I've come to learn some of the joys of collecting comics. It provides me with something to occupy my time and mind, as well as satisfying my inner OCD for organizing things into particular categories, etc. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, it gives me a chance to relive a bit of my youth where I grew up dreaming of super heroes. Despite all of the benefits of collecting, however, there is a drawback: the collector's curse.
Most collectors I know hunt for a particular type of item. For comic collectors, you'll find those who are either run collectors or key hunters--with some falling somewhere in between. The curse is that once you finally acquire that issue you've been hunting after for some time, your gaze immediately turns towards the next target. Of course, I'm still thoroughly stoked over owning a copy of Amazing Fantasy 15--still not sure it's completely sunk in even now. Still, the hunt is addicting and it's a real part of collecting. I've spoken to some really serious collectors (no, I don't think my AF 15 qualifies me as a really serious collector), and despite nabbing some of the biggest books out there, the desire to continue the hunt remains. This is the one thing I sometimes think about--what's more important: the object or the action?
What is it that drives our spending of hundreds or thousands of dollars a year in our little (or not so little) hobby? Are we more enamored with the comics themselves, or are we more interested simply in the exercise of hunting these pieces of ephemera down one by one? I ask myself this before every major purchase I make...or at least, I try to ask myself this. I am a key hunter in addition to being a run collector, and I pride myself on owning a pretty healthy number of milestone issues. But I have to ask myself why is it I want to own this particular milestone issue? Is this character important or interesting to me? Is there a movie or something else associated with this issue that I like? If I'm not able to find a reason for buying something, then I know I'm probably letting myself get caught up in the hunt.
The hunt is fun, but it can also be a bit of a curse causing us to lose our focus in what we collect. The only cure known to date, however, is to get out there and buy another comic. :-D
