What DC and Marvel can learn from Image Comics

Image Comics has never been as big as Marvel or DC Comics, but its production of great creator-owned books has far outstripped the Big Two in recent years. From horror to comedy to noir to superheroes, Image Comics has it all. The wide range of genres, themes, and creatives make the library of series incredibly diverse and exciting for new readers, but that’s more than DC and Marvel can say for themselves.

Characters like Spider-Man and Batman have always been incredibly popular across the world of pop culture, but the medium of comics in particular is increasingly filled with fresh new ideas from independent creators. Fans and readers are often more invested in Invincible or The Walking Dead than they are in the latest issue of Batman, and that’s a big problem for major comic book publishers. That doesn’t mean their reign is over, but it does mean they have some things to learn from the smaller, more creator-focused Image Comics.

Image’s self-contained stories attract new readers

Comics with a beginning, middle, and end are appealing to fans

One of the biggest problems facing Marvel and DC Comics is the fact that their series never truly end. This makes sense from a business perspective. Why would we stop publishing books that people keep buying? The problem with this approach is that they often become obsolete and fail to make meaningful progress. Characters that have been around for decades and never experienced significant growth can feel repetitive and cause fans to lose their personal connection to the story.

Take Batman for example, his stories are often exciting and well-written, but there is no real doubt that he will escape whatever dangerous situation he finds himself in and return to the status quo by the start of the next arc. There are very few. The predictability of DC and Marvel stands in stark contrast to many of Image Comics’ most exciting titles. There, the stakes feel higher, character development is more impactful, and when the ending comes, it gives the story a sense of closure that is often lacking in mainstream superhero comics.

The popular Invincible by writer Robert Kirkman and artists Ryan Ottley and Corey Walker is a great book to compare to Marvel and DC titles. This is a superhero story, packed with bombastic action, superhero teams, crazy sci-fi ideas, and grounded stakes about the central characters. But what sets Invincible apart is the fact that everything is clearly going somewhere: a finale, an end. When Kirkman and company set out to create the world of Invincible, it was clear to them that it had to have a satisfying ending. Invincible works so well because it solves a problem that many fans have with Marvel and DC books. It gave them a superhero story with real stakes, real tension, and real wrap-up.

While DC and Marvel occasionally release miniseries or self-contained graphic novels, there aren’t really any major ongoing series with a planned endpoint in mind. You don’t expect Action Comics to suddenly end with a grand, emotional finale, and The Amazing Spider-Man doesn’t suddenly kill Peter Parker and end the book there. Marvel and DC comics have certain expectations that don’t exist with image books, giving readers a more personal and intimate understanding of creator-owned titles.

At Image Comics, not everything has to be superheroes.

Some of the best image books have titles other than superheroes.

Superhero comics are arguably the most popular type of comic, and iconic characters like Wolverine, Daredevil, Superman, and the Flash are a huge draw for both long-time fans and curious new readers. In recent decades, comics have essentially become synonymous with superheroes, and while that’s certainly a major aspect of the medium, there’s also room for other types of stories to be told. Image Comic has books like “East of West,” “The Walking Dead,” “Chew,” and “Saga,” rounding out its eclectic collection of non-superhero titles. Image Comic has a lot of options that other major publishers don’t.

One thing Marvel and DC can certainly take from Image Comics’ success is the idea of ​​diversifying their book libraries. This doesn’t mean Marvel and DC need to stop publishing superhero stories, but it does mean they need to push for more work to replace the standard. As the two largest publishers of this media, any changes they make are sure to impact the entire industry, for better or worse. They were even able to explore different genres of storytelling within the established continuity. Changing things doesn’t mean doing away with what’s gone before, it just means we shouldn’t be complacent.

DC and Marvel could potentially take established characters from their rosters and put them into books that are very different from their usual superhero fare. The Jonah Hex series could be a simple Western with a twist, rather than a superhero story set in the Wild West. Or you could create a book featuring entirely new characters on a distant planet with its own rules, government system, and political intrigue.

Just because it’s a DC book doesn’t mean it has to include Superman or Batman, and just because it’s a Marvel book doesn’t mean it has to include Spider-Man or Iron Man. Expanding the scope of their worlds on a larger scale provides readers with new ways to explore the Marvel and DC worlds, offering readers who may not be interested in superheroes but are interested in comics as a medium. It will be attractive to people.

Readers will keep coming back if DC and Marvel tell more mature stories.

Images prove comic books aren’t just for kids

Marvel and DC have both tried to branch out into more mature content, but only one has had much success. DC’s Vertigo has been a huge hit, and it’s the closest either publisher has come to telling non-superhero stories under their flagship umbrellas. Vertigo offers an impressive collection of stories set firmly in the DC Universe, ranging from comics focused on smaller characters to stories that take place in their own worlds completely outside of DC continuity.

Marvel Comics, on the other hand, has had some trouble producing a more adult-oriented collection of books. That’s not to say that many of their series tackle mature or intense themes, but it’s clear that there aren’t many mature series that clearly differentiate themselves from the rest of the Marvel Universe.

Image Comics regularly publishes a plethora of exciting, adult-oriented books, and the publisher remains popular with fans as it outgrows the children’s work of other publishers. Invincible captures the charm and excitement of classic superhero books while showcasing intense, bloody violence and tragic interpersonal issues. This is a superhero book for anyone who grew up loving classic Marvel and DC titles, but found those stories often lacked real stakes.

Invincible pays homage to the kinds of stories that built the medium into what it is today, while also offering a fresh perspective. That’s all DC and Marvel have to do. You don’t have to alienate your audience or make drastic changes to create excitement. All they have to do is create a compelling new story with characters old and new and commit to it. Nothing undermines a good comic more than having its impact erased by another title restoring the status quo.

Mature stories don’t just mean regular comics with lots of violence and profanity. These are often signs that the book is trying to be edgy or shocking instead of telling an actual story for adults. For DC and Marvel, mature storytelling means moving away from a reliance on large-scale action page by page, avoiding constant crossovers and interlocking events, and creating engaging and complex content without creators holding back. It means being able to build a story.

Books that give you the freedom to do whatever you want are far more likely to succeed. Titles like Deadly Class, The Department of Truth, and Chew are perfect examples of this approach. These books are free to tell full, exciting stories that readers can relate to and think about, unconstrained by what is considered appropriate for a brand. That’s what Marvel and DC need to do. Take a cue from what Image Comics is doing and recreate it.