Andy Runton of Owly fame was going about his own business on the internet when he saw this photo of the front of Legend Comics in Florence, SC.
It’s from Facebook and it isn’t a throwback show from the 90s, but an actual update of the storefront that they are proud of.
ALL NEW ARTWORK ON THE FANTASTIC LEGENDS UPDATE
Posted by Legends Comics on Tuesday, March 15, 2016
To be fair, a lot of fellows miss adult video stores and want to have that same old feeling of going to a man’s place to talk about man’s things.
Also the 90s are super hot right now.
The comments to the above photo of the store’s own FB page did reveal some dichotomy of thought however.
To be fair the interior of the store does look well stocked, if you ignore the girly pin-up art everywhere.
The owners of the store are obviously free to promote their establishment any way they want, but based on the 100 shares among comics creators on FB alone, they may find that other people object to it as an outmoded way of thinking and marketing comics. And a reminder that we don’t make this shit up.
I like to think that everyone in this industry is so progressive and working towards being inclusive…and then…I see things like this.
WOW is this depressing. I’m glad this isn’t my local comics shop.
Say what you want in defense of the store..following comic trends..using modern designs for characters depicted..whatever you like. The glaring fact is the shop made those images themselves. They said “what best showcases what we are all about…hmm.. HOT WOMEN!!” Now, aside from this being a terrible thing to have out front of what is probably supposed to be a family friendly shop always encouraging new, young readers of either sex… Does Hot Women really say “come in and buy comics”?? If your goal is to alienate several customer bases at once, then mission accomplished.
Apparently, Legacy Comics owners went to the CA$H NOW store next door and sold their soul.
I’m an avid comics reader and I would feel SO uncomfortable going there. I live about 2 hours away from Florence. I’m glad that the comics shops I do frequent (Borderlands in Greenville, SC, and Captain’s Comics in Charleston, SC) don’t have this kind of storefront. They’re much more inclusive. If anyone is in Florence, you are welcome to come to Borderlands or Captain’s and feel much more welcome!
Maybe they looked at articles like this one and all the Facebook posts and will rethink their plan for the future. Freedom of choice is at work here, but alienating families from your store is never good business. We all want what is best for stores to do good business, so maybe this commentary will change some minds.
@Aamzqm You have clearly never lived with a pretty person who had god-awful personal habits.
Obviously the power of the press once again BLOWS something out of proportion and obviously does not get ALL THE FACTS straight. What this store looks like is a comic book store that look like hundreds of other stores I have seen. Not to mention that comics (i.e. MARVEL, DC) have been promoting soft pornography for many, many years. . Get real people!!! More things in this world to worry about than what you PRESUME is a comic book store showing pornography. There is no nudity nor does a Cash Now sign that is OBVIOUSLY another business next door make this business owner a pornography promoter! I have seen more pornography at a ComicCon than what I see in this picture.
Am I the only one noticing that “Family Friendly” Andy Runton is ranting and raving via Facebook including personal attacks on the small store, its owner, the people who choose to shop there, and the artist. Shockingly, Runton went as far as to attack the artist’s girlfriend?! Riddled with foul language, Some “Family Friendly” comments to be found while perusing his (and his followers) comments include claiming the art is child pornography and claiming the store owner must be a pedophile who is into under-age cosplayers?! At one point, the owners write Runton in a “private message” to let him know that she is taking down the artwork and asked him if he would stop the assault. How does Runton respond?? He posts it for all to see and ridicules her. This is the kind of stuff that ruins family lives. Runton’s comic “Owly” is aimed at children, but his current actions and comments are teaching his young fans that he supports Cyber Bullying… And that is NOT okay.
@”Melissa Johnston” (or whatever your real name is: you just posted the exactly same comment on Andy Runton’s FB page, under the name “Stephanie Brooks”. You obviously have some kind of association with the store.
Allow me to respond to your concerns, using my real name, which is what I use when I post anywhere online. That is because I don’t say anything I’m ashamed to put my real name on.
This discussion is NOT cyber bullying or assault, by the stretch of anyone’s imagination. When a comic book puts art on its cover – much like the Rafael Albuquerque Batgirl variant that caused so much online ruckus ago – people talk about it. That’s the nature of the comics scene. What is put on its cover is the face that book chooses to show the world & has some correlation to what’s inside the book.
