Ground Zero Hobby
4601 South 50th St, Suite 103
Omaha, NE 68117
(402)733-7212

Besides getting to cook my own deer meat, I also got to visit an old childhood friend: my welsh corgi Ein! She was my tightest homie throughout my high school, and it was nice to see how fat she had gotten living in Nebraska. Then I went to Ground Zero Hobby. This store is one of those all-encompassing stores. It’s a comics, cards, and gaming store, with enough of everything for a general fan to be satisfied with. I visited in the evening and was told that there were a few comics published by the likes of Avatar Press written or illustrated by people who shopped at the store. A lot of the gamer nerds in the store who looked like high schoolers also welcomed me, brushing cheese and french fries off their hands before waving hello.

The store had plenty of comics. The new arrivals for the week were placed a the very front rack with recent issues of continuing series placed on the wall. Older series were then housed in boxes in the center of the room, which is common for most stores to do.

I was pointed to check out the art that made this store unique. There was a mural along one side of the walls, that spanned across the length of the room. On the opposite wall was a shelf of action figures, from all sorts of decades.

It didn’t have a great graphic novel selection or indie books, so I ended up leaving with Dark Horse’s The Goon one-shot. Will I be visiting again? It wasn’t a special store, but it is for the locals. Not every comic book store has to be a nominee for a Will Eisner Spirit of Retailing Award. Some are there for the community, bringing school kids in afterschool and holding Magic tournaments. A store like Ground Zero is there for escapism, bringing in fantasy to a town that lacks immediate entertainment. For me, there wasn’t a great selection, but the beauty of comics nowadays is that there are a range of readers, and one store isn’t going to cater to all audiences. Ground Zero Hobby provides for the common comic book fan who get their weekly fix of Marvel or DC’s latest, and doesn’t need to crowd shelves with anything more than superhero comic book fantasy.

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!