stevetwo

March 1, 2013 7:50 pm Any suggestions? I thought no one did that anymore, but I'd be interested if I knew it was relatively inexpensive.

March 1, 2013 7:48 pm That's a great point about ongoing storylines. Sure, Brubaker's Cap run is great and all, but would I seriously reread it? Or Bendis' Avengers' saga? Maybe Disassembled, Civil War. Bendis' Daredevil is the only massively long epic I've considered rereading. I do plan on rereading all of Scalped soon. A lot of my rereads are done in ones or pre-90s when stories had real endings, although some books after that like Astro City are great.

March 1, 2013 3:58 pm Sorry! Here's your metaphor! http://geekout.blogs.cnn.com/2011/10/25/the-star-wars-divide-a-tale-of-two-costumes/

March 1, 2013 3:58 pm For all comic-loving parents: It's about a costume, but it's a metaphor for life.

March 1, 2013 3:47 pm Gabe, I’ve been in the exact same boat as you for some time. My kids are still young (7 and 9), I’ve gone through some spring cleaning from time to time, and, most importantly like yourself, have had that long internal discussion about ‘do I really need these comics?’ Yes, it’s an incredible realization that you should do it, and if this is the first time you’ve thought of it, it’s okay to feel overwhelmed. Just know that these thoughts were inevitable. I think it has to do with the aging process, unburdening yourself with so much stuff because your priorities are changing (particularly when it comes to family). You're asking yourself, 'Do I actually believe I'm going to read any issue of Omega Men over #12?" just like you'd ask yourself, "Do I really need to prove I'm still hip by going to that bar for 21 year olds?" Okay, you want to clean house. I'm just going to talk generalizations because anyone can throw out/donate comics. For me, it's an emotional trip too. And I apologize for length. But here’s what you have to understand: 1. Realize you’re about to make a major sacrifice of something that has been a fundamental part of your entire life. It’s gonna hurt. Trust me, this is coming from an avid comic collector since he was 10 AND who’s a lifetime member of the Pack Rat Society. It will get better. You know why? See #2. 2. Realize you’re cleaning house for you and your family. You’ll create more space for family stuff both physically and mentally. 3. Face the facts: You will NEVER EVER read at least half those comics ever again. Ever. Yep, there are many books in your collection – series, runs, characters – that you’ll always love and always love rereading… are you thinking about those? STOP RIGHT THERE! 4. Those books you were reminiscing about? Those are the ones to keep. That’s it. Nothing else! 5. Now the hard part – go through all those boxes (that's some giant collection in the photo!), make separate piles, whittle down the piles. You want to keep those books that truly touch your heart or conjure great memories when you see them. Great stories, epic battles, funny stuff… 6. Know that the value of the stuff you’re pitching is nil. If you believe that about an issue, then it's worth nothing to you too. 7. Know that anything you hold onto, YOU are the one who has to move it all. 8. Kids don’t care. I went through that. Don’t save for the kids. But look at it this way, if they want to read something, what you’ll give them is GOOD STUFF, not Omega Men #47 or L.E.G.I.O.N. ’95 #2. 9. A good portion of comics out there, particularly older issues, can be acquired through trades or hardcovers. I’ve gotten rid of several of my old single runs by purchasing nice compilations. Doesn’t mean you have to get rid of singles, but the option’s there. Good luck Gabe. Just remember you aren't the first to come this way!

February 22, 2013 2:29 pm Gabe, first: "It’s like you’re standing on a subway platform, the comic book train is speeding by and you’re contemplating just the right time to hop on in a way that won’t result in your complete bodily obliteration..." Too soon, man. Too soon. Second, I'd like to know what kind of sales surge happens when a book is marketed as "a good jumping on point." Quite frankly, now is a great time to just grab a book if one is interested. (insert old prospector voice here:) Back in my day, you didn't have comic shops to go find back issues if you bought issue #176 at the local Kroger's, and liked it enough to read the previous issues. You just bought it and held on for the ride! (normal voice back on:) All the "young'uns" out there: yeah, don't worry about the issue number or if it's a jumping on point or not. Only YOU - once you've read it - will know if you want to keep reading it. Don't listen to the hype unless it comes from a trusted source, like a friend or LCS employees (NEVER listen to the company tripe). Sure you will have spent $3-4 on something you don't know if you'll like, but trying is better than never trying at all: "Why do we fall down? So we can learn to pick ourselves up."

February 20, 2013 11:18 am I'm willing to give the series a shot only because I love the character and the idea of a Nova Corp since the very first series, and I'm interested in seeing the kid develop in his one-horse town - all that open space. However, I'm disappointed that, from this review, the story seems textbook "Back to the Future/misunderstood teen" theme, down to the principal look-alike. So if this is his background, we've seen this story play out in books and movies a zillion times. Get away from it. Show us a different side of this person and his surroundings that we WOULDN'T normally see. Loeb has done great character work in that respect in the past. I just hope I see more of it before I tune out.

February 15, 2013 9:42 pm Sorry, side note. I'm not saying there are pinup covers today that aren't good. Hawkeye is a good example, but if they go with this same style for the next 20 issues, you've lost me completely. Scalped. I can't think of a single cover in its 60 issues that WASN'T visually incredible - and most of them didn't tell me a bit what was going on inside.

February 15, 2013 9:30 pm Although there are some truly iconic covers that have come from the past decade or two (Fables, Scalped, Maleev's Daredevil anyone?), I can't believe that publishers actually believe they sell more books with pin-up art. The current state of the comic book cover is a joke for two reasons. First, as you said, you have no clue what's going on inside a book with a pinup cover. I know that if I grab Amazing SPiderman #69 or any other number before 400ish, I get an idea of what the story was about, or I can find a particular story I enjoyed, to reread. I think the run in Amazing Spider-man, around the time Straczynski was writing is the best example of terrible covers (nothing against Straczynski). I suppose Marvel thought, "Scott Campbell's hot right now. We can sell the books just on his pinups AND we don't have to commit to anything we're putting inside the books." That's all fine and dandy, but I challenge any Marvel editor to look at that run and tell me precisely which issue Spiderman fought the Morlun the first time (one of my favorite contemporary storylines). Second, it's all about advertising. Somewhere corporate minds forgot what Stan Lee and his predecessors and peers, heck, any Marketing person creating movie posters, album covers, magazine advertisements - knew since humans made the first cave paintings - compelling images which provoke an person's inner sense of intrigue and wonder will aways win over static shots. "Oh no! Batman's tied to the front of a runaway train! How will he get out of this one?" vs. "Hm. A picture of Batman crouching on a roof. At night. His cape is flapping in the breeze." 'Nuff said.

February 12, 2013 12:55 pm I just want them to stop with the goofy character poses and worthless bars on the covers.