Who Reads the Comics

[sweetolebob18 728]

For reasons of both finance & availability  I've never read any of them.  Is there anywhere I could find them?  I started this because I wondered what % of fans HAD ever read any.

[Megas 27,564]

Read most of them but not all, though from now on I'll probably just avoid serious adventure arcs and just stick to SoL and the Friends Forever series

 

They aren't that expensive on iTunes or Amazon, only a few bucks for a comic, sometimes $3-5

[Snake 516]

I read the ones I'm able to find online, I'd love to collect the actual comics in person though. <3

[Daring_Do 552]

For reasons of both finance & availability  I've never read any of them.  Is there anywhere I could find them?  I started this because I wondered what % of fans HAD ever read any.

ComiXology.com sells digital versions of the comics. That won't solve your "finance" problem, but it's worth checking out. I also hear iTunes has them (like Santas Megas mentioned), but I have to say from experience - Don't buy the Amazon Kindle versions. ComiXology is owned by Amazon anyway.

[Tonyan 122]

I'd like to take a look at these comics, but I couldn't find the time to do so. I will have time once I finish all my college projects and hop on holidays.

[Floofie 799]

I haven't read the comics, but I would like to. While I wouldn't consider myself a comic geek, I enjoy reading comics whenever I get the chance to.

[Ashen Pathfinder 16,161]

As someone who generally enjoys the comics and has read them all, I got the digital versions through iTunes (iBooks, technically). New releases are $3.99, and they generally drop to $1.99 after about a month. Specials can range from $3.99 to $5.99, IIRC.

 

Keep in mind that there is quite the backlog now-a-days:

 

Main Series: 37 issues

 

Friends Forever: 23 issues

 

Micro Series: 10 issues

 

FIENDship is Magic: 5 issues

 

Misc: 2 annuals (EqG/Fall of Sunset Shimmer, Power Ponies) and two Christmas specials (one based on EqG, the other on FiM)

 

As for where you can get them you should be able to find them in your local comic shops, and you can order them from online retailers like Amazon. If digital is your preference Comixology offers them in PDF format while iTunes/iBooks versions can be read through their reader.

 

Also, do some research. While quality is subjective it might do you some good to look up individual issues and arcs just to make sure they are up your ally.

[Chara 1,565]

I have never got to any of the comics because I have no idea how are where to order them.

[Castle Bleck 19,326]

You could always just go to ChronoShenron's YouTube channel.

[Hazy Skies 1,010]

I've read some of them, and love every single one ^-^

Try going to a public library and see if they have any MLP comics you can lend..

That's how i first read my IDW MLP:FiM conic, which was volume #1

[Pulse Wave 44]

Haven't read them all yet since releases in Germany are lagging behind.

[Steve Piranha 29,419]

I haven't gotten all of them, but I do read any I can find

[twiia 1,843]

I read some, on a place where someone posted them so that those who can't buy could see them

[weesh 690]

I own all of them physically, except the equestria girls annual, because i'm not a big fan of EG.

 

I have subscriptions with my local comic shop, and they pull all the covers that they get to my box, and then I can look at each cover and choose the one I want.  Sometimes they run out of a comic, so they take the extras out of my box, but I probably get to choose for 80% or more.  

 

The major selling point to physically owning them is because they are all the easier to share with other bronies, the young kids I know that are fans, and with my sister.

The downside is that occasionally I don't get them back!  But I always read them before loaning them.   

 

Would anyone be interesting in my compiling a list of the best ones?  If you are only willing to buy a few, I could give a few suggestions.  

[Kapitan zur See Hans (Daz) 883]

Only read a few that I gout out of a Humble Bundle, but each one of them were great in my opinion.

[Blu Starset 1]

quick question, is the comic related to the tv series? if so I would gladly read it

[BastementSparkle 20,324]

I read some of them, but not all. I prefer to stick to the Volumes that collect multiple comics, since I'm not fond of going for single issues with comics, so I tend to lag behind. Which is fine by me, I like doing little Comic marathons.

 

 

 

quick question, is the comic related to the tv series? if so I would gladly read it

 

It expands on things in the TV show, and mostly tries to fit into the show's continuity from what I've read. They can easily fit into the Show's universe, but you don't have to read the comics to understand anything in the show, or the opposite. There's a few continuity bumps here and there, but that's true even just for the show itself. 

