MANCHESTER, NH – Regular comic book fans from Manchester, Kevin Bruin, 25, Janice Silver, 36, and her husband Chris Silver, 39, have been camped outside of Double Midnight Comics at 245 Maple St. in Manchester since Thursday morning.
They’re hoping to be the first in the door when the store opens at 10 a.m. Saturday for this year’s Free Comic Book Day festivities and get their hands on some highly-sought-after door prizes.
“It keeps getting earlier every year,” said co-owner Chris Proulx. “The people who are out there right now, they always try to one-up one another.”
Bruin said he was the first one there this year, at 8 a.m. Thursday.
“This is my third year now,” Bruin said. “It turned into a little tradition.”
When Chris Silver found out, he got out of work early to join him.
“It’s all about the experience,” Chris said. “We make friends.”
Janice said she was the first in line last year. The Silvers have been doing this for the past six years. They said the line often wraps all the way around the strip mall to the rear on Maple Street, when it’s closer to opening.
All three took about two days off work to be there, and have brought enough food and drinks to sustain them over the next two days, as well as some chairs to rest in.
Bruin said there’s usually a fourth regular (together, they dubbed themselves the “four horsemen”) but the fourth horseman couldn’t make it this year.
The first door prize is always the best, they said. Proulx said it will include a gift certificate, a statue of a comic book character, a graphic novel, Marvel poster and assorted comics. He said the total value exceeds $250.
Last year, Janice said she got a Thanos statue.
Proulx said the first 10 in the door will get a free graphic novel, the first 50 will get a poster, and the first 100 will get assorted comics. After that, everyone will be able to choose about eight free comics from a selection of about 35 titles the store chose from the 51 available titles being released nationwide on May 4.
According to the Free Comic Book Day website, the annual event was founded on the belief that “for every person out there, there’s a comic book they’ll love.” Every year on the first Saturday in May, the comic book industry comes together to give away free comics and encourage fans, old and new, to flock to the best place in the comic book community: local comic shops.