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?

3 comments

3 Comments

holly_reed557d ago

My trick now is to just smile and say "I'll keep that in mind" while going right back to flipping through the bins. I've been collecting since the late 80s and I still remember some guy at a show telling me I was wasting money on a run of John Byrne She-Hulk because it wasn't the "real" She-Hulk from the 70s. I just kept my head down and bought the issues anyway. Those books are worth a decent amount now, not that I care about value. The bottom line is you're the one spending your money, so buy what makes you happy and let the gatekeepers keep on gating.

avery_jackson7d ago

I used to be one of those people who thought certain runs were "better" than others, but hearing @holly_reed55 talk about just smiling and moving on made me rethink that. Now I just buy whatever series looks fun to me, no matter what anyone says at the shop. You're right that the only opinion that matters is yours when you're the one paying for it.

joel_jones5d ago

Oh yeah, nothing says "I'm having a good time" like some random dude trying to be the comic book police at a convention. Guess they didn't get the memo that the "real" She-Hulk is the one you actually get to read at home.