Met a guy at a con who only reads single issues, never trades

I was at a small show in St. Louis about 2 years ago, standing near a longbox full of 90s X-Men. This older dude next to me starts pulling out issues one by one and telling me the exact month he bought each off the rack. He said he's never bought a trade paperback in his life, thinks they "cheapen the experience" of waiting a month for the next part. We talked for like 20 minutes about how different the pacing feels when you read them as they came out. It stuck with me because most people I meet either do trades or digital now. Has anyone else run into a diehard floppy-only reader?

2 comments

2 Comments

cameron_chen6318d ago

Honestly, I gotta push back on that "cheapen the experience" thing. Ngl, I get the nostalgia of buying singles off the rack, I really do. But waiting a whole month for a cliffhanger that ends up being a dud issue is just frustrating, not some sacred ritual. Reading a trade lets me binge the whole story arc and actually feel the flow of the writing without forgetting what happened last issue. Tbh, it feels like gatekeeping to act like trades are somehow lesser when they're just a practical way to enjoy the same stories. I'd rather have a solid story in one go than pretend the month-long wait adds something meaningful to the experience.

wyatt_green18d agoMost Upvoted

Nah, the point is the anticipation, not just the story. Different thing entirely.