LUCID FORGE

Internet marketing is probably the largest culprit mistreating the word “free” with malevolence.

Companies know that consumers want to feel like they are wanted, included and even loved by a company that has never even seen them. I am an avid comic book reader. I'll admit that I thoroughly enjoy them. I love Superman. I have for a number of years. And of course Wolverine. Who can resist his loving ways? Also, being a Canadian superhero he tends to grow on you. Free Comic Book Day needs to be seen for what it is. It is a marketing strategy, it's true. The event is a form of bait, to acquire a new audience. Is that bad? Well, if you like comics then the answer is “no”. If you don't like comics and wish your child never looked at one then the answer is “yes”. For me, reading comics is a luxury and a choice. Besides most free stuff isn't always that good, especially in the comic world. Correct me if I am wrong, but as a collector aren't rare comics worth more money. Comics Price Guide on line (www.comicspriceguide.com) tells us that the rarity of a comic “increases value.”A decrease in worth occurs when rarity is no longer a factor. If Free Comic Book Day all of a sudden handed out 1,000,000 more copies of Action Comics #1 its value would substantially decrease.

Many television infomercials use the “free” plug to entice the consumer to purchase their product. Chances are that if they have to sugar coat their product then it is a bitter pill that they are selling. Their product should do well enough on its own to be considered worth buying. I think of Uncle Rico from Napoleon Dynamite as he peddled his lame Tupperware across the State hoping to make a quick buck. Eventually he offered a free boat with every purchase that I am pretty sure he picked up at the dollar store. There are lots of so-called entrepreneurs out there that will gladly take your money, and they won't hesitate to use a gimmick.

Going to the grocery store, with its endless products and so-called specials, it's hard to know who is trying to take advantage of you. I always feel like I have been violated in the cheese aisle! You know what I mean, with the overpriced orange dairy product that tastes so very good. My wallet feels so assaulted I feel like screaming “I am lactose intolerant, ok!” As a comic book collector I feel much the same in the comic book shop. With Free Comic Book Day offered annually, it is usually viewed as a much anticipated event. After all, the comics are free. That has to be good, right?

Free Comic Book Day would certainly have you believe so. The event began in 2001 and is still going strong with many different publishers giving away millions of comics through thousands of comic book retailers. My biological family sometimes gets on my nerves just like the prices in the comic store. However, at least I know where I stand with my family and my local comic store. And usually they don't let me in the door unless they know that I am committed. Some people say that I should be. I am related to a comic book publisher because much like Free Comic Book Day I also like to give free stuff away. Especially when I go fishing where I will give away free worms to as many fish as possible. I guess that I love baiting fish as much as the next Internet culprit.