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Midtown Comics, NY
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Started by Cushing Fan,

37 posts in this topic

Cushing Fan

Cushing Fan

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Posted

Hi everyone, 

Just curious to hear feedback from anyone who has bought any silver age books from Midtown Comics in NY. I am interested in a comic they have listed in their inventory as NM- but they don't have an actual photo of the book. When I sent them an email they referred me to their graded page which states:

 

Overstreet Grading Definitions

Please note that Midtown Comics does not grade or consider any type of numbered grading scale when determining a comic books condition. 

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KCOComics

KCOComics

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46 minutes ago, Cushing Fan said:

Hi everyone, 

Just curious to hear feedback from anyone who has bought any silver age books from Midtown Comics in NY. I am interested in a comic they have listed in their inventory as NM- but they don't have an actual photo of the book. When I sent them an email they referred me to their graded page which states:

 

Overstreet Grading Definitions

Please note that Midtown Comics does not grade or consider any type of numbered grading scale when determining a comic books condition. 

You asked for a picture and instead of giving you one they directed you to a disclaimer that says "we aren't held responsible for our grading?"  Yikes! 

 

If I'm thinking of the right guys, they have several stores. I was looking at some of their books and I exchaged a few friendly emails. My wife and I were going to a play in NYC so we took the train in and went where the person directed me to go. 

When I got there, the place was a mad house!  People everywhere! It was hard to tell who worked there.  It was a really happening place filled with people in their early 20s.  A far cry from the slow paced comic shops in Connecticut and MA. 

I asked for help and explained who I was and what I was there to see and the kid had no idea what I was talking about. I showed him the email exchange (I had printed it out, because these were still Flip Phone days) and he told me I went to the wrong store! This was maddening because I showed him in writing where they directed me to that store.  

Anyway, it's possible I'm thinking of a different place, but I'm pretty sure it was them. I emailed them when I got home and they were very apologetic through email, but I don't exactly go to NYC frequently so I never went back. 

 

 

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AndyFish

AndyFish

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1 hour ago, Cushing Fan said:

Yeah, the site did list multiple stores. After hearing this I will most likely not be doing business with them.  I am not a fan of buying a book blind.

Well, back in the good ol days of the Comics Buyers Guide that's how we bought all our books.   Ask them if they have a return policy.   If you don't like the grade send it back.   I've dealt with them a number of times when I'm in the city and they've always been great.

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lordbyroncomics

lordbyroncomics

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I miss Jim Hanley's Universe by the Empire State Building. I ordered from Midtown about three times in early 2016 and it just didn't work out as well for me as using MyComicShop. That's just my personal experience though. I do think it's a bit of a red flag to refer you to a statement rather than have a pic up.

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serling1978

serling1978

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1 hour ago, Muno42 said:

I miss comic shops with a real back issue selection. 

Amen. I went to midtown in Manhattan a couple years ago on a trip to NY and to say I was "disappointed" is the understatement of the year. A seller this large has no excuse for having such a lame and horribly overpriced selection of backstock issues. I live in Columbus OH and there's a shop here 99% of collectors have probably never heard of that is 1000 times better. Someone as big as midtown shouldn't be getting blown away by a tiny stand alone shop. Sure midtown has stuff online and blah blah blah, but I the actual location is a comic STORE. I want to go in and see interesting books, not boring drek that I can (but don't want to) see anywhere. I'm so annoyed just thinking about that shop. 

Anyway, during that same trip I did also go to the Joseph Koch warehouse which was infinitely more interesting and better.  That was a place for an actual collector to go. Midtown was a place for someone to buy a Deadpool bobblehead or for someone who knows nothing about comics to wander in and severely overpay for a common back issue.

 

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speedcake

speedcake

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Midtown Comics is fun to spend a little time in now and then. They get just about all of the weekly new releases, and I could grab variants that my LCS either didn't get or didn't get enough of back when I still bought that stuff. They have a decent selection of TPBs, collected editions, etc. And lots of comic book related collectibles and knick knacks.

But yes, their back issue set up is awful. Just pure dreck and over priced. I assume people do buy some of it? The Times Square shop dedicates a not insignificant amount of floor space to their back issue bins. And I doubt I'd ever buy bigger silver or bronze age books from them. They only have a small number of wall books up at any given time anyway. Plus the prices are a turn off even if I were interested. 

 

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Cushing Fan

Cushing Fan

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15 hours ago, AndyFish said:

Well, back in the good ol days of the Comics Buyers Guide that's how we bought all our books.   Ask them if they have a return policy.   If you don't like the grade send it back.   I've dealt with them a number of times when I'm in the city and they've always been great.

Well, no luck with returns so now I am definitely avoiding this place.

Thank you for contacting us.

Due to the collectibility of the comics and merchandise we sell, we are unable to accept returns on comic books, back issues, and books. If you are uncertain about the grade of your comic book, please review our Grading Glossary, which details how Midtown Comics grades all comics. While we do not grade our graphic novels, books and magazines, and they are stored and handled with great care, no guarantee of condition is made. Over time, shelf wear and small cosmetic dings and dents may be possible. If you still feel you've received a damaged or mis-shipped item, please contact us at info@midtowncomics.com and we can look into this. Please be aware that we need to be contacted within 2 weeks of the delivery date of an order to resolve any potential order issues.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any additional questions.

Thank you kindly,

Midtown Comics

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Robot Man

Robot Man

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2 hours ago, Cushing Fan said:

Well, no luck with returns so now I am definitely avoiding this place.

Thank you for contacting us.

