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Issue 11 Now Available!

(July 2008) —Rob Hanes Adventures #11 is now available. For an advance preview, click here or on the image at left.

In “Rob Hanes and the Pirates," when Rob uncovers evidence of a sophisticated counterfeiting ring being run out of a rogue "axis of evil" nation, he is abducted by an old nemesis and imprisoned inside one of the world's most remote regimes.

His only hope for escape resides in an unlikely alliance with a kidnapped Asian starlet, a disgruntled military officer, and an American defector from the Cold War era!

Ask your retailer to order it for your store, or use the link below to buy it now. (Or go to our online store to buy this and other issues.)

You Heard it Here First!

(May 2008) — No official announcement has been made yet, but as a special treat for those of you actually paying attention, here's an advance preview of what's up ahead for WCG Comics....

We plan to begin collecting the series in trade paperback format! Pictured at right is a rough mockup to the cover for the first compilation, expected to run 128+ pages and feature seven complete adventures. (Click here or on the image at right to see it full size.)

Note that the cover image at right has not yet been finalized and may change significantly by its release. (In particular, the coloring is still in the "flats" stage, and has not yet been finished.)

Stay tuned for announcements and more details—be the first on your block to hear about it by joining our e-mail distribution list!

Rob Hanes Adventures Audioshow Now on CD!

(June 2007) — Back in the 1990s, WCG produced a 30-minute Rob Hanes Adventure audiotape called “Three Days of the Fanboy.” Designed as a classic radio show, and professionally produced and engineered, the story brought the series to vivid life with voice actors, music and sound effects. (One of the program’s lead voice actors, Scott Brick, has since become a prolific and award-winning audiobook narrator, having recorded more than 250 books to date, including many by best-selling authors such as Brad Meltzer, Orson Scott Card, and Tom Clancy.) In the show, Rob is hired to protect the comic-book collection of fanboy extraordinaire Johnson McFeeley (played by Brick).

Long overdue, the audiotape has finally been transferred to CD and now is available at the WCG Comics webstore. As seen above right, the cover art has been redesigned for the new CD format. Revel in the dated references and hear the series come to life with this unique and fun collector’s item!

Order now at our online store.

Landmark 10th Issue Due in July!

(June 2007) — The landmark 10th issue of Rob Hanes Adventures is due July 2007.

With this issue, the high adventure series crosses genres again with a full-fledged sports tale! In the story, Rob is hired by a minor league baseball team—the Brisbane Chickenhawks—to investigate steroid use. Rob soon becomes more obsessed with getting a base hit than with cracking the case, leaving it up to his partner, Abner McKenna, to solve the mystery.

All the elements of a classic sports tale are blended together with another exciting adventure in "The Pride of the Chickenhawks"!

Order the issue now from WCG Comics or ask your retailer to order it for you.

“Hanes Briefs” Message Board Now Open

(Feb 2007) — A new message board/discussion forum for Rob Hanes Adventures has just opened! The message board provides an opportunity for me to provide commentary about current stories and, of course, for fans to leave comments and ask questions about the series and comics.

Comments left at the message board also may be reprinted in the print series letters column (also called “Hanes Briefs”) unless users request otherwise. The forum is part of an effort to broaden awareness of the series. These also include profiles at both MySpace and ComicSpace, as well as listings at OnlineComics.net and the Webcomiclist.

I hope to hear from many of you soon!

Rob Hanes Adventures Now Available as a Web Comic

(Nov. 2006) – I'm pleased to announce that Rob Hanes Adventures is now available as a full color, serialized web comic! With the new version, I hope to reach new readers who have not had a chance to see the title previously or whose local stores may not carry the comic book. The web comic also will provide current fans of the series with a more regular stream of available fresh content between issues.

As an added bonus, the title is being seen in full color for the first time! Though the series has been praised over the years for being a standout black and white title, presenting the feature on the web obviously gives me the opportunity to present the series in a vibrant new way, without the restraints of distribution and the cost associated with printing, particularly in color.

