Eric July Set Out to Replace Agenda-Driven Marvel and DC: His Latest $1.3M Win Proves They Can't Compete
Eric July is a true Renaissance man.
The man has built a highly successful brand as a YouTuber and content creator, co-founded “Being Libertarian,” appears as a regular guest on The Blaze television network, launched a successful comic book podcast “For Canon Sake” and is the lead vocalist of rap-metal band BackWordz.
July’s most recent venture, however, is undoubtedly his most ambitious of all — building a viable alternative to the comic book industry’s two reigning corporate giants, Marvel and DC.
Suffice it to say, after this week, the comic big two should be worried.
The Rippaverse Rakes in Millions
Despite the industry’s recent financial struggles, July’s new company — The Rippaverse — has exploded onto the scene.
Like Marvel and DC, July hopes to create a shared superhero universe of comics covering a plethora of genres.
Welcome to the Rippaverse pic.twitter.com/fP5TfENYdh
— Rippaverse Comics (@TheRippaverse) July 8, 2022
The sales campaigns of its first two comic books, issues number one and two of “Isom,” brought in a combined total of over $6 million.
Following those tremendous successes, July managed to recruit one of the industry’s most prolific and well-respected writers, Chuck Dixon.
Known for writing seminal runs for iconic characters like Batman and the Punisher, the addition of Dixon to the Rippaverse brought lots of excitement from long-time comic fans.
And there are few things savvy entrepreneurs like July know better than how to monetize excitement.
Our Rippaverse fans made Alphacore #1 a massive success. We can’t thank you all enough!
2024 has only just begun!
Art by Lead Illustrator @chakal_igor#Rippaverse #Alphacore #comicbooks pic.twitter.com/UrWPiqXhrS
— Rippaverse Comics (@TheRippaverse) January 21, 2024
That he did, to the tune of a whopping $1.3 million throughout the campaign for Dixon’s first book, “Alphacore #1,” which ended Saturday.
“Alphacore #1” Review
Dixon’s “Alphacore” is part-superhero story, part-police procedural.
The story follows a group of supercops first introduced in “Isom #1” who work for the police department of the fictional Texas city of Florespark.
The first issue features an Alphacore team frustrated with its contained role. The department only calls the team in to handle “freak calls,” i.e. whenever a super-powered bad guy causes trouble. No one in the department respects them or even considers the team to be “real” cops.
Alphacore #1 cover A has now sold over 6,000 copies! pic.twitter.com/2DIYE0eglY
— Eric July (@EricDJuly) November 23, 2023
Then, a mystery presents itself, giving Alphacore the chance to finally prove their worth as true law enforcement detectives.
The story’s art by DC and Marvel veteran Joe Bennett of “The Immortal Hulk” is absolutely top-notch. Dixon’s skill as a storyteller is second to none.
The three leads — Bryan Solari, Braxwell and “Ingrid” Valdez — have unique personalities that mesh and clash with each other in exciting ways. The villains are colorful and interesting.
The world-building is wonderful, from the surprisingly large yet fleshed-out cast of characters to the many beautiful establishing shots of the city drawn by Bennett.
The quality of “Alphacore #1,” in terms of its art and writing, far exceeds the vast bulk of content coming from the big two.
It’s no wonder the Rippaverse is bringing in millions of dollars per issue.
Next up for July’s company, set to debut sometime before the end of this winter season, is “Yaira #1” by Jen and Sylvia Soska.
Next up? The @twisted_twins‘ Yaira #1!
But that’s not it. Be on the look out the next couple of weeks.
We have several announcements. pic.twitter.com/68dGpyscUd— Eric July (@EricDJuly) January 22, 2024
Don’t be surprised if that book’s debut marks another multi-million dollar campaign.
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