question time

Almost done answering your questions: here are parts one through four (1 2 3 4) and just below is the, I think, penultimate installment. I’ll finish this week, I promise!

• • •

philfromgermany has a germane question:

“I’ll ask the same question as last year and even pester you next year if you don’t get on it:
Have you read John Ostrander’s Suicide Squad yet?”

Egads. Well, you better get on me next year about it, because no, I still haven’t read beyond what I’d already read in years past. And I have no excuse now that they’re beginning to put ’em into trade paperbacks.

I’ve read the first two issues, that one issue that crossed over with the Giffen/DeMatteis Justice League, those couple of Millennium tie-ins, and whichever one had the Grant Morrison-inspired “The Writer” character. So I haven’t not read any Ostrander Suicide Squad, but I have yet to read them in sequence. Someday, I promise! I might be in my seventies by then, but I’ll get to ’em!

“Also thanks for the blog, I have made a habit out of reading it at work after I come back from lunch. For about 7 or years now.”

DO NOT GET FIRED FOR READING MY SITE.

• • •

Thom H. smacks me with the following:

“How do you deal with adult-oriented comics at your new store? I’m thinking Sex Criminals, Saga, Avatar horror comics, etc. Do they get bagged? Racked separately? Or just include in the regular alphabetical order I assume you use to organize books? I ask because different stores I’ve been to have them displayed in different ways, and I was just wondering what your solution to keeping them out of the hands of kiddies is.”

I addressed how I handled this at my previous place of employment, and I’m sort of doing something similar at the new store.

The upper left hand section of the top shelf of my new comics rack is where I put the more mature-y type stuff: your Vertigos, your Avatars, like that. Sometimes the more extreme stuff will get bagged, and if the covers are too much, they get the blackened “privacy” bags I mention in that previous post. Seems to work okay so far!

• • •

ArghSims cries out

“I mustache you, what is the source of the new sidebar picture labelled me1depts.jpg?”

It’s last week’s sidebar pic now (but still visible on the increasingly-startling Wall O’Previous Icons), but it was pulled from this installment of a 1970s series of television adaptations. And it is amazing:

• • •

Brian brain-teases me with

“As a long-time comics retailer (and now store owner), how much have you seen the decade’s boom in quality comics film & television affecting readership – either in newcomers or (more likely) returning readers?”

There’s not really anything I can point to, beyond some generalities. I’ve got kids looking for Rocket Raccoon comics because they’ve seen him in the movies. I’ve seen sales on Iron Man dissipate since (at least per my interpretation) the comic can’t seem to duplicate the frisson from the films. I’ve had people declare “oh, there’s a Walking Dead comic based on the TV show?” and buy handfuls of the graphic novels, and I’ve had TV adaptations like Orphan Black start strong and then peter out.

At the very least there is an increased awareness of the comics that inspired the movies and shows, and occasionally that awareness turns into sales, but not always. Which is fine. I don’t know if we’ll ever again get anything like the crazy comic store Bat-rush when the first Tim Burton Batman film was released, but sometimes it’s enough to know that there’s a whole generation of kids out there who know who Groot is. That can’t hurt.

• • •

googum googums

“The news of Omega Men’s premature cancellation-then-extension, along with some good reviews, got me to try it, then go all-in on the series. Did anyone else hop on board, or had the train already left the station?”

It’s nice that DC allowed for extra issues to wrap up the story, but, no, I haven’t noticed any increase in readership. It’s a low but steady seller for me, so I’m glad the customers I do have for it will get a complete story. That also may help improve some consumer confidence in trying out new series, without having to wonder “gee, should I bother since it’ll get canned immediately anyway?”

• • •

Pal Casie cases the joint with

“Was there someone before Swamp Thing?”

Well, do you mean “were there other swampy-type characters in the funnybooks prior to our favorite muck-encrusted mockery of a man?” And, yeah, sure there were. Man-Thing just barely beat Swampy to the stands, and there was the Heap, who first popped up in the 1940s, and others as well, I’m sure.

Or do you mean “was there a comics character you, Michael Ricardo Anatoly Sterling, were obsessed with prior to Swamp Thing?” and unless you count “Star Wars” as a character…not that I can think of. I mean, I read the Disney comics as a kid, but I wasn’t all like “I must get every appearance of Gyro Gearloose’s helper, Helper!” That sort of peculiar behavior had to wait ’til I was a full grown “adult.”

• • •

That was a slightly shorter post, I realize…sorry, got a later start on it than I planned. But I should be able to wrap it all up in the next post…I hope so, I’m running out of names of Cheech & Chong movies to use as post titles. Anyway, thanks for reading, and I’ll be back in the next day or so with the stunning conclusion!

Looks like I’ll be wrapping up the latest Question Time next week, so if you want to throw an extra question or three onto the pile, feel free.

Thanks for reading and participating, everyone, and I’ll see you on Monday!

I asked for questions, you gave ’em to me, and here are your answers (And here are the previous answers: 1 2 3.)

• • •

Bully, the Little Commenting Bull, horns in with

“Whither comics?”

Oh, young bull, “whither comics?” do you ask? Why, one might as well ask “whither the sun that shines” or “whither the waves that pound the beaches night and day” to question such a fundamental part of human existence. They, like comics, are inextricably intertwined with our lives, our hopes and our dreams. Comics express our innermost hearts and can release us from our daily pressures…we must always have comics, now and forevermore, pushing us ever forward into our unknowable future, providing the emotional and intellectual support they always have as we strive ever upward, embracing our desires and our foibles as we improve ourselves, improve the human experience, and reach out above us to touch the face of God.

tl;dr version: eh, comics are okay, I guess.

• • •

Hooper slam-dunks me with

“What current comic series provides that same thrill/enthusiasm you had when you first discovered comics? I’ve lost that loving feeling…”

It’s true, one can get a bit jaded after reading so many comics for so long. Becoming too aware of the industry of the whole may strip a little bit of the magic away as well, as comics go from those great things you can’t wait to get unbundled and shelved at the local Stop ‘N’ Go, to “man, the guy who wrote this issue was a dick to me on Twitter, I don’t want to read this.”

But if I had to pick current comics that stir up that old fanboy excitement, the ones that make me forget I have to sell these for a living and just enjoy them for the pure sake of enjoying them: Groo, and Astro City, and Love and Rockets, and Hellboy, and IDW’s Popeye reprints, and Concrete if we ever get another one, and I’m sure I’m forgetting something. But those are ones that still feel “special” to me, that make me remember why I got into comics in the first place.

• • •

Robert in New Orleans hits me with this big easy question:

“I don’t see you comment on the newer Image comics titles much (last 4-5 years). Do you have any favorites or are they not really your cup of tea?”

