Mikester

Also, I’m not going to grade and price your comics over the phone.

filed under Categories retailing 8 Comments

A weird thing that’s been happening of late is the preponderance of folks stopping into my store with stacks and stacks of books wanting me to, you know, just spend a few minutes grading and pricing them out of the goodness of my heart and not out of any expectation that the comics would eventually end up in my possession. As you may have gathered from that too-long sentence, this is not a thing that I want to do. I’ve spent decades learning to grade and price comics, and that the actual grading/pricing process of a pile of comics takes time, and if I’m spending time doing this without receiving any benefit from it (like, say, being able to sell the comics myself to make profit for the store), then it’s taking away from my ability to make a living with my shop.

My old boss Ralph used to offer an appraisal service, where he’d go through a collection and do a full write-up of grades and current estimated pricing on each comic, but he’d charge an hourly fee to do so. In my case, there was one person with a small stack of books that he asked me to grade, as he was attempting to grade and price them himself and he wanted to see if he was doing it at least reasonably properly. This person did offer to pay me for my time, and seeing as how it wasn’t too many books, and I wasn’t necessarily busy at that very moment, I went ahead and did so. Doing a full-on written-up appraisal of a large collection is probably not something I can do right now, since the shop is still a one man show and paid or not, that sort of appraisal would take away more time from other store duties than I’d be comfortable with. But, getting paid for a quick run-through of a small selection of books? Sure, I can manage that.

Otherwise, expecting me to go through each book in a large-ish assortment and give you a report on the price and condition of each one, for free? That’s asking a bit much. Thankfully, the other folks asking me for this realized my reluctance to do so, and pulled back their requests, mostly just wondering if they had anything particularly valuable in their piles of books that they should be aware of. That’s clearly a bit less time consuming, particularly in the case of the duffel bag full of well-worn ’90s comics. Maybe not so much with the large bag filled with ’60s comics, also mostly worn and water-damaged but with a couple of nice copies of Detective that I made sure to point out to the gentleman. I was trying to help them, but not in the much more extensive and time-consuming way they initially desired.

I don’t think I’m being too much of a hardnose about it. If someone drops in with a couple of comics they’re wondering about, I’ll give ’em a hand figuring out what they’ve got. But I honestly can’t spend the time processing other people’s collections when I’ve got boxes full of comics I actually am able to sell that I need to grade and price.

When I’m actually buying a collection, I have to do grade/price estimates, obviously, but that’s specific information I usually keep to myself, using it to decide my total offer at the end of the transaction. I mean, if the seller asks “how much am I getting for this comic?” or “what’s the most expensive one in the bunch,” of course I’ll let them know, but if they decide not to take my offer, all that exact grading/pricing info stays with me. I didn’t do that work so that someone can take that information and use it to sell the comics themselves. (They probably couldn’t read my chickenscratch notes that I scribble during the process anyway.)

This all probably sounds terribly selfish, but I have to protect myself. I can’t do extensive amounts of free labor for other people to profit from. That’s not fair to me. Like I said, I don’t mind looking at the occasional book or two for someone, or even just letting them peruse the store copy of the price guide, but those three or four long boxes you dragged in just for me to price for you? Obviously those comics are all in Gem Very Good to Fair Plus condition, at a penny apiece. That estimate is no charge to you.

The implied promise of the eventual “Wicket W. Warrick, Ewok Lawyer” comic.

filed under Categories pal plugging, this week's comics 1 Comment

So you guys all remember pal Ian? The fella who was one of the founding members of ACAPCWOVCCAOE, which is short for, as long-time readers will remember, Associated Comics and Pop Culture Webloggers of Ventura County, CA and Outlying Environs? The kind and gentle editor of the Bill and Ted’s Excellent Comic Book Archives who was good enough to place a credit for me in the collection due to my small bit of production assistance?

Well, pal Ian can use a little help…he’s been out of work for a bit, and while he tries to get more employment in the comics biz, he could stand a bit of assistance to keep himself going in the meantime. If you have a few spare dollars, he’d be most appreciative, so please visit his GoFundMe page and help out if you can. Or just straight-up hire the dude…he’s a good and talented guy! I’ll vouch for him!

