Squid of Man

There are three comic book stores in Sydney City. And only one Squid of Man. Time for a showdown.

It's Kings Comics vs Comic Kingdom vs Kinokuniya.

Kings: The shiniest and prettiest of the three. Very clean, up-to-date stock and a nice browsing atmosphere. Pity they're so damn expensive. Toy section is also rubbish. There's lots of them; just none you want to buy unless you're one of those big-titty-lovin anime fucks.

Comic Kingdom: I normally like old, smelly, dusty specialist stores. For some reason I feel that lends them a certain air of legitimacy, of realness. Not here. Comic Kingdom is just old, smelly and dusty. The downstairs area is just a junk yard. Upstairs has some nice back-issues on offer, but can't match the other two for price or range. Toy selection is quite poor.

Kinokuniya: Not a comic store, I know. But they sell comics. Well, trades - no single issues. But they sell a lot of trades, and they sell them for insanely cheap prices. Always getting new stock in, and the discount card is the icing on the cake. Only serious gripe is the layout - it's all spines-out and is very cramped, making browsing very difficult, especially during busy times. And again, toy selection is crap.

Official Squid of Mantm verdict? Kinokuniya is the winner on points. I know they don't sell single issues, but I haven't bought single issues since I was about 11, and their range and price are just unbeatable. Kings comes a close second, falling down only on their lofty prices. And Comic Kingdom...well, it's just happy making up the numbers.

Special mention goes to Hobbyco off Pitt Street Mall, which is the only decent toy retailer in the entire city area.