Coast City Comics
656 Congress St.; (207) 776-1719
www.coastcitycomics.net

Coast City Comics was a surprise because usually I’d be satisfied with a store like Casablanca in my town. I am not sure if it is quite necessary to have two comics stores within a few blocks of each other in a small city like Portland, but one thing for sure is that Coast City Comics is bringing the competition.

Only in its third month since opening, Coast City Comics had me at “hello”. It has a good natured-friendly vibe to artists, not just comic readers. I felt welcome on a whole other level. Yes, there were comics, but there were also illustrations visible in the store window, t-shirts designed by local artists, and mini-comics from the burgeoning scene of creators in Portland. This store felt more like a hub where artists could share their work and be discovered by the regular Joe.

I already covered Casablanca in a previous post, and if I were to compare the two, I’d say Casablanca is that really cool older guy who has sold comics to you your whole life. Coast City Comics is your best friend from college opening a comic store with all your favorite stuff you used to love (and still love!). And the metaphor isn’t too far from reality! Coast City Comics was opened by Gerald von Stoddard, who also happened to be behind the counter during my visit. He spoke about the new opening and we traded a few words about the Disney/Marvel news. It was like catching up with an old friend where the comics talk always somehow made its way into the conversation. He also pointed out that some of his closest friends were also the artists behind the T-shirts I was perusing through (and bought!).

I enjoyed both stores. I enjoyed the mini-comics, graphic novel, and the T-shirt I settled on. I was stressed out all morning just trying to find a place to have lobster rolls and crab chowder, but I relaxed when I walked into these stores. In the end, I’m just happy I don’t live in Portland. I’d find it really tough who I’d give my loyalty to.

PS. Gerald showed me a Mighty Mugg character he designed of his business partner! I was really sad when I got back to my car and realized I should have taken a picture of my Munny Me with his Mighty Mugg. Gerald, send me a photo or post one up here in the comments section… and maybe our toys will meet again!