Chapter 131: comics around the world.
The impressive series that Billy distributed worldwide began to be read in multiple languages: Spanish, English, French, Portuguese, German, Polish, Greek, and more. This expansion of the distribution company started as a way to support the company's growth, but it was slow at first. It began in Canada, Alaska, and Greenland.
The number of series expanded to Mexico and some areas of Central America and eventually reached European countries like Portugal, Spain, England, and Italy. Sales of comics grew incredibly. When comic sales started to decline in the mid-1993s, European countries began to buy different types of comics from the company due to the incredible series.
In the United States, after a never-ending struggle, Slam Dunk was considered the best manga from Lux Comics, and the same happened in Canada, Serbia, and Spain. In France and England, the competition is fierce, but series like Samurai X, Hellboy, and Shaman King generate significant sales.
In Spain, the original battle between Slam Dunk and YuYu Hakusho is highly contested. But many series have been integrated, such as Evangelion, which has a loyal group of buyers for the comics.
The series Slam Dunk and YuYu Hakusho reached their 123rd issue. It's surprising how the series has progressed and gained numerous fans. The idea of create a society in the United States that loves long series, expanding comic consumption, and creating Japanese-style animated series with releases of five to ten series per season—winter, summer, fall, and spring, or 20 series per year. However, not all the series released had the necessary quality to be considered deliverable products, but there were wonderful series and big premieres every year. This contradicts the situation in the United States, where animated series year after year started to become more simplistic and insipid, delivering shallow and straightforward products that only catered to ages 3 to 9. It's curious how a significant push is necessary to encourage other studios to produce better series.
Therefore, Erik Larsson continued to work diligently with all his might, taking on the role of an international distribution company. The constant battles between the dream of creating Image Comics and achieving success were a frequent issue. Creating a new series is not an easy task, and even though Spawn is amazing, the decline in sales in October 1993, with Lux Comics nipping at their heels, meant that the profits were not as good.
-It's not possible! We always worked under the assumption of payment! First the book, then the profits! - Jim Lee exclaimed loudly, even Billy heard the reverberating sound.
Rachel entered the office. - Dear boss, Anne says she will resolve Jim Lee's problems with his team. - Rachel said.
-Not at all, I just need a friendly chat. - Billy said, tirelessly drawing the series he had to deliver for the coming months from the animation studio created for Luxtoons. Winter series ceased to be important for the studio.
-But... - Anne said
-Come on, deliver this volume for production, Terry will review it later. - Billy said.
Jim Lee, with his series WildCats, generated more money thanks to Billy's contracts, but his sales never exceeded 300,000 copies, and the losses from printing against good sales hit Jim Lee hard. He only used his profits to sustain himself. The stock of 180,000 unsold copies caused panic in Jim Lee, who paid the costs, extra advertising, and his editors, or distributed the money.
-Yes, sir. - Rachel said. She was under Billy's shadow, unlike Anne, who saw a young, successful man with a lot of power, confidence, and the aura of a leader. Even the early employees had followed this pattern of behavior.
Anne's high heels echoed, and Billy couldn't help but sigh.
-What are you plotting? I find it ruthless that everyone has to hear the shouting. - Anne said.
-Well, the main problem is that Jim Lee made a lot of money in the first few months with the sale of comics. According to your provided records, they earned $1,400,000, and the profit kept growing. The company Wildtorn Comics, which is owned by Jim Lee, as well as his investment in Image Comics and the rental of that building, decreased his steady profit. They accumulated success, but with the supposed real estate bubble, sales began to decline, and even our short series stopped selling. But you know what they say, greed breaks the sack. - Billy said.
-You're not one to talk. You made a lot of untimely investments that put you in the same position. - Anne said.
-Well, my drawings are fantastic and better than Jim Lee's. - He whispered. - I already had a large following, and the comic bubble didn't affect me as much as an emerging company that only relies on comics and hasn't had different investments in multiple areas. Also, they haven't pursued any film licenses. But my point is that this is the reason why I brought you here. I need you. If you fail, I still benefit, but if you succeed, I also benefit. - Billy said.
-What do you mean? - Anne asked.
-I mean that Jim Lee will give us film licenses for his series for a good sum of money, at least $500,000 or more, and Image Comics will seek us out in the same way, and we'll support them, hire them for different jobs. - Billy said.
-Very pragmatic of you. - Anne said.
-Now you understand that I can't interfere. It's better to see how people fight for their share, so I don't want to meddle. - Billy said.
