Megathread Archie Sonic Main Discussion

[SBR2]

Well shit that...that is confirmation. That is the dictionary definition of confirmation. I hope for the best for them. I'd hope Tracy could get some Turtles or Back to the Future work at IDW.

[Your Vest Friend]

Yeah, both of those were supposed to be doing stuff in the comic either when the comic stopped coming out or some issues in the near future (Yardley for Genesis of a Hero, Sonic #292 and #294 amongst other covers, Hernandez for #294 (although that might have just been a cover)). 

[BlueSky]

4 minutes ago, VEDJ-F said:

 

Oh, Jen. Oh, Tracy...

That's quite sad considering how talented they are (let alone they're human beings and all). I suppose they just don't fit into that "imaginary, stereotyphical american comic book" drawing style. That and the book they've worked on isn't "famous" enough. And yes, I know well enough it's not all just realistic-drawn human comics in there, that's what "stereotypical" stands for. Just wanted to be sure that's got right. In Europe (from where I watch the other countries at least) there's just so many different styles to see I get kind of funny wibe to see "just that one style" dominating US stuff, but well, here's some dominating styles too I suppose, I just don't feel that way because I'm so biased and all...

Actually, I feel pretty (kind of) angry for them  Sadly I don't have the money to buy originals or anything... It feel frustrated when I can do nothing to stuff that gets on my nerves.

2 minutes ago, SBR2 said:

Well shit that...that is confirmation. That is the dictionary definition of confirmation. I hope for the best for them. I'd hope Tracy could get some Turtles or Back to the Future work at IDW.

Well, call me optimistic idiot but all I get from that feed is they haven't got anything at the moment. It could be just temporal (long-time but still) all we know, bear in mind it's possibly many issues ready to publish at this point for Sonic stuff. That means even if they start getting issues out at some point it takes time before they really start to need artists, I suppose. They could manage some time without artists, I'm not too certain how much they have guts to have issues ready waiting, the situation is kind of interesting after all. They need the money continuously (living and all) so whether it's permanent or temporary loss of work they need to find new project(s).

And if I'm allowed to go on in full steam: it might not be about Archie at all. I can't tell without details anything else than money is a nice thing when you have it.

And even after all this optimism I feel something's dying inside... meh...

That Forces better be good if things end sourly here...

Like my opinions would matter anyway, it's all about masses and I'm not one of them... in about any way... that sucks.

[Sega DogTagz]

This isn't good news by way stretch of the imagination, but its not the stake in the coffin either. Unless there is some clause in there that limits these artists from working on other comics, there isn't anything stopping them from jumping ship during this dead spell to pad their coffers while they wait for whatever is going on to blow over. It brings another issue to the forefront in the theme of, will these guys even want to come back? This is the second year in a row where some shadowy business has taken the comic on mini-hiatus. These people have car payments and food bills just like the rest of us. Moving somewhere more stable certainly qualifies as greener pastures.

 

This does bring up an interesting question though. Yardley in particular is one of the most tenured guys working over there. He's had his footprints all over the comics for a long time. Even if he's not part of management, I would have to suspect that he would have enough connections inside of that building to at least gleam a taste of whats been going on all these months.

This is the first word that I've seen that he's looking for work. Though its hard to say how long he's been looking, it doesn't strike me that he's been at it as long as the book has been on hold. Which would mean whatever issue is holding up the comics wasn't originally something that threatened to outright sink the series. He must have held on for a little while in hopes it would blow over quickly. Now that money is an issue, he's gotta look elsewhere.

But so long as the current situation remain unchanged, I gotta look at that as some ray of hope that the issue isn't the insta-death of the comic series. If it was, then the artists would have been cut loose as soon as that became clear, not four or five months down the road.

[Your Vest Friend]

Problem is that Archie appear to have not communicated to their creative staff whatsoever about what's going on. It could easily have been an issue that would sink the comic, and people like Yardley and Hesse would never know because they're kept in the dark. 

[Kintor]

1 hour ago, VEDJ-F said:

 

Oh, Jen. Oh, Tracy...

Sad to hear they're having trouble finding new work. The comic industry is brutal, all freelancers, no job security. Hopefully they'll both land on their feet with a new comic soon.

Beyond that, It's frustrating that this might be the way that Archie Sonic comes to an end. Not a bang but a whimper. Decades of Sonic comics, in what has become one of the longest running monthly comics still existing today, disappearing without a trace.

Still it’s not over yet, we haven’t actually receive official word of the comics cancellation from either Sega or Archie.

