Mark Millar is starting a new comic book magazine (like 2000AD or Heavy Metal) in the UK called CLINT - it will feature articles and comic book stories including Nemesis and Kick Ass 2 - plus new comics by UK celebrities like Jonathan Ross.

The Kick Ass DVD will feature advertisments for CLINT magazine and Jon Ross will be giving the magazine mainstream media exposure. Millar plans to focus on mainstream stars on the covers, articles, and writing the stories to get mainstream readers back into comics.

Could this work in the US? Who could pull it off? I know that the UK (like Greece and most of Europe) has a ton of newstands and better distribution than the US and Canada so thats a big difference right there.

What mainstream talent could be recruited to give a US magazine the same cred? What comic creators?

Rob Liefeld could interview John Byrne for the premiere issue. It'd be both entertaining and informative.

There could be a regular column by Kevin Smith about how stoned he was when he wrote Batman, and insights from.....

You get the idea.

Actually Kevin Smith would probably be a good choice to get mainstream attention to a magazine (even though I hate his writing) that is comic related. Maybe some new stupid creator owned strip that would bring in his stoner fans. For better or for worse he is a crossover figure between comics and mainstream.

Who else? Patton Oswalt, Joss Whedon, Chris Nolan, Dave Goyer, Goeff Johns, Richard Donner...it would all have to be creator owned work in my opinion...less superheroes and more pulp type stories (sci fi, action, crime, etc).

Millar is also having aspiring comic creators submit 5 page stories for potential publication. Cool way to get mainstream exposure for new creators.

IS Heavy Metal still published in the US? Why don't the Marvel magazine sell at all? Millar is ensuring its not just comics but rather a magazine like FHM/Maxim with comics strips as well (and without the cheesecake - for now at least).

CLiNT? That Mark Millar... he's SO audacious!

Seriously though... with the failure rate of print publications and new magazine start ups in particular, not to mention declining readership of monthly comics, I don't see that this will be successful.

Yeah that's what I keep thinking - magazines are dying left and right (this is why when people say that the newstands will save comics i have a good laugh - has anyone seen the state of the newstand these days?) - but Millar has a few things going for him:

- UK newstand distribution is much more widespread as is the history of comic magazines (Judge Dredd and 2000 AD) in the UK newstand
- involvement and promotion by Jon Ross and other UK celebrities (Ross is the equivalent of a Conan Obrien or Letterman writing and promoting a magazine)
- The kick ass DVD/Kick Ass 2 cross promotion

Could this be replicated in the US/Canada...there are certain variables that are UK specific that would be very hard to replicate (including a comic book stigma that is less pronounced in Europe)..not sure but its fun to speculate on how to do it...

The more i think about it the more it would need an anchor story/character like Judge Dredd - one idea that came to mind is Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman - the TV series starts in October and if its picked up it could help promote the magazine. Plus zombies are mainstream and would draw casual readers.

Maybe have the magazine reprint 1 or 2 issues from the regular series (keeps costs down as the creators have already been paid) and then add in some horror movie articles, etc..plus a few more creator owned comics like Warren Ellis' cop drama Fell or Brubaker's Criminal (and some of his film noir articles too).

Maybe some prose stories by Comic book/crime writers like Greg Rucka, Victor Girschler, or Duane Swierzincky.

Probably would not work but man it would be fun...!!

I can't wait to see what kind of splash the Walking Dead TV series makes. Looks very solid from what I've seen so far. I really wish the mainstream would discover the many awesome non-superhero comics.

What about a Vertigo magazine anthology?

Would Neil Gaiman's name be enough to anchor a magazine? maybe a Sandman reprint with new short stories by Gaiman? Then reprints of 100 Bullets, The Losers, Scalped, Fables, etc...with articles and interviews?

Part of me thinks there still needs to be a movie/tv show tie in to anchor the magazine...use that as the gateway to expose casual readers to some great non superhero work...

http://www.warrenellis.com/?p=10290

Some SF magazine circulation figures - hovering around 12,000 on newstands and 3000 subscriptions - steadily declining with some of them making up the shortfall via electronic/Ipad versions for sale (makes comic book sales look spectacular in comparison!)

I wonder what the break even for a magazine is - guess it depends on how much they pay creators, writers, etc..that's why using reprints (new to mainstream readers) like Walking Dead and Criminal would help defray costs (i think - i am also guessing distribution costs are the biggest chunk).

(and man do some of those Sci Fi magazines looks like crap..any mag with a cover designed by Jock, Sienkewicz, Drew Johnson, Tim Sale, etc would look a thousand times better).

Absolutely, John. I've been calling for some time for a Shonen Jump style magazine that has NEW comics stories in it every month (in a serial fashion), and it drives you into all the other titles and products that are out there.

Shonen Jump is just full of awesomeness. If we had that type of book, but it was the "anchor" of a comics book company, I would read it.

Back Issue is my favorite comic mag, mostly because the interviews are about comics and projects that came out so long ago (the magazine primarily deals with Bronze Age comics), the creators can be very honest about them. If a magazine came out spotlighting current comics that had the same candor involved, I'd be interested in it - but not the press release/afraid of ruffling feathers interviews that one could find anywhere on a number of websites. Forget trying to include up to date comic news, the internet will always beat you to it. If they could work out a way to include preview art that won't hit the websites for say a month after publication, that might be a draw.

Is he twelve?

Robert - Millar is not known for his maturity but he has been on a role with his creator owned work and their film translations. I think its cool that he is trying this out.

Ross - Im thinking more along the lines of a magazine that actually showcases stories/reprints comics - i agree that news in print is way behind any online news sites (another reason why Wizard holds no appeal to anyone these days). Like 2000 AD or Heavy Metal.

Lil Jay - why do you think the big two have never had any success with this format? (maybe the last time they did was in the 70s with the Marvel horror mags, the Conan mags, etc).

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page ... e&id=27924

Interview with Millar about the magazine.

meh. If this were named something other than CLINT, I might
give it a look.

He's making sure that it's anything but a mainstream magazine.

They've never tried it. Right now, they are hopelessly wedded, crack addicted to to getting 3.99 per issue through the direct sale channel. They cannot bring themselves to put out NEW, exclusive content in any other place. They can't even figure out that they ought to try at least one NEW, exclusive comic in the digital format.

They love the idea of selling things twice, three times, but they can't wean themselves off of the predictable cost model of page rates for creators, and the first sale being the highly profitable direct store sale.

It's dying as a model. Comic books are the only industry I've ever seen that convinced themselves they could get buy without using loss leaders to find new customers and new markets.

Note: the newsstand magazine format will NOT work as a proliferation of publications designed to make money and replace revenues. They will work as a flagship, and anchor, a presence for people feel connected to something they can see, and then go off and find other things.

Think video game magazines. Video games are the most "un-printy" hobby I can think off, but they still clog the shelves. It's because that still reaches eyes. Comic books need a single title (by "single" I mean few in number, not a replacement for all the titles) that can be displayed near video game magazines, skate shops, wherever fun things are found. Make it cheap, $5.99.

And name it FLICK.

Well to be fair its not like most magazines are bastions of integrity - most of them have half naked chicks on the cover or celebrity mug shots...!

THAT'S funny!

Maybe Millar can get Angelina Jolie on the cover?

Magazines make money from advertising. Who will be advertising in CLINT?

HOSTESS CLIPCAKES.