I really haven’t had much to say about them, honestly. I’m glad they exist, some of them certainly sell well, some of them certainly sit on the shelf and look at you forlornly, but I don’t have anything specific to comment upon. I’m enjoying Nameless, and I need to get cracking on Plutona and Descender, both of which look fantastic, and my mom likes Bitch Planet, so, you know, there’s that.

• • •

Bret Sector could only go this way with

“Were Convergence and Secret Wars jumping on or jumping off points for your customers?”

Well, of the two, Convergence was more of the jumping off point, kinda sorta, in that they ended a bunch of series that were doing okay for me prior to Convergence, and then launched a bunch of series after Convergence that by and large didn’t sell worth beans. So, it wasn’t that people jumped off so much as they were pushed. Most of the pre-Convergence series that continued afterward have remained more or less at the same level they were at.

Secret Wars…it’s harder to say. We’re just now, as of this week, getting relaunches of some of the pre-SW titles, and it remains to be seen how those will go. If Iron Man sells at all, I’ll consider that people jumping on. …In fact, the very post I was working on before I set aside and deciding to have you guys send in questions was examining if replacing all the regular Marvel books with Secret Wars tie-ins was a net gain for the summer or a net loss. Turned out to be more complicated than I thought…the Hulk related tie-ins sure as heck sold better than any regular Hulk comic of late, while Korvac Saga‘s sales didn’t really make up for not having three or four Avengers titles on the stand for months.

So, I don’t know yet. We’ll see how these post (well, sorta post) SW relaunches go.

• • •

MrJM tweets

“Are Twitter pals REAL pals?”

In this brave new Internet age…sure, close enough. Only real pals could stand my constant tweeting about Frank Miller’s The Spirit all the time.

• • •

Eric L LOLs at me with

“Have the new Star Wars comics brought in any new readers or are they just selling to the regular comics buying crowd?”

I’ve noted in the past that the opening of my store at about the same time a bunch of new readers were looking for a comic shop so they could get the new Star Wars comics was very, very good timing. Yes, I believe the Star Wars comics actually did bring in new readers, and I do in fact have several people on the comic saver lists who only get Star Wars. So, thank you Disney, Lucasfilm, and Bad Robot, for giving my store a boost when it needed it!

• • •

FrenchGuy dit

“Is there any top-selling comic at your store that you just can’t get into ?”

There’s plenty of stuff that sells that doesn’t do anything for me, which is fine. I can’t like and read every comic that passes through my door. Secret Wars is probably Marvel’s top book right now at my shop, and I’ll flip through it and it’s very much the “reading someone else’s mail” effect. I’m glad it’s doing well and that my customers like it, but it’s Not for Me and that’s okay!

• • •

Wayne Allen Sallee sallies forth with

“What non-event title surprised you the most in your store as selling consistently good, and which title does the opposite? Not as a comic store owner who may make or lose money by having extra copies left on the shelves. You. Mike Sterling. Which books surprised you as one of us humans you take money from on a daily basis.”

Low kind of surprises me with how well it sells. It’s not a title that gets a lot of buzz like, say, Saga, but boy do I have a lot of customers for it at the shop.

As far as a low-selling book…I kind of expected We Are Robin to be doing better than it did. I have a couple of pull-list customers for it, and I just recently started selling a copy off the shelf…in fact, a lot of recent Batman family books I expected to do better, but since Batman wasn’t actually in them, oh well.

• • •

Old Internet pal Eddie Mitchell geeks out with

“I am resisting the urge to ask you who would win in a fight between the Oompah Loompahs and Herbie the Fat Fury….”

Herbie.

“…because I do have a serious question. What word/words of wisdom/advice do you have for people who are either non-comics people or people who have been out of comics for decades who have a huge batch of comics they are looking to sell?”

Well, you can haul ’em all over to the local funnybook vendor and, if they buy comics, ask ’em if they want yours. Otherwise, you may have to eBay or Amazon or Craiglist them. If they’re ’90s comics or later, you may need to sell them in bulk. Earlier than that, you may have some goodies that’ll be worth separating out, but that will take some time for research and such. Worse comes to worse, you can always donate them, to a library or a hospital or something like that. But if you do try to sell them at a store, remember my comic selling etiquette from a post or two back.

• • •

Let’s wrap this all up tomorrow, hopefully!

I asked for questions, you gave ’em to me, and here are your answers (And here are the previous answers: 1 2.)

• • •

Allan Hoffman wrenches me with

“Are you able to get an employee to abuse, I mean help you out?”

followed by ScienceGiant, who concocted an extra-sized question with

“Ever going to hire a Mikester protege, who will one day follow his mentor’s footsteps and leave to start his own store? Or are you steering kids clear of an ailing business?”

The plan is to hire someone else eventually, though I’m not quite in the position nor the mood to do so just yet. The business is doing well, with the occasional bump in the road here and there, but that isn’t unusual for a small business still in its first year…particularly a comic business. But, someday, I will hire some poor soul I will underpay and overwork and eventually lead into some modern day version of A Christmas Carol where I am visited by the ghosts of Comics Past, Present, and Future (all portrayed by Steve Ditko, oddly enough).

As to teaching a young padawan to follow in my footsteps, to move on to open up his own shop…well, that would serve me right, I guess. I don’t think this is an ailing business as such, but it is a business that will likely undergo some serious changes in order to survive. I wouldn’t necessarily discourage anyone away from the retail end of the business, but I’d definitely make sure they knew what they were up against.

• • •

ScienceGiant had a second question…HOW DARE YOU SIR though I suppose it’s a follow-up to a previous post of mine so I’ll allow it:

“No, seriously, why Batman Day? All your points were valid. But We could apply to same mercy moving logic and ask why doesn’t DC appeal to our better angels and sponsor Superman’s Miracle Monday? Or Wonder Woman Wednesday for that matter?”

It’s like “why does Coca Cola advertise?” In this case the Batman Day coincided with the launch of the second season of Gotham which was the likely reason for it this year. But why Batman, specifically? Possibly because Batman has traditionally been one of the most popular superheroes with the general public, and the most likely character around whom it would be easiest to generate excitement for a specific Day. Also, there’s no shortage of Batman products to sell in connection with the event…Superman has a lot, too, but not as many books with the sales power of Dark Knight Returns or The Killing Joke.

• • •

Alex asks

“Does it warm your heart or give you a pleasantly startling jolt to, say, pick up your comic pile and read the latest Astro City and/or Hellboy comic and realize it’s been right around 20 years and neither has fundamentally changed?”

Consistency is nice. I do like picking up a comic and knowing that 1) it’s the same group of people working on the book, and 2) they’re continuing to build their fictional world, and 3) they can build toward certain future goals that won’t be disrupted by a sudden shift in the creative/editorial staff. So, yes, I do indeed think it’s swell.