[Ellipsis-Ultima]

1 hour ago, VEDJ-F said:

 

Oh, Jen. Oh, Tracy...

Welp, that's really sad to hear this.

I hope they get their jobs soon...

[Big Panda]

I dunno why Archie can't just offer them work on their other titles.

I could totally see Tracey's style working perfectly in classic Archie strips.

[BlueSky]

^ I dunno, maybe if a person draws for something "different" he/she gets kind of "stigmatised" (not maybe a best choice of word but still) inside the industry (considering the career) and won't get to work with other genres as easily even if the style would fit or something. It depends on the industry and whether the stereotypics live strong or not, I suppose. I don't really know how highly Sonic is considered inside Archie, let alone the comics industry as a whole (altough Mr. Yardley's comment leaves little to imagination over that matter).

Could also be that Archie just doesn't "need" any more artists on their lines or something. Whatever "good" reasons they have, maybe they haven't got enough money to "save" Sonic artists for some other line(s)... or something more cruel...

[Sega DogTagz]

1 hour ago, VEDJ-F said:

Problem is that Archie appear to have not communicated to their creative staff whatsoever about what's going on. It could easily have been an issue that would sink the comic, and people like Yardley and Hesse would never know because they're kept in the dark. 

True, but you don't work in a place for 5+ years without getting some traction on the rumor mill.

A buddy who is in the know might not be able to discuss specifics, but I have to imagine someone, somewhere would have been at least willing to issue the bloke a "dude this is bad" heads-up. If the artists are already on the chopping block, why make it worse by leaving them hanging? The only conclusion I can come to is the possibility that the comic could continue after all is said and done.

[JC_Mike]

1 hour ago, VEDJ-F said:

Problem is that Archie appear to have not communicated to their creative staff whatsoever about what's going on. It could easily have been an issue that would sink the comic, and people like Yardley and Hesse would never know because they're kept in the dark. 

The very fact that they are freelancers means that they don't get involved with internal problems. Otherwise Archie would have to give them all NDAs so they don't go telling there competitors anything that Archie doesn't want leaked out.

We really shouldn't be trying to take whatever the writers and artists say as then wistleblowing a cancellation. That would be bad not only on Archie's part, but it would destroy the reputation that these guys have to get another gig. I certainly wouldn't want to hire anybody who was going to tell people that I had to cancel or postpone a comic or product line when I didn't even say anything yet. It's putting words into their mouths that they haven't even said. All they said was that they can't find work, possibly because of the hiatus and/or other circumstances. 

[Graystripe2000]

https://www.twitter.com/yardleyart/status/853653455684194304

[Your Vest Friend]

33 minutes ago, JC_Mike said:

The very fact that they are freelancers means that they don't get involved with internal problems. Otherwise Archie would have to give them all NDAs so they don't go telling there competitors anything that Archie doesn't want leaked out.

We really shouldn't be trying to take whatever the writers and artists say as then wistleblowing a cancellation. That would be bad not only on Archie's part, but it would destroy the reputation that these guys have to get another gig. I certainly wouldn't want to hire anybody who was going to tell people that I had to cancel or postpone a comic or product line when I didn't even say anything yet. It's putting words into their mouths that they haven't even said. All they said was that they can't find work, possibly because of the hiatus and/or other circumstances. 

I...didn't say he was whistleblowing at all. I'm pretty sure he knows better than to do that. 

[Potada]

Well, wait a second.

 

 

This tweet here makes it sound like nothing's really confirmed yet, and it's after that tweet everyone is freaking out over. Or am I missing something?

[Graystripe2000]

They're freelance. 

[Tylinos]

The closest thing to a clear takeaway here is that the Sonic books are still in limbo, and it's finally reached a point where there simply isn't much more the production team can do while waiting for news.

It's far from a good sign, but it doesn't mean "yeah the series is definitely over now".

More importantly: Whether the book continues or not, here's hoping they all find some good work somewhere.

[Potada]

Sorry to come bursting in here like I did. The tone in here just made it seem like something was confirmed about the book. My bad.

[Kuzu]

For all intents and purpose, the series has effectively been put on hiatus for the foreseeable future so it's been cancelled in all but actuality. Sucks how low key they've been though, not even giving any sort of official word and just kind of swept it under the rug.

[Sega DogTagz]

12 minutes ago, Kuzu the Boloedge said:

been put on hiatus for the foreseeable future so it's been cancelled in all but actuality.

