As fans of comics we live and die by the books we read and the characters we love. In my personal experience when I spend as much time enjoying anything as much as I enjoy comics I tend to have a desire to expose the people I spend a lot of time with to them too. I enjoy diving further into the comics I read not just collecting and reading but reading about them, listening to podcasts with people conversing about them, and also talking to others about these characters and stories at length. As a guy that spends the majority of my time (and who does most of my reading) at work in close quarters with the same people day in and day out I want to be able to talk about comics a lot. It’s hard to do that with four indivuals that don’t share my obsession. For this reason I thought it would be interesting to talk about comics that reach beyond our demographic and that I have noticed are accessible and enjoyable to “non-fans.”
By and large, comics are lumped into the stereotype of inaccessability plagued by years of continuity and confusion making them a hard sell to outsiders. For awhile that might have been at least somewhat true. But with the rise in mainstream popularity of the trade paperback and graphic novel format (now found in most major book retailers) as well as the recent reboot/relaunch of the big two (DC’s New 52 and Marvel’s Now) accessibility is at its highest. The general public that have seen Batman, Wolverine, or Iron Man of the big screen or on television through recent years can now find collected versions of stories of all of those characters that are totally self contained and for the most part finite. Anyone interested in taking it to the next level and reading in an ongoing fashion can quickly catch up within a couple of trades and then go month to month.
The world of capes, tights, and superpowers may not be everyone’s idea of a good time. Most people generally think that all comics are about heroes punching villains and saving the girl. This is a stereotype that has surrounded comics for generations. It is for this reason that I usually approach new comers to various indie and creator owned titles. Often times these books are more adult in theme and many of them can be viewed as great literary works outside of their own demographic. These are the books and stories I usually lead with for those sceptical of the true quality and uniqueness that can only be offered in comics. Books like Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez’s Locke and Key and Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra’s Y: The Last Man are usually my two top picks for a hard to convince friend. Books like those as well as others like Punk Rock Jesus, Saga, Sweet Tooth, and The Underwater Welder all have acted as comic ambassidors for me to introduce the medium to a friend. The stories told there are as far from what people typically perceive comic stories to be capable of. From terrifying supernatural horror, to post apolacyptic science fiction, to being down right poetic in some cases, these and many other books open many people up to an entire world of unique story telling and beautiful imagery and art.
Locke and Key Volume 1 cover
The difficult part of introducing an interested party onto these comics is helping them keep that interest. The average person doesn’t want to venture out of their house and take a special trip to experience the glory of a great local comic shop every week to pick up a pull list. However, the average person in 2013 has some sort of device that they can easily download and enjoy various media onto and comics are one of those mediums. If a friend shows interest in reading more on their own but is hesitant about it I typically break out my iPad and show them the comixology app. We live in a world where virtually anyone can have an entire shop full of back issues and also keep up with month to month books at the tip of their index finger. It’s fully refined and functional and all of it fits in their pocket, bookbag, or purse.
Once I have an idea of what someone enjoyed the most based on what they’ve read and how it would be easiest for them to enjoy it’s easy to guide them to more quality content they will be likely to enjoy. Whether it is more quality books featuring the hero or villain they liked or if it’s yet another story by the writer or artist they enjoyed, the seed has been planted and is very easy to nurture and grow. This makes my life easier as often times I sound like a broken record talking about the new book that Matt Fraction is writing or the new cross-over event coming that can yet again change the status quo of the entire 616 universe or how bummed I am about the hiatus of American Vampire. Now a few people understand me. Not everyone I expose to these books becomes a life long reader and collector but if I influence a person or two and help the comics industry continue to flourish so we all can look forward to years of stories then I feel I’ve done my part.
With that being said, what comics do you recommend to your friends that aren’t already onboard? What are some of your experiences with turning “noobs” on to comics? Like I mentioned before I like to talk about comics as much as I like reading them so let’s keep this conversation going.
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