It’s true! Both Challengers Comics + Conversation locations are BAD IDEA stores!

So just what does that mean? We’re glad you asked…

BAD IDEA is a brand-new comic book company doing things in a new way. They are self-distributing their comics, and only to a select number of stores around the world (100 stores, to start). Both Challengers locations are the ONLY Chicago stores that will have BAD IDEA comics for sale (again, to start). Here’s an article about them from The Comics Beat, but keep in mind that initial number of stores has already changed from 20 to 100. 

Also, there will be NO collections of their series, and NO digital versions available, either. Just single-issue comic books, plain and simple. And NO variant covers. Only 1 cover per issue.

And here’s their other big rule. Only ONE (1) copy per person of any BAD IDEA single issue. Period. We are not allowed to sell you multiple copies of ANY of their titles. That is a hard rule, so please don’t try to get around it. I’m sure your best friend really, really, really wants a copy, too, but they’ll have to come get it on their own.

So now, here’s how it works at Challengers.

If you want to subscribe to any of their titles, to be picked up at either of our locations, you are absolutely welcome to join our FREE Subscription Service. In fact, here’s a link to a handy form for it. That form also has all our rules on it, so be sure to give it a close look. And hey, you’ll get 10% OFF of every title on your subscription list!

Here is our one catch: If you want us to hold any BAD IDEA titles for you, you have to subscribe to the whole series. Our subscription service is not for individual issues; it is for ongoing series.

We will not hold a copy of a single issue of any BAD IDEA titles for you. But they will be available on the shelves, so you are always welcome to come in and grab yourself a copy (ONE copy) if you don’t want a subscription.

Will we Mail Order subscriptions? Sure, but you’ll have to pre-pay for the first 4-issue arc and pay $10 for USPS Priority Mail shipping. Your bagged and boarded books will be shipped out after all 4 issues have been released. You can order that at this link.

And that’s it! That’s all you need to know! We’re sure you’ll be hearing a LOT more from BAD IDEA in the immediate future and we’ll do our best to keep you updated, too!

Keep Reading Comics!

These are all the perfect New Comics & Graphic Novels to give to your Valentine, and even better to keep for yourself!! 

     --NEW BOOKS OF NOTE--
ALIENATED #1
Three teenagers, each an outcast in their own way, stumble upon an unearthly entity as it's born. As they bond over this shared secret and the creature's incredible abilities, it becomes clear to the teenagers that their cute little pet is a super-predator in the making - and it's in need of prey.
BATMAN PENNYWORTH RIP #1
If Alfred was the glue that held the Bat-Family together, how will Batman deal with that all falling apart? And if the Caped Crusader is to be truly alone, he might either hang that cape up once and for all...or double down and carry on with this vengeful quest forever.
GREEN LANTERN SEASON 2 #1
The team of Grant Morrison and Liam Sharp continue their bold new take on the Emerald Warrior in a wild 30-page 2nd season opener! In the wake of the Blackstar incursion, Hal Jordan and his fellow Lanterns must pick up the pieces from that cataclysmic conclusion. Is the universe ready for...the Young Guardians?
GWEN STACY #1
Gwen and Peter may not have met until AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #31, but that doesn't mean Gwen's life began on that page. Learn the never-before told origin of Gwen Stacy, top of her class, daughter of the Police Captain and, as her friend Harry Osborn calls her, "The Beauty Queen of Standard High."
HARLEY QUINN & BIRDS OF PREY #1
Harley Quinn has avoided Gotham City ever since she broke up with The Joker and found a home, and a kind of family, in Coney Island. But when she gets an offer she can't refuse, she has no choice but to slip back into the city as quietly as she can, hoping to be gone before anyone - especially her ex - learns she's been there. But for Harley, "as quietly as she can" is plenty loud...
MARVEL ACTION SPIDER-MAN (2020) #1
The all-new adventures of Spider-Man and his amazing friends! Peter, Miles, and Gwen have completed their internships at the Daily Bugle-now they're all shook up over their latest foe! A Marvelous new era continues!
NEBULA #1
Nebula has grown under the shadows of Thanos and Gamora, but no longer! With her eyes set on a top-secret device, Nebula has big plans for her future-and she's not about to let anyone get in her way! But her goal may end up costing her more than she's willing to pay after a showdown with one of the cosmos most feared bounty hunters....
SHE-RA GN VOL 01 LEGEND OF FIRE PRINCESS
Don't miss this original graphic novel based on stories by She-Ra showrunner and New York Times bestselling author Noelle Stevenson, with script by Gigi D.G. and art by Paulina Ganucheau!
SUPERMAN HEROES #1
Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen, the staff of the Daily Planet, even the Justice League-their lives all changed when Superman revealed his secret identity to the world! This unique Superman experience explores what the identity of Clark Kent meant to those close to him-and what their relationship to Superman will be in the future.
TARTARUS #1
A new adventure series with all the sci-fi drama of Breaking Bad set in Mos Eisley! Promising young cadet Tilde is framed for crimes against the empire after discovering her mother was the ruthless warlord of the deadly colony Tartarus, a vital player in the galactic war. Now, Tilde's only way home may be to reclaim her mother's dark crown.
UNDONE BY BLOOD #1
In the early 1970s, Ethel Grady Lane returns to her hometown of Sweetheart, Arizona with one thing on her mind: killing the man who murdered her family. But first, she'll have to find him.

