Showing posts with label 2009. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2009. Show all posts
Monday, January 19, 2009
Pop Culture Zoo reveals Top Cow April Solicitations
Top Cow Productions has sent over their solicitations for comics, books and products scheduled to ship in April 2009. Make note that their regular sized books are still priced at $2.99, so if you’re dropping titles from other publishers due to a price increase you might want to consider replacing them with some of the comics below. Just sayin’. READ MORE.
NYPD Detective Sara Pezzini wields half of the powerful ancient artifact known as the Witchblade. But now she faces a foe that predates even the mystical gauntlet, confronting a deadly horror that has descended upon Brooklyn’s Ultra Orthodox Jewish community. Could the biblical Angel of Death truly have been unleashed?
Meanwhile, the bearer of the other half of the Witchblade, Dani Baptiste, goes to the aid of one of her dance students, but is she being reckless with her power? READ MORE.
Meanwhile, the bearer of the other half of the Witchblade, Dani Baptiste, goes to the aid of one of her dance students, but is she being reckless with her power? READ MORE.
Pop Culture Shock reviews Witchblade #123
I’m honestly a bit worried about the latest issue of Witchblade. I’ve really enjoyed the supernatural murder mystery arc that’s been going on the last few issues, but I can’t shake the sinking feeling that the conclusion might end up being less than satisfying. And why is that? Because the big “January War ” (or will it be “March War” because of the delays?) storyline that Top Cow has been hyping up is on the horizon. And it leaves me thinking that some of Witchblade #123’s story might feel a bit rushed through just to make room for any set up that might be needed for the next arc. I hope I’m wrong, but I’ve definitely talked about Ron Marz rushing to conclusions before… READ MORE.
Fanboy Review reveals Top Cow April Solicitaitons
Here is a sneak peak at the solicitations for all the April shipping Top Cow Books. Looks like a good month to be a Top Cow fans. READ MORE.
The Quarter Bin reviews Witchblade #123
It’s gotten to the point now where I see the names Ron Marz and Stjepan Sejic on the cover of an issue, and I just smile. It’s an involuntary thing, but it’s not hard to understand why. Like I’ve said time and time again, the two of them make a fantastic team on this series, and I can’t (and don’t want to) imagine Sara Pezzini and company in the hands of anyone else. READ MORE.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Top Cow's $2.99 in 2009 featured in Colorado Springs Gazette
Comic book shops - home to high-flying heroes and colorful adventures - appear to be weathering the economic crisis better than many retailers.
"The conventional wisdom has long been that comics do well in a bad economy in that they are relatively cheap entertainment and they're escapism," said Mike Coco, manager of Bargain Comics in downtown Colorado Springs. In fact, comics first rose to popularity during the Great Depression.
Monday, December 29, 2008
Top Cow Announces 'Let Us Win YOU Over' Initiative
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
TOP COW TO GIVE AWAY TENS OF THOUSANDS OF FREE COMICS IN 2009
‘LET US WIN YOU OVER’ INITIATIVE
Innovative, new program will give away free Top Cow comics through participating retailers across the United States and Canada
LOS ANGELES, Calif., December 29, 2008 – Top Cow Productions, Inc. announced today it will launch the Let Us Win YOU Over initiative in February 2009 that will see the publisher distribute thousands of free comics a month to new readers through participating retailers across the United States and Canada.
Over the course of the yearlong promotion, Top Cow will send 200 free comics each to 25 comic book stores per month (a total of 5,000 free comics per month). Each month, a different set of stores, each month a different free comic. The stores will be spread out geographically and demographically.
Combined with the books it plans to give away during Free Comic Book Day on May 2, 2009 and the many books Top Cow gives away at various conventions across the country, the publisher stands to give away up to 200,000 free comics during the year.
Top Cow’s goal with the Let Us Win YOU Over initiative is threefold: to invite new readers to give Top Cow comics a try and win them over to their line of titles; to generate buzz and excitement for fans and the retailers they support; and to pump some much-needed energy into an industry not immune to the current economic crisis.
“We feel strongly that Top Cow titles are the best they’ve ever been and it’s important for to invite readers and retailers to discover why,” explained Top Cow Publisher Filip Sablik. “While our competitors are straining the wallet of the average fan, Top Cow is making it easy to try new comics.”
So as to not slight existing readers who are already buying Top Cow titles, the publisher will also ship each participating store exclusive Customer Appreciation covers for each subscriber of that month’s free comic. It will be limited exclusively to the subscriber fans at the participating stores for that month.
Top Cow initially opened the Let Us Win YOU Over program to members of the comics retailer group, ComicsPRO, because of the organization’s commitment to banding together to ensure a strong and healthy retailer community.
“ComicsPRO retailers are eager to support this innovative promotion, with the hope of proving that new ideas can lead to new readers for quality titles,” said ComicsPRO President Joe Field. “Our mutual goals with this program are to expose thousands of new eyes to Top Cow's singular brand of comics and to lead more readers to enjoying Top Cow comics and buying them from ComicsPRO member stores.”
