Meet Your Host: Alliance Dooley

I'm not a comics expert, but I play one online. :-)

I have been reading comics for as long as I can remember. I don't remember my first comics but I am pretty sure there were old horror titles from DC. Somewhere in junior high I discovered hero comics and it all went downhill from there. I blame the New Teen Titans and Uncanny X-Men for many B's that should have been A's. So, maybe I didn't end up being a doctor like my mother wanted, but I don't see that as a bad thing.I seem to be in a bit of a minority when I didn't stop reading comics in high school. In fact my obsession grew and I started working at various conventions around the Atlanta area. For many years I was a regular fixture around Dixie Trek, Phoenix Con, MOC and Dragon-Con, usually working registration or handicap access. If you don't ask, I promise not to talk about having the police shut down my party at Phoenix Con.

I continued to read comics all through college even though it sometimes meant that I had to live off ramin noodles. A guy has to have priorities and mine was apparently not food. It was about this time that I discovered Vertigo comics. I very quickly went completely overboard for Hellblazer, Sandman and most of the line. This fascination has yet to go away and to this day I still read most of the Vertigo line.

Lately my tastes have changed a bit and now I read more indie books and I am starting to pick up some Manga. I know that this is a growing market, but I still don't know that much about it. Post and let me know what I should be reading. Not just Manga, but what gems are out there that I haven't heard about. Help me expand my horizons.