• • •

Roel Torres rolls up with

“We’ve seen some changes in the status quo. Jane Foster is Thor. Sam Wilson is Captain America. Amadeus Cho is the Hulk. James Gordon is Batman. Which current superhero could benefit the most from a new creative direction?”

I would have said “Iron Man,” because that character’s four-color life has totally be supplanted by his cinematic adaptation and boy, nothing’s been working out for that character’s comics. But, a brand new direction and series is in stores today, so let’s see how that goes.

…Boy, it’s hard to come up with something. Seems like nearly every character is goin’ through something right now, and it would seem odd to suggest a character like the Flash, which 1) just got back from a decades-long status quo upheaval, and 2) is doin’ just dandy right now, thanks. I don’t know…I’d say, Fantastic Four, maybe, since the last few series have struggled a bit, and whenever they bring the title back from the limbo Marvel’s put it in, something drastic needs to be done to keep it viable and attractive to readers. What exactly, I don’t know. Maybe more H.E.R.B.I.E.

• • •

CP Bahnanahs appeals to me with

“As a kid back in the 80s I’d often buy promotional posters off of my local comics shop when they were done with them. (The one announcing Camelot 3000 #12 finally coming out is a personal favorite.)
1. Was I a sucker?
2. Does that still go on? When I worked at a B&N people would frequently ask for our standees and other displays. Wondering if you get that too.”

Nope, no suckerishness here…lots of people like promo posters and items. I think I’ve even unloaded one of those Camelot 3000 posters on the eBays a while back. I even had a fella ask me for the Batman Day poster I had up a week or two ago, so yes, people still ask for promo items. An aside: I’ve only ever asked for two promo items from other stores in the past…one was at a music store, where I asked for a poster they had on display for the Portland ska/rock band the Crazy 8s (got it when they were done with it) and for a Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie poster from a video store (no dice).

Some old promo posters go for a lot of scratch, in fact. At my previous place of employment, Ralph had stacks of certain old promo posters: two by John Byrne (a Man of Steel promo, and one for Legends) that regularly went for good money; and two Watchmen posters (Rorschach and the Comedian), that did likewise. But there was the occasional promo poster I’d come across that I’d just keep for myself.

And like that Camelot 3000 poster you mention, there was a little Dark Knight Returns poster…actually, more a cardstock sign…announcing that yes, #4 was finally here. I think there may have been one for Ronin #6, too. And Marvel should have done one for the back half of Ultimate Wolverine Vs. Hulk, come to think of it.

• • •

Tom W suggests

“What length, creatively rather than commercially, constitutes a graphic novel rather than something that in prose would be a short story? 320 pages, ie Watchmen length? 1,800 pages, ie Preacher/Sandman length? 6,000 pages, ie Cerebus length?

Sorry, not as lighthearted as the other questions. But I’ve been wondering.”

Hey, that’s fine. I’ll accept questions of all types! I’m not sure there’s an exact line you can draw that isn’t splitting hairs, which is a weird way to phrase that, but you get what I mean. Preacher, Sandman and Cerebus are series of graphic novels, so clearly they’re out of the “short story” category. Watchmen is a single volume (comprised of an originally-serialized story, of course) that contains a lengthy, complex story with multiple threads, so that is certainly a novel in comics form. The Killing Joke, by contrast, is a 48 page “prestige format” comic since upgraded into an oversized hardcover, which contains an essentially…well, not “simple” story, but a much less complex text than, say, Watchmen. The Killing Joke would probably be the definition of “graphic short story.”

However, “graphic short story” seems to be used a lot for actual really short stories, like for anthologies or such. I think at the moment, if it’s a standalone comic and it’s packaged in a format that’s a little more upscale than a standard comic book, “graphic novel” is what it’s going to be called, regardless of page count. I realize what you mean, but it’s awfully hard to define, like I said. It’s probably more a case of “I know it when I see it,” or “it depends.”

Though that sort of vagueness opens things up a bit. Is this a graphic novel? Or this, if only they had stiff covers and no ads?

• • •

DavidG gives me

“Do you think doing this blog helps get people to come to your store? Especially the new one?”

It has! I have had people come to the shop (both shops!) specifically because of reading my dumb blog here, for which I am very grateful. I hope, if anything, doing this site demonstrates for anyone who reads it that I’ve put at least a little thought into this hobby and industry and that maybe I might be someone who can help them with their funnybook interests. Also, they may learn that I’m a person who still uses the word “funnybook.”

• • •

Jeff R. relates

“As someone who has literally only come into a comic book store six times in the past couple years, to buy Sandman Overture, how many people like me have your stores seen?”

Quite a few, actually. Some people just pop in once in a blue moon to see if their particular favorite have popped up. Love and Rockets fans tend to be like that, and I’ve had more than a few people who show up just to buy anything Sergio Aragones has put out in the last few months. So, yes, there are people who aren’t part of the Be There Every Wednesday party, and that’s okay!

• • •

Pal Dorian finds beautiful meanings in beautiful things with

“Mike, where is love?”

It is pictured below:

You’re welcome.

• • •

Enough answers for now…more tomorrow!

We’re back with a second installment of answering your questions (first installment yesterday) so let’s see how far we get. And, as a reminder, I participated in this week’s Trouble with Comics Question Time, asking us what the most recent graphic novel or comic we purchased was, and why. And yes, I did get in a plug for my store, thanks for asking.

Anyway, off to the races! And also, I apologize in advance.

• • •

Mike Loughlin laughingly asks

“If Swamp Thing and Sluggo formed a band, what would they call it and kind of music would they play?”

They would play zydecoi, a cross between zydeco music and Oi! punk bands.

• • •
William Gatevackes opens the floodgates with

“What one thing were you most unprepared for when you opened your store?”

I think I was most unprepared for who tired it would make me. I mean, I’m fine at the shop, and I’m always doing something there, but once I get home it all catches up to me. Especially right now, since I’m working seven days a week. …But I’m not complaining! It’s worth it to have a store of my own!

• • •
pell yells

“What happens after Korea?”

Of course pell is referring to the most famous of all comic panels, the dreaded “THEN KOREA” image y’all saw here first:

…and the only answer I can come up with is

I’m very sorry.

• • •
Paul Di Filippo writes

“You are given a green light and unlimited budget to create a new SWAMP THING film.

1) Who is your cast?

2) Do you adapt a storyline from the books–if so, which one?–or do you create an original script untethered to past plotlines?”

I’d been dreading answering this question since Paul first plopped it into the comments, because, aside from my dead-on absolutely incontrovertibly correct casting of Curtis Armstrong as Wolverine, I am terrible at these kind of armchair casting direction shenanigans. Unless I’m seeing them in a movie right at this very moment, I have virtually no recollection of which currently active actor is which and would be appropriate for what role. If someone else would suggest a name, I’d go “oh yeah!” or “who’s that again,” but I’m really bad coming up with them on my own. So please, forgive my vagueness on one or two of them.

