There are 2 branches relatively near where I live- One at the Trinoma mall; and the other just across the street at SM City North Edsa’s The Block. I went early and first hit the Trinoma branch. I arrived a little before 11 A.M. and was expecting a line– but when I reached the store I saw none. The table of comics was laid out just inside the entrance. I approached the table to look at the selection and then asked how many they were giving away per person. The store clerk manning the table said that only one comic per person.

line at the BHS branch (photo by Azrael)

I was looking for the X-men comic but they didn’t have any. Neither did they have the Avengers. So I settled for the G.I. Joe/ Transformers double feature.

Next, I went across the street and headed straight to the branch at the Block. The branch, which was on the third level, didn’t have a queue either. Although, there were a few people surrounding the table, checking the selection laid out. I finally edged my way to the front and was able to see what they had. It was more than what the Trinoma branch had on offer. I saw the X-men and Avengers comics, and decided to pick up the Avengers one after browsing the pages of both. I liked the artwork more; and it had a cool storyline. More of what the storyline is later. The policy regarding the number of comics one can get is the same : one per person. I was attending a blogger event at The Block that same day, and I encouraged my fellow bloggers to go get a comic for themselves.

photo by Azrael

I don’t know if the branches I visited eventually got crowded since I didn’t have time to check back on them. I was already ….engrossed at the blogging event I attended in the same mall.

line at the BHS branch (photo by Azrael)

I did hear that the Bonifacio High Street branch fared much better when it came to crowd turnout so early in the day. As was the case last year, there was quite a line outside the store. Plus, they probably had the most selections of free comics amongst all Fully Booked Branches. Just look at these pics by line at the BHS branch.

photo by Azrael

I was a bit disappointed that not all branches had the same comic books to give away. More so that they only gave out one comic per customer. But I guess they did that so they’d have enough stocks for everybody! So that’s Fully Booked’s Free Comic Book Day 2009 celebration. Here’s hoping they’ll give out more next year!

I was online earlier and I saw Rotch’s message about the Free Comic Book Day at Fully Booked. I clicked on the link she posted so I could get more details. FREE COMIC BOOK DAY at Fully Booked is on May 23, 2009. There’s no need to buy anything–you just need to show up and you get free comics.

I first learned about Free Comic Book Day from my Flickr contact, Shaun. He is from Singapore and is a toy and comic book collector. He posted some pictures he took during the past Free Comic Book day that he attended; since then I’ve been wishing for the Philippines to participate in its celebration. Imagine my surprise, and excitement, when the Phillipines held it’s first Free Comic Book Day celebration last year! Unfortunately, I learned about it too late, so I wasn’t able to go. Hopefully this year, I’ll be able to make it– there’s a Fully Booked branch that’s only 20 minutes away from where I live, ohohoho!

Freecomicbookday.com defines Free Comic Book Day as “a single day when participating comic book shops across North America and around the world give away comic books absolutely free to anyone who comes into their stores.” It is a promotional effort by the North American comic book industry to help bring new readers into independent comic book stores, and is usually held on the 1st Saturday of May. The first one was held back in 2002 in the US.

The Free Comic Book Day comic giveaway at Fully Booked starts at 10AM on a first come-first serve basis. It will be available in all Fully Booked branches. They are also slashing 20% off the regular price of graphic novels.

You may visit Fully Booked Online for more information about this event. To learn more about Free Comic Book Day, please visit www.freecomicbookday.com.