And so it goes on, our look back at your predictions for The Comic Industry in the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty and Four, with parts one and two at those links right there.

And yes, get in those predictions for 2025 before too much more 2025 goes by!

• • •
googum, as is his wont, googums

“1. Marvel’s going to try to pivot from Kang, to Ravonna. As long as they don’t try to use the name ‘Terminatrix’ it’ll probably be fine.”

Kang is definitely out in the Marvel movies, given the troubles with the actor, and the simple fact Kang wasn’t getting the Big Villain traction Thanos did. Essentially replaced by Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom, and that Avengers movie that would have been called “The Kang Dynasty” is now “Doomsday.” So there.

“2. They’ll also give up on the Guardians of the Galaxy; as a comic, at least the current batch. Maybe they’ll send Rocket to the 31st century for a bit and bring back the originals.”

Huh, could’ve sworn we had more of the Guardians over the last year, but it looks like the last Guardians comic was the annual in February. I’m sure I’m not remembering appearances of the Guardians (solo or together) in other comics, but it doesn’t look like there’s a new series for them in the near future, barring news I’ve not spotted. Oh, and as you read this a Doctor Doom and Rocket Raccoon one-shot should be on the stands at your better comic shops, or even mine.

“3. Some shoddy A.I. thing will be heralded as the savior of comics; maybe A.I. colors or letters or something. It’ll not only suck, it won’t even really be A.I, just super-outsourced.”

I’ve not seen anything from any legitimate publishers using A.I., far as I know. There was bit of a dust-up middle of last year regarding an artist possibly using A.I. for cover art. I feel like (or at least hope) anyone using A.I. to generate work would probably be shunned, shunned I say, so that’s a good incentive for someone in comics’ small pool to avoid it.

• • •
Bret comes this way with

“1. With the moderate success of the Blue Beetle movie, DC will revamp the Booster Gold character to make him more movie-friendly for a Blue and Gold team-up movie.”

Unfortunately, the Blue Beetle film actually didn’t do well at all, making just barely over its production budget, which doesn’t even count its promotional budget and so on. But it seems like a Booster Gold TV show may be in the works for streaming on Max. It looks like whatever they’ve done so far has been returned for regrooving, so it may be a while yet before we get any idea what it’ll be like.

“2. The success of Mark Waid’s pocket silver age universe of titles will lead Marvel to start their own pocket universe of titles (with more of an 80’s vibe) lead by the likes of Roger Stern and…buh buh buh…John Byrne!”

Not…as such. Marvel would occasionally do one-offs with ’80s and ’90s creators, and that Silver Surfer Rebirth was basically that. But not a whole lot of that in 2024, aside from facsimile reprints. Am I forgetting something? Maybe X-Men ’97, though that’s more a nostalgic call back to the cartoon than the comics.

“3. SECRET WARS III (12-part mini-series) by Jim Shooter and Mike Zeck. Nuff said.”

Would I read the hell out of this? Abso-freakin’-lutely. C’mon, Marvel, let’s get this going.

• • •
Snark Shark sorta predicted

“1) more Marvel movies will bomb.”

As noted previously, Madame Web and Kraven both died dogs’ deaths, as, like, everyone figured. Marvel Studios its own self only put out the one flick, and Deadpool/Wolverine made all the money.

“2) more DC movies will bomb.”

Also previously noted, Joker: Folie à Deux, DC’s only theatrical release for 2024 I believe, um, underperformed, shall we say.

“3) uh… i dunno.”

Me neither, Snark Shark. Me neither.

• • •
Thom H. hops on it with

“1. Nice House on the Lake vol. 2 is published or at least announced.”

Nice House by the Sea did indeed start coming out in 2024!

“2. Miracleman: Dark Age is put on hold indefinitely because Silver Age performed so poorly.”

Um…it’s probably on hold for now, but not for reasons of underperformance, shall we say.

“3. Tom King finally gets to write a Legion of Super-Heroes story.”

Not yet! Hey, might as well give the boy a shot…can’t hurt.