Alec Holland would just have be someone with a big mop of ’70s blonde hair, which is how I’ll always picture him. Almost doesn’t matter who it is, so long as he looks sufficiently science-y. …Wait, who was the robot in Prometheus? (google fugit) Ah, Michael Fassbender. Sure, I bet he wouldn’t mind playing a bit part in a monster movie.

Swamp Thing would probably be a big ol’ digital effect, so we’d need a voice actor…one of my Twitter pals suggested Ron Perlman, which would be nice if he didn’t mind doing yet another comic book monster hero. Or maybe my Holland suggestion of Fassbender, doing his deep, gravelly monster voice of which I have no idea if he has or not.

Abby Arcane…I don’t know. I’ve been Googling up images of actors and actresses to answer this question, and I saw Emma Watson, and I thought “well, put her in the white w/black stripes wig, and Abby is from another country, and as we all know anyone from another country has a British accent, so maybe she’d work.” And…you know, I like Emma Watson, so why not.

Now, Arcane…in the comics, Arcane is an old man, wielding an unholy mix of science and wizardry, and is later a deformed monstrosity after his creations, the Un-Men, try to reassemble his body after falling to his supposed death. So…you know, Christopher Walken just popped into my head, and now I can’t dislodge it.

Matt Cable, I had no idea…doing a little Googling brought up a picture of Luke Evans, who has that tough guy don’t-mess-with-me look that Cable should have. This is me picking someone almost at random, so take this with a grain of salt.

As for the plot…well, I’d stick with “man turns to monster, Arcane wants to control him” without getting into the crazy “plant elemental” stuff right away. I’d probably have Arcane use more of the weird mystical stuff he used into the comics, just to differentiate the new film from the ’80s movie. Kinda loosely adapt the original ten issues, with Swampy encountering other monsters over the course of the film, which Arcane behind the scenes manipulating these meetings for some nefarious ultimate purpose (after seemingly getting killed earlier in the film, and then popping up at the end as the deformed monstrous Arcane).

And of course Cranius would be in the film as himself.

• • •
Steve Cameron pictures me answering this question:

“Have you checked out any of the new Alan Moore Avatar books (Crossed +100, Providence, and even Neonomicon from a couple years back)? If yes, whaddidya think, if no, wtf?”

I read Neonomicon and am currently reading Providence, both Moore riffs on Lovecraftian horror, which I enjoy. Neonomicon‘s set up I liked more than the payoff, which started off as “here are some creepy happenings” and ending with “scary monster sexual assault” which…I don’t know. Didn’t care for it. Providence seems to be a little more subtle in its effect, and am enjoying it thus far. The Crossed franchise I’ve avoided, as it seems to be an exercise in “what can we do that’s more disgusting and horrifying than in the last issue,” and while I get the appeal of that, it’s Not for Me so I’ve passed. I understand Moore’s Crossed work isn’t quite like that, but I didn’t follow it. Sorry!

• • •
Andrew draws me in with

“If you could write the etiquette book for selling/trading comics to a store, what would you describe as your ideal interaction between you and a potential seller? Barring of course a scenario that starts with, ‘I have all these Swamp Thing comics I want to give you.'”

Well, call first, make sure I have time to look at your books, or even if I have room in the budget for pay for them at the moment.

Make sure they’re at least reasonably clean…if they’re caked with dust or ash or cobwebs, hit ’em with a broom a couple of times. If they’re covered with any kind of animal leavings, um, just keep ’em. I’m not going to need them, thanks.

But aside from that…I guess don’t lean over me while I’m trying to price ’em up, don’t wait ’til I’m done tallying everything to tell me “well, I don’t want to sell these” and yank a stack of comics back, and don’t get mad because I don’t give you full retail mint price on your coverless, waterlogged Superboy annual.

The ideal interaction is 1) you bring in the comics, 2) I look through them, 3) I make you an offer, 4) you say “yay” or “nay.” I don’t mind explaining what I’m doing while I’m pricing up the books, but I do mind someone explaining my job to me while I’m doing it, that I should be offering top dollar for these mint 1950s comics (which are actually GVG 1980s Silverhawks or whatever).

Most of the time, things work fine. Once in a while, I get someone pushy or with unrealistic expectations and I try to work with them, but sometimes there’s just nothing you can do.

• • •
The King of the Moon commands

“How do you keep your whites so white?”

• • •
Bookieparlor places his bet on

“Any chance we get to see a Yummy Fur movie in 2016?”

That we haven’t seen some kind of mainstream Yummy Fur film (or cartoon!) adaptation so far is kind of surprising. You’d figure someone out there would be dying to commit “I’m not a penis, I’m the President of the United States!” to celluloid, but alas, where are the brave filmmakers of today?

• • •
Erik declassifies the following information:

“All time favorite comic artist?”

Most people would expect me to say “Bernie Wrightson, cocreator of Swamp Thing” but I actually answered this question just recently for another site, so go take a look at my surprise answer!

• • •
Okay, enough question answerin’ for today…more tomorrow, hopefully!

I asked for questions, you gave ’em to me, so let’s get going!

bkmunn is sequentially first with

“Do you have any Halloween costume recommendations?”

Now, I love Halloween. I love the decorations, the costumes, the weird candy, all that stuff. That said, I almost never dress up for Halloween because…well, I don’t know. Usually I’m working on Halloween and I don’t want a costume interfering with what I’m doing, I guess? Or I just never plan ahead for a costume, or suddenly it’s Halloween and oops, too late to dress up, or I never have a good idea for one. I’ve seen plenty of costumes I’ve been jealous of, like former employee Rob dressing as one of the Ramones, which was perfect. Or customer Marlon, who years ago as a high schooler dressed as Icon, and had he was tall and muscular and the costume was perfect and he just nailed it.

If I were to recommend a superhero costume, I’d say the Badger. It’s relatively simple, he’s usually wearing proper pants so it’s not too embarrassing, and you get to explain to people the entire night who you’re supposed to be. I even briefly considered a Badger Halloween costume for myself at one point before coming to my senses and realizing that whatever the exact opposite of spandex is, that’s what my body is more suited for.

Or, you know, just go as a ghost. One year as a kid I went as a ghost wearing a baseball cap and said I was the ghost of Babe Ruth. …Hey, I thought it was funny.

• • •
Smicha1 challenges me with

“What are the qualities of a great kids comic(for simplicity’s sake, let’s say ages 7-12)? What are some past and present examples you would use as really solid books appropriate for the younger ones?”

I’d say clear storytelling and ideally done-in-one stories. Continued stories aren’t necessarily a problem, but I’d rather give a kid something with an ending rather than a “come back next month for part 27!”

