quote:Originally posted by Nightcrawler: But, how'd the Legion Companion do? Didn't it warrant a repeat? They are two different animals.
Not really; they're both Legion books. Both TBOTLO and the Legion Companion were aimed at Legion fans, and the fact that one did a lot better than the other has to do with the civilians who were raked in for the first book moreso than the content of the second one. Anyone who bought the first book and passed on the second one for content purposes isn't really a Legion fan; for them, the Legion was just a book that they once read the way that some Legion fans read, say, the Avengers. They don't have every issue, they don't know all the trivia, they just know that they liked it once and out of those nostalgic pangs they picked it up.
We need to be realistic here: Companion books are done for successful series. The reboot wasn't commercially successful. People bought the Legion Companion to read about Dave Cockrum, Jim Shooter, Paul Levitz, Keith Giffen, Mike Grell... the list goes on and on. The only big name attached to the reboot was Mark Waid, and that's not enough to anchor a book. The Legion is an esoteric subject as it is - choosing the point when it was least successful and investing a lot of time and money into it just isn't a good idea. Civilians just aren't going to pick up a book like that, and civilians make or break a book.
quote:Originally posted by SouthtownKid: Yeah, I bought 'Best of the Legion Outpost', but I think the general perception of that may have been that it was less for fans of the Legion, and more for fans of 'Legion Fans'. I loved it, though...
It was interesting, but I have to say I didn't enjoy it as much as the Companion. There's a "You Hadda Be There" quality about what the Outpost book covers that makes it less likely that I'll give it repeat readings.
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The Outpost book was an interesting challenge. Outside of the Karate Kid section and the editorial content (Foreword, Afterword, etc.) it consisted entirely of pre-existing material, and the goal was to put it all together and make it look good. In some ways I'm prouder of it than I am of the Companion, but it did tell a different kind of story. It still deserved to do better than it did, though.
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Well, I enjoyed them both and am proud to own two copies of each. It's a shame that it didn't sell well enough to warrant sequels.
Between this news and the fact that DC Direct refuses to produce anymore Legion action figures (and probably any other merchandise), it makes being a Legion-fan a real downer.
DC, what have you done to this wonderful property?!?!
From: San Diego, CA | Registered: Jul 2003
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posted
I loved them both but I'm one of those geeks who geek on reference material. Not just the LSH stuff but most reference material on subjects I like. So the Titans book is definitely on my list.
From: Utah | Registered: Jul 2003
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I loved the BOL Oupost collection myself (as well as the Companion), but surely it wasn't expected to sell as well as the Companion? This was reprint material from an amateur fanzine from 25-30 years ago*.
*NOT a criticism of the Legion Outpost, I think it was awesome stuff.
Gary, if the 'toon is a hit, I'm pretty sure you can expect more Legion collectibles in some form or other.
re: the Titans companion, I'll likely get it for the Silver Age & 70s content, when funds allow.
quote:Originally posted by MLLASH: I loved the BOL Oupost collection myself (as well as the Companion), but surely it wasn't expected to sell as well as the Companion?
Not as well, but the drop-off was substantial. And to be honest, TLO had been out for a year by that point, so even if only a certain percentage of its customers bought the follow-up book, there was a greater number to cull a percentage from, so similar initial orders wouldn't have been unreasonable. And TBOTLO did cover the period when the Legion was DC's best-selling title, so there were plenty of 30-ish comic book fans who liked the Legion from back then who had the wherewithal to buy it and didn't. Part of the problem is the way that stores order, namely a lot didn't even bother to stock TBOTLO at all and those that did only carried a store copy and thanked their lucky stars when someone bought it instead of ordering another copy to replace the first one on their shelves.
Let's face it: the book did have a lot of artwork by Dave Cockrum and Mike Grell in it, and an unpublished Giffen interview conducted while he was working on the Great Darkness Saga, so there was stuff there to get people's attention. Unfortunately, the "fan" stigma was attached to it and it stuck. Ironically, the "fan" (read: "inferior") label was attached to it by modern-day fans who also attached great importance to their own words while disregarding those of their Legion forebears, but in the end, stores just didn't carry it. That's why it's so important to reserve a copy of the Titans Companion instead of just counting on a store to stock it. With the glut of extraneous Marvel and DC material on the market today the average comic book store's non-Big Two budget keeps getting chipped away and they're less likely to take a chance on a twenty-five dollar book then they are on the equivalent value in Big Two products. It ain't fair and it ain't right, but that's the way it is.
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but, Glen, if the Legion fans have been aware of Dave Cockrum's unpublished 2-page Timber Wolf story - oh my....Dave could have the potential of becoming a writer for the Legion if his Timber Wolf story saw the light. I could not believe when I saw that beautiful two page spotlight on Timber Wolf, I was in shock. Once the fans find out about this, they will want to buy this book, especially for both Timber Wolf fans and anal retentative,
From: Hayward, CA | Registered: Jul 2003
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What I would really like is that special Legion issue of the Amazing World of DC - special Cockrum cover of several Legionnaires battling some gigantic humanoid space dragon...
From: Adelaide, Australia | Registered: Jun 2005
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quote:Originally posted by superboymddjr: hey Stargazer no fair!! you posted at 7:48 pm and got your post before me!?!? I posted it at 7:47 pm! I am gonna spank your butt and take your shirt off so I can see what yours looks like! By the way...when will you have the picture of yours ready?
I am actually the Time Trapper and slowed your computer.... oh behave...blush
posted
*ahem* anyway, back to the subject, when will the Titans Companion be released? in Nov or in Dec?
From: Hayward, CA | Registered: Jul 2003
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Sorry, dude, that was before i had a chance to talk with you - you arent that bad
From: Adelaide, Australia | Registered: Jun 2005
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