Is VEI dead or dying?

Draco · Post by **Draco** » Tue Jun 09, 2009 3:49 pm

superman-prime wrote:or a 2 year plan

Cant argue with that one.

wrunow · Post by **wrunow** » Tue Jun 09, 2009 10:56 pm

VEI is alive and well, I think anyway, let's have a little more patience, you can't build a new universe in 7 days any more, it takes a lot longer now!

Draco · Post by **Draco** » Wed Jun 10, 2009 1:47 am

wrunow wrote:VEI is alive and well, I think anyway, let's have a little more patience, you can't build a new universe in 7 days any more, it takes a lot longer now!

superman-prime · Post by **superman-prime** » Wed Jun 10, 2009 2:22 am

sanman · Post by **sanman** » Wed Jun 10, 2009 9:17 am

Zaphod · Post by **Zaphod** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 11:37 am

Elveen wrote:
terreth wrote:I think they are cryogenically frozen for long term survival.

They could be working out a deal to get Magnus and Solar back (or at least use them).

They could be hoping for more movie deals to get funds.

They maybe holding off until after the financial crisis is over.

But I prefer to think frozen for freshness rather then fading or dying. We live in hope.
Maybe in carbonite?

These are not the properties you are looking for.

Zaphod · Post by **Zaphod** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 11:41 am

terreth wrote:They maybe holding off until after the financial crisis is over.

More importantly, does anyone know what the investors other financial porfolio includes. We may see Valiant on the auction block before we see any new monthly pamphlets.

superman-prime · Post by **superman-prime** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 11:42 am

dead or dying means it got going i dont think that is the case yet

Orangeribbon · Post by **Orangeribbon** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 11:44 am

Stupid question, but is Shooter involved?

Elveen · Post by **Elveen** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 11:57 am

Orangeribbon wrote:Stupid question, but is Shooter involved?

There has been many rumors and maybes..... but there has been no confirmation about any long term association.

daydreamscomics · Post by **daydreamscomics** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 12:21 pm

I will say this, the wheels are in motion...they aren't sitting around on their hands. I've had a lot of good chats with a couple different people at VEI, and they do have a plan and a lot of good ideas.

Patience is a virtue my friends. It's been over 10 years as it is, no need to rush things

daydreamscomics · Post by **daydreamscomics** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 12:23 pm

terreth wrote:They maybe holding off until after the financial crisis is over.

Oh no, not another DC mini series...

Zaphod · Post by **Zaphod** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 12:23 pm

superman-prime wrote:dead or dying means it got going i dont think that is the case yet

The released HC with 5% new material is an official restart.

Daniel Jackson · Post by **Daniel Jackson** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 12:27 pm

daydreamscomics wrote:I will say this, the wheels are in motion...they aren't sitting around on their hands. I've had a lot of good chats with a couple different people at VEI, and they do have a plan and a lot of good ideas.

Good to hear, I hope the ideas come to fruition soon.

Phantom.. · Post by **Phantom..** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 12:52 pm

daydreamscomics wrote:I will say this, the wheels are in motion...they aren't sitting around on their hands. I've had a lot of good chats with a couple different people at VEI, and they do have a plan and a lot of good ideas.

Patience is a virtue my friends. It's been over 10 years as it is, no need to rush things

Their we go ~ some news

2nd hand but no reason to dought it.
Thanks to daydream i have more faith ibn VE1.

Good luck

Draco · Post by **Draco** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 1:32 pm

Phantom. wrote:
daydreamscomics wrote:I will say this, the wheels are in motion...they aren't sitting around on their hands. I've had a lot of good chats with a couple different people at VEI, and they do have a plan and a lot of good ideas.

Patience is a virtue my friends. It's been over 10 years as it is, no need to rush things
Their we go ~ some news

2nd hand but no reason to dought it.
Thanks to daydream i have more faith ibn VE1.

Good luck

Couldnt agree more dude, Zach you must be the first person here to speak up and say something different in a long time.
They may not be talking like people want and giving off the wrong kind of signals but the world is a strange place and i look forward to your words coming true.

leonmallett · Post by **leonmallett** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 2:09 pm

Well it appears that they (VEI) have been hinting to various parties that 'something is happening' (referring to daydreamscomics' post and also a mention by Christian - Elveen - a while back). I am sure that Elveen and daydream are speaking truthfully about what has been hinted at to them.

