Comments on: UPDATED: AZ Chain Atomic Comics Closes, Files Bankruptcy

By: Royal

Royal — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 07:36:22 +0000

النادي الملكي للاستشارات و التدريب
تأسست شـركـة النـادي المـلكـي للإسـتـشـارات
عـام 2011 مـن كـوكبـة مـن الخبـرات العـربية الحديثـة
والتـي إتـفقـت لخـوض التجـربـة بإنـشـاء أول مـركـز أكـاديـمـي مـستـقـل يـنـشر وبـأمـانـة الـفكـر الـحديـث
royalclubconsulting.com

By: Glennie Hoban

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By: Exotic Beer

Exotic Beer — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 22:32:04 +0000

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By: kich song dien thoai

kich song dien thoai — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 12:16:54 +0000

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By: Al

Al — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 00:47:36 +0000

I’m said to hear that they closed. I was just in the Mesa store in early August when I was visiting Arizona. It did seem a bit rundown from the days my younger brother worked at that store from 2002-2004.

By: Jimalsi

Jimalsi — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 16:39:42 +0000

Marty, well said. It’s the thieves doing the illegal download thing that will kill our hobby. I fear the digital release plans will simply makes it easier for the crooks to so their thing. I hope not; I hope the stores survive.

I’m going to head to a local comic shop now to buy something; I just have to. (Amazing Fantasy in Calumet City, IL.)

By: marcus

marcus — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 04:11:03 +0000

Great store, good selection, but the majority of their employees were either geek elitists, or douches. I rebember staring a pull list there a few years ago just because they were around the corner from me. Found another shop with better customer service. worth the xtra gas.

By: Poly

Poly — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 22:47:58 +0000

HI! as a fellow retailer (i’m from Argentina) it’s very sad when a store closes down.

The best for all the people in AC.

By: Josue aka Ho aka Sway

Josue aka Ho aka Sway — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 20:28:42 +0000

I too am a former employee. I agree with Chuck Amok (miss your face LOL) it feels like a friend died. Atomic will always be considered a 2nd home to me, I will always have fond memories of Malve, Bill, Julian, Miguel, Chuck, Jason aka the boy, Scott, Sato (RIP), Jim, Tom, Chuck and Celeste.. We rocked like no other team could better then the JSA, JLA, Xmen and Avengers combined. I too raise my glass and say goodbye .. DO NOT let this put you off comics true believers. you keep reading

By: Cody

Cody — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 18:36:13 +0000

I started going to the Mesa AC back when I was 4. I was in daycare around the corner and my mom would take me in to pick up a book here and there. That’s how I learned to read was from comics. I eventually fell out of them and then back into them right before the accident of ’06 and I loved the place, the workers, they all got it. I wish that they had been able to consolidate it down into maybe the Mesa store and weather the storm but, it is what it is. I will continue to support the locally run businesses with my $5-12 a week and I know that that’s still but a drop in a well.

You know, all these replies really contributed to the discussion and further understanding of what happened. Until yours Bill. If you have nothing better to add than that I’d just refrain from posting at all.

By: Bill

Bill — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 17:08:08 +0000

It is an Obama World after all….

By: Marty

Marty — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 14:27:02 +0000

As a retailer, I see what a growing amount of people want and it is reflected in this thread. They want the comfort, knowledge and ability to browse that a bricks and mortar store offers but don’t give a rat’s ass that the retailer is paying for that, so having browsed the product and picked the brains of the staff, there’s a tendency to then buy it from the cheapest internet site they can find, if they don’t pirate it, that is. These will be the people who will talk loudest about how awful it is that their local comic book store has gone. Jim Lee recently likened iPad comic sales to a small piece of cotton. If you only had that to start with, then taking it away will kill your business. Unless bricks and mortar retailers are invited into this technology quickly, expect closures to continue. We simply can’t afford for any more market narrowing. And if you’re the kind of thieving, know-all gobshite who is killing the comic industry, then your comments are as valuable as your custom. You helped close Atomic Comics and no doubt many more shops to come. You know who you are.

By: SuperJ

SuperJ — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 23:15:26 +0000

Sad to hear. Atomic got me back into comics in the 2000′s when I took up a salespersons suggestion to try a new book called ’100 Bullets’. One of the best suggestions I ever got in a comic book shop.

By: Dan Dautrich

Dan Dautrich — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 22:04:06 +0000

Chuck said it best: it feels “like a friend has passed away”. I have a special place in my heart for the chain too since it was my first job after moving to the Phoenix area in 1999. Even after leaving the company to pursue my career, I have gladly handed over many of my hard-earned dollars to continue to support my former employer. I have always been proud to be associated with the retailer that was so influential on the industry, brought many big-name artists to local signings, supported local artists, worked with the local libraries to provide graphic novels for reading, held regular tournaments and anime fests for fans to enjoy and socialize, was part of the Hero Initiative, and so much more. The void that is now left in the community is much larger than most people realize and will be hard to fill. Goodbye, old friend, you will be missed.

By: Don

Don — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 22:01:01 +0000

There’s a number of great retail alternatives in the east valley, in addition to greg’s. There is a great selection of new comics and TPBs at Ash Ave. Comics & Books in Tempe (810 S. Ash Ave, just west of Mill Ave. and south of University), and Pop Culture Paradise has tons of CCGs and toys, along with comics. Check them out.

Support local businesses, keep money in the community!

