Gonna be a little shorter entry this time, folks…sorry, long day at the office combined with being flat out exhausted = low content mode here. But, I’ll try to cover at least a few of your predictions here today. (And here are Parts the First and Second.)

William Gatevackes opens up with the following

“Warner Brothers’ gambit of moving all their films day and date streaming will backfire financially. They will be scrambling to cut costs and DC Comics will be a main target of these cuts. It could mean massive layoffs or a massive reduction in their publishing.”

In regards to day-and-date streaming…well, I don’t know. One article has Warner executives seemingly happy with it, and another article released just two days later is like “nope, ain’t working.” I don’t much get the economics of streaming anyway, but I’m sure a big budget movie like Wonder Woman 1984 that was planned for theatrical release didn’t get the take anyone was hoping for, what with the streaming option and the theater debut at a time when people really don’t want to be sitting in a theater.

A look at Boxofficemojo.com shows a worldwide gross of $166 million. That sounds like a lot of money to you and me, but that’s likely “flop” territory for Wonder Woman. Granted, it wasn’t a surprise and it didn’t hurt plans for another sequel and another movie focusing on the Amazons. Plus, Googling the keywords “wonder woman 1984 hbo max new subscribers” brings up this quote:

“‘The release of Wonder Woman 1984 helped drive our domestic HBO Max and HBO subscribers to more than 41 million, a full two years faster than our initial forecast,’ said AT&T CEO John Stankey in a statement.”

…and 41 million subscribers at between $9.99 and $14.99 monthly apiece works out to…a hell of a lot of money. So I guess these movies are just loss-leaders writ large.

I’m sure someone will pop into the comments to give more accurate statements on the financial implications of all this. Just from this layman’s perspective, I don’t think Warners has anything to worry about in regards to limited box office at the moment.

“2. There will be a new Image title from a heretofore unknown creator that will become the next ‘Walking Dead.’ Meaning crossing over into other media and becoming a cultural phenomenon.”

The only Image book that was really a “phenomenon” this year was Invincible, which had me move a whole lot of copies of the trade paperbacks, and even those giant Omnibus volumes. But those are written by Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman, so that’s hardly an unknown creator, and plus Invincible was on TV, which is why people were seeking these volumes out in the first place.

Maybe on a lesser level was What’s the Furthest Place from Here?, which again isn’t really by unknowns, and didn’t become a huge cultural phenomenon…but it had a strong following and crossed over into other media in that they had tie-in 7-inch records. So I’m saying that counts!

Plus it gives me an excuse to run this video advertising the comic that was personalized for my shop:

“3. Marvel will at some point either announce or publish a “Predator Kills the Marvel Universe” book.”

More like “lawsuits killed the Predator,” amirite. But apparently everything’s settled all friendly-like now, which hopefully means the original screenwriters are sittin’ pretty. Thus, maybe this will be the year Predator kills everyone in the ol’ Marvel U.

“1) Some things will get worse”

Well, publishing scheduling and distributor shipping seemed to be a little more squirrley than in the past. Three different major comic distributors mean three different opportunities for books to be late.

“2) Some things will get better”

Despite everything, business is way up at my shop!

“3) People will disagree about which things got worse and which things got better”

No, I’m reasonably sure the two things I noted above are irrefutable fact. And if we’ve learned anything from the last few years, nobody will argue with actual facts!

“1) The New Warriors mini-series that was solicited will have at least one issue released this year, for trademark purposes, if nothing else.”

I don’t recall any, and the retailer database shows the last series was 2014 or thereabouts. But don’t worry, the New Warriors haven’t been off the stands long enough for, like, Dark Horse Comics to snatch up the copyright. At least, I don’t think.

“2) Some DC creators will try to push towards ‘Future State’ being the actual future, while others rebel against it, creating a confusing mess that will require a reboot in 2022.”

It seems as if they’re still incorporating elements of that future, such as the “Superman going away” thing in the Super-books. And there are books that are just straight-up set in the “Future State” era, like I Am Batmanand Future State: Gotham. I don’t think it was in any danger of taking over current DC continuity aside from a mini or two and some storylines. Here’s hoping a reboot will never be cessary!

“3) My podcast (welcome2geektown.com) will hit Episode 100.”

Odd, it’s almost as if you knew that would be the case ahead of time…! I’M KEEPING MY EYE ON YOU, MISTER

But y’all can listen to that very episode right here.

Okay, that’s enough shenanigans for today. I’ll be back Monday with yet more of your predictions! And don’t forget to leave me your new predictions for the next 11 1/2 months of 2022!

Continuing my look back at your 2021 comic industry predictions (part one here). And as yet another reminder, get in your 2022 predictions before much more of 2022 passes us by!

