What happened to the sidehacking, Rommel?
M. A. Masterson | Email | Homepage | 07.20.07 - 2:10 am | #

Hey Mike. This has just about nothing to do with today's topic, but I thought you'd get a kick out seeing this picture of my friend's daughter:

http://icrvn.com/SKD-20070710-24.jpg
De Baisch | Email | Homepage | 07.20.07 - 9:49 am | #

One last question: Do you think we'll ever see comic books back in supermarkets and convenience stores?

Another last one: Do you think Gemstone will keep publishing Disney comics for very long?
stavner | Email | 07.20.07 - 4:27 pm | #

Here's a question that really strays from the current topic. There are those who insist that monthly super-hero comics will be dead sooner rather than later. Do you see a trend in that department? What's your take on the viability of our beloved monthlies?
H | Email | Homepage | 07.20.07 - 6:25 pm | #

Mikester,

I've really enjoyed your insight on the comic book bust. But most of my confusion comes from the boom that preceded the bust.

The bust almost seeme inevitable: people who don't care about comics buying them as financial investments force the market to produce more and more horrible material that forces everyone to give up. Okay. Got it.

What I don't get is -- where the hell did all these investors come from in the first place? I mean, why did everyone suddenly get the idea that these comics would be worth a lot of money? Comics had been around for decades and decades, and then -- all of a sudden, out of nowhere -- all these non-comic book fans start investing in them? Why? Was there some sort of triggering event? I don't get it.
Roel | 07.20.07 - 11:19 pm | #

Oh, another question -- why are you so remorseful about selling pogs? How is that any worse than selling, say, a trading card or an action figure? People wanted pogs, and they wanted to give you money in order to own them. What's the big crisis of conscience there?

Thanks again.
Roel | 07.20.07 - 11:22 pm | #

Hey, everyone...I intend to do one final round of question answering Sunday or Monday, so look for some responses then!
Mikester | Homepage | 07.21.07 - 12:20 am | #

Mike, thanks for the P.O.G. memories.

In the summer of '94, the summer of O.J., I was working as a page layout guy for a copy shop here in Ventura. One day I was assigned to design an ad for a baseball card show, with a splash reading, "Also featuring POGs!"

Mr. Lu, my stern Taiwanese boss, was not familiar with the POG phenomenon. Skeptical, he kept insisting that the client must mean "DOGS."
John G | Email | 07.21.07 - 10:27 pm | #