• • •
DK returns with

“It’s that time of year again….”

It just keeps comin’, DK.

“1) Kevin Feige gets fired or demoted.”

Nope, we still have Kevin Feige to kick around.

“2) There will be a big announcement of a major Justice Society project for the 85th Anniversary in 2025.”

Outside of a new ongoing series, I haven’t seen anything specifically for an anniversary celebration. I wouldn’t mind if they did a facsimile edition of this DC Special:

…but maybe throwing Hitler and a swastika on a cover right now may not be particularly wise. So maybe a facsimile of this digest (at normal comic book size, please) which reprints the story above, and more besides:

Anyhoo, I’d like to have all the digests reprinted in comic book size. DC Comics, you have your orders.

“3) Spider-Man sales drop noticeably.”

Sales actually went up a bit for me over the past year. Looking at Comichron sales appear to be relatively consistent overall, so it’s hanging in there!

• • •
Existentialman appears with

“1) Despite their high-falutin’ Hollywood lifestyles, Matt Fraction and Kelly Sue DeConnick will return to either Marvel or DC to write one limited series each.”

I…don’t think so? I’m sure I’m forgetting something. Let me know in the comments and I’ll update this entry. (By the way, doing a Google search on a woman comics creator always turns up some awful results.)

“2) A Disney+ Viv Vision television series will be announced in 2024 to premiere in 2025.”

Not yet, but give ’em time.

“3) Even with his past vision challenges, Mike will draw a much better capybara in 2024.”

this is like the third time you’ve asked me about my capybara drawing, and friend, I may never top this one from when I was five:

But the one I did for this post comes close.

• • •
Okay, Enuff Z’Nuff for today, so let’s continue our foray into the future via a year past on Friday, which is also in the future. …I’ve lost track of where I’m at. Anyway, thanks for reading, pals, and I’ll see you then.

Back at it this week, checking to see just how you all did in regards to guessing how the past year in comics was going to go! Part one is here, and don’t forget to get in your predictions for 2025 while there’s still time!

So, awaaaaay we go:

Chris V visits us with

“1.)The X-Men revamp under Brevoort will be considered a major disappointment by most as Brevoort will choose very safe creative teams, no ‘critical darlings.’
Leading me to stop reading the X-Men comics for the first time since 1993, when I was in high school. I will not complain.”

I think, by and large, the Main Three X-titles (X-Men, Uncanny X-Men, and Exceptional X-Men are fairly well regarded by fans, particularly Uncanny as written by Gail Simone. In my opinion, launching three ongoing X-Men titles (not to mention, like, X-Factor and X-Force) all at once doesn’t really help or encourage readership (Exceptional is already slipping in sales for me, and X-Factor and X-Force are selling minimal numbers.)

It’s hard to say what would make a “safe” choice for an X-book…I mean, the aforementioned Simone is a fairly beloved writer, so in that way it’s “safe,” but I don’t think anyone expected her to be on an ongoing X-Men series, so that’s kind if a surprise, maybe. Unless you meant “people who normal write superhero comics” as being the safe choice, and, I don’t know, “Alan Moore returns to comics to write Uncanny” would be the “critical darling” choice. Not making fun or anything, just trying to define terms so we can determine how right you are with your prediction.

I think I’m going to say you were right i that these were safe choices, in that these were all people regularly writing comics and have proven track records. Not Huge Giants of Comics, like, say…ooh, there are a couple names I want to say here, but given the trouble they’ve been in of late, I don’t want to. You know who I’m talking about, people on that level. Or had been on that level, anyway.

As to whether you stopped reading X-books, Chris, I don’t know. I’m going to say…maybe you did? You’ll have to tell us!

“2.)All comics will be rising in price. Is this really a prediction in December 2023 though? Regular, monthly comics will be $4.99 (American), while ‘special issues’ will be $50 (OK, I might be exaggerating slightly on that last price).”

