by Alex Wiggan

Andre vs. Price, the constant need to rescan the Freeview box, or spending hours poking people on Facebook are all distractions which seem to have become ingrained in day to day life. Doesn't matter how much a fan you are of flicking through the latest issue of 2000AD there always seems to be something you feel compelled to investigate by pressing your TV's red button. With all the worlds technology a right click away it can mean the bedside table rapidly starts to see large stacks of comics gathering more dust than the exercise bike currently residing in the back bedroom. It isn't that you don't want to read them, it's just finding the time to slot them in, which is usually when you are hunched over the toilet for half an hour after a couple of pints and a heavy Sunday lunch. So with an endless barrage of ways to fill all 24 hours in a day the UK comics industry has a lot to compete with and it may have to rethink its strategy.
One of the big developments recently in the world of comics is Disney's acquisition of Marvel Entertainment, meaning Spidey and his amazing friends will spend each year at the staff Christmas party getting blotto with Chip 'n Dale, Mowgali and Jafar. Disney's reason for this union is to acquire a back catalogue of characters who will appeal to boys not so inclined to rush out and buy merchandise for Hannah Montana, as it is an important area of the population they have had difficulty appealing to. What Disney have planned hasn't yet been made clear, but it isn't too much of a reach to expect to see Marvel comics starting to crop up on sale in Disney stores up and down the country. If they do, then this could be a great way to introduce a younger generation to the reading material instead of them getting their Marvel fix solely from animated TV adventures. There is a downside to this though, as where would Panini's reprints of Marvel comics fit into all this? Currently Panini publish around seven collectors editions in the UK which reprint material taken from a number of different Marvel comics covering characters from The Avengers to The X-men and usually contain about three stories from related subjects per issue. The tales themselves are a couple of years behind what is currently hitting the stands in America, but they are a great way to keep abreast of stories that can cut across a few different titles, without having to buy books you wouldn't necessarily pick up. The price is also reasonable as the cost of one of these collector's editions is sometimes less than what it would be for one issue of the US originals. Reprinting material from the US is not uncommon to anyone who reads comics in the UK, and it does offer a wider reach to the material as they can usually be found just below copies of FHM and Nuts Magazine in the local WH Smith's. For some they're a bit of stepping stone to start off a collection before migrating to more current happenings found in a Forbidden Planet store, and for others they are something to slot into the dinner hour between trips to Greggs or to filter out the wife's voice whilst on a train journey. Their availability on the high-street works in a happy little eco-system with the comics specialist shops often found hiding down some back alley in the major cities, but if Disney stores start stocking the latest Amazing Spider-man's or Fantastic Four's, then there could be a bit of natural selection taking place. Yes the Panini collector's editions will still offer value for money, but having the latest US stories available in shopping malls could see decisions being made over where to spend that spare fiver that is stuffed into the back pocket of an incredibly tight pair of skinny jeans.
If UK Marvel comics had a bit more of an incentive to buy them, like having brand new tales not seen anywhere else then it could give them the edge that is needed. Yes it does end up as six of one and half a dozen of the other as it is all Marvel anyway, but it would be an erosion of our love affair with being able to connect with these comics on a local level. With everyone in the world being connected like never before thanks to the digital revolution, we have started to become more culturally aware, but that doesn't mean we don't want some way to feel a part of the comic we hold in our hands. Not so long ago, Marvel did try to create a few new characters in the UK but sadly there just wasn't the market for it at the time, but maybe another stab at creating a UK Marvel Comics division wouldn't be such a bad idea. It has been established that we Brits happen to have some artistic flare, something thankfully now noticed outside of the UK and with interest in comics being at a particular high thanks to all the big budget movies, maybe the time is now. There's a good chance there are a lot of talented guys and gals out there feeling the pinch trying to make it through the recession and as they wait in line at the Job Centre for a job they don't want to do, some may see it as another sign to stop pursuing what they have a knack for. This means British talent falling through the cracks that could be put to work setting up a new way forward for comics in this country. It's hard enough to break into the industry as it is, and it could provide people with much needed jobs that not only would the writers and artists enjoy doing, but would provide readers with yet more imaginative ways to brighten up their days. These endeavours cost money, and as everyone tries to be cautious with their spending at the moment it is obviously a big ask, but it's not completely out of the question if it could be funded from a few different sources. In the past people have been up in arms over lottery cash being used to fund statues and pieces of artwork to be placed randomly across the country, so why not give it to some of our randomly placed artists across the country instead? Changes are on the horizon, there is definitely no doubt about that, but in a world where we have more choice than we have ever had before it would be a shame if we lost more of those choices without even noticing it happened. Now if only we could stop hitting the refresh button on Facebook long enough to see whether or not someone has poked us, we might be able to get something done.