Usually I try to do this once a year… it has been at least two (maybe three) so this is something that needed to be done, I speak of cleaning out/organizing my comic book collection. My collection is 11 “long boxes” in the basement and then 5 in my office. The ones in my office aren’t filled. I try to pick a day when Sue isn’t home so she doesn’t have to see (or find out) how large my comic book collection is.
I start off bringing up all the boxes and then emptying them out. This way I can consolidate titles and make sure that everything is in order. This move covers the floor of the house in stacks of comics. I then put the comics back into the boxes. While putting them back I decide if there are are any titles I don’t want and move on from there. Seems simple… it is & it isn’t.
All I can say is thanks to the way Marvel (Civil War, Secret War, Dark Reign, etc.) & DC (a Universe in constant “Crisis”) have been publishing the past few years I actually felt like I could winnow down my collection a lot.
Why?!? because some of the stories just aren’t good. I’m tired of “universe altering story lines” that end up with nothing being changed. I’m going to still read a lot, but I don’t see the reason to keep as much. I’m dropping completely, Daredevil with the exception of some Frank Miller issues. I’m dropping Captain America, still reading it, just not collecting it. JLA-gone, Titans-gone, Ultimate anything- nope, a lot of my old stuff that I just haven’t kept up with. I was reading the Avengers, but when the Marvel universe came back to being one big happy family, there were just too many to choose from. Was I reading Secret Avengers, Mighty Avengers, New Avengers, New Mighty Secret Avengers? I don’t remember which one I thought was pretty good and which one either the art or the story was not to my liking. So many titles that I thought would be good and ended up either bad, or I just forgot to pick them up and fell behind.
What am I still reading… Hmmm… let me check- The Walking Dead (I’m missing 4 issues, but I will find them). Invincible, JSA, The Flash, Ozma of Oz, Mouse Guard, Teen Titans, I know there are others but it has been a long day. I figure I’ll still bounce around with Batman, but while Superman’s “Walking” storyline is interesting it is starting to wear me down- I can only walk so far. What I am going to do is go back and reread a bunch of my old comics that I rediscovered while cleaning house. I’m looking forward to getting reacquainted with some old friends. Hopefully, by the time I’m done the Heroic Age will have passed and the sun will have set on the Brightest Day.
So if you read comics… what’s your favorite?