All about Pony mania or My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

By Kevin Winter

My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, also referred to as MLP, has gained a wide following amongst men and women above the target age of show.  They often go by the moniker Bronies, or Brony.

I ran into this community quite by accident through Doctor Who, when I kept seeing pony versions of the Doctors, and most of them were of the 10th Doctor.  Intrigued, I decided to delve further into this community.

As someone who has been a part of many communities such as Star Trek, Star Wars, Doctor Who, and Evangelion, I’ve found they generally attract the same people over and over.  With MLP it was bringing in a new group of people, one that straddles the line between mainstream and geek chic.

With many articles, and videos on Youtube, trying to explain this Brony phenomenon, I have decided to give you my take from inside the community.

My Little Pony 101

First we have to cover what the show is about, what makes it different from previous generation, and how it became what it is today.  The show follows the adventure of a unicorn named Twilight Sparkle. She can do magic and is sent to the town of Ponyville by her teacher, the princess Celestia, on the eve of the Nightmare Moon, when Princess Luna will return after 1000 years trapped in the Moon. Princess Lunca is Princess Celestia’s sister.

In Ponyville, Twilight Sparkle meets up with five other ponies:

• Applejack (tells the truth, Southern farmer), 
• Rarity (egotistical, loves fashion, hates messes), 
• Fluttershy (shy Pegasus, is good with animals), 
• Rainbow Dash (overly confident, has a confident façade but underneath she’s vulnerable), 
• Pinkie Pie (party animal, has a cannon, very-hyper, and voted most likely to be a serial killer).

Together they stop Princess Luna from plunging the world into permanent darkness; basically doing Princess Celestia’s dirty work.  After this is over Twilight Sparkle stays in Ponyville to learn about friendship and magic with her new friends.

What MLP is really about

While most people might decry the show as kids material, and they would be right about season 1.  It's in season 2 that things take a turn to the more adult side of things.

The first season is heavy on the morals, with some adult humor and ideas thrown into the mix.  But what sets this show apart is that there are no humans in this universe. 

The characters themselves express very humanistic traits, and expressions.  Twilight Sparkle is high strung and can easily go off the deep end.  Rainbow Dash is everyones overly confident friend who’s not really confident in her own abilities.  Also the danger that they must face is real, from spurning friends, and -- one of the most disturbing two minutes in television -- when Pinkie Pie goes insane.

With season 2 the series knows it is a hit among adults and the show becomes much more enjoyable for adults.  With the rise of a character known as Discord, voiced by John de Lancie, who turns everything into opposite, the truth sayer becomes the liar, the party animal becomes despair and so on. 

Another episode takes on Greek mythology, and modern political discourse, in a funny but serious episode about the founding of the land by the three races; they did not always get along and were starving.

Another episode introduces the concept of cider, which is essentially an alcoholic drink that all the ponies love to drink, but they never have enough. They are all a bunch of lushes.

Why My Little Pony succeeds with adults

So how did this show take off?  In many cases it has that classic Saturday morning feel without all the modern technology.  The writing is witty, entertaining, and better than many prime time programs.  Also it has a message that communicates to people in this day and age of uncertainty, crime, unkindness, and more.  It harkens back to the ideal that you can get along with people and build a relationship on trust.  

But what sets the community apart from others is that it has staying power.  While many people might believe it will die out, collapsing on itself; instead it is gaining critical mass.  It is also different in that it is more artistic than other shows. There is a ton of fan art available for this show, from shirts to buttons, plushies, and more.  People write their own songs, have meet and greets, and generally enjoy the show.  

While not everyone will enjoy the show, just get used to the idea that it will be around to stay for a while, and that the community itself will be around for a long time as well.  Star Trek only had three seasons and that fandom has been around for decades.

With a new MLP comic on the shelves and more than 100,000 orders for issue #1, this community is here to stay.

About The Author

Kevin Winter is someone with an opinion about almost everything. A comic fan of several years, he can be seen around Empire's Comics Vault on Wednesdays, and generally spouting an opinion (if anyone wants to hear it or not)... also trying not to get on Ben's bad side.

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Get me my books on time

By Kevin Winter

In today’s post I will tackle something that has vexed modern comic book fans to no end -- receiving comics on a regular schedule.

Busy-man, amazing artist and DC biggie
 Jim Lee runs notoriously late.

What do I mean by that?

When a comic says it will be monthly I expect it to come out monthly.  Some comics are bimonthly and others are biweekly.  DC Comics’ 52 was weekly.  As comic book readers, we expect to have issues of the comics we read on a timely schedule so that we are able to remember the story and so that we are not forced to re-read an older issue because we’ve forgotten what happened in the last issue.