There are plenty of good kids comics on the shelves now, like the Adventure Time series, or the recently relaunched Disney titles, or the Smurfs volumes, or Lumberjanes, or even The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl which I know is beloved by children at my shop. Raina Telgemeier’s books, like Smile, are also popular with the young’uns…maybe more towards the “12” end of the spectrum than the “7.” Also popular: the Minions comic, which is good for pre-literate kids given the emphasis on physical humor over dialogue.

From the past: DC has lots of options, from all their Cartoon Network comics to the multiple Batman: The Animated Series tie-ins to Supergirl in the Eighth Grade. Old Disney comics are good, too, but I’d avoid older Archies as they tend to be a harder sell to kids. In selling to libraries, I was often told “no Archies” as their patrons had no interest in them.

That’s only barely scratching the surface, and I think I should tackle this with a full-length post rather than just tossing off a brief answer here. Let me expand on this in a future entry.

• • •

Sanctum Sanctorum Comix summons up

“What’s so funny about peace, love and understanding?”

“Peace, Love and Understanding walk into a bar….”

“Oh, and how much would you love a serious horror book of Marvel’s magic side (Man-thing, Doctor Strange, Son of Satan, Ghost Rider, et al)?”

I’d think that would probably be okay. An actual full-on horror comic seems unlikely, as the focus seems to be on fitting everything into the superhero milieu, but what I wouldn’t give for a ’70s-style black and white anthology magazine featuring all my old Marvel monster-y favorites. I’d also like it written by Steve Gerber and drawn by Mike Ploog, but, well, you know, getting at least one of those folks is extremely unlikely.

I think something in the style of DC’s current Constantine series would work. Not so extreme that you’d have to put “DANGER! DANGER!” labels all over it, or publish it under another imprint, but definitely on the creepy side of things.

• • •
Dave Carter has yet another comics question with

“What calculations go into your decisions on how to order DC’s open-to-order variant covers for your store, and will there be any change in how your order December’s polybagged variants?”

The open to order variants aren’t too hard. A quick description: these variants from DC Comics are generally the “themed” variants you see every month, like the “Green Lantern Anniversary” variants or the “Monster” variants. Retailers can order as many of these as they’d like, and are not tied to order plateaus (like being able to buy 1 for every 25 regular cover you order). In general, I don’t tend to order a lot, as most of my customers prefer the “real” non-variant cover. And I say “real” because often that’s how it’s asked for. “Do you have this issue?” “Sure, here’s the Beach Party Batman variant.” “Um, don’t you have the real cover?” Like that.

There are exceptions. I have a few customers who collect both the regular and the variant of each issue, and I have at least one customer who wants all the Looney Tunes variants coming in a month or two. And sometimes the covers look really neat and I’ll order and extra or three. And then there’s stuff that will sell regardless, like the Harley Quinn variants.

Now, these polybagged variants…apparently how this works is there are multiple variant covers distributed in different ratios for a particular title, but the variants are sealed in an opaque polybag and you don’t know which variant you’re getting ’til you open the seal and seriously what the **** is this ****. I have no idea how I’m going to order on these yet, though I’m going to have to decide pretty soon. I suspect I won’t be ordering a whole lot more than I do of the other variants.

• • •
Corey gets to the core of things with

“On a scale of 1 to 10, how happy are you that DC didn’t bring back those stupid 3D covers this past September?”

Well, sort of happy. The actual ordering process of those are a pain in the butt, as you have to order extra months ahead of time to allow for the production of the covers. But on the other hand, they are neat-looking and certainly attract attention, but on the other other hand I’m still working on figuring out the local market and may not have been quite ready to commit to ordering these things. So, hey, maybe next year.

• • •
Sean beans me with

“What is the most interesting thing you’ve learned about the funny book business since you took on the additional mantle of store owner?”

That’s a good question. I really don’t know. It’s not like there was some hidden store-owner-only secret revealed to me once I got my own Diamond customer number. I think maybe the one thing I learned is that having the buck stop with you increases the stress and pressure quite a bit more (not that this particular job is that stressful and pressuring, but it’s still running a small business), and that I’m finding myself a lot more wiped out when I get home than I used to be.

• • •
swamp mark bogs me down with

“what does the word ‘trolling’ mean exactly and why is it a bad thing? personally I’ve always loved trolls and wish Tolkien had written a book about their culture. or is it a fishing term?”

It is sort of a fishing term, actually, in that by “trolling” on the Internet, you’re trying to bait someone into reacting to you in a way that you’ll find amusing, much in the same way a fishing boat “trolls” a line or net behind it trying to catch fish. That, um, amuse them, I guess. It isn’t necessarily a bad thing…you can troll folks to make a point or just push a gag, but sometimes folks can troll you just to waste your time and / or eat up your energy, and that’s no fun for anyone. Well, except the troll.

• • •
G23 shoots me with

“Now that you’re a comic book store owner instead of a manager, what one new task occupies your time the most now that you didn’t have to do when you were a manager?”

Easy. Dealing with the finances, taxes, and so on. Occasionally at the old job I’d but together a bank deposit, but mostly the owner(s) took care of that. Like I said above, the buck starts with me, but literally this time.

• • •
David Oakes ain’t nuts for asking

“Knowing what you know now, is there anything you would change?”

Major in business instead of majoring in English.

• • •

Thelonious_Nick chips me with

“Weird industry type of question. It seems like there a ton of new comic companies lately, each with their own lines of comics. Are we approaching (or have we passed) oversaturation? Is this another bubble? And if a shakeout comes, will we be back to just Marvel and DC and a few minnows, or will the industry look different, like maybe Image or IDW will become a third big player?”

That’s hard to say. I don’t know if it’s oversaturation or just everyone throwing what they’ve got at the wall and seeing what sticks. Even Marvel and DC are doing that right now. I can’t say it’s a bubble, because with rare exceptions most things aren’t selling huge numbers, so it’s not like a rapid expansion of a healthy marketplace filled with large amounts of high-selling books. It’s a bunch of low-to-middlin’ selling books all trying to fill some niche or ‘nother and jockeying for position. I think if anything, we’re in the shakeout period now, as everyone’s looking to see what will survive.

In the end it will still be Marvel and DC and then everyone else. Because if either Marvel or DC go, well…there goes the neighborhood.

• • •

Rob S. steals the end of today’s show with

“If there were a new Swamp Thing movie in the works, who would you like to see direct it?”

