Local comic lovers can further indulge their hobby during Free Comic Book Day on Saturday, an event celebrating the comic industry’s work and readership.
At Atlas Comics, at 5251 N. Harlem Ave., near Norridge and Harwood Heights, owner John Stangeland is eager to offer readers free comics from larger publishers like Marvel, DC and Dark Horse, and the list goes on.
“Over the first few years, (Free Comic Book Day) has really blossomed into a big event for the comics industry,” he said. “You get a lot of different stuff. You have superheroes (Spider-Man, Superman, Avengers, Batman), but you also have (books like) Japanese manga, different genres and styles.”
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Free Comic Book Day has invited customers into participating shops to browse comic titles since May of 2002. With nearly 30 participating publishers providing comics, customers will narrow the titles they take home down to their favorites.
“Most stores will give you between two and four free comics, so there are people who travel all over the city trying to get every comic that came out that day,” Stangeland said. “In addition, we have a goodie bag that goes with the comics. So there will be some promotional posters and other handouts about previews of upcoming publications.”
Although Free Comic Book Day allows customers to discover new titles, Stangeland says most people tend to stay with what they know, especially younger children.
“If they watch Spider-Man on Saturday morning cartoons, that’s what they’ll go to,” he said. “Some people do use it to test out something, but I think more often people go within their wheelhouse.”
While Atlas Comics first opened in the spring of 1988, this year will mark the shop’s first Free Comic Book Day on Harlem Avenue. The shop originally opened on Cumberland and Lawrence avenues, remaining in business for 25 years before moving to a subscription-only service. Stangeland then re-opened the shop in its new location in September 2017.
“It’s been great; the neighborhood has really embraced us,” he said. “I’m seeing a lot of familiar faces but also new people who never came into the old shop, but tons of people who knew us from back in the day over on Cumberland.”
While Free Comic Book Day is a big individual business day for Atlas, over the years, he said it has also brought in several new customers.
“(It brings in) a lot of families, which is really important to the industry,” Stangeland said. “I’ve been in the business for 35 years, so people I saw coming in as teens and 20-somethings, now they have kids and they’re bringing them in. It’s really fun to watch.”
With the amount of diversity offered within comic book selections, the industry also continues to encourage inclusion across the board when it comes to readership.
“I think within the last five to 10 years is when we’ve been seeing a lot of generational family stuff with parents coming in with young kids,” Stangeland said. “And not just the fathers but both husbands and wives bringing in their kids.”
On May 12 and 13, Atlas will also celebrate its 30th anniversary with storewide sales, food and drinks in-store. Stangeland says for both upcoming events, he appreciates meeting readers who keep print alive rather than going digital, and buying comics in-store instead of online.
“There’s still kind of this little niche of people who love print and collect the old stuff,” he said. “So it’s a community to come and interact with people who are like-minded. That’s probably never going to go away.”
Gianna Annunzio is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.