If you get a chance, come see us for Halloween Comic Fest at Speeding Bullet Comics, 614 N Porter Ave. in Norman. The following is my weekly column I write for The Oklahoman; some were telling me they couldn’t find it online this week, so I’ve reprinted it here.

Comic stores set for ‘Halloween ComicFest’

by MATTHEW PRICE

Halloween makes many think of candy, but comic books are in the spotlight for Saturday’s Halloween ComicFest, a national event promoted by Diamond Comic Distributors.

Characters featured this year include Spider-Man, Boba Fett and more; multiple publishers have offered titles for this event. Stores will give away a number of free comics while supplies last; some stores also have costume contests tied to Halloween ComicFest.

“The comics available this year are designed to appeal to a broad range of tastes, from the all-ages Mini Comics featuring popular properties like Archie, DC Superhero Girls, Nickelodeon’s The Loud House, and Pokémon, while the Full-Size Comics feature well-known characters like Sonic the Hedgehog, Boba Fett, Iron Man, and Batman,” said Halloween ComicFest spokesperson Ashton Greenwood in a news release.

Meanwhile, former “Batman” artist Kelley Jones was tapped to create the official T-shirt artwork for this year’s Halloween ComicFest. In addition to making Batman a vampire in “Red Rain,” Jones completed the “Frankenstein Alive, Alive” story after the death of horror-comics legend Bernie Wrightson. Jones said he’s always been a fan of the spooky fall holiday.

“When I was a kid, and didn’t know much about the world, there was one for sure thing I did know, and that was I loved Halloween more than any other holiday, by a long shot!” Jones said in a news release. “It was in my bones and I was waiting all through the summer to pounce. It was a night where you were expected to stay up late, eat candy, watch monster movies and dress as one! And mom and dad approved, no less! And that’s what my illustration for this T-shirt is all about. You can have all of the other holidays, but I’ll still take good ol’ Halloween with its pumpkins and chocolate and things that go bump in the night!”

Comic shops also will have Halloween ComicFest mini packs available to purchase for those who would like to give out comics to trick-or-treaters.

Fans can find their nearest participating store by entering their ZIP code at www.HalloweenComicFest.com.

Matthew Price, matthew@matthewLprice.com, has written about the comics industry for more than two decades. He is the co-owner of Speeding Bullet Comics in Norman.