I've been doing a super hero comic/webcomic for almost NINE YEARS now, so I guess I'll step on my soapbox for a bit and humor this question.
The author brings up points that indie creators will never work for the big 2 and nothing that what indie creators can create will never begin to compete with the big 2, and that even Image failed to compete at that level, so why bother?
Why bother when an indie super hero comic will never be able to compete with the big 3 movie studios productions. Those are interesting points in the extent that there probably won't be a character that can replace an iconic character like Batman or Spider-Man. The Image point is neither here nor there, because it was chronic lateness and questionable quality that killed the momentum they had with the super hero titles that were launched in the early days. And now that all the questions and facts have been put in context, I will give my own personal response. It's not by any means the "correct" answer nor am I trying to prove him wrong. This is just how I feel.
Then when I decided this is what I wanted to do after dabbling here and there in junior high, I completely dedicated myself to the craft of comics in high school, filling notebook after notebook of actual comic book stories I wrote and drew. As a matter of fact, I still have those notebooks. I'm still doing comics to this day with the characters from that story, The Mighty Warlord.
Since at a young age I loved to read whatever book was in front of me, comic books or novels, you name it, I grew up with a sense of diversity if you will. So through the years I have done other things other than the super hero stuff. Actually, my first self-published work was a slice-of-life auto-bio strip named Never Mind. Which I still do on occasion. I also have thrown my hat into Puerto Rican satire with my first Spanish language strip, Weepaman y Weepito. Then tried my hand at psychological/horror with DTF6. Straightforward action/espionage with Clown, noir/action with Exorcist, and thought-provoking/philosophical with The Cannon Girl. Oh, and Stupid, The Cat.
Again, since my reading has always been diverse, that shows through in TMW. Many people that read it actually enjoy it because it's not the prototypical super hero story and has been praised for being multifaceted. But, why keep doing the hero genre? Isn't it done to death? Or how it was also explained in the article, it's all based on mythology and heroes are the modern mythology in a way and there apparently is no more room for something new.
The answer is quite simple: I, as an indie creator, still do super hero comics because I want to. Because I can. Because as a creator, I have a story to tell. And I chose specifically comics, and I chose specifically super heroes to do it. Because these creations are a part of me, the good, the bad, the ugly, the ridiculous, the insanity, the happiness, the bitterness, there's a little piece of me in everything I create. And quite frankly, to hell with competing with the big 2. All though to an extent yes, I do see them as competition for attention, shelfspace, attracting new readers, I'm not going to limit myself, not going to hide what my creative soul is just because Warlord will always be "the Puerto Rican Spider-Man" and maybe never the next big Hollywood blockbuster. I speak for myself, but I come from the generation of doing this because this is what I love to do for sake of the art and creativity, not for the deals I could make in merchandising and licensing my product. Not that there is anything bad in that, either, everyone has their own individual reason why they create whatever they may create.
"Why are indie creators still doing gag strips? They will never be a Garfield or a Calvin & Hobbes."
"Why are indie creators still doing supernatural revenge stories? No one will ever achieve The Crow."
Part of it is that I think this is the generation of instant gratification. How long did it take Spider-Man to become a phenomenon? Did you know X-Men at one point was doing so poorly that it was on the verge of cancellation? Even Batman after the comics code was introduced was in danger of being on the chopping block. Established comics and iconic characters are that way because it took YEARS for it to be what they are today. And this is just my opinion, just because you think you are doing something different and putting down another thing in the process, will ever guarantee that you will be nothing more than just one of the rest. So, my advice to you who are reading this? Create.
Super heroes. biographical. Fantasy. Erotic. Religious. Anti-religious. Feminist. Misogynistic. Offensive. Inspiring. Just shut up and create. Don't worry about becoming the next big thing. Don't worry about being read by only 2 people. Don't be afraid and if you are, use that fear to fuel you. You can't reinvent the wheel, but you can sure do some badass things with it that only YOU with your uniqueness can do. And don't ever let anybody tell you what and what not to create, even me. You all have beautiful creative souls, so let it shine and smile.
-Alvaro "Lance Danger" Cortes Jr