Marvel, this is the last fucking straw.

[Iason Ouabache]

LOL, SOAP OPERAS COMIC BOOKS!

[BabylonHoruv]

I thought that Daredevil, immediately post ressurection, was the best Marvel I ever read.

Really depressing, and his life is a mess (cause, you know, he was dead)

[Triple Zero]

My favorite character, period.

[The Wizard]

I thought that Daredevil, immediately post ressurection, was the best Marvel I ever read.

Ya, Daredevils now the leader of the Hand, an evil ninja cult.

I'm serious.  Look at the way he acts.  People's parents get killed ALL the TIME, and they don't go on a mad vigilante spree.  They cope.

It stopped being about his parents along time ago. The reason Wayne became Batman was so that he could keep what happened to his parents from happening to other people. It's about protecting people rather than beating up bad guys to make himself feel better.

On top of that, the amount of money he spends on "Bat gadgets" could stop more crime by just making poor neighborhoods wealthier, and improving schools. 

He spends as much money on charity and restoration as he does gadgets. Besides, you don't fix a city like Gotham by just throwing money at it. In the days before Batman, the city was so corrupt, any charitable donations Wayne could use would have been stolen by public officials before it could actually do anything.

And pretty much the entire rogues gallery exists in some form because of shit he did.

And this one is just plain false. The closest thing is the Joker, and we're not even sure if the origin story in question (the Killing Joke) is what really happened.

Batman is the Dark Knight, he sets the moral bar for the whole DC Universe, he's NOT just an asshole! 

THIS.

[Suu]

I thought that Daredevil, immediately post ressurection, was the best Marvel I ever read.

Ya, Daredevils now the leader of the Hand, an evil ninja cult.

I'm serious.  Look at the way he acts.  People's parents get killed ALL the TIME, and they don't go on a mad vigilante spree.  They cope.

It stopped being about his parents along time ago. The reason Wayne became Batman was so that he could keep what happened to his parents from happening to other people. It's about protecting people rather than beating up bad guys to make himself feel better.

On top of that, the amount of money he spends on "Bat gadgets" could stop more crime by just making poor neighborhoods wealthier, and improving schools. 

He spends as much money on charity and restoration as he does gadgets. Besides, you don't fix a city like Gotham by just throwing money at it. In the days before Batman, the city was so corrupt, any charitable donations Wayne could use would have been stolen by public officials before it could actually do anything.

And pretty much the entire rogues gallery exists in some form because of shit he did.

And this one is just plain false. The closest thing is the Joker, and we're not even sure if the origin story in question (the Killing Joke) is what really happened.

Batman is the Dark Knight, he sets the moral bar for the whole DC Universe, he's NOT just an asshole! 

THIS.

These are all the correct Batcycle.

LOL, SOAP OPERAS COMIC BOOKS!

There I reasons why I'm always on and off reading them, I CANNOT AFFORD. Ohai Wikipedia.

[Cainad (dec.)]

It's a sad fate that beloved comic book characters have... death of characters HAS to happen once in a while, for the drama.

Sadly, for character deaths to be meaningful (and, you know, dramatic) it has to happen to a character that people care about. A bummer for fans of the character, but still necessary to good comic book stories.

And then, as the OP pointed out, we have this problem of characters always, always coming back in one way or another. Really popular characters are part of what keeps comic readers coming back and buying more, and I imagine* that trying to get people to start buying a whole new series about a new character that no one knows or cares about yet is a risky and often unsuccessful venture.

This has the unfortunate consequence of cheapening the dramatic value of killing off a character, since comic book readers by now are a jaded bunch. You could probably make money organizing betting rings around how long it will take for the company to bring the character back. The death of a character may make for one really good story arc in and of itself, but for long-time comic readers it just means they don't get to see any more of their favorite character's antics for however long it takes to ret-con them back into existence.

I'd be really frustrated if I were a writer for a long-running comic book series. Unlike, say, a novelist who can tell the story and wrap everything up in one book (or a four-part "trilogy"), I'd have to accept that anything I wrote was subject to the whims of comic book company execs, the twisted maze that is comic book history, and the vicious ret-conning of future writers for the series. Creative breathing space for that kind of writing must be incredibly slim, knowing that any drastic measures you take to make your story stand out from the rest is going to be bulldozed over by the demands of making money off a serial publication.



*I say "imagine" because all of this is pure speculation on my part

[Kurt Christ]

TPB, and only read stories that you have heard don't suck. Best way to deal with the infuriating aspects of the industry, aside from complete avoidance.

