Why I'm DONE Collecting Comic Books

I'm uploading this on the first day of a comic-con where I will be buying a lot of comic books. the only opinions worth having are ones that don't actually matter.

[WalterPrice-qu]

Here's another reason to continue with comic books. I am a 70 year old fan, with that white beard, and I have mostly given up on new comics. I do believe in giving back to the industry I have loved for decades. In 2010 I bought a group of well loved Gold Key comics from the 1970s and 1980s at a tag sale, and I enjoyed reading them and revisiting some characters from my past. Reading comics at a young age helped me learn to read and draw, skills I use to this day. I decided to offer the comics to the kids that came to my door on Halloween. I was surprised that only a half dozen took the comics. Most had no idea what they were about, but word got around and I now get 40-50 kids (and a few parents) looking for the comics every year. Some may not continue to read them, but if I can add to the next generation of fans it is worth the search to restock with all ages books for the next holiday. It always gives me a good feeling to see a young kid excited about comics. Try it in your area.

[nickangelo]

My comic books were stolen by a neighbor when I was a kid in the nineties. I haven't collected the same way since. I have comics, but only about a hundred or so. I read online for free. That theft changed my entire perspective on life. Since then, I've learned to let go and not get too attached to anything, especially the material.

I started an action figure collection in 2013. I questioned my financial choices because I was buying toys every week. I asked my girlfriend at the time what she thinks I should do. She said to do what makes me happy. I took that to heart. I did exactly what she told me.

We broke up about a year later. We argued about my toys. She was upset that I spent so much money on toys and not much money on her. I never got her a good gift, but I was buying awesome things for myself constantly. That was the advice she gave me. I looked for an excuse to go wild and her advice was my go-ahead. I told her that I i was doing what she told me to do, "what makes me happy, " and that's what I did.

We broke up, I lost my job and I had to sell the toys because I'm not financially stable anymore. What am I going to bring my huge collection of toys with me on the street? "Look! Theres the homeless guy with all the action figures!" They had to go and I sold them at a discount to get rid of them faster.

Now, I'm a forty-one year old man who lives with his mom. No collections. No toys. No comic books. No money. The old girlfriend has a girlfriend of her own. She looks like a gorilla. Ladies, I'm single if youre looking to be a provider to a worthless POS.

[vincentflannigan]

I wish comic collectors were more like you and less like speculators. I wanted to get into comics a few years ago after discovering my granddads collection which I never knew he had til he passed; but YouTube is dominated by speculator channels instead of collectors which scared me because of the price estimated to get into the back issues and lore of the oldies. Got into manga instead which I think is a good thing cause they have great stories there too and also light on the wallet.

[markharris]

Shout out to a fellow Rom Lim fan. His run on the 90’s Silver Surfer was stupendous!

[herrfister]

I'm at the end as well. No more space, and the fact that comic prices have gone up so much, and the constant re-numbering of issues to start over and over again is becoming tiresome. Oh well it's been a great run, many years of collecting, my massive collection is safe for now, and I look forward to revisting it again in 20 years or so.

[MichaelMinneboo]

Reading is the main reason for me to collect comics as well. At the moment I'm not buying new books because I want to catch up with the pile I haven't read yet. I wonder how this will last though before I buy a couple of trades I 'really' need :)

[reprintranch]

This is one of my favorite comic book videos, and I friggin’ salute you on your perspective. I took an interest in comic books back in the mid-‘60s as a little kid and though my interest in comics has waxed and waned, I find myself also planning to stop acquiring additional comics and related material, and instead focus on reading and researching the stuff I already possess.

My primary interests are 1. Marvel stuff from the ‘60s, 2. EC comics, 3. Wallace Wood material, 4. A couple dozen other artists from the ‘50s and ‘60s.

My collection consists mostly of reprints and collected editions, plus a large helping of beat-up originals. Maybe 3, 000 floppies and 500 paperback and hardcover books. “Not worth much financially but with incalculable entertainment value.”

I’ve realized that it really makes no sense for me to go on acquiring material because every moment spent seeking out comic books is a moment that could have been spent reading something I already own. And right now money’s tighter than it’s been in years.

So, kudos for an excellent discussion focused on “what am I trying to accomplish” and I wish you many decades of enjoyment yet to come.

[VCUS]

I stopped buying issues a few years ago, and I'm glad I did. I still get graphic novels, but mostly old stuff I missed over the last few decades. They look so much nicer on a bookshelf too, as opposed to ugly long boxes I never even open anymore.

