Happy Free Comic Book Day!
Returning to the Roots of Free Comic Book Day 2026
Today is Free Comic Book Day, which for one reason or another, I haven’t been able to participate in since 2018. Back then, I went to the newly opened comic shop on my town’s Main Street. I didn’t know the rules back then or if there were limits on the samples, but I was only allowed to take 4 comics out of the numerous titles available at that shop.
Thankfully, a lot has changed since then, and I was eager to check out two different places in my neck of the woods. I checked the Free Comic Book Day website for retailers near me, and chose two shops nearby one another so that I could try to acquire as many unique titles of the 24 available comic offerings as possible from the list of participating shops.
It’s wild to look back at how my approach to these events has evolved. In my Have You Picked Up Your Copy Yet? – Free Comic Book Day Haul 2018 retrospective, I recall just starting this journey and desperately hunting for new stories to cover, a sharp contrast to the curated backlog I managed this year.
Navigating the 2026 Comic Offerings and Retailer List
For whatever reason, I couldn’t find the full list of available freebie sampler comics beforehand, but based on Twitter posts I saw days prior, I was focusing in on Supernatural, Avatar: the Last Airbender, Dungeon Crawler Carl, and Conan the Barbarian.
Note: I just learned that Penguin Random House hosted its first-ever “Comics Giveaway Day”, which is where Dark Horse Comics’ Avatar Legends comic comes into the mix.
Here’s the full list of all the comics being offered on Free Comic Book Day 2026 – with the ones I acquired today in bold.
(Taken from the FCBD official website)
- The Cimmerian: The Pool of the Black One (Ablaze)
- Greatest American Hero (AMP Comics)
- World of Archie One-shot (Archie Comics)
- Preview of Ultimate Oz Universe Vol.2: Into the Outerlands (AWA Studios)
- Aquamanatee #1 Special Edition (DC)
- DC X Sonic #1 Special Edition (DC)
- DC Next Level Sampler (DC)
- The Nice House on the Lake #1 (DC)
- Stitch #1 (Dynamite Entertainment)
- Supernatural #1 (Dynamite Entertainment)
- Energon Universe FCBD 2026 Special (Image)
- Spotlight 2026 (Keenspot Entertainment)
- Toybox 2026 (Keenspot Entertainment)
- Flash Gordon #1 (Mad Cave Studios)
- Terrorbytes #1 (Mad Cave Studios)
- Mind MGMT/Fort Psycho Special (Oni Press)
- Future is ****** Annual 2026 #1 (One shot) (REKCAH Comics)
- Conan the Barbarian Tides of the Tyrant King #0 (Titan Comics)
- Gun Honey Doubles Down #0 (Titan Comics)
- Mega Man Showdown Special #1 (UDON Entertainment)
- Street Fighter Forever #0 (UDON Entertainment)
- Journey to the West (UDON Entertainment/Manga Classics)
- Dungeon Crawler Carl #0 (Vault Comics)
- Inanna the Name She Lost #0 (Vault Comics)
*I also received the Lego Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight #1 Comic Book Tie-in from DC, don’t know why it isn’t on the website list.
The PRH Comics Giveaway Day: New Manga & Webtoon Previews
I wasn’t able to find any of these, but here are the offerings from Penguin Random House’s Comics Giveaway Day 2026:
- Garfield CGD 2026 (BOOM!)
- Jem and the Holograms/My Little Pony Flipbook CGD 2026 (BOOM!)
- Power Rangers #0 CGD 2026 (BOOM!)
- Something is Killing the Children: Road to Slaughter CGD 2026 (BOOM!)