• • •

Meanwhile…COMIC BOOKS:

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I’m genuinely surprised that Marvel is ending the Darth Vader series, but in retrospect that’s probably a good thing. Too much Vader can spoil whatever mystique is left (I mean, yes, we got a lot of Anakin in various Star Wars-ian media, but Vader is another thing entirely), and we basically know how it all ends for him, so having a short-run adventure with a beginning, middle, and end in the midst of already-established Star Wars “history” is for the best. And it’s also probably just as well that the series bows out now while sales are still strongish, though they were beginning to sag a little…switching up the titles on a regular basis for ones starring different characters keeps things fresh. Yeah, that’s like the exact opposite of what I usually want from Marvel, another parade of new #1s, but Star Wars sales generally remain strong and enthusiasm for new titles is still present in the marketplace, unlike the groans I hear at the same titles being relaunched over and over again, sometimes only months apart.

Now elements of the Darth Vader comic will continue in this new series, and by the way that entire link is a SPOILER in case you haven’t read that last issue. I wonder if the main Star Wars title has a planned conclusion in its future? I suspect not, but I am surprised at the lack of a current comic based on the Rebels cartoon, since the Kanan series wrapped up some time ago. I think an Ahsoka series would probably be like printing money.
 
 
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We’re beginning to see a little more of a direction in the Doom Patrol series with the second issue, after a very strange, but still quite interesting, debut issue. Glad to see the return of concepts from the Grant Morrison era, which is a couple of decades old now (but usually readily available in trade paperback form at a comic shop near you!) but I still have fond memories of those crazy stories and it looks like this new series should build quite nicely on them without necessarily repeating what we’ve seen.
 
 
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Every time one of the new Superman comics comes out, like this week’s Action #965, I say the same thing: “this shouldn’t be working.” But it does, somehow, even with the convoluted set-up of the pre-Flashpoint Superman returning to the New 52/Rebirth universe after the reboot Superman died, and then there’s the other non-Superman Clark Kent running around, and two Lois Lanes (or are there) and the Son of Superman, and so on and so forth. It makes for compelling reading, as the reader wants to know what the resolution is going to be, and I sure as heck hope it’s not tied to the larger metaplot of the Watchmen’s involvement in Rebirth. But eventually there’s going to be some sort of “smoothing out” of continuity which results in One Universe, One Superman, One Lois Lane, and I’m about 90% certain No Son of Lois and Clark, and it’ll probably be Dr. Manhattan waving his hands and saying “well, I thought that would work, let me put the pieces back together.” We’ll see.

Anyway, this issue of Action had a couple of great Lois Lane-focused covers, appropriate for the Lois-heavy content within. It was hard to pick which one I wanted for myself, but ultimately went with the one pictured above.
 
 
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I buy every issue of Haunted Horror (and its sister mag Weird Love)…it reminds me of that late, great series Tales Too Terrible to Tell, without the great historical text pieces discussing the stories and publishers, alas, but it is in color and it’s always great to see what was going on in vintage horror titles that weren’t from EC Comics. The stories can be of…shall we say, varying competency, but they always make for some entertainingly ghoulish reading. Hey kids, comics!
 
 
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If you told me years ago that in 2015/2016 I’d be reading and enjoying a Howard the Duck comic that wasn’t written by Howard’s creator Steve Gerber, I’d probably be secretly plotting a way to get my hands on your time machine. Also, I would have been surprised by this revelation. It’s not Gerber’s Howard, but it was definitely Zdarsky’s Howard and it’ll be missed. Yeah, this is the last issue. That’s too bad. …Still can’t believe I’m saying that about a non-Gerber Howard. YES, I’M CLINGING DESPERATELY TO THE PAST, WHAT OF IT

“There are more Things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.”

filed under Categories fantastic four 7 Comments

So for whatever reason I started spouting off about the Fantastic Four on my Twittererers over the weekend, wondering if the concept is simply just played out and resistant to any form of forthcoming newsstand success. Now…frankly, I’m not sure what put the thought into my head, because:

1) Recent FF comics have been pretty good, actually. The main issue of late with ongoing FF titles, or any ongoing Marvel title, is that given current publishing strategies, a series doesn’t stick around for too long before being given the ol’ reboot/relaunch. And, FF titles of late, when they reach the endpoint of their “current” series, are given fairly definitive endings that wouldn’t naturally flow into a new storyline from a new creative team, thus necessitating reboot-ering.

