Well into Friday evening, colorful shelves of shrink-wrapped comic books were being inspected by customers in Mesa's Atomic Comics "Mega Store." Several boys played Magic: The Gathering and traded their cards at a set of long tables in the corner.
The recent economic downturns have boosted sales across the board for the entertainment industry. Comic book stores in particular have benefited from the surge in demand for cheap pleasure-seeking, with steady streams of customers buying books and other comic-related products.
According to manager Julian Moraga, sales at his store have risen in the two years since September 11. With the economy down, people are looking for ways to amuse themselves. Comic books are, in his words, "cheap entertainment."
"When markets are tight, comic book sales go up," said Moraga. He added, "Any time when the financial situations are really rough on folks, entertainment sales go up."
The terrorist attacks also provide fodder for story lines. According to Moraga, they are the foundation of the plot of the latest series of Captain America. The first issue begins at Ground Zero, and Captain America is sent on a mission to hunt down the terrorists. The Captain America series has often been heavily based on current world affairs, starting with the first issue over a half-century ago. Health experiments on human beings inspired fears of tampering with humanity.
"[Captain America] was created during World War II in the 1940's," said Moraga. "The government experimented to create super soldiers. They gave a serum to a weakling that gave him health and turned him into a badass superhero."
Themes of war and conflict run deeply through most comic books. Japanese anime (animation) and manga (comic books) have been attempting to weave these themes in, but are also providing a more diverse selection of genres that are attracting wider audiences. Japanese graphic novels have been selling out, according to Moraga.
"We increase our orders on manga and anime each year," he said. "We had to redesign the whole store to fit it all in."
What once was a small section in the corner that catered to a small cult following of Japanese art has become a significant, popular portion of the store's stock. Everything from comic books to large wall posters to a wide variety of toys and figurines has spread throughout the store.
Moraga attributed the success of anime and manga to what he believes is a greater depth of character development, stronger sense of drama and diverse array of genres. Superheroes, crime, parodies, comedies, adult and horror are some of the possible offerings that a fan might pick from.
"There's stuff for little kids, and stuff for extreme perverts," said Moraga. "The industry now, it's more diverse, and the writing is phenomenal."
For an example of this diversity, Moraga pointed to a political comic called EAGLE: The Making of an Asian-American President, about the first Asian-American running for the office of President of the United States.
"It won a lot of awards, and there was no sci-fi or robots," said Moraga.
Not everybody is a fan of Japanese artwork, even among the initiated. Receiving manager Jason Colgin expressed a preference for older American comics, such as DC Comics series like Batman and Superman.
"I don't like manga," said Colgin. "I don't think the art's detailed enough."
Colgin said that complying with the tight time frames in which manga and anime are produced hurts the quality of the finished work, giving it a rushed look. With a few exceptions, Colgin said in general he found manga less appealing.
"American manga is even worse," said Colgin.
And yet a lot of American comics are seeking out Japanese artists as the popularity of manga rises. A recent issue of X-Men features guest artist Kia Asamiya. Good artists, according to Moraga, use a lot of detail and design elements.
Furthermore, Moraga said that manga in Japan provides women with outlets for drawing and writing comics that are not matched in the United States. Female-oriented comics are quite popular, and males have been spotted in the store reading them fairly often. Floor supervisor Kellie Ambrosia noted the trend in the store's imports.
"A lot of stuff that's been coming over has been more female," said Ambrosia.
Ambrosia sat at a counter loaded with soundtracks that people purchase to hear the catchy theme songs from anime series and movies. Nearby, people were looking through the selection of action figurines that Moraga noted were among the most detailed artwork that he's seen.
"They go crazy with the design, and it makes you want to ask, 'What drugs were you on?'" said Moraga.
And models in the perennial favorite Godzilla section were attracting their own crowd. The Chandler store hosts Godzilla film festivals for fans of the most well-known Japanese import. In fact, Moraga was first hired to work with the Godzilla stock. Stories about the tyrannical lizard have always attracted good audiences.
According to Moraga, a variety of demographic groups like to peruse the store. The products have a broad appeal and variety of stories, and all kinds of minorities and religious groups have been known to come in. The store tries to maintain a big welcome mat to accommodate everyone.
"We're also really open to people, so we get a diverse crowd," said Moraga.
The Simpsons comics on shelves and a Dragonball Z film coming out soon are ready to feed American appetites for comics and animation. And Moraga noted resurgence in the Transformers as of late.
The increasing interest in international exchanging works and styles, and collaborating internationally is bringing in new audiences, whether they are checking out Yu-Gi-Oh!, Pokemon, or Cowboy Bebop.
"People who are closed-minded can open up and say that's good," said Moraga.
The Atomic Comics "Mega Store" is located at 1120 S. Country Club Drive.
Nicole Saidi is the Content Editor of the Web Devil. Reach her at nicole.saidi@asu.edu.
