It is no secret here in the office that we think very, very highly of Tom Spurgeon and his blog, The Comics Reporter. Obviously, as we are an advertiser, and we barely advertise anywhere! But really the facts speak for themselves and there is no other website with a team of writers or any other blogger that does what Tom does. With the exception of his hiatus, Tom blogs 7 days a week and 365 days a year, and NEVER COMPLAINS ABOUT HOW HARD IT IS. But the Comics Reporter is more than just how often it is updated, Tom covers all angles of the industry and medium. And he never professes to be an expert in everything, in fact, one of the best things about Tom's site is that he will readily admit when he is not an expert. And that rarely happens in comics!!!!
So when Tom took a hiatus this summer, we knew something was amiss. Something life threatening had to happen, as he is too much of a professional to just decide "hey i'm taking a vacation" and unfortunately our instincts were right, as Tom described in his poignant essay this past weekend. Besides Tom's personal state of health which is the foremost concern, of course, what struck me most about the essay was Tom's ability to deftly sum up the impact and allure of comics as a lifestyle. And while it's easy to joke about being scared of being a "lifer" as I often do, Tom points out there isn't any shame in that:
You could do far worse than to build a lifetime of friendships with the people you meet in comics. Far, far worse. I'm not sure you could do much better. As much as I'm made uncomfortable by a vision of comics that lacks the comics themselves, a way of approaching the professional and artistic communities that could without blinking substitute designer baskets or arcade games or action figures for the comics medium, I understand the appeal of wanting to stay around smart, curious, kind and mostly forgiving people for as long as possible, even if one's passion for the art form fades. As always, Tom cuts right to the truth of the matter.
Take care of yourself, Tom! And speaking on behalf of the industry, please put yourself before comics Tom and get better, because sitting through three and half hours of the Eisners without you, isn't as much fun as with you there!
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