Me. Or if they wanted someone with, oh, I don’t know, filmmaking talent and skill, Guillermo del Toro. I know, I know, he’s the go-to guy, since he was attached to that alleged “Dark DC Universe” movie that would have had Swampy in it, supposedly. But in Hellboy 2, Hellboy and his hell-pals fight that giant plant monster, and it was weird and beautiful at the same time, and I thought as I was watching it “what could this guy [del Toro] do with America’s favorite muck-encrusted mockery of a man?” Then I realized del Toro will probably never make a movie about pal Ian, so I also thought “okay, what about America’s second-favorite muck-encrusted mockery,” and I’ve associated del Toro with “an interesting Swamp Thing movie I might like” ever since.

• • •
More answers in the next day or so!

Well, I just spent a lot of time writing a post that, ultimately, I decided I should let sit on the stove a bit more before I serve it up, which leaves me with nuthin’ for today. Thus I’m going to depend on you folks for content, and it’s been about a year since I did this last, so…QUESTION TIME!

Once again I open the floor to your questions, which you can place in the comments section to this very post here. JUST ONE QUESTION PER PERSON, PLEASE: I don’t have the blogging time like I used to, and I’d like to finish answering everyone’s questions before the end of the year. I’ll try to answer every serious question seriously, but if you give a silly question or you’re just trying to troll me for some reason, well, there’s no telling what I might do. I’M A BAD BLOGGER ON THE EDGE. I reserve the right to not answer a particular question if it’s too personal or may cause more trouble than it’s worth.

Anyway, please leave your questions in the comments. I know the trend right now is away from allowing commenting from users, but by and large my readers have always had good and interesting things to say, and I have always been grateful for it. I like getting comments, and I read them all, and I would like to encourage especially you folks who’ve been reading my site and have yet to chime in. If you have a question, please, feel free to speak up. I’d love to hear from you.

Just a few more questions to go, pals…hang in there!

• • •

Richard J. Marcej blabs

“I’ve had a theory that in the near future DC and Marvel are going to go the way that ‘Love & Rockets’ has. The elimination of the single issue, 20+page comic (which have become nothing more than chapters of a novel, anyway) to a complete, TPB. It’s my belief that that’s why DC had gone to 52 different titles, so that when they make this transformation, they could offer comic shops a new TPB title every week. (one week a Batman TPB, the next a Green Lantern TPB, the next a Flash TPB, etc…) If the big two went this route how do you think this would effect comic book shops, basically turning them into comic book stores to book stores.”

That could be where we’re headed, but that would certainly result in the end of the direct market as we know (to which some folks would cheer, I’m sure). Comics retail is dependent on the weekly new releases, and the repeat business of regular clientele…plus there is a psychological divide between “buying the latest issue” and “getting the trade” that still exists in the marketplace. DC and Marvel are already playing around with pricier formats that are thicker than your standard comic, but are still periodical-y enough to not seem like trades. DC has that $9.99 format (most recently seen with the Batman ’66: The Lost Episode, and Marvel has been issuing thicker staplebound reprints in the $7.99 format (they’ve released some older Star-Lord comics like this over the last year or so). Perhaps slowly moving their monthlies over to these formats, thicker books with more content (almost by necessity anthologies) and higher price points while still keeping them at least semi-periodical may bridge the gap between increasingly-economically infeasible 20-page comics and occasional trades.

• • •
Michael Grabowski grabs for an answer to this:

“I hope this isn’t too personal, but with regard to those Swamp Thing slippers, or Swampy clothing in general, do you find yourself collecting such items in every size available?”

No, no…usually if it’s something I intend to wear, I’m happy with just getting the size I need. For something like my Swamp Thing slippers, while as much as I’d love to have them in my size, the example set I have is enough. (There is a lot of child-sized Swamp Thing clothing from the early ’90s that, um, I’m probably going to pass on, however. “I was just buying these off eBay for my collection, Your Honor.”)

• • •
Dan randomly asks

“Totally random, my girlfriend was debating about continuing to read Wonder Woman after Azzarello/Chiang.
She had the same reaction as you to the fact that Swamp Thing was in the book (ALMOST as instant buy) but she held off to think about it.
As someone who can’t resist Swamp Thing stories, do you think the issue was worth it to a fan of both WW and Swampy?”

If you’re a crazy person like me who needs every Swamp Thing appearance, then yes. As far as any kind of importance to Swamp Thing’s development as a character…well, it’s no big whoop. It’s interesting as it’s the first time Swampy’s popped up in a Wonder Woman comic, far as I can recall, so if that tickles your fancy, go for it. What’ve you got to lose, other than three bucks? As for Wonder Woman fans…well, it’s the beginning of a new direction for the character, so that’s usually a good time to pop in and see if you like where things are going. Granted, issue #36 is getting some grief in online reviews, but boy, it sure sold well for me at my shop. Your Mileage May Vary, as they say.

• • •
Jerry Smith forges the following question:

“Mike, someone already asked about back issues. My question is, where do you see back issues in 5-10 years? Will younger readers ever want full floppy paper sets of titles like Suicide Squad, Nova or Marvel Two-In One? Will the books be worthless (except for key issues)? Or will there always be some demand for old paper comics?”

You know, I feel like I’ve been doing this blog long enough to think that I’ve probably been asked the “where do you think the back issue market will be in five years” about five years ago. Or even ten years. My honest feeling is that there will always be a market for fairly-priced general back issues, and premium-priced high-demand back issues. The collectibles market for comics is still maintaining, so big-ticket items will continue to move, I think. And just from my years of experience, kids are fascinated by old comics, particularly from before they were born, like from the long-ago ancient times of the early 2000s. Whether they’ll want full runs of things…well, depends on the collector. I’ve got a kid right now looking for all the old Metal Men comics he can get his hands on. So, you know, it’s still theoretically possible. If there’s stuff that’s not selling for what Overstreet is listing it at, there’s always the ol’ bargain boxes…price that stuff down ’til it’s at the cost people are willing to pay.

Anyway, I don’t think the back issue market is going away anytime soon, as long as dealers are smart and careful about it.

• • •
Roel Torres rolls out a few questions:

“Hi, Mike! Congrats once again on the new store! Speaking of which, all my questions are new store related: 1) Did you feel a professional responsibility to discuss the idea of starting a new store with the owner of Ralph’s/Seth’s before you left to see how the idea would be received? 2) Doesn’t it pose a threat to their business that you might cannibalize some of their loyal customers? 3) Was there some sort of minimum driving distance required separating the two stores to make sure you weren’t invading each other’s turf? Thanks and continued success in your new venture!”

1. Oh, absolutely. I wasn’t going to stab these guys in the back…I’ve had a good working relationship with these guys for years, and, you know, they’re friends. I want to stay on their good sides! Ralph had known for years I’ve been wanting to open my own shop, and when an actual opportunity finally arose, I made sure to tell both Seth and Ralph of my plans.