On Time Is Better Than Perfection

Now, while getting comic books out on time is important for the story, I believe that it is also important for sales as well, especially for a new writer or artist.  Getting something out on time is often more important than making it perfect.  If you wait to make everything perfect in each issue you will fall behind and lose fans.  Losing fans is the death knell for titles.  Once you lose fans you are unlikely to regain them unless something big happens in your book.

Lateness Diminishes Customer Satisfaction

The timeliness of comic book releases affects the individual budget of the average shopper.  When I expect a certain issue each month and it does not come, I suffer because I live on a budget and can only get so many at once.  Then, other titles have to wait another week or two, or even the current issues will have to wait.  Even comic book shop owners are affected since it will effect their orders and can alienate customers.

Getting books out on time is important. Sometimes they might be a month late, others might be longer.  But comic books need to get back on time if they want to succeed.

Thankfully, the industry as a whole has done well with timeliness. It’s really the new publishers and overtaxed writers and artists that must be diligent about maintaining a good schedule.

About The Author

Kevin Winter is someone with an opinion about almost everything. A comic fan of several years, he can be seen around Empire's Comics Vault on Wednesdays, and generally spouting an opinion (if anyone wants to hear it or not)... also trying not to get on Ben's bad side.

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Kevin Winter Reviews His Three Comic Book Picks of the Week

Kevin's comic book reviews

Including:

1. Supurbia
2. Clone, issue 1, Image Comics, sci-fi
3. Comeback, issue 1

To submit your own review: Write it up, email it to empirescv@gmail.com. To submit a video review, shoot it, email it, or drop it off at the shop. OR email empirescv@gmail.com to set up an appointment and we'll shoot it using our camera.

Revisiting Morning Glories

By Kevin Winter
One of my first posts was about the comic Morning Glories, one of the biggest hits in the comic industry in 2010/2011, and I wrote about how it was losing its mojo and becoming boring.  Now a few issues beyond that post I am here to provide an updated report through issue 14.
 

The Glory of The StoryThankfully we have gotten off of the track of each issue focusing on an individual character instead of the overall story arc with individual snippets thrown in about each character.  That long run really threw off people reading the comic and enjoying the true plot line.
  
Now we are into a new story arc and this one covering P.E., but of course this is not normal P.E.  But is it better than it was before?  The answer is a bit of yes and no.

For yes the answer is clear that we are beyond that horrible arc of stories and back into the more sadistic, evil teachers and innocent students fighting them.  At the same time, it has gotten a bit off track, and I think the writer has bitten off more than he can chew.

The Gory of The Story
It is turning into a Lost type comic, with multiple complicated story arcs going off at once,  with none really resolving, just getting more and more complicated.

Share Your Old Comics With Future Generations

By Kevin Winter

Today is a special post.  I will not talk about a specific series or comics.  I will not review the trends or comment on DC's new relaunch that we are well into.  Today I shall talk about what to do with your comics when you no longer have room.  Everyone will face this fact, after all, you can store only so many comics where you live.  The question becomes...

What do I do with my old comics?  
With many stores not buying comics, and very few comics worth a any money on eBay -- unless, say, we’re talking about Chew number 1 or Action Comics number 1 -- what do you do with them? Hold a yard sale and sell them for 25 cents each?

Think About Future GenerationsI would like to say that I would do something else with them.  Around the country there are several special collections of just comic books

Comic Book Covers - Good and Bad Variants

By Kevin Winter
The topic of variant covers often comes up for discussion in the store, and since many people can't make it into the store on Wednesday mornings, I will summarize how it often goes.  We often discuss which ones are worthwhile and which ones are worthless.  This topic creates some debate and not everyone agrees with each other.
Worthwhile Variant Covers

1:100 Variant Cover by Sara Pichelli - Spider-Men #5
I can see the purpose behind a variant, for example, a cover that is 1 in 50 or 1 in 100.  It is meant to be special, something that not many people will own. It should be different from the cover everyone else will get.

What Makes A Comic Book Title Independent?

By Kevin Winter

As a reader of independent comics I am often asked the question, and often times I have to defend my answer; what makes a comic book independent?  Hopefully with this post I will help people understand more clearly what makes a comic book independent, and how that is a very fluid answer.

Image: Relic & Ego #4, published by ECV Press. 

It's A Matter of Opinion

If you talk to people who mainly pick up independent comics, you will find that there will be many different answers to what makes a comic book independent. What it comes down to is a question of taste, opinion, and likes and dislikes.

Now let’s get to my answer for what makes a comic book independent.  It’s more than publisher, artist, writer, or print run.  For me personally, a book is independent based on the story it is telling, the way it tells it, and a few intangibles.

