c/comic-book-fans

Used to think the 90s X-Men cartoon was overrated until I rewatched it

I spent years making fun of friends who said the old show was peak comic book adaptation. Then last month I sat down and watched the first season straight through on a lazy Sunday. The way they handled the Dark Phoenix arc in just a couple episodes without dragging it out actually impressed me. Has anyone else gone back and changed their mind about an old adaptation they trashed for years?

I visited the Comic-Con Museum in San Diego and think the whole experience is overrated for actual comic book fans

The place focuses way too much on movie props and cosplay displays when I walked through last month, and I saw maybe three actual comic book pages on the walls, so has anyone else felt like these museums are forgetting the source material that started it all?

That one fan at my LCS said my pull list was too basic and it stung

He told me reading Batman and Spider-Man every month was like only eating chicken nuggets. So I swapped in a random indie book called The Fix and actually found my new favorite.

Tried reading a Bronze Age X-Men run that everyone raves about and I just don't get it

Picked up Giant-Size X-Men #1 and the following Claremont/Byrne issues at a shop in Phoenix last weekend. Everyone online acts like these are the peak of comic storytelling. I read through the first 12 issues and honestly the dialogue is so wordy and the pacing is glacial. Characters stop to explain every power mid-fight. I get it was a different era but I expected more. Am I missing something or do people just have nostalgia goggles on?

Just found out that Stan Lee didn't actually create most of the comics he's famous for, and it's bugging me

I was reading this book called Marvel Comics: The Untold Story last week and it says Stan Lee's real talent was more about marketing and editing, not writing or drawing. For example, Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko did most of the actual creation for characters like Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four. But Stan gets all the credit because he was the loudest guy in the room. So which side do you lean on - does Stan deserve the hero worship or were Kirby and Ditko the real geniuses all along?

That one guy at the con who told me I was reading comics wrong

I was at the Baltimore Comic-Con back in 2019 flipping through a back issue bin when this older dude walked up and said I was wasting my time buying modern stuff because 'real comics ended in 1985.' He spent 10 minutes lecturing me about how anything after Crisis on Infinite Earths was just corporate trash, which felt pretty rude since I was just grabbing a $3 issue of something I liked. Has anyone else had a random stranger try to gatekeep how you should enjoy your hobby like that?

Finally pulled the trigger on that comic swap meet in Portland last weekend

I drove 3 hours to this small convention center for a Comic Book Roundup event. I had my eye on a first printing of a certain Silver Surfer issue from the 80s. The seller wanted $120 but the cover was a little beat up and I only brought $80 in cash. I ended up trading him a stack of doubles I had in my trunk plus the cash. He walked away happy and I got the book I wanted. Has anyone else had good luck haggling at these smaller shows?

Spent 4 hours looking for a single missing issue from 1993

I was reorganizing my long boxes and realized my copy of Spider-Man #36 was just gone. Turned out it was wedged behind my dresser for 6 months.

Unpopular take: Watchmen isn't actually that deep

Everyone acts like Watchmen is this genius deconstruction of superheroes but honestly Moore just made a bunch of broken characters and called it deep. Rorschach is no more complex than Punisher if you strip the journal stuff. Am I the only one who thinks people overhype it just to sound smart?

The guy at the flea market who told me I 'wasn't a real fan' for not owning the full Claremont run on Uncanny

Had a talk with a 20-year collector at the shop yesterday that made me rethink my whole pull list approach

He told me I was treating comics like homework instead of fun, buying 12 issues a month just to keep up with events I don't even enjoy, and honestly it hit different because I realized I haven't been excited about a Wednesday in months - anyone else ever get called out like that and actually listen?

Finally caved and read the original 1960s X-Men run after years of skipping it

I always thought the early stuff was too cheesy compared to the modern Claremont era, but after binge-reading the first 20 issues last weekend I actually love the simple Silver Age storytelling. Has anyone else been surprised by an older run they assumed they'd hate?

Finally came around on Silver Age Superman after hating it for years

I used to think those old Superman comics from the 60s were just silly nonsense, all those crazy powers and weird alien stuff. But then a buddy loaned me Superman #167 from 1964 where he fights a super intelligent cat from another dimension. The sheer creativity and fun of it won me over, I realized I was taking comics way too seriously. Has anyone else had a big turnaround on a specific era or character they used to dislike?

