About 10 years ago, I bought my first two comics while waiting for my mom, who was shopping for clothes at a mall. Looking for something to pass the time, I wandered around and stumbled into a comic book store. I ended up picking up Amazing Spider-Man #1 by Dan Slott and Invincible Iron Man #1, both of which had just been released. I’ve been collecting ever since, not once looking back.
I’ve enjoyed so many incredible series over the years, whether it’s Saga, The Vision, God Country, Venom, Monstress, or others. Reading through each issue brings me back to the sense of excitement I felt as a kid when I would wake up before sunrise on Saturdays to watch the newest episode of Pokémon, Amazing Spider-Man, X-Men, or Batman: The Animated Series. But back then, I had to wait until Monday to share my excitement with my friends at school, all of us eager to discuss what we’d watched over the weekend. Fast forward to today, and I now get to work in a comic book store, and it’s awesome! New comic book day (Wednesdays) brings back that same excitement, but with one big difference: now I get to see that joy and anticipation reflected on the faces of our customers. I don’t have to wait until Monday to share my excitement with friends like I did when I was a kid. Instead, I get to see that same kind of excitement every day as customers come in, eager to pick up the latest Amazing Spider-Man issue, or one of DC’s Absolute titles (they’ve been crushing that entire line out of the park), or even indie gems like Exquisite Corpses. Comics are fun, after all, and it’s an amazing feeling to see others enjoy the hobby just as much as I do.
What I love most about comics, though, is the sense of community. It’s incredible to see parents come in with their kids, sharing the love of reading and collecting together. Friends coming in together to buy different series. Married couples visiting, with only one of them being a collector, but still seeing their spouse happy for the partner who’s enjoying their comics, as well as the dual collector couples who jokingly battle over whos gonna read it first. Over the years, I’ve had the chance to share my joy of comics with my nephew and nieces. Though they’re not the biggest comic fans, every now and then they’ll pick up some of my comics when they’re bored, flipping through the pages with me. My youngest niece, for example, adores Lilo & Stitch, so I’ve bought her a few issues, and she loves reading them with me.
In a way, comic books have allowed me to be both a nerd and the “cool” uncle, which is something I wouldn’t trade for anything. Over the years, I’ve made many friends through the shared love of collecting. It’s a story I hear from so many others as well; there’s a special kind of magic in comics. They not only fill us with that childlike joy but also bring people together. It’s something I will always cherish, both as a collector and as someone who gets to work in a comic shop.