2) There’s also the thought that Marvel is hesitant to publish comics that would provide grist for other movie studio’s mills, as film rights for the FF are held outside of Marvel Studios, which would explain the lack of a title for them right now. Of course, Marvel is still publishing X-Men comics, also not under the purview of Marvel Studios, but not publishing X-titles maybe a financial hit Marvel can ill afford, compared to the relatively small loss from not having a current FF title. Anyway, I’ve heard both support and debunkings of the “Marvel won’t publish books licensed to other studios” thing, so I have no idea what’s going on there.

Whatever the reason, I shouldn’t be saying that the Fantastic Four idea as a concept is over and done with. Pretty much any comic book just needs the right take from the right people and suddenly it’s viable again. Part of my thought process here may have come from the fact that the Fantastic Four movies have had such a hard time finding traction. I didn’t dislike the film adaptations from the mid-2000s, and even the much-maligned movie from last year had its moments (and I suspect a sequel building on that film could work a lot better). But it feels like if Marvel Studios were to get the FF back under its roof and integrate it into its cinematic universe, then the team might have a better chance of catching on. (One idea I’d heard was to make them “period” characters from the 1960s, and the rocket flight that gave them powers back then also shunted them forward to the modern day, which I think is kind of brilliant.)

There are other points, too, that brought me to the position of thinking the Fantastic Four are past their sell-by date. Chris and Matt on the War Rocket Ajax podcast often mention about the repeating of certain character/plot developments, such as “Johnny has to learn to grow up and be responsible” which has happened a few times in recent memory. And then there’s the idea that if you keep going back to Dr. Doom and Galactus and the Negative Zone and “Is This The End of the Fantastic Four?” you’re just rehashing, but if you try to do different things and switch up characters and whatnot, suddenly “this isn’t the FF.” It strikes me that Fantastic Four probably isn’t the easiest comic book in the world to write.

In the course of my Twitter-babbling (different from my blog-babbling, in that the paragraphs are shorter), I did say that while the Fantastic Four idea may be in need of rest right now, the simple fact of the matter is this:

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For support of that statement, I refer you to this piece I wrote long ago as part of an article about a sadly still-forthcoming Thing graphic novel (at the end of the page, in italics). The Thing really is one of the best characters, not just in comics, but in all of fiction. Yeah, that’s right, I’d put him up there with, like, Hamlet. In fact, I bet the Thing could totally take Hamlet in a fight.

That brought me to think about how they could bring back the Fantastic Four in a way that would have a little more staying power (beyond whatever behind-the-scenes movie-stuff wheeling-and-dealings to which we’re not privy), and that gave me an idea reminiscent of my old Legion of Super-Heroes concept:

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While that doesn’t remove the family-relationship drama that we may have seen over and over again in the title, presenting it from the Thing’s perspective will at least give us a slightly different angle on it. And by making it Thing-centric, the pressure is off from regularly featuring the other members of the family in the title…while possibly opening it to guest-appearances and other team-ups Marvel Two-in-One-style. Since this book wouldn’t technically be “The Fantastic Four,” that kind of character ‘n’ situation switch-up wouldn’t (hopefully) result in complaints that this isn’t the FF folks are used to.

Plus, everyone loves the Thing, so I feel like this would be one heck of a book if done right.

Oh, and someone remind me to add an “armchair publishing” category to my site. Just came to mind for some reason.

In which I totally plug a book where I’m mentioned by name.

filed under Categories pal plugging, swamp thing, watchmen 1 Comment

So there’s a little extra information brought to my attention by pal Christopher in regards to that lost DC Comics Presents Swamp Thing/Superman team-up that I mentioned last time. Christopher informs me that an interview with early ’80s Swamp Thing scribe Marty Pasko in Back Issue #87, Mr. Pasko relates that he had a script for said team-up ready to go, but the script was assigned to artist Alex Toth, who never got around to completing the job and turning it in. Though no details about that story were related in the article, Christopher guesses that this may have been the story promised in Saga of the Swamp Thing #16, and I’m inclined to agree with him. Ah, well…that’s too bad, as I’d like to have seen an Alex Toth-drawn Swamp Thing…I know his Superman wasn’t too shabby.

