Civil War? Does this mean Gwen is alive? Does Aunt May still make great cookies? These are all questions that I am continually bombarded with. I am way more optimistic than my customers are about it."

Ralph DiBernardo, owner of Jetpack Comics in Rochester, N.H., pointed out that his customers are used to Spider-Man being married because that's the character they have grown up with, so this change has caused a drastic reaction in a significant portion of his customers. "Most of the collectors have grown up with a married Spider-Man. This is the character that they know and love and Mary Jane is an important part of his life," he said. "Taking away MJ, bringing back characters via 'magic' was insulting enough to many of my customers, but then trying to justify a near weekly book made it even worse. The combination was enough to cause 20 percent of my customers to drop their Spider-Man sub."

But other retailers said the response in their store hasn't been quite as heated. "Overall, the response has been pretty mild," said Shawn Demumbrum, co-owner of SpazDog Comics in Phoenix, Ariz. "No one has asked to have Amazing Spider-Man removed from their sub list. Only one person was visibly upset by it."

Sales of the One More Day story arc itself were good for retailers, although the first and last issues (the two Amazing issues) were the strongest, according to most. But the focus for all retailers is on the sales ahead and whether they can hold strong in the wake of the storm.

DiBernardo of Jetpack Comics said "regardless of anyone's feelings, OMD sold great."

"While no one wanted it to happen, they still read the book. I feel confident that Spidey fans will return, if only to see what Spidey is up to now. They will buy it just to complain about it," DiBernardo said. "My [ordering] numbers are dead on with the last issue of OMD. I'll adjust accordingly (and probably be eating Amazing Spider-Man #546, #547, #548 soup for awhile), but it will all flush out as these things always do."

However, Patrick Brower, general manager of Graham Crackers Comics in Chicago, said One More Day didn't sell as well as expected for his stores, and he's adjusting numbers down accordingly, although sales will still come in fairly high for the title overall. "Sadly, customer response [to One More Day] was lukewarm," he said. "At the start people bought high, but more people than expected did not follow through with all four parts of the story. The people that did buy all parts were disappointed with the delay in shipping and the quality of the story," he said. "Initially our orders are still high, about 75 percent of One More Day, (which in turn was 100 percent more than Amazing before that storyline). The Amazing numbers have been adjusted down, slightly, due to the way sales for One More Day trailed downward so quickly."

Bob Smethers, owner of Comic City in Detroit, said he's ordering Amazing Spider-Man the same way he ordered 52 and Countdown. "Start high to find out where the ceiling is and go from there," he said. "We based our initals on Amazing sales prior to the One More Day storyline. That was the Back In Black storyline, which also generated some new customer interest."

But other retailers are being more cautious, pointing out that 52 and Countdown were both returnable (meaning retailers had a window to return any extra copies of the early issues of the series that they had, which serves as an inducement for retailers to order higher than they might otherwise), while Amazing Spider-Man is not. "Since Marvel, unlike DC Comics, does not give retailers any opportunities for returns, we're going to be very conservative on our orders for this title until we start to see the sales stabilize," said Lopacinski, who has had several people drop the title in response to One More Day and also in response to the move to three times a month. "I can't afford to have 20 unsold copies of each issue (60 per month) sitting on my shelves."

And Lopacinski reported that the first day's sales of the Brand New Day storyline, which started with Wednesday's issue #546, was down about 25 percent from her first day sales of Amazing Spider-Man #545, the last issue of the One More Day storyline.

Malve of Atomic Comics agreed that his ordering is a little more cautious because of the number of people complaining and the price point, at least for now. "Amazing has been such a strong seller for us for a long time now thanks to all the effort put into it over the last couple years by Marvel," he said. "But with all the negative fan reaction, we ordered less on BND as compared to OMD’S first issue in Amazing #544. We wanted to see the fall-out of One More Day and if the fans that claimed they would never buy Spider-Man had any truth to it."

Wellman of Comic Bug said he's increased his orders for Brand New Day slightly over his sales for One More Day because he believes new readers will check it out now. "We're ordering around 110-120 copies per issue, which is an increase actually from ordering 110 issues of Amazing along with 50-80 copies of the various other Spidey titles that were coming out," he said. "There have been many new people picking it up to see what all the hubbub is about. Although there have been many complaints about the storyline, speaking strictly from a sales standpoint, Marvel wins for now."

