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Feb 12, 2012 Web Exclusive By Jeremy Nisen

Comic Book Men is a new reality series focused on a New Jersey-based comic book shop, Jay and Silent Bob’s Secret Stash, which is owned by Kevin Smith (Clerks, etc.). Smith appears in the series via narrative interstitials of a sort, wherein he and the shop’s employees gather to record a podcast, but the show focuses on the shop’s three employees and a non-employee who’s perpetually hanging out at the store (and looks disturbingly like a shaggier version of Paul Giamatti).

Out of the gate, it seems my low expectations were well placed. It starts out pretty schticky, and the subjects seem quite conscious of the camera. And one of the initial geeky conversations is definitely the worst of fanboyism, discussing which costumed heroines the cast would, well, be interested in (example: “I’m a Catwoman guy”). It’s off-putting juvenilia.

But…if you can outlast the first 10 minutes, the discourse and content definitely take a turn for the better.

The show’s intro contains a voiceover setting up the interesting situation that the Secret Stash finds itself in—“an economy where comic book stores are failing left and right.” So why is The Stash succeeding? Those at home may conjecture that Smith’s involvement (whether PR-wise or monetarily) may have a smidge to do with it, but in the context of the show, the exploration of the business part of the shop is what I found most satisfying.

One aspect of this is the Storage Wars/Pawn Shop All-stars/Antiques Roadshow segments, wherein folks bring their comics, collectables, or memorabilia to the shop to be appraised and possibly sold. A toy store proprietor who ended up with some comics (“We don’t mess with those,” he tells the guys at The Stash) fuels an interesting exploration of what his old Batman issue is worth, both on the open market and to the retailer—but then fuels a discussion during the “podcast interstitial” with Smith about drugs in comics (referencing Green Arrow’s struggles with his sidekick Speedy’s heroin issues) and the Comics Code Authority. These are things that card-carrying geeks know cold, but it’s interesting to see them discussed in a fairly digestible manner for whatever part of Comic Book Men‘s audience is mainstream.

Other products brought to The Stash include a Bob Kane original sketch (he’s the guy who invented Batman and there’s a ton of controversy over that fact—probably too much for a reality TV show to delve into in its pilot); a Six Million Dollar Man action figure that spawns a good geek discussion about the cultural significance of the Bionic Man vs. Bigfoot; and a sweet Jack Kirby-drawn poster of The Mighty Thor. That was especially nice, because Kirby can never, ever get enough exposure and love in my book. And an explanation on television of what “Kirby dots” are verges on priceless (less for the explanation and more for “I never thought this could happen in a zillion years”).

Another high point of the episode is when The Stash calls in a “pop culture specialist” named Robert Bruce to judge a Dawn of the Dead-related movie memorabilia collection. The seller thinks he can get more than $1,000 for his collection; Bruce is near merciless in how he matter-of-factly dismantles that possibility. It’s quite entertaining.

A contest between shop employees at a flea market is a bit humdrum and silly; the show is obviously still trying to find its footing.

Comic Book Men is not a game changer, or even how I’d prefer comic culture reach out to a wider audience. However, I liked it more than I thought I would, and initial thoughts are that it could be DVR worthy. (www.amctv.com/shows/comic-book-men)

Author rating: 6/10