European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 12, 1992, Darmstadt, Hesse Anti hero Shadowhawk shows no mercy to a villain while Superman holds Back even in his fatal Battle with doomsday. By Mark Kinkade staff writer there s a new Battle shaping up in the comic universe. It s not Between some Leotard wearing radioactively enhanced super Guy and a space mutant super Baddie but rather among real world corporations vying for the Mega Dollar hearts minds and pocketbooks of a younger generation of readers. I he principals in this Battle Are the old and the new. Marvel comics and do comics Are the old guard institutions that established a genre of superheroes who dominated the co ivc stands for More than three decades valiant and image comics Are the Eung turks of the comic Industry. Established by a group of free Lance writers who had worked for Marvel these companies Are cutting deeply mtg he sales of the order companies. Quot i m Selling More image than any other line of books Quot said Frank Massaro one of the top comic distributors in Europe and owner of several comic stores. Quot Quot they re putting out books with awesome Art solid stories and graphic violence. That a banging the Reader Back to the titles every the audience the comics Are trying to capture Are the 6-to-17-year-old buyer said Pamela Rutt Marvel comics vice president of Public relations in new York Quot we know that adults Are a Large part of our audience Quot she said. Quot but we Don t even keep figures on that. We Are constantly trying to keep the younger anti heroes Challenge truth Justice and the american Way generation coming the weapon of Choice in the readership War is a new Breed of superhero. For the newer companies fighting for truth Justice and the american Way is old hat Massaro said. The heroes of yesterday Are beginning to yield readership to a new wave of violc1 controversial and artistically explosive comics and superheroes touting a new comic philosophy a anti hero is the new comic Book King. What readers seem to find in the anti hero is Rea i with a dose of fantasy thrown in. Quot they give the read grit a said Randall Richardson a comic collector pm years. Quot most of them anti heroes Don t Trust the syst Quot he said. Quot they tend to blur that line Between Good a bad so you really can to predict what the character w do in a the anti hero is at least partially responsible for huge increase in comic Book sales Massaro said since he opened his doors in 1990, Massaro Sao has seen his sales increase 300 percent. According to Massaro who Sells mostly to american service members and to a growing arc. German and european customers readers Are b. A More books for three reasons the coming of the hero better Art and Clever gimmicks. Quot the Art is certainly better More creative a is u or i d Aid. Quot and the gimmicks Hologram covers trading aids in the Book Etc Are catching the investors. But a characters and the stories Are what s catching Cost readers. The characters Are different in very a Quot quo on the surface the anti hero is the same As the Landard comic hero. He or she generally w oars a costume fights crime and has a mass of personal Obrems that flesh out the character. Good social behaviour seems to be the most diet cant trait separating the anti hero from the a per hero. Where Superman would Battle a villain for o Fate of the entire free world win the Battle and put villain in prison Shadowhawk a typical anti hero cured in image comics extracts vengeance to comes out of the shadows Quot Shadowhawk a Dor Jim Valentino said in an october interview in is scene Magazine a collector s publication a believes that killing a criminal lets him off too a / instead he Breaks their spines and paralyses a pm for the rest of their lives. He s the darkest hero a As the lines Between Good and evil beam to to Quot o companies Are either rethinking their Nophy or shoring up traditional thinking Quot no we Are in the business of Tel no a Good. Rutt of Marvel comics said a w e borrow hmm the headlines we do show some of the Darker Side of society a and lets face i society has grown Darker a but our main theme has t changed. Good still triumphs Over evil Quot the old Way still works for Marvel comics the company which publishes 100 titles each month posted sales of nearly 160 million comics last year according to Rutt an increase Over 1990 and 1991 figures. Marvel accounts for approximately 52 percent of the Market More than double the Market share of chief competitor do comics Home of Superman and Batman Rutt said. Do to in recognized Pioneer of modern comics has seen its share of the Market drop dramatically. In fact Massaro said Many do titles Are his lowest Selling comics. Stars and stripes bookstores were considering eliminating the Superman titles from the inventory before do announced the death of the character said Jerry Wigen merchandising director for the bookstores do May be Able to dra w readers Back with the death of Superman Richardson said. Quot people want something real. Superman was too perfect too Strong. People want Massaro said the death of Superman is a Fin Aricola Bonanza for the company. The initial press run of Superman no. 75, featuring the death of the character was 1 million copies. Two More press runs have gone since then and Massaro said he is now song the Book for $5 to $1 5 per copy a cation a poster an armband earn and . Is already valued Between $50 arid $00 by co occurs Vigen Sud stars and stripes Bor k Jore Are expected to have the Superman comic by Christmas Quot it May Woik Quot Massaro said Quot it could Geniale some interest in an old character and several books the question is will do follow up with stronger characters and stories in tie rest of its comics or will this be a one shot Deal Quot i he future of comics lies with children while Marvel has no plans for a dramatic departure from a successful formula Rutt said the company will continue to Quot keep a Finger on the readers pulse Quot Marvel reached a new generation in the 60s with spider Mari and the f fantastic four Quot she said Quot we want to stay in touch with those readers and continue to reach new readers Quot the traditional companies May have the pulse gauged just right do hit the Jackpot when Batman became tie Star of two we action Box office super hits and Marvel is planning tie 199-1 release of spider Man As a movie Rutt said but fans of those comic Are adults today i he new generation of readers according to Richardson wants More realism in their fantasy buyers War it their characters to a ,1 i is too / to Quot tie said tie Reader can connect a character that is like them and tie Reader can escape it e problems of tie world when that character puts on t a Sot and starts kicking Butts Quot Page 14 the stars and stripes saturday de it -ber�?T2. 1992 the stars and stripes Page 15
