COMIC BOOKS – The Pros and Cons of Buying and Reading Digital Comics

I’ve been reading a lot of digital comics lately. Being new to reading mainstream comics this way has made me think about what I like and don’t like about doing so. I thought I’d share my thoughts in this post.

In my last post I wrote about the Wacom Cintiq Companion Hybrid.  Since the Hybrid is an Android tablet I downloaded the Comixology App and the Kindle App into it.

Those are the two Apps I use to read most of the comics I purchase.

I tend to read a lot of mainstream comics.  DC and Marvel superhero comics, mostly.  Though I also read others.

This post is mostly about reading digital comics on the two devices I mentioned, and they’re about reading comics that I can download from those two companies.

Most of  the comics I download are NOT directly made to be read digitally.  They where intended to be read in print and where also digitized.

I’m certain that some of what I’m going to writing below doesn’t apply to all digital comics.  Especially comic that are intended to be read digitally.

Below you’ll read what I think are the pros and cons of reading and buying digital mainstream comics.  As I usually do in these type of post, I will start with the cons so that I can end the article on a positive note:

Cons

Not the Ideal Way  of Reading Comics

Unless you’re reading a comic especially designed to be read digitally, reading comics on a device is less than ideal. Even when you have a big enough device like I do, you come across problem pages.  Pages like double page spreads.

They effectively shrink the pages having the opposite effect they where intended to have.  This means you have to turn the device on it’s side and zoom a bit to read them correctly. Unless you’re reading it on a Kindle which doesn’t rotate the art, then you have to double tap on panels to get zoomed in panels.

It’s annoying.

I also don’t like having to occasionally touch the screen every so often to prevent it from turning off and going into standby mode. It puts unecassary pressure on you as a reader, and takes you out of what you’re reading.

When you DON’T have a big enough device, reading tiny comics or panel by panel slide shows of the comic, really takes away from the reading experience.’

Disposable

Once upon a time, comics were a disposable form of entertainment. They were printed on the cheapest paper and printed badly.  They didn’t have any real value.

Over the years, this has changed.

With digital comics, this mindset has come back.  I’ve found myself not caring about the digital comics I’ve purchased.  I just want to read them.

Once I’ve done that, I just erase them from my device. I really don’t care much about them after that.

It’s very odd because I don’t react this way with my digital prose books.

I think, if I really liked a digital comic I read, I would buy it again in print.

Which brings me to my biggest problem with most digital comics…

Renting Not Buying

When you buy a digital comic from the main sources of digital comics, namely Comixology and Kindle, you don’t actually OWN the comics you “purchase.” You’re more like renting them.  For example, say your whole comic collection is from Comixology.

Well, what if it goes out of business, or it get’s sold to another company which shuts it down, well what happens to your collection?  I mean, Comixology never really let you download the comics.

Not as a raw digital file, or pdf.  Only within the Comixology program.  Kindle does something similar.  Your more like renting the comics,  not really owning them.

You really can’t do anything with them outside the program once you bought them.

Pros

Beautiful Looking

Digital comics sure are pretty.  The colors are more vibrant. The lines are sharper.

In short, it’s difficult to find a more beautiful media to read comics in.

Potentially Cheaper

Depending on where you purchase your comic, you can get some decent deals.

Kindle comics tend to usually be cheaper, that said, the reading experience in Comixology is a tad more user friendly.

Most trade paperbacks on the Kindle (as of the time of this writing) are $9.99, meanwhile the same comics,on Comixology tend to be sold at the same cover price as the print copy.  I found this odd.

Meanwhile Comixology run sales every month on multiple comic lines. Depending on the sale, it’s possible to come away with some incredible deals.

The best part of all though is the fact that you don’t pay taxes on the comics. You pay cover price. So even if the comic you buy cost the same as the print version, you’re still getting it for a little less.

Convenient Comic Collecting

Because digital comics are…well…digital, they don’t actually take up any space in your house.  This means you could have paid for hundreds of comics and they won’t clutter up the place.

You don’t have to find a storage solution of them.

You also have access to your whole collection in one or a few devices. You can basically carry your comics anywhere.

It’s remarkable

Does NOT Replace Print Comics

And yet with all those awesome things about digital comics, they don’t really replace print comics.  At least not for me.  The biggest reason is the value of a print.  When I read a GREAT comic, I mean a mind blowing good one, I want to keep it.  I want the art at my finger tips.

Not a digital reproduction but I  want to own a copy of the artwork.

That experience simply can’t be replaced.

For example, I wouldn’t want to own a digital comic with great artwork without also owning the print version.  I want to HAVE that artwork.  I want to own it and be able to have it open and study it.

I don’t simply want a digital representation that requires electricity to see it.

Worth Checking Out

Is is worth buying and reading digital comics on these devices.  My answer is, “Yes.”

It’s a good experience.  At least for me.  What do  you think?

Do you have a device you can read comics in. What is it and how do you like? I’d like to know.  You can do so on the comments section  below.