Thats probably a wee bit too strong of a way to put it... especially considering that this same comic just overcame a hiatus.

Cancelled books don't continue.

 

 

But yeah, looks like Jen is looking for alternate work in addition to waiting on Archie. Pretty much what I figured from the start. As usual, no news for us here lol

[BlueSky]

Well yeah, that was probably the most possible reason, something I tried to say in my post as an option amongst others. I don't know whether I failed at it or not, my bad if it didn't come trough like it should have.  I'm sorry about any problems I might've caused myself being myself aka unclear.

Yeah, they're freelancers like Mr. Flynn. That pretty much means they're always searching for more work I suppose, still the situation feels unfair if my morals get it right this time. Whether this is a "hiatus" or hiatus, it's really just a limbo full of anything but problems. Though I still hope they're on "talking" terms, Sega and Archie.

Let's just keep "hoping for the best but expecting the worst". I hope though Archie isn't "gonna drop the bomb", whether someone want's to "die young" or not... If you got it.          

Knowers know... I simply can't be the only one in here now can I...

[MetalSkulkBane]

I hate spreading panic, but isn't Megaman comic still 'on hiatus'? Personally, I already assumed worst

[Your Vest Friend]

That at least was officially said to be on hiatus.

Edit: Actually, yeah, I saw a point elsewhere that's kinda...hmm.

Yardley asserted that Archie haven't done wrong to him or the fans...so isn't that putting the onus on SEGA?

[Big Panda]

Speaking of which, what is the current status of Archie's Mega Man licence? The stuff that came with Mega Man's hiatus was a bit different from Sonic's.

Not only was Mega's hiatus formally announced, but Archie continued to promote its digital backlog of issues on social media for several months afterward and via ads in the Sonic books for even longer. It's since fallen off Archie's radar entirely since the one title still advertising it went on hiatus.

Makes me wonder if there's a connection somehow.

[JC_Mike]

6 hours ago, VEDJ-F said:

I...didn't say he was whistleblowing at all. I'm pretty sure he knows better than to do that. 

Yeah, I know. That second part was just more of a generalization as to how I feel about everybody is using anything negative that the writers and artists say as some kind of ill omen for the comics. Case in point with TSSZ tweeting that this was a sign that they apparently left Archie, even though they are freelancers.

1 hour ago, Ernest-Panda said:

Speaking of which, what is the current status of Archie's Mega Man licence? The stuff that came with Mega Man's hiatus was a bit different from Sonic's.

Not only was Mega's hiatus formally announced, but Archie continued to promote its digital backlog of issues on social media for several months afterward and via ads in the Sonic books for even longer. It's since fallen off Archie's radar entirely since the one title still advertising it went on hiatus.

Makes me wonder if there's a connection somehow.

I honestly think Mega Man's hiatus is because Capcom don't really know what to do with him. I mean as soon as the news spread about them supposedly rebooting the character, so to say, so too did the news got out that Archie Mega Man was going on hiatus. What they are doing with him is pretty contrasting to what we have known of Mega Man almost since his NES days. From what I remembered correctly, Capcom of USA controls the comic license, and they are, supposedly, on worse terms with their main Japanese branch than SEGA is. So it's not out of the question that they pulled the comic out of uncertainty for what going to happen to the blue bomber.

I believe the presence of uncertainty is present in both situations, but I don't think that they are connected in any way, shape, or form.

[Zaysho]

3 minutes ago, JC_Mike said:

I honestly think Mega Man's hiatus is because Capcom don't really know what to do with him. I mean as soon as the news spread about them supposedly rebooting the character, so to say, so too did the news got out that Archie Mega Man was going on hiatus. What they are doing with him is pretty contrasting to what we have known of Mega Man almost since his NES days. From what I remembered correctly, Capcom of USA controls the comic license, and they are, supposedly, on worse terms with their main Japanese branch than SEGA is. So it's not out of the question that they pulled the comic out of uncertainty for what going to happen to the blue bomber.

I believe the presence of uncertainty is present in both situations, but I don't think that they are connected in any way, shape, or form.

My understanding was that Archie's putting Mega Man on hiatus was an internal decision and not a result of anything going on at Capcom. This was shortly following their cancelled Kickstarter and they started axing books to make way for their reboot at the time (hence why Mega Man got pushed into "hiatus" and Boom was outright cancelled).

I could be wrong, though, since I'm not aware of how things go at Capcom, I just recall Lovallo saying it was something Archie decided and Capcom was okay with it.