When a store puts various images on its outside, it is advertising what’s inside. Like it or lump it, that’s how the perception goes. You can talk about “don’t judge a book by its cover” but people make snap judgements – especially about spending their money – all the time, every day. So when a comic shop’s *publicly accessible* FB page has not just one sexy pinup, but is dominated by having multiple ones, & that comes across the view of a guy who has spent his career creating all-ages, friendly comics for kids, & he has something to say about it..not on the store’s page, but on his own FB page..it should say something *to the store* that so many people agree, including many comics industry professionals. It should say, maybe they should realize that the audience for comics is growing & expanding, & a smart store would want those new comics readers to feel welcome & invited. I’ve seen shops – especially in the 90’s – that look exactly like “Legends”‘s exterior did. & unless there wasn’t another comics shop for like..twenty miles, or so..I kept going. They could’ve been wonderful on the inside! & I’ll never know, B/C their windows made me feel kinda gross.
You can either accept that a bunch of people now agree that’s kind of gross, or, you can “shoot the messenger” & blame Andy for noticing it. I guess you have chosen “B”. Instead, why not use this opportunity to promote yourselves positively? Gregbo (the pinup artist you chose to decorate the store’s exterior) seems to be an in-house friend of yours. Why not choose art by him that isn’t as adult – maybe that great flying Supergirl piece he has, where she changes into her outfit, & flies towards the viewer? – & sponsor a big “family day” or all-ages night at yoru shop? You don’t have to say “wahhhhh, we were wrong” but showing that you heard people, rather than castigating them, would be a way to turn this blip of online attention into something good for your business?
BTW, if “Legends” was responsible for getting this whole conversation deleted from my FB page as well, I don’t appreciate that. Being censored by a comics shop, when I’m usually such a supporter of indie shops, is hella discouraging. I understand how FB works & that “sharing” a photo originated from “Legends” means that if they delete it, so do the associated posts. I noticed it disappeared from talented Mark Brooks’ page & my friends Elin Winkler’s. Yet somehow Andy’s page still has the conversation about it. Trying to suppress conversation like th is doesn’t work.
Andy Runton spoke up not because he’s a bully, but because he saw something that upset him. Comics is a changing scene, & Legends’ redesign seems like a throwback, & not in a good way. He’s a friend of mine, & I literally might not know anyone more decent or kinder than he is. Please dial back your untrue comments.
Lastly, the store seems to be responding to this by sending fans to message boards & FB pages to defend its choices, under fake names no less. Why not turn this around & use it as a moment for something good to come out of it? Because you could, if you wanted to, Legends.
..or, in the TL/DR version, what Jimmy Palmiotti said. Listen to Jimmy, kids..
My name is Stephanie Brooks. In response to the above post I would like to apologize to miss Johnston. I saw her post this morning and thought that it was excellent And well placed and worded. I tried to find her on Facebook but could not. So, possibly against my better judgement, I copied her post And put it on Andy Ruttons Facebook page. In hindsight, I should have said that this post was by Miss Johnston found on this article. So miss Johnston, I want you to know that I am sorry. I did change the wording some to remove Pedophile And pornography because I didn’t want it to be too much to put on Andy’s Facebook page. So there Eva. I have come clean. No, I am not affiliated with the store. However, I have been to the Florence comic book convention. It is a truly family-friendly atmosphere And I’m sure it reflects What the true nature of the store is. And as far as your response to the cyber bullying, Just because you can express your opinion Doesn’t necessarily mean that you should. Especially if You Don’t Know Jack about the facts. Opinions can hurt innocent people. Especially when it’s through the media.
“This discussion is NOT cyber bullying”
Yeah! ‘Cause the people having abuse heaped on them in this case deserve it, especially from people who have never been within a 100 miles of the store and know absolutely nothing about it, its owners or its customers. They committed the mortal sin of making folks like Eva Hopkins unhappy and THEY MUST PAY!!!
If you ever get confused in the future, just remember “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.” Loser gamer guys flaming you when you do something they don’t like = bad. The pure of heart flaming you when you do something they don’t like = good.
Mike
I’m not fake…
“What this store looks like is a comic book store that look like hundreds of other stores I have seen. ”
Talk about blowing things out of proportion. Show me images of all the stores that have those kinds of pinups plastered all over the windows. Sure, there are some that have racy covers or posters featured, but this catches the eye much more.
It sends an odd message. I don’t know how the store is doing, but it communicates to me that the store is trying to attract attention from elsewhere because the old crowd may not be doing the job for them.
Also, what happened to the FB page? They take their whole thing down?
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