What Are Comics For?
I've been sorting my comics as I prepare for my big move. Earlier tonight I found myself delving into some of the earliest comics in my collection. And let me tell you: some of these things are beat to hell.
They're missing covers, they've got creases, and they're falling apart. Obviously this is because they've been very well read. I'm not one of those people who sees comics as an "investment" or a "collection." Hell, if I didn't read the damn things over and over I probably wouldn't even bother keeping the old stuff.
My question is this: are there any of you out there who also have comics that look like they've been through the wash? Are they beaten and broken with love? Or is your stuff carefully sealed in plastic bags and stored in a climate controlled vault?
Share with me your stories, for I am interested.
Labels: Off-Topic
posted by Diamondrock @ 10:45 PM
6 comments
6 Comments:
The older comics in my collection are beat up, some are missing covers, but all my comics are bagged and boarded, just to try and keep them in readable condition longer.
I've got a selection of older stuff, usually from the 80s or 90s, bought second hand that are pretty knackered.
I read new issues at the breakfast table, over dinner, in the bath, on the train, wherever. They ineveitably end up creased, stained and bent. That's fine with me, because they are there to be read.
The only ones I properly take care of are the trades, especially the hardcovers. That's because as books they just look and feel so nice.
If the books come in plastic bags I tend to keep them in bags, until I flog others on ebay and need to bag them up.
Comics aren't an investment. Only keep them nice if you think you might want to sell them.
Oh, heck yeah. When I went through my comics last year to thin 'em out, I ended up keeping some old Batman and Green Lantern comics that have definitely seen better days. I couldn't bring myself to part with them, even though some are readily available in reprints. And as much as I hate comic book bags, I had to bag some of these old comics because it was the only way to keep all the pieces together!
I feel better about my comics when I read the fuck out of them and lone them out to one or more friends. They are not an investment. They are a library. Folds, stains, creases, finger prints? Bring 'em on. That being said, I get pissy when my very drunk friend brings a very drunk person to our suite he intends on hooking up with and after everyone has gone to sleep they spill something all over the last the issue of Geoff Johns JSA, Blackest Night 0, and my new copy of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #1, I get pissy and it makes me emo for about 15 minutes till I walk it off.
Also, I bag and board all my books (at a very delayed rate) and put them in alphabetized long boxes because that makes them easier to find. Plus having long boxes makes me feel cool. Dorky, huh?
I used to be fussier than I am now, so some of the older ones are actually bagged and boarded and in long boxes. But yeah, comics are made to be read, so none of mine are particularly pristine.
I just can't understand the idea of buying a comic and then having it sealed off forever in one of those CGI cell thingies. That's just nuts.
When I was young, I used to treat my comics so well. All were bagged and boarded, and they only came out long enough for me to read and then right back in the bag. At about 15, I realized that my comics were among my most prized possessions and that I could never see the day I might sell them. After that decision, I became far less careful.
Now, every so often during money crunches, my wife looks at my 6 longboxes and asks if they're worth anything. I can honestly answer, "No, sweetie, not really, because I never took good care of them."
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