Editing Disney Comics (publishing) (section)

==History==
===Initial titles===

In its first year and a half, Disney Comics published:

*''[[Walt Disney's Comics and Stories]]'' (issues #548-585) 
*''[[Uncle Scrooge]]'' (issues #243-280) 
*''[[Donald Duck Adventures]]'' (38 issues)
*''[[DuckTales (1987 TV series)|DuckTales]]'' (18 issues)
*''[[Mickey Mouse Adventures]]'' (18 issues)
*''[[Goofy Adventures]]'' (17 issues)
*''[[Roger Rabbit (comic book)]]'' (18 issues)
*''Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers'' (19 issues)
*''[[TaleSpin]]'' (a 4-issue [[Limited series (comics)|limited series]] based on the series premiere episode, followed by 7 regular issues)
*''[[Roger Rabbit's Toontown]]'' (5 issues)
* Seasonal specials: ''Autumn Adventures'' (2 issues, 1990–1991), ''Holiday Parade'' (2 issues, 1990–1991), ''Summer Fun'' (1991) and ''Spring Fever'' (1991)

===Initial collections===
Additionally, during the company's first year, eight [[Trade paperback (comics)|trade paperback]]s called ''Disney Comics Album'' were published. These featured older stories, prefaced by opening editorials similar to the earlier ''Gladstone Comic Album'' series.

# ''[[Donald Duck]] and [[Gyro Gearloose]]''
# ''Uncle Scrooge and the Phantom of Notre Duck''
# Donald Duck in ''Dangerous Disguise''
# ''[[Mickey Mouse]] Outwits the [[Phantom Blot]]''
# ''Chip 'n Dale Rescue Rangers: The Secret Casebook''
# Uncle Scrooge in ''Tralla-La''
# Donald Duck in ''Too Many Pets!''
# [[Super Goof]] — The World's Silliest Super-Hero!

Giant-sized seasonal specials included two issues apiece of ''Autumn Adventures'' and ''Holiday Parade'', and one issue apiece of ''Spring Fever'' and ''Summer Fun''. All of these titles were new to Disney and most were published only by them, with the exception of ''Spring Fever'' (revived by [[Gemstone Publishing]] in 2007–2008).

===Planned expansion===
In this period, aggressive plans for expansion were announced. At one [[San Diego Comic-Con International|Comic Con]] panel, slides of a realistic European barbarian strip were previewed as one of many new titles in development. One planned imprint, '''Vista Comics''', would showcase superheroes, many to be adapted from Disney films such as ''[[Tron]]'' and ''[[The Scarecrow of Romney Marsh]]'', and was being developed by comic book writer and animated TV story-editor [[Martin Pasko]]. A second imprint, '''Touchmark Comics''' (named to echo Disney's [[Touchstone Pictures]] label for adult-targeted films) was actually announced, with former [[DC Comics]] editor Art Young at its head. Among the scripts Touchmark acquired were ''[[Enigma (Vertigo)|Enigma]]'' by [[Peter Milligan]] and ''[[Sebastian O]]'' by [[Grant Morrison]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Klein |first=Todd |date=2008-09-12 |title=Logos That Never Were: TOUCHMARK |url=https://kleinletters.com/Blog/logos-that-never-were-touchmark/ |access-date=2023-05-28 |website=Todd's Blog |language=en-US}}</ref>  A third imprint, '''Hollywood Comics''', was to be modeled after the newly launched [[Hollywood Pictures]] film label and offered a 64-page graphic novel adaptation of Hollywood Pictures' first film, ''[[Arachnophobia (film)|Arachnophobia]]'', as its debut offering. An adaptation of the ''[[Final Fantasy]]'' video game franchise (specifically ''[[Final Fantasy II]]'') was also in the works, with [[Kurt Busiek]] writing at least two issues.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dan |date=2014-02-17 |title=I Can Break Away: The Disney Comics Story (1990-1993): The Disney EXPLOSION!!! |url=http://icanbreakaway.blogspot.com/2014/02/the-disney-comics-story-1990-1993_5112.html |access-date=2023-05-28 |website=I Can Break Away}}</ref>

