c/comic-book-fans

I just found out that Stan Lee only wrote 8 issues of Fantastic Four before Jack Kirby took over

I was reading a detailed breakdown on the Jack Kirby Museum website last night and it blew my mind. Everyone talks about Stan Lee like he plotted every single Fantastic Four story from start to finish, but the site showed that Lee only scripted the first 8 issues directly. After that, Kirby was doing most of the plotting and Lee just added dialogue. Does that match what you all have read about the Silver Age dynamic?

Disaster at a comic con signing in Cleveland

I brought my prized Silver Surfer #4 to get signed by the artist, but he accidentally knocked his drink over and it soaked the corner. I panicked but quickly handed him a paper towel and we blotted it dry within 30 seconds - the ink didn't even smear. Anyone else had a close call like that with a valuable book?

Bought a signed first issue of Spider-Man for $75 online

Turned out to be a reprint from 2019 and now I just stare at my wasted money on the wall.

Just Counted My Old Pre-Unity Valiants... Ouch

I spent nearly $300 on a full set of early Valiant comics back in 2019 thinking they'd be my retirement fund, but now I can barely get $40 for the whole box. Has anyone else taken a bath on spec buys they swore would be gold?

Just realized I keep calling every comic shop employee by the wrong name

I was at Midtown Comics on Fulton Street yesterday and I called this guy Steve for like the third time in a row. He never corrects me, but I caught his nametag and it said Mark. It hit me that I just assume all the workers there are named Steve because the first guy I ever talked to there was named Steve. Now I feel like a total jerk and I've probably been doing this for six months. Has anyone else just defaulted to one name for an entire shop crew?

A single comment about my comic book stacking changed everything

I used to just pile my floppies horizontally in short stacks on my shelf. A guy at my local shop in Portland saw me doing it and said 'you're gonna ruin the spines doing that, you gotta stand them up with backing boards.' I switched to standing them upright with boards and bags on all my books from the last 2 years. The difference is huge, no more bent corners or spine roll. Has anyone else gotten a simple tip like that that completely changed how you store your collection?

Rant: Saw a kid at my local shop who couldn't name three Silver Age characters a year ago, now he's schooling me on obscure back issues

Pulled off a CGC signing event without losing my mind

I was at the Comic-Con in Portland last month coordinating a CGC witness table and a customer's book got mixed up with another stack. I just walked over calmly, matched the submission forms to the signatures, and handed it back in under 5 minutes. Has anyone else had a close call like that at a signing?

Warning: Do not buy that 'rare' comic from the guy at the flea market near Houston

I spent $60 on a so-called first print of Spider-Man #1 from a dealer at the Alamo City Flea Market last month. He swore it was a 2019 variant, but when I got it home and checked the barcode, it turned out to be a reprint from 2023 worth maybe $3. The worst part is I missed out on a legit shop in San Antonio that had a real graded copy for only $40 more. I feel like a fool for trusting the flashy table setup and his smooth talk. Has anyone else gotten burned by a flea market comic seller with a fake story?

Compared the Silver Age Superman to the modern one over 48 issues and the old guy just had way more heart

I spent the last 3 months reading through both eras side by side and the golden age Superman actually gave a damn about regular people instead of just punching alien gods, has anyone else found the newer stuff just feels like action scenes with no soul?

TIL I was storing my comics all wrong for 15 years

A guy at a garage sale saw me flipping through a longbox and asked if I used backing boards. I said no, figured they were just for shipping. He told me without them the spines get permanent creases from the weight of the other books stacking over time. I went home and checked my oldest collection from 2008 and sure enough every third book has a spine roll that won't flatten. Now I use both boards and bags on everything and swapped to short boxes so they don't sag as much. Has anyone else had to rebag a whole collection after realizing a basic mistake?

The comic shop near my place had a 'silent reading' hour and it missed the point

I stopped into Cosmic Collectibles last Saturday after my shift. They do this thing now where from 11 to noon, nobody talks. Quiet browsing only. The owner said it's to help people focus on the stories. I get the idea, but half the reason I go to a shop is to chat with the guy behind the counter or the dude looking at the same Batman run. You miss out on tips, recommendations, just the vibe. I felt like I was in a library instead of a comic store. Anyone else ever run into a shop trying something like this that just felt off?

