I used to think collecting for value was the whole point

For years, I only bought comics I thought would be worth money later. I'd hunt for first appearances and chase high grades, and my whole collection was sealed in plastic. Then, about six months ago, I was at a small con in Austin and saw a kid reading a beat-up copy of Amazing Spider-Man #33. He was totally into the story, not caring about the condition. It hit me that I hadn't actually read a comic for fun in maybe a decade. I was just treating them like stocks. Now I buy stuff I want to read, even if it's a reprint or a trade paperback. The value is in the story, not the price guide. Has anyone else shifted from being a collector to being a reader first?

3 comments

3 Comments

brooke76718h ago

Honestly, why does it have to be one or the other? I get the point, but some people just like having nice things that hold value. Like @richard_anderson's uncle, he can enjoy a beat-up record and still be proud of his sealed collection. It's not that deep, you can do both.

richard_anderson1d ago

My uncle did this with vinyl records. He had a whole wall of sealed first pressings he never played, just to say he owned them. Last time I visited, he was spinning a beat up copy of "Revolver" he found at a garage sale, and he looked happier than I'd seen him in years. It seems like a lot of hobbies get infected by that mindset, where the point shifts from enjoyment to just... owning the right thing.

kim.zara1d ago

Man, that's so true. It's like we forget why we got into these things in the first place. I see it with video games now too, people buying special editions just to leave them on a shelf. When you treat your hobby like an investment portfolio, you just suck all the fun right out of it. That switch from owning things to actually enjoying them is everything.