Yeah, I think comic books are a rite of passage.
It's an artistic expression, it's a political expression.
To me it's as valid a form of art or an expression of art as you would see in the city museum or the contemporary museum.
Comics are such a, or at least can be, such an honest form of expression that people really,
the author can really put a lot of themselves into it, whether it's the personality or their beliefs or their sense of humor.
Yeah, yeah, comic books are an escape.
Do you think comics can be a work of art?
Yeah, yeah, I think comics can be a work of art.
Hi, my name's Andrew Stuckmeyer and I am a former comic book reader.
My name's Mike, I'm the manager here at the Afton Fantasy Shop. I've worked for the company for the past three years.
Kid's parents, you know, like his dad or something, read comic books when he was younger.
I'm sure he'd introduce his son to his favorite, you know, comic book character or whatever, you know.
You know, when I was a kid, my dad got me a subscription to Sergeant Rock, which was a World War II comic put out by DC.
And I read that and, you know, a little bit of like Batman stuff like that and didn't really mess with it again until college.
You know, I wasn't like a comic book collector growing up as a kid or anything.
I'd be at my grandparents' house, you know, and I'd be bored out of my mind and they'd realize that I was bored out of my mind
and they'd slip me the funniest section of the newspaper while watching golf or whatever.
I'm Ben Trehill and I'm the owner of Star Clifford Co., one of my wife ages.
Well, believe it or not, I am a Georgetown Law School trained taxi lawyer.
And then as I got involved in the comic scene, I started enjoying it so much I actually quit being a lawyer.
Eventually I got into like Judge Dredd. I read some DC comics like Superman and all that, but I could always, you know, hide Judge Dredd in a drawer someplace.
A lot like porn, I guess.
He was the judge, the jury, and the executioner.
I didn't really like X-Men.
I was just, I'd read it to, I guess, to fit in, but eventually I got away from X-Men.
I got into slightly more graphic comic books, I guess.
Reading it was like reading a movie or reading an illustrated novel.
It wasn't like reading, you know, about some guy in spandex swinging around off a building.
Primal People's Horizon is a regular channel. There's a lot more to the comics industry than just the superhero mainstream.
Perception out there that, you know, comics are pretty much only superhero in what we call the spandex set.
But really, there's, I mean, there's comics out there about everything, from, you know, relationships breaking up to, you know, weird metaphysical stuff, everything.
Well, I mean, I'm sure there are people that enjoy comic books still, but I think that, you know, it's just something society has decided and, I don't know, I guess I'm indoctrinated.
I mean, you know, you should, I don't know, reading comic books is, you know, something for childhood, you know.
Well, because they were always marketed to children, because the story behind them can't seem juvenile.
Certainly with a lot of the superhero comics, the, I mean, the characterization of women is misogynistic.
You know, at 35 years old with a wife and kids, still goes out and buys the same books that they bought when they were a little kid.
I mean, that behavior is, it's a lot more mainstream now than it was. You know, people are a lot more aware of it.
And with that awareness ultimately always comes acceptance of it. So it's, I think it's less, it's less geeky now to be, you know, a comic book nerd or whatever.
I'm not sure maybe I'm going to make a lot of people say that, but it's just, unfortunately, there is a part of the culture that does fit that stereotype.
And you see the comic guy on The Simpsons. I mean, there are a lot of comic shop owners who are just like me.
Thank you, Simpsons. Yeah. No, I didn't, no, I didn't always think that. What do I think about them?
Um, young at heart and more props to them. That part of me died.
As far as, you know, the economic kind of things, I don't know that more people are reading comic books than were before.
In fact, what we used to call true, we now have a shelf with our mainstream, shouldn't have comics, because they've become so broad based now.
One of the big things that we've seen over the past decade is, you know, it's sort of become a universal truth that comics really are not geared towards kids, like people have thought.
They've really, it's a medium that's grown with its audience.
So titles that you would never have expected to be shelved next to a superhero, and you'll find them there, like Kevin, Isaiah, or Ken, who's right back there right now.
He's your nominee who's here signing books.
Oh, graphic novels is the direction everything's going.
Single issue comics, sales-wise, I mean, continued as a clock. People are waiting longer and longer to buy and trade paperbacks.
In fact, the only place that I'm seeing an increase in single issue comic sales is in the alternative small press comics.
So much, I mean, I've got a couple of friends who write web comics, and they're decent, but I'd still rather see a new friend.
Absolutely, we'll take a comic from just about anyone.
We have a great selling comic called Mad Battle, it's done by 12ColtCo. People love it.
Yeah, I've looked at a few manga, like the Berserk manga. I've seen the Helsing manga, but I haven't actually read it.
As a culture, I really like the Japanese. I think it's a really amazing country with a terrific history.
So I like some of the older manga that delves into the Japanese history.
There's artists working in the comic field that are painters, you know, graphic, computer illustrators, things like that.
People are coming in who heard about that on MBR. They want to see that. They want to see a health laser.
And we have a slight push-up of a number of trades. We sell the health laser, but that's really the only exception I can say to what I said.
There's a reason that guys from comics are now working in Hollywood a lot, doing storyboarding.
The interest in Sin City has been terrific. I think the reason for that is that was a movie that was done in a comic theme.
When you see that movie, it's like you're reading a comic.
To me, a really well-illustrated comic still looks cooler than wire-foo or CGI in movies, because it just doesn't look believable.
But when you're looking at visual storytelling, like what comics provide, you're so taken in by the quality of the artwork and the skill of the artist
that you sort of suspend that disbelief. And when you're reading a comic, you can...
It's like, you know, we make our own reality, I guess.
People come in and are amazed about this comic story. And that's when you have the opportunity to show them that there's much more to the genre
than what they have always thought, than what they were kids, or just because what they've heard from their friends or what they see on TV.
Philosophy, I mean, everything's right here. It's just...
Well, I mean, they... I mean, I'm sure if you think deep into the storyline, I mean, there's a lot of metaphors there.
There's a lot of symbolism, and yeah, I mean, I'm sure you can gain some deeper insight into the workings of life by reading comics.
Definitely be keeping up on the reading, and it's certainly an interest to always have.
I understand that it's a real art.
Comics are such a... or at least can be such an honest form of expression that, you know, people really...
the author can really put a lot of themselves into it, whether it's the personality or their beliefs or their sense of humor.
Webcomics, I think that you read a lot of Webcomics. You make me read a lot of Webcomics.
But I enjoy them. I enjoy them.
What are you doing?
Making a mark? Excuse me, are movies a form of art?
Well, sure. You know, it doesn't mean that speed, too, was a masterpiece or anything, but...
