While comic book stores have become known for special days and big events, shops around the Valley are building culture and community daily.

Different events are held year round that celebrate certain aspects of comic book culture. From figurines and comics, to cards and props, your local comic shop is a doorway into the vicarious connection to a good story.

Celebrating the ‘holidays’

Heroes Northridge, located inside the Northridge Fashion Center, had a special deal for Local Comic Shop Day last month. The store had the classic buy-one, get-one sale, but also sold special comics that had “Local Comic Shop Day” labeled on the limited edition comics.

“This initiative kind of came out of nowhere,” said Red, a Heroes Northridge employee who declined to share their last name. “It’s a great way for people to get more involved in the comic book world.”

September’s annual Local Comic Shop Day helps promote shops that are hoping to get more attention and people walking in the door.

Free Comic Book Day, held the first Saturday of May, is a day when publishers release special edition comics that are free to the public. Comic book stores buy in bulk and sometimes hold deals and other incentives to get more people integrated into the hobby. Batman Day was an event that focused on the caped crusader and released exclusive issues to comic shops.

There are about a dozen comic shops in the San Fernando Valley, and many participate in these large events or host their own throughout the year.

Paul Sager, the owner of Continental Comics in Northridge, said he does not need an event to celebrate the spirit of comics books. The owner of his Devonshire Street shop since 1998, he knows better than anyone what it really means to be taken away in the story of a good comic. “That’s where we have the most fun,” said Sager, while ringing a customer up for some comics and posters.

Growth of an industry

Since the so-called platinum age of comic books, from 1897 to  1938, the rise in popularity of comics has spawned an industry.

The Certified Guaranty Company Comics website describes how companies began to separate themselves from the individual brands like Detective Comics and Marvel during what is known as the golden age, from 1938 to 1956.

The Certified Guaranty Company was introduced as a way to categorize the rarity, worth and quality of certain items like comic books. A 1964 convention in New York arose in response to the craze. This event became known as Comic-Con International, which is hosted in various parts of the United States, including Los Angeles.

In a world dominated by online retail, shops are still staples for comic book culture, each bringing their own flavor of personality to the mix.

Here is Yelp’s list of the top-10 comic book shops in and around the Valley:

1. Galaxy of Comics: 17306 Saticoy St., Van Nuys
2. Collector’s Paradise: 7131 Winnetka Ave., Winnetka
3. Continental Comics: 17032 Devonshire St., Northridge
4. Paper Hero’s Games: 14109 Burbank Blvd., Los Angeles
5. Collector’s Paradise: 5118 Lankershim Blvd., Los Angeles
6. Spero’s Heroes Comic Book: 21037 Devonshire St., Chatsworth
7. Gone Pickin: 15438 Devonshire St., Mission Hills
8. Necroplasm: 13131 Van Nuys Blvd., Pacoima
9.  We Can Be Heroes: 9449 Desoto St., Chatsworth
10. House of Secrets: 1930 W Olive Ave., Burbank