Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. Sign in or register to get started.

Do you buy/read Previews/Marvel Previews?

Do you buy/read Previews/Marvel Previews? I amended to buy/read in case you just read it in your LCS or buy/read from a online retail place.

Matthew
«1

Comments

  • I flip through and sometimes read the solicitations but I don't read any text pieces in the book.
  • DoctorDoomDoctorDoom Posts: 2,586
    I haven't in a while, but I used to love flipping through Previews.

    Actually, there was a comics store I used to go to in upstate New York that would put out older Previews for people to take for free. I used to come home with comics and an armful of those things.
  • RobAndersonRobAnderson Posts: 553
    edited April 2012
    Yup, I get it and skim/read it every month. It takes me a couple hours...so I do sometimes fall behind.
  • ZhurrieZhurrie Posts: 617
    I used to but both of my LCSs now charge full price for them regardless of how good of a customer you are, so I stopped. I used to get them for free or like $1-2 which was fine but I refuse to pay full price to just order stuff and with the internets I can usually find what I need without those huge books.
  • David_DDavid_D Posts: 3,884
    Nope. When I am doing my ordering, I use the DCBS website as a starter, and then (particularly for what would be in the back of the catalog) if something looks intriguing, I just Google it. As DCBS lists everything by publisher, it makes anything that would be in there very easy to find online. And I end up usually finding out a lot more, seeing more and larger preview art, etc., and make my decisions that way. Since I am already at the computer to fill out my order, then I can do whatever I need to on the screen.

    And I feel like so much paper, including catalogs, comes into this house, and has to go out in recycling bags, that skipping the paper Previews just means a little bit less paper in my life.
  • Previews is the first thing I pull out of my DCBS order. I totally love going through it every month. A few months back I didn't get a copy in my shipment and I felt fully disconnected. I ended up going to Comic Break and looking at their digital version.
    Previews is an inherent part of how I buy comics. No doubt about it.
  • dubbat138dubbat138 Posts: 3,200
    For years I would get Advance ever month. Then when Capitol died I switched to Previews. But now that I really don't read more than 3 monthly comics I haven't bought/read a copy of Previews since about 2007.
  • Mr_CosmicMr_Cosmic Posts: 3,200
    I never used to. I was like David D and just used DCBS's site to find what I wanted by publisher. However, DCBS offers it for so cheap that I buy it anyways and enjoy following along with the guys during their Previews episodes.
  • mguy1977mguy1977 Posts: 801
    I wanted to see if Bryan's influence & discussion on Previews made some of the geek populace buy Previews. I bought Previews for the last 6 years since being a DCBS member. Doing my best to keep within my budget of $50.00 to 150.00 bucks on average.

    Matthew

  • kfreemankfreeman Posts: 314
    edited April 2012
    I get it. For me, it's the easiest and most practical way to order books, even though I don't particularly LIKE Previews.

    When you get a lot of smaller-press stuff like I do, the DCBS site just isn't very useful.
  • ZhurrieZhurrie Posts: 617
    I get it. For me, it's the easiest and most practical way to order books, even though I don't particularly LIKE Previews.

    When you get a lot of smaller-press stuff like I do, the DCBS site just isn't very useful.
    Agreed, I do occasionally now miss a rare oddball small press item and have to resort to ebay after it drops.
  • RobAndersonRobAnderson Posts: 553
    It is the greatest informational tome on comics in the world!
    Oh, Mike. Always campaigning to make sure people select Previews as the winner for the CGS award for "publication about comics" ;)

  • WebheadWebhead Posts: 458
    Nope, I use to but stopped about two or three years ago and don't miss it one bit.
  • EarthGBillyEarthGBilly Posts: 362
    Two years ago I got into a habit of picking it up that lasted about a year. I had two reasons for stopping - I hated having another catalog laying around, and it was costing me a fortune.

    In respect to it "laying around," I always said to myself that I'd go through it, clip the pages for use in arts and crafts projects. In total, I produced two pretty cool Christmas ornaments... and that was all. I just never got around to doing it, but I'd save them anyway. Finally faced the facts on that.

    And, with the "costing me a fortune," I'm not talking about the catalog itself. I got it with the DCBS discount. No, I mean that I'd end up going through it each month and blowing my budget on things that I had no knowledge of before that moment. A *DELUXE* Captain America Shield? All eleven Doctors action figures in one package?!? A bust of Christopher Lee as Dracula?!?

    My budget demanded I stop finding out about some of these things, so I had to drop the catalog.

    (On a side note, I've ordered that lousy Christopher Lee bust three times now, and it has yet to actually make it past solicitation. Arghgh.)
  • brydeemerbrydeemer Posts: 216
    I still maintain that there's just no way you can be exposed to all the books shipping in a month, without reading Previews.

    Anyone who says they are browsing DCBS's site or random websites, just isn't making a good use of their time.

    It's like arguing that 1+1=3. You are wrong!

    Bry
  • GregGreg Posts: 1,946
    No, no, no. There is too much temptation to break the the comic buying budget.
  • DoctorDoomDoctorDoom Posts: 2,586
    It is the greatest informational tome on comics in the world!
    Oh, Mike. Always campaigning to make sure people select Previews as the winner for the CGS award for "publication about comics" ;)

    Wait, it's not?

    All my votes.... ruined!
  • KrescanKrescan Posts: 623
    i get it every month and go through it when i'm making my order, it helps because i don't have internet (we live in the sticks as they would say) so i can go through and write down what i want for the month and then save time when i'm making my order at DCBS at work or over at my mom's house

    and then after that I give my copy to a friend that is single handedly keeping our LCS in business (technology scares him, as does saving money i suppose) but the plus side of that is that if anything falls through the cracks and i miss it or find out it's good after the orders are done, he's more than happy to grab me a copy while he's there
  • MiraclemetMiraclemet Posts: 258
    I read it for the articles....
  • MiraclemetMiraclemet Posts: 258
    =))

    ok I cant keep a straight face with that one...

    Its one stop shopping for me, and good bathroom reading for the month... occasionally find something I missed otherwise, and I use DCBS, but it is easier to leaf thru a catalog than surf thue the "Other Publishers" section of the books... especially when some (Top Cow/Dark Horse) get littered with comic book related non-comic book items.
  • David_DDavid_D Posts: 3,884
    edited April 2012
    I still maintain that there's just no way you can be exposed to all the books shipping in a month, without reading Previews.

    Anyone who says they are browsing DCBS's site or random websites, just isn't making a good use of their time.

    It's like arguing that 1+1=3. You are wrong!

    Bry
    It's funny that Matthew's question of how one goes about ordering or using/not using Previews has to become "What is the RIGHT and ONLY way? Who's RIGHT?" Ah, the Internets ;)

    My experience, for me, having tried both, is that it is faster for me to do use the information presented to me on DCBS and then look up the short list of other things that catch my eye.

    Given how many pages of bullshit you have to flip past to even see the comics shipping in a month in Previews, and given that there are whole publishers that, at this point, I know I am not considering and don't even need to peruse (I accept my closed mind about, say, Broadsword Comics and Eros Comics at this point), it works out for me. It feels fast and efficient, I don't feel like I am missing out, and when it is time for me to consider something from a creator or publisher I don't know what to expect from, a few seconds of Googling results in much more preview material to consider than those publishers would likely be able to afford in Previews.

    Now, if I were also browsing for things like t-shirts, board games, toys, etc., then I would probably use the paper Previews. But I'm not, so I am content with how I am doing it.

    Also- there are times when a delay, on Diamond's end, to get Previews to DCBS can result in your shipment being delayed by as much as a week. It was when that came up that I realized that I really wasn't relying on the paper Previews enough to want my comics to be delayed. So, out it went, and I haven't missed it.

    Others' habits may vary. Such as you toilet readers (personally, that is my Entertainment Weekly and New York Magazine special times). But for me, it ain't broke.
  • brydeemerbrydeemer Posts: 216
    David,

    Here's what I don't understand.

    Browsing through the DCBS website is painful. It's often fairly slow and there are about 1000 pages to click through.

    I see 20 comics. I click next. I see 20 comics. I click next. That must take hours! Where as it takes me about 15 minutes to page through Previews. It's all there. I can't miss anything.

    It's so simple. And as a DCBS customer it's only $1.25. The amount of time it saves me is easily worth that much. Plus I'm guaranteed to find things that I would miss if I only looked at the web.

    Bry
  • David_DDavid_D Posts: 3,884
    edited April 2012
    David,

    Here's what I don't understand.

    Browsing through the DCBS website is painful. It's often fairly slow and there are about 1000 pages to click through.

    I see 20 comics. I click next. I see 20 comics. I click next. That must take hours! Where as it takes me about 15 minutes to page through Previews. It's all there. I can't miss anything.

    It's so simple. And as a DCBS customer it's only $1.25. The amount of time it saves me is easily worth that much. Plus I'm guaranteed to find things that I would miss if I only looked at the web.

    Bry
    I think our difference is that you use the spreadsheet for ordering (it sounds like) and I usually assemble the cart on the website.

    The web cart has gotten faster, from what I have noticed, or at least I don't notice it being slow. If I were having to do it having already made my choices, which is to say, clicking through just to make selections without having to take the time to make decisions, I could see that feeling slow, but I am reading through the listings usually for the first time right there on the screen. I am only looking at screens that likely have comics I am considering buying, so seeing them in batches of 20 (or less, depending on the publisher) is not a problem. And I find the loading time after the click is quick.

    The spreadsheet may be slightly faster (though, depending on the person, looking back and forth between a book and a screen may slow some down) but for me, spreadsheets remind me of some of the saddest jobs I've ever had, so I sort of resist turning my comics into a spreadsheet. And if that adds five or ten minutes to the process, so be it. I would rather buying my comics feel like a reward for work rather than more work.

    And the other publishers click through fast, especially as there are a number of publishers I just know to skip.

    So, again, for me, it feels fast, and like it works. I felt personally like Previews on paper took me longer because there was a lot of junk to get through to get at what I would actually be choosing.

    What takes the longest is not the navigating, it is making the hard choices.
  • DoctorDoomDoctorDoom Posts: 2,586
    =))



    Its one stop shopping for me, and good bathroom reading for the month...
    Depends what one is.... doing... in the bathroom.

    Then again, Previews is a mufti-purpose catalog...
  • MiraclemetMiraclemet Posts: 258
    I like to turn my previews into holiday decorations...


    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxZQZcm4XTQ
  • TorchsongTorchsong Posts: 2,794
    Previews is great. It's a buck and a quarter from DCBS, and it's the book my wife rips from my hands when I open TBBATEOTM (The Big Box At The End Of The Month). It's our Sears Wishbook (for you old farts out there who remember what the Sears Wishbook was). When she sees something in the collectibles/toys/statues part and expresses interest, I make a mental note.

    I enjoy looking at the upcoming covers, solicits, and often find small press books I likely wouldn't have known about/considered otherwise.

    And old Previews are great packing material.
  • ChrisMurrinChrisMurrin Posts: 256
    Every month I visit MyComicShop.com and read Previews on their web site. Generally for Marvel/DC, I only read the titles to jot down what I want to order from DCBS. For other companies, though, I take a closer look at anything that interests me and often read the text pieces.
  • It's our Sears Wishbook (for you old farts out there who remember what the Sears Wishbook was).
    I'm an old fart so I get the reference.

    I could never be as informed as I hope I am without the Preview guide and Marvel supplemental. I get it from DCBS too, so a buck and a quarter is good money spent every month. I don't read most of the descriptions of the books I normally read, but I 'skim' it for all things new in mainstream and independent.

    It's the only magazine my wife and kids know is mine, but they can mark up with a sharpie on the stuff they want.

  • brydeemerbrydeemer Posts: 216
    David,

    I use the website to place orders. I abhor spreadsheets.

    I go through Previews, make a list of the items I want, and then I search the DCBS website and add those items to my cart. So I'm only on the site for a few minutes. But those few minutes are enough for me to know that I could never spend time browsing through the catalogue. It would take forever.

    Bry
Sign In or Register to comment.