The one consistent thing about writing this thing every week is so far, there's always been something to write about. Sometimes I’ve had to go looking for it but sometimes "it" finds me. For instance, the story about the deal between Papercutz and Nickelodeon (see "Papercutz Inks 'First Look' Deal With Nickelodeon"). But as much as I want to see a print adaptation of the cartoon Sanjay and Craig, the part of it that actually caught my attention was the news that they would be reviving Nickelodeon Magazine.
It was canceled back in 2009 ("Confessions of a Comic Book Guy--The Canary in the Coalmine Has a Cough"), supposedly due to falling circulation and advertising revenues. Its revival is kind of unexpected seeing as how the magazine market hasn’t exactly recovered since then. According to a piece in Media Life Magazine, sales for magazines fell 11% in 2014, the worst decline since 2009. In spite of this, print magazines don't appear to be in any danger of immediate extinction--a quick trip to any Krogers will establish that they're still ubiquitous, there are even, inexplicably, print versions of websites; someone, somewhere, please, explain to me the reasoning behind WebMD Magazine.
Regardless, I'm personally happy to see it back in print, even though I was never a regular reader of either it or its occasional spin-off publication Nickelodeon Comics. I mean, I would pick up the random issue, strictly for research purposes you understand. Not only did I admire the wildly imaginative work of artists as varied as Mark Martin, Kim Deitch, Sam Henderson, James Kochalka and Scott Roberts, I saw its value as a gateway publication. A means of getting comics into the hands of kids in a form more easily accessible to them, And in a format (page count, suggested retail price) more acceptable to more of their parents than the monthly comic book. I look forward to seeing the first issue.
This is the third in the Marvel Disney Kingdoms series; I enjoyed the first two, Seekers of the Weird and Figment and have very little doubt that Big Thunder Mountain Railroad will be equally as good. Marvel has done an outstanding job of creating colorful adventure stories and should be commended for stepping outside their comfort zone, the superhero genre. Make no mistake, they have been very carefully calculated to appeal to the tween audience they're shooting for without ever seeming dumbed down. But they're also comics that anyone can enjoy.
Like the others, this one is based on a popular Disney theme park ride; it's about a train, apparently. Frankly I've never heard of it but having never gone to a Disney park I hadn't heard of Figment either and that was a sell-out for them, going through several printings. Not being a Secret Wars tie-in, orders have been less than stellar, but I can't blame Marvel for not promoting it. According to a piece on the Bleeding Cool website, "Marvel Wants You To Be Big Thunder Mountain Railroaded," the publisher is "sending out a sample copy of the first issue to every retailer." When it arrives take the time to read it or at the very least, put it out on the stands and see what happens.
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.
