Kirk I agree that readership is down but not as much as sales figures would indicate. Like I said it's difficult to know how many people are downloading illegally but there are a lot.

I think it's fair and safe to say that readership is significantly down from the era which produced Watchmen and The Dark Knight Returns, even with illegal downloading.  I mean, people illegally download movies yet the film industry continually experiences record revenue year after year. 

Plus it's not only sales - accessibility clearly factors in and there's no way readership can be comparable to where it was, when comics were available to kids at convenient stores.

My point about recognition is a response to your question whether All Star Superman is recognized by fans as the older classics are and I'd say yes it is.

I'm not necessarily talking about JUST the fans when we talk about recognition.

I had the same reaction as Adam.  All snarkiness aside and objectively speaking, it's irresponsible and misleading to use percentages when expressing an opinion unless it is a reflection of facts.

Well I apologize if people felt misled by what I posted.  That wasn't my intent, obviously.  I was merely trying to convey my observation.

Having said that, I think it's a point that doesn't really need to be harped on any further.

I'd agree All-Star Superman and New Frontier are both on their way to becoming classics. Just give them some time. It's hard to look at a current era and say "Hey that's a classic. It's revered.". You don't have the perspective yet.

The Night Gwen Stacy Died, The Dark Phoenix Saga, The Dark Knight Returns, and Watchmen all had immediate and profound impacts on the industry.

Now, I'm not arguing that a story like All Star Superman isn't revered by fans and won't be considered a "classic" X-amount of years from now.  But there's just no way IMO that it will have the impact and recognition that those other stories had, given the current state of the industry.

They are not underwear, and the people who work there should
understand that, and appreciate the history, success, and value of the
look of the brand.

Superman's costume is not the problem. Never was. It works well in
comics, cartoons, and movies, as is. But the people guiding the icons
and making decisions do not understand that...