Dunlap Dabbles

Last night marked my triumphant return to Los Angeles.  Although none of my luggage showed up on the conveyor belt when I de-planed I quickly found them nestled away behind the AA desk like VIPs in a secluded booth.  I set up my foursquare account and off I went…to promptly fall asleep.  Today however I arose early and set off for my normal first activity whenever I come back into town.  I hit up Golden Apple on Melrose and La Brea.  This shop is easily my favorite of all the comic shops I’ve ever come across in the country.  It’s amazing what a difference going to a good shop makes when I’m thinking about buying comics.  In Dallas there were times when I actually really wanted a title but wouldn’t pick it up because I couldn’t find a copy in suitable condition. NEW. ON THE RACK.  How that happens I don’t know.

Then there’s the staff.  When I got there today I was happy to see James and Dylan were working (even though I’m pretty sure Dylan forgets who I am when I go away.)  They aren’t just some of the most knoweledgable people I’ve met when it comes to comics, they’re some of the nicest people I’ve met in general.  They caught me up nicely this time since I hadn’t really been reading too much recently and then I hit the racks.  I picked up some new issues from titles and writers mentioned in my last post to make up for any illegally downloaded issues and it occurred to me that I was supporting the shop too.  I had lost sight of that aspect in Dallas I guess because I hadn’t found a shop that I liked.  There were a couple of issues today I was on the fence about that I picked up just to show thanks to Golden Apple.  I want that place to always be around so that I have a place to ask questions to people I trust just shoot the shit.  To give you an example here, when I was checking out I mentioned that I was going to be moving to Berkley in about a month and asked about shops up there James said he didn’t know any but he could find out and have an answer for me tomorrow.  Great guys and a great shop.  Despite the fact that I completely disregarded this in my last post I’d like to say that if the industry is worried about fighting comic piracy they should focus on good shops like this and shop owners and the companies themselves should invest some time and energy into making these destinations for the community.