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Author	Topic: Questions for Bob Greenberger
GreatBear Member	posted November 02, 2002 11:19 PM I just want to thank Mr. Greenberger for taking the time answer our questions, and ofer my 2 cents. The Haunted Tank: If not sure why HT is so low on the list, but I'd enjoy and archive or TPB collection of the Tank and/or Unknown Soldier, the Losers, Weird War or any of the great WW2 titles. SF&F Comics: Ditto the Above for Adam Strange, Kamandi, Weird Worlds, Warlord. Publishing on CD ROM: a number of periodicals including National Geographic have collected their past issues and published them on CD Rom. Has DC Comics ever considered such a format? Would they consider it for titles that would not otherwise see reprinting in a HC archive? IP: Logged
DaBubba Member	posted November 03, 2002 08:30 AM Greatbear : I was just thinking of posting something along these lines. Since titles like Scribbly/Red Tornado, Sugar and Spike, and Haunted Tank (among many, many others) are deemed too unmarketable for archives, I would love to see them on CD-ROM. I'd think that scanning pages, some simple formatting, a few interviews, and a couple tidbits would be inexpensive for DC. I'd pay $20 for a complete Scribbly/RT on CD. IP: Logged
? Member	posted November 03, 2002 08:53 AM I want a Haunted Tank archive, and I'll get one even if I have to go to Hollywood, become a successful producer, make a blockbuster Haunted Tank movie, and allow DC to take advantage of the hoopla by printing the book I want! IP: Logged
gmp Member	posted November 04, 2002 12:15 AM I feel the same way about Sea Devils and the Viking Prince. I realize DC probably thinks there's not a big enough market out there to warrant archives, but I think they're wrong. Despite the lack of strong name recognition, I feel certain that the positive word of mouth generated by the artistic merits of the series would generate strong sales. Glenn IP: Logged
Bob Greenberger Member	posted November 04, 2002 10:23 AM One of the disagreements I had with Bill Jemas was over the speed with which series were to be collected. In my mind, if you could have a trade of an Ultimates arc or the Deadline mini-series within just a few months of the individual comics, it would become an incentive to wait for the trade. To me (and speaking as me), letting the material age just a bit to help gauge demand works better. Demand proved interest in more Nightwing material so in February you will have the next Nightwing trade. I don't see the need to close the gap. On the other hand, both Fables and Y the Last Man have proven to be surprise critical successes and people have had trouble finding all the issues. Fast-tracking trades for both, as we did with Transmetropolitan, is the right way to go since they support a growing audience for the monthly comics. Meanwhile, an official word on the Neal Adams-Batman project will come out in a few days. CD-Rom is certainly one option to explore and our Business Development folk have dabbled with it here and there. With luck, something might happen over the next few years. And then all you Red Bee fans can have the complete set. ------------------ Bob Greenberger Senior editor - Collected Editions IP: Logged
Coleo Member	posted November 04, 2002 11:21 AM Having just reread the series in floppy form, I would love to see James Robinson's Starman completed in TPB. It would take about four more volumes to finish off. JSA continues to do well, and this book was the foundation for that. Cole IP: Logged
Scippio Member	posted November 04, 2002 11:35 AM quote: Originally posted by Bob Greenberger: One of the disagreements I had with Bill Jemas was over the speed with which series were to be collected. In my mind, if you could have a trade of an Ultimates arc or the Deadline mini-series within just a few months of the individual comics, it would become an incentive to wait for the trade. To me (and speaking as me), letting the material age just a bit to help gauge demand works better. Demand proved interest in more Nightwing material so in February you will have the next Nightwing trade. I don't see the need to close the gap. Thanks for the answer. Even though it wasn't what I was hoping to hear. IP: Logged
Owen Cardiff Darcy Member	posted November 04, 2002 12:24 PM quote: Originally posted by Bob Greenberger: CD-Rom is certainly one option to explore and our Business Development folk have dabbled with it here and there. With luck, something might happen over the next few years. And then all you Red Bee fans can have the complete set. I don't know about Red Bee, but I'm waiting for my Inferior Five CD-Rom. IP: Logged