Wellman said he isn't adjusting his orders in response to the negativity at all, although he will keep an eye on it. "We've kept our numbers the same for now," he said. "The book is selling consistently right now with new readers making up for those that have dropped it. The problem will be when a certain percentage of the new readers decide that they don't care about this really and none of the old readers come back. Events like this are kind of like a 'sugar rush,' where you experience a lot of activity on a title, but when things return to 'normal,' you're left a huge stack of comics 3 or 4 months down the line. That said, we will be steadily decreasing our orders unless this new direction shows legs."

Demumbrum of SpazDog Comics said he believes the change in continuity regarding Spider-Man is a positive for sales because the title is now more appropriate for all ages. "I ordered the first three issues higher than One More Day because I finally feel that there is a decent Spider-Man comic that I can sell to kids and adults," he said. "I was not happy with the decisions of the writing and editorial staff to have Morlun eat Spider-Man's eyeball in an all ages comic. Things got better, but I still didn't feel like I could recommend any Spider-Man title to kids outside of Marvel Adventures Spider-Man. After reading last year's FCBD Spider-Man: Swing Shift and now having read the opening pages of Brand New Day, I have a Spider-Man comic that I can recommend to everyone."

Malve of Atomic Comics agreed that the concept of streamlining and changing the current situation of key players in the Spider-Man universe was obviously an effort to attract new readers, and that isn't necessarily a bad motivation, and it might pay off in the end.

"I feel like I am not in the majority on this," Malve said, "but I like the overall concept of what Marvel was trying to deliver here. It was very positive to us as retailers and the biggest reason for doing something like this: Bring in new readers. Whenever I mention what was done to Peter to people who don’t read comics, they feel like this is a totally cool idea. They only know Spider-Man from what they have seen at the movies, and why would MJ want to be married to Peter? Me, personally, I liked Spidey best when he had a group of regular friends that his whole life revolved around Flash, Harry, Liz, Betty, Gwen and of course MJ. It was cool as he had all these problems and he still was busy hanging out with his friends and still fighting crime in between. Friends and relationships were the more important issue with Peter and what made the book so interesting. I think by turning back the clock we might be able to bring some of that back."

Retailers also see that Marvel is doing something positive for sales by changing the normal monthly "spots" on the shipping schedule from one issue of Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man and one Spectacular Spider-Man per month to two additional issues of Amazing Spider-Man. All of them realize this addition of more Amazing, if it delivers in a timely manner, will result in more positive sales no matter what happened in the story.

"I see the changeover of Amazing to three times a month as a sales positive regardless of the storyline," said Smethers of Comic City. "Ultimately, people read Spider-Man because they want to see Spider-Man; the surrounding cast is not the main reason for picking up the book. As long as Marvel can come up with original, compelling stories about him, the sales will be there."

"As I said above, we have already had people take the title off of their pull lists because of continuity and because of the frequency. So, in the short term it looks like a sales negative. In addition, in the short-term it is a negative because we have no idea how many to order, and we lose money if we order too many or too few," said Lopacinski of Neptune Comics. "However, if 75 percent of those that are buying Amazing Spider-Man continue to buy every issue, sales for the title actually go up because of the number of issues we'll be able to sell each month. So, if Marvel and the creative teams on the series can keep most readers interested, and if they can maintain the three times per month shipping schedule, in the long term it is a sales positive."

However, Harris of Charlie's Comic Books said he doesn't believe those sales will make up for the exodus of Amazing Spider-Man readers in his store. "I believe it will be negative in the long run; I'm losing a lot of long time subscribers to the title. My few Spider-Girl fans are unanimous in their boycott of the company for retroactively killing the character they've fought to keep published for several years," he said, confirming that he's already been lowering his orders in response to the drops by customers. "I've been lowering my orders in direct relation to the reduced sales and the customer's negative response. I still don't believe that I've lowered them enough. It will take a couple of issues to adjust properly. The usual lack of available copies for reorders from Marvel is definitely part of the decision; I'm able to be more cautious with DC titles as, if I sell out there are almost always more copies available for reorder."

