The 1990s were dark days for the owners of comic book stores, with dozens closing across the country.
The 1990s were dark days for the owners of comic book stores, with dozens closing across the country.
Now, it's the comics themselves that are dark, but they're practically flying off the shelves, according to Ryan Seymore, owner of Comic Town in the Northland area.
Blockbuster movie franchises like the ones featuring Spider-Man and Iron Man helped with the turnaround, according to the comic shop veteran, but it's the comics themselves -- with their more complex story arcs and more anguished superheroes -- that have brought many people back to the art form.
"Batman now is very, very dark, and not necessarily an all-ages character at this point," Seymore said last week.
"It's a very cool, very exciting time in comics," he added. "I think it's really solid right now. From what I can tell from other retailers, the numbers are solid around the country."
Comic Town has been around since 1993, Seymore said.
Seymore, who lives in Lewis Center, went to work at Comic Town, became the manager and then purchased the business on Oct. 1, 2000, when the previous owner wanted to move on to something a bit more stable.
"I was young and figured I'd give it a shot," he recalled.
He's glad he did.
"There are the real-world concerns about balancing the budget and customer service and maintaining an employee base, but after all these years, I'm finding out I'm touching people's lives," Seymore said.
For example, for Free Comic Book Day, a promotional event held in shops around the country the first Saturday in May, Seymore makes arrangements to get comics into the hands of young people with autism.
"After a few years, I started thinking about what got me on comics," he said.
He remembered himself as a wide-eyed 5-year-old walking into the comics section of a store, and decided to make some changes in his own business.
"One of the first things we did was create an all-ages section," he said. "Parents could come in with a young reader and not have to worry."
According to its website, "Comic Town offers a clean, well-lit, family-friendly atmosphere where we strive to make everyone welcome."
Comic Town, located in the Morse and Maize Center, also began carrying action figures geared for children, not the high-end ones for avid collectors. The store also offers a venue for gamers of Magic: The Gathering and other card sets.
"It is within the last five or 10 years or so that it's really, really exploded," Seymore said of role-playing card games. "The demand just kept getting bigger and bigger."
Seymore said Comic Town recently hosted an event at the Greater Columbus Convention Center with more than 250 players.
More information is available at comictown.net.