PROSE

Dec. 17, 2001.

Here's a bunch of old rants. Expect new rants soon....

GOT SOMETHING TO SAY ABOUT THIS STUFF? I USUALLY DO. SO DO SOME OTHERS. THIS IS WHERE YOU'LL FIND IT. INDUSTRY RANTS, SOCIAL COMMENTARY, OR JUST SIMPLE OPINIONS. IF YOU WANT TO CONTRIBUTE, EMAIL ME.

JUNE 30, 1999. - THIS IS IMPORTANT

THE NEW WIZARD HIT THE STAND TODAY. IT HAS A POKEMON COVER AND A WOLVERINE COVER, YOU CAN CHOOSE WHICH ONE YOU WANT TO PISS YOUR MONEY AWAY ON. I WAS FLIPPING THROUGH THE PRICE GUIDE AND NOTICED A FEW BOOKS THAT ARE NO LONGER LISTED: FAUST, FAUST/777: THE WRATH, EO.

            THESE ARE THE ONLY REBEL STUDIOS RELATED BOOKS THAT HAVE BEEN SEEN IN THE WIZARD PRICE GUIDE IN OVER A YEAR. WIZARD CLAIMS THAT THEIR GUIDE REFLECTS TRENDS IN THE MARKET, ONLY THE BOOKS THAT ARE SELLING WELL WILL GET LISTED. YOU, THE DISCRIMINATING READER, MADE 777: THE WRATH ONE OF THE BEST SELLING INDEPENDENT TITLES OF LAST YEAR. IT REGULARLY SELLS IN MY AREA (WHICH IS NOT A HOTSPOT FOR THIS TYPE OF BOOK) WHEN IT CAN BE FOUND, FOR WELL OVER COVER PRICE. I'VE SEEN BROKEN HALOS, GUNFIGHTERS IN HELL, GRIPS, 777, THRESHOLD, CUDA, DARK UTOPIA, OMEN, GOTHIC NIGHTS, EO, AND PARTICULARLY FAUST ALL SELL FOR GOOD MONEY ON EBAY.

SO WHAT DOES THIS TELL ME? HOW, DEAR READER, DO I INTERPRET THIS? YOU DON'T MATTER TO WIZARD. THEY'RE ERASING ALL EXISTENCE OF THESE BOOKS FROM THEIR MAGAZINE. DAVID QUINN, TIM VIGIL, AND A LOT OF THE OTHER AVATAR GUYS ARE GOING TO BE AT WIZARD WORLD IN CHICAGO THIS YEAR, AS IS DARRELL DONALD FROM BROKEN HALOS. ARE ANY OF THESE CREATORS LISTED ON THE GUEST LIST FOR THE CONVENTION ON THE WIZARD WEBSITE? NO. WHY? BECAUSE WE, AS DISCRIMINATING ADULT COMICS READERS, ARE NOT WORTH A SHIT TO WIZARD OR DIAMOND.

POKEMON AND WOLVERINE SELL MAGAZINES BASED ON NAME AND CHARACTER RECOGNITION ALONE. WOULD FAUST? WOULD THE WRATH? NO ONE KNOWS, BECAUSE THE BIG MAGAZINES WILL NOT GIVE THEM A CHANCE.

I SAY FUCK WIZARD. YOU CAN TOO. EMAIL THEM AND LET THEM KNOW WHAT YOU THINK. IF WE DON'T SPEAK UP, THEY WON'T CHANGE. THEY PRETTY MUCH HAVE A MONOPOLY OVER WHAT THE MINDLESS MASSES BUY. THEY HAVE THE POWER TO INFORM, BUT THEY ABUSE IT, SELLING OUT TO WHOEVER PAYS THEM THE MOST FOR ADVERTISING. FUCK WIZARD. HERO IS GONE. COMBO IS GONE. FAN IS GONE. COMICS JOURNAL IS GONE. AMAZING HEROES IS GONE. CBG STILL EXISTS BUT DOESN'T HAVE THE CLOUT THAT WIZARD DOES, WITH IT'S SHINY COVERS AND SEND AWAY 1/2 ISSUES.

I WILL CONTINUE TO PROTEST WIZARD VIA EMAIL, VIA THIS WEBSITE, AND VIA THEIR MESSAGE BOARDS.  I HAVE WRITTEN TWO DOZEN EMAILS TO THEM IN THE LAST FEW MONTHS, NEVER ONCE HAVE THEY EVEN RECOGNIZED MY EXISTENCE WITH A REPLY. SO I NEED HELP.

EMAIL JIM MCLAUCHLIN AND DEMAND RECOGNITION FOR THE AUDIENCE THAT YOU SHOULD BE PROUD TO BE A PART OF. LIGHT THE FIRES OF THE SECOND DYNA-POP REVOLUTION SO THAT THEY CAN IGNITE THE INDUSTRY BEFORE THE CORPORATE COMIC BOOK WHORES PISS THEM OUT WITH THE SENSELESS SPIN-OFFS, CROSSOVERS, AND MASS MARKETING OF CARDBOARD FLAVORED COMICS. DON'T READ THE SHIT THAT THEY CRAM DOWN YOUR THROAT IF YOU DON'T WANT TO. FREEDOM OF CHOICE EXISTS (WELL, TO A LESSER EXTENT IN CANADA, I CAN'T GET RAW MEDIA MAGS HERE) SO EXERCISE THAT RIGHT.

FUCK WIZARD.

JUNE 22, 1999.

TO START WITH, I THINK WE SHOULD ALL LEND OUT SUPPORT TO THE GUYS AT MILE HIGH COMICS, WHO ARE TRYING TO GET THE AMERICAN GOVERNMENT TO STEP IN AND PUT A STOP TO DIAMOND'S REIGN OF TERROR. THEY ARE SLOWLY BUT SURELY PUTTING THEMSELVES IN THE POSITION TO OWN PRETTY MUCH THE ENTIRE MARKET, AND THIS WON'T DO ANY GOOD FOR ANYONE EXCEPT STEVE GEPPI. RETAILERS WILL GO OUT OF BUSINESS. THE SMALL PRESS WILL GET SHIT ON. AND WE'LL BE LEFT READING WHAT THEY WANT US TO. CHECK OUT MILE HIGH COMICS WEBSITE FOR ALL THE DOCUMENTATION THAT YOU NEED TO MAKE YOURSELF INFORMED OF THE WHOLE SITUATION, AND LEND THEM YOUR SUPPORT. IF THEY DON'T PLAY FAIR, NOBODY WINS.

CLICK HERE IF YOU WANT TO READ AN ARTICLE I WROTE FOR THE SCRIBES PRESS EMAIL COMIC NEWSLETTER. (YES, I KNOW THERE ARE MISTAKES IN IT, BUT IT WAS WRITTEN IN ABOUT 15 MINUTES ON MY LUNCH BREAK AT WORK, SO I COULDN'T RESEARCH EVERYTHING AS I DIDN'T HAVE ANY COMICS TO USE FOR REFERENCE AT WORK).

-Ian.