An Ode to the LCS...
One of my favorite Internet columns right now is ReTales by Jud Meyer over at Comics101.com. It's also featured as a regular column over at Comic Book Resources. It's a great look at the behind-the-counter operations of a comic book store. But more than that, Jud writes several heart-warming stories about his regular customers, comic book fans
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Rory was well known for making his store welcoming to women (and kids!) and also for hiring female staff. He really, really took care of his customers, too; I remember walking in the Thursday that Captain America #25 came out, knowing that the store would likely already be sold out of it, and while I went to pull the rest of my weekly haul from the shelves, Rory came up to me and handed me an issue and told me that although the issue had sold out hours ago, he'd set aside an issue for me because he knew that I'd want it. He was absolutely wonderful that way.
Rory was also very forthcoming about his frustration with the way the industry turned off female readers and failed to attract new female readers because of the relentless T&A. He once told me that he'd wanted to recommend the Emma Frost solo book to a lot of his teenage female customrs, but would not do so because of the Greg Horn T&A covers. So, yeah, Marvel shooting themselves in the foot by alienating a potential demographic? Rory called it.
Anyway, I've always felt safe at Comic Relief; the staff will sometimes go out of their way to pull two random customers together and introduce us to each other because they know that we have similar interests. The staff also lets you browse and read at length and is the ONLY LCS that I know of where if you hate a book after purchasing and bring it back in good condition, they will refund your money. They stand by their recommendations and stock. All in all, the best comic bookstore in the entire world, and they're continuing Rory's legacy of excellence.
Also, the staff will geek out with you for hours. There was one guy in particular who used to work there who would talk to me for hours about Black Panther and Iron Fist and Bronze Age stuff, and it was completely awesome.
They also took wonderful care of me when I suffered a devastating personal loss. I wandered in a couple of nights after it happened, desperate to find something that would take my mind off of my grief, and Rory spent two hours with me showing me stuff and handing me tissues and not making me feel awkward about crying. I was so touched by that kindness. It reaffirmed my faith that yes, there are truly kind and compassionate people in the world.
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... and I really get the emma frost thing. Took me a bit to realize it was the same one I read at the library and enjoyed, but had been repelled from in the store... because my local library removed the covers giving it a laminate protector.
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