I became aware of Midtowncomics this summer when I was moving from Kentucky to Germany. I was very impressed with their service to me. I had recently been a frequent customer of walk-in stores and knew it would never be the same and, of course, it is not. However, I may never have a pull list at a local store again after the great service I’ve received from Midtown. I would like to have a walk-in store–and recommend them but my lifestyle just doesn’t support it. But, at the same time, receiving my box every other Thursday is incredible.
Then, I found the back issues. What a change that made! I still have to watch myself from buying too many. But, it is all there online!! With Midtown, you can just browse away the day. And in a couple of clicks–your paycheck is gone, kids are starving, etc. I got very comfortable with the website interface.
Until…this week.
I don’t like change. This week Midtown Comics upgraded their site–for Christmas maybe?(I guess that explains the huge ads in Wizard for the last couple months.) At first, I was apprehensive. It is better looking had to figure out how to get to the Back Issues–but got it. And over all the site is pretty functional. Most of my complaints are preferences from the old site. Except it is has been running slower recently and I’ve had to back all the way out and restart my visit–it is a pain to sign in every five minutes. These are pretty big bugs, so I am sure they’ve got someone working on them.
I think my biggest complaint is the searching interface. I really liked looking through the comics by alphabet, or publisher, or title. This was a good option on the older site. I could truly browse and find what I was looking for and sometimes a couple of other things–almost like walking in a real store. Another big problem is that when you go to the DC Back issue page–you are given roughly two choices use the search form which means you must know exactly what you are looking for. Or, be content with clicking through 500 pages of comics–which is not a good idea given the speed it is running.
With that said, Midtown remains the top online comic shop. I like the look, the interface, the interaction, and the staff–much better than any I have had contact with. The search options are the only downside on the Midtown Comics site. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking to order those back issues or to fill your boxes with new issues.