It wasn’t supposed to end like this.
Xavier Files started at my dining room table over a plate of bacon and eggs. It was a Tumblr blog where I took bits and pieces of my favorite comics podcasts and foolheartedly assumed my opinion on comics would be exactly what the internet needed. I wrote about X-Men, my favorite series, and slowly but surely, it got a few eyeballs on it. I was two months out from the birth of my first child, a semester into grad school and working full time. It was supposed to end with me just not updating the blog after a few weeks.
But something funny happened along the way. I started to meet people, collaborate with them, build something from the wreckage. I hosted a webcomic by a talented artist. I started a podcast with a critic from across the pond. I got a mass of folks who wanted to help out with a ‘zine. For some reason, and I’ll never be able to explain it, a community started to form. And that community found a home at Xavier Files.
There was a small problem, however. As “my site” became “our site,” we realized Xavier Files was too restrictive. We wanted to say more. We wanted to uplift more diverse creators. We had too much untapped potential to stay restricted to the whims of one sliver of the beautiful world that is comics. If we wanted things to be different, we had to end Xavier Files on our own terms.
It wasn’t supposed to end like this.
And it’s not really ending at all.
ComicsXF has a mission: to provide the best comics criticism on the planet. This isn’t the work of one individual, but over 30 voices of different backgrounds, races, sexualities and gender identities. This is the work of folks with a deep history of writing for Eisner-winning comics sites, local newspapers and top universities. This is the work of a unified team, dedicated to doing better work than anyone else.
Xavier Files is ending because ComicsXF is so much bigger.
There are a few changes you will notice right away. The URL is different, the logos new and shiny, the site looks so much better, but the quality of content is the same. We’ll be adding a variety of new things in 2021, but there are a couple things I want to direct your attention to:
- We have a Discord now! The feeling of community is something we have loved in ComicsXF, and we want to share it with you. We see this as an extension of the old comment sections or forums of the internet of old. This is an exciting way to build community and meet some people on a deeper level than on social media.
- We have updated the Patreon! We are pushing an effort to help get our contributors compensated for their efforts. This is a small site, and no one gets into comics criticism for the money, but if you want to support the great work our team does, 100% of that support goes to them. May I suggest the TPB level where, for the price of a TPB a month, you can support the site and join in on exclusive monthly video chats with the staff here about a variety of topics.
- We’ve got a store! We’ve got a handful of really great CXF merch for you to check out, with a lot of exciting things on the way. Again, all the proceeds go right back to our contributors.
This isn’t the end of the changes. We have a lot in the works, but for now, we will leave you to enjoy the new site. Thank you for being with us.
Zachary Jenkins runs ComicsXF and is a co-host on the podcast “Battle of the Atom.” Shocking everyone, he has a full and vibrant life outside of all this.