Mike Baehr bares all with

“1. Some of the conventions that run in the second half of the year will try to return at a reduced size”

Well, I’m not 100% certain how to easily verify or debunk this, but this list of 2021 conventions certainly shows a lot of cancellations and postponements earlier in the year. Those taper off as the year goes on, but it should be noted the San Diego Comic Con did run in November for only three days and a smaller turnout.

It looks like a lot of the later cons just ran as scheduled, in those days where we thought all the vaccines and boosters would have make things go back to relative normal. But I’m wondering how things will look for the early part of this year with COVID infections spiking drastically.

“2. Marvel/Disney will finally start cracking down on unauthorized use of the Punisher skull by cops and other right wing yahoos (this one is wishful thinking)”

I didn’t see any major stories about Disney (or Marvel) doing anything about that, aside from creators speaking out against the logo’s unofficial usage. CBR did run this article in 2020 about Marvel’s apparently limited options in regards to this. (I did find this article about removing the Punisher skull image as it was “view[ed] as a rebuke to the racial justice movement.”

Marvel/Disney’s solution for now is just changing that character’s logo into this terrible thing:

…which won’t get any traction and the old skull logo will continue to be associated with both the character and certain distasteful elements in real-world society, but perhaps I should save that for my own 2022 predictions. Anyway, can you picture Frank sitting down and designing that as his image to strike fear into criminals?

“3. Despite hopes to the contrary, there will continue to be be no posthumous revelations about Steve Ditko”

Sorry, no surprise previously-unpublished photo layouts for Playgirl. Maybe next year.

“1. HBO is going to announce a ton of DC property streaming TV shows, including 3 of these properties: Wonder Woman, Amethyst, Transmetropolitan, Legion of Super-Heroes, and Animal Man.”

Well, it wasn’t any of those (Transmet seems unlikely for Reasons, but remember when Patrick Stewart was interested in the property?), but there was at least that Gotham Police series that ties into that forthcoming Batman movie. And I presume the new Peacemaker series was noted sometime in 2021. Plus, there was that backdoor pilot for the Dead Boy Detectives in Doom Patrol. Plus, I think this supposed Green Lantern series was been floating around prior to that, right? EDIT: Being told in the comments that latest Legion writer Brian Michael Bendis mentioned doing some preliminary work for a Legion of Super-Heroes animated cartoon for HBO, so there you go!

“2. In 2021 the number of major marvel characters who are literally immortal will outnumber those who are not.”

I get what you mean, but technically, all the characters are immortal, so long as they keep selling. Even Uncle Ben pops up from time to time.

“3. Someone, maybe HBO again greenlight’s Elf*Quest as a prestige tv project.”

Someday Elfquest will get that big-budget adaptation! But just not yet, I suppose. In looking this up, I did find this Wiki entry for something that was attempted in 1992:

“In the early 1990s, an ad for a multi-volume animated adaptation of Elfquest appeared in the comic. A few issues later, the Pinis told readers they’d withdrawn from the deal, and that readers should ask for refunds. Those who didn’t eventually received a 50-minute VHS tape from Abby Lou Entertainment, copyright 1992. Covering the first volume of the book, it consists of color still images taken straight from the comic, some minor animation, and spoken dialogue.”

Oh good gravy, that sounds like it must have been very disappointing. I couldn’t find video of it (granted, I didn’t search long) but it sounds almost like those early Marvel cartoons.

“1. With the recent explosion of 70s reprints, someone will repackage and reprint the complete run of the legendary Atlas/Seaboard line.”

Media rights for Atlas/Seaboard were snapped up a few years back, surprisingly. I suspect once the movies and TV shows start up, if ever, that’s probably when we’ll start seeing those reprints. Or maybe they’ll simply retool the properties while keeping some of the…semi-baked premises of the comics out of the public eye by suppressing any reissuing.

“2. Archie Comics will present a line of new Archie stories set in the 1950s, with the same light-hearted approach as the originals.”

Not that I’ve seen, unless they slipped a short story in one of their million digests past me!

“3. DC will announce a new line of specialty comics aimed at a traditionally-ignored demographic. It will fail to immediately catch on and be cancelled in eight months.”

At this point a “traditionally-ignored demographic” at DC would be “people who don’t want to read Batman comics,” but I get what you mean. Nothing’s really coming to mind…I mean, they’re still doing young adult graphic novels (neither new nor for an ignored audience). Well, they started doing reprints of their Death Metal series packaged with records, so “record-collecting comic book fans” are having their time in the sun right now.

