First set of questions answered.

I've answered the first round of questions below, and I'll still take more until the end of today--no subject is off-limits, and no question is too bizarre (thanks to F. Chong Rutherford).

The Pickytarian asks:

Let's say that you are standing in an empty gymnasium. The doors open and a flood of 8-year-olds rush in, intent on fighting you until you lose consciousness. Neither you nor the children are armed. The only way to stop them from fighting you is to knock them out. My question is: How many 8-year-olds could you beat into unconsciousness before they did the same to you?

Hmm. This sounds like a great scene for a book. The average 8-year-old is, what, 80lbs? I'm thinking I could get through somewhere between 10-15 of them before they figure out how to gang up on me correctly.

Tom Spurgeon flips the script and asks me questions:

1. Where do you buy your comics and how much do you spend in each place?

I don't have a set place, exactly. When I preorder or have things on a pull list, I buy from Brandon Wilt at Comix Misadventure in Johnstown, PA. He does his best (despite a shitty all-around market, and a consuming public not interested in reading in general) to order interesting looking independent and alternative comics, and he's a heck of a guy--I bought just a couple things from him while I was in college (by no means a regular customer) and when I finally moved to the area for work, he remembered my name and my tastes. When I forget to order something, or just want to browse, I hit up the better stocked Comics Swap in State College, PA. If I'm in NYC, it's pretty much just Jim Hanley's Universe. I buy trades and graphic novels from major bookstores, Amazon and any of the stores listed.

On the "how much" part of the question, it really depends on how my cash flow is. We've gone through two lean years while my wife went back to nursing school, so I probably only spent about $60-70 per month on comics from brick-and-mortar stores, and budgeted for bigger purchases at conventions like SPX and MoCCA. My wife will chip in, though--if she sees something at a bookstore she thinks I would like (the most recent example would be The R. Crumb Handbook--she thought it looked right up my alley because "the guy on the cover looked twisted and bitter"). Once we get settled in with her new job, that figure might change.

2. What percentage of them do you keep for more than 3 years?

Almost everything. I hoard books, and I used to hoard periodicals until she told me that I'll never use them again. Ideally, though, I'd like to get rid of almost everything I have in single issue form in favor of trades, which are much more convenient for my lifestyle and reading. As much as I hold onto things, I'm not a collector.

3. Would you buy more if comics "back issues" were priced more along the lines of used books, with a few rarities but mostly tradeable junk?

No, I don't think so. I don't have that "collecting" mentality--I've never thought of having a "complete run" of a comic as something I'd enjoy building. I like my books sturdy. Now, I'm all about old trades priced like used books.

4. What is the traditional area of comics you are least interested in?

Traditional area? If by that, you mean genre, I'd probably have to say fantasy, but that's more of an all-around thing than something just limited to comics. I've never understood the appeal of fantasy novels/comics from the last 100 years or so (and, to some extent, I feel the same way about science fiction). I might also say manga--I'm interested in it, but not to the extent of some of my friends, but as I become more familiar with manga, I'm growing more appreciative of it.

Brandon Hanvey asks:

What did you think of "the stereos" books?

You're trying to steal my review content away from me. Bad, Brandon--bad!

The short answer: I liked them. I'm not sure that they work as well as they could, but I liked them. You've got a keen design sense, but I'd quibble (and I probably will, when I review it) on some of the storytelling aspects of it. My overall impression was "charming, but light." Still, I liked them.

Kevin asks:

Cake or death?

Unless it's carrot cake or coffee cake, death. I hate cake. I took exactly one bite of my wedding cake for ceremonial purposes.

F. Chong Rutherford asks:

A giant, balding man wearing a dress, a cape, with glowing eyes appears before you. He says,

"You, your family, your dogs and your unfathomable Ally McBeal collection are to be transported to a new universe, in order to maintain the cosmic balance!

"Would you rather be sent to ...

a. ... live with Marv from the Sin City universe, prior to his death?
b. ... the swingin' disco pad of the Super Sons, Batman Jr. and Superman Jr.?
c. ... the inside of James Kolchaka's imagination as a monkey family?

"Choose or Perish, so says Uatu!"

You are batshit insane, but I love you.

I don't know what the context is for option B, but I'll take it. I can live with a swingin' disco pad. I don't want to be a monkey, so Kolchaka's out, and I don't think my dogs would like Marv very much.