-You're wise... -
-I didn't know it, but I assumed that something would change with our incorporation of elegant drawings and series. - Billy said, considering the demands of American comics and some new developments.
As it is, a Fox animated film studio has started collaborating with independent studios for new television series. Four years ago, the secrets of Blue Sky and Fox began to become public knowledge. An agreement is expected to be reached by next year.
-Then you should pay attention to the European branch. - Anne said.
-Well, I have you all. What's the status of the European branch? - Billy said.
-Well, Erik Larsson and Nick Landau are in charge of running the comic business in Europe. The annual review of 1993 could be the first time we have green numbers in sales. It's expected that comic sales will increase by 10% next year. There are series that are starting to catch the attention of different audiences. But you should take notice. I think a series that caters more to European tastes could yield better results. - Anne said.
-A series about knights? -
-According to surveys, a soccer series wouldn't be a bad idea. - Anne said.
-A soccer series? But it's impossible for me. I have so many ongoing creations, I don't think I can keep up with this pace. There won't be any new series for a long time. However, the conclusion of Evangelion will likely be released next year, and I might be in better spirits to create an animated series by then. - Billy said thoughtfully. Many of the series he worked on remained unfinished, with Evangelion being an exception.
-That's logical. - Anne said. It's not just comic series, but also television shows and movies.
....
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
rollo1019to
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Chapter 132: luxtoons.
December 27th
monologue on the future of the Pokémon franchise.
The Lux Comics factory was gradually slowing down as many employees had taken vacation time for the special holiday season. The ten paid days off, along with the eight unpaid days, were among the reasons why the workers were so enthusiastic about the company. This is why almost half of the company's employees were either traveling for the holidays or choosing to spend their time at home.
The construction of the building, which had started in early 1992, was almost complete. The imposing, thick façade would house all the animators for the animated channel and Luxnation Productions 2D, along with workstations for the new associated jobs. A new computer game studio was also in the works, dedicated to expanding and enhancing the Golden Egg franchise, "Pokemon." There was plenty of potential for improvement, especially with numerous games in the franchise. When it comes to Pokémon, there are two crucial considerations: gameplay, which is a significant part of the game engine and should not be altered drastically, and improving the product itself.
Is Pokémon worth it? This anime, manga, and game franchise is a cultural phenomenon, much like Star Wars.
The first Pokémon region is a representation of the Silicon Valley map modified to meet the requirements of the Kanto region, while still maintaining the general design of the previous games.
For the second game, the Central Coast region was used, with influences from other regions to provide biodiversity to the environment. The Pokedex was expanded, with new creations that felt necessary. For example, in the first generation, Caterpie and Weedle have three evolutions, so Pokémon like Ledyba only evolve into Ledian. To address this, evolutions were expanded and three evolutions were added to improve some of the statistics.
An extra evolution was added to Murkrow, and another Bug-type Pokémon was introduced, a ruby-tailed wasp with its three respective evolutions (Chrysis Ignita). This wasp is a parasitic wasp with Bug/Steel typing. Another addition was a snake, a variant of Ekans and Arbok, with Poison/Steel typing. If this region was meant to be dominated by the Steel type, the next Pokémon to have an evolution were Delibird, Octillery, Skarmory (which lost its Flying type and gained the Dragon type), Stantler (improving its moose-like form), and Girafarig (with enhancements to its design).
An additional Steel-type evolution of Eevee was introduced, joining the existing pair of Espeon and Umbreon. There was also another Ghost-type Pokémon different from Misdreavus, a Ghost/Steel type with three evolutions similar to Gengar. The character's design was that of a spectral suit of armor. The first evolution resembled a soldier's helmet surrounded by ghostly energy, the second was a smaller suit of armor, and the third was a small soldier with a shield. This Pokémon had high physical defense and special defense.
He created a third evolution for a Pokémon between Sunkern and Sunflora, giving it improved statistics. He introduced an earlier evolution to Yanma in the form of a larva and a second evolution to Dunsparce, featuring larger, translucent wings similar to those of a butterfly. This Pokémon had the Bug/Normal type. Lastly, he created a Fire/Steel-type Pokémon with similarities to Magcargo but more of a crab yeti with six black steel legs covering it. Fire came from its joints. It had three evolutions but its power wasn't significantly greater, almost reaching the statistics of the starter Pokémon.