2. I like to think I’m not posing that much of a threat…yes, a few customers came with me, which was not unexpected by any of us, and that was not an issue. I’m also getting a whole new clientele out in my area, so by and large, while there’s still a way to go, I’m creating a market out here, rather than eating away at the other shop’s customer base. Plus, we’re readily sending customers to each other, so we’re building a community instead of a warzone, which is nice.

3. I personally decided I wanted to be a good distance away from Seth’s/Ralph’s specifically so that I could avoid stepping on any toes. I’m about a half-hour away, which doesn’t seem like a lot, but if you lived out here, you’d see that it is most definitely a different area and a different community, and I believe our shops can easily coexist.

Thanks for the good wishes!

• • •
Alex wants to know

“Late to the party, but are you buying Miracleman in single issues as it is coming out, or is that just for chumps like me? I’m not crazy about what it costs, but I’m only buying a handful of titles these days, so I can take it. It’s a good series, and I’ve avoided spoilers for 20 years.

“I’m one of those who grew up hearing how awesome it was, but I dion’t really care to have it in a nice hardcover collection or anything. Upon reading this particular series, I wouldn’t really want someone to pass by my bookshelf, pull it down and flip through it… there’s a reason it’s coming in polybags, that’s for sure.”

Well, I’m something of a Miracleman enthusiast, so I’m getting the single issues even though I have all the originals, out of completeness’s sake. Plus, I get the new coloring and everything put together in order (as opposed to having to piece some stuff together myself). I still can’t bring myself to part with the originals, however, even though I have a store and I need to feed the back issue bins/display cases with stuff.

I’m still convinced Marvel’s only been polybagging Miracleman comics because…well, you know those murder mysteries where the killer has strong motives for killing person C, but also kills persons A, B and D whom he doesn’t know in order to keep the coppers from immediately suspecting him? Anyway, the all-birth issue of Miracleman, and probably the forthcoming all-super-violent issue, are person C in this scenario. There’s no reason for most issues of MM to be bagged, especially when compared to titles on the stands that aren’t bagged. I really do think they were only bagged so that the issue the birth issue wouldn’t stand out as requiring special attention from those folks who think comics are destroying children’s minds. Well, okay, they are, but you know what I mean.

• • •
Chris Gumprich richly proposes

“1. How many of these questions did you expect to be ‘Swamp Thing’ related?
2. Are you as disappointed as I was that they set an episode of Constantine in Louisiana and yet not one single mention of Houma?”

1. I expected a few. I can only blame myself.

2. I’m more disappointed that I haven’t had a chance to watch Constantine yet. Just no time! I promise, sometime before I die I will watch this series. So, you know, in the next few months.

Also last week I blew someone’s mind by telling him Constantine was a Swamp Thing spin-off character.

• • •
Pogressiveruin‘s biggest fan Crowded House slams down this query:

“How long until you are reduced to selling POGs out back to make ends meet, and how far are you willing to go to keep your shelves stocked with these hot-selling items your customers demand everyday?”

If the public demands POGs, I will sell them POGs. I’m not proud. I’m willing to go as far as Ventura to maintain my stock, because I know there’s plenty still at the old shop.

• • •
And my old friend D Latta wraps it up with

“Would you buy a bar of soap at a garage sale?”

Depends how it tastes.

And that is that, my friends! Thank you for your questions, and I hope my answers were, if not particularly illuminating, at least somewhat entertaining, or at the very least correctly spelled. I’ll try not to let multiple years pass before opening the floor like this again…and heck, if you have any questions you want me to answer in the future, just let me know. You know where to find me.

Before we get into this next back of questions and answers, let me direct you to Bully, the Little Freaked-Out Bull, as he makes his own attempt at the Freak Out post, as discussed Tuesday. WELL DONE, LITTLEST OF BULLS.

And now, for our more dreadful sacrifice, MORE ANSWERS:

• • •

philfromgermany has some germane questions:

“Question 1: Have you read Ostrander Suicide Squad by now?”

Not as a whole, no. I’ve read the first couple of issues, the Justice League crossover, and the one with Grant Morrison in it. Really need to get around to it someday.

“Question 2: You are the god-grand pooba of comics and get to put 5 books together, which writer/artist teams do you pick?”

Aside from the Swamp Thing team I picked out a couple of days ago…hmmm, let’s see…and you said “teams” so I’ll try to pair up creators rather than using single writer/artists:

Superman – written by Rick Veitch, illustrated by Jerry Ordway

DC/Marvel Crossover Spectacular Monthly – written by Mark Waid, illustrated by George Perez

Popeye – written by Gilbert Hernandez, illustrated by Dave Sim

Herbie – written by Bob Burden, illustrated by Art Adams

Archie’s Pal Jughead – written by Gail Simone, illustrated by Kevin O’Neill

• • •

Mike Welch wonders

“When, Korea?”

Well, for quite a while, actually.

(Referring to this, for you newcomers.)

• • •

JRC asks

“Alternate reality Mike: Instead of opening a comic shop, you’ve decided to open a comic company! What is your first month of series/one-shots/minis you publish?
Titles:
Artists:
Writers:
Inker/Colors:”

Man, you guys really want to know what comics I’d put together. Okay, just for simplicity’s sake, I’m sticking to a single artist instead of noting inks and colors as well, mostly to save some time here. And I’m guessing by opening a comic company, we’ll be wanting new comics (or at least bringing back some presumably public domain ones).

So:

Spunky the Monkey – monthly series by Don Rosa

Unicycle Tragedy – monthly romance comic by…well, it would be an anthology. ANYTHING AND ANYONE GOES

Giant Pirate Comics – monthly comic by Rick Veitch (what can I tell you…I like Rick Veitch) – either an oversized comic book featuring pirates, or a comic book about actual GIANT PIRATES, like 10 to 12 feet tall, terrorizing the high seas.

Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Comic by the original MST3K writers, with Joel/Mike and the ‘bots making fun of bad (almost certainly public domain) comics. Something like this almost happened, if I recall correctly.

Jupiter – monthly, if not weekly, by Jason Sandberg – hey, I want this comic back in a bad way.

• • •

John Boylan HAS TO KNOW:

“1. What is your most prized Swamp Thing item/collectible (sentimental or otherwise)?”

It’s hard to pick just one. There’s this Swamp Thing drawing gifted to me by Scott Saavedra early on in the life of this site, one of the very first goodies sent to me, out of his own free will, by a creator I greatly admire just because of this silly website I do here.

Of course, there’s Swamp Thing Chalk, both the actual thing and references to it.

And then there’s this, probably most prized if only because I thought it lost for so many years.

“2. Do you proudly display your love of Swampy at home? And is there photo documentation available?”

Some of it is up here and there…my Swamp Thing statues are in the dining room china cabinet, and most of the other goodies are in the toy room, mixed in with the girlfriend’s massive collection of Spider-Man stuff. Don’t really have a photo of any of it, but eventually I’m going to have at least the original Swamp Thing drawings displayed at the store, so I’ll take a photo of that when I do.

