r/comicbooks • u/DogsDontLikeHats • 11h ago
Ugggghhhh!!
Anti theft sticker right on the page. Have you no decency!?
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u/RandyTheFool 10h ago
As a long time comic/graphic novel collector, those stickers (while super inconvenient and honestly petty as shit) do peel off easily and I can’t say I’ve ever had damage doing so.
The glue is lightly tacky, but not overly sticky enough to tear the page. It doesn’t leave a residue typically. Peel the tag up from the side closest to the spine and remove slowly. If you’re unsure if it’ll tear the page, use a hairdryer to heat the glue and release the page.
As a side note: I hate when stores make their problems with theft a problem you have to deal with. It fucking sucks.
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u/JoeFriday37 9h ago
Whereas as someone who worked in bookstores and a comic book store for 15 years, I remember we had to stop using these tag stickers on the inside covers, because the glue was so adhesive to paper that it invariably ripped them, and collectors (reasonably) hated that. There may be low-tack versions, but since those are easier to remove, they tend not to be favoured.
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u/RevWaldo Spider Jeruselem 8h ago
Bestine rubber cement thinner. Trusted by stamp collectors so it should be safe for comics. But try a dab on one of the ads with a q-tip first.
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u/Cornelius-Q 6h ago
I remember, years ago, that one of the big chains -- either B&N or Borders -- put those security tags on inside pages of graphic novels. And those did not peel right off. Any attempt to remove them would rip the paper. I never bought a book like that, but did see them when I flipped through them in the stores. Did a couple of attempts to see if they had a death grip, and they did. (I didn't damage any books, but I could tell they weren't going to come off without a fight.)
I even heard of people getting books with stickers like that from Diamond -- apparently, they were returned stock from these stores that found its way into the direct market distribution chain.
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u/BradPffft 8h ago
If you were buying as a collector, a comic book from somebody and they told you that it contained an anti-theft device that they carefully peeled off, would you still buy it with 100% confidence?
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u/BradPffft 8h ago
Conversely, if you were selling to a collector, would you tell them it contained an anti-theft device that you carefully peeled off?
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u/RandyTheFool 7h ago
Let’s be real here. This is obviously from a big corporation and should be expected. Full stop. Barnes and noble, Walmart, Walden’s books, whatever big box book store you can think up. They do this kinda shit sometimes.
If I’m buying as a collector, I’m not buying at a place like this for my collection to begin with. So, yeah, I would buy it because it’s my reader copy that’s been manhandled by who knows how many walks of life from a big box store, as expected.
My comment of being a collector is just to tell someone I have many years of experience with this and do come across this when I’m buying my reader copies, versus my collector copies that I would source elsewhere (if I didn’t just buy it there to begin with) so that it doesn’t occur. This is no longer a problem I run into, because I don’t go to big retail stores for books any longer, but can understand that others may come across this problem like I did years ago myself, and that the solution to the problem isn’t as bad as people think.
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u/BradPffft 5h ago
I agree about the corporate stores, but that's beside the point. If someone tells me something is brand new but it's shrink wrapped then I would be suspicious. And in my scenario it was about if you were purchasing from another collector who purchased it and there was an issue and they claimed to have fixed it and that the fix does not cause an issue, would that copy be the number one copy you're looking for or would you maybe also keep looking is all? If there's any moment where the idea of a sticker inside of a comic book bothers you then the fact that a business does it is fucked up. But also it ruins the sanctity of the collector market. And again, if you had a book and let's say you were trying to sell it and you removed the magnetic tag or whatever, would you disclose that to the buyer?
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u/meowmeow834 9h ago
This is why most comicbook fans do not buy comics from barnes and noble. I understand why they do this but as a collector, i cant stand this in my tradepaperbacks.
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u/Raulimus Green Lantern 10h ago
Eff that, find a comic shop if you can to buy trades in the future. I’d try and get my money back for that if it damages the page when peeled.
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u/AnotherPackOfDust 10h ago
My local Barnes and Noble does this
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u/JoeFriday37 9h ago
We used to do it at Borders too, and constantly got complaints and returns because of it.
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u/Baconmonk 8h ago
Is it a policy or is it something that happens when employees hate their job?
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u/JoeFriday37 7h ago
Policy. But we were only ever supposed to stick them to the inside of the back cover. We were very specifically told to never put them on any of the pages. Anyone would know there’s a risk. Even low-tack stickers can leave an oily residue and damage the pages. That type of adhesive is often used on price or promotion labels, and they can still cause damage to covers.
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u/minotar685 10h ago
Whenever I've encountered this I've successfully gotten them off with no issues by using a hairdryer to warm up the glue
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u/Kind-Atmosphere5766 10h ago
Oh my lord! This should be a crime enough to land you in prison. Who does this?! Sorry you have to go through this OP! I feel your rage and sadness.
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u/Mike012541 7h ago
It’s happened to me a few times but usually the just peel right off with no issues
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u/Equivalent-Net-7048 7h ago
It’s even worse with manga. One time when I was reading Urasawa’s Monster I found TWO of them in one volume. Ruined my immersion 😂
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u/bingusdingus123456 11h ago
Btw, what book is it?
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u/KING_CURL 11h ago
Ultimates by Deniz Camp. Very special book despite the ultimate universe 2.0 being a dud
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u/BradPffft 9h ago
I, as a collector, would consider it ruined. Replace or refund. It's like when GameStop used to sell shrink wrapped games. What are we dumb?