Josey Vingino looks through comics at Multiverse Comics in Parkersburg in May 2019 as part of Free Comic Book Day. (File Photo)
PARKERSBURG — Comic book lovers and other Mid-Ohio Valley residents will get the chance for free comic books Saturday.
Free Comic Book Day (FCBD) is the first Saturday in May, according to the event’s website.
The website says it is a day when participating comic book shops across North America and the rest of the world give away comic books for free to people who come into their shops and it was “founded on the belief that for every person out there, there’s a comic book they’ll love.”
Two local comic book shops are participating in FCBD on Saturday; Asylum Comics at 212 Third St. in Marietta and Lost Legions Games & Comics at 517 21st St. in Vienna.
Jordan Lowe, the owner of Asylum Comics said that his shop has participated in FCBD for “almost 18 years.” He said that FCBD has always been his shop’s most successful day.
“It’s a day we just kind of throw the doors open and invite the whole community to see what we have to offer,” Lowe said.
According to Lowe, Asylum Comics will be open 11 am-7 pm Saturday and will be offering all the gold tier comics and an assortment of the silver tier comics that are part of FCBD. He said in total Asylum will have more than 30 different comics to give out.
According to the event website, the difference between gold and silver tier comics is their availability at FCBD participating shops, with gold tier comics being available at every participating shop and silver tier comics being available at some participating shops.
Lowe said anyone who shows up to Asylum Comics on Saturday will receive three free comics. He also said that anyone who donates canned food or $1 for the Tri-County Food Pantry in Lower Salem will receive one extra comic per donation.
He said he will also be having a sale on merchandise and will have some outside kid-friendly activities if the weather permits.
Lowe wants people to know that comics are “not just super heroes… anything you can imagine, there’s a comic book made out of it.”
Jackson Hartenstine, a volunteer at Lost Legions Games & Comics, said the shop will be participating in FCBD too. He said they will have all the gold and silver tier comic books at Lost Legions Games & Comics.
The comic shop has a lot of people come for FCBD.
“We definitely have extra people at Free Comic Book Day,” Hartenstine said.
He said the people who come for FCBD are mostly parents bringing their kids, but they get some adults too.
According to Hartenstine, the shop also has a “grades for comics” program where kids can get a free comic for each .5 of their grade point average. The shop does that program and the FCBD because “we want to keep the kids reading” instead of staying in the house. .
Go to https://freecomicbookday.com/StoreLocator to find shops participating in FCDB.
Michelle Dillon can be reached at [email protected]
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