COMICS CULTURE SHRAPNEL from CBEM 306
I hadn't even known it had come out, but there it was in the store. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, it's the long-awaited collection of all six episodes of the prematurely killed series, aired on ABC last year. That's right, there were six episodes intended to air, but only two made it before the show got axed. The show has been released in a two disc set, each episode in all its glorious uncensored glory. This doesn't mean cursing, since it was supposed to be on a network after all, but it does mean we get to see every deleted scene, formerly deemed "offensive" by the ninnies at ABC.
Of, of course they're offensive. That's part of the fun. The discs are packed with commentary (this is really worth a listen), the TV spots, animatics (rough animated versions of each episode) and little inserts by Jay and Silent Bob. If you like animation I recommend it, if you like Kevin Smith then you already know it is your sworn duty to buy this.
Last week I said I starting buying trade paperbacks as a way to discover new things and broaden my horizons, or something like that. Now it becomes a matter over which I'm going to spend my money on: paperbacks or DVD's? Well... DVD's of course. They're shiny and pretty and oh- so-fun. I get to play with another remote.
If comics came on DVD I'd buy that. Really. Give me interaction and all sorts of features and I'd gobble it up. But would it be a comic? Depends, and it's not a debate I want to get into. So I will end this by yakking about how great comics are compared to movies and TV.
Why I say this... in the audio commentary on the Clerks DVD Kevin goes into rant mode about how you should always take the first offer, no matter who it comes from, because the big guys are going to screw you. He shopped the show around and no one wanted it... and eventually it ended up at ABC. And they were horrid. Now in the comics industry, original ideas aren't as pariahed as in other media. We don't make much money to start with, and there's plenty of people looking for the newest, latest thing. To sell an original idea isn't all that hard - there's almost always someone willing to publish it. Now, you can't always be picky about who takes it, since say, Marvel and DC both follow a "corporate vision" and everything has to sell or die. The only restriction is who will see it - only larger stores might carry a particular publisher, and otherwise the only people who will know about it are those who read Previews. But at least it still has a chance, unlike in other media where ideas die young.