Rant: Comic book fans at that convention last Saturday were something else

I went to the Big City Comic Con last weekend and man, the fans there were acting like gatekeepers on steroids. Some guy yelled at a kid for not knowing the exact issue number where Wolverine lost his adamantium. I saw three people arguing for 20 minutes about whether a variant cover from 1992 was 'real' canon or not. It felt more like a competition than a place to share a hobby we all love. Why do some fans turn something fun into a test of who's the biggest nerd? Has anyone else dealt with crowds like that at their local show?

Guy at my local shop spent 20 minutes explaining why Superman's cape physics are wrong

Last Wednesday at Midtown Comics he pulled out a calculator and showed me the drag coefficient math. I just wanted to buy issue #1 of the new run, did anyone else get cornered by a cape theorist before?

Went to a comic con in Des Moines and noticed the vendor drama

I was at the Des Moines Comic Con last weekend, and I saw two vendors almost get into a fight over booth placement. One guy was selling vintage Marvel issues for $30 each, and the other guy had the same ones for $20, right next to him. It got me thinking, do fans usually side with the cheaper guy or the one who sets up first? Has anyone else seen stuff like this get ugly at a smaller show?

The dollar bin trick that got me a full run of X-Men #94-100

I was digging through a shop's $1 bin in Portland last Saturday and noticed all the comics were organized by cover date, not issue number. So I found a stack from 1975-1976 and pulled out 7 issues of X-Men that were all from the same Claremont run, each for a buck. Anyone else find a hidden organizing system at a shop that paid off big?

Met a comic shop owner who changed how I bag my books

I was at Heroes & Villains in Tucson last Saturday and the owner saw me putting my new issues in standard bags. He pulled out a pack of mylar bags and showed me how regular poly bags can mess up cover gloss over 5-10 years. Now I only buy the mylar ones for anything worth over $20. Has anyone else had old poly bags damage their collection?

Got proven wrong about indie comics after avoiding them for years

I used to think indie comics were just pretentious art with no real story. Then a buddy shoved Scalped #1 in my hand last summer and I burned through all 60 issues in 2 weeks. Has anyone else slept on a whole genre and then got completely hooked after one good recommendation?

Saw a kid at the comic shop go from flipping through issues to flat-out reciting Silver Surfer lore in under 6 months

He said reading the Marvel Masterworks line changed everything for him because the old writing made him actually care about the characters, so has anyone else seen a new fan get hooked that fast from a specific series?

I finally get why people love the Fraction/Aja Hawkeye run now

I was always a big DC guy and skipped that Hawkeye series for years. Then last month I had a long layover in Denver and grabbed the first trade on a whim. The way they showed Clint's hearing loss through the art in issue 19 was genius, I never thought comics could do that so well. Has anyone else had that moment where a book clicked way later than it should have?

Rant: Used to judge people for reading comics digitally, now I'm a total convert

Honestly, I was that snob at my local shop in Austin who swore by floppies and paper, but after moving last year and having to pack 5 longboxes, I broke down and got a tablet. How did you guys finally switch over, or are you still team physical copies?

TIL some comic fans actually rate their local shop by how clean the bathroom is

I overheard this guy at my LCS in Austin last Saturday telling a friend he switched stores because the toilet at the old place was always clogged. He said a shop with a nasty bathroom means the owner doesn't care about details. Is that a real thing people look for or just one dude's weird hangup?

The comic book shop in Austin I visited had two completely different crowds

I went to this place on South Lamar last Saturday and noticed half the people were digging through dollar bins for old 90s X-Men issues while the other half were all fighting over the new variant covers. Which side is actually keeping the hobby alive, the bargain hunters or the speculators?

That guy at my LCS told me to stop bagging my silver age books and he was right

Been double bagging my old comics from the 70s for years, thinking more protection was better. Last month a collector at my local shop in Buffalo saw my Silver Surfer #4 and pointed out the extra bag was trapping moisture. He said 'you're just asking for mold' and I laughed it off. Now three of my books have a musty smell and I'm kicking myself. Has anyone else gotten bad storage advice that cost them?