Welcome to the first ever entry into the new iCollect feature for Talking Comics!
iCollect is a chance for you, our fans, to show us all of the wonderful comic related paraphernalia that you’ve collected over the years. Whether you’ve got piles of long boxes filled with comic books, a set of rare Star Wars figures, a comic related movie collection, a series of variant covers, or anything you can think of that you’re proud to show off (so long as it’s related to comics), iCollect is your chance to shine. What usually goes down is that you send clean, preferably high definition, photos of your collection to (steve@talkingcomicbooks.com). And after receiving and reviewing your photos you will be sent a series of interview questions pertaining to you and your collection.
The important thing to remember with iCollect is that this is a prime opportunity to showcase your collection to all of the traffic and beyond that flows through Talking Comics each and every day. Everyone will see your stuff. So be sure to take your time and represent your collection to the best of your ability. Multiple photos are preferred, but please, only one photo for each item you’d like to include in the article. Try grouping your various items together creatively and condensing them into as few quality photos as possible. Thanks for your interest in iCollect and we can’t wait to see all of your fantastic collections!
So without further or due … we present to you … Talking Comic’s very own Steve Seigh (@dead_anchoress on Twitter), and his comic book related collection!
* Editor’s Note: It was a little strange attempting to interview myself. It felt extraordinarily narcissistic and silly so I had my good friend Brendan sit down and ask me the following questions:
Talking Comics: How long have you been actively collecting comics?
Steve Seigh: Okay,confession time. I’ve only really been collecting comics for as long as Talking Comics has been around. So for about the last year (almost exactly) I’ve been collecting feverishly every week since becoming Executive Editor of the website. It’s not that I hadn’t been reading any comics at all, but I simply just did not keep up with the latest comic trends for more than several years. I was completely out of the loop on almost all things related to comics. Luckily, I have a very addictive personality when it comes to collecting things. My philosophy is that if anything is worth doing it’s worth doing right. So since the founding of Talking Comics in September of 2011 I’ve been avidly collecting each and every week since then. It’s been quite the journey and i’d like to take this time to thank our good friend, Rob Neumeyer and Tor Comics, for helping me to spend my money. Ha ha!
Talking Comics: How do you store your comics and memorabilia? Is it important to you to keep your collection safe by protecting your comics with bags and boards? Or do you perhaps find it to be a waste of time or even a waste of money?
Steve Seigh: Well, as you can see from my photos, I’m a little obsessive with keeping all of my collection in near impeccable condition and in order. When you collect as many books as I do each week things can get out of hand rather quickly. Not keeping up on the organization, including the bagging and boarding of certain items, can cause your collection to become a real mess rather quickly. And yes, I bag and board all of my comics. The way I prefer to go about this is that I bag and board all of my #1, one-shot, and variant cover issues in Current Size bags. If it’s an ongoing series I prefer to place about 5 issues (with a board in the middle to brace the comics) inside of a Silver Age bag for safe keeping. The comics coupled with the board make the Silver Age bag a perfectly safe and condensed environment to house your growing collection of that series. You can even divide up the series by arc if that’s your thing. Bagging and boarding is certainly not an absolute must, but if you can afford it then I highly recommend it because it will keep your collection safe from the elements and sneaky kitty cats.
Talking Comics: How do you organize your collection? By publisher? Alpha order? Character association? What’s your poison?
Steve Seigh: I organize my collection by publisher and in alpha order. It’s much easier to find things when you know who distributes the book you’re wanting to read. I also make it a point to keep everything in alphabetical order because it’s the easiest and fastest way to locate what I want. If I started organizing things by release date or some other such I would probably lose my mind very quickly. Simple but effective is the way to go when amassing a collection that seemingly has no end in sight.
Talking Comics: Who are your top 5 favorite publishers (past or present) in the comics industry?
Steve Seigh: Well, aside from the obvious choices of DC and Marvel Comics my preferred publisher is Image Comics. Image publishers the vast majority of my favorite books on the stands today, so that’s an easy pick for me, personally. I think my other two would be Vertigo (even though they are technically a part of DC Comics) and the other would be Zenescope just because they feel to me like a comic company all their own.
Talking Comics: What is your single most prized possession in your collection and why?
