I don’t keep up with a ton of Image comics (though I enjoy The Walking Dead, and Invincible is my favorite series ever), but one thing I love about the company is that their focus is clearly on the comics themselves, not on ensuring perfectly consistent shipping schedules. Also, as they are not one of the big two, they, like many other comics companies, have room to try new things to increase readership. That makes them fun to watch.

Even while they seem reluctant to embrace it in full, comic book publishers are seeming to understand more and more that digital distribution will soon be necessary for success in the industry. The latest company to try digital distribution is DC Comics. On Wednesday, the publisher announced that they are partnering with comiXology and the PlayStation Network to offer select titles for paid download. However, even though they are taking a more decisive step forward than Marvel, they are still demonstrating fear of this uncharted territory.

We’ve been discussing the comic industry’s gradual move to digital distribution the past couple weeks, focusing on how publishers are beginning to adopt the digital medium. There are still some things holding the movement back, but in general the industry seems to understand that digital is here to stay, and that format often makes more sense than alternate, physical distribution methods. However, something is about to happen that demonstrates that someone thinks there's still a chance to enter the printed comics market in time to make off with a little cash.

I noted recently that with today's technology, more and more skilled individuals are finding their way into the movie business without taking the traditional professional route. The most recent example of this was the influence that faux movie trailer maker Jaron Pitts has had on Technotise, which, thanks to a few days' work by the non-professional at home, is being adapted into the U.S. market based partly on his vision. Now I learn, through Hero Complex, of a similar, though not identical, situation, involving a sci-fi film that I probably should have heard about before now, called Monsters.

A few weeks ago I posted a long article about the slow but unavoidable movement the comics world will make into digital distribution. This came in the wake of Marvel announcing that they will offer, for the first time ever, a digital comic at the same time of the printed comic's release (Invincible Iron Man Annual #1). This is an interesting step by a major publisher into digital distribution, even though it is limited in scope and comes marred by the fact that the digital comic will cost more than the printed version, something that makes no sense at all (other than the fact that it keeps the brick-and-mortar stores happy). Surprisingly, with my original article I didn't get any angry responses from comic fans who don't think comics can exist without being sold out of local shops in floppy form -- something that I love, too, and that we would all miss but that, in the long run, probably won't make sense for most publishers when compared to digital distribution.

We all know how the decision to make a sequel usually works:

Step 1: Release movie #1.
Step 2: Wait for box office returns to hit a certain level.
Step 3: Announce sequel.
Step 4: Figure out what sequel will be about.

The process is utilitarian. That's not to say it doesn't frequently work, but sequels practically become mandatory, at least within genre cinema, when the first part of a potential franchise crosses a certain money mark.

Several days ago Marvel announced that on June 30, they will be offering a comic simultaneously in print and digital formats. The comic is Invincible Iron Man Annual #1, and aside from being available in comic shops, fans can buy it digitally via the publisher's Apple iPhone/iPod/iPad app. While ComicsAlliance points out that the digital version of the comic will end up costing more than the print version, which negates a large part of the benefits of the format, this marks a bold move for the publisher, as both Marvel and DC are likely nervous about the prospect of alienating comic book shops by offering digital comics on the same day as print comics. While many comic fans and retailers are freaking out over what they perceive as the doom of comics, others, like Comic Book Resources' Augie De Blieck, Jr., recognize that this is the direction in which the industry is and should be going. Simply put, there is a market for digital content. Marvel has begun tapping that market in a progressive way. At some rate, it will continue.

Here's an interesting conflation of movies and toys. As we all know, toy lines have been the go-to material for blockbuster movies.

The L.A. Times' Company Town blog has reported that, starting this weekend, many theater chains will begin about 8% more for ticket prices to 3D movies.

Deadline Hollywood has reported that the Halcyon Company, failed home of Terminator Salvation, has succesfully sold the rights to the Terminator franchise and cleared its debt.