• • •
Tim O’Neil forces me to answer:

“You used to say that you still followed all the Star Wars EU stuff relating directly to the cast of the original trilogy. Now that they’re putting the Prequel era in the past and moving back to a focus on the original trilogy characters, are you going to need to reexamine that policy?

“Or are you all in ride-till-you-die with Luke, Leia, and Han?”

The first New Star Wars Expanded Universe book just popped up in this week’s Diamond Previews, so I gotta think about it. Honestly, not having a final wrap up volume to the original Expanded Universe, putting a cap on all those years of SWEU reading, was kind of a drag. I understand why they didn’t, but it was still disappointing not to have it, and it’s kind of soured me on investing too much time in future ancillary SW storytelling. You know, aside from the comics. And the TV shows. And maybe the occasional novel. We’ll see.

• • •
Mike L dares to query

“Pog Section up and running? ;)”

HOW DARE YOU SIR

…by which I mean “not quite yet.”

• • •
John Parker opens a can of worms with

“What’s the most stupid comic you have ever read?”

Well, that would either be this one or this one.

Okay, okay, that was the obvious joke, I guess. But really, comics usually don’t get more stupid than this.

• • •
Tomorrow: the exciting conclusion!

We now return to Mike’s Question-Answerin’ Time, which is already in progress:

• • •

ArghSims arghed

“So I know you got the idea from Miracleman, but can we blame you for memes like this?”

…And then he links to this, which is a sports-related gag image that is similar to posts in my “freak out” category. I’m sure it’s just a coincidence, I ACCEPT NO BLAME.

However, to be completely honest, my inspiration for those “freak out” posts comes more from the Zippy the Pinhead gag where Zippy will latch onto a particular phrase and repeat it. Some of my “freak outs” do that, where the same phrase is repeated, but just as often I’m quoting different parts of a lengthier quote. The zooming image, as I recall, seems more like something that naturally arose for visual variety to accompany my weird reemphasizing of whatever expression I, in my Zippy-like state, latched onto. I wasn’t specifically thinking of that page from the first Eclipse Comics Miracleman when I first did it, I don’t believe, but perhaps it was a subconscious influence.

I ended up combining the two eventually anyway.

And I suppose this is technically a “freak out” post, which predates my first actual one. IT’S FREAK OUT #0

• • •

John enjoins me with

“It may be too soon to ask, but do you prefer running your very own store, with all the perils that entails, or managing someone else’s?”

While managing someone else’s store does mean I can focus on ordering and selling the actual product, I have to say, even with the added responsibility of managing (or, rather, hyperventilating over) the taxes, I am enjoying being in my own shop. Especially now that the customer base and store sales are starting to grow to levels more than sufficient for survival, which takes a bit of a weight off my back. It’s a small store, with (for the time being) fewer product lines, with basically only me running the place…I am a lot more…relaxed, believe it or not, being on my own, even with every buck stopping with me.

• • •

Eric Houston has no problems asking me

“When a collection comes into the shop, what is one (fairly common) book you always buy and one you never buy?”

One comic that turned up a lot in collections at the other shop was that foil-embossed shiny cover version of 1993’s Robin #1 (the center one here). It’s not terribly expensive…it’s, what, four or five bucks, maybe, but they always sell, so I always bought ’em when I saw ’em.

That was actually an easy question to answer; the common books I never buy are a little harder to narrow down. There are lots of common books I never buy. 98% of Marvel Comics Presents. Any issue of Brigade ever. In fact, a lot of early Image Comics releases tend to get the ol’ “no thank you.” I think even now, being in a store that doesn’t quite have the backstock that I’d been used to over the last couple of decades, I’d probably still pass on them.

• • •

James jimmies me with a couple of Swampy questions:

“Excluding teams who were on the title together, who would be your creative dream team for Swamp Thing?”

Jim Woodring and Mike Mignola. …And don’t tell anyone, but I’d love to see what Rob Liefeld would do on the book.

“Also, how glad are you that Swamp Thing fans aren’t referred to using the same nickname generator as Star Trek fans? Unless of course you would like being known as a ‘Thingie.'”

I prefer “Tubers.”

• • •

rook017 checkmates me with:

“How important are back issues today for you, the dealer? Or is new stuff your bread and butter?”

Well, I’m still trying to get my footing with a new marketplace, but so far new comics and graphic novels are the primary movers. Back issues aren’t underrepresented, however, as there is always someone looking for older issues. I personally enjoy having lots of older comics around, but if they didn’t sell, I’d have to put my heart aside and use that back issue space for something more profitable. Fortunately I seem to have a market for them here, particularly with children, a lot of whom like having the opportunity to buy really, really old comics from 2005, in case you haven’t felt your bones creak today. Plus, back issues are a good alternative for people who like comics, but just don’t like anything new the publishers are putting out.

“2014 dollars vs. 1984 dollars… Do you make as good a living? I am not trying to get personal, but it seems like if a typical fan buys fewer different comics, does the higher price offset that for you, the dealer? Or how is making money now different than it was 30 years ago?”

Well, it’s hard to say. Prices on everything have increased, in every aspect of life, and as I’m older now, I have more expenses, so…yeah, it’s complicated. Do some people buy fewer comics because of higher prices? Sure. Some people still buy the same number of comics, too. Plus, the market is different now, at least when it came to the shops I worked in. We had more people coming in to buy comics…not just the hardcore fans, but casual readers who wanted to try out comics, the folks who wanted the indie books, the graphic novel fans, and so on. And stores seem to be a bit more diversified, too…maybe shops aren’t selling as many comics, but they sure as heck are selling piles of Pokemon or Magic the Gathering packs.

So…okay, I don’t have a good answer for you. I don’t think I’ve taken too much of a financial hit due to comic price inflation as you’d think, mostly through expanded customer bases and diversified product lines. And, personally, I think I’m doing better dinero-wise on my own than as a cog in someone else’s machine, though my planned meeting with my tax person this week may divest me of that particular delusion.

“And why have we not seen a Legion/Swamp Thing crossover? Do they seriously expect us to believe there are no swamps in the future or on other planets?”

If memory serves (and I thought I even talked about it on the site before, though I couldn’t find it) someone wrote in to the Legion of Super-Heroes letters page asking, since it was established in Alan Moore’s run that there was a chain of plant elementals that existed throughout history, where was the 30th century’s swamp critter? I think the letter got the “well, maybe that’ll happen in a future story!” which of course it didn’t. Anyway: Swamp Thing versus Pulsar Stargrave. I’d be okay with that.

• • •
More answer-time tomorrow, hopefully! Thanks for reading, pals.