Back when P33pub reported that the Japanese PSP was offering digital manga downloads, we figured it was only a matter of time for the Western market to start getting some Marvel and DC digital downloads. It’s a perfect time to start checking out what’s going on in the current comic book world.

Over the past 10 or so years, it’s become quite staple for the 2 major publishing houses to have “summer events” to compete with each other, much like summer blockbuster movies. For instance, Marvel began a long journey starting from the break-up of the Avengers in “Avengers Disassembled”, to the near mutant extinction in “House of M”. Kotaku checked out the superhero “Civil War”. After that event, the Hulk rampages the planet in “World War Hulk” and the Skrulls invade Earth in “Secret Invasion”. This year, a group of super villains led by Norman Osborn (The Green Goblin) masquerade as the Avengers in “Dark Reign”.

So if you’re still not the type to walk in your local comic shop, but have an interest in the characters’ goings on, the PSP downloads may very well be the perfect thing for you.

It’s no secret that the print industry is hurting in a bad way. What people don’t often realize is that this includes the comic book industry. It’s hard enough having always been a niche market. Compound that with the current economy and the dire straits print advertising is, you have a formula for disaster. It took the Spider-Man movie to save Marvel from bankruptcy.
And this was pre-economic crisis.

But they’re adapting and even have digital comics subscriptions available. In the East comics aren’t a guilty pleasure or strictly nerd culture like they are in the US. Manga is on every street corner and read on subways like we do the Wall Street Journal. In Japan, the PSP store is beginning to offer digital comics. This is the perfect medium to reach some new readership. And I implore the US comic industry to follow suit. What a perfect model to distribute the comic book medium while lowering piracy than offering digital downloads on the PSP or PS3. Hell, open the model to the iPhones and 360’s.

In my opinion, comics in the past 10 years are better now than they’ve ever been. Digital coloring, sophisticated writing and high-standard artwork is more prevalent than ever. The point is to keep them going. And besides, if it weren’t for these monthly published works of art, what would movie studios try their best to ruin? I guess we still have a couple dozen 80’s properties to pillage. But C’mon Marvel and DC. Let’s start hitting some Playstation stores!