non-animated comics?

[Zoddman]

After reading this board quite a bit, it looks like alot of you don't read the regular bat titles, only the animated books (i.e. Batman:Gotham Adventures.) Why is this? How come so many of you don't read the reg. comic-books? I'm not trying to be rude or anything, just curious. :confused:

[Beyond Batman]

I am one of the minorities here who choose to read the mainstream titles over the animated titles. I know there are others on this board... but the ratio of animated followers out numbers the mainstreamers. I'm a huge fan of the Batman Animated Series and I very much enjoy the rest of the animated work. But I'm primarily a mainstream reader. I'd like to say I'm a hybrid follower. I enjoy both, and I like the stories both offer. I collect all of the Bat titles.

But I may have some possible answers to that question, why the majority of posters here don't read the main Bat titles.

1. This board is centered around Bat/Sup/JL fans who are larger fans of Bruce Timm's work rather than Dixon, Brubaber, or Rucka's work. In their eyes, Bruce Timm is a god, he writes the law of the land, he is infallable. Personally, I like his work, but there are others who exceed his caliber.

2. Believe it or not, some people are really picky with art work. They prefer the animated style art over comic art. IMO, art may be good or bad. In turn, a story can be good or bad. But if a comic failed to capture its audience with great stories, the comic would fail. I'm reading a story... a great story leaves a more lasting impression and makes readers want to know what may happen next, not how the character will be drawn next. I was talking with Kelly Jones (former artist of Batman) he said, "I think a comic consists of 49% art and 51% story. It takes both to find an audience, but it takes a great story to capture them."

3. Too many people think that continuity is a difficult obstacle to over come. Get over it. It's not. It only takes a hand full of issues to understand what's going on. Plus there are so many resources out there if you so happen to get lost.

4. Many people aren't interested in collecting other titles; considering the Bat titles go over 7 or 8 titles which leads to the next factor.

5. People seem to hate crossover storylines. People seem to think to understand the whole story you need to pick up all the other DC titles the story crosses over into. I call it the "collectors dillema." Meaning, if you buy one thing out of a set, you need to buy the rest to complete the set. Well... you don't have to. "Our Worlds at War" you didn't have to pick up other titles to understand what was going on with Batman. Last thing on crossovers. If a storyline is crossing over to other titles, you know this story is going to be a big deal because it affects people they are affiliated with. Knightfall, NML, Joker's: Last Laugh, Bruce Wayne: Murderer.... c'mon... these are really good stories. Are you going to pass on them because the word crossover was in it???

6. People have different income levels. When I was 12, I remember saving my lunch money so I could just buy a couple comics. Now that I'm in college and am working, I can afford to buy 6 or 7 different titles every month.

7. The violence level. Some people think that the mainstream comics are too violent. I can't disagree on that one. Sometimes the mainstream titles can be extensively violent. But are you telling me Batman isn't violent?

8. Lastly, people just don't like Batman in the mainstream. Some people dislike the post Frank Miller era. They don't like the dark side of Batman in the mainstream. They complain it's too dark, dreery, and souless.

I'm a big fan of the animated series however I'm a big supporter of the mainstream Bat titles as well. I'd pick up a mainstream Batbook first before picking up an animated book. I plan to stick with the main Bat titles through thick and thin. In the end, I'm just a huge Batman fan, so does it really matter? :p

[Zoddman]

You brought up quite a few good points Beyond Batman. It just bothers me that so many people would pass up something like Alan Moore's wonderful "The Killing Joke" or Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's "Long Halloween" and "Dark Victory" just because they don't have the animated series style. It just hurts that some people can't branch out and try something new. Like you brought up Kelly Jones in your answer. I remember alot of people hated his style when he started on the regular bat-books, but I loved it. He made Batman look the way he wanted people to see him as: A big, demonic bat form. His style was refreshing because:

1: Jim Aparo and Kevin Nowlan had been drawing Batman for so long, you could tell they were on absolute burnout as to drawing the dark knight. Aparo's work had become sloppy, as had Nowlan's. It was nice to see somebody come in fresh to Batman.

2: Jones's style was exactly the way Batman hadn't been drawn since the late eighties by guys such as Bill Sienkiewicz or Norm Breyfogle. They emphasized the creature of the night Bats.

3: Change is good. I can't stand just one interpretation of Batman, he's such a diverse character that can be taken down many different paths. If Frank Miller one day decided that he was going to write Batman for the next ten years, the fan community would be praising the lord. But for me, after reading Miller's Batman for a few years, I'd just get tired of it. I just don't understand how people can keep reading the same style of Batman since 1992. Heck, even Bruce Timm understands it by changing the character designs of his characters in each new D.C. show.

