Serious question, is gatekeeping at conventions getting worse?

I was at a small con in Portland last month and this older collector told a kid he couldn't look at a near-mint copy of Giant-Size X-Men #1 because his hands were dirty. The kid was maybe 12 and just super excited. I get protecting comics, but that felt rough. Has anyone else seen collectors treat new fans like they don't belong?

2 comments

2 Comments

cameronb5224d ago

Wait, the kid’s hands were actually dirty or the guy just assumed they were? I feel like there’s a difference between wiping down a book after a kid touches it and straight up telling them they can’t look at a comic at all. A lot of these older collectors treat their graded stuff like museum artifacts instead of… well, comics that are meant to be read and enjoyed. Kinda weird to gatekeep a 12 year old over some smudges, especially when they’re the ones keeping the hobby alive down the road.

amybarnes24d ago

That guy just forgot what it was like to be a kid discovering comics for the first time.