The Return of Comic Book Guy

"Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in."

--Al Pacino, The Godfather III

Comic Book Guy is back! No, not Jeff Albertson... me, Corey Bond!

If you'd asked me last month how long it had been since I'd logged any hours behind the cash register of a comic shop, I would've told you 11 years. Today I would tell you it's been about an hour and a half. That makes the 00's the third consecutive decade I've done time as a comics retailer.

In the 8os, working at Paper Heroes was a part-time college job for me. In the 90s, it was my first management job. Now it's an opportunity to avoid getting a "real" (read: "soul-destroying") day job while I work on my screenplay (more on that later). Not to mention that it puts me back in my element, surrounded by my people. (You know... geeks).

Speaking of being surrounded by geeks, you should check out my Paper Heroes photo set at Flickr. I'm compiling pictures (taken over the last 20 years by my friends and me) of comic creators, store signings, comic conventions, original art, etc. (Also, collectors might be interested in the Collectibles set).

When I left Paper Heroes in the 90s to get married and start a family, it was during DC's continuity-altering "Zero Hour" mini-series. Now that I'm happily divorced, my old friend (and fellow comics retailer) Earl points out that I'm returning to the comics biz (and once again pursuing a writing career) during DC's "Infinite Crisis." Life imitates art? Comics geek times all of his major life changes to coincide with those of the DC Superheroes? I guess we'll find out One Year Later.