[The Wizard]

It's a sad fate that beloved comic book characters have... death of characters HAS to happen once in a while, for the drama.

Sadly, for character deaths to be meaningful (and, you know, dramatic) it has to happen to a character that people care about. A bummer for fans of the character, but still necessary to good comic book stories.

I can deal with great character's dying. I was ecstatic when Cap died, because it was so perfect. As you said, the real problem is that they don't stay dead.

I think I'll just stick with self contained, miniseries, or recently created ongoing series. Fresher ideas and at least when people die, it's either permanent or the first time.

[Kurt Christ]

It's a sad fate that beloved comic book characters have... death of characters HAS to happen once in a while, for the drama.

Sadly, for character deaths to be meaningful (and, you know, dramatic) it has to happen to a character that people care about. A bummer for fans of the character, but still necessary to good comic book stories.

I can deal with great character's dying. I was ecstatic when Cap died, because it was so perfect. As you said, the real problem is that they don't stay dead.

I think I'll just stick with self contained, miniseries, or recently created ongoing series. Fresher ideas and at least when people die, it's either permanent or the first time.

I've enjoyed Power Girl's current ongoing (currently 14 issues in, a TPB has been released compiling the first six, and I think the next six are coming soon). It's much more light-hearted and fun than a lot of superhero comics currently on the market, and I find the change refreshing. It inspired my change of forum identity to Vartox (I wasn't around, much less reading comics, to be familiar with his prior appearances in Superman).

[Bruno]

Two questions:

Is Aunt May dead yet, and is Spider-Man still in college?

[The Wizard]

Is Aunt May dead yet

No. Kingpin had her shot, but Peter than sold his marriage to MJ to the Devil in exchange for her life.

Spider-Man still in college?

No, but he's still a broke bachelor living from paycheck to paycheck. Like he's been for the last thirty years.

[Bruno]

Is Aunt May dead yet

No. Kingpin had her shot, but Peter than sold his marriage to MJ to the Devil in exchange for her life.

Spider-Man still in college?

No, but he's still a broke bachelor living from paycheck to paycheck. Like he's been for the last thirty years.

Isn't it more like 50?

So did he graduate, or drop out?

He was IN college at one point, right? Or was that just in the movies?

[The Wizard]

Isn't it more like 50?

He graduated in the sixties. I only counted the years after he got out of college.

[BadBeast]

It's a sad fate that beloved comic book characters have... death of characters HAS to happen once in a while, for the drama.

Sadly, for character deaths to be meaningful (and, you know, dramatic) it has to happen to a character that people care about. A bummer for fans of the character, but still necessary to good comic book stories.

I can deal with great character's dying. I was ecstatic when Cap died, because it was so perfect. As you said, the real problem is that they don't stay dead.

I think I'll just stick with self contained, miniseries, or recently created ongoing series. Fresher ideas and at least when people die, it's either permanent or the first time.

That's what I like about DC's Vertigo series. They do absolutely blinding series'.
There's long running stuff, like 'Lucifer', 'Transmetropolitan', 'Jonah Hex', 'Unknown Soldier', 'Sandman', 'The Invisibles', the peerless beauty of 'Animal Man', 'Doom Patrol', 'Black Orchid', 'Shade, the Changing Man', 'The Books of Magic', 'The Books of Death', The stunning 'Seekers into the Mystery', and my favourite long runner, 'Hellblazer'.

Then there are the absolute classic short runs, like 'Tank Girl', 'The Minx', 'Girl', 'Industrial Gothic', 'Egypt', 'True Faith', 'Vamps', 'House of Secrets', 'Gangland', 'Kid Eternity', and classic one offs, like 'Kill you Boyfriend'.
And re-runs of classic Vertigo stuff like 'Swamp Thing'  'Moonshadow' & 'Sandman' mini series, like 'The Kindly Ones' 'A Game of You' and 'The Sound of Her Wings'

And all the Vertigo Titles are suggested for Mature readers, so there's very little crossover with the mainstream DC Titles.
To be honest, since DC first launched it,  I haven't sought out many Titles that fall outside Vertigo. Also, the predominance of British Artists and writers brings a gritty feel to the titles, that many American titles don't have. 

[Suu]

Is Aunt May dead yet

No. Kingpin had her shot, but Peter than sold his marriage to MJ to the Devil in exchange for her life.

And then they were transported to an alternate reality in which MJ also had powers.