There was one time when I was a DC fan first, that was the brief period now known as the "The DC Explosion". DC has always to my mind been more successful trying to find new ways to deal with price increases.
Some of those experiments have cost the company, but they have resulted in some very memorable comics. The classic 100-pagers come to mind, the 25 cent comics with reprints added, and the late Bronze Age Dollar Comics all were attempts to find a balance between the viable comics package and the price asked of the consumer. All were editorially successful, but alas did not find firm footing with the comic book consumer.
The DC Explosion was one such experiment, when back-ups of varied and interesting charaters were added to all titles to offset the price increases of the time. DC's idea has always been it seems to raise the price but give you more; it's a good idea. And this time resulted in some very clever and entertaining comics...for a very short time. The Explosion was barely underway when the company was forced to cut back, resulting in what is now known as the "The DC Implosion".
This Implosion was regrettable, and it made the efforts which preceded it seem like a failure. They were I suppose, but it was a noble experiment indeed, and for the brief time it lasted I counted myself a DC fan first and foremost.
Here's the original to the famous DC Explosion ad by Joe Staton.
And here's an early version of the ad, with some different poses and some different heroes.
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I loved the dollar books and 100 pagers because many times in the uk they ended up with the same price stickers on as the regular comics. Talk about bang for your buck. Batman Family, particularly with Golden and Marshall on ManBat were my favourites.
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