c/comic-book-fans

Appreciation post: finally stopped flipping through every issue at the shop before buying

I used to spend an hour reading the first 5 pages of 15 different comics before picking one, but last Saturday I just grabbed a trade paperback based on the artist's name alone. Has anyone else had that moment where you just trust your gut more than the hype?

Rant: The 'Comic Book Guy' stereotype is way off base for most collectors I know

I was at a con in Austin last weekend and overheard someone say all comic book fans are overweight dudes who live in their mom's basement. That hit me wrong because I've been collecting for 12 years and most of my friends from this hobby are women, athletes, and regular working people. I actually looked up a stat later that said over 30% of new comic buyers are women now, which surprised me since I still hear that old stereotype all the time. Has anyone else run into people who think all fans fit that cartoonish mold from The Simpsons or wherever?

That 'convention expert' guy at my local shop was flat out wrong about the 1990s speculator boom

Last month at Golden Age Comics in Denver, this older collector kept telling new fans that the speculator crash of 1993 killed comics for good. He swore that Valiant and Image books from that era are worthless and always will be. But I remember walking into the same shop three years ago and watching a kid pay $200 for a raw copy of X-O Manowar #1 in near mint. Prices on those books have doubled in the last 18 months according to GPA analysis. Has anyone else noticed that the doom-and-gloom guys always ignore actual sales data?

Hit 500 issues in my collection this weekend and it snuck up on me

I was just organizing some long boxes in my garage on Saturday when I decided to actually count everything. I figured I had maybe 300 or so but it turned out to be exactly 503 issues. That number hit me hard because I remember buying my first comic at a 7-Eleven back in 1992 for $1.25. Never thought I would cross 500 but here we are. Has anyone else had a milestone like that just creep up on them without planning it?

Drives me nuts when people call Harley Quinn a 'villain' still

She's been an anti-hero for over a decade now, but I keep seeing posts in fan groups labeling her as just 'the Joker's girlfriend'. It's like they only watched the Batman animated series from 1992 and skipped everything since. Has anyone else noticed this trend with other characters getting stuck in their early portrayals?

Went to a comic con in Portland last weekend and noticed something weird

I was at the Portland Retro Comic Expo on Saturday and walked past a booth where a guy was just standing there talking to nobody about his 'variant cover collection' for like 20 minutes. His table had no prices and he didn't even look up when people walked by. Has anyone else seen this kind of thing at shows or was this just a one off?

That one rainy Saturday that turned into a comic shop haul nightmare

So I hit up my local shop on a rainy Saturday last fall, just looking for a few back issues... ended up slipping on a wet floor and knocked over a whole display of long boxes. The owner wasn't mad, but I spent the next 4 hours helping him reorganize everything by alphabetical order. Has anyone else ever had a comic shopping trip go completely sideways like that?

Overheard a guy at my LCS say variant covers are a trap - he was right

I was at my local shop in Austin last Saturday flipping through the new arrivals when this older collector told his friend that variant covers are just a way to get you to buy the same book twice. He said he wasted over $300 on variants before he realized the story inside never changes. It made me think about my own stack of 5 different covers for issue #1 that I barely read. Has anyone else felt burned by chasing variants over the actual content?

Got into a heated debate about Frank Miller's Dark Knight at a con in Austin last weekend

This guy kept insisting it was overrated and I snapped, bringing up panels from memory. Ended up standing there for 45 minutes arguing about panel layouts outside the convention hall, has anyone else had a comic debate spiral like that?

The day I saw a guy flip through a longbox like he was sorting poker chips

I was at my local shop in Akron last Saturday and this older guy came in, grabbed a longbox of dollar bin books, and rifled through them so fast I couldn't even track his hands. He pulled out six books in maybe 90 seconds, including a first print of a 90s X-Men annual that had a minor printing error worth like $30. It made me realize I've been wasting so much time thumbing page by page. Anybody else ever watch a veteran collector do something that made you totally rethink your own system?

That $150 graded comic I got off eBay was a total scam

I bought a CGC graded Amazing Spider-Man #300 from a seller with good feedback. Paid $150 thinking I was getting a deal. Turned out the case was resealed and the comic inside was a reprint. Lost all my money and eBay wouldn't help because I waited 45 days to open it. Has anyone else gotten burned by fake slabbed comics on there?

Found my old iPad from 2014 with my comic collection on it

Last Sunday I dug out my old iPad 3 from a drawer. It had my whole digital comic library from 5 years ago. Remember when Marvel Unlimited was only $10 a month? Now it's $14. And the app was clunky but I read so many issues on lunch breaks at that diner in Austin. Anybody else miss the old digital formats before everything got HD remastered?

