Michael Tierney of The Comic Book Store in Little Rock, Arkansas shares his reaction on the rating change for Avengers #71 (see 'Avengers #71 Delayed, Returnable'):
When Marvel announced the warning about the content in Avengers #71, I had mixed feelings. I was glad that they understood their responsibility to properly inform retailers about unexpected content in a book that had previously been solicited as having milder content. This addresses the immediate concerns of selling the wrong thing to the wrong person on new comics Wednesday. What is not clear from Marvel's statement is if the one week delay in release is due to reprinting the cover with a proper label. Either way; I'm disappointed that a classic Marvel title, that has been considered as all-ages material for 40 years, will now have a mature issue that some younger collectors will not be able to purchase.
And, if the cover IS left unlabeled... Will we still remember the aberration of Avengers #71 in five, ten, or fifteen years from now? Will a new store owner even know to watch for it when he tosses a ratted out stack of well-read Avengers into a fifty-cent bin? A lot of that depends on if this type of problem becomes a regular occurrence. It also depends on the marketplace for individual stores. In some parts of the country this isn't a big deal. For other parts of the varying demography of the American landscape - it's a huge problem, especially for stores like mine with a large contingent of youthful customers (and within close proximity to both schools and churches). Parents expect me to have Superman's X-Ray vision scoping out every book that I sell, and (don't tell anybody, but) I don't.
I've said it before and I'll say it again: The comics industry needs to reanalyze how publishers communicate with consumers. Ultimately, retailers are the middle person who catches all the liability for any publisher gaffes.
The opinions expressed in this Talk Back article are solely those of the writer, and do not reflect the views of the editorial staff of ICv2.com.
