Black-and-white

[SuperMonkey]

Seems to be kind of a forgotten medium, doesn't it? There was a day when mainstream black-and-white comics (2000 AD, Savage Sword of Conan, etc.), and anthologies in particular, could actually compete with their slicker-looking counterparts because, well, they were GOOD. Solid writing, and good art made up for the lack of color. Nowadays, well... not so much.

I'm not saying there aren't black-and-white comics out there (I had a story published in one two months ago), but beyond small-press, when was the last time one of the top five publishers actually put out a black-and-white comic that actually sold well and survived any length of time? It's been a while, I think.

Anyone who remembers the black-and-white days of 2000 AD, or the heyday of Marvel's Curtis Magazines imprint knows that just about any kind of story can be successfully told in black and white provided the artist knows how to make his/her work shine in that format.

So, why aren't there any decent black-and-white anthologies (or comics in general) being put out by any major publishers?

Discuss.