Things To Do While Waiting For New Comics to Resume
So this officially the first Wednesday where us comic book fans won't be able to go to our LCS and pick up new books. While this definitely sucks, we know this can't last forever. Right? Well fear not fellow comic book fans, there are still plenty of things we can do NOW, while waiting for things to, hopefully, go back to normal. While you may not be able to go into your LCS, a lot of them offer shipping, so there are still ways to get books in your hands.
Here are a few things we can do while sitting out this quarantine:
GET THROUGH THAT TO-READ PILE
I know personally my pile of unread books had grown exponentially and was incredibly daunting. Over the past couple weeks I've been whittling it down and finally reading those books I always intended to "get to". So if you're anything like me, which I'm sure a lot of you are, get through those read piles you feel so much better. Plus if you have a volume 1 in that pile, and you like it, then you can catch up on that series that you never had time to do before. Which leads me into my next "comic book quarantine reading tip".
CATCHING UP ON SERIES YOU'VE FALLEN BEHIND ON
We're all guilty of doing this, much like eating,(where sometimes are eyes are bigger than our stomach, sometimes we buy books even when we have plenty of unread books at home. So this is the perfect time to catch up on series that we've fallen behind on. Whether in single issue or trade, there's no better time than the present to finally catch up. For example, I had left off on Vol.1 of MONSTRESS and was able to catch up, holy shit that book is so good. I also fell behind on ONCE & FUTURE and was able to catch up in singles, which made me even more excited for it to return. All caught up on series in singles AND trades?? Don't worry I got another tip for ya!
START THAT SERIES/BOOK YOU'VE BEEN WANTING TO CHECK OUT
While there are so many great books out there, most of us have limited budgets, so we aren't able to buy everything we may wanna check out. So now is the time, if finances allow, that we can pick up those series and give em a shot. Whether you prefer to buy singles or trades, most shops will be able to accommodate both. So if you've been wanting to check out that IMMORTAL HULK or THOR series, wanna pick up that new DRAGON HOOPS, or pick up a classic like BATMAN: THE LONG HALLOWEEN, now is the time to hit up your LCS and check them out. Plus they could really use the support. At the end of this post, I'll list some recommendations of books I think you guys will enjoy.
ORGANIZE YOUR COLLECTION
This is probably one of the more useful things I could possibly suggest. Organizing your collection can sometimes fall to the way side in the shuffle of our busy lives, but with all this free time, this is the perfect opportunity to finlly organize. Whether it's bagging & boarding, alphabetizing, or organizing your GN shelf, this is the perfect activity for comic fans to get done during some down time. It will also help see if there might be anything you want to get rid of. Take those unwanted comics and donate them, give em away or if your eBay savy you can sell them to fund your next comic book purchase.
PICK UP A BOOK, THAT'S NOT A COMIC
Yeah I know not all of us read novels as much as we read comics, but now is the perfect time to pick up that novel that's been collecting dust on a shelf. I for one had been putting off reading my collection of books for the past 3 years and just starting getting back into reading them. There's nothing like reading a good book and losing yourself in it. Unlike with comics you have to picture everything happening on your mind, which gives you a completely different experience than comics. So get a Stephen King book, or a biography/memoir of someone you really admire, now's the time!
No matter what you do, during this time, don't get sad because there's no new comics. Just do what you've always done and KEEP READING.
As promised here is a list of series I highly recommend, most of which are readily available in graphic novel form.
CRIMINAL
FATALE
THE FADE OUT
KILL OR BE KILLED
LAZARUS
SAGA
PAPER GIRLS
Y THE LAST MAN
20TH CENTURY BOYS
BATMAN: THE LONG HALLOWEEN & BATMAN: DARK VICTORY
DAREDEVIL BY Bendis, Brubaker, or Waid (They're all good)
IMMORTAL HULK
CAPTAIN AMERICA by Brubaker
FANTASTIC FOUR by Hickman
EAST OF WEST
FLASH BY Geoff Johns
GREEN LANTERN by Geoff Johns
DRAGON HOOPS
BLANKETS
ASTONISHING X-MEN by Whedon
MIDDLEWEST
DIE
ONCE & FUTURE
ALL HELLBOY
BLACK HAMMER
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