Due to the collectibility of the comics and merchandise we sell, we are unable to accept returns on comic books, back issues, and books. If you are uncertain about the grade of your comic book, please review our Grading Glossary, which details how Midtown Comics grades all comics. While we do not grade our graphic novels, books and magazines, and they are stored and handled with great care, no guarantee of condition is made. Over time, shelf wear and small cosmetic dings and dents may be possible. If you still feel you've received a damaged or mis-shipped item, please contact us at info@midtowncomics.com and we can look into this. Please be aware that we need to be contacted within 2 weeks of the delivery date of an order to resolve any potential order issues.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any additional questions.

Thank you kindly,

Midtown Comics

Frankly, I would pass too. Their customer service just seems lacking...

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Robot Man

Robot Man

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32 minutes ago, Gaard said:

Please include 25 cents, along with a SASE, to receive our latest list.  Ah, the good ole' days. :preach:

Oh, but the disappointment of calling from the west coast and hearing, “sorry it’s sold”...:sorry:

Or, those phone calls at 4:00 in the morning “do you still have...?”. Drove my mom nuts! 

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lordbyroncomics

lordbyroncomics

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17 hours ago, speedcake said:

The Times Square shop dedicates a not insignificant amount of floor space to their back issue bins. And I doubt I'd ever buy bigger silver or bronze age books from them. They only have a small number of wall books up at any given time anyway. Plus the prices are a turn off even if I were interested. 

 

The space you're describing (up on the third floor) depends on what you constitute as back issues- there's nothing older than a few years old, and it's really an afterthought. I would think in New York, the birthplace of American Comics, there'd still be some vast and musky places with back issues but due to gentrification and other factors, not so much. St Marks Comics had a decent back issue section. 

I do know that in the last decade and a half, comic shops have had to become "pop culture shops" to adjust and survive and that's probably also why there's a decline in back issues. I've been going to Lancaster, PA once a month for business and there's a lovely shop there (The Comic Store) across from the train station and they retain the magic I used to feel as a little kid going into comic stores- they are the best of all worlds, and I highly recommend them should you ever be in Amish country! But I do a lot of travel around the East Coast and I'm not knocking any comic shop- God bless 'em for fighting- but the vast majority do not have back issues.

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speedcake

speedcake

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3 minutes ago, wisbyron said:

The space you're describing (up on the third floor) depends on what you constitute as back issues- there's nothing older than a few years old, and it's really an afterthought. I would think in New York, the birthplace of American Comics, there'd still be some vast and musky places with back issues but due to gentrification and other factors, not so much. St Marks Comics had a decent back issue section. 

I do know that in the last decade and a half, comic shops have had to become "pop culture shops" to adjust and survive and that's probably also why there's a decline in back issues. I've been going to Lancaster, PA once a month for business and there's a lovely shop there (The Comic Store) across from the train station and they retain the magic I used to feel as a little kid going into comic stores- they are the best of all worlds, and I highly recommend them should you ever be in Amish country! But I do a lot of travel around the East Coast and I'm not knocking any comic shop- God bless 'em for fighting- but the vast majority do not have back issues.

Nice, I'll put that one on the list of spots to check out soon.

And ya, that's what I meant about Midtown Comics. They have a large "back issue" set up, but its all recent drek and by "drek" I mean uber drek. They must make some money off it or surely they wouldn't waste that much floor space on it? Someone must be buying all that drek. Tourists maybe. 

 

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ExNihilo

ExNihilo

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18 hours ago, serling1978 said:

Amen. I went to midtown in Manhattan a couple years ago on a trip to NY and to say I was "disappointed" is the understatement of the year. A seller this large has no excuse for having such a lame and horribly overpriced selection of backstock issues. I live in Columbus OH and there's a shop here 99% of collectors have probably never heard of that is 1000 times better. Someone as big as midtown shouldn't be getting blown away by a tiny stand alone shop. Sure midtown has stuff online and blah blah blah, but I the actual location is a comic STORE. I want to go in and see interesting books, not boring drek that I can (but don't want to) see anywhere. I'm so annoyed just thinking about that shop. 

I've been to the Times Square location and their selection isn't all that surprising.  Given where it's located, I'm guessing it caters to the occasional tourist who pops in for a look.  As such there's a ton of non-comic collectibles in there, plus probably fewer keys than we'd hope for.  I feel like Midtown used to be good for filling holes in collections, but not so much anymore.

Back when Action Comics #1000 came out, they had the variant cover by Jim Lee.  It was touted as the "Touring Variant", I think because Jim was supposed to go for a signing.  Anyways, the book drops and retails for $80.  Sells out almost instantly.  After market price shoots up to $160.  Two days after release, Midtown suddenly has "additional stock" which they list at...$160.  That sells out as well.  A few days later yet again, they magically find more stock which they list at $120.  I did end up buying a book at $120, but the entire situation left a sour taste in my mouth.  A) that books were held back and B) that they were listed at market and not MSRP.  In my mind, if you are the primary vendor of a good, you should be selling them at the listed retail price, especially during the first week of release.  That'd be like a comic shop getting a book Tuesday night and realizing one of the books has a 1st appearance so they put one copy on the rack and put the other 25 on eBay at 10x cover.  I've sworn off Midtown since.

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serling1978

serling1978

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1 hour ago, wisbyron said:

 I would think in New York, the birthplace of American Comics, there'd still be some vast and musky places with back issues 

Joseph Koch's warehouse in Brooklyn fits what you're describing there. If you haven't been, its in no way prettied up for customers. It's literally a warehouse with stacks of comics on shelves, on the floor, in piles, and also in boxes. There are cats wandering around and the occasional cockroach (my wife was quick to spot the latter).  Nothing has prices, but once you make your selections they'll look up each one in the price guide when you go to pay. Overall it was a lot of fun to dig around for stuff. When I was there I didn't see a lot of SA issues, but found a ton of bronze and copper that I needed for my runs. Also got a number of older Savage Tales and Savage Sword mags. 

 

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