(Via)I just can't tell if this is an attempt to "diversify" the magazine by going beyond comics to general "men's interest" or if they figure this will make the female fans not bother to criticize them anymore.
Probably a combination of both, judging by Haenhle's exploration of the interior.
As the Comics Blogger Internet's Manliest Man, I'd just like to say that any magazine that asks questions like "Will Tobey? Will Kirsten?" on the cover ranks significantly below, say, Tiger Beat on the Peckinpah Scale.
ReplyDeleteTo be fair, though, Tiger Beat has the word "tiger" right there in the title, so results may be slightly skewed.
My guess is that some industry survey put Wizard into this category along with some gaming magazines and maybe a rock magazine that's mostly pin-ups of girls in bikinis holding guitars. Wizard was #1, so that's what it's now calling itself (also, handy shorthand for "NO GURLZ ALLOWED".
ReplyDelete"#1 Adolescent Nerd Wanking Bible" didn't have the same ring
ReplyDeleteSooo... Um, Maxim and FHM aren't Men's Pop Culture Magazines? Really? Well, I suppose Wizard COULD be outselling them both... Although, since I read Maxim happily, and see it EVERYWHERE, and only read Wizard because I'm occasionally forced to by exclusive content - and see it only in the hands of fellow geeks, I really, really doubt it.
ReplyDeleteWhat do they expect to gain from labeling themselves this way? Besides a lot of mockery, I mean?
According to Echo Media, The demographics of Wizard magazine:
ReplyDeleteAverage Income: $60,000
Average Age: 21 - 34
Percent Male: 90%
I think this is Wizard leaving behind comics and moving on to broader "guy stuff". As rick points out above, with a 90% male demographic and low standards you might as well whore yourself out for the ad revenue that advertisers targetting gullible young men who think with something other than their brains, rather than just relying on the standard "geek" ad revenue of comics, movies and video games.
ReplyDeleteI actually hope this is the case - Wizard as the "voice of comics fandom" has always been a bit embarrassing. Maybe now they can go embarrass someone else - like video gamers or something. Newsarama has already moved into their niche of providing an outlet for the big companies to send press releases and leak rumors. Comics fandom in general has replaced the articles in Wizard - the comics blogs tend to be funnier, and since they're less tied to the advertising revenue that Marvel and DC provide, they tend to provide better reviews and analysis too.
Wizard as a comics magazine has been unneeded for a while now. I guess someone inside Wizard finally realized it and is trying to figure out how to keep themselves relevant, even if it means becoming a more general "pop culture men's magazine" - whatever that ends up meaning.
Also - "Guess the Rack?" Wha? Huh? Bwa? I just ... is this normal for Wizard nowadays? I haven't read an issue of Wizard in almost a decade. Their standards were always kinda low, but that's a level of low that almost approaches "self-parody".
Now instead of a poorly written and copy-edited magazine specifically about comics, it's going to be a poorly written and copy edited magazine of general interest stuff for lowbrow dorks that no one else would be caught dead with.
ReplyDeleteSmooth financial strategization, Wizard.
When I want geek stuff, I'll just go to Tokyo and buy "Starlog."
Oh! Oh! I know! G4TV bought them - b/c their OWN content isn't adolescent and juvenile enough on its own!
ReplyDeleteYeah, I still miss the old TechTV,
Tim Liebe
Dreaded Spouse-Creature of Tamora Pierce - we'll be at World Fantasy Con in Saratoga Springs, NY this weekend :)
I suspect this is a move based upon the death of Stuff and FHM. Maxim is really the only major player remaining in the U.S. market, and Wizard probably figures they can leverage their geek cred to make some inroads to a much larger circulation.
ReplyDeleteMore or less the same thing Penthouse is doing, really. PH is going softer and more arty with the pictorials... and then packing in the movie/celeb gossip, game reviews, and new car coverage.
I'd just like to apologize, at this point, on behalf of my gender.
ReplyDeleteIt's neither, it's called "Marketing". The bandwagon approach is a common advertising tool, and saying it's "the #1 men's pop culture" magazine is a way to make it sell more.
ReplyDeleteOff-topic, but congrats on making that Top 100 blogs list that Carnegie-Mellon put together... :)
ReplyDeleteAnnoying thing is that when I think of "hotties" on Heroes, I think of the guys -- the Petrelli brothers, Mohinder, Sylar...
ReplyDeleteThat blurb caught my eye first, before I noticed the proprietary "Men's" on the top line.
Oh well...
Is anyone else finding the positioning of the "Spider-man 4" banner to be rather (in)convenient?
ReplyDelete