DaBubba Member	posted November 04, 2002 02:05 PM Outstanding! Great info re: the possibility of archiving "iffy" material on CD-ROM. They have my wholehearted support. Thanks, Bob! Your willingness to visit the boards and drop a few tidbits our way is greatly appreciated! IP: Logged
Cloneranger Member	posted November 04, 2002 04:24 PM quote: Originally posted by Bob Greenberger: In my mind, if you could have a trade of an Ultimates arc or the Deadline mini-series within just a few months of the individual comics, it would become an incentive to wait for the trade. I agree with this completely. More and more as I fill out my Previews order every month I find myself saying, "Wait for the trade", especially with Marvel. That said, has there been any thought given to bypassing the monthly format on any particular new title and just putting it out in trades? IP: Logged
NecessaryImpurity Member	posted November 04, 2002 04:27 PM A CD-ROM (DVD-ROM?) project could be a case of having our cake and eating it too. If the CD project only scans the stories, no restoration used, that could be used to gauge interest in what should be put through the restoration process so that hard copy collections, including Archives, can be issued later. The CD format would be akin to Essentials, but doesn't overlap the Archive market to the same extent that Essentials step on the toes of Masterworks. Given a choice, I would always opt for a nice HC collection over CD-ROM. But if I knew that it will be 25 years before Kid Eternity gets Archived, you can be sure I will buy the CD now and upgrade when the Archive is issued. I don't feel the same way about a TPB; for whatever reason, it feels wasteful to buy a book twice, and I'd hold out for the HC version. IP: Logged
Green_Hornet Member	posted November 04, 2002 10:59 PM Mr. Greenberger, all I can say is that I appreciate you sticking with us fanboys for five pages of posting. Not to overload you with suggestions, but I'd like to reiterate what Coleo said above about finishing Starman (preferbly faster then once a year). I'd also like to suggest two other great series that I think could do well as trades with the JSA's popularity in reccent years. Sandman Mystery Theatre and the Spectre both got intial trades and no follow up. I'm assuming that was due to poor sales, but I have to point out they were released in the early 90's when intreast in the Golden Age waxed and waned. I believe they could both perform acceptably in the current market. It might also help to collect more then four issues per trade, but hey beggers can't be choosers. I think the Spectre espically could do well as an alternative for fans alienated by the new series (nothing against DeMattris, I've never read the new one). While I'm on the subject, another hero who deserves trading consideration would have to be Green Arrow. Kevin Smith and Brad Meltzer have brought Ollie to a high point of popularity, but before to long that could change. I think DC could exploit that with either some reprints of Grell's series and/or of some of his better back-ups from World's Finest and other places. Thanks for listening to my rambling and begging. -Bob IP: Logged
FOG Member	posted November 04, 2002 11:54 PM I'll post my question/comment for Bob one more time, since it got passed over last time Bob answered. I realize he may not have an answer, and that's fine. But I just wanted to get his thoughts on it, if possible. My comment/question concerned the GA Green Lantern & GA Flash Archives. Has there been any consideration given to possibly alternating these two popular characters on a year to year basis with Archive releases? For instance, Flash v. 2 this coming year. Then GAGL v. 3 in 2004. Back to Flash in 2005, etc. Next to Bats and Supes (and possibly Wonder Woman), I would think these two characters are the most enduring from the Golden Age. I sincerely hope DC will continue both lines. Thanks, Bob. Gary "I must confess that I'll be extremely disappointed if we don't see the second volume for Jay next year" O. IP: Logged
Bob Greenberger Member	posted November 06, 2002 11:34 AM We have had no specific conversation regarding alternating the Golden Age Flash and Golden Age GL collections. While it sounds nice and logical, it also locks up a Golden Age slot that, based on sales, might be better used for something else. We'll see. Our intent remains to complete the Starman run in tpb form. With ABC's interest in the property, the odds of the monthly being collected on a faster track seems logical but it's too early to tell. There's a tremendous amount of good material from the 1970s and 1980s that I would love to see back in print, including Green Arrow by Grell (as mentioned above) or some of those forgotten gems from the myriad dollar comics, but there just doesn't seem to be a lot of interest. Nor is there a lot of room in the schedule for that stuff. We can always remain hopeful. ------------------ Bob Greenberger Senior editor - Collected Editions IP: Logged
