The Different Interpetations Of What My Closed Wallet Is Saying

I always feel strange when the discussion on comic blogs turns to boycotts. Not because I object to people not buying stuff from DC because of Before Watchmen, or not going to see Avengers opening weekend because of (among other things) the Gary Friedrich contentiousness. I have no issue with people making those decisions, and I more than likely won't be going to see Avengers at all. But that's because I think it's going to be a train wreck. That with the cast size, characterizations will be wafer-thin, villain motivations will be vague or uninteresting, and there'll probably be too much stupid 3-D crap. Ultimately, my decision's based on an issue of quality, rather than any ideals.

I was really excited to see the new Ghost Rider film (figuring even if it was bad, it would be the entertaining sort of bad), but had decided I'd at least wait a few weeks, maybe even hold out and buy it on DVD. Then most of the reviews described it as simply being bad. Never mind that then. Maybe Alex will get a copy I can watch someday, like Iron Man 2, X-Men First Class, and Elektra.

That's how it typically is for me. If I want to buy something, I do, and if not, I don't. I buy about a third the Marvel comics I did 5 years ago, but it's because they kept canceling every book I enjoyed, and their subsequent shift in publishing direction means there are fewer new books I want to try. It comes out to the same result, they have less of my money, but if it's a statement at all, it's one about their product, rather than their poor employee relations.

It wouldn't be too hard for me to cut out Marvel or DC entirely at this point, given how few of their books I purchase, but there's the fallout. Am I making some kind of statement about Waid, Rivera, and the rest of the Daredevil creative if I drop the book? As far as I know, none of them are involved in the shadiness*. It doesn't help Jack at the comic book store any if I start spending less. I don't get to read a comic I really love. Do the people doing the things I actually don't like even notice, or care? Hell if I know.

My primary strategy has simply been to be more discerning about what I buy. If they're going to get my money, then I want it to be strictly for things I feel I got my money's worth from. That way it feels fair. They produced a quality product, I purchased it. That's remained a hit or miss proposition. Legion of Monsters was a hit. Unless Avengers Solo turns around significantly in the last issue, chalk it up as a "miss". It's not much of a system, but it's one that minimizes how often I feel ripped off or suckered.

* Yes, I know legally Marvel's in the clear with regards to Friedrich and/or Jack Kirby. And I could swindle your life savings, and if I did it right, be completely legal about it. Wouldn't mean I wasn't a scumbag, just that I wasn't technically a crook.