Would you buy US comics in a “Shonen Jump” style magazine format?

A discussion topic at AnimeVice.com caught my attention, so I thought I’d pass it to all of you here. Currently, the way manga is published, the “chapters” of the manga (equivalent to one issue of a comic) are run in a larger magazine like Shonen Jump, Young King Hours, etc. usually on lower quality paper (similar to the quality of the paper in your Essential Marvel collections) and then the chapters are later collected in a Tankobon (basically the equivalent of a trade paperback).

Now, if you could choose to get you comics in a form similar to that, printed chapter-by-chapter in black-and-white in a magazine similar to Shonen Jump (Detective Magazine), with lower-quality paper, and then getting the color and so forth in the “tankobon” anthologies, similar to the trade paperbacks we’re getting now, would you do so?

On the one hand, with the manga format, you’re not getting all the color right off the bat, and the fancy paper, and so forth. On the other hand, you’re getting them on time every month, and you’re getting a bunch of other titles besides, including titles with characters you might not have read otherwise, or even might not necessarily get a monthly book (The Question, for example)?

I’d go with the manga format myself, not just because I like manga, but because I’d be getting a lot more bang for my buck, and if there’s a storyline I really like, I can get the trade. Plus, I’d like to think that this would force the writers and artists to be on time with their work. Yes, you can’t rush art, but when you’re doing a comic you’re agreeing to stick with the monthly format, and to meet deadlines.

Besides, it’d be less expensive for the consumer to get the Bat-Titles in “Batman Magazine” than to buy “Detective Comics” and “Batman” and “Batgirl” and “Robin” and “Nightwing” and

4 replies on “Would you buy US comics in a “Shonen Jump” style magazine format?”

  1. Color!!!
    I like color. Artwork is one of the things that can really turn me on to a series, with color being a big part of it. I don’t particularly care for b&w comics.

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  2. Yes, but…
    I would definitely be willing to by a Shonen Jump format book for US comics. Particularly if they were collections of themed comics, such as all the Batman books, or all the X-Men books, etc. Color would be preferable, but I don’t know what the cost savings would be for B&W. I’d certainly look at either option, if it were available.

  3. Shades of the old days

    On the other hand, you’re getting them on time every month, and you’re getting a bunch of other titles besides, including titles with characters you might not have read otherwise, or even might not necessarily get a monthly book (The Question, for example)?

    So many comic-book characters survived in the past because they survived as back-up features. I might be more inclined to buy/try more titles in this format.

  4. Possibly
    I might look at it, but frankly, I’d miss the colour. It’s one thing to get "Essential" or "Showcase Presents" black and white reprints at a significantly reduced price than buying back issues, but it’s another to buy new product. There’s also the question of anthology and backup product viability. DC’s about to try again, as "Blue Beetle" and "Ravager" begin runs as backup features in "Booster Gold" and "Teen Titans" respectively coming this June. Marvel keeps trying various anthology type series, such as "Marvel Comics Presents" (cancelled after 12 issues) and "Astonishing Tales" (two issues in.) You’d need a strong headliners in this. DC tried it with "Action Comics" years ago, putting Hal Jordan front and centre in a weekly format, with Superman’s contribution cutting back to two pages per issue.

    If the product were designed to be black and white from the outset, I’d probably go for it. If this was just a low cost way to get it, I’d likely pass.

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