In a time where street art seems ready to make that final, massive jump into mainstream and no one bothers to read someone’s thoughts if it’s longer than 140 characters – you’d think that would give way to the golden age of comic books. Add that to Marvel rebooting and expanding their universe with 2,423,485 movies every year (and The Avengers sitting comfortably at the 3rd highest grossing movie of all time) while DC uses The Dark Knight‘s momentum to get us ready for The Justice League; you should have an equation that equals a comic book fanfare. Pages of wonderful art, super heroes, and barely any actual reading – what’s more perfect for a world all Ritalined out?
Sadly, that’s just not the case.
Comic books are having the same hiccups as books are having; they’re unadaptable. Even with the attempts at this whole digital comic thing, no one’s paying attention anymore. Plus, movie releases, unfortunately, don’t really affect comic sales and unadapted comics just seem to be slipping further and further into a dusty, shelved fate. What comics need are their own super hero willing to fight off a quiet death loudly. Enter: Dave from Secret Headquarters in Silverlake, Los Angeles.
So as fun as Googling information no more useful than Snapple facts and pretending it’s a self-education is, I figured the best way to learn more about comics directly was to head straight to the nearest, and possibly best, comic store around, Secret Headquarters. It’s here that the ex-skater and store owner Dave Pifer is approaching the fight for comics in a clever way. (Their hilariously “based on a true story?” about section describes the store as a “haven for comic book-influenced mischief”). He’s designed his shop to attract attention, not by flamboyancy, but by simple, elegant design that attracts the eye and erases the childish stigma comic books have been given. After a conversation with him, which you can watch below, I realized we don’t need one hero standing for comics. What we need is a group of them, each using their own unique tactics and working together to ensure survival. They need to be stronger than The Avengers, more universal than The Justice League, and have more diligence than the X-Men. Otherwise comic books’ powerful arch nemesis, Time, will finally be the first villain to have its tragic victory.
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Make your visit to Secret Headquarters at:
The Secret Headquarters
3817 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026
Mon – Sat 11-9 / Sun 12-7
tel 323.666.2228