Impediment
Endless
 Gender: Male
Location: The Dreaming Moderator |
This is the comic book that started it all for me.
I'm 37 and I've been collecting and reading comic books since I was 9 years old. Sure, I bought comics at nine years old. I read them and then cast them aside, like most any nine year old would do. I just wanted to read about the adventures of the X-Men, Superman, and Batman and be entertained, but at nine years old, I didn't appreciate comics books enough, yet, to be called a serious aficionado.
Fast forward two years to 1991 when I was 11. I distinctly remember buying this issue from a news rack in the Kroger supermarket, along with a few others, for a road trip that my family and I were taking to Astroworld, a former amusement park in Houston that has since been leveled for parking space. My mom and dad knew that comic books would keep me quiet and still for the tenure of our trip to and fro, and they didn't mind buying me multiple issues. I don't know if it was due to the laziness of the store employees or if it was, in fact, destiny that I find this comic book, but this issue was last month's issue and technically was not supposed to even be on the stand. That said, the ending of Fantastic Four #357 got me hook, reel, and sinker. I was from then and ever after a true comic book fan. That's how much this issue affected me.
Alicia Masters is a Skrull?! What was a Skrull? Why were Johnny and Ben at each others throats over Alicia? Who is the Puppet Master and why was he trying to aid the FF at all? Who is the Super Skrull? Why do the Skrulls hate the FF so much? These were among the questions I began asking myself after finishing said issue. Needless to say, next month I bought FF #358 and my head was filled with even more questions from not only the story itself, but from the equally mind blown fans who submitted their letters describing their shock and awe at such a revelation!
I began going to the local, and only, comic book stand (yes, a stand and not an actual store) at my hometown's little mall/shopping center to acquire as many issues of the Fantastic Four as my meager allowance would allow me to buy. Suddenly, but not surprisingly, I became a fan of other titles, as well, and began to crave them, too. My mom and dad, sensing my growing addiction, bought me a comic book collector starter kit for Xmas that year, and hence began my hobby that has consumed me since. I bagged and boarded every single comic book that I bought and boxed them with tender loving care. Today my collection still stands proud, and after an eight year hiatus from said hobby, I'm glad to say that I'm back in the game full throttle with no signs of ever slowing down.
It's funny how someone can become so involved with something that they initially don't understand, isn't it? To think......all of this, my love for comic books, comic culture, my appreciation for art and writing, came from me wanting to know what some green skinned alien was. I'm only glad that my mom and dad were supportive of my interest and didn't try to hinder it with their opinions of "what a boy ought to do with his time and money". I know too many parents who try to do this to their kids, and it just makes me sad. My daughter, Madison, is 12 years old and she is showing a profound interest in video games to the point where she is getting better and better everyday at the games I buy for her. I hope that one day she and I can share more interests together like comic books, Star Wars, and other things that I love.
And you can bet your last dollar that I'll never be anything but 100% supportive of what she so loves. That's why I am what I am today.
 Attachment: img_3086.jpg
This has been downloaded 0 time(s).
__________________
“Dreams shape the world."
Last edited by Impediment on Jan 18th, 2017 at 01:12 PM
|
KMC Community Forums
Oct 25th, 2016 07:50 AM
/center]
