After acquiring the Disney comics license last year, Los Angeles-based comic book publisher, Boom! Studios, has had major success in putting the adventures of Disney's most famous characters back into the hands of young comic readers. By bringing the characters into the 21st Century with contemporary dialogue and references and pricing them at a $2.99 cover price, Boom! has managed to reach an audience many comic companies have been struggling to reach for years.
"It's important to evolve Disney books into the future," said Boom! CEO and founder, Ross Ritchie, in a recent interview with Disney Insider. "There's always room to republish classic gems from the archives, but if that's our sole publishing strategy, we're not reaching the potential audience we should. To reach kids 3 to 11, give them characters with a 98% recognition factor... it's the perfect way to do it! Kids love comics, and graphic novels are hitting an all-time high in mass market penetration. It's exciting to step outside the collector's realm and see what you publish in the real world."
During the height of it's popularity, Disney's Walt Disney's Comics and Stories reached a circulation of more than 3 million readers per month, beating out DC's Batman and Marvel's Spider-man, as well as the titles published by Archie Comics. Since taking the reigns in September of 2009, Boom! Studios has hope to replicate the popularity of the Disney titles once again.
"We're having a blast and can't believe that we've come so far in such a short amount of time," Ritchie went on to say. "Simply put, Disney has the greatest Characters in the world. It's a huge honor and a monster opportunity."
