I'm writing this column a few days early, so it's probably a good idea to steer clear of being too topical. So instead, some thoughts on one of the perennial questions that people just won't stop asking - why are superhero audiences so reluctant to buy other kinds of comics?

When this question is asked, it tends to be with a tone of slight amazement - how could anyone possibly have tastes so narrow that they only want to read superhero comics? Don't they like thrillers? Drama? Comedy? Horror? Who are these freaks, who only want to read one genre? Even if they don't want to read highbrow arty stuff, surely they must like something else?

This is a way of looking at things that, to my mind, misses several key points about the place of comics and the way the existing audience view them. When we talk about comics, on websites about comics, it's all too easy to put comics at the centre of the universe. The grim reality, however, is that comics are anywhere but the centre of the universe. They are marginal, obscure, and in the wider cultural context, almost completely unimportant. Non-superhero, non-manga comics are an extremely minor part of the wider culture.

'Why are superhero audiences so reluctant to buy other kinds of comics?' Is it plausible that comics are being bought by superhero fans who consume no form of fiction whatsoever aside from superhero comics? Of course not. But if you look at them in a comics-centred way, it starts to look as though that's what's happening. The reality is far more prosaic and believable. Superhero readers consume a ton of fiction in other genres. They just do it in completely different media.

The assumption that a reasonable superhero reader would naturally go off and read other types of comic as well is misguided. It makes the mistake of assuming that "superhero fan" is synonymous with "comics fan" (or at least that it ought to be). There's no reason why that should be the case, any more than superhero comics are co-extensive with comics as a whole.

Many superhero readers might describe themselves as comics fans, but only because of the common error that superheroes equal comics. Most, in fact, are not comics fans. They're genre fans. There is absolutely nothing wrong with being a genre fan, but it doesn't translate into being a fan of the medium.

The reason why the North American comics audience is overrun with fans of the superhero genre is quite simple: where else are they going to get those stories? Yes, there's a handful of TV shows and the occasional film. And there are some novels. But for the most part, those are just spin-offs of the comics. Comics have always been the driving force behind the genre.

'Most superhero readers are not comics fans. They're genre fans.' So if you're a fan of the superhero genre, naturally you will come to comics for your fix. You really have no alternative. This is the medium where all the important stuff is happening - for that genre. Comics attract these readers because they have a unique status as a destination for people who want those stories. That status isn't merely historical. It still reflects the position across the media as a whole - superheroes don't exclusively mean comics, but they primarily mean comics. More casual audiences may be satisfied with the occasional film or TV show. But the fan will come to comics.

Like it or not, this is one of comics' major unique selling points. They do superheroes better, and more, than pretty much anyone else. It's their home turf.

Once you get into other genres, that all falls away. If you're a superhero fan, you will of course want other types of story as well. But you don't need to come to comics for those. You have many more options, and most of those options are frankly more attractive. For example, if you want a horror story, you could buy a graphic novel by somebody you've probably never heard of, or you could just buy the latest Stephen King novel. If you want historical drama, you could hunt through the nether reaches of the graphic novel section - but you'd probably find it a lot simpler to just go and watch a movie. If you want comedy, you could hunt for a critically acclaimed small press title that ships on an irregular schedule four times a year. But then again, it'd probably be a lot easier just to turn on the TV and watch a sitcom.

You get the idea. The television is right there in the corner. The cinema is part of your social life. Maybe you read books (although admittedly, there's a fair chance that you don't). The point is that your need for stories in other genres is already being satisfied more than adequately through media that are more convenient, which you associate in your mind with those genres, and which quite honestly might well be better at it. Not many comics do sitcom particularly well, for example, so to be honest you're probably better off sticking with the television.

'Comics do superheroes better, and more, than pretty much anyone else.' While many readers are brought to comics as a necessary destination for their superhero fix, there's no such compulsion when it comes to other sorts of stories. The reasons why superhero readers don't buy other comics are really the same reasons why nobody else buys them either - their demand for those stories is more than adequately satisfied by other media; they don't associate comics with those stories; and even for regular readers of superhero comics, buying indie comics is still a hassle compared with just switching on the TV. It's as simple as that.

This might explain why many of the more notable non-superhero successes in comics have been in other curious sub-genres whose fans aren't being adequately served elsewhere. DC's Vertigo imprint, for example, seized a market who weren't being catered for on TV and film. Manga is in a somewhat similar position. So are the occasional arthouse breakthroughs like JIMMY CORRIGAN, which are presented to their non-comic-reading audiences as one-off events that provide something genuinely unique.

In contrast, comics have yet to make any real headway when it comes to genres that are well served elsewhere. TV, films and movies have advantages of distribution, convenience, price and punctuality over most comics that try to go head to head with their traditional territory. It's hardly surprising that so many potential readers think that their existing media are doing the job better; unless you're a fan of the comics medium in its own right, those are very real and legitimate deterrents.

It always surprises me how non-superhero comics are so often discussed as though they were competing for readers against superhero comics. The reality is far harsher for them - they're competing in genres already cornered by other media who have been there for decades.

Paul O'Brien is the author of the weekly X-AXIS comics review.

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