Comic Book Buyer’s Guide Introduction: Collectors and Readers
Dec 28, 2008 Comic Book Buyer's Guide
One of the main questions that comic fans are constantly asking themselves is “Where can I find the comics I want?” That question could originate from a “Collector” trying to fill the remaining holes in their near complete run of Vigilante or simply a “Reader” looking for that next great story. Be it single comic or trade paperback, all comic fans want to know the best place to find what they are searching for. If you speak to any comic fan, you can bet that they have a ”Want List” of items they are trying to track down. Of course, every comic fan is different and what they are looking for always varies in theme, quality and price range.
Typically, comic fans can be divided into 2 groups; Nerds and Extreme Nerds… I’m only kidding… kind of. Everyone has some “Extreme Nerd” in them about something and that’s what makes everyone who they are. It could be cars, movies, learning, pickles or ANYTHING. I’ve got news for you; if you are passionate about something, you are an Extreme Nerd when it comes to that “something”. Embrace it. Anyway, that is a whole other potential entry. Getting back to the 2 groups I mentioned; they are Collectors and Readers. While these 2 groups are not mutually exclusive, most comic fans can place themselves closer to one end of the spectrum than the other. That being said, a Reader can obviously have Collector tendencies and vice versa.
Please continue on to read more including the differences between a Collector and a Reader.
Comic Collector (Comic-us Coll-ect-or-us)
A brief description of a Collector is a comic fan who usually buys many comics on a regular basis and seeks out the more rare issues and incentive covers. The comics are then preserved in backs and boards to potentially sell when their values appreciates or to simply “collect” and reside in their collection. Sometimes the comics themselves will not be read before being stashed away. This is often due to the sheer volume of books being purchased every week. With new books being published every Wednesday and the ability to get books online and through various “brick and mortar” stores, a Collector may not have the available time to read this many comics. Ah, to have that much time…
Comic Reader (Comic-us Read-ar-ium)
As the name suggests, a Reader is someone who simply acquires comics to read. Comics purchased (or traded for) are usually based on nothing more than that specific taste of said Reader. Many times, the comics in a Readers collection are not kept in pristine condition and are seen as “reader copies”. These are NOT sought after by Collectors due to their low market value, but are often traded between fellow Readers. As long as a comic or trade paperback is “readable” (there are no missing pages, images can be seen and text is legible, etc.) a Reader will likely be interested in acquiring the comic IF it is something they are interested in.
Obviously, a Reader is no better a comic fan than a Collector just like a Collector is no better than a Reader. Both groups of comic fans help keep the industry alive by passionately seeking out what they desire, so who are we to judge? I myself fall into the Reader category as the stories contained within the pages of the comics is what got me hooked as a child and has refused to release me. I flat out dig reading comics.
As mentioned earlier, you can definitely exhibit traits from both groups of fans. Take me for example. I do keep my comics in pristine condition (as much as I can by keeping them bagged and boarded and tucked away safely). But I regularly trade in my comics for the trade paperback equivalent when it is released and then if there is left over credit (and there usually is) I use that credit to get MORE comics. Honestly, what’s better than comics? Yes, MORE comics! This cycle has allowed me to build up a respectable collection of comic stories with relatively little actual spending on my part. I only have about 300 to 400 actual comic books at any given time, but I have over 450 trade paperbacks on my shelf that I have been able to amass over the past few years by trading in my comics for their respective trade paperbacks and sticking to my weekly comic budget. Plus, as a bonus, many times the trade paperback editions will include extras like the incentive covers and interviews with the creative teams involved that the comics themselves did not contain.
I will be continuing this Comic Book Buyer’s Guide series and touching upon topics like:
- The most efficient ways to trade your comics online or at your local comic shop
- How to get the most out of your weekly comic budget at your local comic shop (every penny counts these days)
- A guide to the online comic shop that is right for YOU (there are many options and one is the correct fit for you.)
In the meantime, please feel free to submit any comments on whether you feel you’re primarily a Collector or a Reader. Also, let me know if there are any specific topics you would like covered in the upcoming Comic Book Buyer’s Guide entries. Thanks!
Tags: buyer guide, buyer's guide, collector, Comic Book Buyer's Guide, Comics, reader
Leave a Reply