Thursday, August 23, 2012

Whoops! You Just Killed Comic Books.

     
    You may not know it, you may not even think about it, but when you go to your local comic book store you have a responsibility. That responsibility is to buy monthly issues of comics. Not trades, not omnibus, not definitive editions, monthly issues. That floppy you aren't buying because you want to "wait for trade" is killing the comics industry. 
     We all have that series that we need to own every bit of. The original issues, the variant issues, trade paperbacks, omnibus edition, definitive edition, original art, etc. I'm not talking about that. This is a boots on the ground, nerd-in-front-of-the-rack war that is being lost, and we are all going to be casualties. The reality of being a fan of comic books is that it takes some work. Pre-ordering books from your local retailer months in advance is how a book may live or die even before it’s born. As much as we would like to be able to go to our local store and buy whatever comic we want whenever we want, that isn't how the industry works and it’s up to us to do our part to ensure that the medium we love continues.
     This isn’t meant to be a long rant but a reminder that creators, publishers and shops rely on us, the fan, to go in weekly and buy the issues off the rack. Not only that, but you need to research and order in advanced the titles you think you want to read. If you love comics, and if you are reading this chances are you do, then do your part. Pre-order, pick up weekly and enjoy!