[Concerned Bystander 2,902]

I do enjoy the comics.  In some ways I actually prefer them to the cartoon, and given the sheer volume of cultural references in the comics it's clear that they are aimed at a rather older demographic than the cartoon.  I can't imagine many 6-8 year old girls picking up on references to 'Blade Runner', 'Quantum Leap', 'Conan the Barbarian' or Stephen King's 'It' to name but a very few.

 

As an aside, due to the rather itinerant nature of my life at times, I don't get the actual comics per se, I wait for the trade paperbacks to come out and then get those.  I have both of the Pony Tales ones, Fiendship is Magic, and all of the Friendship is Magic and Forever Friends TPs that have been released so far.

Edited April 9, 2016 by Concerned Bystander

[weesh 690]

quick question, is the comic related to the tv series? if so I would gladly read it

 

Very much so.  twilight shifts from unicorn to alicorn at the same time in both, and the very first post-transformation story is in the comics.  Which shouldn't be a surprise since when twilight changed, the show went on break until the next season.  

Obviously the comics can't cause major changes to the show, like the show can do for the comic, but very few of the show events impact even the show that much!

 

 

I do enjoy the comics.  In some ways I actually prefer them to the cartoon...

 

Me too.

I feel like the comics fill a lot of gaps, and very nicely distribute the stories among characters.  If you really like a specific character, they aren't going to be neglected.

Want to see a specific villain?  well they did a month of nothing but villain comics and hit them all.  

They are often much more emotionally complex and interesting as well.  My favorite celestia, luna, and spike moments are not in the show.  

 

I buy them within 1-2 weeks of their release.  It is REALLY nice to get a steady stream of pony even when the show is on hiatus.  

Edited April 9, 2016 by weesh

[Blu Starset 1]

I read some of them, but not all. I prefer to stick to the Volumes that collect multiple comics, since I'm not fond of going for single issues with comics, so I tend to lag behind. Which is fine by me, I like doing little Comic marathons.

 

 

It expands on things in the TV show, and mostly tries to fit into the show's continuity from what I've read. They can easily fit into the Show's universe, but you don't have to read the comics to understand anything in the show, or the opposite. There's a few continuity bumps here and there, but that's true even just for the show itself.

 

 

so i've finally read the comics, like, all of them from the latest.. i've read about sombra's reformation. so if ever hasbro would put on an episode that involves sombra, does that mean the tv is flawed or the comic? is this what they call canon?

[Phanact 333]

I wish I had the time to

 

I also can't read

[Kapitan zur See Hans (Daz) 883]

so i've finally read the comics, like, all of them from the latest.. i've read about sombra's reformation. so if ever hasbro would put on an episode that involves sombra, does that mean the tv is flawed or the comic? is this what they call canon?

It is not flawed so to speak. However the canon from the show trumps comic book canon. Essentially until proven otherwise by the show everything in the comics is canon(So if the show does contradict what may be in the comic, then the comic is no longer relevant). Just always expect changes and for something to no longer be truth.

[Blu Starset 1]

specifically, what the hell's a canon?

[Concerned Bystander 2,902]

 

 

specifically, what the hell's a canon?

 

Canon is the established in-universe lore and history associated with something like MLP, essentially what is accepted as fact within the program.  For example, Twilight's parents being alive is canon, because we've seen them.  Applejack's parent's being dead is not canon, because it hasn't been irrefutably established in the cartoon, even though it has been hinted at really heavily.

 

When you have a franchise with multiple media, for example FiM has the cartoon, and the comics, then one will usually have primacy as being the overall canon, whereas the other will be secondary canon, which means that events in it can be considered to be part of the overall canon, as long as they do not conflict with established facts in the primary canon.

 

Neither of those should be confused with 'headcanon' which has absolutely no weight whatsoever, it is simply what any given individual fan thinks might be, or wants to be, fact.  For example, Vinyl and Octavia being in a lesbian relationship is nothing more than headcanon, because although it has been established in the cartoon that they live together, there is no clear indication of the nature of their cohabitation, they could just as easily be two ponies who share a house to save money on bills.  However, that particular headcanon does hold some merit of being reasonable, whereas some headcanons are ridiculous leaps of logic based on nothing more than a fantastical notion that has spewed out of someones brain.  For plenty of examples of both, you could always a look at this thread, https://mlpforums.com/topic/94902-do-you-have-any-headcanonstheories/

[Black Sabbath 2,486]

I stopped reading the comics a little while ago. Most of them are kind of bland and those that aren't are just horrible. 

Edited April 16, 2016 by Yamet