Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

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Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by possumgrease »

" To that effect, the company will initially self-distribute its titles to 20 select comic book retailers."

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by leonmallett »

Despite stopping reading VEI books due to decisions by some of the team behind Bad Idea, I was more than happy to give the new line a try.

While I am largely indifferent to variant covers, making variant story material was one of the steps which caused be to quit, so eschewing variants was reassuring that story material would not be wrapped into variant or chase issues.

But then I read they will be starting with just 20 stores? Which inevitably won't include my LCS (UK), meaning it looks impossible to get in on the ground floor and being a completist will be a nightmare tracking down the few books out there. I just want to read good stories, I don't want to have to jump through ridiculous hoops to access them, so it looks like I am out before they start.

Good luck to them, but the decision making at the apparent outset will inevitably exclude my LCS' interest and therefore me as a potential Bad Idea customer.
Last edited by leonmallett on Fri Feb 07, 2020 1:26:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by Sunlight on Snow »

Yup, to everybody outside the NA market this is really really #BadNews!

:rant:

EDIT: It's quite disappointing to be honest.

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by BugsySig »

This is very disappointing. No digital. No trades. Only 20 retailers. Basically no chance I ever read any of these books.


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Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by AnarchoMambo »

I think it’s freaking awesome. Cutting out the middlemen (distributors) and splitting profits between the publisher (creators) and select shops who are willing to really put out for the publisher is a good idea. Two bucks will go to both for every book sold. And almost all books will be read by the buyers. Even if flipped on EBay, the books will find a reader who wants to experience the story & art (no other way.)

So why wouldn’t London, and perhaps Manchester, have a store included in the first 20?

Does anybody live in the UK and not know anybody from London or Manchester who can drop into the store & pick up a copy? Really now? Just think of the increased foot traffic of non-comic fans into the hand-picked stores in the first 20! And shouldn’t comics be about community and building relationships with people who can pop into a store for you?

Same thing in the US. Does anyone really not know someone from one of the approximately 10 largest cities in America who can drop in and pick up a book?

Bloody brilliant concept. And we’ll all be wringing our hands and talking about it until May 2020 (FCBD?)
Last edited by AnarchoMambo on Thu Feb 06, 2020 1:42:36 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by nycjadie »

This does sound innovative, at least from a big publishing perspective. If I can get access to the books, I'll mail them to anyone in the world on these boards. In fact, I hope to get a few extra for this very purpose.

Looking forward to it, and hoping to see more details in March at ECCC.

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by BugsySig »

Thinking about it more, i assume these shops will be big ones who also do mail orders (like Paradise). So they would order large quantities and ship them out? I just don’t see how selling 2 books/month to 20 stores is going to keep you in business otherwise.


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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by SJS4 »

Well, this definitely sounds like a Bad Idea...

Good luck.
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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by armlessphelan »

I don't have a LCS so I only read digital (and sometimes buy trades on Amazon). I'm not gonna set up a mail order just for two books a month. Sucks that Bad Idea seems to think making it easier to purchase a book is a bad idea. Pun intended.
Manga, comics, who cares? They're pretty much the same thing.

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by BugsySig »

armlessphelan wrote:I don't have a LCS so I only read digital (and sometimes buy trades on Amazon). I'm not gonna set up a mail order just for two books a month. Sucks that Bad Idea seems to think making it easier to purchase a book is a bad idea. Pun intended.
Same. Reading an interview it’s clear their intent is to make the books scarce (at least at first)—Recreating “the chase” from their childhood of finding those rare issues. Sounds like that strategy is aimed at a very small group (many of whom lurk around here) who will pay $$$ on the secondary market. They also seem keenly aware of people “being able to read the books if they want” via torrent, and don’t care. Their target consumer is the hardcore collector. I’m still not sure how they plan on making money doing this, but they’re a lot more experienced than I am in the comics market. I wish them the best of luck, but this whole strategy has turned me off of Bad Idea...at least for now.


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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by possumgrease »

There’s a long interview on Multiversity. I’m easily persuaded and will be hunting down one of the 20 dealers to get my fix.

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by agent_graves »

I don’t like this idea, (no variants/HC’s/smaller output than Valiant) but I like this idea. If that makes sense. Only because my lcs had a pretty good relationship with Dinesh during his Valiant days, so I’m 98.8% sure, they’ll be one of the initial 20 retailers... :hope:

Will see how sh!t turns out!! :?
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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by aj583 »

BugsySig wrote:
armlessphelan wrote:I don't have a LCS so I only read digital (and sometimes buy trades on Amazon). I'm not gonna set up a mail order just for two books a month. Sucks that Bad Idea seems to think making it easier to purchase a book is a bad idea. Pun intended.
Sounds like that strategy is aimed at a very small group (many of whom lurk around here) who will pay $$$ on the secondary market.

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I lurk. I’m from around here. I dig it. And I don’t think it will be impossible to find one of the 20 shops that will ship to those interested. Sounds fun to be a collector focused on #Bad Idea if these books are of great quality. The comic industry has some serious questions in terms of long term viability. Kudos to them for trying to do something different to drum up buzz and interest for collectors to get their hands in their books. It won’t work if the books aren’t great. I like that they are betting on themselves with this strategy. Looking forward to May.