Superhero Stories Are Not Independent

First off, if it is a superhero story I do not consider it independent, no matter who is publishing the story.  Just because it is outside of DC or Marvel, does not mean it is automatically independent.  A superhero story is a superhero story no matter which publisher you happen to be with.

A perfect example is Invincible by Robert Kirkman.  People will consider this to be independent, just because it is published by Image Comics.  It is not; it is a mainstream title as far as I am concerned.

Independents Push The Limits

Independent comics should push the limits of what can be told in comic format.  They should tell stories that DC and Marvel will not tell - whether it be a modern day samurai story with vampires or a science fiction epic with the classic references.

Interestingly, the nearest that DC comes to having independent titles with the relaunch is both I, Vampire and Demon Knights.  While many people consider these two titles to be part of the DC Universe, I believe they should be in their own separate worlds, telling their own stories, not interacting with the main titles of the DC Universe.

Demon Knights is a classic fantasy tale of a hero, possessed by a demon, who tries to save the day.  I, Vampire focuses on a vampire queen who has awakened with her hordes and finally rules the world, and there’s one man out to stop her.  These two titles feel like independents although they are published by DC.

The nearest that Marvel gets is the Dark Tower series and The Stand series.

Another example is Image Comics’ The Walking Dead, which I no longer consider an independent title. It has its own television show, it feels like it is no longer pushing the boundaries of zombie comics, and it feels like it will never end (an important point for independents, but that is for another post).

What makes a book independent to you?

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About The Author

Kevin Winter is someone with an opinion about almost everything. A comic fan of several years, he can be seen around Empire's Comics Vault on Wednesdays, and generally spouting an opinion (if anyone wants to hear it or not)...  also trying not to get on Ben's bad side.

 

Has Morning Glories Lost Its Mojo?

by Kevin Winter

Morning Glories is one of the more controversial comics on the market today. While not as controversial as Crossed, it still goes in a direction you would not find at Marvel or DC. But the point I am going to bring up today is this:

Has Morning Glories lost its mojo?

Art by Rodin Esquejo

It used to be exciting, with some action. The story used to move along a specific point, with excellent cliff hangers, but several issues ago we left a major cliff hanger right around the time we would have found out a major secret. Suddenly the book changed course, featuring single issue character stories. It began to focus on the individual students. While I am not against that, perhaps spreading those stories out, one or two at a time, would have been better.

Bring the Glory Back

These issues have done more to derail the story and the flow of the comics than anything else they could have done. It feels as if Morning Glories is losing the mojo that it had at the beginning. Hopefully they will leave these character driven issues and get back to what made it great before indie readers move on to something else.

If Morning Glories continues along these lines, then I feel we will not get to see the end because quite a few people will abandoned the book.

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[Read more posts by Kevin]

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About The Author

Kevin Winter is someone with an opinion about almost anything. If you find him around town, you can ask for an opinion and he will give you an honest one.  A graduate of Sacramento State, he spends his time telling people they are wrong, writing letters to his national leaders, and generally being a pain in the ass.  A comic fan, not for life, but for several years, he can be seen around Empire's Comics Vault on Wednesday's during the day, and generally spouting an opinion (if anyone wants to hear it or not)...  also trying not to get on Ben's bad side.

Is Chew Still An Independent Title?

by Kevin Winter
Chew On This 
Chew is one the biggest indie titles in comics. It started off the way most indie books start - without a lot of fanfare or press. But it soon caught on, and all of a sudden, everyone wanted a copy of Chew.
What It’s About
For those of you that have been hiding under a rock - or in DC's comics - you should know the basic storyline of the comic. A man who works for the FDA can tell the life story of food, and other things, just by eating them. His special ability is only known by a few people.

Is Chew Still An Independent Title?

Today I am going to try to tackle a difficult question. Is Chew an independent title still?  Many people will argue that it is, but I might have a different answer.

Crossed Pushes Boundaries But Then Too Far

By Kevin Winter
[Note added 10.05.2012: Warning: This title is for Mature Readers and contains graphic content of an extreme nature. Before purchasing, we recommend you flip through the book, so that you can make a well-informed decision.]

As a reader of independent comics, I am used to comic books that push the boundaries.

Independent Comic Books Push Boundaries 
Independent comics generally push the line in ways that more mainstream comics will not, and at times, cannot. Were mainstream comics to push the envelope like independents, then the mainstream books would lose readers. The independents have the freedom to push the line, to bring us closer and closer to the edge. They are not afraid of losing readers, since they start off with so few to begin with. They are allowed that artistic and creative freedom that are denied the writers and artists at DC and Marvel.

 

Jacen Burrow's Crossed Volume 1 Cover

The Original Crossed Comic Book Pushes BoundariesStill, at what point does a comic book go over the line? Does a comic become something so over the top that it pushes the line too far? In a way, Yes and No.