I first got into comics back when I was about nine years old, when a friend of mine gave me a stack of X-Men and X-Factor books to read -- it was the "Fall of the Mutants" storyline, if I remember correctly, and I liked them so much that he ended up just giving me the issues to keep. Looking back, the stories weren't the greatest, but to my young mind it was amazing. I had to know more about who these X-Men and X-Factor characters were, heroically sacrificing themselves to avert The End of the World. The fact that I grew up in the bible belt only amplified my interest in these particular issues, and imbued them with more urgency and gravitas in my mind, especially the battle against a mutant called "Apocalypse" in X-Factor, which featured at least one or two choice quotes from the biblical book of Revelations. It seems like really cheesy stuff now, but it really threw my young mind for a loop at the time.
After quickly tearing through the stack of books owned by my hapless friend (who was slowly but surely realizing he'd created a comics-loving monster with alarming tendencies to rifle through stacks of old Spider-man and X-Men issues rather than play Nintendo), I began saving up lunch money and allowance to purchase new books. At first, my reading habits were limited to what was available at the local 7-11, then I discovered the existence of an ENTIRE STORE devoted to comic books, at which point I was hooked. Irrevocably and irredeemably.
Sure, my tastes have changed over the years (though yeah, I still read X-Men and enjoy sweeping apocalyptic epics - sue me). I've grown to appreciate creators over characters, and have taken interest in both superhero and non-superhero comics, mainstream and indie, monthly serials and graphic novels. There have been a couple times in my life where I gave up on comics for a while, mostly out of financial necessity, but I keep getting reeled in again (the first time by Transmetropolitan and other books by Warren Ellis, the second time by Grant Morrison's All-Star Superman), and before I know it, there I am setting up a pull list again and spending entirely too much time reading and thinking about comics. Over time, I've developed my own opinions about what works in comics, what doesn't work, what leaves me practically breathless with delight, and what frustrates and irks me to no end.
So I figured, why not share some of my thoughts about comics with the world (the world, for these purposes, consisting of the five people who randomly stumble across this blog when searching for something else), at least for so long as I have the time and motivation to do so. Expect intermittent reviews of things I am reading, longer "think pieces" about certain comics and creators, thoughts about the comics industry and fandom in general, and anything else that might pop into my head that is remotely comic-related.
