Twenty pages has fast become the norm for monthly comic book titles from the Big Two. And The Walking Dead remains with the previous twenty-two pages mostly – albeit giving far more backmatter on top.

But as more comic books rely on the splash page, the double page spread, the five panel page and decompression, that can sometimes feel rather flimsy. One of the reasons that DC's twice-monthly publishing scheme is seeing reader rewards by reducing that monthly wait.

Well today, and for the entirety of the Whisperer War storyline on The Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard, they've switched to a 16 page grid.

In the backmatter, Kirkman talks about doing similar one Irredeemable Ant-Man and Invincible and cites Dark Knight Returns as inspiration. With an aim of creating denser storytelling.

Of course not every panel is a 1/16 of a page. Some break out across the grid.

But it's a flag in the ground regarding the nature of serialised comic books today. Maybe it's time to bring back Longshot Comics by Shane Simmons. Remember…?

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