This post’s title draws from the seminal work of Walter Benjamin: The Work of Art in the Age of its Mechanical Reproducibility. In no way do I mean to put forth anything approaching the deeply insightful and influential arguments made in The Work of Art, but I want to reference Benjamin’s basic assertion. The essence of the treatise is that the ability to mass produce art has profoundly changed the art itself. He delves much deeper, but I think this general idea is relevant. We are approaching a time when reproducibility is going to change yet again. Really, as far as software goes, we’ve reached that point (the Internet), but the hardware (e-book readers, etc.) still needs to catch-up in order for this change to spill from the “virtual” world to the “real” world.

I do not mean to exaggerate here, and I recognize just how momentous was the move from absolutely unique (e.g., painting) to mass reproduced (e.g., film), but the near-future of entirely digitized media strikes me as equally transformational.

So, of course, let’s consider this in the context of comic books.

Warren Ellis (see: wiki, site) recently opened a new forum, ostensibly as a “community system behind the webcomic“, but really just a message board dedicated to anything you want (just Don’t Be An Arsehole). Whitechapel merges Ellis’ previous creations The Engine (comics, comics, comics) and Die Puny Humans (future/tech/culture), resulting in something much more open welcoming (just in case you aren’t so interested in comic books). Of course, with (1) the Kindle making waves (here and here), and (2) the crowd of comic nerds that follows invariably that lovable Brit anywhere he goes, there was bound to be a long discussion of downloading comics and the digital future of comics.

Books (comic or otherwise) receive special privilege in the digital future dilemma, most visibly because the form of a book is so intertwined with the content it holds within. Comic books are especially troublesome creatures, given how engrained the idea of collecting and hording has become. However, even comic book publishers are bound to be feeling the push (or, more realistically, the kick in the ass) toward better utilization of the Internet and digital technologies in general. Why? Comic scans.

Motivated by nothing but self-satisfaction, groups of avid comic lovers spend their weeks hunched over a scanner, transferring page after page to their computers. A large community (more like chaotic mess) of comic downloaders has grown, and the comic scanning community with them, such that any comic from the Big 3 (Marvel, DC, Image) is available for free online within the week. (Indie comics are much more difficult to find.) Spurred on by cost and convenience, this phenomena should be a pressing concern to an industry historically know to be in a constant struggle to survive.

Comics differ from other books in that they can currently only be read in digital format on a computer. There is no commercial electronic paper device that supports color (though color e-ink is not far off). Nonetheless, while no one wants to read an entire novel on their computer, spending ten or fifteen minutes reading a comic is no problem.

So how should comic publishers respond? At the very least, publishers should begin to offer free previews of series, whether that be in the form of a free download of the entire first issue or a substantial number of preview pages. This would appease readers who download so as to not waste money on bad comics (which are all too common). From there, a streamlined (a la iTunes) e-commerce system should be developed. Print comics subsist on advertising, and digital comics could live similarly (either as ads within the comics or within the program). Pricing here can be anything, from $1.50 to the usual $2.99, but the less the better if publishers want to reach readers who download because of the price. Even better might be a subscription-based service, with a fixed price per month for unlimited comics.

Obviously, incentives are necessary, both to provide a worthwhile alternative to freeloading as well as justifying payment for a digital version of a very non-digital medium. The reduced price (feasible because of no overhead from printing or distribution) is a start, but publishers should expand their offerings. Digital-only content, such as interviews or scripts or sketches or even free downloads of less popular comics (subscribers might not be so swayed by this last one), would go a long way to securing the success of the service.

And, of course, like any good e-commerce system, this so-called iComics service should be as much one-stop-shopping as possible. Consequently, the service is likely to come from a third-party rather than any of the publishers themselves (unless some miraculous alliance occurs) . Either way, comics from Marvel, DC, Image, Avatar, First Second, Oni, Top Shelf (and so on and so on!) need to be available. Pricing is complicated by this all-inclusivity (indie publishers tend to put out “graphic novels” rather than single issues), but the service fails before it even begins unless it has the backing of the industry. Cost out of the way, a service that has the inconvenience of only offering a small smattering of comics is doomed.

(I’ve said this before, but despite its flaws, the Kindle will be immensely popular (at least relatively) because of how easy it is to both read AND get books. Similarly, iTunes Music Store and Netflix are popular for the same reason.)

All that’s needed on top of this is a way to not leave local comic shops in the dust.

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