GOODNIGHT, FUCKERS #674: FREE COMIC BOOK DAY STRIKES BACK

 You're probably used to my grumbling about how Free Comic Book Day is not all it's cracked up to be, and publishers can afford it to be that way because they don't foot the bill. Retailers do. But much to my surprise, this year's FCBD actually was very good. Here are my favorites.

This was unexpectedly good. I enjoyed the Animosity short in which animals, who now have sentience and want revenge against the humans, protect a human who cared for the animals in the past. The Darkness We Brought Back looks like an interesting concept. A haunted house where the only part that's left is the front door frame. On Halloween it leads to another place, which looks pretty cool. I'll have to check out the graphic novel when it comes out. If it comes out. This one was published by Seismic with Aftershock, and Aftershock declared bankruptcy not too long ago, so that might be up in the air.

I enjoy Jeff Lemire's work, so I was surprised to see Image released a teaser for his upcoming series. It starts out pretty simple--two boys daring a third to walk barefoot through a swarm of fishflies to get snacks from a convenience store--but it looks like it's going to go off in some batshit crazy directions, which is par for the course for Lemire.

This one was probably my favorite of the bunch. A trio of stoners in the 'Seventies go on all sorts of adventures, sometimes accompanied by Fat Freddy's cat. It felt pretty retro, and there's a reason for that. Looks like these strips were originally published in the 'Seventies as part of the underground Comix movement. Very good stuff. I really enjoyed it when they infiltrated a punk show in the 'Eighties.

So there we have it. Three solidly good books from FCBD. That gives me hope for next year, considering for the last few years I was lucky to get one OK book. Fingers crossed.

GOODNIGHT, FUCKERS #486: ON TYRANNY

 

Last year's Free Comic Book Day provided me with a few pages from the book you see above. I told myself I would get the full book when it was available and promptly forgot about it. Not too long ago I was at Anderson's in Naperville, and lo! and behold! I stumbled upon a copy of it, remembered my promise to myself and bought this.

It was absolutely worth it. A lot of this stuff I knew already. Some of it I suspected. And yes, I even learned a few things. Tyranny is a subject that is never too far from my mind, especially these days when America is so very close to being overthrown by scumbags of the lowest order. This book should be required reading for every single US citizen. Nora Krug even makes it look pretty with her illustrations on the inside. (It was originally a book written by Timothy Snyder, but this is what they called a "graphic edition.")

(Incidentally, and very uncomfortably, it's also a how-to book on becoming a tyrant if one wishes to take it that way, and I hope no one does.)

It's full of history lessons about how tyrants came to power and how the people, through ignorance or just plain not giving a shit, helped them achieve said power. The language is easy and understandable. It's a fast read. It's just a very good book to have around.

There is one lesson that I really haven't lived my life by. Maybe I should have, but it's too late now. Snyder advises citizens to not put so much information about themselves out there, even if it seems innocuous on such platforms as social media. He means that if you are in opposition to a potential tyrant, then that tyrant could find that information and use it to take you out of the picture. But the reason I live my life so openly, baring each part of my life, especially the ugly parts, is because being that way should make me immune to blackmail. Like when someone came into possession of Penn Jillette's old computer and found a lot of sexual images of him on the hard drive. The guy tried to blackmail Penn, who merely shrugged and said, "I don't care who sees these." Because pretty much everyone knows about what he's into.

So yeah. You should get this book, especially if you're young. Because, as Snyder says, "If young people do not begin to make history, politicians of eternity and inevitability will destroy it. And to make history, young Americans will have to know some."

EVERYONE'S GOT ONE #22: FREE COMIC BOOK DAY

Before we get started, I just wanted to warn you that I’m going to sound like a raging asshole in this piece.  Anyone who complains about free shit is a raging asshole.  Still, something must be said about Free Comic Book Day, and I guess I’m going to have to be the one to say it.

Ready?  Here we go.

Free Comic Book Day, for the most part, sucks.  I’ve gone every year since it first started, and I’ve rarely come away pleased with the books.  Why?  Because FCBD is not for people who like comic books.  It’s for people who MIGHT like comics but can’t be bothered to ACTUALLY like comics.

The idea is to get those people into comic book stores to pick up their free comic.  (Or comics.  Some retailers let you have more than one.)  The hope is that they’ll like what they see so much that they’ll want to start reading that book on a regular basis.  It’s a perfect win for the comic book companies because they might get more readers and they don’t have to pay a single dime for it.

Oh, you didn’t know that, did you?  Yeah, all those free comics are not paid for by the publishers, they’re paid for by the retailers.  So if the free book doesn’t lead to a bigger readership, the retailers suffer for it, not the corporations.

Why would the retailers agree to something like this?  Simple:  they hope that the people who come in to pick up their free comic book will take a look around and buy something else while they’re at it.  And if they like all of that, they’ll come back on Wednesday for more.  Or they’ll want back issues.  And so on.

Here’s the problem:  people who don’t read comics on a weekly basis are probably not going to start simply because of a free book.  I will grant that when I went into Unicorn, my usual comic book store, on the most recent FCBD, it was more crowded in there than I’ve ever seen it.  People were looking around.  But the thing is, no one bought anything.  They were just looking.  I watched a lot of people while I was waiting, and the trend I notice was this:  walk in, take a look around, look at the free comics, pick one, and walk out.

Me?  I went in, grabbed my free books, and picked up about $60 of stuff on my pile.  Then, I went home and read the free books.  They were nothing but reprints, and if they had previews, it was for stuff I was already going to buy.

This leads me to believe that FCBD is not geared toward regular readers like me, and that’s a shame.  Without us, the industry would collapse.  (Not the companies, though.  They have a lot of Hollywood money and toy money coming in to keep afloat.  Lest ye forget, Marvel isn’t a comic book company, it’s a TOY company.)  One could argue that people who wait for trades actually keep the business going.  Not true.  Without guys like me, there would be nothing to collect in trades because there would be no single issues.

So . . . you’re welcome.

Anyway, it seems a shame that the very industry that we love wouldn’t at least throw us a bone.  Why not have some original content on FCBD?  I will give credit to Dark Horse last year (I think), when they had a new BUFFY story for FCBD, even though the story was lame.

Am I out of line for asking comic book companies to thank us for being such loyal fans?  Why reward the people who by and large don’t read your books?  Using new material instead of reprints is a win-win, anyway.  The people you’re trying to trick into buying comic books won’t be bothered by a new story.  It’s just the same as a reprint to them:  brand new.  However, we comic book fans DO care.  Why are you trying to alienate us?

Am I wrong here?  Let me know in the comments below.