- Avatar: The Last Airbender-Legends/Minecraft: Heart of Cobblestone CGD 2026 (Dark Horse Comics)
- He-Man and the Masters of the Universe/Dungeons & Dragons CGD 2026 (Dark Horse Comics)
- Locke & Key #1: Cover A (Rodriguez) CGD 2026 (IDW Publishing)
- Sonic the Hedgehog #1: Cover A (Yardley) CGD 2026 (IDW Publishing)
- Minotaur The Cold Open Cover A Michael Dowling CGD 2026 (Ignition Press)
- Kodansha Blue Lock Full Color Selection & Dragon Circus CGD 2026 (Kodansha Comics)
- ALIEN, PREDATOR, & PLANET OF THE APES #1 CGD 2026 (Marvel)
- AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 1000/QUEEN IN BLACK #1 CGD 2026 (Marvel)
- ARMAGEDDON/X-MEN #1 CGD 2026 (Marvel)
- SPIDEY & HIS AMAZING FRIENDS #1 CGD 2026 (Marvel)
- The Last Kids on Earth and the Zombie Parade: The Graphic Novel Sampler CGD 2026 (Penguin Young Readers)
- The Whole Wide World of Mabel Mulligan: A Graphic Novel Sampler CGD 2026 (Penguin Young Readers)
- Pizza and Taco CGD 2026 (RH Childrens Books)
- School Bus Graveyard CGD 2026 (RH Childrens Books)
- Mister Magic: The Graphic Novel Sampler CGD 2026 (Ten Speed Graphic)
- The British Are Coming: The Graphic Edition, Volume 1 Sampler CGD 2026 (Ten Speed Graphic)
- Disney Manga: Stitch! Best Food Forever! CGD 2026 (Tokyopop)
- WEBTOON Unscrolled Preview CGD 2026 (Wattpad Webtoon Studios)
The inclusion of major players like Kodansha and Wattpad highlights a massive shift in international fandom. For more on these industry titans, see my Kodansha House 2026: Immersive Pop-Up at Anime Expo report.
Scouting the Scene: Local Shop Experiences
Ironically, the first shop I went to had only Supernatural out of my desired titles, but they also had a good amount of interesting comics to check out. Plus, it was one comic per person, so I was able to take one of each of the 12 comics on offer to read for later.
It’s kind of funny in a way, that back in 2018 I had just started this website and desperately wanted to find new and interesting things to read and cover. Now, I’m almost overwhelmed by the backlog of new, original, and returning franchises and long-standing stories that I have the opportunity to write about at my leisure.
There are so many great comics, manga, graphic novels, webtoons, and webcomics that I’ve been exposed to in this past year alone, and I am almost embarrassed that I haven’t tried harder to dedicate more time to cover emerging stories from within those mediums.
Connecting with the Creators: Jim Zub and the Conan Revival
I mean, all of the participating publishers are great, but a few on the official list are publishers whose work I’ve been covering with keen interest, and it’s kind of wild to think about all of the opportunities I’ve received, and interviews I’ve been able to graciously conduct over this past year alone.
Like for instance, I interviewed Jim Zub back at New York Comic Con this past fall for his work on the Conan the Barbarian revival, specifically for the Scourge of the Serpent comics.
I read the comic multiple times before the interview (and even once again on the train ride to the Javits Center) and yet, I’ve never actually shared my thoughts on the comic here, on the website.
Well, the second comic shop I ventured into actually wasn’t participating in Free Comic Book Day, and the man behind the counter was completely surprised when I informed him that his shop is up on the website.
He was a very nice man, and we had a pleasant conversation that resulted in him offering me any (new) comic from the top row of his shelves in front of the register because (I think) he felt bad that I specifically traveled to his shop because I thought he was participating in the annual May event.
I didn’t get his name, but I decided to take him up on his offer, and picked up a paperback comic for Jim Zub’s aforementioned Conan. I know I could have chosen something I hadn’t read yet, but I associate that title with the positive experience I had at my first-ever interview at NYCC, and I just really enjoyed the story.
(Maybe I’ll actually write about the comic, now. ☺︎)
Thank you to the man behind the counter at Long Island Comics for being so kind to me, and allowing me still a free comic when you absolutely did not have to do so. It was a genuine gesture, and I really respect that from a business and an interpersonal level.
I also want to mention the first place I went to that was participating in Free Comic Book Day, which is Gotham City Hobbies. It was a game and hobby shop, and from my understanding, the staff opened up a little bit early today to allow everyone the pick of their comics on this “special” day. The space was very clean and smelled of incense, and it wasn’t intimidating at all to step in to, which is something I personally often experienced when stepping into hobby shops and card game spaces.
But tell me your thoughts: did you participate in the annual Free Comic Book Day event?
What did your own comic book haul look like?
Did you get anything from Penguin Random House’s first-ever, Comics Giveaway Day?
🏮 Read More in Asian Spaces
- Beyond the Barbarian: Jim Zub on Conan’s Pulp Roots, Cthulhu Mythos, and New Legacy – Revisit my full interview with the writer behind one of this year’s most anticipated FCBD offerings.
- NYCC 2025 Retrospective: Press, Purpose, and the Path of an East Asian Media Outlet – A deep dive into the journey of navigating the industry from the floor to official press accreditation.
- Kayou My Little Pony TCG Review: Rainbow Dash Starter Deck & Booster Pack Magic – Exploring the high-end production and tactical textures of another favorite collector’s item.
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☆ In Asian Spaces ☆ Ephesians 6:12 ☆
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