Pierce of Alter Ego Comics agreed that while the higher sales from three times a month will be a pick-up, he does have concern as a result of the negative response from his customers to the new Spider-Man status. "Ultimately I think it's a good thing. Amazing sales have always been higher than any of the other previous Spider-titles," he said. "So with Sensational and Friendly Neighborhood essentially becoming Amazing, those who didn't pick up those books would now be doing so. The long term is going to be determined if the comic is any good. The completist will continue to get the book, but the casual reader won't go for the gimmick."

Brower of Graham Crackers agreed that the sales pick-up that the title will experience as it takes over three times a month is great, but he does wonder if it can maintain that level. "Personally I'm excited for the new direction and storylines, however, I don't feel the sales can maintain the level they're at without any more 'events' happening," he said. "Don't get me wrong: Sales will still be solid, better than for either Sensational or Friendly Neighborhood, just not as high as they are now at the start of this direction."

Overall, according to the retailers we surveyed, the success or failure of the changes to Amazing Spider-Man over the long run don't hinge as heavily on what has been done so far, but will depend instead on the quality of upcoming storylines, just like any other comic. And most have a pretty positive attitude about the creator names they see ahead -- at least for the foreseeable storylines -- and are ordering accordingly.

"Dan Slott is on his game right now and no one can deny the pretty pictures Steve McNiven makes," said Pierce of Alter Ego. "Although people feel a little betrayed at the outcome of OMD, they will at least give BND a couple of issues before passing final judgment."

"I hope and remain optimistic that this could be a long-term sales positive," said Wellman of The Comic Bug. "Even though we might not be ordering what we once were of Amazing Spider-Man, overall, our monthly Spider-Man orders will increase across the board. I can't imagine Marvel would put anything but A-List, fan-fave talent on the book. They can't let the book slip into Legends of the Dark Knight mode, with a great storyline maybe twice a year and the rest being filler. I remain skeptical that they'll be able to maintain a 'three times monthly' schedule with the big guns onboard though. I'd prefer they abandon the schedule before they jump-the-shark talent-wise just to keep the book on track."

"I believe that long term sales of Amazing Spider-Man will be positive," said Demumbrum of SpazDog. "Steve Wacker will keep the book on track. More issues of Amazing Spider-man will come out per a year than the three previous titles did combined. Marvel is putting its creative talent on what should be its flagship title. After a few months, people will forget about the controversy and enjoy all the new stories coming out of the changes."

And some retailers said they also know that the story results of "magic" and "retcons" and "reset buttons" come and go, as do readers on certain titles, and the hubbub over this storyline will be replaced, in years to come, by the hubbub when it's all likely undone yet again.

"Continuity can always be corrected. Fans know this. As passionate as they may be, the hardcore fans always return," said DiBernardo of Jetpack Comics. "In the end, I think it is all a wash. As with all comics, Spider-Man will ride a wave for a short period. Great creative teams will keep it selling. In three to six months we'll get some second tier teams on board and sales will waiver. In nine months, we'll have it back to a monthly title again, and in a year or so, continuity will be reset to where it was before it all started. The fun part is always how we get back to the same point again."

However, many retailers joked that they don't necessarily want to see another reset button anytime soon, and they hope people can find the humor in what has happened and move forward. "Warning to Marvel: If Peter Parker turns out to be a Skrull and this whole thing is undone," Lopacinski laughed, with tongue inserted firmly in cheek, "I'm pretty sure no one will buy Marvel comics anymore."

"I only hope that people give the first couple issues of the new Amazing Spider-Man a real shot and don’t just hate on it," Malve said. "Way to much negative out there these days. I have read comics as a form of escapism since I was a child and I continue to enjoy the break from everyday life. Read comics for the fun of it. Pass it on."

[Edogawa1983]

more damage control?

[GratefulFred]

Nice article!

[Bugaboo-X]

Originally Posted by MattBrady

Yet no matter how unpopular Spider-Man: One More Day may be seen to be online -- and how many customers drop the comic for now – most retailers are level-headed enough to recognize that the move to publishing Amazing Spider-Man three times a month will most likely have a positive effect on sales. And they also know that angry voices do not always translate to lower sales, with most shop owners being hopeful that curiosity and the potential strength of future stories can win out this time around and make the change a successful one.

