Your First 4 4

[Patriot6]

What was the first comic book that you purchased with your own money?

It wasn't my first comic book, but I remember my father giving my sister and I our allowances. It was Friday. We were driving into the city and we would always stop at a particular convenience store in a small town on the way. It was an old general store type place that sold little bits of everything. My father would always get an Orange Crush slurpee and the latest Superman. It was a bitter sweet stop because it was the first time I had to buy my own slurpee and comic book. Until this point my father had always paid. Decisions had to be made. Often times I would wait in the car and my father would bring out some kind of super hero comic for me to read on the drive. Left to my own devices, I reached past the heroes and left the store with a Richie Rich. I can't for the life of me remember which one it was, but I remember, keeping tradition alive and all, I had also purchased an Orange Crush slurpee. I remember my sister complaining on the drive home that the comic was all sticky and gross from my slurpee hands when it was her turn to read. 

Why am I remembering all of this? I was walking through a book store, the big box kind, that has a few comic spinner racks. There was a mother and maybe six year old girl standing there. The girl only had so much money and had two comics in hand. It was a budgeting teaching moment kind of thing. She had an Archie digest and something I had never seen before. It was a comic book, but one I wasn't familiar with. She took the Archie digest. Big life moment right there I said to my wife. Real wholesome stuff. 

 

[Ryan.]

[KirbyJack]

I will never forget. Reprints TTA 90!

[royaluglydudes]

I had $5 so I was able to buy two comics and a treat at the local greeting card store that also had a couple spinner racks. I will never know why I chose these two and not heroes I had actually heard of. Maybe I wanted to try something new and Night Thrasher must have looked really cool to ten-year old me.

[Patriot6]

On 1/25/2024 at 1:03 PM, royaluglydudes said:

Night Thrasher must have looked really cool to ten-year old me.

He looks pretty cool even today!

[WernerVonDoom]

I'm too old to remember exactly what order I bought these in, but these were the first spinner rack books:

 

First Subscription Books:

First back issue from comic store:

First convention purchase:

[Stefan_W]

Mine was a two pack with Star Wars 11 on one side and Laugh-A-Lympics 2 on the other. 

[grendelbo]

Throughout my collecting years I've run across a couple of books I remember from my childhood, from before I was a collector. The originals didn't survive but I've snagged replacement copies. There's more out there I'm sure but I've yet to rediscover them.

 

These next two books are the oldest personal copies in my collection. Again, I got these, bought by my dad for my brother and me, before I was a collector. That came about a year later. I held on to them because I was a Transformers toy junkie as a kid. I also still have my Masters of the Universe mini-comics that came with those toys.

[yrag9591]

[genrlzod]

I remember getting these at Walden Books at the mall.  It took about 6 months before I had any clue what was going on in the X-men book.   
it was also nice to start reading Iron Man while he had his coolest armor.  

[grendel013]

[GawkHawk]

I was instantly hooked on the FF.

[nepatkm]

This copy of ASM 129 which seems to have been with me forever. 

[Phicks]

[CitrusZ28]

This one. I remember that my family was at the beach and after we went out to dinner one night we stopped at a store and my parents gave each of us a quarter to spend as we wished. I liked this one because it was giant sized and had a Casper story. It was a hard choice though as it took my whole quarter, I think my brother got a 12 cent issue and a candy bar, and my older sister whispered in my ear to "buy Miilie the Model Comics". Glad that I didn't listen to her.

 

[Black_Adam]

Richie Rich Dollars and Cents #68!

Bought it off a comic rack for a quarter (my weekly allowance) from a little book store that I only visited once when I was seven years old (the store was out of business after only a few months and even now, decades later, I still recall it when I drive past where it once was).

The story was great! Richie and Cadbury are shrunk and have to escape a human body. I learned a lot about anatomy (and antibodies) from that comic and gained a lifelong passion for comics, reading, and Richie Rich!   

[g-man]

On the way back from childrens hospital in boston….

 

 

 

Edited January 25 by g-man

[ADAMANTIUM]

I vaguely remember several. I'm just not sure which was with my own money per se.

It was probably and I've said it before, tmnt adventures 3 or Deadpool circle chase. I vaguely remember both so I'm not too sure.

I remember asking if I could use my own money for both, just not sure which I had too

I don't even recall the year difference between those,  BUT I want to say it's slate 80s early 90s 

When I was 7 to 10.

 

Edited January 25 by ADAMANTIUM

[grendelbo]

On 1/25/2024 at 4:20 PM, Phicks said:

Awesome cover!

[CitrusZ28]

On 1/25/2024 at 3:23 PM, Black_Adam said:

Richie Rich Dollars and Cents #68!

Bought it off a comic rack for a quarter (my weekly allowance) from a little book store that I only visited once when I was seven years old (the store was out of business after only a few months and even now, decades later, I still recall it when I drive past where it once was).

The story was great! Richie and Cadbury are shrunk and have to escape a human body. I learned a lot about anatomy (and antibodies) from that comic and gained a lifelong passion for comics, reading, and Richie Rich!   

So Richie went on a Fantastic Voyage!