Some books are still holding the line at $3.99, but boy folks are getting really comfortable with slapping $4.99 and $5.99 and $6.99 price tags on things. And of course there’s the occasional $9.99 Special Issue! Oof. Anyway, I made my predictions for 2025 and didn’t realize I essentially duplicated this one. Urgh. It’s gonna happen eventually.

“3.)Kieron Gillen, Al Ewing, and Jonathan Hickman will all leave Marvel during 2024. Hickman ends up at DC. Gillen and Ewing will not.
This will cause me to lose interest in Marvel even more, and will still not increase my interest in DC. I will not complain.”

I think Hickman is still solidly at Marvel, and so is Al Ewing, though Ewing did have his Metamorpho series come out at the end of the year for DC, and it was announced he’s writing Absolute Green Lantern this coming year. Gillen I believe is still primarily Marvel and Image (and other indies).

• • •
William Gatevackes swings open with

“1. One comic company will get into the Taylor Swift business, most likely Marvel. It could be anything from creating a series featuring tales from her life to perhaps redesigning one of their characters to look like her, most likely Dazzler.”

I don’t know if any comic companies can afford Taylor Swift. And while I’m sure redesigning Dazzler to look like Taylor is tempting, I don’t think even Disney would want to tangle with her legal team.

There was a Little Golden Book about her, though!

“2. To the disdain of many of the unsavory elements of the comic fandom, a ‘woke’ comic will become a multimedia sensation, bring new readers into comics and get mainstream attention.”

Would the Absolute books count? The Superman one, especially. I think the greatest trick of them all is that said “unsavory types” probably read the book and don’t even realize it’s “woke” [complimentary]. “Wow, this comic where a family bucks the traditional class system, leading their son to fight for the little guy against the powers that be, is great! It’s so much better than one of those ‘woke’ comics!”

“3. Hollywood will wise up and finally make a biopic out of Jack Kirby’s life. It might not be released in 2024, but it will at least go into pre-production.”

Look, this has to be done while we still have Ray Wise in the acting business. Wise played Kirby for a TV show a while back, and HE IS THE MAN. I don’t think any biopic has been announced, but Hollywood is foolish if such a thing does not happen.

• • •
Sciencegiant is trying to kill me with

“They’re evergreen AND they’re softballs. Which means really they’re just a chance for you to riff on whatever you want to bring up.”

Well, these are more “Question Time“-esque post prompts than predictions, I think, Obviously all these things happen (and will also happen in 2025, natch), but I can probably come up with an example for each.

“1) WOW! That highly anticipated adaptation of fantasy/science fiction IP certainly underperformed at the box office/streaming service. I predict this is the death knell of of that genre/franchise.”

I mean, the easy answers are Madame Web and Kraven, but I’m pretty sure literally everyone except whoever’s running Sony knew those were DOA. I think the big shock is that Joker sequel…the first film made a billion bucks and won all kinds of awards. I mean, I’m sure no one thought the second film would do as well, but they probably thought it would do, y’know, at least reasonably okay given the performance of the previous installment. Certainly not that it would crash and burn in such an epic manner.

Anyway, that probably doesn’t kill the idea of Batman related films, but it definitely put the kibosh on musicual superhero movies, I think.

“2) SOB! The industry lost a great one whose like we will not soon see again. Any stories you care to share, Mike?”

I don’t want to single out any particular creator as being The Big One, because that’s not really fair to everyone. A lot of talents passed this past year, some after a very long life, some way too traggically young.

However, I do have a special fondness for Don Perlin, who passed in 2024 at the age of 94. I have an issue of Defenders a friend gave me, one guest-starring Man-Thing, that was signed by him.

“3) Fandom seems pleased/outraged about this latest reimagining. Your thoughts?”

Everything turning up Absolute Comics! And Ultimate Comics from Marvel, too, I guess!

“4) Good grief! Lucy pulled the football away on Charlie Brown AGAIN?!”

Hey, that’s four predictions! You have broken ape law! Anyway, Lucy and Charlie Brown are long dead, no one’s pulling footballs from anybody now.