     --DON’T MISS--
X-MEN #6, WES ANDERSON`S ISLE OF DOGS HC, THE BATMAN’S GRAVE #5, ASCENDER #9, WES ANDERSON`S ISLE OF DOGS HC and AMAZING-SPIDER-MAN #39!

Stock up on all of these New Releases while you’re taking advantage of our 25% OFF Sale! Of which these are not part of…

It’s already February? 2020, you’re sure not shy when it comes to great New Comics and Graphic Novels!!
     --RECOMMENDED--
X-MEN FANTASTIC FOUR #1
Krakoa. Every mutant on Earth lives there... except for one. But now it's time for FRANKLIN RICHARDS to come home. It's the X-MEN VS. the FANTASTIC FOUR and nothing will ever be the same. By Chip Zdarsky and Terry Dodson.
MAN WHO EFFED UP TIME #1
Sean Bennett is just your everyday, ordinary lab worker in a high-tech lab with a proto-type time machine. And, yeah, he's got the same temptations any of us would have about going back in time, just a bit, to correct mistakes of the past and right old wrongs. So, when he meets a version of himself from the future who encourages him to do just that, Sean takes the temporal plunge. Presenting a time-twisted sci-fi action-comedy, a butterfly effect noir, by multiple Eisner-winning writer John Layman.
AGGRETSUKO #1
Aggretsuko, the hit Netflix show in production for season three, stars Retsuko the Red Panda, a young office worker stuck in a thankless job, whose only stress release is singing heavy metal at the local karaoke joint. With the help of her friends, can she ever find the job satisfaction she craves - - not to mention adventure, the approval of her mother, and even... love?!
     --NEW BOOKS OF NOTE--
ANT-MAN #1
Scott Lang is back and doing better than ever! Er, at least according to him, but his daughter, Stinger, and the anthill he's living in say otherwise. Desperate to raise his daughter's opinion of him, Scott takes a job from local beekeepers only to uncover a global conspiracy that could topple the world order! No time to call the Avengers, this sounds like a job for - ANT-MAN?!
DC CRIMES OF PASSION #1
Passion. Betrayal. Murder. When you're a private investigator, these are things you experience daily. But when you add capes to the mix-like Batman, Catwoman, and Harley Quinn? Things get even messier. The name's Slam Bradley, and I'm telling you that this year's Valentine's Day special has more intrigue than you can shake a stick at. Ten tales of love-the kind of love that can push people over the edge. Don't miss it...or I'll make you pay.
CAPTAIN AMERICA THE END #1
Steve Rogers fights for survival in a post-apocalyptic wasteland populated by hordes of Red Skulls! Legendary writer/artist Erik Larsen returns to Marvel for an oversized last tale of Simon & Kirby's American Hero!
STAR WARS DARTH VADER #1
In this new epic chapter in the Darth Vader saga, set just after the events of Empire Strikes Back, the dark lord grapples with Luke's unthinkable refusal and embarks on a bloody mission of rage-filled revenge against everything and everyone who had a hand in hiding and corrupting his only son. But even as he uncovers the secrets of Luke's origins, Vader must face shocking new challenges from his own dark past.
AFTER REALM #1
In the aftermath of Ragnarok, Oona, an elven ranger, sets out into the post-apocalyptic chaos to discover the fate of the old gods. But first, she must fulfill an oath to a lost friend that could doom what's left of the Nine Realms. After Realm, a new ongoing extra-length quarterly from Michael Avon Oeming.
     --DON’T MISS--
BATMAN #88, DARK AGNES #1, GIDEON FALLS #21, CONAN BATTLE FOR THE SERPENT CROWN #1, BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER #12, JOKER HARLEY CRIMINAL SANITY #3 and KAIJUMAX SEASON 5 #2. We will never stop telling you how great Kaijumx is—NEVER!!
Hey, it’s a leap year, so you get a whole extra day to read comics this year!!

As we've done in years past (based on posts from other retailers like Brian Hibbs from Comix Experience), here's our list of the 100 top-selling comics at Challengers in 2019. This list is based on the number of copies each issue sold, with the higher priced issue being listed first in the case of a tie. I'm sure we'll be discussing this list on an upcoming episode of Contest of Challengers, so keep an eye or ear or whatever open for that in the coming week. Otherwise, look over this list and see if you need to check some of these out in 2020!

As we've done in years past (based on posts from other retailers like Brian Hibbs from Comix Experience), here's our list of the 100 top-selling graphic novels at Challengers in 2019. This list is based on the number of copies each title sold, with the higher priced book being listed first in the case of a tie. I'm sure we'll be discussing this list on an upcoming episode of Contest of Challengers, so keep an eye or ear or whatever open for that in the coming week. Otherwise, look over this list and see if you need to check some of these out in 2020!