timewatchcoverIn other news:

Pal Rich has published his book Watching Time: The Unauthorized Watchmen Chronology, which is pretty much what it sounds like: a gathering of all the events from all across the Watchmen universe, from the original comics to the prequels to the movie and even the video games, and placed into a chronological order. Each entry is tagged with its source, so you can determine the level of its relevance yourself. Rich even points out where there are contradictions between sources on particular topics (such as multiple conflicting details about the character of Rolf Müller, who may or may not be Hooded Justice).

There is an enormous amount of information presented here, and for someone like me, who likes seeing how the various interpretations of the same material/franchise fit together (or don’t), there’s a lot to enjoy. And yes, even the unproduced film scripts are included in the chronology. Rich was very thorough. Also noted is the virtually hot-off-the-presses inclusion of the Watchmen characters in the DC Universe “Rebirth” event. No, Rich doesn’t know any more about what’s going on there than we do. He can save that for Watching Time Part Two!

Now I’m a little biased here, since, as implied by the “pal” above, Rich has been an online chum for some time now, and I am in fact thanked in the acknowledgements in the book (I helped look into a couple things for Rich as he was putting this together), and he was good enough to send me a digital copy of the book to peruse. However, I think I’m going to end up getting a print copy of this to keep with the rest of my Watchmen goodies. And you can, too, if you go to his promo page and follow the various store links there.

In other, other news: I produced another in my “Back Issue of the Week” entries for my store site. I like writing those…it’s very “back to basics” blogging that I don’t do enough of here. Hey, remember when it seemed like bloggers were rediscovering this comic every couple of months? I don’t think I ever got around to writing about it…maybe now’s my chance!

Besides, she’s not wearing that headband in the ad, so clearly it was an entirely different story.

filed under Categories self-promotion, swamp thing 4 Comments

I’ve once again dipped my toes into the Trouble with Comics pool, contributing to the Weekly Question of the Week, he said redundantly and repeatedly, this time discussing favorite “Comics What Never Wuz.” As you probably have guessed, I picked Swamp Thing as the focus of my discussion, and if you’re familiar with Swamp Thing at all, there should be one story that comes to mind right away, so of course I primarily discussed another one. Anyway, go read what I had to say and then meet back here so I can give you some additional notes on the matter. Go on, read it. I’ll know if you haven’t. I’M WATCHING.

…

Okay, one thing I wanted to add was a bit of information I gleaned from the Tom Yeates interview in the new-last-week issue of the Back Issue magazine. Yeates (who drew most of the initial storyline on the Saga of the Swamp Thing comic from the early 1980s) said he was approached to complete the art job on that Wein/Wrightson reunion comic that Wrightson ended up departing. In the Swampmen book I reference over at TwC, Wein says he suggested “several names” to the publisher, including Kelley Jones (who’s drawn his fair share of Swamp Thing comics over the years), so I imagine Yeates was probably one of said suggestions. Anyway, it’s a shame that particular mini-series never happened.

There were a couple of other Untold Swamp Thing tales I thought I’d mention…in fact, I’ve mentioned them on this site before, but what the heck, let’s bring ’em up again. Well, actually, when you get right down to it, these are more “abandoned plotlines” than “actual comics in that were in the process of being produced but subsequently canned.” First was the old “Abby’s magical powers” storyline that I examine in some detail in this post from (urg) nine years ago. This was a subplot that began in the post-Wrightson issues of the original 1970s series, and it seemed to be leading somewhere, but vanished along with Matt and Abby from the comic, which was cancelled only a few issues later. And, as I said in that original post, when Matt and Abby came back in the revival series Saga of the Swamp Thing, the “magic powers” thing was well forgotten.

