American comics are simultaneously experiencing a wave of unparalleled popularity and abysmal sales. To combat this slump, Marvel and DC have thrown every gimmick they can think of to engage fans. In some cases, they catch lightning in a bottle, but they're left limping to the stables in other instances. The world of comic book publishing is a tricky business.
Well, it seems like comics legend Frank Miller wants to try his hand at the publishing game.
Named Frank Miller Presents, the company will have the writer-artist behind The Dark Knight Returns, Sin City and 300 acting as president and editor-in-chief, with the goal of creating and curating a line of comics that hopes to capture Miller's distinct visual style while also working with a range of talent, from comics veterans to rising artists.
The company has been quietly in the works for months, if not years, and is coming to the launchpad with several titles, including a new Sin City comic and a return to Ronin, the sci-fi samurai creation Miller wrote and drew prior to finding mainstream crossover success with Dark Knight.
Although Miller's reputation has taken several significant blows over the last twenty years, it's impossible to discount his importance in the medium. Miller's Ronin and Dark Knight Returns changed how American comics were published forever.
No matter how unpopular Miller has become, I will always have a deep appreciation for his role in my childhood and how dramatically he shaped comics for the better. I hope FMP is a rousing success because, in my opinion, the comic industry is better with Frank Miller in it.
