Free Comic Book Day This Saturday
This Saturday, May 5, is Free Comic Book Day. Seriously. It’s been a tradition for some years and is held on the first Saturday of May, which for 2012 falls on the 5th.
Now, that doesn’t mean you can waltz into your corner comic purveyor, grab a handful of Walt Simonson’s run on The Mighty Thor, and stroll out sans that pesky step of providing financial remuneration. The publishers, especially the small press, put out special Free Comic Book Day issues that showcase their titles. There’s usually two or more ‘shorts’ in each. And THOSE are free. Sorry.
Free Comic Book Day is basically a cool, budget friendly way for new fans to get interested in sequential art plus existing ones can discover new titles and get a little extra of those comics they already love. For instance, for 2011′s event Archaia Press put out an issue with a Fraggle Rock story and a Mouse Guard short, much to my delight as I collect the later and was curious about the former.
So how do you get the Free Comic Book Day issues? Well, it’s a major event so it’s pretty easy. You don’t need mutant phasing powers, ninja clan techniques, or the might of the Vishanti. You just go to a local participating comic book shop and choose the FCBD issues you want. For instance, my local shop, ComicKaze, puts out two large folding tables outside the door that are COVERED with all the various publishers’ Free Comic Book Day issues for that year.
You can check out the 2012 issues for FCBD on the event’s official website.