I’ve discussed this one from 1983’s Saga of the Swamp Thing #16 before in the context of other abandoned plot threads in comics, but at least in this case it seemed like they were planning a specific comic to address the matter, as opposed to maybe eventually getting around to resolving a subplot (like in the case of Abby’s powers):


In fact, this particular “forthcoming” issue of DC Comics Presents was what might have been intended to be represented by Swampy’s headshot in the DCCP ad in 1983’s DC Sampler #1:

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…as the next Swamp Thing/Superman team-up to appear in that magazine wouldn’t be until a couple of years later, well after Alan Moore took over the Swamp Thing comic’s writing chores and sent things in a wholly different direction, leaving behind the mystery of Linda Holland’s grave. Then again, the plugged Supergirl and Batman and the Outsiders team-ups wouldn’t happen for a couple of years, either, but I suspect the Crisis on Infinite Earths nature of the 1985 Supergirl issue wasn’t the story planned when that small mention was placed in the 1983 Sampler book.

All I know was that I waited for this Swamp Thing issue of DC Comics Presents very patiently, and when he did finally appear in the comic, I enjoyed the story so much I almost, but not quite, forgot all about that gravesite device plotline. …Hence this blog post.

Progressive Ruin presents…the End of Civilization.

filed under Categories End of Civilization 11 Comments

Okay, okay, fine…after months of pressure, I’ve finally released my personal End of Civilization returns. I hope you all find what you’re looking for in there…and maybe you should have a copy of the October 2016 edition of Diamond Previews to help you follow all my earnings and losses:

p. 125 – Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? #76:

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[Ghost of Shakespeare is tied up, Daphne pulls off mask]

Velma: “Jinkies! It’s Christopher Marlowe!”

Marlowe: “I would have won the day if not for thee
You kids who meddle, make my plans for naught.”

(NOTES: see here for the original Internet Scooby-Doo/Shakespeare mash-up, that of course I didn’t remember ’til after I wrote this.)
 
 
p. 151 – Batman The Animated Series Batman, Robin and Mutant Leader Action Figure 3-Pack:

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“So Marvel’s got toy Hulk hands that kids can wear, right?”

“Yes….”

“And they also did Thing hands, if I remember correctly.”

“You do.”

“Okay. So what we should do is produce….”

“Batman hands?”

“No…Mutant Leader nipples. Be just like your favorite villain from the Batman cartoon by wearing th–”

“Get out of my office.”
 
 
p. 152 – DC Icons Swamp Thing Action Figure:

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“Hi, I’m Alec, and after being on the Weight-Beaters power diet plan for only six weeks, I’ve lost all sorts of excess poundage! And look at how much weight my friend Cranius shed after six months!”

“I no longer even have a stomach! Or pretty much any other internal organs!”

“That’s great, Cranius!”
 
 
p. 157 – Star Trek/Green Lantern Vol. 2 #1:

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Featuring the Guardians of the Wold Newton Universe!
 
 
p. 271 – Cavewoman Monster Dreams One-Shot Massey Cover B:

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Well, wouldn’t you know it, someone’s beat me to my Halloween costume.
 
 
p. 273 – Alexander Hamilton:

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Why, that doesn’t look like the Hamilton I’m familiar with at all.
 
 
p. 278 – #TeamBetty Blue T-Shirt/#TeamVeronica Red T-Shirt:

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AHEM:

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p. 322 – Wonder Woman ’77 Meets The Bionic Woman #1:

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Here’s hoping for the follow-up Ace the Bat-Hound/Run, Joe, Run, for which I suspect I’d be the only audience.
 
 
p. 410 – Doctor Who Tenth Doctor Year Three #1:

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“I believe that this publisher should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of publishing a Doctor Who comic based on the Peter Cushing movies.” [cheers, applause]
 
 
p. 445 – The Pokemon Cookbook Easy and Fun Recipes:

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“Why, this Lickitung tongue tastes terrible. Are you sure you cooked it right?”

“Look, if you don’t like it, we’ll have Pidgeot giblets tomorrow.”
 
 
p. 471 – Star Wars Galactic Maps An Illustrated Atlas of the Star Wars Universe:

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“Well, look, here’s the bright center to the universe…and here’s Tatooine all the way over here. Huh, guess Luke was right.”
 
 
p. 509 – Batman Classic TV Series King Tut Resin Bust:

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Frankly, I think all Batman merchandise has been leading up to this. What home doesn’t need a statue of Victor Buono, to watch over your household and bring you good luck?
 
 
p. 520 – Alien Derelict Ship Statue:

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The World’s Richest Alien fan is buying a few dozen of these for the most expensive game of horseshoes ever.
 
 
p. 536 – Friday the 13th Part 5 Jason Mask Prop Replica:

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“Can’t…can’t you just go the sporting equipment store and…?”

