8 Ways DC And Marvel Make It Impossible For Fans To Read Their Comics

6. Pointing The Finger At Diversity For Sales Slumps

When Marvel bigwig David Gabriel laid the blame for falling comic sales squarely at the feet of diversity, fans were - understandably - rather peeved. Especially so, given how male-oriented and white the publisher's comics have been for the majority of its history.

Gabriel's comments, while later clarified to allay fears that Marvel would be ending any further efforts to diversify their heroes, rightly drew criticism from both creators and fans alike, and in the wake of the Hydra-Cap reveal only seemed to exacerbate fan frustrations.

Not only were Gabriel's comments misjudged, they were also demonstrably false. Almost half of comic book readers are women, and within that bracket it's clear that these readers are searching for books that best represent them - a process that has seen many fans divesting from stale (and mostly male) storylines and characters. Diversity wasn't, nor ever will be, responsible for a decline in sales, and the idea that making a universe more representative of the world we live in would dissuade new audiences from participating in the medium is even more absurd.