James Friel Member	posted November 06, 2002 12:10 PM Time for another big, general question, which you've probably seen discussed but haven't addressed in anything you've said. What's the position on strict consecutivity? There are series (GA Glash and GA GL clearly among them, probably Shazam! as well, and potentially others--I see Aquaman after volume 1 or 2 as possibly being in the same category) whose sales would improve if the archives skipped to a different period. The late 1940s Flash and Green Lantern material is far superior to, and more accessible to modern readers than, the earlier stuff, which is consequently being reprinted at a snail's pace, which seems likely to result in the later, more saleable period either never appearing in archive form or taking 30-50 years to come around on the guitar. Since there's little or no actual continuity from story to story and relatively little character or background development, why not jump directly to, say, GA Flash v.13 (number pulled out of thin air--wherever the Elias and Kubert and Infantino would start). This still leaves the possibility of filling in the intervening material some day, and gets the potentially most commercial stuff into print. IP: Logged
jape Member	posted November 06, 2002 12:44 PM There's precedent for skipping ahead in the publishing sequence, as James suggests. Fanatagraphics started its Prince Valiant collection with vol 26, and kept publishing in sequence from there, as well as later publishing vol 1, so effectively there were two series being published simultaneously, but with common numbering. Viz is doing something similar with the Dragonball and Dragonball Z paperback collections, so Dragonball Z vol 1 is also Dragonball vol 17, with the two series alternating monthly publication. It would be a great way of getting later material from long running GA series such as Captain Marvel and Flash into print while some us are still alive to enjoy them. IP: Logged
jape Member	posted November 06, 2002 12:45 PM There's precedent for skipping ahead in the publishing sequence, as James suggests. Fanatagraphics started its Prince Valiant collection with vol 26, and kept publishing in sequence from there, as well as later publishing vol 1, so effectively there were two series being published simultaneously, but with common numbering. Viz is doing something similar with the Dragonball and Dragonball Z paperback collections, so Dragonball Z vol 1 is also Dragonball vol 17, with the two series alternating monthly publication. It would be a great way of getting later material from long running GA series such as Captain Marvel and Flash into print while some us are still alive to enjoy them. IP: Logged
Donna Troy Fan Member	posted November 06, 2002 12:57 PM quote: Originally posted by Bob Greenberger: We have had no specific conversation regarding alternating the Golden Age Flash and Golden Age GL collections. While it sounds nice and logical, it also locks up a Golden Age slot that, based on sales, might be better used for something else. We'll see. Our intent remains to complete the Starman run in tpb form. With ABC's interest in the property, the odds of the monthly being collected on a faster track seems logical but it's too early to tell. I think it would be great to know that GA GL/ GA Flash was a sure thing to look forward to. Just like Wonder Woman/ Shazam. And 1 GA BAtman per year and 1 GA Supes per year. 1 ALL Star and 1 Plastic Man. That should still leave 2 or 3 golden age spots if you go to 18 DCU archives per year. And Golden Age All Star will be done soon (then 70's All Star will appear). IP: Logged
FOG Member	posted November 06, 2002 03:32 PM quote: Originally posted by Bob Greenberger: We have had no specific conversation regarding alternating the Golden Age Flash and Golden Age GL collections. While it sounds nice and logical, it also locks up a Golden Age slot that, based on sales, might be better used for something else. We'll see. Thanks, Bob. That's not the answer I was hoping to hear, but I appreciate the honesty. I guess the dollar really is the bottom line, from what I can tell. I agree with others who have suggested moving up the scale and beginning the GA Flash & GAGL Archive lines with late 40's material. While I want to see it all, anything is better than nothing. And if sales/dollars are the bottom line, I concur that later stories will sell more briskly. Gary "I also agree with DonnaTroyFan that it would be nice to KNOW that a GA Flash & GAGL volume would be coming on a consistent basis - and if there is an increase to 18 Archives per year, it wouldn't seem like too much of a slice of the pie to alternate them" O. IP: Logged
