I stopped in Barnes and Noble for a couple of minutes today, and although they had an entire table covered with sleek new copies of Watchmen -- a table near the front of the store -- they didn't have a single copy of the book anywhere near their graphic novel section.
No Watchmen on the shelf. No Watchmen on an endcap. No indication that the store sold Watchmen. Other than the giant pile of Watchmen in a completely different section of the store. True, it's a section that you might have passed on the way into the store, but maybe not. I only noticed it because I walked over to get a coffee.
So, does that mean that Watchmen has transcended its status as merely a graphic novel, and now it's treated as just another book? Or are the merchandisers at this particular Barnes and Noble just a bunch of idiots? Or both? (Neither?)
9 comments:
Based on my experience as an employee at a B&N, there's probably a simple answer for that — someone bought the copy in Graphic Novels, and no one's noticed that it's not there yet. If you were to go back in a few days and see it missing, we could probably make a case for idiocy, but it'd still probably be that they just didn't know it was gone.
As for the other, that Watchmen's transcended its narrative form, I'd love to think so, but I'm doubtful that that's happened, particularly not at a relatively stodgy corporate bookstore like B&N.
Wait wait wait, you drink coffee now? I remember being horrified and amazed at your assertion that you don't drink it. And now this casual mention of strolling over to get a coffee. My world has been turned upside-down!
Not really on topic, but I remember seeing V for vendetta in a London bookstore in 2000. I didn't even know a lot about Moore back then, but it seems that some employee wanted to actually sell the book, and they've written a small note in pencil stating that the book was very well thought-out and absolutely worth purchasing.
It was more of the frappuccino variety. But, you know, I have to maintain my street cred. I do like coffee, but I hate drinking anything hot. I am anti-soup and anti-hot chocolate too.
Ah, another piece to the puzzle. I've been working on my Timo Callahan robot. Mostly the hard drive, not the exterior. And now that I know that you miniature golf and do NOT like to drink hot liquid, I can safely say that this is going to be the best Timo model yet.
what is your stance on gazpacho then?
I have no stance on gazpacho. I'm undecided.
I work at Barnes and Noble and unfortunately the answer is that they have a habit of disappearing. As does the whole Graphic Novel/Manga section. My own store sees a whopping 25% of all graphic novels stolen.
our barnes & noble is pretty bad Tim...
also, their starbucks is terrible.
much better at the real one...
...across the parking lot.
oy.
On a semi-related note, halloween costume this year is Rorschach.
Yes the custom comic geek-ery continues haha
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