An old collector at the flea market told me to stop bagging my comics so tight

I ran into this guy named Frank at a flea market back in June. He saw me putting some issues in those tight-fitting bags and told me I was suffocating them. He said if the bag is too snug, the paper gets pressed and can actually cause stress marks over 10 or 15 years. I shrugged it off at first because I thought tight meant protected. Then last month I pulled out a book I bagged tight in 2019 and saw a tiny crease along the spine that wasn't there before. Has anyone else noticed damage from over-tight bags or is Frank just an old worrywart?

A comic shop owner told me my pull list was too random

I used to grab whatever cover looked cool off the shelf, but the guy at Cosmic Collectibles in Austin said I was missing key story arcs and getting confused. He sat me down and showed me how to follow writers and artists instead of just jumping in blindly. Has anyone else had a store employee totally change how you pick your weekly reads?

Overheard a guy at my LCS say he stores his floppies in binders

I was picking up my pull list and this older collector was telling the owner he keeps all his single issues in three-ring binders with poly sleeves. He said he's got 40 years of books that way and none have any spine roll or cover damage. Has anyone here tried that method or is it a recipe for disaster long term?

Vent: My cousin said comic fans just want to argue, not talk

We were at a cookout in Tacoma and I was telling him about the new X-Men run, and he cut me off to say 'You guys just want to prove you know more than each other.' It hit different because he's not into comics at all, so he was just saying what he sees from the outside. Do you think we come off that way to people who don't read them?

Showerthought: My sister said comic fans gatekeep without even trying

She told me, 'You guys talk about runs and artists I've never heard of, and it feels like a test.' It hit different because she's right, we just assume everyone knows the deep cuts. Do you think being a 'real fan' means knowing the obscure stuff, or just loving the characters?

Showerthought: I've been reading my comics wrong for like 15 years

My friend saw me reading a new issue and asked why I was starting at the back cover, which is when I realized I'd been opening them from the wrong side since I was a kid. Has anyone else had a weird habit they didn't notice for ages?

I finally gave up on collecting every single X-Men variant cover

For years I felt like I had to grab every #1 variant, especially from the Krakoa era stuff. It was costing me like $80 a month just on those extra covers. Then I saw a post from a guy in Chicago who only buys the main cover and uses the extra cash for original art, and it just clicked. Anyone else switch from being a completionist to just enjoying the story?

I thought the new 'Ultimate Spider-Man' comic was just a cash grab until I read issue three.

I saw the previews and figured it was just Marvel trying to reset a character again for sales. But the story about Peter Parker's new start in a different city, with that art style, actually felt fresh and earned. Has anyone else been surprised by a comic they went into expecting to hate?

That time a comic shop in Portland made me rethink my whole stance on event books

I used to skip big crossover events, thinking they were just cash grabs. Then last Tuesday, the owner of Cosmic Reads pulled me aside after I grabbed my usual pull list. He said, 'Look, I know you hate these, but just read the first issue of this one. If you hate it, I'll buy it back from you.' I read it that night and ended up buying the whole six-issue run the next day. The way it wove through characters I already loved actually added to their stories instead of messing them up. Has a shop owner ever talked you into a book you were sure you'd dislike?

Heard a guy at the con say collecting is about the money now, not the stories

I was at the Emerald City Comic Con last weekend and overheard two collectors arguing. One said, 'I only buy keys for the ROI, the stories are just a bonus.' The other guy got mad and said that mindset is ruining the hobby for real fans. It made me think, is collecting now more about investment portfolios than personal passion? I see slabs going for thousands online, and it feels different from when I traded books with friends. Has the focus on value and grading completely changed what it means to be a fan?

PSA: Found out the original 'Watchmen' pitch was for the Charlton Comics characters DC later bought

I read it in a 2005 interview with Dave Gibbons, and it makes you see the whole story differently, like how Rorschach was supposed to be The Question.

Switched from reading single issues to waiting for the trade paperback of 'Immortal Hulk'

Honestly, I used to grab every new issue from my local shop, Comic Empire, on Wednesday. Tbh, waiting a month between chapters of a story like that just killed the flow for me. Ngl, getting the whole 10-issue arc in one book for about $25 let me actually enjoy the pacing and art without forgetting key details. Anyone else find they connect with a story better when they can read it all at once?

My comic shop guy told me I was reading the wrong way

I used to just grab the newest issue of whatever looked cool and read it alone, but last month he said I should try reading whole story arcs in order, even if that means going back to older books. I started with the whole 'Dark Phoenix Saga' from the 80s and it made the new X-Men stuff make way more sense. Do you guys read single issues as they come out or wait for the full trade?