Perhaps the worst part of it all, though, was the unshakable feeling that most readers would either leave their issue unopened altogether - so as to preserve its mint condition (ugh) - or not bother to read the main 22-page story within the issue. And while this way of thinking might encourage comic book collection, it does nothing for something much more important: comic book reading.Ĭoming to this realization kind of sucked.
#OBAMA COMIC BOOK COLLECTOR SERIES#
Knowing this, it’s easy to imagine what it feels like for lifelong comic book fans to see a title like “Amazing Spider-Man” - the flagship series of one of the most renowned comic book publishing companies - be reduced by nonbelievers to nothing more than another tacky commemorative commodity with an Obama portrait on it. But for the faithful, comic books are treasures - not because of the money rare copies can net, but because of the blissful experience that comes from reading an expertly told story through illustration. According to some, they’re trashy, childish and created for the socially awkward only. And that ticked me off.Ĭomic books get a bad rap. After leaving the shop, I imagined these soulless people would turn around and immediately sell their Spidey copies on eBay (where some of the comics have gone for roughly $100, by the way).
Knowing that Midtown Comics - as legendary as it is - never gets that packed, it seemed to me that a sizeable portion of these people were looking only to make a quick buck off the Obama comic. Looking back, I have to admit that my initial judgment of the situation was unfair (us comic nerds can get a little emotional). And yes, it does contain the predictably cheesy panel where Spider-Man and Obama share a celebratory fist bump after the Chameleon is subdued. The Obama comic I’m referring to is the recently released 583rd issue of Marvel’s “Amazing Spider-Man,” which contains a short bonus story in which Spider-Man teams up with the President to defeat a villain named the Chameleon.
That was my first thought after seeing online photos of the people lined up outside New York City’s Midtown Comics waiting to buy Barack Obama comics.