Crossgen has one word for the future: computers. Don and Randy take a look at Negation on DVD.
Randy:
Everybody is trying to figure out how to expand the audience of comics beyond its niche market. Changes in the format, the content, the creators, everything has been tried, and now Crossgen is experimenting with another something new: comic books on DVD. Bill Rosemann sent us copies of the Negation digital comic book, one of 10 titles that will be offered from Crossgen very soon.
Don:
What we viewed wasn't the final product Crossgen and Intec Interactive plan to offer; it was the beta version of the disc, so there were a couple of little flaws. Now while this isn't the first foray into digital comics I've seen -- Marvel and DC have both licensed their books for the CD-ROM treatment in the past -- this is a new spin on the concept, and depending on pricing and mainstream-market availability, it has a real chance of striking a chord.
Negation Digital Comic Book
written by Tony Bedard & Mark Waid
illustrated by Paul Pelletier, David Meikis & James Rochelle
Don:
The cosmic emperor Charon, ruler of the Negation universe, has set his sights upon our reality, and in order to determine what must be done to invade, he has ordered 100 individuals of varying degrees of power abducted from our universe and brought to that of the Negation. These 100 prisoners are tested and tortured, prodded and provoked, in an effort to determine their strengths and weaknesses. But led by the powerless but military-minded Obregon Kaine, a small group of prisoners plans their escape from the Negation and their return to their homes and families.
Randy:
In the past, Crossgen founder Mark Alessi has used a metaphor involving soft drinks when talking about the variety of formats that Crossgen is using to making its comics available. Trades, travelers, the now-defunct compendia, single issues... a wide variety of the same material, packaged in different sizes and shapes for consumers, just like two-liters, cans, fountain drinks, etc. It's not an analogy that withstands a lot of scrutiny, but it makes the basic point very effectively, that the existence of one format doesn't necessarily mean there can't be others, and comic-books on DVD is an interesting experiment, if nothing else.
For my part, comics on DVD holds an interest as a curiosity, but only that. I'm an old-school kind of guy, and I like to have my comics in paper format. I like to read. And I can pick up the Negation Traveler, when it's available, for the same $9.95 that this DVD would cost me. I'll miss out on the extras, on the voice and motion, but I'll have the same content, and I'll be able to read it with my own pacing and voices in half the time at the most. Given how much stuff I've got going, the speed and convenience of comic format works better for me.
Don:
Of course, it's important to note that this product isn't aimed at those of us who love the traditional comic-book medium or its growing-in-popularity cousins, the collection edition and original graphic novel. No, this is a concerted effort to reach out to an audience that has cast comics aside in favor of TV, home video and video games. I found this consumed a fair bit of time as well, but I think that's the point. While the target audience may be younger "readers," the target market has to be their parents. After all, they're the ones who will likely be plunking down the cash for this product. Believe me, there's nothing more valuable to a parent than something s/he can stick in a DVD player to keep the kids occupied.
The problem is that it's not the Disney/Bob the Builder fans who will have an interest in this material: it's the tweens and teens. The storytelling in Negation is far too intense for the younger set. The key is to bring this stuff to their attention. My fear is that when these digital comics hit the big stores, they'll be lumped in with the Justice League, Super Friends and Yu-Gi-Oh videos, rather than with movies like XXX, Shanghai Knights and The Matrix, where it belongs.
Randy:
However, that doesn't mean I don't like the idea here. Putting comics on DVD, playing them like partially animated movies, is an intriguing idea, and can probably appeal to a more casual audience than the one that currently reads comics, and it might appeal more to those who were reared more on video games and television than comics. Intec Interactive, the studio that is putting these together, has done a nice job with transferring Crossgen's comics to the DVD screen. The interface is clean and clear, and should be easy to nagivate for anyone with a familiarity with DVDs.
Don:
I had a little problem with the interface, especially on my DVD player (I tested it on both my DVD player and DVD-ROM), but I think that's a bug in the beta version, is all. I think what most impressed me about the new format was the voice casting. It didn't seem as though Crossgen went with any recognizable voice talent, but the casting is strong all the same. Of particular note is the performance of the actor who portrayed Kaine. I was disappointed, though, that I could find no credits on the disc to identify the actors.
Randy:
This collection contains the first six issues of Negation (including the prequel as one of the issues) as well as trailers for the other Crossgen digital comics, static character profiles for the Negation cast, a flashy multimedia trailer for Crossgen in general and an interesting documentary on making comics the Crossgen way. It strikes me as the kind of thing that will be invaluable for Crossgen at trade shows and the like, letting them display their comics in a vivid and exciting format that can catch the casual passers-by instead of just those willing to sit down and flip through their art and comics. The voice acting is solid, if sometimes not completely on the same page as the creators' intent (one example being where Obregon Kaine is clearly meant to be shouting, but the actor maintains the same basic volume and tone as he does throughout) and the sound effects, music and movement of the panels is likewise done well. The main goal for something like this is to keep the story clear, not to be flashy or distracting, and Intec has accomplished that.
Don:
The extras are a nice touch, but they're a tad generic as well. The "Making Comics the Crossgen Way" was interesting enough, but I was curious why there wasn't a short film or an interview about the genesis of Negation in particular. I also found that the trailers for the various titles omitted credits for Crossgen creators who have since left the company (Josh Middleton and Mark Waid come to mind).
Randy:
Bottom line, digital comic books really aren't for me. The time involved isn't worth the tradeoff for competent but unspectacular voice acting, music and special effects. However, these aren't aimed at me, or indeed at most current comic-book fans. They're aimed at the wider market that would rather sit and watch something than sit and read something, and I think the high-quality production values of both Crossgen's comics and Intec's digital translations of them could well catch a few new eyeballs for the company.
Don:
Though I don't agree with Randy regarding the performances, he's right when he says that this digital comic disc isn't for comics readers. It's a new format designed to reach a new audience. It certainly has the potential to catch on. It's a relatively new idea, and I think the ultimate success of the product won't be the quality, but rather the marketing. It won't be enough to just put this in stores; that new audience has to hear about it first.
For more information on Negation, visit
