Hi there my fellow comicbook junkies.

I don't know if most of you are aware of this or not but comic subscription prices are going up as high as 45 to 60%. This is going to effect the comic cover price as well.

None is sure just how much the hike is going to be by the end of the summer, but Marvel and DC have both raised their yearly subscription from 24.95 to 49.99 and that's just one comic subscription. That's quite a jump in price considering that the advrage resale value of a comicbook is only 1.50.

So do you think this will put a dent in your future collections? For me and my son the answer is yes. Now instead of getting all the runs of our favorite hero's we have to pick and choose.

Why the hike? Well some say the gas hike is to blame, some say the hike is due to recent losses the comic industry is experiencing after the bubble bursted, and some think that they are just charging more because they can. What ever the reasoning behind the hike, this is going to hurt the industry more than help it..High cover prices will drive off the old fans and will keep the new ones at bay due to cover price & subscription shock.

Well if this isn't a reason to check out digital comics I don't know what is.

But then again even digital comics have their drawbacks.

I haven't bought a single issue of a comic in about five years. I wait for the TPB and collect those now. Despite the screaming from some of my more...passionate comic book collecting friends who insist that it's people like me that are killing the industry because if I were a "real fan" I'd be in the comic book store buying single issues every month. I've been reading and collecting comic books since they were 15 cents. So I think that qualifies me as a fan.

I've already got a closet stuffed with boxes of comics (many I seldom read anymore) and just don't have the room to continue collecting single issues. The TPB are simply a more practical way for me financially as well as storage wise to collect comics now.

I have more comics that i can shake a stick at..I have started to get the my oldest son into TPB to save a little money.

It's not the TPB's that are killing the industry, it's the industry doing it to themselves with all the price hikes.

I used to buy comics when I was kid then moved and lost them all I guess because I can't find them anymore and quite a few were first editions to some off the wall comics. Now I surf ebay which reminds me I need the last 2 in the Stephen King series.

And it's all event driven. Marvel just got through with CIVIL WAR and now they've got SECRET INVASION. And DC has been rewriting CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS for the past 10-15 years.

I usually just go into the store every few months and buy a bunch...I don't subscribe because I wouldn't be able to pick which I wanted! I love 'em all haha.

Well the prices will go up for non subscription comics as well. The price hike is going to make it harder for the younger readers to get their fix.

The only good I see out of this will be a resurgence of the Silver Age , Bronze age comics. the kids will go backwards in their collecting and reading cause it's cheaper to purchase those than the modern age ones.

The old comics are great but I want modern books to be successful as well!

Does this apply to graphic novels as well? If not, maybe their popularity will continue to grow.

By the way, I just got a chance to read "Watchmen" after borrowing it from a friend. I have DC's "Kingdom Come." Any other classic graphic novel recommendations??

Yes this will apply to GN in the near future.

I would recommend "Batman The Long Halloween", Earth X, Infinity crisis, "Dawn Lucifer's Halo ", "Marvel -Civil War" and "Marvel Zombies".

Most of the price increases are set to begin at the end of July.

What can you tell me about Earth X and Infinity Crisis?