Sorry, while manga was what got me into American comics in the first place, I was not referring to that. Apologies for any confusion.
JMS has two projects on the Go right now in the comic book world that I read and purchase per issue: Thor (which is the first mainstream marv-c comic serial that I've purchased) and the project that you refer to, otherwise known as "The Twelve" which you are spot on. I stick with that one only because of my undying faith for his ability to tell stories.. At least a few of the good ones.
As far as 'wait for the trade' goes, It's a difficult decision on my end to undergo. On terms of what I'd want in my library in ten years, I'll stick with the collections, no debate. For one thing, if someone takes one of my books and curls up on the couch, chances are so far that she will pick the collection.
As far as the mechanism side of the house - can good indie ideas survive without the issue format, then the trade-off is right there. Personally, I am a fan of a local comic known as "the magic teeth dailies", which is an ongoing series of a local artist/comic book store owner's daily strips (for the rest of his life) involving bad jokes, puns, events, pop culture, pop history on Victoria BC, cool shit like that.
Facebook link.
Without the comic book format, his work would be dead. No one would invest a whole book. But people invested in the individual copies.
To sum up, the book format is superior, but for that to materialize in the market's current form, the run needs a fanbase.
Wow.. That makes me want to buy more individuals..
I think I'm going to talk to this to my comic book store owner tomorrow. It's too bad he doesn't have a title, like a tobacco store owner would be tobbaconist... maybe comicconist...