By Morgan
I’ve always wondered why whenever I walked into a comic book store, I would be greeted with surprised faces. Could it be because I was the only girl in the store or maybe something else?
Usually when I go to comic book stores I feel somewhat comfortable but the surprised look on people’s faces always throws me off. My aunt would even tease and say “You like comics? How lame.” Even though I know she was joking and she’s not a bad person, I still question why would she say such things. What was her motivation? None of my other family member or close friends look at me differently because of comic books.
I first got into comic books when I was about 10 and my dad introduced me to anime. It was hard to get access to comic books because I didn’t get chances, my mom was always busy with work and I was to young to just go to the library. I got back into comics when my English teacher let me borrow his copy of the series East of West by Jonathan Hickman and Nick Dragotta. This series is one of my favorites right now and I’m waiting for the next chapter to be published.
I’ve been able to access comic books by going to stores and conventions. I also even recently bought the first four chapters of Witchblade at Kraken Con in Oakland and had them signed by the illustrator. I love the art of good illustrators and love how they can take the time to carefully draw out a comic book box, by box. I also appreciate the time they must devote to writing good dialogue. When a comic has both of these elements, it’s very satisfying to me. To me good comics are like better versions of all text books. Books may give you the ability to create the scene yourself, but if you would rather be able to picture it the way the author does, I would recommend comics to you.
I wish I knew the reason behind people’s surprise when they find out I’m a comics fan. Is it because I’m a girl? Or because I don’t look nerdy? Maybe because I’m a person of color. I may never know the answer to this question. All I know is that comic books are something I enjoy, hope other people can try to enjoy and I’m part of the comic book enthusiast community, even if I don’t look the part.