How to Buy New Comic Books

In this video, I take a look at the current (October 2024) PREVIEWS catalog, which lists the comics scheduled to be released in December 2024. By using the catalog, you can pre-order items through your local comic book shop.

Here are some links that I mention in the video:

My September 2024 video where I looked at PDF files showing Marvel and DC's solicitations for December 2024 (i.e., the digital versions of the printed Marvel and DC catalogs shown here) can be viewed at the link below. It's a much more in-depth look at what's coming out in December from Marvel and DC.    • Who does better comics: DC or Marvel?...  

My June 2023 YouTube video where I looked at the 1998 PREVIEWS catalog can be viewed here:
   • Looking at a PREVIEWS catalog from 1998!  

My July 2024 video where I looked at the DC Comics solicitations for issues being released in October 2024 can be viewed here:
   • Let's look at DC Comics solicitations...  

An online version of the PREVIEWS catalog can be found at the link below.
https://www.previewsworld.com/catalog

You can view DC Connect #53 (the DC catalog shown in this video) at the following link: https://comixnow.com/category/dc-conn...

You can view the Marvel catalog at the link below. The particular issue of the Marvel preview catalog shown in this video is #37, cover-dated October 2024. Look for the link labeled "Marvel October 2024 Catalog," which features the releases scheduled for December 2024.
https://prhcomics.com/catalog/categor...

You can usually obtain DC Connect (as well as Marvel Previews) free from your local comics shop (LCS for short).

Your LCS may also have a website where you can set up an account and pre-order comics from there, instead of having to use the info listed in the Previews catalog. I recommend speaking with the person who works at your LCS to find out their policies for pre-ordering comics. (And if you don't like that shop's particular policies, you can ask another shop for their pre-ordering policies instead, until you find an LCS that works best for you.)

You can find a comics shop located near you by simply going to Google and searching the phrase "comics shop near me" or by looking at the following website and searching there: https://www.comicshoplocator.com/
(Keep in mind that the infomation listed may be out-of-date so it would be best to phone ahead before making a long-distance trip to go to a store that doesn't exist anymore.)

You can find solicitations (the list of upcoming releases) at various comics news websites, usually before the last week of every month. For example, this site: https://gocollect.com/blog/category/c...

You can also see what comic books are being released each week at some of the same comics news sites. I prefer the weekly list at
https://gocollect.com/blog/category/c...
(Keep in mind that such lists may not always be 100% accurate due to unexpected delays. Also sometimes a comic may be postponed or even cancelled, so you can check with your local shop about an issue's status if it has not yet arrived there.)

As always, remember to support your local comics shop by actually BUYING the comics that you have pre-ordered! (Some stores may even require payment in advance before pre-ordering, or other restrictions, due to problems with customers not buying what they've ordered.)

If you don't live anywhere near a comics shop, you can still buy new comic books by mail. Some shops have websites where you can order new comics from them that way. One example of a mail-order dealer in new comics and pre-orders is Westfield Comics (link below), although there are many others out there to choose from.
https://westfieldcomics.com/

If you would like to subscribe by mail to DC or Marvel comics (or both!), you can check out the links below:

DC: https://subscriptions.dccomics.com/
MARVEL: https://subscriptions.marvel.com/

(I actually prefer Marvel's subscription system -- even though both publishers use Midtown Comics to fulfill the orders -- since Marvel offers more titles via subscription and has better discounts usually.)

And, of course, there are new comics that AREN'T sold in comics shops at all -- for example, Kickstarter projects from individual creators or ordering via Amazon from small-press publishers. The best way to keep on top of those projects is by following your favorite creators on social media.

If you enjoy new and current comic books, check out my Facebook group called "Comic Books of the 2020s: A Discussion Group About New Comics" at the link below:
  / 3406553926157488  

You can find me on X (formerly Twitter) at
  / robimes  

Thanks for watching!