“Our stores always looks for great ways to promote comics and connect readers to new stories they might not have given a second thought to before in the past,” said Michael Malve, owner of Arizona-based chain Atomic Comics and a member of ComicsPRO. “So when we heard of this very progressive marketing idea that Top Cow was coming up with, well, let’s just say we were one of the first to dive in.”
“We at Atomic Comics have worked hand in hand with many publishers over our 22 years in the business,” Malve added. “And in that time, Top Cow has been one of the easiest to work with. They have always made themselves available to retailers and listened to our concerns, as most recently noted in their $2.99 in 2009 announcement. I really look forward to this promotion and I hope other retailers embrace and take full advantage of a great opportunity that Top Cow is offering us with their Let us Win YOU Over campaign.”
Retailers who are not members of ComicsPRO and are interested in participating will be able to sign up through their Diamond Comics Distributors customer service representative in the next several weeks.
Over the course of the yearlong promotion, Top Cow will send 200 free comics each to 25 comic book stores per month (a total of 5,000 free comics per month). Each month, a different set of stores, each month a different free comic. The stores will be spread out geographically and demographically.
Combined with the books it plans to give away during Free Comic Book Day on May 2, 2009 and the many books Top Cow gives away at various conventions across the country, the publisher stands to give away up to 200,000 free comics during the year.
Top Cow’s goal with the Let Us Win YOU Over initiative is threefold: to invite new readers to give Top Cow comics a try and win them over to their line of titles; to generate buzz and excitement for fans and the retailers they support; and to pump some much-needed energy into an industry not immune to the current economic crisis.
“We feel strongly that Top Cow titles are the best they’ve ever been and it’s important for to invite readers and retailers to discover why,” explained Top Cow Publisher Filip Sablik. “While our competitors are straining the wallet of the average fan, Top Cow is making it easy to try new comics.”
So as to not slight existing readers who are already buying Top Cow titles, the publisher will also ship each participating store exclusive Customer Appreciation covers for each subscriber of that month’s free comic. It will be limited exclusively to the subscriber fans at the participating stores for that month.
Top Cow initially opened the Let Us Win YOU Over program to members of the comics retailer group, ComicsPRO, because of the organization’s commitment to banding together to ensure a strong and healthy retailer community.
“ComicsPRO retailers are eager to support this innovative promotion, with the hope of proving that new ideas can lead to new readers for quality titles,” said ComicsPRO President Joe Field. “Our mutual goals with this program are to expose thousands of new eyes to Top Cow's singular brand of comics and to lead more readers to enjoying Top Cow comics and buying them from ComicsPRO member stores.”
“Our stores always looks for great ways to promote comics and connect readers to new stories they might not have given a second thought to before in the past,” said Michael Malve, owner of Arizona-based chain Atomic Comics and a member of ComicsPRO. “So when we heard of this very progressive marketing idea that Top Cow was coming up with, well, let’s just say we were one of the first to dive in.”
“We at Atomic Comics have worked hand in hand with many publishers over our 22 years in the business,” Malve added. “And in that time, Top Cow has been one of the easiest to work with. They have always made themselves available to retailers and listened to our concerns, as most recently noted in their $2.99 in 2009 announcement. I really look forward to this promotion and I hope other retailers embrace and take full advantage of a great opportunity that Top Cow is offering us with their Let us Win YOU Over campaign.”
Retailers who are not members of ComicsPRO and are interested in participating will be able to sign up through their Diamond Comics Distributors customer service representative in the next several weeks.
Filip Sablik's new entry at Blog@Newsarama
Blog@Newsarama has posted the latest blog entry by Top Cow Publisher Filip Sablik, in which he asks, "What have you done for comics lately?" He also talks about what he liked in 2008 and what he's looking forward to in 2009, including the CYBERFORCE/HUNTER-KILLER miniseries by Mark Waid and Kenneth Rocafort. (That's one of Rocafort's character designs below.) Click here to read Filip's latest blog entry.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Top Cow Solicitations for March 2009
-Witchblade #125 Ron Marz/Stjepan Sejic/Chris Bachalo $2.99-Black Vault #1 B. Clay Moore/Nelson Blake II/Jeremy Haun
$2.99
-The Darkness #76 Phil Hester/Michael Broussard/
Frazer Irving, Josh Medors $2.99
-The Darkness #3 2008 NYCC Variant Cover Edition Signed
Hester/Broussard/Keown $14.99
-The Darkness #71-74 Cover Set Hester/Lucas/Sejic/Timson/Irving $16.99
-Impaler #3 William Harms/Matt Timson $2.99
-Impaler #1 Cover Var Signed William Harms/Matt Timson/Sheldon Mitchell $10.99
-Rising Stars Compendium SC J. Michael Straczynski/Fiona Avery/
Brent Anderson/Keu Cha/David Finch/
Karl Moline $59.99
-Blood Legacy 3 Novel Kerri Hawkins $6.99
-Freshmen: Summer Vacation Special Paradise Comics Variant
Hugh Sterbakov/Sheldon Mitchell $10.00
READ MORE.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Newsarama interviews Filip Sablik for 2009 Preview
We brought you first word of Top Cow holding their prices at $2.99 through 2009, and now, it’s time for a look ahead at 2009. For that, we sat down again with Publisher Filip Sablik.Newsarama: Filip, you’ve recently announced big plans for both Witchblade and Darkness. In terms of core titles, what are you looking at for the coming year? A steady run with the two titles, or another year with a summer event?
