> I don't think it's overstating things to say that Moore's influence changed the face of the comic industry forever (no pun intended).

What, for the better or worse? The comic industry is in no state to be proud of; they sell at least 100 times less than they used to and their entire audience is 30 year old white men because they have no ability to attract new readers.

That's the American-style comic industry; the Japanese one is doing well.

Moore et al. kept the industry relevant for more than they should have. VfV and Watchmen are a few of those works that keep selling 20 years later, while 99% of the US comic production is crap and gets forgotten after six months. The market is what it is because there are too few Moores and Ellises and Gaimans , and too many self-referential comic-fans-turned-writers.

Apologies for the super-late reply. Wasn't notifo'd of your comment for some weird reason.

For the better most definitely, and when Moore could still be considered as part of the comic industry. I don't think this has really been the case for a long time now.

I agree with toyg's comment that the industry is in its current state because they don't have enough Moores and Ellises and Gaimans. I'm also very fond of Garth Ennis' and Glenn Fabry's work. It's interesting to note that all these guys and more are considered part of the 'British Invasion'[1] and without them, the US comic industry would be in far worse shape than it is.

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Invasion_(comics)