Does anyone remember the Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight comics? Also several Dark Horse publications like the Aliens, Terminator, and Predator comics all ran in the kind of contained storylines you guys are talking about. I really enjoyed that format, but not sure how profitable it was for the companies.
The contained stories are actually closer to many of the original roots of many comics. For example, Detective Comics started off as a series of "Detective" themed comics that featured different characters every month. It wasn't until later that it became a Batman only comic.
it's interesting that things have really come full circle again, with contained story arcs being the most in demand. Obviously it's more profitable for the companies if the readers are subscribing to multiple titles a month and guaranteed customers. They may have to accept that model isn't a reality anymore. The biggest casualty in this may be the retail comic book store. That's too bad as hanging out with comic store owners and chatting while I buy was always a big plus. It seems like the only stores that survive now are the ones that are also hosting Pokemon and MTG nights. Comics alone don't really make for a profitable business model. Especially when Amazon is selling collected editions and graphic novels at reduced prices.
Another major issue I have with the current format is the price. It seems like comics cost a lot more but are a very quick read, having fewer actual words in them. Obviously the quality of the printing and paper stock has gone up, but that doesn't really add all that much value to me.
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