“MOM. This is the OFFICIAL replica. As seen in Friday the 13th. Part FIVE. Please do NOT waste my time with nonsense.”
 
 
p. 583 – Dragonball Z Figure-Rise Mechanics Saitan Space Pod Model Kit:

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I’m not sure I’m into this Mork and Mindy reboot.
 
 
p. 613 – Marvel Heroes The Infinity Gauntlet Cookie Jar:

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MOM: “Okay, who’s been sneaking cookies out of the Marvel Heroes The Infinity Gauntlet Cookie Jar?”

BILLY: “Not me!”

DOLLY: “Not me!”

THANOS: “Fools taking up arms against omnipotence. They rush head-on into Armageddon. So I shall provide them with a most glorious doomsday! The heavens will run red with blood. But in the end, as always, Thanos will have his cookies.”
 
 
p. 616 – Star Wars Darth Vader Briefcase:

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“The briefcase Darth Vader carries to meetings with his officers” reads the actual solicitation, so they’ve already beaten me to the obvious joke. But here’s hoping someone out there is working on a Special Special Edition of the original trilogy and can CGI some briefcases in there.
 
 
p. 618 – Star Wars Death Star Schematics Mighty Wallet:

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So this is how the Rebels got the plans out without any apparent email or anything in the Star Wars universe. They just folded them up into novelty wallets and Imperial security didn’t even give ’em a second glance! “You crazy kids and your wacky, mixed-up wallets, get on out of here!” …Oh, SPOILERS for Star Wars: Rogue One, by the way.
 
 
p. 621 – Batman The Animated Series Almost Got ‘im Card Game:

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Well, if we’re basing games on single episodes of the Batman cartoons, then let’s have one based on the greatest episode:

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p. 624 – Magic the Gathering TCG Conspiracy Take the Crown Booster Packs:

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“Atogs are putting mind-numbing chemicals in our water supply.”

“…Wait, what?”

“The Brothers’ War was a false flag operation.”

“Now hold on….”

“THE LORD OF THE PIT DID….”

“Leeeeet me just stop you right there.”
 
 
Marvel Previews p. 95 – Star Wars Classified #1 & #2:

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“An all-new, top-secret ongoing Star Wars series begins this December…”

…please be Lobot please be Lobot please be Lobot….
 
 
Marvel Previews p. 106 – Star Wars Box Set Slipcase:

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“Yup, it’s collecting all the major Star Wars comics. Episodes IV-VI, the latest Episode VII, Shattered Empire, the first Darth Vader hardcover….”

“And Episodes I-III, right? Right?”

“Episodes IV-VI, and Episode VII, and that Darth Vader book, and Shattered Empire….”

“And I-III, yes?”

“Shattered Empire for sure, Episodes IV-VI….”
 
 
Marvel Previews p.134 – Marvelman Classic Vol. 1 TPB:

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Marvel…who, again? This character seems familiar, but I just can’t place him. Maybe they should do a regular comic with this guy or something.

Would Swamp Thing’s favorite skateboard trick be the salad grind?

filed under Categories swamp thing 2 Comments

skateswamp
Thanks to Twitter pal Sean for sending this my way…a poster for a concert that, alas, was a few days ago as I write this, so if you wanted to go, you missed it. I sincerely hope there was a skateboarding Swamp Thing at the show, as advertised.

I’m reminded of something from a long time ago, the misty dawn of the 1990s, when old friends Rob (bass) and Zack (vocals) were in the local nerd-punk band Phooey. They were going to be doing a show with The Muffs, and I’d found a panel from a Harvey comic that would have made for a good flyer. It was a shot of, I believe, Spooky, exclaiming “PHOOEY! It’s no fun to play with girls!” I thought it was funny, but alas, the flyer was never made, but it’s just as well — I wouldn’t have wanted to make it even the tiniest bit easier for the he-man woman-hater types that pollute the internet now to find said image for sadly non-humorous, non-ironic usage.