He added Lileep and Anorith as fossil Pokémon for the second generation. However, for the Hoenn region, the plan was to introduce three different fossil Pokémon, two based on Fire and one on Psychic, to create a total of 165 unique species. The aim was to achieve an equitable distribution of different types in each region.
Kanto was envisioned as the most balanced region with a traditional environment, Johto aimed to have more Steel types and feature a Hollywood landscape and modern but artistic cities, and Hoenn aimed to be a water-based region with large aquariums, aquatic cities, water parks, and beautiful beaches. It was to feature primarily Normal, Water, and Fire-type Pokémon, focusing on the connection between Kyogre and Groudon. The architectural style drew inspiration from San Diego, with a combination of Santa Monica aesthetics.
The fourth game revolved around the Orange Archipelago, consisting of twelve islands, each with its specific climate and limited to only two Pokémon types out of the seventeen introduced so far. Each island would feature unique ecosystems created for that island, emphasizing Pokémon variants like Ice-type Onix, Water/Ground Aggron, Ice-type Golem, and Fighting-type Lickitung. Each island combined two types as Fire/Rock on the first island, Water/Ground on the second, and so on. The game was designed to be the most extensive, with islands equivalent in size to 1/4 of the Kanto region, and a final island hosting the Pokémon League that was half the size, with five large cities, five towns, and two special locations.
The fourth game would include small mini-games and challenges, requiring players to visit eight islands to compete in the Pokémon League. With its extensive size, it would offer numerous side missions, secrets, and a variety of interesting challenges, such as searching for significant archaeological monuments, legendary Pokémon from the first three generations, and more. The Fairy type was introduced in the Sinnoh region, signifying the arrival of Fairy, Grass, and Psychic types, expanding further on the Fairy type.
To accomplish all of this, a dedicated company specializing in creating these games was needed. The games would focus on enhancing the environments, including mini-games and challenging rivals, along with features like Pokémon patches, adventure in the dimensional world to capture Giratina, clothing changes, and more, making it the fifth generation of games.
By then, the creation of an online MMORPG for players from all countries who wish to play all the games in one, allowing them to play the five games as one for the price of one, online with chat and various updates to evolve characters with all functions was something that fans would desire. The Unova or Unova region would be the last in this type of release, followed by a combined MMORPG. This region would bring in some improvements and introduce Fighting-type Pokémon and the Dragon Sanctuary with multiple dragon types.
Subsequently, the following releases would shift towards more technologically advanced platforms with more three-dimensional graphics, akin to Pokémon Let's Go. It's a franchise that, with just a few refinements, would improve significantly. The proposed new Pokémon world is making strides, diving headfirst into the world of Kalos, which is essentially a New York-inspired version but with technological upgrades. The eighth generation would take on a Hawaiian ecosystem, using Hawaiian wildlife to balance out the Pokémon, along with introducing six or seven new variations.
Moreover, the plan includes games that venture into the past, such as the Sinnoh and Kanto regions. Of course, remakes of previous games would continue, and the franchise would explore different ecosystems in the ninth generation. This generation would resemble the Industrial Revolution era of London, and there would also be a region focused on Latin America, with many Poison-type and Flying-type Pokémon as prevalent species. The starters would be Fire/Poison, Water/Poison, and Grass/Flying. Subsequently, as a way to further capitalize on the franchise, an MMORPG encompassing all ten generations in a single game would be developed. It would retain all the gameplay details but could only be played online. This ambitious project, with all ten generations in one game, would drive fans crazy. It would feature the same MMORPG functionalities, along with the addition of minigames, tournaments, events, and leagues separately, much like the Battle Frontier and challenging combat events akin to Mortal Kombat. Following this, the next game would involve a journey to the Pokémon World Tournament, where the best compete against the best. This ambitious plan should suffice for the next three decades, even though it has begun planning the core of Pokémon earlier than expected.
Without further ado, more regions are being considered, such as desert, polar, and those with unique fauna, including Australia, Brazil, and China. However, this future is very distant, at least 40 to 50 years down the road.
This plan would span three decades, with each region having its dedicated space and its anime series designed to captivate the children of that era, much like special movies.
Honestly, I believe Pokémon is a convergence of various factors, and it's also a franchise with unprecedented sales in its history. If it's developed with diligence and effort while introducing intriguing elements, it has the potential to attract even more fans than it already has.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS
rollo1019to
rollo1019to
Your gift is the motivation for my creation. Give me more motivation!
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