However I still say that for all those whispers the evidence is to the contrary:-

- No news announcements during 2009 on the VEI site.
- A big focus on the Ratner deal then things went very quiet.
- No apparent appointment of an EiC or a Creative Director with the only employment notice of note being for an unpaid intern.
- No real momentum in their publishing schedule and a dearth of products: how long has it been since they last published anything?
- No obvious streams of growing revenue since there is no cycle of new and regular product; therefore revenue is likely to be a trickle through further HC sales and anything secured through licensing.
- The promise of new material generated by year end last year: that with no EiC or Creative Director in place and why would they choose to sit on such material if they had 'generated' it since doing so becomes an effective loss.
- Lack of updates to their own website: it just seems very dormant, the fan-led elements excepted of course.
- The quiet: both from VEI and the wider internet rumour mill.

Dead? Not yet it seems. Dying? probably.

Or option three: they never intended comic books (and collected editions) to be the focus, instead they were always gambling on creating licensing opportunities.

Sorry if it seems that I am negative about this, but I'd like to see ongoing books and I don't think that VEI have the capability to fulfill that desire.

400yrs · Post by **400yrs** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 2:20 pm

leonmallett wrote:Well it appears that they (VEI) have been hinting to various parties that 'something is happening' (referring to daydreamscomics' post and also a mention by Christian - Elveen - a while back). I am sure that Elveen and daydream are speaking truthfully about what has been hinted at to them.

Yeah. I'm sure these guys mean well by giving "hints", but in all honesty, they are probably getting smoke blown up their *SQUEE*, having their chains pulled, or whatever you want to say. We've seen that in the past and then the person doing the hinting at what they "know" usually end up just as confused as everyone else and waiting for more hints too.

I don't believe *SQUEE* until it comes out in a press release.

leonmallett wrote:However I still say that for all those whispers the evidence is to the contrary:-

- A big focus on the Ratner deal then things went very quiet.

They must still be wiping the egg off their face on that one. We're going to have a movie? Woohooo!!!! What do you mean, "Option doesn't mean the movie's 100%?" So Rattner wants to direct the first ever Barbie movie, Beverly Hills cop 34, AND Police Academy 197, but he still plans to do Harbinger? OK. The option lapsed? Well who else is going to pick up this piece of crap after the other X-men rip-off movies didn't do so great?

leonmallett · Post by **leonmallett** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 2:20 pm

terreth wrote:...They could be working out a deal to get Magnus and Solar back (or at least use them).
....

Dark Horse have made their plans clear - they will use the characters once their programme of HC publication for them is completed. There has been nothing to contradict that position.

leonmallett · Post by **leonmallett** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 2:58 pm

400yrs wrote:
leonmallett wrote:Well it appears that they (VEI) have been hinting to various parties that 'something is happening' (referring to daydreamscomics' post and also a mention by Christian - Elveen - a while back). I am sure that Elveen and daydream are speaking truthfully about what has been hinted at to them.
Yeah. I'm sure these guys mean well by giving "hints", but in all honesty, they are probably getting smoke blown up their *SQUEE*, having their chains pulled, or whatever you want to say. We've seen that in the past and then the person doing the hinting at what they "know" usually end up just as confused as everyone else and waiting for more hints too.

I don't believe *SQUEE* until it comes out in a press release.

I am sure that all of those who have hinted at 'something happening' are genuine in what they say - they are simply dependent on the veracity of their sources.

I just feel that we won't be seeing any new comic books from VEI, let alone from them in the near future.

Elveen · Post by **Elveen** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 3:18 pm

leonmallett wrote:
400yrs wrote:
leonmallett wrote:Well it appears that they (VEI) have been hinting to various parties that 'something is happening' (referring to daydreamscomics' post and also a mention by Christian - Elveen - a while back). I am sure that Elveen and daydream are speaking truthfully about what has been hinted at to them.
Yeah. I'm sure these guys mean well by giving "hints", but in all honesty, they are probably getting smoke blown up their *SQUEE*, having their chains pulled, or whatever you want to say. We've seen that in the past and then the person doing the hinting at what they "know" usually end up just as confused as everyone else and waiting for more hints too.

