Comics are the bestest

[GeckoYamori]

I can't remember when I last picked up a comic book, must have been some time in 1997. I was big into Marvel, but as a teenager I felt more or less forced to call it quits for the sake of my dignity. Then I think the whole market just kind of died in Sweden. My interest was sparked again a few weeks ago after looking up a few things on the web. Got ahold of Superman: Red Son which is a 3-part alternate universe story where Superman grows up in the Soviet Union. Very interesting reading right there.
More importantly, I've read through most issues of Ultimate Spider-Man and I felt the kind of excitment I haven't for a very, very long time. It's basicly a modern retelling of Spider-Man which seems to have inspired the recent movies a bit. I urge you to pick this up if you haven't. The comic industry seems to still be thriving in the US so accessability should be a lot easier over there.

[j_factor]

Comics are thriving in a business sense here, but they lack the creativity and quality that they had in the 90s.

[Melf]

I collected for over a decade and amassed a collection of over 5,000 comics. Sometime in 1997 though, the industry just tanked in my eyes, as everyone wanted to be the next Jim Lee, and stories were simply awful. That and the fact that you needed to read like 100 different titles just to know what the hell was going on. Like the X-Men, for example:

- Uncanny X-Men
- X-Men
- X Factor
- X-Force
- X-Man
- Excalibur
- Wolverine
- Cable

The same thing was going on with Batman, Super Man, and especially Spider-Man. I ended up dropping most of my Marvel titles and concentrated on DC. Eventually, I just axed them all. I don't miss it either, as it gives me more money for games.

And what the hell's up with the price of comics anyway? $2.25 for a single issue? That's absurd. The whole "the price of paper is increasing" argument that Marvel spouts every time they raise the price is bullshit too. Back in the mid 80s, Marvel had a premium line of comics that used Baxter paper. Power Pack used it, and it cost $1.50 back then. Even today, the paper is still white and preserved. They ended up eliminating Baxter paper for the cheap shit they used, and when they finally increased the quality, the price jumped from $.75 to $1.50 in two years.

Today, I collect Sonic the Hedgehog only. Yeah, it's a drop from what's out there, but it's simple, fun, and collectible. Plus it's Sonic! What else do you need?

[David J.]

That's why I don't read comics... you need to read so many different titles to understand the entire story, and it's cumbersome. I will admit, back when I was a kid I'd read a handful, and trade action figures for 'em, but I lost intreste too.

Even downloading them is a pain in the arse.

[Drixxel]

I used to collect Ren & Stimpy comics in the '90s. There was a time that I really dug Morbius as well..

I don't have any desire to get back into it, though. For whatever reason comics no longer intrigue me at all.

[j_factor]

The whole "you need to read so many different things" is easily bypassed by reading smaller series. Stuff like The Maxx, Bloodlines, and so on.

[Apex]

ive got a fairly large collection of Spawn comics almost complete set from #1 - #127 i lost interest in reading comics but ive held on to these so hopefully they will be worth something in a few years? or it might be sentimental value why iam keeping them :D

[Vorty]

I only go with The Punisher.

[Obviously]

I've been an avid reader of Iron Man and X-Men for most of my life but X-Men started to become nonsense when it spawned into a million different books and continuities and Iron Man hasn't been the same since the turn of the century. Oh well, I've still got some back issues to collect anyway.

Comic books today are ruled by the underground. That's where all the originality lies. The heavy hitters like Marvel and DC have been mass producing the same unoriginal stuff and they're not really making anything of quality anymore. There's still a lot of interesting underground comics out there in graphic novel form that are worth reading.

I'm still crossing my fingers for the Iron Man movie to start production. It keeps getting pushed back further and further with no progress.

I used to collect Sonic the Hedgehog since it's creation up until the turn of the century. The story had the right ammounts of commedy and seriousness and it did everything that a good comic should do. I got disinchanted with it when they started up with the Sonic Adventure storyline however and stopped reading. I was never able to get back into it which I regret because I really miss getting into the monthly adventures of Sonic and friends and the occasional 48 page special or mini-series.

[Melf]

If you ever feel like unloading that collection, please remember to look my way. I started with issue #146 and have been loving it so far. I also started collecting Sonic X, which isn't as good (yet), but I think it'll pick up in time.

I like collecting Sonic because it gives me the enjoyment of comic reading without all the complicated storylines or massive universes to follow.

And hey, it's Sonic!

[Obviously]

You missed all the good stuff!

Heheh... anyway

I know a lot of my issues have been lost to the ravages of time since I didn't care of them at all when I was a kid but I may dig around and see what I have left. A lot of them probably have no or damaged covers.