Everyone should be assured that the print comic book series will continue. (Issue 9 is now available and issue 10 is due out shortly.) As I said, the new web comic is intended to complement the print series, and serve as another gateway for a new and potentially larger audience of readers.

The colorist for the new series is Barry Gregory, editor and president of 01comics (where the series also can be found serialized). Barry is a longtime friend, fellow publisher, and fan of the series, and his work has surpassed all my expectations. Though the adventures slated to be serialized are from the series' vast catalog of back stories, like me you'll be surprised at how fresh and new the stories look—Barry's beautiful color work has brought the stories to a new level and in itself makes them worth a look.

While I have been very proud of the support Rob Hanes Adventures has received from fans and retailers, it has been a challenge to compete, grow sales, and get into stores as a small publisher with limited resources. Though I recognize the web is just as competitive, obviously readers now have a gateway for directly finding and accessing the series, which I hope will encourage them to seek out the print version as well.

Coming in Issue 10...

In Rob Hanes Adventures #10, Rob goes undercover on the Brisbane Chickenhawks, a minor league baseball team, to investigate steroid use in the clubhouse. However, when Rob becomes more obsessed with getting a base hit than with solving the mystery, it's up to his partner Abner to solve the case! Read about it in "The Pride of the Chickenhawks"!

The cover art and sample pages from the issue are now available in the Reading Room or by clicking on the image at left.

Scheduled for release this spring!

The Future of Rob Hanes Adventures

(Jan. 2006) – A new policy by Diamond Comics Distribution has put the widespread availability of Rob Hanes Adventures at risk. In short, Diamond has become more assertive in exercising its discretion to not carry a title that does not meet certain sales benchmarks. In fact, Diamond may now refuse to distribute a title that even already has been solicited and received orders.

Rob Hanes Adventures has earned many outstanding plaudits from critics and industry professionals. And, in recognition of the series' quality and the unique niche it fills in the comic-book market, Diamond has generously and consistently supported Rob Hanes Adventures over the years, providing promotion and assistance even though it has not been a major seller or advertiser. Nevertheless, a lack of advertising resources and the series’ irregular publishing history (due to the fact that the title is primarily a labor of love and not the author’s primary source of income), has made it a challenge to build sales and momentum for the title. WCG Comics recognizes that Diamond is, ultimately, a commercial enterprise and must follow appropriate business practices that will allow it to be profitable.

This urgent appeal asks all retailers and comics fans to support the series by ordering Rob Hanes Adventures through Diamond’s Previews catalog when it becomes available. (Announcements about the book’s availability are usually made at the WCG Comics website, through our e-mail newsletter, and via other news sources.)

WCG Comics remains committed to publishing and distributing Rob Hanes Adventures as an ongoing comic-book series. Fortunately, modern-day printing technologies and publishing models make the continued publication of the series viable. But obviously, a decision by Diamond to no longer carry the series would severely impact the widespread availability of the title and the ability for it to reach a broad audience, particularly comic-book fans who primarily purchase their comics at direct sales comic-book retailers. For these reasons, I am making this personal appeal.

Scroll down for additional information about Diamond's new policy...

Impact of New Diamond Policy on Small Publishers

In September 2005, Diamond Comics Distribution — the industry's primary distributor that supplies virtually every comic-book retail store in the country — announced a new policy that allows them to cancel a title if sales do not reach a certain benchmark, even after the issue has been solicited and ordered. While Diamond always has reserved the right to decline to carry a title it deemed did not meet certain standards or would not meet sales benchmarks over time, this new policy giving the company discretion to cancel a title even after it's been ordered places many small titles at risk, including Rob Hanes Adventures, and may make many small publishers think twice about soliciting a title.

