ICv2 has a great interview with Dynamite Entertainment’s Nick Barrucci (Part 1, 2, 3), in which he addresses the state of the industry in general as well as Dynamite in particular, focusing on periodicals, collections and upcoming projects like this:
We are very excited about Prophecy. Prophecy is our first huge crossover. The majority of retailers that I spoke with at the Diamond Seminars said that having a focused crossover was the best thing we could do. They were extremely supportive of the fact that we tried something different.
I did make the joke to each of these retailers: we did what you wanted. You say you want one event title, just one series, with no spin-offs, and one cover. We gave you everything you wanted and this is a situation where we’re absolutely giving you what you’ve said you asked and we’re doing no variants at all. If this doesn’t sell, I can’t believe you moving forward and we’ll just have to go back to the way we do standard business that we’ve done to date.
It’s partially a snarky joke – “If this doesn’t sell, I can’t believe you moving forward” – but I also love that Prophecy is, in many ways, calling retailers’ bluff in terms of what is wanted. Ron Marz is a familiar and reliable name for writer, the characters are some of Dynamite’s most recognizable, and the title is a done-in-one-book crossover. I can’t wait to see what the reaction turns out to be from retailers and readers throughout the series’ run.
May 9th, 2012 at 11:03 am
But… I really really DON’T want a crossover between Vampirella and Red Sonja… two books which I sell zero rack copies of individually.
I totally appreciate the no variant thing — but we’ve been asking for it on regular ongoings that might appeal to normal regular people.
-B
June 21st, 2012 at 1:20 am
we’re doing no variants at all. If this doesn’t sell, I can’t believe you moving forward and we’ll just have to go back to the way we do standard business that we’ve done to date.
December 12th, 2012 at 8:53 pm
It’s partially a snarky joke
I can’t wait to see what the reaction turns out to be from retailers and readers throughout the series’ run.