“And a special, bonus, cheating prediction that I already know is coming true:
4. I will complete my collection of Atlas/Seaboard comics when I finally track down a reasonably-priced copy of VICKI #4.”

HOW VERY DARE YOU. Just for that, I’m not going to sell you my copy of Vicki #4 that I’m using as a coaster for my drink here.

“1. DC will continue to awkwardly fumble around while trying to ‘patch’ their storytelling, both in print and in film. The mishmash of post-Future State will almost immediately slide back to an even more awkward form of status quo.”

I guess Infinite Frontier counts, though it’s more of a follow-up exploring the multiversal/rebootery/retconnathon of Death Metal and such, rather than yet another patch applied to paste over those cracks caused by Crisis on Infinite Earths. It seems like it may be a little awkward as I’m still not entirely sure how “every story counts” and characters remembering all their various histories will be properly implemented as such.

“2. Marvel will basically do that with print. But the MCU will evolve more naturally because actors age. Ironically, THIS will be the first time that a comics-based continuity will generally follow a more real world timeline.”

Marvel just keeps on keeping on, with relatively few multiversal shenanigans going on, though Timeless (released just under the end-of-the-year wire) seems to promise at least a little of that. As far as their movies…well, yeah, sure, they’re not going to have 70-year-old Scarlett Johanssen runnin’ around being Black Widow. …Or maybe they should, that would be kind of awesome.

But as far as being the first comics-based continuity to function in real-world time: BEHOLD.

“3. Rather than just putting ‘Heroes in Crisis’ out of continuity and saying, ‘Yeah, we fucked that up,’ DC will make a third (fourth?) attempts to try to paper over Wally West having murdered a lot of people and “rehabilitiating” him, because it almost worked with Hal Jordan. (Attempts #1 & 2 being that Lobdell mini and the Reverse Flash basically being Parallax).”

Pretty much was 2021’s Flash Annual was about…”redeeming” the character and putting the events of Heroes in Crisis behind him. Frankly, I”m surprised it took this long.

“1. In the latest of his escalating series of gimmicks, Robert Kirkman will stealth-cancel Walking Dead Deluxe after issue #12, and the world will learn this when retailers open their shipments of Walking Dead Deluxe #13 to find… Solid Blood #1.”

Oooh, that whole “end of Walking Dead thing was so aggravating. At least he hasn’t pulled anything like that with the delxue edition (though I could use a few fewer variant covers per issue, even as I realize that extra covers is probably what’s bringing the money in).

“2. To everyone’s great surprise, confirmation of Pete Davidson being cast as Adam Neramani in Guardians of The Galaxy 3 causes X-Force Annual #2 to explode in value.”

This just gives me a headache. Anyway, your terrible prediction has not yet come to pass.

“3. There will be at least one lawsuit involving Crossover.”

Nope, everyone seems to be playing nicely! There, I’ve addressed your contribution, Nathan, now getoudda here.

“1. Marvel and DC both do a ‘superheroes get vaccinated’ campaign.”

I did find this article from late last year in which DC Comics teamed up with the White House to provide DC-related bandages, coloring books, etc. in support of children’s vaccinations. And Marvel published a special Avengers comic to promote gettin’ your shots.

A quick Googling also shows several folks in superhero costumes to help kids along during their jabs, and a number of promotions extolling parents who get their kids vaccinated as generic no-need-to-license superheroes. So yes, superheroics are doing their part to keep kids healthy and safe.

“2. At some point, Kamala Khan meets Kamala Harris.”

Far be it for Marvel to pass up this opportunity, but if they did it, I can’t find it. Also, I’m kinda circling around a joke relating this to the whole Superman/Batman “Martha” thing but I haven’t quite landed the plane yet.

“3. Lots of local comic shops don’t recover from the virus downturn and close permanently.”

Sadly, I have heard of a few shutdowns, which is too bad. I managed to ride out the period where I literally wasn’t allowed to open, mostly because I was the only employee and I busted my butt doing mail order that whole time, but other shops weren’t so lucky. I don’t know if it was “lots,” but anyone losing their livelihood to this pandemic is too many.

“Marvel will launch a COVID-masked hero which will ship the very month that COVID is declared not-a-problem and everyone will go back to everything.”

Not yet, but it really is just a matter of not “if” but “when.” “In the great tradiion of the Disco Dazzler, here comes….”

“Scholastic will start a non-parody kids superhero GN line.”

I don’t think I’ve seen anything quite along those lines…I presume you mean, like, “straight” superheroes in the style of Marvel and DC, just “scaled down” for schoolchildren. As opposed to all the super-type characters on this list. I suspect it’s just a matter of time.

“The Obama’s media company will start dipping a toe into comics.”