By: anthonyR

anthonyR — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 20:41:03 +0000

this really does suck! i always liked the good folks at those stores. It is great to see a post from MRS CHUCK AMOK! I miss you mostest. Chuck, Mike, and Julien were just a small example of the passionate and helpful characters they employed and I hope all those who found themselves without a job bounce back quickly! A few years ago i left atomic for the greater discount that gregs comics provides, but I always still found my way back to atomic for sales, events, and just random searches for comics goodness.
Atomic you will be missed! For those in the east valley I do recommend GREG’S COMICS. it may not be as glitzy but the service is fantastic! I doubt this is the end, Marvel went bankrupt and they seem to be ok.

By: Caleb Gerard

Caleb Gerard — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 20:22:55 +0000

Bummer.
Been shopping at the Chandler locale for almost 6 years.
The employees are always knowledgeable and friendly and very patient as my kids roamed the store.
Bummer.
CJG

By: DuckPuppy

DuckPuppy — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 19:38:52 +0000

I was an Atomic Comics pull customer (Metro Center store) for the 5 years I lived in Phoenix (2001-2006)… it was an incredibly friendly place, and always great to go and hang out. It makes me sad to see the long-lived stores going out.

By: DADICUS

DADICUS — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 19:24:01 +0000

Come on Kelly I am trying to get the community up in arms about this so we can rebound from our loss but maybe a thinning of the heard will be beneficial to the other stores naturally.

By: Kelly

Kelly — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 18:23:19 +0000

DADICUS has the right idea! Now, whether “This is a deafening blow to the state of the comics industry” I highly doubt it, but I agree we should definitely support and focus on supporting our local retailers and friends. So if that means I go buy a stack of back issues of wally the wizard from Greg’s comic’s to show my support…count me in!!!

By: w may

w may — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 18:15:45 +0000

Its sad to see a comic store shut down, but agree with JoJo that tryin to run 4 stores was probably the final nail in this economy. I used to shop at Atomic when it was located by the AMC over on in Mesa, that was when I found Atomic was at its best. I know shop at Drawn to Comics, over in glendale, It is owned by Ken Brown, He always welcomes his customers as they walk thru the door and does his best to make your experiance in his store the best it can be. He has a great box incentive and will be moving to a larger location soon.

By: Jojo F

Jojo F — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 17:18:00 +0000

The market does not warrant four locations of the same comic shop. It doesn’t make sense considering the inherent dangers facing the industry.

Atomics wasn’t my favorite comic shop, but it still hurts when your options for a comic fix in AZ dwindle so drastically. Most areas are lucky to have even one comic shop, Mike went out of his way to provide four. But best intentions, I’d wager, are ultimately what led to this. Best of luck to his future endeavors.

In the meantime, fellow Phoenix comic crowd, we still have a few stores.

Drawn To Comics
JJ Comics
Hero Comics
Samurai Comics
All About Books and Comics

ABC always has what I’m looking for in stock and they’ve always been reliable in that sense. However my favorite is JJ Comics, a comic dealer in Northwest Phoenix who makes it a point to look me in the eye, shake my hand and thank me for my business on every visit. His location is not as “presentable” as most of the other stores mentioned but he knows that customers are the reason his store is there.

By: Roger Reddin

Roger Reddin — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 17:11:32 +0000

I have been a customer of Atomic Comics since the day that they first opened. I met so many great people over the years there and my best friends are people that have worked there. It truly is a sad day when this happened. I will miss Atomic for the new people it brings into my life and for the comics as well.

By: seamus

seamus — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 16:30:36 +0000

Hey as a retailer I would like to offer my condolences, I know how hard things are and how unhelpfull diamond are. Diamond Comics are crushing the life out of brick and morter stores, its crazy, they except no returns, they offer no support to the retailers. frick all discounts. Im a Uk retailer and I pay diamond the same wholesale price as customers pay in-store for their comics in the USA. its a joke. I wish the companies would print euro prices on their comics to avoid this. But I am off topic. Good luck to Staff I wish you the best.

By: Tony

Tony — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 16:21:02 +0000

I just wanted to add that best part of Atomic for me was the cool and helpful employees they had. I remember the ones that posted on here like Chuck, Julian, Shawn from the 90s. When I went back to visit Phx I’d always pop into Mesa and Chandler and sometimes Phx and I knew that I would be treated right. Atomic Comics owes alot of it’s success through the years for that reason. Here’s to you guys.

By: DADICUS

DADICUS — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 16:12:40 +0000

This is a deafening blow to the state of the comics industry and we should all Go and Support (All about books and comics, Samurai comics, Hero comics, Drawn to comics, Jesse James Comics, and Greg’s Comics) our local shops we need them to be here for our future with comics.

- DADICUS

By: Douglas

Douglas — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 16:10:56 +0000

Atomic Comics was inspirational! However, I am reminded of my very first and favorite store I used to shop in when I lived in Phoenix many years ago….Darcy’s Discoveries! That was an awesome store run by an awesome lady!

By: Julian Moraga

Julian Moraga — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 16:04:08 +0000

I had worked at Atomic Comics from June 1994 until October 2010. I now live in Portland and wish I was there to hug all my regulars and staff members who gave me a lot of hard work and dedication. Before working for Atomic I was a customer for 4yrs. I will miss that place and everyone who worked and shopped there. Thank you all for the loyalty, friendship, and love. I will never forget it I am truly heartbroken

By: Scott Godlewski

Scott Godlewski — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 15:58:15 +0000

Such sad, sad news. I spent a ridiculous amount of my youth in those stores. Mike was always very supportive of the local comic scene. I wish the best for everyone involved.

By: Matt Santucci

Matt Santucci — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 15:54:48 +0000

My place of employment for 6 of the last 7 years. My favorite place in the world for the last 19 years.

I feel bad that customers didn’t get a proper heads up, but I am sure things will be worked out in the end for all customers.

It’s the end of an era, I am sad to see it go, but excited to start a new era and see what that brings us.