As a kid, I lived in a small town in south Arkansas. There was an old general store that had been converted into a newsstand, and every week, my mother would take me to buy a comic — I was so small, I can’t even remember how much they were, an allowance was a distant, far-off thing for the big kids — and I remember looking at the racks, seeing the Joker’s creepy smile staring back at me. A red, white, and blue shield with a star in it. A guy in red with a lightning bolt on his chest. They are a part of my childhood as much as the memory of that new paper smell, the creaking of the floorboards, and the old pushbutton register.
As I got older, my passion for collecting weekly Batman titles faded, and eventually, Howard’s Newsstand became a concrete slab. But those memories are still with me today, as much as the comics themselves.
For local comic book fans, Shreveport’s Excalibur Comics, Cards, and Games is helping to create memories just like mine. “Excalibur is vital to customers, new and old. We are the only comic shop within some distance in any direction,” said Excalibur employee and comics fan Randol Young. “People feel comfortable at Excalibur and many of the customers there have developed deep friendships with the owner and with each other.” As a de facto gathering place for all things “geek,” the store serves a much needed function of tying a local subculture together. Comic book stores have traditionally been a place for fans of superheroes, video games, movies, and more to share their thoughts with one another.
“Every person can walk into the store, without being judged, and overdose to their geek delight. It’s important to know that comic book stores aren’t the over exaggerated kind of shop that you see on a show like ‘Big Bang Theory,’” said Randol.
In today’s post-PC, mobile, digital world, how have comics persevered? What keeps people coming back to shops like Excalibur?
“I think initially there’s the love of a character. Then I think the depth of the writing and art really captures fans,” said Randol. “If there’s somebody I meet who hasn’t read comics before and is somewhat hesitant, I’m always quick to tell them that there’s a genre for everyone. There are so many different kinds of comics that go way beyond superheroes.”
From being a hobby, to even something you could be picked-on for, comic books have become highly visible as of late. Randol says social media has made it easier for fans to share their love and characters have become “even more iconic” in the past 20 years.
Thanks to the Marvel films becoming regular blockbusters and the Dark Knight trilogy winning critical acclaim, it’s easy to imagine these types of films attracting new customers. But the sheer volume of the material and back issues available has made it a little more daunting to new readers. Randol said in his experience, it has been two comics that have made regular fans.”I’d say that there are two comics that you can look at and say that they brought in new readers like no other. First is ‘The Watchmen’ movie, the other was The Walking Dead…After the show, we have had tons of people coming in looking to read the book. And they’ve stuck around.”
For many fans of arts and culture in Shreveport, there are very recognizable subcultures with different gathering points. WIth the variations of all things “Geek” locally bubbling under the surface, Excalibur is keeping alive the longstanding tradition of comic book stores being more than a place to buy comics, memorabilia, or games.
“I think that we have a huge geek subculture here. We’ve got people that read comics, play table top games, video games, watch sci-fi, read comics, cosplay, LARP (live action role play), and more,” said Randol. “Excalibur is a great nexus point in which people can get together and share what they want to about their favorite part of the geek subculture. We cater to that subculture and we make everybody feel at home.”