Yes, that first line is in the original cartoon.

filed under Categories cartoons, superman 4 Comments

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“So long, my Super-Robot! Bring back lots of juicy loot!”

 
 
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LATER

 
 
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“I said ‘loot,’ you stupid robot! LOOT!”

 
 

images from The New Adventures of Superman, “The Two Faces of Superman” (originally aired December 24th, 1966)

That red arrow is pointing at Pal Dorian’s old car.

filed under Categories free comic book day, retailing, self-promotion, sterling silver comics 4 Comments

Oops, sorry, I really was planning to have a post on Friday, and then when I missed that, a post on Saturday…but I have an excuse, honest. I was out car-shopping, and then, eventually, car-buying, over the last week, and was coming in awfully late and very tired in the evenings. Turns out that, if you’re running a shop seven days a week, that doesn’t leave you with a whole lot of time to do other things, like, oh, say, getting a new vehicle to replace the old about-to-die one.

Yes, buying a new car wasn’t something I wanted to do, but rather had to do, as my old pickup, immortalized in this Google Earth image from long ago (pointed at by the blue arrow):


…was well north of 200,000 miles on the odometer, and a visit for a smog check resulted in the mechanic telling me “I can’t test this thing,” so that, and several other issues, resulted in the need for a new Mikemobile. And thus, the 1994 Mazda B2300 is dead, long live the 2016 Hyundai Tuscon. …Actually, I tried to buy used, but it turned out there was nary a difference in price between a used 2015 Tuscon and a new 2016 one, and frankly, instead of driving a car that already had 20,000 miles on it, I’d rather put those 20,000 miles on it myself (or approximately 1,200+ trips back and forth between my home and the store).

So anyway, I have a new car, with all kinds of crazy electronic gadgetry I have to learn, as my previous vehicle was essentially a collection of levers and pulleys and this new car is like a more advanced version of KITT from Knight Rider. But now Caveman Mike have new magic machine to bang club on, and Blogging Mike should be back on schedule with his website. Thank you for your patience.

Oh, and by the way, on a completely unrelated note, now might be a good time to, say, come shop at my store, or maybe buy something from my eBay listings, or even patronize my Patreon. Or just overnight me a shoebox full of twenties, that’d be okay, too.

• • •

Okay, how ’bout some comic book-type stuff? I kept meaning to do a little write-up about DC’s Batman Day event, in which DC tries to get the word out about this crazy dude what dresses like a bat and fights crime. Yeah, okay, it’s the comic industry’s version of advertising Coca-Cola, but there’s usually a freebie of some kind involved (this year, a reprint of the recent Batman #1 from the Rebirth event), and it does get folks into the shop. I did the same thing I did last year, and set up a table filled with Bat-books and boxes of back issues and offered discounts on all the stuff, and did some pretty good business. Certainly there were people out enjoying Batman Day decked out in their Bat-regalia…shirts and dresses and the like, and I barely had to advertise it at all for the event to be considered a success.

Now, this is all part of trying to create Free Comic Book Day-esque events throughout the year to generate business for comic shops, like the still-forthcoming this year Halloween-Fest and Local Comic Shop Day. That’s fine, I won’t say no to stuff like this that’ll boost sales, especially when they don’t really require a whole lot of effort. Advertise, have the goodies ready for the day, and be a happy and polite retailer that welcomes everyone that comes into your shop. Actually, that’s good advice year-round, though it sounds like some folks can’t even manage that minimal amount of effort, as related by pal Shane on his Twitter.

Speaking of stores, Diamond Comics has regular Best Business Practice awards, and this year I put my shop in for Best Free Comic Book Day 2016. Only Diamond accounts can vote, so I can’t push the Progressive Ruin Army to my bidding here, but I figure I was the only comic shop with Jaime Hernandez, Batman, and my dad in-store for FCBD this year, so surely I have a chance at claiming this honor. (And if Jaime, Batman and my dad did all show up at another store without my knowing…well, wouldn’t that have been something.)

Oh, and I did another Back Issue of the Week at the store site, too. These are fun to do! Maybe I should start a comic book blog.

And one more bit of Turok Dinosaur Hunter first issue follow-up from last week: read this account of the dreaded fate that befell approximately 5,000 copies of said comic, if you dare.