[James Harvey]

I really, really enjoyed Kelley Jones run on Batman. It was so skewed and interesting. It was a interesting take. I remember there being alot fo back-lash against the artist becuase it was 'normal'. Well - of course it wasn't! I like how he stuck to telling nightmare-ish and offbeat tales, and tended to avoid the adventure type storiesm like Legacy, which he skipped. He brought a twisted Vertigo-esque tone to the series and I greatly enjoyed it.

And as the end of Knightfall, Aparo's burnout was apparent. He was on the titles for quite a long time, and you could tell he was getting sloppy. He was a great Batman artist in the 80s, but faltered in the 90s.

I also miss Mark Buckingham on the titles. He is now the artist for Peter Parker: Spider-Man, but did a great job on Shadow of the Bat.

[kid_flash]

Mainstream comics are by far better than animated comics (DC just isn't nailing it, I wish they could). I've only been a real reader (meaning, picking up more than one comic a month) for a little over two years now, though I read back issues before that (what I'm basically saying is that I have a better knowledge of more recent stuff).

1. Really, the Batman, Superman, and JLA comics are better than they've ever been. For Batman, it was NML that really got it going for me. Superman, it's when the new teams took over in October of 1999. And JLA really got a serious boost of energy with Joe Kelly on it now after Waid's so-so era.

2. With writers like Devin Grayson, Greg Rucka, and Ed Brubaker on the Bat-books, it's near impossible NOT to like them. Not to mention adding incredibly artists like Roger Robinson (whose work I've never seen before, but continues to blow me away), Scott McDaniel (who, for my money, is the Kelly Jones of the 21st century), and the incoming Steve Lieber (whose attention to detail will blow you away). And you have these guys taking risks, doing controversial things with one of the most iconic characters ever. There's connection between the books, but not so much connection you need to read them all (except during crossovers). It's just incredible.

3. And that's not even looking at the unforgetable mini-series and one-shots. "The Killing Joke" is, by far, the most incredible, well-written, well-drawn, Joker story I have ever seen, and probably ever will see, and explores the Jokers relationship with Batman in the most flat-out-yet-complex manner I've ever had the pleasure of witnessing with any two characters.

4. And let's not forget Superman! OWAW was hugely controversial with fans in about ten different ways, but there's no question about it--Superman's all the more cooler because of it.

So if anyone's reading this and is even partially considering mainstream comics, I'd say just pick one up! You can even get a cheap one, like 10 Cent Adventure! And even beyond that, comics are not terribly expensive until you go crazy like me and buy 25 comics a month.

[mosszonedotcom]

mainly because I don't want to spend money to buy them

[Trent Lane]

I likw them both. The animated for the self contained or two issue stories, great art, and it's what got me hooked on comics in the first place. The mainstream books may have continued stories, but they are pretty awesome. I regualarly read Robin, Batgirl, and Harley Quinn, and I'm picking up all the issues in the Bruce Wayne: Murderer? storyline- as for Fugitive, I'll have to see. I'll definitely be picking up Batman #600, that one sounds like it's gonna be a good one. The art on Batgirl gives you the feeling of what's going on between the characters, very fast. Pete Woods work on Robin and the Dobson's work on Harley is also awesome as well....

[Zoddman]

Originally posted by mosszonedotcom
mainly because I don't want to spend money to buy them The books aren't connected like they use to be. You don't have to buy the most rcent issue of Justice League to know what's going on in Batman. Start reading one book.

[kid_flash]

Yeah, I started out just reading JLA, and you don't need to read any other books to understand it (sure, characters might be altered in other books, but they'll update you on that in JLA). Or pick up a new series, like Doom Patrol (which, for my money, is one of the best there is). Or there's always Marvel's Ultimate titles, or the independant ones. There are just so many options, you wouldn't even know until you hit a big comic shop. Heck, I'm really into reading different kinds of comics, and I'm STILL amazed at what all there is out there as I discover new stuff every month.

[King Ryan7708]

Ive been a mainstreamer of now 6 months! Im mostly a Batman fan, and read those the most, I still love comics such as Flash, JSA (Two of my favorite comics), and Im going to soon pick up Hawkman when it comes out. I also read some Supermans as well. Also I like Daredevil (which is the only non DC comic I read)

As for animated, hey they started getting me into comics, but Gotham Adventures has been really dissapointing lately.

[Cassandra]

I started out reading just Nightwing and JLA because at the time both of the books had just started up and I didn't want to get bogged down in continuity right away. I think JLA especially is a great place to start- you get an overview of the most popular charecters, and can branch out from there.

Also, I'd imagine that toon fans would at least pick up Harley Quinn- I mean she started in BTAS, why not follow her around?