Impact Comics
Encyclopedia
Impact Comics was an imprint
of DC Comics
that was aimed at younger audiences. It was begun in 1991 and ended by 1993. (The initial "I" in the logo looked like an exclamation point, but the name of the imprint was not actually !mpact.)
Its titles featured the adventures of altered versions of superheroes licensed from Archie Comics
including the Fly, the Comet, the Shield, the Jaguar, the Web
, and the Black Hood. Changes included making the new Jaguar a woman and making the Web an organization instead of a solo hero. This was a second attempt to revive the old Archie heroes, the other one being the Red Circle line of comics in the early 1980s.
In an effort to reach out to kids who were not aware of the direct market
system, DC Comics attempted to sell Impact Comics titles through newsstands, however that never happened. The imprint eventually collapsed due to poor sales. A final series The Crucible was initially intended to relaunch the line, but instead served as its finale. Since then, Archie Comics has used some of their superheroes in cameo roles, and aside from publishing some trade paperback reprint collections, the company has yet to utilize them in any significant way, relicensing them to DC in 2008.
Imprint
In the publishing industry, an imprint can mean several different things:* As a piece of bibliographic information about a book, it refers to the name and address of the book's publisher and its date of publication as given at the foot or on the verso of its title page.* It can mean a trade name...
of DC Comics
DC Comics
DC Comics, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful companies operating in the market for American comic books and related media. It is the publishing unit of DC Entertainment a company of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which itself is owned by Time Warner...
that was aimed at younger audiences. It was begun in 1991 and ended by 1993. (The initial "I" in the logo looked like an exclamation point, but the name of the imprint was not actually !mpact.)
Its titles featured the adventures of altered versions of superheroes licensed from Archie Comics
Archie Comics
Archie Comics is an American comic book publisher headquartered in the Village of Mamaroneck, Town of Mamaroneck, New York, known for its many series featuring the fictional teenagers Archie Andrews, Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge, Reggie Mantle and Jughead Jones. The characters were created by...
including the Fly, the Comet, the Shield, the Jaguar, the Web
WEB (comics)
The Web is a team of superpowered agents published under DC Comics Impact Comics line. The team is based on Archie Comics old superhero, The Web.Created by Len Strazewski and Tom Artis, its first appearance was in The Web #1 September 1991 .-Members:...
, and the Black Hood. Changes included making the new Jaguar a woman and making the Web an organization instead of a solo hero. This was a second attempt to revive the old Archie heroes, the other one being the Red Circle line of comics in the early 1980s.
In an effort to reach out to kids who were not aware of the direct market
Direct market
The direct market is the dominant distribution and retail network for North American comic books. It consists of one dominant distributor and the majority of comics specialty stores, as well as other retailers of comic books and related merchandise...
system, DC Comics attempted to sell Impact Comics titles through newsstands, however that never happened. The imprint eventually collapsed due to poor sales. A final series The Crucible was initially intended to relaunch the line, but instead served as its finale. Since then, Archie Comics has used some of their superheroes in cameo roles, and aside from publishing some trade paperback reprint collections, the company has yet to utilize them in any significant way, relicensing them to DC in 2008.
Characters
- American Crusaders (Original Shield, Captain Commando, Firefly, Doc Strong, and Black Witch) [50s superhero team]
- American Shield
- Black Hoods
- Black Jack
- Black Witch
- Bob Phantom
- Captain Commando
- Comet
- Crusaders (Shield, Fly, Comet, Jaguar, Fireball, and The Web)
- Doc Strong
- Dusty (sidekick of Original Shield)
- Fireball
- Firefly
- The Fly
- Fox
- Hangman
- Jaguar
- Original Shield
- Shield
- Shield
- Shield Kid
- Steel Sterling
- The Web (now a group)