I'm an oldtimer, by which I mean that I've been a comics fan for four decades.

The announcement today that Neal Adams would be doing an exclusive alternate cover for All-Star Superman really pissed me off.

On this board (and elsewhere) we have all talked about the many woes facing the comics industry.  Frankly, I would have purchased the Adams cover, but I absolutely will not pay an inflated price to get it.

I would much rahter take the $20.00 + dollars and spend it on a classic back issue than reward Neal Adams, DC, or a shop owner for Neal's coming back simply to visit.

I have to think that such tactics are with us to stay.  Every time we moan about the gimmick covers, they take a short break and then return in force.  And the industry gets a little smaller.

Thanks DC.  Thanks Neal.

You guys can take that spiffy, limited edition, alternate cover and sit on it while rotating.

I must take a firm stand on principle and refuse to buy a current book at an artificially-inflated price just because some hot-sh*t artist figures he can churn out a quickie cover and make enough money to, say, buy himself a new living-room suite and entertainment center with a big-screen high-definition TV and...

>Ps-ss-st!  It's  Neal Adams!< 

Aw, hell...

On this board (and elsewhere) we have all talked about the many woes facing the comics industry.  Frankly, I would have purchased the Adams cover, but I absolutely will not pay an inflated price to get it."

Chuck,

Unless it's much better than Neal's recent X-men effort, I wouldn't worry about it.  You won't be missing too much.

WO

You know, I used to see New X-Men issues with beautiful covers.  IIRC Ethan Van Sciver would draw a beautiful cover.  It was one of those drawings that looked so good, it would make you feel better.  Then I would open the book and see all this Quitely art.  With its Bug-Eyed, thick lipped, bizarre, stylized drawings.  I think Quitely and Igor Kordey are very poor artists.  I like Europeans that I meet in real life and I agree with a bunch that post on this board.  But when I read snotty sounding stuff  that Morrison writes it makes him and Quitely come off as Euro-snobs. 

Hey, I don't think the Euro-snobs even "get" American superheroes.  So when I see them piss over the estblished superhero characters, I just don't buy their work.  When they try to piss over their own fans, man, I have to wonder why we don't see more "Bad Morrison" stories.  I think that if you consider comic book revenue, licensing, videogames, and million dollar profit movies, superhero comics are a very profitable endeavor.  I may have misinterpreted what Morrison wrote but I read it as if Quitely was "slumming" to work on the superhero stories.  I see the superhero story as a kind of American mythology, so I hate to read stuff like that.