[imricjames]

What pisses me off is the comicbook stores (weather its brick and mortar or internet stores think their Ebay and price them as if they are.
So the customer/collector doesnt get the advantage of know they can make money off the comics gaining ground and going up in price.
I was a subscriber to a few of these channels and cancelled them all. Greedy AF these people are.
When you get people pricing 1:10/1:25:1:50 & so on @ double or triple the cover cost : that is 🐂💩. Then some of them hold off on releaseing covers until after main distribution sales are due (playin games) and you miss out due to this trickery. Im over it as a comic lover and straight disappointed the industry has come to this.

[JernosComicsPopCulture]

A very refreshing take on comics in the YouTube world. Thanks for sharing.

[oliverortiz]

I found your video interesting and I respect your right to feel the way you do. That said I love collecting comic books and finding issues I either need to complete a run of a much loved series or finding new things I didn't know about. I do love the fact that you want to share what's special to you with the next generation of comic book readers. Now that's really cool.

[darrelldent]

For me, I love the hunting and the reading. I stopped buying new in the early 2000's, (writers breaking continuity, endless events & cover price were the main factors) now I focus solely on pre 1980, mainly Silver and early Bronze. A lot of good affordable stuff I haven't read. Trying to finish the Space Family Robinson series, not easy to find.

[bensteckler]

As a small-press/mini-comics creator, I've purchased extra copies of Scott McCloud's "Understanding Comics" and gifted or loaned them out to aspiring comics artists I meet. It really teaches the evolution and visual language of sequential art. I can understand your idea of being an ambassador.

[DONWASABIJUAN]

I go hot and cold with collecting comics. I have now gotten to a point where I am only curating and buying books I know I will re-read. I don’t feel the need to collect to just collect. I will admit that i have lost a lot of love for mainstream comics. The books that come out today are not connecting with me at all.

[hialeahcomicbro]

Excellent video. You bring up a lot of great points and your reasoning is on point. I myself have been going through much of same for the last year.

[cha]

I've been collecting Golden Age back issues since the late 1980's (eleven boxes in all right now) and I'm not about to stop,
but I have completed my run of early Carl Barks Donald Duck issues of Walt Disney Comics and Stories (Issues 31-63) and I'm pretty content there and feel pretty good having finished the hunt for one of my all time favorite artists.
Not that I'm going to quit hunting for other GA back issues if they're affordable, GA comics are constantly going up in price and the hunt for them is key,
at least until they're priced out of existence.

[rgsniper]

About 130 issues monthly at my peak, now zero. I may pick up the new Titan Comics Conan though.
1. The community told me I was too old, and that comics were no longer for me.
2. Most new comics are trash.
3. The price has gotten out of hand for said trash.

I have more comics than I could read probably for the rest of my life, if I decided to re-read them. I did however recently buy X-Men, Conan and Savage Sword Omni collections so that I don't have to open up the individual issues. I'll still give Marvel my money for that as a parting gift.

[manamoth]

Try the library. Our library has thousands of graphic novels. And they have modern titles that are from just a year ago. And they are free.

[lukeyznaga]

I agree with you about the "process". I love collecting comic books. BUT...the "process" or the hobby has started to become irritating, discouraging and expensive. AND THERE ARE A lot of hucksters who don't care about old comic books OR KNOW NOTHING about the older and original culture of comic book collecting. Way too much speculation and price changing and many comic books which should never be expensive are expensive, even though they are only 2 years old. Bullshit. Also, a lot of the younger generation of collectors have no appreciation for the great artwork and artists of the 70s or 80s. They sometimes care about the cover artwork but most of the time the sellers or hucksters and even the young buyers, only care about getting that Key issue or that "famous issue". they don't even know or care WHAT'S INSIDE the comic book, or the art or the letters page or the ads. they don't collect for that reason. Also, its hard to find the comic books you want. The sellers at conventions only sell "whats popular" or what is in "demand". You really have to depend on Ebay or Flea markets or Garage sales. You have to go to comic shops and dig through boxes.

[vaderdust]

I stopped buying weekly comics about 2 years ago. Now I’m working on down sizing my collection. I’m also focusing on picking up specific runs of artists, writers on specific books. Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing run, Frank Miller’s Daredevil run. My wife complains that an entire room and closet at home is filled with long boxes that have been sitting there for years. Need to declutter as I am heading into my fifties and I started collecting when I was 10! I also got a Kindle Colorsoft recently and will move my comic readership to that platform, only keeping a small collection of my classic books.