I should probably clarify that I don't actually think of American comics as research and development for related media.
That said, in the Japanese system we can distinguish between author and publisher. In the American system the author (for purposes of copyright) is often the publisher.
Authors can have motivations other than making money (even if they want to make money). It's harder to impute such motivations on nonhuman entities like Warner Brothers or Disney.
So the idea that American comics are research and development for related merchandizing seems closer to the truth to me than it does for Japanese comics, either though I wouldn't really describe either product that way.
I don't think the sort of recognition letterers, colorists, or inkers get is worth a whole lot in economic terms under the American system, though I'd agree that manga studios should credit everyone who works on the book.
That said, in the Japanese system we can distinguish between author and publisher. In the American system the author (for purposes of copyright) is often the publisher.
Authors can have motivations other than making money (even if they want to make money). It's harder to impute such motivations on nonhuman entities like Warner Brothers or Disney.
So the idea that American comics are research and development for related merchandizing seems closer to the truth to me than it does for Japanese comics, either though I wouldn't really describe either product that way.
I don't think the sort of recognition letterers, colorists, or inkers get is worth a whole lot in economic terms under the American system, though I'd agree that manga studios should credit everyone who works on the book.