It hasn't even been a decade since Disney purchased Marvel Comics, and already it's safe to say that investment has paid off for the company. The Marvel Cinematic Universe is one of the biggest juggernauts in pop culture and has raked enough money to make even Scrooge McDuck do a double-take. But being under the Disney umbrella has benefited Marvel as well. For the past two years, Marvel has been publishing new Star Wars comics that have both expanded the new, Disney-approved Star Wars universe and helped Marvel weather the effects of declining superhero comic sales. Star Wars has quickly become a critical part of Marvel's publishing lineup. At this point, the only question is why Marvel isn't taking even greater advantage of their new Disney alliance. Why is Star Wars the only Disney property that Marvel is exploiting these days?
I often find myself wondering what state Marvel would be in right now if they didn't have the Star Wars line to bolster their numbers. There's been a pretty steady and noticeable decline in sales of Marvel's superhero comics in recent years, with even formerly dependable franchises like Avengers and X-Men suffering from drops in readership. The reasons for those declining sales are varied, but the point is that the Star Wars books have played a huge role in maintaining Marvel's status as the top-selling publisher in the industry despite the increasingly volatile state of the market.
And why not? There's a lot to love about the current Star Wars line, particularly ongoing series like Jason Aaron's Star Wars and Kieron Gillen's Star Wars: Doctor Aphra. These books feature some of Marvel's best creators taking advantage of the wide canvas that is the post-Expanded Universe Star Wars franchise. These comics add new layers to characters we know and love and introduce entirely new players like Aphra, Sana Solo and Inspector Thannoth that are worthy to stand alongside the movie crew.
It's hard not to wonder if Marvel could be doing the same for other Disney franchises. I know I'm hardly the first person to question why, in the five years since Marvel and Lucasfilm came to be under one roof, we haven't seen Marvel publish a single Indiana Jones comic. Indy's adventures are tailor-made for comics. We've seen that from Dark Horse's various dalliances with the franchise over the years. Moreover, there's a huge section of the character's career in between Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull that's basically uncharted. The latter film even referenced Indy's time as a member of the O.S.S. during World War II. Why has no one turned that into a comic book yet? Why not throw Indy fans a bone as they continue the long wait for the fifth film to become a reality?
Indiana Jones is the most obvious choice, but there are plenty of other Disney franchises practically begging to be given the Marvel treatment. Pirates of the Caribbean is another obvious pick. This is a universe that's equal parts larger-than-life adventure and complicated mythology. Why not expand that mythology in comic book form? Give us a book about the early days of Jack Sparrow and Hector Barbossa or the doomed romance between Davy Jones and Calypso or one that fleshes out the other members of the Brethren Court.
The same goes for properties like Tron and Gargoyles. Both of those sagas seem doomed to remain perpetually unfinished in their original forms. Disney shows little interest these days in moving forward with Tron 3, and anyone who watched Gargoyles back in the mid-'90s is probably still smarting over that show's unceremonious decline. Why not let Marvel have the opportunity to give fans what they want and continue these stories? Gargoyles was actually given the comic book sequel treatment once before, courtesy of publisher Slave Labor Graphics, but that series never really found the audience it needed to survive. But with Marvel's marketing muscle, it could be a completely different story this time. These beloved sagas could find new life in the same way popular shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Invader Zim live on thanks to the magic of comics. It's certainly much cheaper to publish Tron 3: The Comic than to green-light a new film, and all you really lose is the Daft Punk soundtrack.
The possibilities are practically endless, but Marvel has yet to seize them. The company has done shockingly little to exploit its Disney connection outside of the Star Wars line. We've seen a handful of books based on Disney theme park attractions (The Haunted Mansion, Figment, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad), and a token effort to capitalize on the release of Tron: Legacy in 2010. But for the most part, Marvel has completely ignored these properties. They even seem content to allow other publishers to continue handling classic, all-ages Disney comics like Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge. Why is IDW publishing the new DuckTales comic and not Marvel? Why didn't Marvel make more of an attempt to continue BOOM! Studios' Incredibles comic after the rights were transferred? If anything, there's even more room for an Incredibles comic at Marvel now given the ongoing lack of new Fantastic Four books.
That's to say nothing of the obvious marketing potential of a Disney/Marvel crossover. Sure, everyone joked about "Goofy vs. Punisher" crossovers and the like when the Marvel purchase was first announced, but the fact remains that merging the Disney and Marvel Universes could yield some great comics. Look at what DC did with their recent Justice League/Looney tunes crossovers. "Batman vs. Elmer Fudd" might sound like the dumbest idea ever conceived. And honestly, it kind of is, but Batman/Elmer Fudd Special #1 also happens to be the best comic published this year. DC saw the potential there, and they found the right creative team to bring it to life.
As I've argued before, one of the reasons for Marvel's sluggish sales is the fact that they simply publish too many superhero comics. Likewise, that may be one reason the Star Wars books have done so well. Readers are hungry for something different from Marvel - something that doesn't involve yet another incarnation of the Avengers or a D-List character getting a short-lived, redundant solo series. Novelty, as well as quality, is helping to drive the high sales of the Star Wars line. There's no reason Marvel couldn't reap similar rewards from Indiana Jones or Pirates of the Caribbean or Gargoyles comics. There's such a wealth of opportunity now that Marvel is part of the massive Disney machine, and it's past time the company started taking advantage of that fact.
"Between the Panels" is a bi-weekly column from Jesse Schedeen that focuses on the world of comics. You can see more of his thoughts on comics and pop culture by following @jschedeen on Twitter, or Kicksplode on MyIGN.
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire