Heroes arrive on Free Comic Book Day at A Comic Shop

Hunched over a box in the back of A Comic Shop, owner Aaron Haaland works getting things together.

Sporting a black shirt with “Free Comic Book Day” written in a white, sans-serif font across the chest, he’s already in the holiday spirit as the national comic holiday quickly approaches.

“It’s always been our biggest day of the year — like Black Friday, but for comics,” Haaland said. “On Free Comic Book Day, we just give away mass amounts of comics, like pallets of comics, and we also have our biggest sales of the year — there is nothing held back.”

In the world of comics, no day quite matches that of Free Comic Book Day — except for maybe the weekend of San Diego Comic-Con.

Haaland said his store will have about 50 different free comic books to hand out to visitors — which includes a variety of comics that range from Batman to Power Rangers, and also include kid specific books, as well. Along with the free comics, the store also will have a slew of sales, which includes a base sale that will feature a buy two, get one free deal. And for people who get there early, Haaland said they would be offering a sweet deal to the first 50 people in line.

“Last year, the line was around the building, but the first 50 people we have a swag bag (for) … and we load that up with stuff that is more premium,” Haaland said. “There’s a little statue, and there’s a Batman metal enamel pin of the bat symbol this year — things that cost us a reasonable amount of money. Some companies charge for those things, but instead of charging for them, we just give them to the first 50 people.”

And the festivities wont just stop there at the comic shop — they also will spill into the Geek Easy that sits right next door.

Also owned by Haaland, the geek-inspired speakeasy bar will have its “geek cheesy” dance party later that night, which Haaland described as having a playlist of “every song you’ll know every word to, even though you don’t like it.”

Although the day itself helps A Comic Shop financially, Haaland also sees it as a way to introducing people to comics, and bringing together those who already reside in the realm of superheroes.

In the case of friends Rayshon Hussain and Seth Willoughby, the shop alone has become somewhat of a second home.

“I live in Lake Nona right now, but all the comics I have I’ve bought from here,” said Hussain, whose been collecting comics for a few years now. “I have shoeboxes and shoeboxes of comics — like 20 of them in the last two years.”

"This is a celebration of the art form, and it’s great to celebrate things together."

-Aaron Haaland

Like most comic readers, Hussain’s love for his favorite character, the ever complex Rorschach from The Watchmen comics, was largely inspired by his own personal life. 

“I’m from a pretty bad area in New York, so his struggles and how he turned out — wouldn’t say it’s relatable, I don’t go around beating people into a pulp — but I get it,” Hussain said. “I like seeing his psyche, and I like seeing how he sees things — he doesn’t see things the way normal people see things, because of the things he has been through.”

 Although the road to discovering comics and favorite characters differs from person to person, Willoughby’s path to becoming a comic collector started early. 

“My dad would give me comics to teach me how to read when I was a kid,” said Willoughby, whose favorite character is the fourth-wall breaking Deadpool.

Much like Willoughby, Haaland discovered a love for comics early on in his life. From there, his passion led to him opening A Comic Shop in 2006.

“We’ve always been about the community of readers and fans, and the community itself,” Haaland said. “We’ve always been a store where we are hanging out, we’re talking, we’re personable, and you can talk to the other people that are in there buying stuff — we include everyone in the conversation — and Free Comic Book Day is the crescendo — the music fest of that. This is a celebration of the art form, and it’s great to celebrate things together.”