As a result of COVID-19 and other setbacks, the entire comic book industry including Marvel and DC Comics has been feeling the wrath of heavy postponements related to much anticipated comic releases. With the annual solicitations for comic books printed in the final quarter of 2021-2022 beginning to roll out, fans may want to prepare for an extended waiting period in their opportunity to check in on the adventures of their favorite superheroes and villains.
An inability to meet expectations has sent several comic book companies into a frenzy to match the heavy demand of book publications. Among other things, COVID-19 concerns have stalled production and created a widespread paper shortage, which has prevented a range of books from meeting their scheduled releases, across the globe. The paper shortage is only worsened with a shortage of workers without an incentive to commit to the manual labor it takes to have stories printed and distributed. While the United States finds itself dealing with the printing paper scarcity, overseas territories are finding themselves thwarted with delays on shipping the books themselves. Several comics are generated overseas before making their way to other countries such as the U.S. and Canada for consumption.
The books that have been affected in these range from commercial superhero fare to manga stories. While various new comic collections and trade paperbacks have been listed for pre-order, it's entirely possible that many books will receive delays or cancellations at the very worst, before the remainder of 2021 is up, according to Bleeding Cool. In an effort to mend fences with their dedicated fanbase, DC has sent notifications of the upcoming delays and cancellations in their release schedule that are unfortunately to be expected. This is only months following Marvel's surprising split from regular distribution partner Diamond Comic Distributors. Penguin Random House has now become both DC and Marvel's new distributing outlet, which will officially go into effect for "the House of Ideas" this October. The dilemma is not only exclusive to the Big Two of the comic book industry. While Marvel and DC remain standing, the distributor shake-up was a major hurdle that left several independent comic companies trying to keep their lights on. The show only paved the way for further delays within the comic book industry.
Additionally, the fan-favorite format of omnibus collections has been seeing delays in their release schedule. These omnibus collections have been a major commodity for comic fans in recent years, collecting the most influential stories of a particular hero or team into one oversized hardcover collection. DC Omnibus volumes that have been affected by these delays include Batman No Man's Land, The Books of Magic, Absolute Wonder Woman, a series of DC Poster Portfolios, and many others. Luckily, the target reschedules for the books are currently only set for a few months, but there's no telling how DC's comic competitors will fare in this alarming new landscape.
With the comic book industry gaining new readership each day thanks to the rising number of superhero media adaptations, it's not likely that distributors will reach a slowdown anytime soon. These unprecedented setbacks to the industry may have complicated matters for the time being, but it's useful to remember that nothing lasts forever. Like with their favorite releases, Marvel and DC Comics fans will just need to stay patient and wait for the industry to regain some degree of its footing.
Source: Bleeding Cool