A special post for a special issue…

There are times where something truly special comes along. Things come up that you just can’t miss.

A special opportunity recently came for my friends over at Aquilonia Comics, Cards, and More. They were given the chance to become a part of Amazing Spider-man comic book history by being featured on a special variant cover.

Here’s what it looks like:

On my birthday last Wednesday, while I waited in my car, I read an article over at the Troy Record outlining the details. I immediately gave Bob a call to find out more and to ask if he could do me the favor of putting aside an issue for me. He indicated that there was already a copy in with my subscription with “many thanks and gratitude,” probably for my years of business and past coverage of events.

Later that night, I did some more investigating and saw that there was a video that the Troy Record made featuring Bob; in the video, Bob explains even more about the opportunity. After speaking about this with my brother, who was also a customer at Aquilonia when he lived locally, I decided to give Bob another call, asking if he could pull a second copy of the variant cover for me. I also asked if he could pull the regular cover and put me down on the subscription for the monthly issues moving forward.

There are lots of great perks of being a subscriber at the store. You get 20% off every book in the store (including graphic novels), and, as the stuff you subscribe to comes out, it stays in a spot waiting for you. All you need to do is give them your name and vow that you will regularly pick up books and that you will let them know if you intend to cancel, this way, they can stop the subscription without ordering extra books.

I made my way down to Aquilonia Comics, Cards, and More, located at 412 Fulton Street in Troy, NY, this past Saturday. I was happy to see a special spot on the “New Releases” wall just for this special book.

I took the opportunity to take an issue from the wall and add it to the pile of comics that I was there to pick up. Yes, I went home with three copies of this special book, because I realized that this is a special opportunity that I did not want to miss (well, and one was for my brother).

You see, I really don’t need two copies. But I will argue that if you’re local to the capital region of NY and love to read comic books, you need at least one copy.

So why are you hearing about this from me? Surely (and surly), there are local people, specifically Troy people, whose online social presence reaches further than mine who want you to think they support local things. Why are they not promoting the hell out of this? They should be. It’s a “thing that makes you go hmmmmm.” [it’s a rhetorical question for you, but I actually do know the answer. All I’m gonna say is that you gotta treat your comic shop right.]

Anyway…

I called this past Sunday, yes, just one day after I visited, to add some other books to my subscription (tangent: I’m gonna give 3 new DC #1s a shot: Justice League, Action Comics, and Green Lantern. Why not?). In talking with the young man, Landen, on the phone, there are about 100 (of 500) copies left in the store. That means in 4 days, 400 of these comics sold. This is great news for Bob and for you. You still have a chance at getting one (at cover price). I wouldn’t wait long though, because I can assure you it will sell out and will no longer be available.

If you’re walking around claiming that you’re a local gem, your copy is with me.

Come and get it…