Comic book industry explodes following cinematic comic growth

By Rhiannon Lotze

 

Movies based on comic books are all the rage in theatres and their growing popularity may also be increasing comic book sales.

Since 2010, more than 10 movies based on comic books have appeared in theatres and at least three more movies are coming this year. Five television shows based on comic books have also been released since 2010, making it one of the biggest industries in entertainment.

According to www.comichron.com, average sales for the comic book industry have increased by millions of dollars each year since 2010. This correlates with the increase in popularity of movies and TV shows. Windsor has become a hotspot for comic book lovers, boasting several comic book stores and studios. Rogues Gallery Comics is one of the stores in downtown Windsor dedicated to comic book sales.

“It’s all of a sudden become popular to be a nerd,” said Shawn Cousineau, owner of Rogues Gallery. “We’ve seen an immense hike in business from not only the movies but from the TV shows as well.” Cousineau also said sales have increased in memorabilia-based comic books.

Sellers of comic books aren’t the only ones who have noticed a spike in their popularity because of recent movies.

“I think the movies have inspired more writers which has increased the popularity of the comics,” said Courtney Pike, a collector of comic books. Pike owns more than 100 comics and has been interested in them for years. She also said while the movies are generating popularity for the comic books, the original comics are what created the initial interest in the movies.

However, some say that comparatively speaking, the comic book industry is not as popular as it once was.

Tony Gray is the owner of GlassMonkey Studios Inc., a local comic book company. He writes and illustrates several original comic book series, such as Tales of the Incredible Conduit.

“The sales of the comic books haven’t been as dramatically influenced as you might expect. Sales are extremely good… but back in the 60s and 70s, a top selling comic book would sell 600,000 to 700,000 every month. Now, a top selling comic book might sell 100,000 a month,” said Gray, who has been in the business for 14 years and has worked for DC Comics. Despite this, Gray said since there is a wider variety of comic books and they are now more expensive, it makes up for the dip in numbers sold and means that comic book sales have been very successful.

With over 40 comic book movies scheduled for the next five years, the comic book industry is expected to continue growing.