Editor-in-Chief [[Len Wein]]'s [[Marvel Comics]]-esque approach to the Disney characters was criticized by many older Disney fans.{{Citation needed|date=January 2010}} The hiring of Wein has been championed by the comic book creative community as an alternative to the much disliked former Marvel Comics Editor-in-Chief [[Jim Shooter]], who had made a favorable impression when interviewed by Disney management.<ref>[http://www.jimshooter.com/2011/09/disney-adventures.html "Disney Adventures"], Jim Shooter's blog</ref>{{Better source needed|date=October 2013}} Prior to the launch of the comics division, Disney management proclaimed their intention to quickly become a dominant presence in the comic book market, competing with industry leaders [[DC Comics|DC]] and [[Marvel Comics|Marvel]].

===The "Disney Implosion"===
These unreasonable expectations, coupled with poor sales, led to a mass cancellation in 1991. Echoing what had been called the [[DC Implosion]] of the 1970s, ''Duckburg Times'' editor Dana Gabbard dubbed this the '''Disney Implosion'''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dan |date=2014-06-30 |title=I Can Break Away: The Disney Comics Story (1990-1993): The Disney Implosion |url=http://icanbreakaway.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-disney-comics-story-1990-1993.html |access-date=2023-05-28 |website=I Can Break Away}}</ref> ''Walt Disney's Comics and Stories'', ''Uncle Scrooge'', and ''Donald Duck Adventures'' were the only surviving titles.

===Remaining titles===
Following the cancellations, the three titles continued being published along with an occasional mini-series based on a TV show or a movie. These included:

*''[[Darkwing Duck]]'' (4 issues, 1991)
*''[[The Little Mermaid (1989 film)|The Little Mermaid]]'' (4 issues, 1992)
*''[[Dinosaurs (TV series)|Dinosaurs]]'' (2 issues, 1992–1993)
*''[[Disney's Comics in 3-D]]'' (2 issues, 1992)
*''[[Beauty and the Beast (1991 film)|The New Adventures of Beauty and the Beast]]'' (2 issues, 1992)
*''[[The Little Mermaid (1989 film)|Sebastian]]'' (2 issues, 1992)
*''[[Aladdin (1992 Disney film)|The Return of Aladdin]]'' (2 issues, 1993)

All plans for expansion, however, were cancelled. Editor Art Young moved back to DC, and many of the unpublished Touchmark titles were published as part of its new [[Vertigo (DC Comics)|Vertigo]] imprint.<ref name="Advance">"Interview with Karen Berger" in ''Advance Comics'' #49 ([[Capital City Distribution]], January 1993)</ref>  Wein left and [[Marv Wolfman]] concentrated on being comics editor of ''[[Disney Adventures]]''. In a mini-renaissance, editors [[Bob Foster (editor)|Bob Foster]], [[Cris Palomino]], and [[David Seidman]] brought an appreciation of the classic Disney characters to the three continuing titles. Foster especially after a lifetime of involvement with Disney comic books and strips specialized in reprinting rarities even seasoned fans were unaware of. The Disney Studio finally decided to shut down its comic book publishing division in 1993.

===Imprint===
In November 2013, [[Disney Publishing Worldwide]] revived Disney Comics as an imprint in the US for sporadic publishing.<ref>{{cite news |last1=MacDonald |first1=Heidi |title=Disney Expands Its Comics Program |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-industry-news/article/59991-disney-expands-their-comics-program.html |access-date=January 10, 2020 |work=Publishers Weekly.com |date=November 13, 2013}}</ref> The imprint's first publication was the ''[[Space Mountain]]'' graphic novel, its first original graphic novel, released on May 7, 2014.<ref>{{cite news |title=Disney Comics Previews SPACE MOUNTAIN Graphic Novel |url=https://www.newsarama.com/21004-disney-comics-previews-space-mountain-graphic-novel.html |access-date=January 10, 2020 |work=Newsarama |date=April 30, 2014 |language=en}}</ref>