When Old Emails Become Old & Annoying
...in my comic shopping expeditions, my tastes are always about the particular moment. Often times I wander, but other times I have a set concept in mind. If I go to Half Price Books, I'm either in search of a bargain or something weird. Most times when you go there, you become inundated with overstock Marvel trades of Captain America and Thor. Not necessarily bad considering how much they cost retail now, but I am not always game for some Steve Rogers action. When it's Barnes & Noble, it's almost always the best bargain I can muster. Their selection is usually comprised of mostly mainstream titles so I explore the nooks for a weird entry stuffed between Star Wars & The Walking Dead. At the local shop, it's all about the moment.
The great thing about the local shops, particularly Amazing Fantasy in the area, is their likelihood to get into some weirder things. While the mainstream comics are likely their stock & trade, they have an abundance of alt-comix and comic literature. So, while you won't find much R. Crumb, Harvey Pekar, Peter Bagge or even Wil Eisner at Barnes & Noble, the local shops have just about everything in that niché.
Yesterday, on my weekly excursion for something weird, I did my usual indecisive dance of not knowing what I should check out, if anything. When inside, every corner of the store is beckoning me. From the front, the games are winking at me, tantalizing me with their resource management allure. From the one side, the single issues are whispering for me to come back to their favor and leave the trades behind. The other side in back are the Fantagraphics & Abrams hardcovers, titillating me with their off-beat & more humanistic goodness. All the while, the center is tugging at me with their tsunami of crime noir, off-kilter sci-fi and classic collections. What is an available gray-ing man about town to do?
As one who fails to resist any of these temptations, I paid visit to all sections in search of something I could not leave behind. This would be when I came across Minimum Wage #1. Recently, I have seen the new hardcover collection of Bob Fingerman's Maximum Minimum Wage. Judging by the cover alone, it was uncertain to decipher if it was more Daniel Clowes or Gary Trudeau. While I can get into anything so long as it is good and has a distinct point of view, I tend to prefer longer form storytelling in both novels and comics.
I took a shot on Minimum Wage #1 and after completion, I can instantly attest to it's greatness. I was and am instantly hooked as it helps to fill the massive void left in Harvey Pekar's passing. Much as I enjoy a good Green Lantern story, sometimes I want to relax with a story of more grounded human exploit. Though the name is slightly altered, it appears that the main character is a realization of the author. One area that comics have always succeeded was telling stories from a street level perspective and Minimum Wage resides comfortably in that dynamic.
Read: Minimum Wage #1 by Bob Fingerman
Listen: Black Cobra Invernal
Watch: The Godfather
The great thing about the local shops, particularly Amazing Fantasy in the area, is their likelihood to get into some weirder things. While the mainstream comics are likely their stock & trade, they have an abundance of alt-comix and comic literature. So, while you won't find much R. Crumb, Harvey Pekar, Peter Bagge or even Wil Eisner at Barnes & Noble, the local shops have just about everything in that niché.
Yesterday, on my weekly excursion for something weird, I did my usual indecisive dance of not knowing what I should check out, if anything. When inside, every corner of the store is beckoning me. From the front, the games are winking at me, tantalizing me with their resource management allure. From the one side, the single issues are whispering for me to come back to their favor and leave the trades behind. The other side in back are the Fantagraphics & Abrams hardcovers, titillating me with their off-beat & more humanistic goodness. All the while, the center is tugging at me with their tsunami of crime noir, off-kilter sci-fi and classic collections. What is an available gray-ing man about town to do?
As one who fails to resist any of these temptations, I paid visit to all sections in search of something I could not leave behind. This would be when I came across Minimum Wage #1. Recently, I have seen the new hardcover collection of Bob Fingerman's Maximum Minimum Wage. Judging by the cover alone, it was uncertain to decipher if it was more Daniel Clowes or Gary Trudeau. While I can get into anything so long as it is good and has a distinct point of view, I tend to prefer longer form storytelling in both novels and comics.
I took a shot on Minimum Wage #1 and after completion, I can instantly attest to it's greatness. I was and am instantly hooked as it helps to fill the massive void left in Harvey Pekar's passing. Much as I enjoy a good Green Lantern story, sometimes I want to relax with a story of more grounded human exploit. Though the name is slightly altered, it appears that the main character is a realization of the author. One area that comics have always succeeded was telling stories from a street level perspective and Minimum Wage resides comfortably in that dynamic.
Read: Minimum Wage #1 by Bob Fingerman
Listen: Black Cobra Invernal
Watch: The Godfather
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