Roger Stern: one of the hardest acts to follow, anywhere, any time!

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I agree and I think that's one of the biggest reasons as to why sales are so poor. 

Kids today have so many more options when it comes to entertainment. Comics have become so expensive. I think it's harder to justify spending so much money on something you can go thru in five minutes. 

I know it isn't possible to go back to 75 cents per issue. But 3 to 4 dollars an issue is too much. If the prices could drop to around a dollar our dollar fifty. Perhaps sales would increase. 

Comics for the most part are disposable entertainment. The price should reflect that. 

But the quality of paper has also gone up, which also increases the cost. Adults, want a 'quality product, and so demand this type of thing. Do kids? What would be the effect if some were to be published on newsprint again and sold for a lot less money?

I know DC tried something like this in the '80's with NTT, LSH and the Outsiders but that was a failed experiment because people at that time did not want to wait for the reprint when they could get the stories there and then (as opposed to now when so many 'wait for the trade').

I really do think that this, coupled with increased outlets and stories that are inclusive of a diverse age range would help.

Price point is a good point. The price has gone up so that the creators get a decent income - can't argue with that.

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Looking at it from a freelancers point of view. I'm all on board for the artists making more money. 

But if the books aren't selling people won't be making money. 

Prices aren't coming down anytime soon.  In fact, DC is raising prices.  While DC has been handily outselling Marvel in terms of units since Rebirth, they haven't been much more profitable because of the lower price point, and a lot of their second and third tier titles are actually losing money.  I actually appreciate that they're just bumping a bunch of those books up to $3.99 to give them another shot, rather than just cancelling them and doing more Superman/Batman spinoffs.

Also, money isn't the problem, quality is.  I happily shell out $3.99 a month for Valiant titles.  Can't say the same for Marvel's current output.

Kids today have a ridiculous amount of expendable income.  They spend it on things they like and enjoy.  If someone produces comics aimed at kids that they like and enjoy, kids will buy them.

But we are talking about the 8 to 13 year old audience. Not grown adults. 

"Kids today have a ridiculous amount of expendable income. "

As a parent, I am very curious as to what you think this amount of expendable income is per week.

But we are talking about the 8 to 13 year old audience. Not grown adults

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Exactly kids today don't want to shell that kind of money. On Manga they might but not American comics

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"Kids today have a ridiculous amount of expendable income. "

As a parent, I am very curious as to what you think this amount of expendable income is per week.

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I'd like to know as well. As was mentioned before kids are going to spending their money on apps for their phones and Pads.

If Marvel and DC could entice kids to spend some of that cash on digital comics. That's would help quite a lot I think.

I was a fan of the Monica Rambeau Capt. Marvel when she was introduced. I liked the fact that she was so drop-dead gorgeous that Spidey thought for a moment her sheer beauty had set off his spider-senses. I liked the fact that she actually held the rank of Captain in the Coast Guard. I liked the idea that she seemed poised to be an independent character rather than one more person on a team somewhere. Her powers were problematic in that her speed was so intense she'd pretty much have to decide what was going to do first and then simply allow it to happen since there isn't a lot of time for thought when you're travelling at the speed of light. 

Having the ability to simply become any portion of the electromagnetic spectrum was interesting, but also demanded a lot of the writers, many of whom just didn't see the point in trying that hard. And while her visual in human form was great, (that was a nice costume) being able to turn into a set of red, blue, or yellow parallel lines surrounded by exposition of what she was attempting to accomplish was not that engaging.

The character might have been better served if she'd had the ability to become one certain form of fictional energy that operated within specific guidelines rather being able to do anything and go anywhere in no time at all. On the other hand, who knows? Perhaps anyone inheriting the name "Captain Marvel" was going to have a hard time of it during that era behind the scenes as well as in front of the cameras. She is one character I'd enjoy seeing a serious attempt made at rehabilitating. With slightly different powers or a more interesting way of presenting the ones she has, she should be able to sustain a title at least as well as Squirrel Girl can. :-)