I don't believe *SQUEE* until it comes out in a press release.
I am sure that all of those who have hinted at 'something happening' are genuine in what they say - they are simply dependent on the veracity of their sources.

I just feel that we won't be seeing any new comic books from VEI, let alone from them in the near future.

I know that I am wishing that something in the way of new comics would have come out already. I also wish there was a VEI booth at SDCC this year. (but maybe they tried to get a booth and could not, ... I know that I inquired about my Dad getting a booth and was told by the guy in charge of booths at SDCC that there is a THREE YEAR waiting list to get a booth. So that is a posibility)

I can say that what I was told by a VEI employee was encouraging. They did not get into specifics but it still made me feel good about the future of Valiant.

So, I suppose we are just in the waiting season.

daydreamscomics · Post by **daydreamscomics** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 3:26 pm

If I'm getting smoke blown up my *SQUEE*, then it's some pretty good smoke.

I don't think 98% of people on here have ANY concept of what goes into the process of relaunching a company/universe. You can't just snap your fingers and POOF new comics.

This isn't the 90's when new companies were popping up left and right. If you look at the majority of small press companies that do pop up in Previews nowadays, 2-3 months later they have no solicitations. Why? Because they haven't planned ahead. They get ahead of themselves, run into problems, can't put out their books, and are gone before anyone nows they existed.

You also don't have the mass market of people buying comic books up like you did in the 90's. The amount of people buying is smaller, and people aren't buying everything coming out. People are much more selective.

Just because they haven't made announcements doesn't mean they aren't going to. Someone pointed out they haven't made any major announcements in 2009: Last time I checked, 2009 still has almost 6 months left to it. Just because there was no news on January 1st isn't a reason to lose all hope.

As far as making an announcement at SDCC, it's the last place I would want to make an announcement as a new/revamped company. You're going to be overshadowed by EVERY other publisher out there, not to mention all the attention now focused on the movie side of the business. It would get lost in the shuffle. It's not like the only time people hear about news is at cons. That's what the internet is for...

Seriously, why is everyone so impatient these days?

BloodOfHeroes · Post by **BloodOfHeroes** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 3:31 pm

Elveen · Post by **Elveen** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 3:32 pm

daydreamscomics wrote:If I'm getting smoke blown up my *SQUEE*, then it's some pretty good smoke.

I don't think 98% of people on here have ANY concept of what goes into the process of relaunching a company/universe. You can't just snap your fingers and POOF new comics.

This isn't the 90's when new companies were popping up left and right. If you look at the majority of small press companies that do pop up in Previews nowadays, 2-3 months later they have no solicitations. Why? Because they haven't planned ahead. They get ahead of themselves, run into problems, can't put out their books, and are gone before anyone nows they existed.

You also don't have the mass market of people buying comic books up like you did in the 90's. The amount of people buying is smaller, and people aren't buying everything coming out. People are much more selective.

Just because they haven't made announcements doesn't mean they aren't going to. Someone pointed out they haven't made any major announcements in 2009: Last time I checked, 2009 still has almost 6 months left to it. Just because there was no news on January 1st isn't a reason to lose all hope.

As far as making an announcement at SDCC, it's the last place I would want to make an announcement as a new/revamped company. You're going to be overshadowed by EVERY other publisher out there, not to mention all the attention now focused on the movie side of the business. It would get lost in the shuffle. It's not like the only time people hear about news is at cons. That's what the internet is for...

Seriously, why is everyone so impatient these days?

Fast food, microwaves, gas BBQs, the internet and TiVo-ing past commericials?

xodacia81 · Post by **xodacia81** » Sun Jun 14, 2009 3:36 pm

I think everyone has been extremely patient. I think those who have waited over 10 years for new books have had the patience of saints. I also believe that while people understand the vagaries of the market and such, that the sticking point is the "promise" of more by a specific date, or at the very least, the feeling that this had actually been promised. There is also a thin line between guarding ones secrets and missing out on opportunities to build faith and word of mouth. For the sake of the future of these properties, I hope things haven't gone south. However, if it is eventually discovered that things have gone bad, I don't think many here will be surprised. Will it be due to those in charge not being agressive enough, or will there be other factors at play? Hard to say. I just know that many people are getting sick of being told that they don't even have the right to FEEL a sense of urgency, let alone to speak about it.