Confessions of a Comic Book Guy is a weekly column by Steve Bennett of Super-Fly Comics and Games in Yellow Springs, Ohio.  This week Bennett talks about public service comics.

Somebody had to be the first publisher to try day and date release of their titles on a regular basis, and since it would undoubtedly have to be the one that had the least to lose by possibly alienating the direct sales market, in retrospect it really couldn't have been anyone other than Archie (see "Archie Goes Day & Date with Full Line").  Though some retailers of course already have complained about the move they really can't argue that it will siphon off a lot of regular Archie readers from their brick and mortar stores -- I can't speak for anyone else but Super-Fly Comics & Games sells a lot more of the Archie trade paperbacks than they do actual Archie comics.  So now the only question really, one I'm sure that Marvel and DC will be anxious to have answered, is just how many new readers will Archie pick up online, and whether there's any way to get them inside a comic book shop.  And if this has the success I think it will Archie won't be alone online for very long.

If we think about them at all we comic book guys tend to be pretty contemptuous of public service comics.  There's an automatic assumption they're done exclusively for kids by people who just happened to be in the office that day, at best well intentioned but ham-fisted prolemics and at worse weird and awkward artifacts worthy only of being mocked.  And there's plenty of websites out there that do just that to titles such as Spider-Man vs. The Prodigy (produced for Planned Parenthood), The New Teen Titans anti-drug comics that featured letters from then-First Lady Nancy Reagan, and of course Daredevil Vs. Vapora, created to teach kids about the dangers of gasoline fumes (sponsored by the Gas Appliance Manufacturers Association).  A lot of them had it coming, but the truth is it doesn't have to be this way.

I haven't been shy about the fact that I think there are entirely too many Captain America comic books being published right now but Captain America: A Little Help is definitely noteworthy.  It's an 11-page story included in I Am An Avenger #5 that Marvel is also making available free online, written by psychologist Tim Ursiny and drawn by Nick Dragotta, told almost entirely without dialogue about how Captain America unknowingly helps a teen who's considering suicide  In his attempt at writing comic books Ursiny does an excellent job of making it first and foremost a story, told with economy and skill, making its point without hitting the reader over the head with it.

I found an undated piece by John Geddes on the online version of USA Today about Captain America: A Little Help which includes a quote from Marvel Executive Editor Tom Brevoot, "We have a storied history in addressing topical issues such as suicide, drug abuse and child abuse within our comics.  It's one of the the ways that the Marvel characters remain relevant."  I'm gratified to hear this since it's been a while since Marvel has done anything like this.  Hopefully this means that soon Marvel will be addressing issues like bullying, anti-gay attacks and the recent rise of violence against Muslims, all absolutely relevant issues that need to be addressed.

The last time I remember one of the major publishers doing something as good as Captain America: A Little Help was 2000's Superman -- For The Animals, a giveaway prepared by DC Comics for the Doris Day Animal Foundation that came polybagged with a number of November 1999 cover-dated DC Comics.  It wasn't very highly thought of at the time (if I remember correctly there were complaints from the fans about the polybags and a number of retailers didn't care for the extra freight they had to pay for comics they didn't order) and is mostly forgotten today.  But it was written by Mark Millar (yes, that Mark Millar) and drawn by Tom Grummett and Dick Giordano and told the story of a group of teens who become involved in escalating acts of animal abuse.  Superman doesn't swoop in at the last moment to solve everyone's problems but is used as he should be more often, as the ultimate example of why you shouldn't pick on someone weaker than you.  It's sadly out of print and really shouldn't be.

Sure superhero comics should primarily be about entertainment,  but I believe that ultimately all good comic books should be about something and sadly, most of the comics being published are mostly about selling more comic books.  Which is a shame because I sincerely believe this is a powerful medium that can be used for so much more than it currently is.

The opinions expressed in this column are solely  those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff of ICv2.com.