On August 31st 2011 the majority comic fandom will have their eyes upon the release of Geoff Johns and Jim Lee's Justice League book as it unleashes a new era of DC Comics upon the world. The teasers and interviews are out there everywhere and the opinions strongly divided as to what is to come. I was like many, cautiously excited about it all. I mean I still do NOT get why books with such rich histories as Detective Comics and Action Comics are being started over with new #1 issues. I was however ready and waiting for the ride with my ticket in hand. . .that is until August 31st 2011 took on a whole new meaning for me.
Three Fridays ago I made my regular weekly jaunt to the local shop where I get my comics from. The name of the joint is G2K Games and as the name suggests, they deal in games of the video and card varieties. Luckily for myself and the other comic book lovers in my area they stock a healthy amount of comics as well. G2K is nestled inside a small shopping mall and as I entered the doors of the mall and headed just the few short short feet to the door of G2K I could see a notice of some sort pasted to the glass of said door. I paid no mind to it at first because the store was always having a Magic tournament or something going on. Then the words jumped off of the page at me and my heart sank. G2K would be closing on August 31st 2011. Instead of heading straight towards the books as normal I stopped in front of the counter. I asked the clerk what was "up with the store closing?", as if somehow I was going to change it. He confirmed what the sign said along with the reasons as to why. It seems that the owners of the G2K franchise had secured the location for another store to be opened next to a brand new shopping area hours away. The inventory from this particular store was going to be used to stock up the new store.
So here I am saying goodbye to my beloved comic shop. Gone now are my weekly visits to pick up my usual faves. Gone now is my perusing through the shelf for something new that catches my eye. Sure I can order my comics online or have some shop hours away hold what I want and once a month I can make the jaunt to pick them up. But for me, most of the joy of buying comics is the spontaneity of finding some new treasure that I did not know about. You see I grew up and still live in a small town. As a kid there was no comic shops around. Hell, I didn't even know what a comic shop was until I was nearing my teens. I got my fix from spinner racks at the pharmacy, the grocery store, or a quick stop. Now I again don't have a comic shop to look forward to and those spinner racks have long since vanished. Perhaps along with the DC universe I have grown so comfortable with now a thing of the past, so is my one simple and pure joy...that trip that I set aside each week or so where I could forget about the stresses that being "a grown-up" entails.
So goodbye G2K Games. Goodbye new comic day. Goodbye Peter, Clark, Bruce, Hellboy, Barry, Wally, Logan, and all of the rest of my pals. Sure I shall still see you all from time to time, but it won't be the same.