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Underground > Comic Books >

I want there to be an amazon.com for comics.

12:19 / 16.03.05

Is there one big online shop for comics -- not TPBs, but the monthly magazine-style publications? I mean, for *all* of them, not just one company?

12:43 / 16.03.05

I'm not aware of any comics equivilent of Amazon but - most major comic shops with a mail order depts should be able to take standing orders from you - many include a subscription to previews in their service allowing you to see what is coming out three months in advance and helping you place your orders at the same time the shop does.

12:56 / 16.03.05

Try Discount Comic Book Service:

http://www.dcbservice.com

They sell everything that's listed in Previews at nice discounts. They do only ship once a month, but for trades and higher-end items, it's well worth it. And they have terrific customer service, too. (I do not work there.)

15:29 / 16.03.05

For new comics as they come out, East Coast Comics is pretty good, with the slight caveat that they don't carry books from every single small publisher out there. For mainstream-to-submainstream stuff though, they're quite reliable, and offer an Amazon-style 30% discount to boot. You'll want to order promptly as the books appear--just like brick'n'mortar shops, ECC runs out of some things quickly. I recommend ordering by Monday of the week your books are scheduled to appear--the confirmed ship list goes up by 5:00pm each week.

If you're willing to preorder months ahead, try MailOrderComics.com. They actually do order from every available publisher, near as I can tell. The prices are great (often 50-75% off cover), the ordering policy is very flexible (once you place an order, it remains open until the end of the current month, and you can log on and add or subtract items at will until the cutoff date), and you get regular updates on the status of late books. Ordering that far ahead is somewhat of a pain, but I have yet to find a real-time online shop that has anything like the selection offered by MOC.

I would specifically NOT recommend the other popular pre-ordering site, Discount Comic Book Service (www.dcbservice.com). Their customer service is truly awful--they don't respond to emails unless you flood their box with duplicate messages, and when they eventually do respond they'll flat-out lie and pretend this is the first they've heard from you, despite your having emailed them daily for a week. Aside from which, their selection is weak (mainstream-only for the most part), and their ordering policy is inconveniently rigid--once you hit send, it's no changes for any reason. If you want to add to your order, too bad, you'll have to order a second time and pay extra shipping.

Solitaire Rose as Tom Servo

16:32 / 16.03.05

When my comic shop went under, I used www.comicsnow.com to get me through the time until a new one opened. Solid discount, you don't have to pay 3 months in advance (like a couple I looked at, esp. Westfield Comics), and GREAT customer series. If you subscribe through them, they rarely miss a book, but buying week to week from them, you might have trouble with the more obscure stuff.

16:36 / 16.03.05

When I've missed something I regularly pick up I go through Midtown Comics, who have everything available for order or shipping from the day it's on the stands. You can also get recurring orders/pseudo-subscriptions from them.

For back-issues I use Mile High Comics. Their search is great, super-comprehensive, and can help you find stuff even if they don't have it in stock.

22:31 / 17.03.05

These are great -- I'm getting tired of waiting for a Seaguy TPB, and the store I go to was out of We3 1 and 3 by the time I got around to going.

And I still haven't picked up Seven Soldiers stuff, which is weighing on my mind.

12:16 / 18.03.05

Have you tryed ebay?

18:22 / 18.03.05

It was eBay that inspired the question, actually. I wanted Planetary 16-20, but found 15-21.

foot long subbacultcha

17:08 / 20.03.05

comix-shop.co.uk are a pretty good bunch of guys. If there's anything they don't have, drop an email to them and they should sort it out.

17:50 / 20.03.05

comix is very good - I get all my new stuff from them. It is hard sometimes working out where the back issues will be found, but I have no complaints with them.

22:09 / 22.12.06

I just found this out, but didn't think it was worth it's own thread, so here's a bump if you're looking for a Christmas treat for yourself. It appears that Mile High Comics have not only a Christmas sale but an offer for half-price on all back-issues if you use the word THANKYOU when ordering. I just did it and bought an order of $60 down to $30, so it's well worth a go if you have some oldies you've been thinking of getting. I've just finished off getting all the tie-in issues for DC 1,000,000 so I'm a happy boy from the future. There may well be a DC 1,000,000 thread coming up when I've read them.

22:40 / 22.12.06

anyone know of a british equivalent of these sites? sadly, the oxford comics showcase is folding, and short of going over to london every month, i'm at a bit of a loss...

01:45 / 23.12.06

duh, sorry, ignore me. i should learn to read threads and not just look at the pretty bold linky things.

03:27 / 24.12.06

Just wanted to add an update to this thread. I use DCBS which Simplist warned against previously. I've had no problems but you do have to flood their email box to get responses (or just wait a few days). They will add stuff to an order but you have to email them about it (and then wait to hear back). They ship more than once monthly but you have to pay a little extra in shipping ($4.95 for twice a month shipping). I'd recommend them at this point. They also carry everything listed in previews, so it's not all just mainstream now. I have the Rebllion Complete Judge Dredd Casefiles 6 and 7 on order currently. These are not mainstream across the pond. Just an FYI if anyone cares.