Marty Raap Member	posted November 06, 2002 03:53 PM God, I hope DC doesn't start jumping the Archives around chronologically as James suggests. I can tolerate it with Silver Age Batman and Superman -- there's so much material there we'd never get to later stuff without something like Batman: Dynamic Duo, and something of a break can be argued between SA and GA versions of Batman. Even with Aquaman, he's a very long running character, and there's an argument the SA version is different from the GA version. But I strongly feel that kind of thing should be minimized. We can't all get everything we want tomorrow; every volume can't be a new #1. Let's be patient and get series out in a manner that seems professional, well-planned, and consistent. I don't want the Archives to become the Masterworks program; the Archives plan has worked great so far, and I see no reason to tamper with it. If DC jumped ahead to GA Flash #12, say, that just sends a signal that they have no confidence in GA Flash #2-11. It also creates another frustrating gap like we currently have with the omission of All-Star Comics #1-2. And who's to say GA Flash #12 is better than #2-11? If the Archives start cherry-picking material, it isn't an Archive program any more, it's just an expensive reprint program. The goal, instead, should be to plug ahead and get all of it out chronologically and in as much of a timely manner as possible given the enormous amount of material to reprint eventually. The best solution, I think, is to move ahead on the "alternating years for GA Flash/GA GL" idea and just get the volumes out faster, especially if we are moving toward seeing 18 DCU Archives a year. IP: Logged
Marty Raap Member	posted November 06, 2002 04:29 PM To follow up a bit on my last post -- the beauty of the Archives program, in my view, is exactly that it reprints EVERYTHING and not just those supposed "cream of the crop" stories that either have been, or are more likely to be, reprinted elsewhere. You can read a copy of Superman's story in Action #1 almost anywhere, but how often do you see a copy of Action #17, say, reprinted? I want to read ALL this stuff and decide for myself what I like, and not have some editor or other fan tell me what's worth reading and what isn't. TPBs are for that kind of cherry-picking; the Archives should be reserved for the truly archival type of reprinting that they've embodied to date. As to sales, of course no one expects a company to take a loss to satisfy some artistic imperative. But I don't think it's a choice between "publish GA Flash #4 and lose money" or "publish GA Flash #13 and make money." My understanding is that all Archives make money, albeit it at different rates. If you want the Archives to succeed long-term, you need long term planning. Sometimes taking a little less money short-term helps you make money long-term. I'd hate for DC to adopt the Marvel plan of milking a project for maximum dollar right now, and then abandoning it once the easy cream is stripped off. With the Archives, I actually think much of the cream (Batman #1, JLA #1, etc.) is out there now, and this problem will only get worse as time passes and more volumes appear. If the line is to continue long-term, it seems to me it has to premised on the idea that there's a value in having EVERY SINGLE SUPERMAN STORY on your shelf, or at least available to you. My speculation on sales is that DC will sell a lot more Archives in the long run if they find a way to nurture lines like Black Canary and Enemy Ace in the process, rather than just pumping out all the Batman books they can now. The same is true for longer lines of characters like GA Flash and GA GL; DC should hope to sell ALL of that stuff eventually rather than just 2 or 3 good volumes right now. With regard to GA Flash, I haven't read these stories, so I can't really say if I agree with James about the higher merit of the stories at the end of the line. But that's the point -- I want to read ALL of them for myself and form my own opinion. I suppose it's possible that GA Flash Archives #4, say, would contain stories that are unreadably bad and GA Flash #13, say, would contain pure gold, but that seems unlikely to me. I haven't seen an Archive yet in which I can't find something to like, and I bet most people buying Archives feel the same way. Anybody who demands modern sophistication of art and story probably isn't buying GA Archives anyway. DC's philosophical approach to the Archives has always seemed to mirror mine, and I hope that continues to be the case. IP: Logged