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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by TheFerg714 »

The more I think about it, the more I think it's going to be easier than you might think to get ahold of these comics. I'm sure one of these twenty stores will be interested in mailing it out, and there's already people on here and Facebook that are willing to sell to people that can't just pop into a store.

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by Ryan »

I LOVE no variants, no digital, no trades. Shows they value the form of the comic book. I've thought for a while that although variants, trades, and digital have obvious benefits (selling more duplicate copies to hardcores and wider availability) they also have costs that might not be as obvious, especially eroding the true value (not price) of the comic book. Forced scarcity can be taken too far as well, but I applaud them for not standing pat and trying something different.

I imagine some of the 20 shops will be chosen based on their willingness to serve as mail order conduits? Either way I look forward to checking them out.

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by magnusr »

BugsySig wrote: Thu Feb 06, 2020 3:15:41 pm i assume these shops will be big ones who also do mail orders (like Paradise).
Paradise would be a great choice. If so, I'm on.

/Magnus

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by Sunlight on Snow »

This #BadIdea smells like "Legends of the Geomancer".

Great story?!? Limited distribution. No collected edition/s. Really #BadIdea


:rant: :rant: :rant:

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by nycjadie »

The only aspect of this I don't like it the strict one per customer rule. I like to have 3 copies, one to read, one to sign, and if I'm lucky, one to slab. But I'm probably in the minority here.

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by greg »

nycjadie wrote: Fri Feb 07, 2020 8:07:21 am The only aspect of this I don't like it the strict one per customer rule. I like to have 3 copies, one to read, one to sign, and if I'm lucky, one to slab. But I'm probably in the minority here.
There will be no limits on Ebay. I also doubt if three different stores would be able to know you ordered one from each. Maybe it's a bad idea to force readers/customers to go immediately to the back issue market, but Harbinger #1 (1992) had zero variants, low print, and a high back issue market value within months of release with value above cover price for almost 30 years since. VEI didn't recreate that aspect of classic Valiant. This plan might.

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by IMJ »

I am very curious to see how this is going to work out. I'm interested in it. I think it's a novel approach, and in some ways (I know, I keep coming back to this, but I mean it organically, I swear) it's a variation on the modified distribution model that Future Comics tried some time back now.

I think the whole concept isn't without it's threats, but the opportunity to build a grass roots following is strong and can lead to the kind of foundational fanbase that keeps a company going for a long time. But it's also an exclusionary model as well, so that's a weakness.

The other threat here is that all of the excitement is being built on the business model rather than the IP's. And that's a big threat. But I think this is a novel approach and I can't wait to see how it plays out.

There ya go, Dino! IMJ's 30 second SWOT analysis. I'm always helping you out behind the scenes, man. :lol: :high-five:

But seriously I hope this does well for you guys, I really do.
Last edited by IMJ on Fri Feb 07, 2020 9:52:21 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by IMJ »

double post

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by lorddunlow »

Sunlight on Snow wrote:This #BadIdea smells like "Legends of the Geomancer".

Great story?!? Limited distribution. No collected edition/s. Really #BadIdea


:rant: :rant: :rant:
This right here! The Legends of the Geomancer debacle is why I stopped reading VEI and stopped collecting once I realized they really weren't going to make it available to fans that didn't have access to a store that could sell massive quantities of their books - and then only available for way more than the content was worth and still not available to every fan due to its variant nature. VEI telegraphed that I wasn't worthy of being their customer despite subscribing to literally every book (even the godawful Dead Drop) since they began publishing.

I finally found it on torrents and I figured that was their way of authorizing me to stop paying for their output and just downloading via torrents. I didn't even do that, though as the stories began to suck more and more after that. All the talent I enjoyed left and then DMG finished the job.

This is indeed a Bad Idea.

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Re: Bad Idea Promises to Change the Comic Book Industry Status Quo

Post by BugsySig »

lorddunlow wrote:
Sunlight on Snow wrote:This #BadIdea smells like "Legends of the Geomancer".

Great story?!? Limited distribution. No collected edition/s. Really #BadIdea


:rant: :rant: :rant:
This right here! The Legends of the Geomancer debacle is why I stopped reading VEI and stopped collecting once I realized they really weren't going to make it available to fans that didn't have access to a store that could sell massive quantities of their books - and then only available for way more than the content was worth and still not available to every fan due to its variant nature. VEI telegraphed that I wasn't worthy of being their customer despite subscribing to literally every book (even the godawful Dead Drop) since they began publishing.

I finally found it on torrents and I figured that was their way of authorizing me to stop paying for their output and just downloading via torrents. I didn't even do that, though as the stories began to suck more and more after that. All the talent I enjoyed left and then DMG finished the job.

This is indeed a Bad Idea.

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Yes. Dino says as much in that interview. They’re like: go ahead and torrent, you’re not our customer base if you’re not near one of these 20 stores or unwilling to pay exorbitant prices on the secondary market. Sure Paradise will order a bagillion books and ship them out (maybe—they’re still saying one book/customer so who knows how their ordering will work), but then I’m paying shipping monthly for 2 books I could swing by and purchase at a smaller LCS, or buy through an internet distributor for a 40% discount to cover the shipping cost. Maybe they will start their own internet ordering system at some point, but right now their insistence on trying to “fix” the broken retail system has them too far up the LCS’s butts to realize there are much easier and far reaching distribution models that could be used to make them very successful.


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