Just like most red-blooded American boys, I read comic books growing up.  Seriously, who didn't want to be Superman or Spider-man?  I never had much money as a kid, so what comics I did get I had to pick out carefully because I'd be reading them over and over.  My favorite was Batman.  I was lucky in that the Batman I grew up with was the Dark Knight and not the campy version that Adam West played on TV.  Here was a guy that didn't have any superpowers or a suit of super-armor to take down the bad guys with.  He was just a man that was dedicated to the purpose of bringing villains to justice.  This was probably why one of the best villains ever created was similar to Batman in that he never had any superpowers either, he just used his brain (even though he was insane).  Of course, I'm talking about the Joker.  Comic books were quite simply an escape from reality.

   I collected comic books pretty much until I graduated from college when I just sort of 'grew out of them' and started reading novels (a lot of science fiction by Isaac Asimov, Robert Heinlein, Piers Anthony, Ray Bradbury, etc.).  It wasn't until about 8 months ago that I picked up the habit again thanks to my best friend from college (we'll call him Renalwizard).  You might say it was because of comic books that we initially met.  The first day on campus after my family had left I was relaxing on my bunk bed and reading a comic when the R.A. came in to introduce himself.  He saw what I was reading and told me that another guy had just moved in a few doors down and he was reading a comic book too.  I promptly went down the hall to introduce myself and the rest is history. 

    Fast forward to last year when Renalwizard talks me into going out to the San Diego Comic-con which happens to be the world's largest comic book convention.  Let's just say that I had an absolute blast.  The one thing that I learned while I was there is that comic books have come a loooong way in the past 10 years.  Not only is the quality of the books (artwork, colors, paper) leaps and bounds better, but the stories have evolved way past the black and white, good guys versus bad guys of the past.  The writers have evolved the characters to show that they have flaws just like everyone else, they have lives outside of being heroes and villains, and that more often then not, the line between good and bad gets a bit fuzzy.

   Enough for now... I'll try to review some of my favorite comics, artists and writers later.

ps.  If you're ever in Tucson, stop by Charlie's Comics.  It's not a big or fancy store, but Charlie knows his stuff and treats you right.

 

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