Jim Davis Member	posted November 06, 2002 05:32 PM quote: Marty Raap: If the line is to continue long-term, it seems to me it has to premised on the idea that there's a value in having EVERY SINGLE SUPERMAN STORY on your shelf, or at least available to you. Marty, the long term in this case would be measured in lifetimes. Unless Superman frequency is increased to Spirit levels no one on this board is going to live long enough to have every single Superman story available to them in archive format. The only hope for completeness in are lifetimes is digital format. Having said this I agree that gaps within individual volumes are unacceptable except in rare instances where source material isn't available. Completeness should be an archive requirement but strict chronological release of volumes is not that important. The Superman stories from, say, 1962, should not be held hostage to the sales success of the Superman stories of 1944. Jim Davis IP: Logged
Steven Utley Member	posted November 06, 2002 05:36 PM Perhaps Bob Greenberger can tell us what has become of THE FRAZETTA ARCHIVES, which was announced last year, then dropped off the radar screen. This, I was led to understand, would be a hardcover done-in-one featuring all of Frazetta's work for National -- one Tomahawk story, several Shining Knights, and a number of non-series items from MYSTERY IN SPACE, ALL-STAR COMICS, etc. DC may have forgotten, but not moi. ------------------ Discuss "The 80- and 100-Page Giants" at http://dcboards.warnerbros.com/files/Forum21/HTML/000416.html Discuss "The Greatest DC Stories Ever Published" and other trade paperbacks at http://http://dcboards.warnerbros.com/files/Forum21/HTML/000364 Hey Kids! Read my deathless prose online! It's FREE! It's FUN! (well, it's free, anyway) Beyond the Sea http://www.revolutionsf.com/article/1396.html The Real World http://www.scifi.com/scifiction/originals/originals_archive/utley/ The Despoblado http://www.scifi.com/scifiction/originals/originals_archive/utley2/ Five Miles From Pavement http://www.scifi.com/scifiction/originals/originals_archive/utley3/ IP: Logged
Marty Raap Member	posted November 06, 2002 05:58 PM Well, Jim, that's why I said I could live with it in the case of very long-running characters (with lots of material) like Superman or Batman. I just don't want to see the practice expand more than is absolutely necessary. I don't see a need to do it with characters like GA Flash or GA GL, for instance. Offhand, the only characters I think are ripe for jumping forward are Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and Green Arrow. The Captain Marvel stuff is long, but since it's almost all GA, I'd rather see it stay chronological. Of course, we may never see some stuff completed, but I think that should be the goal. I'm more optimistic about the future than many people on the board seem to be; the Archives are moving along nicely now and I see no reason that can't continue. I also think long series CAN be completed if they're done right. Look at the Spirit -- it's not done yet, but it's proceeding very nicely. Would it have been better to skip the war years stuff and jump right to the post-WWII Eisner stuff everyone agrees is best? I think DC handled it the best way by arranging for a comprehensive reprinting of the Spirit, and the line seems to be surviving quite well, thank you, through the "lull" period. IP: Logged
Marty Raap Member	posted November 06, 2002 06:17 PM To put it another way, I have more sympathy for the argument that we should jump forward when it is simply necessary to get a representative sample of the material in a realistic time frame. Such is the case with Superman, et al. I'd still prefer to see even those stay chronological, but I can appreciate the argument that it's a necessary evil and it doesn't bother me too much. I also like it more when there's an argument for a GA/SA distinction that provides something of a natural breaking point. I object to the idea that the Archives should start arbitrarily jumping to periods considered "good" to avoid periods considered "bad." That way lies madness. IP: Logged

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