Retailers SAID they're level-headed and that they know this can be successful? Or did the writer of this article make that judgment himself? Subtle bias. Journalism 101.

[Doctor_Chronos]

So I guess the general consensus is that most people are unhappy at best with the direction but are buying it anyway. Pretty much what everyone, including Marvel, thought would happen I suppose.

[target242]

As they usually say, any publicity is good publicity. I'm not a spidey fan and have never bought the book...i'm just enjoying the spectacle that is OMD/BND. In theory, i would love to see the fans "win" this battle as it were and boycott so strongly that Marvel listens and responds. In reality what will probably happen is there will be a dip, but sales will stabliize and return if not surpass expectations. Marvel knows fanboys will probably still buy it even if they hate it, which is kinda a sad commentary on both parties.!

I'll keep watching though. Here's praying Secret Invasion takes some heat off this (Joe and Co are probably praying that right now...) DC is loving the heat being taken off Countdown and getting ready for Final Crisis...

Fun!

-target242

[rnbell]

Originally Posted by Bugaboo-X

Retailers SAID they're level-headed and that they know this can be successful? Or did the writer of this article make that judgment himself? Subtle bias. Journalism 101.

That's paraphrasing quotes from multiple sources. You're looking for reasons to get testy. Get over yourself.

[zengoth]

Originally Posted by MattBrady

"The overall response from my customers has been very negative. They feel that they are being cheated," said Jason Pierce, owner of Alter Ego Comics in Muncie, Ind. "I have heard the term 'reset button' followed by a few expletives on more than one occasion. They are confused about how this fits into the continuity of the Marvel U. Did Spidey unmask during Civil War? Does this mean Gwen is alive? Does Aunt May still make great cookies? These are all questions that I am continually bombarded with. I am way more optimistic than my customers are about it."

It's wheatcakes, Jason, not cookies. WHEATCAKES.

[AnalSurprise]

Anyone else surprised they didn't reboot the numbering and add a "New" to the title?

Where are the Director's Cuts? Sketch books? Scented variants?

I'm calling it first : Joe Quesada is a Skrull.

[bigdaddyhub]

So fans are upset about OMD, but BND is really good. Sales will be up and all is well.

[Jiminy Snick]

Originally Posted by Edogawa1983

more damage control?

Look, I am no fan of either OMD or BND, and I concur that much of the Marvel directed interviews and releases have been just that - damage control - but this isn't damage control.

This is Newsarama taking the temperature of retailers across the country.

Seems those retailers are pretty much echoing what is the common sentiment. Pretty varied response. Nothing stellar. Much of it negative, and a general perception that none of it will ultimately affect sales on a now thrice monthly title, with a unified name recognition.

[Ken B.]

I wish someone will ask Quesada why these issues were not returnable.

DC did returnables on 52 as a sign that they were confident in the series.

Marvel not doing so makes them look like they don't care about the retailers. Especially with the delay the book had that cost the retailers money in having only two issues of a Spidey books over 3 months.

[Bugaboo-X]

Originally Posted by rnbell

That's paraphrasing quotes from multiple sources. You're looking for reasons to get testy. Get over yourself.

Nope. Just professional perspective.
Even if a writer is paraphrasing, attribution is still necessary. Otherwise it becomes a statement of fact as declared by the writer.
It might seem nitpicky to you, but it's the little details that pile up in a reader's subconscious and sway public opinion.

[Xeno]

Originally Posted by Doctor_Chronos

So I guess the general consensus is that most people are unhappy at best with the direction but are buying it anyway. Pretty much what everyone, including Marvel, thought would happen I suppose.

I think that's a slightly optimistic view. It sounded like some shops had seen people dropping ASM in noteworthy numbers. Of course, this is all anecdotal so it's pretty pointless until the real numbers come out.

