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Post by Red Oak Kid on Mar 21, 2016 20:06:20 GMT -5
Just wondering how many here ever read comic books on the newstand or rack without buying them.
I never did. I always assumed the owner was looking at me. I think paranoia is in my DNA.
As a kid, I would mainly buy comics based on the cover art. Bought a lot of Batman issues with Infantino covers and crappy interior art.
As a teen, I would flip to the first page to see who drew it. If it was by Adams, Wrightson, Smith, Chaykin or Kaluta I would buy.
But I never read a comic while standing at the rack.
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Post by Action Ace on Mar 21, 2016 20:14:45 GMT -5
The comics in the grocery store where I grew up were in a newsstand right next to where the store manager sat at his desk. He'd always be perched at his post when kids came into the store and would tell us that "it wasn't a library" and "if you want to read it, buy it." When I was in college the store owner would frequently tell his customers not to stand in the aisle and read the comics. By then, it was time to start preordering the comics I wanted. I have also never read a comic standing at the rack.
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shaxper
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Post by shaxper on Mar 21, 2016 20:14:45 GMT -5
It just never even occurred to me to try. Even when I'm at an actual library, I rarely feel like sitting there and reading. Like some small scavenger, I want to get the goods back to my comfy nest where I can enjoy them at my own leisure.
And, as a kid, I had more disposable income than I do now, what with a lucrative dog walking job. Whether or not I could afford it was never a concern for me.
I did flip through books to determine if I wanted to own them, but these were cursory skims. I didn't have the patience to read the whole thing right there.
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Post by Reptisaurus! on Mar 21, 2016 20:35:32 GMT -5
Oh yeah. I've sat for hours in Borders or the like and read TPBs as well.
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Mar 21, 2016 21:12:33 GMT -5
Once in awhile there is a tradebook I can't find at the library so I might spend an hour or so at a nice, big, comfy Barnes and Nobles and read it there. They even provide plushy chairs and have a cafe where you can get some coffee and pudding while you read their stuff. It might take 2 visits to complete the reading but it gets it done
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Post by String on Mar 21, 2016 21:21:32 GMT -5
The most I would do is skim through the comic, looking at the art, perhaps reading a snippet or two of panels, all in an effort to best judge if I wanted to buy it. I would never read the entire issue at the rack though it wasn't because of paranoia over the owner/cashier mainly because it just felt wrong to do so. The only time I felt real paranoia was when I found this comic on the racks of my local convenience store:  It was the first and only time that I ever saw a Comico title at that local store. I was a fan of Wagner's work, knew this issue was coming out and wanted to read it but completely shocked to see it here. The PG warning across the banner was what caused my paranoia. I was convinced the cashier would do something akin to carding me if I tried to buy it and refuse me. It took nearly 20 minutes for me to muster the courage to approach the counter with it but the cashier simply rang it up along with a few other comics, my soda and candy without a word nor comment. |
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shaxper
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Posts: 22,389
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Post by shaxper on Mar 21, 2016 21:24:41 GMT -5
The only time I felt real paranoia was when I found this comic on the racks of my local convenience store: It was the first and only time that I ever saw a Comico title at that local store. I was a fan of Wagner's work, knew this issue was coming out and wanted to read it but completely shocked to see it here. The PG warning across the banner was what caused my paranoia. I was convinced the cashier would do something akin to carding me if I tried to buy it and refuse me. It took nearly 20 minutes for me to muster the courage to approach the counter with it but the cashier simply rang it up along with a few other comics, my soda and candy without a word nor comment. That was a pretty racy book for the newsstands, if I recall correctly! |
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Post by hondobrode on Mar 21, 2016 21:48:20 GMT -5
I'd flip through like most of you have said but can't ever remember reading it.
If it interested me, and I had the money, I'd buy it.
Back in the 80's, I figured Comico would be a long-time player. Shows what I knew.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 21, 2016 21:55:53 GMT -5
AT Boarders and/or Barnes and Nobles - I usually buy a lot of stuff on Impulse and they are usually Marvel Masterworks and/or DC Comics Archive Editions and that's usually my way of collecting my series and that how I managed to get Fantastic Four #14 and #15 Masterworks so that I can complete my collections.
I do this every 1-2 months at a time.
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Post by SJNeal on Mar 21, 2016 21:59:07 GMT -5
As a kid, no. When buying back issues, I'd often ask the shop owner if I could check out the first and last pages to determine if I also needed the previous/next issue, and he always said yes - knowing it usually led to an additional sale. Today is a different story. For years I thought it was tantamount to stealing, and when music/book stores starting dropping like flies it bolstered my opinion. More recently, I don't mind sitting in Barnes & Noble and speed reading a small trade if it ties into something else I'm currently buying. However I try to find an already beat-up copy that I figure no one will buy anyway. Funny how we justify things...  |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 21, 2016 23:11:38 GMT -5
When I worked in a comic store in the 80's I would read books off the shelf. I justified it by thinking I had to know what was going on in the books to help customers find titles they would like...
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Post by batlaw on Mar 21, 2016 23:53:45 GMT -5
Seeing as I essentially grew up in convenience stores (which carried comics) I read countless comics. In fact, their availability to me is most certainly what brought me into the hobby. Probably from ages 7 or so to my late teens until the racks went away and I discovered and started going to actual comic shops.
For a comic fan I was kindve blessed in that regard. I was able to read virtually anything and everything and practically did. I also bought or was allowed to take a good amount home. Other than that, I've never been one to read things in the store w/o purchasing. Just not something I did or do. Not counting as a child at the grocery store when I'd sit by the racks while my parents shopped. But at that young time I was just looking at the pictures. I mostly hated reading... until I kept getting more and more really into comics. If it weren't for comics I'd probably be all but illiterate.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 22, 2016 5:29:25 GMT -5
When I was a kid I used to frequently go down to the 7-11 and read comics. I'd always buy one or two, but I'd read five. The lady who ran the register eventually banned me from the store. She hated kids. Soon after she ended up working for the local hardware store where I would buy bike parts, and she famously banned all kids from there. Years later I ended up working with her at that same store. She was a psycho. And a worthless employee. And countless customers left the store upset daily because of her. I made it my mission to get her fired, and I succeeded. She must have been there 15 years. Anyway, I got laid off soon after. The store fell on hard times when the economy collapsed, never recovered, and closed down about two years ago.
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Post by Icctrombone on Mar 22, 2016 6:13:59 GMT -5
Once in awhile there is a tradebook I can't find at the library so I might spend an hour or so at a nice, big, comfy Barnes and Nobles and read it there. They even provide plushy chairs and have a cafe where you can get some coffee and pudding while you read their stuff. It might take 2 visits to complete the reading but it gets it done Dude, my local comic shop provides big couches and coffee and lets you read them without buying them. |
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Post by Icctrombone on Mar 22, 2016 6:15:26 GMT -5
When I was a kid I used to frequently go down to the 7-11 and read comics. I'd always buy one or two, but I'd read five. The lady who ran the register eventually banned me from the store. She hated kids. Soon after she ended up working for the local hardware store where I would buy bike parts, and she famously banned all kids from there. Years later I ended up working with her at that same store. She was a psycho. And a worthless employee. And countless customers left the store upset daily because of her. I made it my mission to get her fired, and I succeeded. She must have been there 15 years. Anyway, I got laid off soon after. The store fell on hard times when the economy collapsed, never recovered, and closed down about two years ago. That's great story. |
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