Again, not that I can find, unless they’re the secret money behind all these Trump comics. Those sneaky, sneaky guys.

“1. As theater openings and scheduling remain more fluid, the core metaplot of the MCU will become more centered in the Disney+ miniseries, with the films being used for big stories with big effects (think of one-shots versus serial storylines), drawing the cinematic universe oddly more towards its parent in style.”

Well, yeah, to an extent, I think. It was Loki and What If that pushed the whole “multiverse” concept that we saw later in the new Spider-Man movie and in next year’s Dr. Strange sequel. Plus Falcon and the Winter Soldier gave us our new Captain America for the time being. So I don’t know if that all counts as “backbone” but it’s certainly teeing up future shots.

“2. With Disney+ and HBO Max getting attention for their superhero and genre properties, we’ll see a new round of ‘studio shops around to create/curate a cinematic universe from another set of comics properties,’ just on a streaming service instead of in theaters.”

The last big example of this I could think of was the Seaboard/Atlas thing I mentioned earlier, picked up by Paramout in 2019. It doesn’t say it’s for streaming, but after Disney’s and Warner’s examples, I’d be surprised if we didn’t at least get simultaneous debuts in theaters and on Paramount+. If there were other major pushes to getting other “comic book universes” I didn’t see ’em. Or I willfully forgot them. Someone wake me when Tubi gets the rights to do T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents.

“3. As we all get used to the new media status quo, then…Korea!”

Why, I’m not going to fall for your cheap ploy to get me to put up that—

…BRIAN, YOU SON OF A B–

Okay, that’s enough fun for today. Tune in next time, same Spirit-time, same Spirit-channel, for more 2021 prediction talk!

Well, here we go, pals, for a relatively long-ish ride through all the predictions you all planted on me at the end of 2020. There’s a lot to cover, so let’s get crackin’. (Also, don’t forget to give me your 2022 comic industry predictions!)

Bruce Baugh breaks in the following

“#1. There won’t be new issues of Miracleman in 2021.”

Nope, still no new issues yet, but right at the tail end of 2021, on the very last New Comics Day of the year, we got this.

“#2. There will be reprints of First Comics series – not the whole catalog, but a bunch. This is in addition to the Sable reprint being Kickstarted; I get no credit for prophesying things already happening.”

Hoo boy, I’m trying to think if anything came out last year (aside from Jon Sable). Anyway, did a little searching and the closest I can come up with is this Nexus Newspaper Strips paperback, which, you know, Nexus was published by First, and this book does contain a story from the First Comics years.

“#3. There’ll be a livestream of the entire process of making a regular issue of a monthly comic. The creative team and the audience will have fun and the issue won’t be very late.”

I’m sure this happens, on YouTube or Twitch or somewhere, on a regular basis. I did find this video (published on my birthday in 2021, no less!) about an artist who livestreams his comic creation. The video is literally titled “this artist draws entire comic books live on his Twitch streams,” so, um, there we go, I guess.

“1) LSH cancelled (what else is new). DC continues to blow it with this once-mighty franchise. Even Bendis can’t sell this concept to today’s readers. It needs a Grant Morrison.”

Well, with #12 in January 2021 being the last issue for the foreseeable future of the regular series, followed by a two-part Future State: Legion of Super-Heroes shortly thereafter, I think it’s safe to say that particular experiment is mostly ended. Though I should note that there is a Justice League/Legion of Super-Heroes mini coming out shortly, which may be the only way to get Legion characters on the stands anymore: team ’em up with other folks.

“2) The Thing will be the most surprising casting announcment for the MCU. It will be a very big name doing VO work for a Digital Grimm ™.”

We got a director announcement at the end of 2020 (Jon Watts) but no official word on actual casting far as I can tell. I saw a rumor (just a rumor!) about Seth Rogan as the Thing, and, you know, sure, why not. I’m sure it would upset somebody somewhere, but some people are always upset, y’know?

“3) The Immortal Hulk approach will be used to refresh another Marvel major. Everything you know is wrong, there’s a supernatural explanation for a science-based hero yada yada.”

Nothing really jumps out at me, but I don’t read every Marvel comic. At least, from a retailing standpoint, no series has “broken out” like Immortal Hulk did, with a wild new take on a character…except maybe the folling Hulk series. Hulk as a spaceship, powered by an angry Hulk, piloted by Bruce Banner. I mean, that feels like a magical reimagining, anyway.

“Ah, I keep telling you, I’m never right!”

Oh, don’t be like that, googum! Someday it’ll be your time to shine…and will it be today?

“1. Has there been a COVID-relief book yet? Feels like there should’ve been, but can’t think of one yet.”