[Supremeo]

Originally Posted by target242

As they usually say, any publicity is good publicity. I'm not a spidey fan and have never bought the book...i'm just enjoying the spectacle that is OMD/BND. In theory, i would love to see the fans "win" this battle as it were and boycott so strongly that Marvel listens and responds. In reality what will probably happen is there will be a dip, but sales will stabliize and return if not surpass expectations. Marvel knows fanboys will probably still buy it even if they hate it, which is kinda a sad commentary on both parties.!

I'll keep watching though. Here's praying Secret Invasion takes some heat off this (Joe and Co are probably praying that right now...) DC is loving the heat being taken off Countdown and getting ready for Final Crisis...

Fun!

-target242

DC doesn't like it when they get zero attention. Any publicity either company get's is good. When one starts to overshadow the other then the lesser known doesn't like it because no one is talking about it.

[Jiminy Snick]

Originally Posted by AnalSurprise

Anyone else surprised they didn't reboot the numbering and add a "New" to the title?

Where are the Director's Cuts? Sketch books? Scented variants?

I'm calling it first : Joe Quesada is a Skrull.

I call second on that but add - yet again - that this is whole huge psyche-out on the part of Marvel.

Even so, I'm still perturbed, and tired of both companies thinking psyche-outs are what makes for good storytelling in and of themselves.

[ascloseasme]

Originally Posted by Bugaboo-X

Retailers SAID they're level-headed and that they know this can be successful? Or did the writer of this article make that judgment himself? Subtle bias. Journalism 101.

Agreed. No offense to the good people at Newsarama, I love the site, but as a journalist I can say I see very little journalism on this site... Which probably isn't the goal. But it does become a problem with articles like this. Newsarama is just a very fancy blog. Good interviews, great "scoops," but no one seems to know fundamentals of how to write a balanced article... Or even a basic critique for that matter.

[RonCat]

Personaly, I expect that by next year Marvel will either break the "deal with the devil" or they will pacify the readers by having Peter and Mary Jane begin a new relationship.

I'm hearing as many negative comments about the price of the book as I am about the content. So far the only people that have stopped buying the book, have stopped because of the $3.99 price. "Extra pages don't count unless they contain more story" - a quote from one of my customers who dropped the book.

I do however lose sales from those people that were only reading the other Spider-man titles and didn't buy ASM.

Ron

[miamiu]

Stay strong people. Forget Amazing. Marvel says continuity matters now than when it didn't a month again. I mean really why do we care about hearing about the new continuity when continuity doesn't matter.

[Northstar04]

A great article, and thanks to the retailers for all the input. The bartender metaphor was funny!

I guess I am still in the undecided camp: I am going to give it a few more issues before I make up my mind on continuing, but this still does not sit well with me. Like a few retailers said, I grew up with MJ and Peter being together, she is just as important as Ben and Aunt May. I don't care for the change, and right now I am wavering on dropping the title, but I want to give it a honest chance. Personally, I'll know within a few more issues.

[Bevbos]

"While no one wanted it to happen, they still read the book. I feel confident that Spidey fans will return, if only to see what Spidey is up to now. They will buy it just to complain about it," DiBernardo said

Perhaps including myself.

[Supremeo]

Originally Posted by Edogawa1983

more damage control?

What are you talking about??? the journalist nor does newsarama in no way work for Marvel.

[Kevin T. Brown]

While the article is definitely appreciated, I think it should have waited a bit. The real after affects of this will be known in about 3 months. THEN we'll know the actual sales and how much the retailers are ordering.

By the way, it sucks that Marvel didn't make the issues returnable. I feel for those retailers who may get stuck with an overabundance of issues.

[Sirettx]

Originally Posted by Supremeo

What are you talking about??? the journalist nor does newsarama in no way work for Marvel.

they want to bash OMD/BND and Marvel so much that logic isn't necessary anymore.

if it is related to it in anyway bash it.

[Enigma20XX]

"While no one wanted it to happen, they still read the book. I feel confident that Spidey fans will return, if only to see what Spidey is up to now. They will buy it just to complain about it," DiBernardo said.

Now why in the hell would I waste $4.00 to do something for free? I'm sorry... no disrespect to Dan Slott or Steve Mc Niven, his She Hulk run was fantastic, and Mc Niven is very talented, but the end doesn't justify the means... I can't back this book. I just can't.

... and I still think something fishy's going on....