Steve Seigh: It’s a really tough call but I’m going to have to go with my autographed Batman #5. This past January I had the pleasure of crossing paths with Scott Snyder at a local comic shop called Fourth World Comics in Smithtown, New York. As luck would have it, that day was also my birthday. So with that as a lead in I approached Scott and asked if he would sign a copy of his book for me. Not only did he sign the issue, but he purchased it for me as well. What a guy! Then, to my surprise, he’d mentioned that he was aware of Talking Comics and that he’d like to get together for a podcast sometime soon. I was bursting on the inside. Batman wants to come onto out podcast? Okay … Batman! I think it was a week later when we were hosting a special Bat-related cast and Scott called into the show to join us for an interview. It was such a wonderful surprise for us all and I’ll never forget it. So yeah, Batman #5 signed by Scott Snyder is my most prized comic in my collection.
Talking Comics: In regard to comics, what do you consider to be the other 4 crowing jewels of your collection? This includes entire arcs, character collections, single issues, ect. Anything goes.
Steve Seigh: My first choice would be my The Sword #1 by The Luna Brothers Variant, given to me by our good friend Rob Neumeyer. This issue would soon go on to be the jumping off point to one of the single greatest comic book experienced I’ve ever had. If you haven’t read this series yet than you are seriously missing out. I’m not going to elaborate. Just do it, okay? My next choice would be my I Kill Giants Titan Edition Hardcover. If you’re a fan of the Talking Comics Podcat then you’re already aware of how much I absolutely love this book. In fact, when I get my first comic tattoo, it will be of Barbara Thorson, standing a top a slain giant. That’s how much I love this book. Next would be my Essex County Collected Edition by Jeff Lemire. I chose this because it’s a book that nearly made my heart stop with grief. I know that sounds depressing but I love comics that pack an emotional punch more than any other genre. And when this book hits the end of Book 2 … break out the tissues is all I’m saying. My final choice would be my ridiculously awesome Batgirl collection. Comprised out of all 1st print single issues I’ve got them all. Whether it’s Barbara, Stephanie, or Cassandra I’ve got them all. I loves me some Batgirl.
Talking Comics: Do you have any unique or rare items in your collection? Is there a cool story as to how you obtained them?
Steve Seigh: I think that my Foster Art Cover Gotham City Sirens Fairy Tale Edition comics would be the most unique item that I own. When Brian Bucellato first began his run of Foster he was taking art requests if you ordered the comics through his website. I seized this opportunity to have Brian create a series of three comic covers of my favorite girls of Gotham as specific characters in the world of fairy tales. I love these and would never part with them for any reason.
Talking Comics: Be honest. What’s the most disappointing book or series that you have in your collection?
Steve Seigh: Sadly, I’m going to have to say the final trade of The Runaways entitled Homeschooling. I’ve ranted about this more than once on our weekly podcast, but holy crap was this not the way to end such a fantastic series. Some people will argue with me that it’s not the end of the series and that it’s just on hiatus but I still call shenanigans. Check out my article Hey Marvel! Bring Back the Runaways if you’d like to know the details of my rage against this most unceremonious end to such a great series.
Talking Comics: What is missing from your collection that you are absolutely just dying to own? Why haven’t you obtained it yet?
Steve Seigh: More than anything I would absolutely love to own The Sandman series by Neil Gaiman. For years I’ve been drooling over the Absolute Sandman and Absolute Death sets, but alas, I simply just don’t have the funds to make that kind of purchase right now. I really should start some kind of change jar or start squirreling away my change so that one day I could be the proud owner of perhaps both sets. But until then a man can still dream, right?
Talking Comics: And last but not least, why do you collect comics? What is it about them that makes them so special to you and compels you to do your best to keep up with the stories you love?
Steve Seigh: Well, aside from being an integral member of the Talking Comics team I’ve found that comics bring about amazing things. I’m not just talking about the characters and stories either. I’ve met some pretty amazing people over the past year and have gained an innumerable amount of new friends because of comics. There is something so pure about the people that surround these books and I just love the vibes I get from the majority of them. I can’t imagine my life without comics at this stage of my life and each day I work toward making new friends and contacts through this entertainment medium. Comics have changed the way I think about stories and how to tell them. I guess you could say that at the end of the day my collection is a representation of myself over the past year and just how much I immersed myself in the Talking Comics project. This website and you good people reading this article right now are the reason I collect comics. I love you all. Thanks, comics.
