Jim Beard came to us by way of the DC Direct Boards. Known as JSA Jim, he was enthusiastic collector and spoke eloquently on the direction of DC's line. An ardent proponent of the classic age of comics, Jim would work as a writer for Marvel's website, co-write a Red Tornado story for DC, team up with Troy and OJ for Newsarama's Super-Articulate column, and go on to write and/or edit books like Gotham City 14 Miles: 14 Essays on Why the 1960s Batman TV Series Matters. Today, he talks about the shifting tides that can occur for a fan.
On Shotgun . . .
When I think “shotgun” I think of a scattershot blast of buckshot – so here’s a burst or two comin’ right atcha.
I don’t buy a lot of action figures anymore. Funny how they used to be a major part of my leisure time, often to the point of distraction. Collecting figures was so fun and engaging, but in the last few years or so it’s become a minor blip on my radar. Oh, I still dig ‘em. But is it me or is the field a little…boring of late? DC Direct is a pale ghost of itself, producing more statues than articulated figures these days and when they do solicit they’re from some video game I’ve never played or heard of or the umpteenth iteration of Superman and Batman. Gone are the glory days of JSA figures or Silver Age goldmines like Beppo the Super-Monkey or Hoppy the Marvel Bunny…or Composite Superman. Oops; that’s just another iteration of Superman and Batman, innit? I think I’ve bought more Star Wars figures in recent days than super-hero toys – have to hand it to Hasbro. They’ve reached a Golden Age in their output, I think. Still hard to find, though. My days of haunting Targets are far, far behind me. My tradition now is that if I can walk into a store at any time of the day or any day of the week and stumble across a figure I’d like to buy, than that’s how it should be. Are there still those idiots who haunt the aisles of Toys-R-Us like ghasts, flitting about, pale and unshaven, peering into boxes left lying about by the night-stock crew? I pity them, if they still exist.
