What's with Gemstone cancelling FOUR titles?

[Matt Zimmer]

Donald Duck and Friends, Mickey Mouse and Friends, Donald Duck Adventures and Mickey Mouse Adventures have not only all been cancelled but all of their back issues have been removed from Gemstone's website. I called Gemstone to order the last two issues of MM&F and DD&F that my subscription didn't cover but completely eliminating the books from the back issue page at www.gemstonepub.com/disney must REALLY make it confusing for fans of those books and the other titles. Is there a reason four titles were cancelled? Will there be new titles to take their place?

[ohmahaaha]

This is distressing news ... I hope this doesn't bode ill for "Uncle Scrooge" and "Walt Disney's Comics & Stories." I would imagine that it would have to be low sales that was the reason; I would also say that IMO, the titles had very low confidence on the part of those comic book shops in my area, because they consistently ordered VERY low numbers of copies of each issue, if at all.

The comic shop I've been going to, for instance - the owner keeps pressing me to give him a "pull list" for me, but my buying habits and title interest have been too fluid for me to commit to that many titles on a regular basis; plus, I like to have the pleasure of selecting my own copies off the shelves. That being the case, I figured other than people who specifically ordered these titles, they would only buy 5 or 6 copies to put on the shelf. So, on a given week, you have 5 copies of DD & Friends, and 5 copies of MM & Friends on a shelf next to 200 copies of "Civil War" and 200 copies of "Infinite Crisis" and 100 copies of "Ultimate Spider-man?" Tough to compete that way.

I'd been hoping that Gemstone would find other retail outlets - in fact a few months ago we discussed on another thread that some Gemstones were now being sold in CVS drug stores - I hope that this strategy is keeping Uncle Scrooge and WDCS afloat.

It took so long for us to get Disney comics back; I hope this isn't an ill wind blowing. :( But thanks David & Gemstone for bringing us what you've already brought.

[David Gerstein]

It took so long for us to get Disney comics back; I hope this isn't an ill wind blowing. But thanks David & Gemstone for bringing us what you've already brought.You're welcome, ohmahaaha. Thanks for the kind words! We're doing our darnedest.

The cancellations have, in fact, only just now taken effect, so the November and December-ship issues of DD, MM, MMA and DDA are still going to come out. The four titles have only temporarily vanished from our website—just so the relevant pages can be revised (no longer offering subscriptions, for instance; subscribers will be compensated, though I don't yet know the details).

As to the future, and the reasons for the cancellations: don't count us out yet. Here's a short text, hopefully clarifying everything, that will run in our November-ship comics.You’ve stuck with us through several years of good news, readers—news about exciting stories, modern and classic writers and artists, comics and specials we’ve been bringing to market. Unfortunately, now we’ve got some bad news to deliver. We’re hoping you’ll stick with us through this, too.
It all starts—like a lot of bad news—with the almighty dollar. Paper prices are going up... in fact, they’ve been going up for awhile. Until now we’ve dealt with the fallout as best we could, but at last it’s "put up or shut up" time: we must either take an unfeasible price hike on our $2.95 32-page comics and $7.95 Take-Along books, or else cease publishing Mickey Mouse and Friends, Donald Duck and Friends, Mickey Mouse Adventures and Donald Duck Adventures for right now.
After serious cogitating, we’ve decided to take the latter option. Should paper prices fall, or better marketing opportunities present themselves, we might return to some of the suspended series. In the meantime, though, be of good cheer. For we have good news, too.
Firstly, our prestige titles—Uncle Scrooge, Walt Disney’s Comics and Stories, and various specials—are as successful as ever, and the economics of publishing in this format are such that we can get away with a relatively small price hike: the first since 1997, and only a matter of fifty-five cents per book (from $6.95 to $7.50, starting in two months).
Secondly, we're moving full steam ahead with plans to make our Walt Disney Treasures TPBs an ongoing series; to introduce two new 80-page annuals; and to release several thick-but-inexpensive Shonen Jump-style black and white books per year—some specially targeted to collectors, others to all ages. Bringing these onto the schedule means that we’ll actually be publishing more Donald and Mickey in 2007 than we did in 2006!
Watch for news about our new titles in the coming months. And look forward to the future; we do, even when—as Carl Barks once put it—"Times are tough, huh, bud?"
—The Gemstone Staff

[Thad]

Poor Mickey! He almost made it to #300!

