10 Signs You’ve Read More Than 1,000 Comic Books In Your Life

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There is no minimum requirement for someone to be a comics fan, not in the slightest. As long as someone is a fan of the medium and appreciates everything in it, not just one genre or another, they’re very easily a fan of comic books. However, there are signs when one has read lots and lots of comics in their time, maybe even over a thousand issues or so total.

One thousand issues may seem like a daunting amount to the uninitiated, but it’s surprisingly simple to cross that threshold after long enough. When one has cleared that amount, there are noticeable traits that they’ve picked up in the meantime. From ways to make reading easier—like having large physical collections or virtual subscriptions—or certain reading patterns like binges, superfans are easy to come across in the wild.

For those who read comics religiously, it’s easier to access vast libraries through subscription services

Marvel, DC, and more have large archives of comics that span decades. While a full collection is impossible to find, several subscription services come close to fulfilling the needs of the average comic fan in terms of an expansive catalog.

Marvel Unlimited, DC Universe Infinite, ComiXology, Global Comix, and more are incredibly accessible subscription services for comic readers. People don’t have to worry about the space requirement or price tag that comes with the maintenance of a large physical collection—instead, that can be consolidated as they support legal hubs that host decades upon decades of comics. It’s likely that those who have read a lot of comics have a subscription to a major platform or even utilize free library apps such as Hoopla and Libby.

9

You’re A Member Of League Of Comic Geeks

Downloading an app to review and log comics is the point of no return

Many are familiar with Letterboxd as a platform, a place where those interested in film can log and review whatever movies catch their eye. Indeed, platforms where people can track what they’ve watched, read, listened to, etc., have caught on in recent years, and the comic fandom hasn’t been left behind on this front.

League of Comic Geeks is comicdom’s answer to Letterboxd or Goodreads, a free platform—through one can pay the low prices of $1.90 a month or $19 a year to access more premium features that the site is more than functional without—in which readers can log issues as read, create lists of all kinds, find reading orders, review stories, post on forums, interact with creators during AMAs, track physical collections, and more. It’s an easy site to get the hang of and is typically where readers get a grasp of their statistics; notably, it’s how readers are aware that they’ve read more than 1,000 comic issues to start with.

8

You Love An Obscure Character

While the Trinity, Spider-Man, Avengers, and more are beloved for a reason, who doesn’t love an obscure hero or villain?

There’s no shame in liking a major character such as Batman or Spider-Man, they’re famous figures in pop culture worldwide for a reason. But many of those who have read over 1,000 comics tend to have favorites that skew towards the more obscure, due to having read a lot more than the basics.

It’s not hard to fall into these rabbit holes either—one can read plenty of Batman or Avengers and become enamored by a supporting character that might secretly have plenty of supplementary material to dig into. Reading so many comic issues opens a lot of gateways to readers discovering characters they wouldn’t have paid attention to otherwise, and many of them don’t even have to be from the Big Two. Many come from independent ventures, niche titles that only those diving deep into recommendations would come across.

7

You’ve Delved Into Independent Works That Aren’t From The Big Two

There’s plenty more to offer from comics than just DC and Marvel, be it from companies like Image or truly independent artists

Lots of comic fans get into the medium through Big Two superhero comics, and it makes sense why: Marvel and DC make up such huge shares of the market, with the comics and characters they produce being adapted multiple times annually. There are occasions in which independent comics get adaptations that hit it big, such as The Boys and Invincible, but oftentimes, it takes a bit of digging to get into less-than-mainstream titles.

When a reader gets into over a thousand read issues, there’s a very high chance that independent comics—whether they be from companies like Image or Dark Horse, webcomics, or physical issues published by their creators—make up a healthy amount of their stats. It’s only natural for those invested in the medium to want to expand their tastes and engage with new creators and stories, after all.

6

You’ve Set Up A Monthly Pull List

An in-person subscription to your local comic store’s offerings is a convenient way to get comics and support a small buisness

Purchasing comics can be a real hassle due to their availability online or at designated specialty shops, and it can certainly be an annoyance as the performance of a series often depends on pre-orders alone. This is often why fans try circumventing this pain the best they can—sometimes they subscribe to online platforms like Marvel Unlimited, DC Universe Infinite, ComiXology, etc, but sometimes they go through the process of curating a pull list.