The Comics Journal recently contacted me about my views on the new policy as a small publisher, and how it might affect Rob Hanes Adventures. Below is an excerpt of my response to the Journal:

Although I get the sense that, for many publishers, providing circulation numbers is tantamount to revealing a state secret, I’m willing to state for the record that recent issues of Rob Hanes Adventures have been on the “cusp” in terms of Diamond’s minimum sales policies, so this new policy probably does put my title at risk in terms of continued distribution through Diamond.

For the most part, though I understand Diamond’s position, I think it’s too early to tell whether the policy will have a “good” or “bad” effect on the industry, which can mean many things. Economically I presume the policy will help Diamond’s bottom line, though I don’t think by too much; I know, too, that some people have said this was a move to “prune” the catalog, so it’s likely that this will happen. There may be a “chilling” effect on some publishers — i.e., some people may think twice about soliciting a product — but frankly I’m not sure whether that’s completely a bad thing; having been a self-publisher for some time, I know that there are some publishers who have gone into business before they probably were truly ready (creatively or economically), or had a solid long-term plan in place. (I think this is partly the result of the fact that, compared to many other industries and entertainment mediums, the economic and technical threshold for publishing a comic-book is relatively low.) I’ve also seen the argument that the new policy will reduce the diversity of titles in comic-book stores, but again I’m not sure that will necessarily happen; my own personal situation notwithstanding, generally speaking I think good comics find their audience and can maintain success.

I also want to note that, as a publisher as small as myself who does not have the resources to purchase lots of print ads or to advertise aggressively through traditional methods, Diamond in my experience has over the years been exceedingly generous to and supportive of Rob Hanes Adventures by providing spotlights and other showcases for the series regularly — certainly more than I would expect without being a major Diamond vendor or advertiser. I like to think that this is partly due to Diamond’s recognition of the quality of the series, as well as an acknowledgment of the need for diverse work in the market place that falls somewhere between super-hero comics and more edgy independent fare. People familiar with my work know that Rob Hanes Adventures is an attempt to do a modern-day “mainstream” action-adventure series in a traditional (and, for the most part, unironic) vein, so I like to think that Diamond’s staff enjoy the book and believe it fulfills an important niche in this regard. They have tried to be fairly supportive of the series.

I know, too, that publishers also have a responsibility to build sales and help Diamond promote the series. One of these responsibilities is to release product regularly and frequently — comic-books are, after all, traditionally a periodical business. Though each issue of Rob Hanes Adventures is self-contained, like many small publishers, I have not published as regularly as I would have liked (all for the usual reasons, i.e., I have a family, a full-time job, etc.). So it’s important, I think, for publishers to recognize their responsibilities and commitments as well if they truly want to succeed. I do think I’ve developed a devoted audience for my books and earned some industry respect for my work.

Having said all that, I have not yet decided how I intend to proceed given Diamond’s announcement. I do not make my living from Rob Hanes Adventures (regrettably!), but as I always have said, I remain committed to continuing the series in some form or another even if the comic-book model no longer became viable. Fortunately, there exists today a wider variety of options than ever for producing and, yes, even distributing a comic-book (i.e., on the Web, print-on-demand printers, etc.), though losing the option of Diamond as a distributor will obviously severely hamper the widespread availability of any series to most comic-book readers. I understand that Diamond still has the option of exercising discretion in applying the new policy but obviously it still creates greater exposure and uncertainty for small publishers like myself; I’m really not sure why the policy is designed the way it is other than it gives Diamond a very clear and quantifiable justification for canceling and no longer carrying a book (i.e., low orders).

I guess I will just need to remain in touch with Diamond and see how this will play out for other publishers. When the story broke, I was tracking it closely online to see what the response would be or what kind of options people were considering. There has been some anger, but generally I have found the responses to be measured and cautious, with many understanding Diamond’s position. However, no credible alternative ideas have emerged either that might serve as a potential “workaround” to the policy.

Randy Reynaldo
Publisher, WCG Comics
Writer-Artist, Rob Hanes Adventures.

Any decisions regarding Rob Hanes Adventures made in response to Diamond's new policy will be announced at this website and via my e-mail newsletter.