I'm glad to hear that Gemstone will still be printing books though.

[ohmahaaha]

Poor Mickey! He almost made it to #300!

I'm glad to hear that Gemstone will still be printing books though.
Well, if you count the daily newspaper strips, Mickey is still king ... predating even the Man of Steel, and still being published today ...!

[Matt Zimmer]

You're welcome, ohmahaaha. Thanks for the kind words! We're doing our darnedest.

The cancellations have, in fact, only just now taken effect, so the November and December-ship issues of DD, MM, MMA and DDA are still going to come out. The four titles have only temporarily vanished from our website—just so the relevant pages can be revised (no longer offering subscriptions, for instance; subscribers will be compensated, though I don't yet know the details).So exactly how many more issues is that? Should I take into account that comic books seem to have cover dates that are a month earlier? The last Mickey Mouse comic I got in the mail was the Black Comet Story. How many more Mickey Mouse's (and Dinald Ducks) do I need to get to complete my collection?



As to the future, and the reasons for the cancellations: don't count us out yet. Here's a short text, hopefully clarifying everything, that will run in our November-ship comics.[/right]What's black and white Shonen Jump?

How will the price increase effect for US and WDC&S effect subscribers who are paid up until June?

[David Gerstein]

So exactly how many more issues is that? Should I take into account that comic books seem to have cover dates that are a month earlier? The last Mickey Mouse comic I got in the mail was the Black Comet Story. How many more Mickey Mouse's (and Donald Ducks) do I need to get to complete my collection?"The Incredible Black Comet" was MICKEY MOUSE 292. MM 293 is out now, and 294 and 295 have yet to come out. As for DONALD DUCK, issue 344 is out now, and 345 and 346 have yet to come out.
You (and others) may see ads in Diamond PREVIEWS for further issues: MM 296 and 297, DD 347 and 348, MMA 13 and DDA 22. These were books we planned before the cancellation, and for now they aren't actually going to come out. (You can look forward to the stories we announced for them, though, as they'll appear elsewhere before long.)What's black and white Shonen Jump?SHONEN JUMP is a Japanese comics monthly, and its assorted spinoff one-shots, presently sold on newsstands and/or in bookstores. By virtue of printing all in black and white, they can afford to sell very thick (200-350 pages) collections of comics relatively cheaply. We plan to do something similar—and I hope and believe the contents we're planning will really please you!How will the price increase for US and WDC&S affect subscribers who are paid up until June?Not sure yet. I'll tell you more when I know.

[Easily Amewsed]

*thinks...now this clears up a thing or two..*
sigh.
EA

[Studio Toledo]

SHONEN JUMP is a Japanese comics monthly, and its assorted spinoff one-shots, presently sold on newsstands and/or in bookstores. By virtue of printing all in black and white, they can afford to sell very thick (200-350 pages) collections of comics relatively cheaply. We plan to do something similar—and I hope and believe the contents we're planning will really please you!Not sure yet. I'll tell you more when I know.
I was at least glad to see VIZ's book getting sold at places that hasn't sold comics in a LONG, LONG TIME like Walgreen's. The comic industry these days is in a terrible place than it had been 20-40 years ago, when it was still readily available at any corner drug store, and had millions of readers, as opposed to how many readers they can get. I only wish we had an American equivilent to those manga anthologies that still get published weekly or monthly in Japan.

One book I used to buy/read that died sadly was "Raijin Comics", which used to get published week after week, and it was a nice excuse to actually get me out of the house more often to travel some miles south to those seedy comic/RPG shops to buy it at. I hardly go to those places at all given the dark, geeky nature of said places, and it feels less interesting unless you're not into buying those RPG models or that one issue you just have to get.

Nowadays I'm more into the graphic novel/TPB route as it seems easier for me just buying them already compiled and sold at a decent price as opposed to buying issues.