Filip Sablick: For those two titles we’re going to go with the former. 2009 is going to be a time to refocus, in terms of letting the creators do what they do best with the books, and giving them a break from having to worry about a larger event that they have to build towards. Ron’s doing “War of the Witchblade” starting with issue #125, but that’s a story that’s been developing organically since issue #100 or #101, and it’s something that he’s been wanting to do.
In Darkness, a lot of Phil [Hester]’s upcoming stories, while they’ll be following continuing thread, will be self-contained story arcs, either one or two issue stories. Issues #7-#10, and up to the new issue #75 are all self-contained issues where people can pick up an issue and get a complete sense of the Darkness and who Jackie is, and hopefully that will be enough to pique their interest, and they jump back in. READ MORE.
Tuesday, December 09, 2008
iFanboy covers $2.99 in 2009
It turns out that iFanboy may have had some influence over at Top Cow Productions. Publisher Filip Sablik made the rounds yesterday in response to Top Cow's press release guaranteeing a $2.99 cover price on all regularly sized issues in 2009. Sabik says, “We looked around and saw cover prices creeping up and up all around us. It seems wrong to raise your prices on customers during these tough economic times.” In the comments of this Newsarama story, Sablik references Conor's recent article on the price increases.Publicity stunt or not, I imagine Top Cow readers are happy to see that their books won't be costing them more money in the immediate future. It's certainly a far cry from what Marvel readers are experiencing and hearing. It seems that Marvel's plan to keep the event books and popular titles (like Dark Avengers and New Avengers) at $3.99, in order to guarantee that other titles stay at $2.99. Still, that sounds dubious to me, and as Conor pointed out to me earlier this week, 11 of the 19 books Marvel will release this Wednesday will be priced at $3.99.
READ MORE.
Monday, December 08, 2008
Pop Culture Zoo talks to Filip Sablik further about $2.99 in 2009
Earlier this week Top Cow Productions issued a press release stating their commitment to keep the cover prices on their regular sized comic books at $2.99 through the entirety of 2009. This prompted a lot of questions in our minds. Fortunately Top Cow publisher Filip Sablik was willing to answer them.PCZ: Why was it important to you to stay at $2.99 and make that commitment for a whole year?
FS: Rising prices are a concern we kept hearing from retailers and fans alike. At Top Cow, we’re looking to grow our fanbase and business with our direct market partners, so raising prices in an economic recession seems like the counterintuitive way to do that. And a year seemed like a good way to let everyone know we were serious about this commitment.
PCZ: Why not fall in line with everyone else or do a smaller increase to, say, $3.50?
FS: An increase is an increase. And honestly a press release reading “Top Cow Doesn’t Turn the Screws as Bad as the Other Guys” doesn’t quite have the same ring to it. READ MORE.
Comics Teacher covers $2.99 price
This could serve as a model for study by Business or Economics students. By staying at $2.99 instead of increasing to $3.99, like most publishers, during an economic downturn are Top Cow ensurimng stability?A quick survey through Previews or across the shelves at your
local comic shop will confirm that sinking feeling that you’ve had
about comics lately – the prices are starting to creep up. Gone are the
days of publishers like DC and Marvel lifting their entire line by a
quarter. Now, in a sea of $2.99 cover prices, titles, popular titles
are starting to cross into the $3.00 range, most often landing at
$3.99. READ MORE.
Thursday, December 04, 2008
Top Cow Pledges $2.99 Cover Price Through 2009
A quick survey through Previews or across the shelves at your local comic shop will confirm that sinking feeling that you’ve had about comics lately – the prices are starting to creep up. Gone are the days of publishers like DC and Marvel lifting their entire line by a quarter. Now, in a sea of $2.99 cover prices, titles, popular titles are starting to cross into the $3.00 range, most often landing at $3.99.As 2009 gets underway, there’s one publisher that won’t be adjusting its cover prices: Top Cow. As Publisher Filip Sablik tells Newsarama, Top Cow has made a pledge that it’s titles will remain at $2.99 through 2009.
Here’s what Sablik had to say:
Newsarama: Filip, was this something that you set out to do, that is, “We need to hold the prices, no matter what,” or was there just no reason to raise prices when you looked at things?
Filip Sablik: I don’t know if there’s no reason to raise prices – I think there’s always a reason to raise prices – to make more money [laughs]. But I think this was a case of us looking around at the market and kind of listening to retailer and fan feedback and realizing that it’s a concern – a concern for us and for the fans. When you look around and 50% of Marvel and DC’s releases are over the $3.00 mark, that is a concern, and we want to offer fans another alternative. We’re doing okay at $2.99, and decided that if we could hold it there, we should. READ MORE.
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