• • •
Andrew Davison teaches us all with this

“Mike will try out my sartorial suggestions, a la Zatara, appearing in a short video blog to perform a variety of magic tricks.

“This video will become an Internet sensation, leading to a new career as a stage magician, headlining in Vegas by the end of the year.

“This will in turn trigger a multi-million dollar lawsuit from DC, and a movie offer from James Gunn.”

I…wait, what? Anyway, I don’t look good in a tophat. Besides, you all were lucky to get one video of my dumb face in a rumpled shirt here, I ain’t doin’ no magical tricks.

• • •
Dan Jack sez

“1. The mainstream publishers will continue to promote Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity in their hiring and staffing”

Not sure that I’ve heard anything specific about this, but if they do, I hope then continue to do so. Especially now.

“2. More and more readers will abandon the above publishers.”

I presume you’re trying to draw a connection between Prediction #1 and this one. Sales do seem to be up, particularly with the advent of (here they are again) the Absolute and Ultimate lines. I know at my store comic sales are up across the board. I think things are okay with the Big Two right now…I’m more worried about the little guys and how the Diamond bankruptcy situation may affect them. Oh, and how tariffs may increase prices across the board. That’s more of a problem than supposed “diversity hires.”

“3. More crowdfunding/etc ventures will be successful, and remain un/under reported on by comics industry as a whole!”

In fairness I probably don’t mention these enough here, but I do occasionally go in for retailer bundles on some Kickstarters. I can’t do ’em all, but I try to pick the occasional one that sounds interesting. And it seems like I see them mentioned all the time, but maybe that’s mostly on social media. That’s where more people will see them anyway, I think, more than on my silly, ancient blog.

• • •
Cassandra Miller almost lives up to her name with

“1. Although there are continued allusions/cameos, the Legion of Superheroes gets neither a new book, nor an actual explanation of exactly which Legion is the ‘current’ one. Lots of contradictory cameos, is what I’m saying.”

Yeah, they’ve popped up once or twice, even an evil Anti-Legion in the DC All-In special. But not a whole lot really giving us what the Legion’s deal currently is, post Bendis-reboot. I really, really, really keep hoping we just get a World’s Finest-style Legion series by Mark Waid, since anything in the current DC Universe seems doomed to failure.

“2. Diamond files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and (hopefully) emerges a little stronger.”

Well, you were off by a couple of weeks, but Diamond did in fact do just that. Whether they come out of it stronger is something I expect we’ll find out in a few months.

“3. (This one is more a hope than a prediction.) DC realizes they should just put out a ‘Superman Family’ book, and refocuses the main Superman book as, well, mainly a Superman book.”

The Superman books seem to have cut back a little on the “here’s 15 different Super-characters” business, though they did play a part in that weekly Waid storyline, and we had a Supergirl back-up during that run. But what I wouldn’t give for a 1970s/1980s style Superman Family book. Gimme my solo Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen adventures! And we could have “Mr. and Mrs. Superman” without it being the Earth-2 characters! Make Jon Kent the lead feature, with various back ups, and we’d be set!

• • •
Okay, that’s it for now…your pal Mike has a medical thing in the morning, so he needs his beauty sleep. Yes, yes, I know, I’m already too beautiful, but sleeptime awaits. Thanks for reading, and we’ll get to more of your predictions next time!

Okay, there’s been a couple of delays, but here we are, you’ve waited an for this very day, I’m certain, where we begin our look back at your comic industry predictions for 2024! Let’s see how we all did (and don’t forget to get in your predictions for 2025, which is already in progress).

And…this particular comments section had more than its fair share of excess discussion and jokey predictions and whatnot, that I’ll be skipping over this year. Sorry, just don’t have it in me this time. In the future 1) try to have some kind of specific prediction I can work with, and 2) try to keep it to just predictions in the comments sections to those posts, please.

First off is Customer Sean, with

“1. Both DC and Marvel will ramp up the number of facsimile editions being reprinted in 2024–bringing more classic Golden, Silver, and Bronze Age key stories to the readers at prices that won’t break the bank.”

