Bags and Boards: A Look Into Comics is a monthly column from long time comic book fan Jaybird.  Each month, Bags and Boards brings to you comic book commentary, opinion, and reviews.

Foreword:  Now, the tagline above clearly states that Bags and Boards is a "monthly" column, but in true comic book fashion, that has not been the case.  It has been about seven months since the last entry, which really makes this more of a biannual column I suppose, but I hope to rectify that starting with this article.  Why the delay?  Many things, but none of which really add up to justify it.  I could complain about Jeph Loeb every month if I wanted to, but no one wants that.  I've also been busy with other projects and I left the country for a month.  But hey, at least the gap between issues 2 and 3 of B&B doesn't even compare to that of Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk, which had a nearly two year gap before the third issue recently came out.  That's got to count for something.  Anyways, on with the show!

Counting vol.1, this is actually issue #10 of Bags and Boards.  Pay up.

If you are a regular PsychoNoble Radio listener, you'll have heard my most recent grievances with how Marvel has been running its company, namely in regards to pricing and publishing.  More specifically, their ultimate goal is to make the most money possible, even if that means having less customers spend more money.  After thinking about this topic more, I have decided to dedicate a whole article to Marvel and everything to do with their pricing and publishing.

Now, when it comes to the changing prices and publishing techniques to make money, Marvel is by no means the only culprit.  Yet, I am focusing on them for three reasons: the first being that they are the top company in the business, second is that I am more familiar with them, and thirdly they seem to be the most guilty.

Marvel, by all accounts, has taken on a new policy that they would rather have less customers paying more money than more customers paying less.  This has been the justification behind such big shifts as raising certain comic book prices to $4 a month and to switching Amazing Spider-Man to a thrice monthly schedule.  Yes, they know that they will lose customers with such moves, but not enough to lose money.  In fact, they will actually make more money.

A direct quote from John Turitzin, Marvel's general counsel and EVP of the executive office, "We're always testing our pricing on our comic books to see to the extent to which it is inelastic, and we can increase our profit in that business."  And furthermore, "Our goal is to maximize our revenue, and if we're not maximizing revenue then our pricing is wrong..."

Marvel has shifted its top selling monthly titles, as well as any specials, mini-series, etc., from $3 to $4.  While that may not seem like much, any comic book fan knows that their monthly bill just went up 33%.  No, not every title has gone up in price, but it has if you like any of the following characters: The Avengers, The X-Men, Hulk, Punisher, or anything in the Ultimate Universe.  And for a lot of comic book fans, those are the big ones (not including Spider-Man, which I will cover later).

But even for fans of less popular characters, you are not free of such burdens.  Take for instance the cases of Ghost Rider and Iron Fist.  Their titles were not upped to $4, but instead cancelled and are currently being replaced by mini-series.  Yep, priced at $4.  Whether or not the character's respective title returns after the mini-series is unknown.  Thanks Marvel.

And even if the series remains at $3, you must still worry about any number of specials or anniversary issues that may pop up and cost you $4 or $5.  Anniversary issues, by the way, are essentially meaningless, because when you get something like Thor #600 (which in reality was, I believe, Thor vol.3 #13), they are really counting every single issue of Thor ever printed, as well as his Journey Into Mystery issues.  Albeit, the Thor issue was well worth the $5 and is how a true anniversary should be done.  It had brand new stories and lots of fun extras.

Then there are some notoriously bad issues that have come out recently.  Two incidents come to mind where price did not even get close to the quality/quantity of the issue.

New Avengers #50.  $5.  Why was it $5?  Hell if I know.  I have been a long supporter of New Avengers (in fact, my very first Bags and Boards column was about the title) but this issue was a waste of my money.  It wasn't any longer than a normal issue.  It just so happened to fall on a special number.  And the story was advertised as a big confrontation between the New Avengers and the Dark Avengers (don't get me started) and it didn't even happen!  Why did this cost more?  No reason what so ever, except that they could.

Astonishing X-Men: Ghost Boxes #1 and 2.  These were two specials that were supposedly, but not really it turns out, essential to the ongoing Astonishing X-Men story.  Because they were specials, each was $4 (Astonishing X-Men currently $3, for now).  First off, I get a little upset whenever I am forced to buy something extra for a story that should fit into a monthly title, but there is one reason why this was so infuriating.  As opposed to a full length story, each was half the length, and the other half was the script for that very story.  So for 33% more, you get 50% less.  Both issues.  Really, I paid $8 for a single issue's worth of story.  And they weren't even good!

But of course, this is just how Marvel has been lately.  They know that they their fans are loyal and they will pay for these stories.  Sure, they may lose some casual fans, but they will still be making more money overall.  And never is this more apparent then with Amazing Spider-Man.

I have gone on and on about my problems with Amazing Spider-Man, so I'll try to keep it short.  There used to be three Spider-Man titles a month.  Then, they cancelled the two with low sales and made Amazing Spider-Man three times a month.  Now, if you want to follow Spider-Man, you have to buy all three, as opposed to just one or more of your choice.  Sales plummeted.  They were selling between 100k-130k when Amazing was monthly.  They are now selling about 70k-80k thrice a month.  That means Spider-Man has lost around 30,000 fans.  BUT, it is three times a month, so they are really selling more than double what they were before.  For Marvel, this is a success.

At the end of the day, I realize that Marvel is a company and companies need to make money.  Especially in times like these, everyone is hit hard.  I also realize that comic prices going up are just a part of the business.  They have gone up, and they will always go up.  That is how things are.  But Marvel's focus these days, at least from the publishing end, is to make as much money as possible.  If that means sacrificing customers and gouging the loyal, that is what they'll do.  That is what I have a problem with.  They are exploiting loyal fans because they know they will pay.  And when you look towards the future, the trend is disturbing.  Why would new fans pay $4 for a comic that will give them 15 minutes of entertainment?  Loyal fans won't last forever and the constant sacrificing of fringe fans won't gain new loyal fans.  And when even I find myself looking at prices and dropping titles to save money, you know things aren't looking good.

This Month's Recommendation: Criminal by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips

Here is a comic where you will get your money's worth.  Criminal, as you can imagine, is a crime comic.  I've never really been into the whole crime genre, but I checked this out anyways.  I was instantly addicted.

Each story of Criminal follows a different character and their adventures through the underbelly of crime.  Whether they be a hardened criminal or someone in the wrong place at the wrong time, Brubaker brings his characters to life with ease.  I mean, I've never dealt with drug lords or robberies, but this is how I imagine these things might go down.  And Sean Phillips art work is just awesome for a comic like this.  It is dark, gritty, and combined with Brubaker's writing, just oozes pulp.

And pulp is really what this comic is.  It feels like you are reading some old fashioned crime magazine that somehow got lost until now.  It captures that special magic that makes it feel authentic and revolutionary all at the same time.

I suppose I should also mention that this is a "mature" title, which means the creators don't have to hold anything back.  Swearing, violence, sex and nudity, you get the whole package with this one.  Not saying that is all the comic is about, but it is definitely present to enhance the story.

To tie this into the article as a whole, you actually get some special bonuses for buying this in comic form as opposed to "waiting for the trade."  Each issue has some words from Brubaker as well as a a guest article.  But then again, if you can't find the back issues easily and cheaply, or just prefer trade paperbacks, go that route instead.  The story is what is important.  I myself have volume 1 in trade form and volume 2 as issues.

So if you're up for something a little different, a little dark, and a lot of fun, pick up Criminal.  You won't regret it.

Jaybird currently resides in Seattle where he reads comics, works in a library, and writes for this site.  He has also been known to blow your mind, rock your world, and eat pizza.