Then There Were Two

Comic books have been around for a long, long time.  Many decades have we read the adventures of heroes in tights, monsters, wizards, courageous cowboys and anthropomorphic beings in the from of a miniature magazine.  And over those tens of years we’ve seen many comic companies come and go, but only a few were able to survive and thrive.

There are literally hundreds of failed comic book companies littering the printing press graveyard.  Some had a fair amount of success, others didn’t make an impact at all, and some even challenged the big dogs for a short period of time.  But when all the dust settled there were always two companies at the top of the heap that will forever be at the top of the heap, and they are marvel comics and dc comics.

These two juggernauts co-hold the world title for top comic publisher as the two have vied for supremacy since their inception.  They boast the world’s most well-known and popular comic book characters, and have the largest part of the market share.  DC and marvel comics are the top of the comic industry, and they dare anyone to challenge them.

Some companies have been close contenders, and some still are.  Valiant Comics and Crossgen Comics held their ground for a while and pushed their way up near the top.  But ultimately, both fell to the might of the “Big Two”.  Dark Horse Comics and Image Comics still have their dogs in the fight, and they make up the “Big Four” as it were, but they are still nowhere near the monsters that Marvel and DC are and will continue to be.  Even through bankruptcies and failures, these two companies held their ground and sustained their positions.

There are plenty of smaller companies content with their smaller share of the market that know better than to directly challenge the big guys.  Companies like Ape Entertainment, Avatar Press, Antarctic Press, Archaia Studios Press and a few choice others have carved out their own niche in the market that DC and marvel comics don’t necessarily fill, and it’s worked out okay for them.

Other companies, like Wildstorm and Malibu, sold their companies to DC and marvel comics respectively instead of competing directly with them.  For Malibu, that was the death knoll, but for Wildstorm it was a wise move, and now that universe is integrated with the DCU proper.

No matter what happens in comics, it’s a safe bet to assume that Marvel and DC will forever reign supreme above the rest of the comic publishing community.