Ryan. Posted September 21 Share Posted September 21 Does anyone here have experience giving away kid-friendly comics on Halloween in lieu of candy? Did the kids take them? Were they disappointed? Where did you get the comics to give out? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Pontoon Posted September 21 Share Posted September 21 I never have. I believe other Forumites have done so with varying degrees of success. Personally, if I gave away comics they'd be in addition to candy and not instead of candy. If you're thinking about trying to avoid handing out sugar, there's always the snack cracker/pretzel/etc bag option. toro 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan. Posted September 21 Author Share Posted September 21 On 9/21/2024 at 5:41 PM, dick pontoon said: I never have. I believe other Forumites have done so with varying degrees of success. Personally, if I gave away comics they'd be in addition to candy and not instead of candy. If you're thinking about trying to avoid handing out sugar, there's always the snack cracker/pretzel/etc bag option. I would likely give out comics as a supplement to candy, instead of a replacement, upon reflection. I'm curious if any of the kids would be interested in the comics. Sonic, Pokémon, stuff like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan. Posted September 21 Author Share Posted September 21 I say this as an enthusiast of Sour Patch Kids and the like. Darwination 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lizards2 Posted September 21 Share Posted September 21 I still have those 25 book pre-packs that Diamond used to sell (Pokemon, TMNT, Donald Duck, Hot Stuff, Archie), and we have given them away each Halloween for about ten years. However, we always included a candy treat too. The kids loved the comic books and would come back the next year expecting more. I don't know if Previews still solicits those comics, as I don't get that publication anymore, as I ceased collecting new comics. They never got to me on time for Halloween, so I was always ordering in the summer for books I wouldn't give away about 14 months later. Roo_Phillip, djzombi, Morganmi and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post RockMyAmadeus Posted September 21 Popular Post Share Posted September 21 On 9/21/2024 at 2:41 PM, dick pontoon said: If you're thinking about trying to avoid handing out sugar, there's always the snack cracker/pretzel/etc bag option. Buzzetta, Chip Cataldo, Turnando and 16 others 1 18 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan. Posted September 22 Author Share Posted September 22 On 9/21/2024 at 6:24 PM, lizards2 said: I still have those 25 book pre-packs that Diamond used to sell (Pokemon, TMNT, Donald Duck, Hot Stuff, Archie), and we have given them away each Halloween for about ten years. However, we always included a candy treat too. The kids loved the comic books and would come back the next year expecting more. I don't know if Previews still solicits those comics, as I don't get that publication anymore, as I ceased collecting new comics. They never got to me on time for Halloween, so I was always ordering in the summer for books I wouldn't give away about 14 months later. I scroll through the online catalog every month and haven't seen them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post KirbyJack Posted September 22 Popular Post Share Posted September 22 I gave out comics for 3 years at my sister’s house before I got married. Her kids were the perfect age then and her neighborhood was a hot spot. It seemed to confuse the kids at first, but most got on board with it. Years later, I learned from my nephew that he was still famous for it high school! “Oh yeah! You guys were the house that gave out comics!” It obviously made an impression on trick or treaters. toro, Roo_Phillip, Jayman and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roo_Phillip Posted September 22 Share Posted September 22 I keep a "Halloween pile" and usually give away a few comics every Halloween. But on a select basis, not to every kid. Mrs Roo (who loves Halloween more than Christmas) usually wears a costume when she gives away candy at the front door. I obviously don't interfere with that; my job is to lurk in the shadows in the front yard and make sure no overzealous older kids get out of hand. We have an extensive display so I like to keep an eye out just in case I usually have a small stack of comics in my lurking spot. And whenever I hear an extra-polite kid says something nice about the display or Mrs Roo's costume or anything else that gives me a warm fuzzy I offer him or her the choice of a comic from the pile. It's fun and I look forward to it every year! Not every kid is into comics, but sometimes a dad will get more excited about the comic than his kid, and that's fun too! Larryw7, Darwination and KirbyJack 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post MattTheDuck Posted September 22 Popular Post Share Posted September 22 (edited) Last Halloween I set out some books and had a positive reaction from the kids. It wasn't either/or - candy and books were provided. I don't see any possible downside. I note I didn't answer the part about "where you got them." I've picked up collections in recent years that included books I don't collect or were lower grade so I don't mind parting with them. Edited September 22 by MattTheDuck Roo_Phillip, Jayman, Artboy99 and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paperheart Posted September 22 Share Posted September 22 I've done