Overheard a guy at the comic shop say something that stuck with me

I was at The Dragon's Hoard in Akron last Saturday, and this older guy was talking to the clerk about how he only buys books from the 80s. He said, 'I don't read new comics, I read comic book fans.' He meant he just watches what people get excited about online to know what's 'important.' It made me think we might be the real story sometimes, not the books. Has anyone else felt like the fan chatter is its own comic universe now?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_paul15d ago

That's a really interesting point, but maybe the guy at the shop had it a bit backwards. In my experience, the online chatter can be its own loud bubble that doesn't always match what's actually good or important in the books themselves. It's easy to get caught up in the fan theories and hype cycles. Sometimes you miss the quiet, solid stories because they aren't trending. The real trick is finding a balance between listening to the crowd and trusting your own taste.

holly_garcia15d ago

Wait, you ever see someone get so into the online drama they miss the actual comic? My buddy Mike bought a whole run of some new #1 because the forums were losing their minds over a possible cameo. He read it and said the story was pretty mid, but he spent a week arguing about a single panel online. Felt like the arguing was the main event, not the book.

shanef3415d ago

Ever feel like the hype is the real comic? The story gets lost in all the noise. It's a shame when the talk overshadows the art.