Journey into Comics Retail #784! By Rick B. – Graham Crackers Comics

Journey into Comics Retail #784! By Rick B.

A helpful handy guide to help find happiness in your local Graham Crackers Comics back issue bins!

  1. We stock things first into three major categories.
    • Marvel Comics! These include your AVENGERs, DEADPOOLs, QUESTPROBES, SPIDER-MANs and US1s! These are in the RED-faced boxes!
    • DC Comics! These include your BATMANs, HAYWIRES, OUTSIDERs, STARMANS, and WARLORDS! These are in the Blue faced boxes!
    • Independents! These include 90% of every other comic book series, like GRENDEL, GRIMJACK, INVINCIBLE, MAGE, and WALKING DEAD. These are in the Green Faced boxes!
      • Yes, each specific and/or preferred location might also have Silver Age, All Ages, Magazine sized, Graded Books, and more like shiny pricey Display Wall treasures!
      • Best of all! Every Graham Crackers Comics location has a plethora of $1 books to hunt through.
  1. We then split those categories down to alphabetical order (well as close to it as possible.)
    • For example, all locations put (A)vengers under A.
    • But depending on your manager, (A)mazing Spider-Man will be under S for Spider-Man.
  1. To help with that alphabetizing we have title dividers. Also, color coded red Marvel, blue DC, and green Indy.
    • What we do not have! And what causes many a folk to miss some titles is that no store has a title divider for every title! There are just too many titles, too many volumes (looking at you 14 Punisher volumes) to have a specific title divider for everything.
    • So, remember if you see Hawkworld followed by Hellblazer followed by Hitman, it does not mean we do not have HEX! HEX is simply alphabetical after Hellblazer.
  1. We then split those alphabets down by ascending numerical order (again as close to it as possible.)
    • For example, in the front of a DC long box with Action Comics, #562 will be in front of #563, which is in front of #600, etc.
      • The tricky part is the Batman #0 that came between #534 and #535. Our Wheaton location tries to put those when they arrive by publishing date. So, it goes May’s #534, June’s #0, and then July’s #535.
  1. Then, typically each title is followed by Annuals (if it has any) broken down in the same order of alphabet then numerical then by publishing date. Then, titles are sorted volume 2s or Nu52s or Rebirths or Mighty or The.
    • So therefore, it goes Action Comics volume 1, Action Comics Annuals. Action Comics Nu52, Action Comics Nu52 annuals, Action Comics Rebirth, Action Comics Rebirth Annuals and so on and so forth.
  1. But wait there’s more! After annuals there are mini-series and one-shots for some series!
    • Like Batman! There are 100s of Batman titles from Batman Black Gate One Shot to the Sword of Azrael mini-series. So, after the main Batman on-going titles, you will find Batman mini-series. Mini-series are typically 4 to 12 self-contained runs. One-shots are generally just that, a published once and done issue or a single issue that leads into something else.
  1. Finally, if all this fails and it will, because my mom stopped cleaning up after me and no one ever seems to put things back where they found them ask your helpful Graham Crackers Comics employee!

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