Many specialty comic shops allow this practice, and the process of putting one together is simple. A customer simply requests all the titles they’d like to buy every month ahead of time—some shops require a minimum amount, such as 10, though it varies—then the shop automatically pre-orders the titles for them, and the customer comes to pick their pulls up after they release. It’s a simple way for readers invested in multiple currently ongoing titles to keep up, and subscriptions to certain titles can be revoked or replaced at any moment.

5

Iron Man And Batman Are Some Of Your Most Read Characters

Some characters just show up in everything and accidentally become some of a person’s most read characters

League of Comic Geeks is a wonderful platform for comic readers to log what they’ve read, leave reviews, track their collections, and more. However, a small feature the site offers is that of stats, where those with an account how many issues they’ve read, from what companies, and more. These stats can also offer insight into how many issues one has read from certain creators and how many issues one has read with certain characters within.

One may expect their favorites to be at the top of the list, as they tend to go out of their way to read their stories. But if most people who primarily read superhero comics check their LoCG stats, they’ll be in for a rude awakening to see that those such as Batman, Superman, Captain America, or Wolverine have infiltrated their most-read characters. This is all because these characters cameo in everything, and as such, have rather inflated numbers in terms of appearances. One can filter them out, but that requires a subscription. Overall, it’s a funny phenomenon that certainly plagues those who have read plenty of issues.

Creating your own reading guides is no small task, but comic fans are dedicated to the activity

Reading dozens and dozens of comics leads to a lot of knowledge about said comics—and what’s the point of that knowledge if it isn’t shared? Those who have read all too many issues know this and, as such, put their knowledge to great use sometime down the line to aid newer readers.

Oftentimes, those who have read plenty of comics have lots of recommendations to newcomers curious about the medium, be they genre-specific, for certain characters or teams, an author’s bibliography, the best work from a specific artist, and more. They’re walking encyclopedias. Sometimes, they go further and make their own reading guides, curated lists that lay out the exact order of an event, storyline, run, bibliography, etc. These are fantastic resources, especially for readers who may be overwhelmed by larger storylines.

3

You Hate One Beloved Character After Reading Them Too Much

For fans of Marvel and DC, it’s easy to get tired of big names like Spider-Man and Batman

Overexposure can be a killer when it comes to enjoying something. One can always have too much of a good thing. This is a phenomenon comics are not exempt from in the slightest. The more issues one reads, the more numb they can feel towards characters they once felt excited for, especially if they appear in everything. Many joke about the excess of Batman in particular, with lines like Black Label—as well as DC’s main universe—prioritizing books focusing on the hero above all else.

As such, those who have read lots of comics may feel indifferent towards characters like Batman, who appears in everything. It’s a surprise to more casual fans but understandable to those who’ve been reading for a while—especially when these more prominent characters hijack not only release calendars but also existing stories they may not otherwise belong in. It’s easy to get bored of something, which ties into why those who tend to read a lot more may have more obscure favorites.

2

You Can’t Stop Yourself From Binging

Sometimes, it is just impossible to put down a comic after picking it up

Sometimes, reading comics can feel daunting. Maybe it’s the amount of issues in a run, maybe it’s how many titles an event covers, maybe it’s feeling unfamiliar with a character or team. With this in mind, new readers may stick to checking out shorter series or reading larger ones in many individual chunks. However, when it comes to readers who have clocked in over a thousand issues? The likelihood of them binging is high.

It’s easy to see why that is, mind. Longer series, even if they’re divided up into shorter arcs, can be absolutely addicting to read with the time blazing by. This goes double for events, where readers can be excited to see what happens next in the larger scheme of whatever cataclysm is going on or excited to check in on their favorite characters.

1

You’ve Amassed A Decent Collection

Lots of avid comic readers are ecstatic to show off their shelves

Digital comics are very easy to find on the internet, from subscription-based services to library apps to possibly less-than-legal platforms. But when it comes to those who love comics and are financially comfortable? They will often splurge on collections of some kind. Single issues from ongoings, expensive and/or rare keystone issues, trade paperbacks, oversized omnibuses or absolute editions, memorabilia, anything is fair game for those who have read a lot.

Many who read a lot tend to buy issues or collected editions and read the story that catches their eye from there. Whatever the case, readers will try collecting the books that catch their eye or mean something to them—though it’s key to remember that if someone isn’t able to have a collection, that doesn’t make them any less of a fan or reader.

“}]] There are a few markers that are instantly recognizable and can tell a regular comic fan from one who has read thousands of stories over the years.  Read More