Nice Spin, TJKC!

I just learned in an email from Two Morrows Publishing that The Jack Kirby Collector is being downsized from glorious 11" by 17" tabloid-sized pages to 8.5" by 11" standard-sized pages starting with the issue that comes out next month. This is a huge disappointment to me. For years I've enjoyed those original-art-sized pages and will miss them very much.

The heading of the email I received shouts "NEW, STANDARD FORMAT!" as if that were a positive in some sense. (This unconvincing attempt at spin reminds me of a story from the 1940s that my father told me when I was young. A canner of white salmon, upset that pink salmon consistently outsold his white salmon, emblazoned his labels with the devilish tagline "Guaranteed Not to Turn Pink in the Can!")

And Two Morrows might want to make a point of updating their website. I just read the home page and it described The Jack Kirby Collector like this: "Now in tabloid format, the magazine showcases Kirby's art at even larger size."

I didn't like it when Rolling Stone shrunk and I dislike the diminution of TJKC even more. But I will survive. And here's my positive spin on this situation: finally I have something new to complain about!