this for at least 10 years; always have candy and comics. Best sellers have been: Simpsons, Archie, Bone, Marvel Adventures (Spider-Man, Iron Man, FF, Hulk), Disney (Donald, Mickey). Maybe 2/3's of the kids take comics. Larryw7, djzombi, KirbyJack and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post VintageComics Posted September 22 Popular Post Share Posted September 22 (edited) On 9/21/2024 at 1:33 PM, Ryan. said: Does anyone here have experience giving away kid-friendly comics on Halloween in lieu of candy? Did the kids take them? Were they disappointed? Where did you get the comics to give out? Yes. Did it for years and were neighborhood favorites with some kids even swapping costumes to come back for 2nds in some instances to disguise themselves thinking we wouldn't recognize them. We gave them out as a supplement to candy, and while the candy was always appreciated, we had great feedback from parents and kids for offering comics. I always felt that they were more fun than candy that just dissolves after 10 mins. I got books from my LCS and screened them for kid appropriate books from quarter bins. As predicted, most girls preferred Archies type books and most boys liked the Superhero stuff. We left a stack of comics on a small table at the front door and just let them choose when they rang the doorbell as they took some candy. Although I was initially worried that some kids would just scoop them all up, most kids were polite and didn't even realize they could take them until we offered. Highly recommended. ------------------ True story: One year I actually dressed in a full-on Superman costume to hand comics out, and that was pretty hilarious because as luck would have it, that was the year some teenagers egged our home. I was sitting inside waiting for the next batch of trick or treaters when I heard the egg "thunk" onto the main window. I literally ran out in my Superman costume, chased these teenagers down and scolded them in costume, finger wagging as the neighbors watched. It was pretty surreal. Good times. Edited September 22 by VintageComics Morganmi, Larryw7, techtre2003 and 3 others 1 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VintageComics Posted September 22 Share Posted September 22 On 9/21/2024 at 9:24 PM, KirbyJack said: Years later, I learned from my nephew that he was still famous for it high school! “Oh yeah! You guys were the house that gave out comics!” It obviously made an impression on trick or treaters. Yes!! The kids remembered! KirbyJack 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kimik Posted September 22 Share Posted September 22 I was thinking about comics this year in addition to hockey cards and candy. I will have to see what I have that is kids appropriate. Roo_Phillip 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1Cool Posted Sunday at 11:36 AM Share Posted Sunday at 11:36 AM We give out comics along with candy to the kids and Jell-O shots to the parents. Get a ton of kids who come back each year for the comics and the parents come to our house first to get the night started. i grab as many free comic book day books as i can now that I’m not buying collections. It’s nice since they offer little kid books which are tougher to find. KirbyJack, Morganmi, Larryw7 and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grendel013 Posted Sunday at 12:50 PM Share Posted Sunday at 12:50 PM On 9/22/2024 at 1:44 AM, VintageComics said: I literally ran out in my Superman costume, chased these teenagers down and scolded them in costume, finger wagging as the neighbors watched. This is how I picture it. KirbyJack, Morganmi, Larryw7 and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VintageComics Posted Sunday at 02:37 PM Share Posted Sunday at 02:37 PM On 9/22/2024 at 8:50 AM, grendel013 said: This is how I picture it. I didn't look that good. grendel013 and djzombi 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan. Posted Sunday at 02:45 PM Author Share Posted Sunday at 02:45 PM On 9/22/2024 at 1:00 AM, MattTheDuck said: Last Halloween I set out some books and had a positive reaction from the kids. It wasn't either/or - candy and books were provided. I don't see any possible downside. I note I didn't answer the part about "where you got them." I've picked up collections in recent years that included books I don't collect or were lower grade so I don't mind parting with them. I have a rack similar to yours. I may copy your setup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan. Posted Sunday at 02:47 PM Author Share Posted Sunday at 02:47 PM On 9/22/2024 at 7:36 AM, 1Cool said: We give out comics along with candy to the kids and Jell-O shots to the parents. Get a ton of kids who come back each year for the comics and the parents come to our house first to get the night started. i grab as many free comic book day books as i can now that I’m not buying collections. It’s nice since they offer little kid books which are tougher to find. I first read this as you give out Jello shots to the kids. We tell our kids to avoid your house since the treats there make them sleepy. djzombi, grendel013 and Larryw7 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djzombi Posted Sunday at 03:03 PM Share Posted Sunday at 03:03 PM I love this so much! I've also been concerned that the kids would be disappointed "just" getting a comic book. I love the option of giving a choice of a kid taking a comic AND/OR candy! Or slip a wrapped candy in with the comic bag KirbyJack and Larryw7 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