And you were right! COVID Chronicles: A Comics Anthology (which I carry at my shop) was released, and according to the publisher’s website:

“The comics in this collection have been generously donated by their creators. A portion of the the proceeds from the sale of this volume are being donated by the publisher to the Book Industry Charitable Foundation (Binc) in support of comics shops, bookstores, and their employees who have been adversely affected by the pandemic.”

So Yes googum, There Is A COVID Relief Book. I’m sure it won’t be the last.

“2. Is it time for a Legion of Super-Heroes event? When was the last time DC tried to use them as the tentpole for anything? Maybe it’s due.”

You were close! I mentioned the Justice League Vs. The Legion of Super-Heroes above, which looks something like this:

…but it’s due to release in…well, just a few days, actually. So you weren’t too far off!

“3. I feel like the CW’s DC shows are all sputtering to a stop. That might not be quite right; those shows were probably successful, but not as big as DC/WB wanted them to be. Maybe Doom Patrol as well, that Alfred show, anything else they had going that wasn’t as big as the Mandalorian.”

I looked up this chart here, and if I’m understanding correctly, The Flash has dipped down a bit so far this season in ratings compared to the previous season. Now I don’t know what counts as “a lot” of viewers anymore, in this new world of much more competition for eyeballs. Realistically I’d expect everyone’s expectations to be down, that ratings that would mean death for a show in the past are now considered fine and dandy. Maybe those ratings are, like, “CW good.” Even if they’re only about 1/6th of Young Sheldon‘s take.

For comparison, Legends of Tomorrow‘s ratings last year seemed…well, fairly dire. Stargirl‘s ratings seem to be a bit closer to Flash, but again, I’m not sure what constitutes “good” here. (The latter was picked up for a third season, so they were “good enough” I suppose.)

Also, I don’t know if these ratings take in downloads, streaming, etc. I watched pretty much all of Stargirl on the CW app through my Roku.

“1. The Boys Amazon show continues to be popular and zeitgeist defining, despite a general critical agreement that the third season’s writing fell off a cliff. This could be due Superhero-decontstruction-fatigue, total deviation from the comic, or choosing the wrong Garth Ennis gross-outs to bring into the adaptation.”

Season Three isn’t coming ’til this June, so it’s too soon to say if fans are sick of it yet. I know spinoffs (or at least a spinoff) is planned, so burnout on the show is a greater possibility should that happen.

And good ol’ Garth…some of the stuff he comes up with is, to an extent, tolerable on the printed page, but once moved to film of actual humans doing some of these things…sheesh, yeah, I get your meaning.

I gotta say, though…the forthcoming “superhero burnout” (deconstructed or not) has been offered up for a while in regards to all this media featuring comic book characters, and it hasn’t happened yet. Which frankly, surprises me, too. It’ll happene someday, I’m guessing.

“2. Disney and Warner Bros, sorry, Marvel and DC, announce an Amalgam level joint effort, but it gets derailed. Leaked proposals germinate on the internet and fuel so many clickbait articles.”

Wouldn’t that be something. It would probably take an near-collapse of the entire entertainment market for these two giants to even consider pairing up like that, like when Marvel and DC started doing crossovers all the time while the comics industry’s flaming roof came crashing down upon us all. See also: that Star Trek/Star Wars crossover everyone wants.

“3. Wonder Woman 1984 and Dune enter theaters and streams. No one can say if they made or lost money without a clear metric of success; one gets a sequel, one does not.”

I was looking at the Wiki entry of WW84 (sorry, too tired to type the whole thing, though I suppose I could have instead of typing this explanation), which basically says “yeah, it didn’t even break even in theaters because of COVID, but it sure got streamed a bunch.” Says two follow-up projects are in the works…another Wonder Woman movie (maybe WW92, which will show her waiting in line to buy the black-bagged copy of Superman #75) and a movie just focusing on the Amazons.

That new Dune was released later in the year, at a time when folks were pretending it was safe to go to theaters again, so it actually made back double its budget (or thereabouts) worldwide. Apparently not a breakeven point, according to the Wiki, but better than nuthin’. It also got streamed a’plenty as well. A follow-up is planned for this film as well, in 2023.

“Ryan North’s Power Pack will be a massive sleeper hit and Disney will recognize they have gold just sitting there in a kid’s super team with a spaceship.”

Power Pack the comic did…well, so-so, at least at my shop. And doing a quick search shows “yes, there’s a movie coming,” and “yes, there’s a TV show coming” and “nope, it’s all on hold” and I have no idea what’s happening with it now. It certainly is money being left on the table at this point, but I bet Marvel will get around to it soon or later.