Random Nerding

I liked comics as a kid. Nana always bought us Archie comics and I liked those a lot, but I loved my superheroes, too. 

The local comic shop I frequented in Beaumont, TX was called Comics Kingdom (It's still in business!). Sometimes I could afford the new stuff there, but I normally bought used. Comics often went for quarters at garage sales or Nana would take us to the Book Rack which sold/traded used books and comics. She'd pay us pennies to pick up gumballs from the street and then let us spend money on books (That's a parenting coup!).

However, I eventually got annoyed with the constant reboots, rebirths, and reinvented world-lines that happen with comics and moved on. I did read some manga when I discovered anime and a paycheck, but I didn't dabble with comics again until I worked at Pohick library. One of my coworkers, Kevin, was a mega-fan and would loan me niche series like Sandman or Fables that I'd read at my night security job. I eventually bought some trades of my own as time went on to 'finish' series (or at least a storyline!).   

Favorite newer series: Fables

Favorite 'classic' series: X-men (Honorable mentions: Spiderman and Checkmate)

Favorite Marvel Comic Characters:
1st - Daredevil
2nd - Spiderman
3rd - The X-Men as a group. Individually, Wolverine and Rogue have the best stories/designs, but I can't fail to mention Nightcrawler, either!  

Favorite DC Comic Characters:
1st  - Batman
2nd - The Flash
3rd - Superman*  (He was my first and FAVORITE superhero as a kid, but I don't like him much now. The history alone earns his place.)

Why do I bring this up? A board game. 

The Marvel United X-Men Kickstarter ran in April. I don't like Kickstarters, but all the reviews from Marvel United were it was "Simple to learn and set up cooperative game, that's quick, has teamwork and is great for kids." 

I have a kid! I like board games! I have a wife who likes comic book movies!

So I pledged a dollar. 

The Kickstarter funded and now I have to figure out if I want to actually buy it or not.

For the next month, I crossed my fingers and hoped there would be some sort of deal on the base Marvel United game. It never happened, but I bought the game anyway when it was near my birthday. Then I made Carrie and Shane play it with me as one of my presents.

We've played several more times since! It's a lighter game than my tastes, but it works well as a family game and that's what I wanted. There are some interesting decisions and talking, but it's quick enough that Shane's incessant humming and sound effects usually don't push Carrie over the edge before we're done.

So I guess I'm in. Now, I'm waffling back and forth on how much I want to spend. There are exclusives that won't go to retail, but will I really play the game that much? 

Decisions, decisions. It's kept me entertained on bathroom duty some at least.