Comic book stores, the good the bad and the ugly.

[Art]

Also worth mentioning is Confounded books in Seattle, a very nice alternate comics shop with all kinds of cool stuff, with a very good recordstore next door. Ah, the joys of world travel...

Link: http://www.trashkids.com/" target="_blank">http://www.trashkids.com/

[Wils]

Readers World isnt a comic shop as such - moe a second hand books shop, with loads of mags and comics, but recommended all the same.

Readers World is indeed ace, on the proviso that you don't mind lugging the boxes off the shelves before you root through them. I came out of there with a carrier bag absolutely chokka, and the whole lot came to less than a fiver.

I have a tendancy to deliberately piss off 'comic shop' employees in Birmingham. The first was in FP when someone who worked there told me he'd never heard of 2000AD. I stood there and laughed...and laughed...and laughed.

The second, I think Watch witnessed the repercussions of later on when he went in afterwards. I asked a member of staff at Nostalgia where the comic shop that used to be there had moved to. He didn't look a very happy pixie as I walked out.

On a positive note, Kathies Comics in Bristol, who I get all my mail order stuff from, have performed a sterling service since I've started using them. They're genuinely nice blokes as well.

[Natsan]

Sounds like you went into Comics Showcase on Charing Cross Road.Very good comic shop-spacious,well-organised,very good range of stock and,of course,all the 2000AD stuff is in a prime position on the wall:)

Natalie

[DavidXBrunt]

Yeah, he's definatley on about that one. I went there during the Dredd-con weekend. The guy down stairs made me feel bad for even asking him one question, but the man upstairs was nice.

They had loads of set of the Batman/Dredd cross-overs if anyone's looking for them.

[seeneester]

Well apart from the local branch of Forbidden Planet, which again seems to be staffed by paranoid security guards, I frequent a rather nice but incredibly tiny book and comic shop that goes by the surprisingly original name of "Books n' Comics".

I'm not kidding when I say it's tiny either, the phrase "Three's a crowd" must have been coined after a group of fanboys visited. However, the service is friendly and they do try to get what you ask for, and best of all, if you catch them on a good day you can haggle on some of the older stuff.

Anyway here's a link to their website, and I would appreciate it if anyone else could paste some links to any other comic and book related sites worth visiting.

Link: http://www.booksncomics.co.uk/" target="_blank">BOOKS  N' COMICS

[MOONSHINE]

Forbidden Planet is a chain store, so like Virgin etc I suppose its inevitable that your sometimes going to get p*ssed off retail workers on minimum wage rather than happy geeks who love comics.

For the record my local comic store is Forbidden Planet in Edinburgh, and the staff there are a pleasant, friendly bunch.

[NikolaiDante]

The Comic Zone shop in Letchworth, Herts is cool, they were very disorganised a few years ago and the upper floor was literally a comic graveyard (woulda made King Troutman go on a beheading spree). But now they have moved over the other side of the Arcade they've got their act together. They may not have the greatest range but the chap who runs it always seems happy to see you even if you walk out empty handed

[Buddy]

Talisman (as it once was called) in Belfast was a great comic shop staffed by comic fans (Mal, Neil, Franky Fuzz and John, though Frank has now moved on to the dizzy heights of B&Q, shame really, a more natural artist you will never meet, brilliant but very, very lazy and Mal has had material published by Fantagraphics - Holy Cross, great stuff, and he co-wrote stuff for Chrisis with Pat Mills - Falls Guy etc... check it out).

It recently becamee part of the Forbidden Planet group, which is fine except you now can't find the comics for the toys. Shame.

By the way - I'm compiling a directory of UK comic stores for ximoc.co.uk. Please forward any information about your local/favourite store to me at mail2ximoc@yahoo.co.uk.

Cheers

Link: http://www.ximoc.co.uk" target="_blank">http://www.ximoc.co.uk

[Devons Daddy]

on the web silver  surfer have looked after me well. with international mailing and excelent online ordering system.

in my home town of plymouth. kathies comics two very pleasant chaps(true sci fi fan boys)and very helpful and knowledgeable. and purple haze. superb selection of everything under the sun.at some very very reasonable prices i may add.

In singapore. ALRICS.first true western comic shop. ran by a sad comic fan boy. stocks 2000ad and related merchandise.marvel darkhorse etc.
he also thinks alan moore is the finest scribe since shakespeare.
The shop has poster of Halo Jones framed on the wall.
he deserves note as the first to open such an enviroment after the restrictions on such materail where relaxed last year.

[Bolt-01]

Nice, I laughed out loud at that. I actually got my only bought piece of original art from there (Nostalgia) back in '91. A page of Alan Davis first issue of Batman & the outsiders. lovely to see all the little things that dont reproduce well.

All comic shops are crap unless you are completely at home spending an hour in there, buying nothing and still learning loads about stuff.

The only time I have been into a shop recently was FP brum as I was trying to fill a few gaps in the 2000 collection, and I had to ask where the comics were! Shocked man, shocked!

I have driven past readers world dozens of times and never gotten in, that will have to change. Thanks Watcher.

[almighty mat]

My favourite is the Comix Shoppe in Swansea, where I work. the staff are very nice, dashingly handsome and have the best taste in background music.

mat

[mongor2003]

Ground zero in my home town of Mansfield was a perfect comic shop, run by two lovely chaps called Paul and Stu, back when i lived there I used to go into the shop and just hang out for hours on end chatting to Paul, Stu and other regular customers, it was more of a social club than a comic shop, and Dan Abnett used to hang out in there as it was his local comic shop also.

FP in Nottingham, whilst being a good shop choice wise, yet again had staff you just wanted to punch in the gonads, especially the manager who was this obnoxious eastern european midgit, I used to go in there for 2 hour stetches just standing there reading books and mags and then not buy anything just to piss him off and give him a sarcastic "thank you" on my way out, he once said to me "this place isn't a library you know" - total arsehole, I hope his precious "career" hasn't nosedived since I last went there in about 94.

[Quirkafleeg]

Well the current Notts FP manager is a bit of short arse... but I don't think he's Eastern European, just on the outside miserable bastard, but strangly enough a bit of laught if you can get past that.

A papershop in my local town has actually put up several "This is not a library" signs on the mag shelves... needless to say I never buy anything from there, but do browse if I've got 5 mins to kill...

[Queen Firey-Bou]

well ive probably only been a comic shop twice in life... very strange & frustrating ( no money ever to spend ) it was. but the 'bookncomics' seeneester mentioned were a great help to me online. good on that man!

[Devons Daddy]

uncle umpty
and any one else intereted
this is the link to kathies comics plymouth.
a nicer couple of sad comic fan boys you could not wish to meet. knowledgeable and pleasant. heavily into sci fi. and role playing games.
but enough of their personal life.
worth a look,
top of range attitude. always happy to help.
sadly the other one i mention purple haze is not on the web.tehy have a really great selection and a very good buch of chaps working in there.

Link: http://www.kathiescomics.co.uk/main.html" target="_blank">http://www.kathiescomics.co.uk/main.html