09-28-2017, 09:57 PM | #1 |
Foot Elite
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What's stopping TMNT comics from charting in the top 50?
I think TMNT hovers around in the top 150/200 zone. Why can't the comic book franchise climb up to the Batman and X-Men level? The potential is there in my opinion. What would need to happen in the future to be among the top and reach a larger fan base?
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09-28-2017, 10:07 PM | #2 |
So tired of this place
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I'd guess it has something to do with the masses not wanting to see the TMNT as anything other than pizza eating goofballs, whose only opposition are Shredder, Krang, B&R, etc.
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09-28-2017, 10:10 PM | #3 |
Banned
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I was going to say that the 90's cartoon might've done more bad than good when it comes to the public perception of TMNT but Powder beat me to it, after a fashion. There is such a thing as being overly kid-friendly. The recent movies did the franchise no favors either.
Otherwise, from a creative and narrative standpoint, there's absolutely nothing wrong with the IDW TMNT. From what I can gather from this forum and other sources, many out there in the general public aren't even aware that Mirage TMNT is a thing... |
09-28-2017, 10:17 PM | #4 |
Overlord
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Well, Ghostbusters has always been seen as a franchise with adult appeal and nobody accuses the Real Ghostbusters cartoon of watering down the franchise into something silly only kids can enjoy. And the current comic has been great for years. And it's sales aren't much to write home about for whatever reason.
So I don't understand the argument that somehow TMNT's popularity is held back by their family-friendly image of the 1990s. Quite frankly, the TMNT isn't Batman or X-Men and it never will be. But these days I.P.s and their merchandising appeal are far more valuable than the actual monthly comic book sales. How many copies does a top-tier Marvel book sell a month? 40k? Most kids I know who like the TMNT today aren't comic book readers because the industry caters almost exclusively to adults, collectors, and specialty shops. Kids aren't gonna get interested in comics they find on a rack at the grocery market like I did a few decades ago. So comic publishers can only really hope to grow their readership through digital incentives rather than getting print copies into the hands of young readers.
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09-28-2017, 10:34 PM | #5 | |
Foot Elite
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Quote:
Secret Empire #10 86,123 units All-New Wolverine #1 86,688 Amazing Spider-Man #31 54,102 TMNT #73 13,449 http://www.comichron.com/monthlycomi...7/2017-08.html Side note: I know Batman is not Marvel |
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09-28-2017, 10:40 PM | #6 | |
Overlord
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09-28-2017, 10:40 PM | #7 |
Dub Professor
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Marketing budget, cross-platform synergy, et cetera
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09-28-2017, 10:51 PM | #8 | |
無問題
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Quote:
Spoiler:
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09-28-2017, 11:02 PM | #9 |
Overlord
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And Phoenix Jean too? What a banner week!
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09-28-2017, 11:49 PM | #10 |
Overlord
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DC/Marvel have a hold on the majority of the top 50, that's why
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09-29-2017, 12:13 AM | #11 |
Foot Elite
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09-29-2017, 12:17 AM | #12 | |
Yukipedia
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As others have mentioned, thanks to the over-saturation of FW, people see the brand in a certain light. Any version that isn’t like FW in tone and style are seen as odd and then avoided.
Only bigger fans appreciate this kind of TMNT and support it. Unfortunately, that isn’t as much as it should be, so sales levels will never be able to get as high as Marvel or DC, who have a much bigger following. Quote:
Don’t you just love comic book “deaths”? |
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09-29-2017, 04:56 AM | #13 |
Technodrome Technician
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I do agree they are a major hurdle, but look at the walking dead, outsiders can break through
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09-29-2017, 05:59 AM | #14 |
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There's also the age of the book to consider. Sad but true books lose readers over time. Sure big events and special issues (#50, #100) can pull in more readers but nothing bumps up sales like a new #1. Relaunches make news, get more coverage on comic sites and new readers perceive them to be more new reader friendly. It's the reason Marvel rebrands once a year or more (though the effects do seem to be lessening now as they've done it so much). DC does it as well, though less frequently than Marvel.
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09-29-2017, 08:22 AM | #15 |
Foot Elite
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Well, this has been sort of an open secret for a while now, but Marvel inflates their Diamond numbers by overshipping to retailers on all their orders.
Comic Shop A orders 20 copies of Spider-Gwen, Marvel will ship them 30 copies. Comic Shop B orders 5 copies of All-New Wolverine, Marvel will ship them 15 copies. And so on. It artificially brings their numbers up while giving "free" copies to shops... "free" copies which the shops have to pay the additional shipping costs for, even though they didn't ask for them (and often times can't sell them). I haven't heard of DC doing this from the retailers I've talked to at cons; it seems to be a mostly Marvel scheme. And smaller press publishers certainly don't do it. But Marvel overshipping on orders to artificially inflate their numbers is a way of making sure they're always #1 on the charts, even if the retailers aren't actually ordering that many comics and consumers certainly aren't buying them. So always keep that in mind when you look at the sales numbers; big companies are very smart about how to fudge them to make their sales look better or to fake retailer/consumer interest in certain books for promotional purposes. |
09-29-2017, 09:48 AM | #16 | ||
Foot Elite
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Quote:
Quote:
It sounds like a growing consensus that the publisher plays a big role in the comics rank. I am curious what kind of bump DC could give TMNT. Triple the current numbers? I don't remember the last crossover stats but I think the number almost doubled. Last edited by TurtleWA; 09-29-2017 at 10:02 AM. |
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09-29-2017, 10:24 AM | #17 | |
Dub Professor
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09-29-2017, 11:06 AM | #18 | |
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09-29-2017, 11:11 AM | #19 | ||
PerfectlyTunedFightEngine
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The ridiculous premise?
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09-29-2017, 11:13 AM | #20 |
Official TMNT Staff/Cast
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My two cents, which will probably sound defensive, but not my intention:
Most everything said above is accurate. But I'll also add that Walking Dead and Saga are exceptions, as they are written by two of the most talented/influential creators of the last 15-20 years. Those books have caught fire in a way that is really rare. Other than that... we're at issue #74. I can't think of another book outside of the Walking Dead that has been around as long, charting as high, without restarting with a new #1 (or returning to legacy numbering which doesn't count!). I'm sure even without renumbering things like Batman and Spider Man and some others would chart higher, but hopefully the general point makes sense. The popularity of TMNT is what has kept us afloat all this time. I mean, I think we do a good job and everything, but I think a large part of that longevity is due to the brand. I'm sure we'd get a good sales boost in the short term from a new #1, but our sales level has been consistent so it hasn't made sense to do that. And we don't have big time "names" on our books. (Kevin sorta counts, but I doubt the average comic book reader really knows who he is-- he's not a major draw outside the world of TMNT). If Brian K. Vaughn wrote some TMNT, our numbers would go up I'm sure. In short, let's see where something like Seven to Eternity is in two years. There's been a lot of books that have charted higher that have come and gone in the six years we've been on the stands. Other than that, I think it's just a matter of TMNT not being around as long, or as visible in the comics medium as consistently as something like X-men or Batman. TMNT has been around for 30+ years, but there's a good chunk of time in those years where TMNT comics were not getting wide distribution. So it makes sense that the fanbase isn't as wide as something like X-men. |
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