Shopping at a comic book store in 1992

Why is it so busy?
They're all here to buy "The Death of Superman" at a Forbidden Planet store in New York City.
This video last close to 6 minutes.
#superman
#forbiddenplanet

[@texaswunderkind]

The great comic book bubble of 1992. Comics were hot, and every publisher was coming out with alternate covers, foil covers, holograms, "limited edition" collector's covers, etc. The most extreme example might have been the 13 alternate covers for the #1 issue of Gen13 published by Image. I paid way too much to get a sealed box of all 13 covers, which fortunately I sold on eBay and recouped my money. It was a crazy time. Everybody would buy 2-3-4 copies of comics...one to read, others to immediately slip into poly bags with backing boards to save later. Of course none of those comics are worth anything now because there are six million of them filling comic book store back rooms now. Only useful maybe as fireplace kindling. After moving long boxes full of comics over and over, I ended up donating the bulk of my collection to a library.

[@vampirerobot]

That's cool... your always donating 😜 all for a good cause though 👍

[@MaxP_88]

Still better times than today

[@bryansteele832]

I miss holograms actually. That shit was rad.

[@kylerstorm9260]

i was collecting during this time and the part you left out is that comics were pretty cheap, like $1.50 a copy, collecting them was part of the fun. no one was really doing it as a big investment scheme, we were this thing called “fans” - back in a time when everything wasn’t a “hustle”, we collected because we loves the stories

[@billybarnett2846]

I remember this and it was total bull. All those people buying a comic thinking it would be worth something. Less copies of a comic there are, the more expensive it is.

[@vampirerobot]

Right Billy...I think a lot of these people thought it would be worth something big some day.

[@salvambala7779]

Or maybe they just wanted to buy a comic to read and nothing else

[@vampirerobot]

@@salvambala7779 Perhaps

[@Amonny]

I call your comment total bull. Most of the people just want to read them. Few of them were there thinking at the resale price.

[@ducky920567]

@@AmonnyI agree. If you buy one copy, chances are you only wanted to read. If you bought multiple, you were speculating it would be valuable.

[@dragonic1217]

Love these videos!

[@vampirerobot]

Thank you that makes me happy dragonic😀

[@dragonic1217]

❤

[@LL-bl8hd]

I remember this was a big deal for some reason. On the cover of magazines. Most people didn't care about comic books otherwise. A lot of comic book stores still look just like this today although many of them now have more manga and figurines.

[@vampirerobot]

Right. Apparently, this location got a major upgrade not too long ago

[@MaxP_88]

Comics still sold much much better than today. They had they dedicate following.

[@joelbauer1937]

Love this footage so awesome!! I was nearly 12 when this came out back in 1992 and wasn't into comics yet. This has always been my dream book and now I own about 20 copies including all 4 prints direct edition CGC 9.6. My all time favorite Superman book and run to own. Death of Superman best set by far the art is so amazing. Dan Jurgens Rules!!

[@vampirerobot]

Wow! That's an impressive collection you got there Joel.

[@shades9415]

Yeah, I have everything. Promo material, all prints, Platinum Editions, 9.8 WP, original art….means more to me than most.

[@lifeafter-cm7mz]

In the nineties comics were king.

[@danielsantana540]

Xmen 1 released October 1991 sold 8.2 million copies best selling 90 s comic book

[@ShamanTiers]

Thought it was youngblood

[@MarkMeadows90]

I don't really shop at comic book stores as much as I used to when I was a kid. Last time I was in a comic book store was about 4 years ago. We have 3 comic book stores here in my neck of the woods, and they never seem to be busy on most days. Only during Free Comic Book Day in May is when they usually see the most traffic. I don't usually go to that event unless it's really necessary. Only thing people do in comic book shops is have local Magic the Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh!, or Pokémon card game meetups. Nothing really comic book related these days.

[@themegaman91965]

Sounds about right, sadly. Thankfully I scored a Batman compilation Dark Knight Dark City, which all would've come out the same time as everything in that video. Other than that, there's the card game tables... I discovered that comic book shop through old fake friends who laughed me out of a Magic Gathering game when I lost, but I gained one thing out of it -- good comics to look at.

[@texaswunderkind]

In 1995 or so my local store had Vampirella actress Sascha Knopf autographing comics. A married coworker and fellow comic book geek reluctantly agreed to go with me to the event. She was absolutely pouring out of that outfit. I asked for a photo and she was super sweet about it. Have an awesome pic with my arms wrapped around her. Best moment of my life. Getting married or having children were lame compared to that.

[@vampirerobot]

🤣🤣🤣

[@Kevinterell]

Hahahahaha this was a hilarious comment!!!

[@AUC.90s]

I understand. She is (still) hot 🔥

[@MaxZomboni]

That manager must have been laughing all the way to the bank.

[@vampirerobot]

He appears to be doing just that in the video while on the phone in the beginning.

[@Robert-nu4vc]

Every store owner who sells you something laughs all the way to the bank, haha!! Do you buy food and gas? pay bills? Buy clothing?You're being laughed at while someone gets rich.

[@ShawnLamont1997]

@@Robert-nu4vc the poor gets poorer the rich gets richer 🤷🏽‍♂️

[@dco2006]

1:19 lol that poor girl ... I couldn't imagine how many times she was pestered all day by nerds hitting on her working at a comic book store

[@yoced1468]

Can’t even tell what was said. The least restrictive vocally are the most hopeless. The collective knows that. Especially in this venue. Jezus. But it’s cool to see an attractive girl slinging comic books. Does wonders for the culture lol

[@synical13]

Hey, if you're gonna step into the lion's den, you better expect to encounter lions.