Doing a search on Diamond for “facsimile” for 2023 versus 2024, there definitely were more results for the latter year than the former. (Diamond still has solicits for DC in its system, if you’re wondering.) Heavier on Silver and later, but some Golden Age did pop up as well. An interesting trend is doing facsimile editions of full series, as Marvel did with Marvel Super-Heroes Secret Wars, Boom! did with a reprint of Marvel’s Labyrinth adaptation, and DC did with Crisis on Infinite Earths) and just started with the original Batman “Hush” storyline. Can’t tell you how many times a #1 facsimile came out and I was asked for a #2 reprint as well.

“2. Mark Millar will succeed in revamping the comics industry.”

No revamping that I’ve noticed!

“3. James Gunn will announce a Challengers of the Unknown film featuring Cillian Murphy as Prof., Ryan Gosling as Ace, Tom Hardy as Rocky, and Harry Styles as Red.”

No, but I wonder if the Challs just aren’t flashy enough for a big budget comic book movie. I mean, I like ’em…every time they bring the team back in comics, I read it…but maybe moviemakers just want something…bigger? Obviously a good movie can be made out this, and I’m sure folks got movie pitches, but the Supermans and the Batmans get first dibs.

• • •
Chris Gumprich cashes in with

“1. Tom King will write a Black Label series that takes an obscure character, messes up their life, and ultimately kills the character.

2. Not specific enough? Okay fine, the character will be… Shade the Changing Man.”

King’s up to some shenanigans in Wonder Woman, but that’s not Black Label. Nothing quite on the scale as his Mister Miracle or his Adam Strange mini, at least. King is writing a mini with Black Canary, Best of the Best, but I don’t think it’s doing the same thing those other series did. And it feels like we’re due for a new Shade the Changing Man thing…the last was “Shade the Changing Girl/Woman” from the Young Animal imprint a few years back.

3. Archie will continue to milk the RIVERDALE dollars by doing a crossover comic with ‘Beverly Hills 90210.'”

(Hey look, I did a different Archie prediction this year!)”

Not really anything along the lines of its edgier TV cousin (unless you count the reprint of Betty and Me #16).

• • •
Pal Nat predicts

“1. DC will figure out how to push subscriptions for Christmas, and most but not all retailers will recognize this as seeding the comics market rather than stealing customers.”

Not that I saw. Do Marvel and DC even have subscription departments any more? I suppose they must. It would be a nightmare what with all the relaunches with new #1s.

“2. One of the big YA graphic novelists will drop an adult GN, the comics version of when Judy Blume released Wifey.”

I actually conferred with Nat on this one, and neither of us can think of any YA comickers making this specific transition. But, honestly, it’s just a matter of time, I’m sure.

“3. Comics will be said to be dying, still, as almost always.”

Ummmmmm, yeah…that’s always a thing, but it certainly got a boost of late.

• • •
Mike Loughlin drops this in

“The new era of X-Men comics, shepherded by Tom Breevort, will sell well at first but quickly lose fan enthusiasm due to its retrograde nature. Peach Momoko’s Ultimate X-Men will be a hit, for as long as she’s on the title.”

I would say that’s two predictions in there, but let’s cover the first one first.

Now, just based on my sales, Uncanny and Adjectiveless have dipped a tiny bit but remained strong, the other X-titles, including Exceptional, have stabilized at lower numbers. Which makes sense, since X-Men and Uncanny X-Men are the established names. We’re still within the first year of the relaunches, so let’s see where everything’s at by the time Year Two rolls around.

As far the Ultimate X-Men goes, yes, it’s still selling well, if not as much as the leader of the pack, Ultimate Spider-Man. I suppose that makes it a hit, as the people who like it really like it, but I’ve come across some folks who turn their noses up at it for not being a more traditional superhero comic (as much as the Ultimate books can be). Ah well, that’s how it goes.

• • •
Thanks for your patience as it took me a little extra bit to get started on this series of posts! Next Monday I’ll dive back in and continue the ride…well, probably!