Took me 15 years to realize I was bagging my comics wrong

I used to put every issue in a bag with the flap facing the front cover. Thought it looked cleaner on the shelf. Then last month a guy at my local shop in Denver pointed out I was trapping dust against the art every time. He showed me how the flap should go toward the back so the opening is at the bottom. Felt like an idiot. Anybody else learn basic stuff way later than they should have?

I finally stopped buying single issues and switched to trade paperbacks

Honestly, I used to be that guy who hit up my local shop in Portland every Wednesday to grab 6 or 7 single issues. After my move last year, I realized I had 4 long boxes just sitting in storage and I barely remembered half the stories. Now I just wait for the trade collections to come out and read them straight through. Has anyone else made the jump and felt like they actually enjoy the story more without the month-long gaps?

Bought a $200 omnibus that was falling apart by page 50

I picked up that Absolute Sandman volume from a discount bin for $200, thinking I scored a deal. First read through and pages started coming loose around page 30. By page 50, the spine was completely cracked and a whole section fell out. Turns out it was a bad binding batch from the printer that year. I tried gluing it myself with some book repair stuff from Michaels, but it's still a mess. Now it sits on my shelf looking sad and I'm too annoyed to even finish reading it. Has anyone else gotten stuck with a defective omnibus or oversized hardcover from a specific printing run? How'd you handle returning one used?

Unpopular opinion: I think The Killing Joke is way overrated

I finally read it last week after years of hearing how it's this masterpiece. The whole thing felt like a mess to me. Barbara Gordon gets shot just to motivate her dad and nothing really changes by the end. I get that Moore was trying something new but the story just falls flat. Anyone else feel like this book gets a free pass because of the Joker's origin scenes?

Had to pick between a full run of The Spectre or a single issue of Action Comics #1 in a trade

Tbh, I went with the Spectre run because it had like 18 issues and I'm a sucker for those weird supernatural stories from the 70s. The Action Comics #1 was missing the back cover and had tape stains all over, so I told myself it was a bad investment. After reading through the Spectre last weekend, I'm happy with my choice - the art by Murphy Anderson is killer. But a buddy said I could have sold the Action for triple that at a bigger con. Anyone else face a similar choice between quantity and a rare piece?

Why do new collectors keep calling their first dozen books a 'grail'?

I saw a post where someone said their Batman #428 was a grail and I swear that book goes for like $30. Grail means something you actually had to hunt for years to find, not just whatever you picked up at the shop last Saturday, right?

Rant: That guy at the comic shop who lectures people on continuity

Was at Cosmic Comics in Austin last Saturday, and this dude spent 15 minutes telling a new reader why she was wrong for liking Tom King's Batman. I mean, she just said she thought it was a cool take on the character. The owner finally had to tell him to cool it or leave. Why do some fans act like gatekeepers instead of just letting people enjoy things?

My cousin told me to stop buying single issues and just wait for the trades

He said it for years, but I kept buying weekly books. Then I moved and had to pack up my collection. It took 45 boxes and cost over $300 to ship. I finally switched to trades for new series and saved so much space and cash. Now I only grab singles for my absolute favorite runs. Anyone else make a big switch like that and wish they did it sooner?

Hot take: I think the best comic book fans are the ones who don't read comics

Last week, I was at a bar in Cleveland talking to a guy who knew every detail about the MCU movies and shows. He could name every actor and director, but he had never picked up a single comic. Three years ago, I would have said he wasn't a real fan. Now, I'm not so sure. He loves the characters and the world just as much as I do, maybe more. He just came to it a different way. Has anyone else met fans like this who changed their mind about what being a fan means?

A friend pointed out my collection was all modern stuff, so I started digging into older runs

I was showing off my shelves to a buddy, and he said, 'You know, you're only getting half the story if you stick to the last 15 years.' He was right. I had a ton of Hickman and Zdarsky, but nothing before 2010. So, I set a goal to read one classic story arc a month. Last month, I read 'The Dark Phoenix Saga' for the first time, and it totally changed how I see Jean Grey. Now I'm hunting for a decent copy of 'The Judas Contract' from 1984. What's the one older story you think every fan should read at least once?

I always thought reading comics on my phone was fine until I borrowed a friend's old single issue from 1998

Am I the only one who bought a $100 short box just for a single run?

I was trying to keep my 'Daredevil: Born Again' issues from the 80s all together and safe. So I bought a new, solid short box for about a hundred bucks after shipping. It felt silly spending that much for maybe thirty comics. But now they're all in one place, mint, and I don't have to dig through long boxes. What's the most you've spent on storage for a small set you really care about?

My entire short box of 90s X-Men just fell apart in the middle of reorganizing my collection