[@donaldvonglitchenberger4108]

damn she’s like 50-60 years old now

[@jedijones]

I was a regular customer so I had mine on reserve and didn't have to wait in any line. 😁

[@carljoshua2342]

The blonde girl, looks so bored lmao

[@vampirerobot]

😂😂

[@dco2006]

I dated a girl for a year who worked at Game Stop. She told me that every single guy who went in the store instantly fell in love with her because she played video games. Every 10 minutes. I could imagine that this poor girl had to go through the same rough process working at a comic book store lol 😆

[@carlosrock793]

Weird to think its been like 30 years .

[@HikikomoriDev]

Looked like a good business. I wonder though, some years later as people had their hands a little on the web, did somebody occur to them they could just scan the comics and then just host them in their site lol.. I wonder what the reaction would had been for all those people. It wasn't very long until they could start doing that, even if it was slow over the modems.

[@thenextrung]

There was a a comic book store in my area called Oakleaf. I would go there and I would buy Ren & Stimpy and The Simpsons comic books lol! They also had a lot of T-shirts and trading cards. And of course action figures.

[@danielsantana540]

1992 was when batman the animated series launched in the airwaves . Ran from 9 5 1992 -9 15 1995 85 episodes. . My favorite episodes are night of the ninja 10 26 1992 . If your so smart why aren't you rich 11 18 1992 riddler episode. And day of the samurai 2 23 1993.

[@warnutztheloser]

wow business was booming in 92'... 93-95 I used 2 jump on my bike every weekend hit up the comic book. spend $3

[@Elfenlied8675309]

Yeah, Death of Superman JUST came out, Batman Knightfall had just introduced Bane and broken Batman's spine. It was a crazy time.

[@stampscapes]

It's cool that this was documented. At first, when seeing this line, I wondered if it was a signing going on.

[@yoced1468]

Sometimes after a hard day I like to come to comic book vids like this one and look at the people like animals in a zoo. Not in a bad way but in but in a skeptical escapism way

[@hamburglar83]

When Superman dies was huge. Only time i ever bought a comic book

[@Bahador.B]

Aaah, life before internet was a thing in most homes.

[@nerdbamarich2063]

Happy new year my friend 😊☺️

[@vampirerobot]

U2 Nerdbama 🙂

[@nerdbamarich2063]

@@vampirerobot you're more than welcome

[@mattmc5069]

I remember the craze of that. By the end of the 90s first prints went for about 3 bucks and 2-4th about 2.00. The sealed copy about 6 if you where lucky

[@jalenjohnson1662]

For some reason the video you uploaded with the premier for the 1989 Batman got taken down. Can you reupload it?

[@danielsantana540]

Good vid

[@nikerailfanningttm9046]

I grew up with these! I was in my senior year of high school when this was filmed. I graduated in 93’. Today when you see a “comic book store” you immediately think of drug dealers and porn inside it, as hardly anyone today truly reads physical comic books anymore. Man I wish we could turn back time in the flip of a switch!

[@Gargoyle364]

🤨 Pardon my French but, the fuck kind of "comic book stores" have you gone to that sell drugs or porn? I've never seen nor heard of anything like that happening before.

[@MaxP_88]

They read physical comic books but it's called manga

[@buckregency3842]

Dude this is america not akihabara japan

[@buckregency3842]

@@Gargoyle364fr

[@ShamanTiers]

that's false physical comics sell for more than digital

[@ObsessedCollector]

Luckily I had the insight to preorder a TON of the Superman bagged books THREE months before release (Previews) thanks to my LCS. I kept 5 and flipped the rest for $75 at a local comic show the week they got shipped =) (Don't blame me, the dealer at the show offered me 75 a book)

[@ObsessedCollector]

Oh they were $1.66 ea because I preordered so many. ($2.50 cvr)

[@grayfox00700]

Not a single kid show in that video. I guess it's the same as today where it's just us adults buying comics and collectibles

[@3Storms]

Back then you could still buy comic books at almost every convenience store in America, and that's where kids got a lot of them. Adults went to comic book shops because they tended to be in better condition than the ones in convenience stores, and better for collecting because of it.

[@landofthesilverpath5823]

I bought most of my comics as a kid in the 90's from the 7/11 down the street and the grocery store. Most kids did to, but I would often ask my dad to take me to the comic book store on the weekend.

[@fdderek]

Looky looky here it's '92, Givin up the game, chain game want recruits

[@sting7789]

Good ol days. I just buy digital comics now no clutter and I don't have to worry about messing up my books.

[@MaxP_88]

The true comic book experience is still better on paper.

[@matthewbaduria]

When i was growing up in Indianapolis i used to read DC comics all the time,but now this days i read classic magazines and newspapers.such as The Indianapolis Star classic newspapers not like today's Indy Star,it's completely nothing like classic Indianapolis Star.

[@Khultan]

Is this the year IMAGE COMICS began??

[@danielsantana540]

1992 super man video game released on sega Genesis. By sun soft.same year sun soft released batman revege of the joker genesis. And batman returns released on Sega genesis NES

[@danielsantana540]

June 1992 captain america and the avengers video game.releases.for genesis

[@danielsantana540]

I recall about 5 years ago I got spider man 2 dvd deluxe edition. Sealed 8 bucks came with collectble concept art cards and a comic book peter parker gives up being spider man

[@danielsantana540]

1992 year spider man x men video game released on SNES

[@Elfenlied8675309]

I love jean jacket guy trying to buy 40 copies of "Death of Superman" only to be told each person only gets 1 lol.

[@Elfenlied8675309]

2:47 Guy looks like Rob Liefeld