Images: Time Crashers and fishBOL help Alternate Reality Comics celebrate 20 years on June 6, 2015

We here at Punks in Vegas HQ have a lot of love for Alternate Reality Comics.

I’ve been shopping there for 18 years. We held our own PIV 1 Year Bash there, and Ralph has stayed late or came in early countless times over the years to let us film our Stripped Down Sessions. My partner and I helped owner Ralph Mathieu move to his current location and we even took our engagement photos there. So we wouldn’t have missed Ralph’s 20th anniversary party for the world.

So why is Alternate Reality so special?

I think it starts and ends with Ralph, whose love of the entire medium of comics, not just a particular genre, is as obvious as it is infectious. “I have loved superhero comics since I first started reading comics on a regular basis way back in 1975, but a lot of my favorite comics have been indie comics like Eightball (where Ghost World was first serialized) and Harvey Pekar’s American Splendor with their non-fantastical story content that illustrate that comics don’t have to just be about superhero slugfests” explains Ralph. “Any kind of story can be told in the comic book / graphic novel format and I have always wanted my store to represent this.”

Having that variety, along with  knowledge of the medium and passion for comics, helps Ralph get the right book in the right person’s hands. “My favorite thing about Alternate Reality is simple” explains Victor Moya, drummer for local band Life’s Torment and recent Alternate Reality “artist spotlight” artist. “Ralph knows what you would like to read more than you do. Every one of my top five comic book titles were introduced to me by Ralph. Trust in Ralph.”

And on this day, the store was full of people who trust in Ralph, with more patrons than members of the X-Men filling every square inch to buy comics during the sale, listen to poetry from Harry Fagel, take pictures with a woman cosplaying as the store’s mascot Epstein the Ska Lizard or eat a free vegan donut. Ashleigh and I spent our evening bouncing back and forth between this event and the No Red Alice gig next door at The Dive, but at 7 o’clock, I made sure I was right outside the shop. Because as the sun was setting, the first band was starting their set.

They’re called fishBOL and with just two small bass amps, they were ready to bring a mix of covers and originals to the diverse crowd that came out to celebrate with Ralph and crew. Their ages varied, the drums were electronic and the band looked a bit nervous, except for frontman Fred Dator. Dressed appropriately for the occasion in a worn down Batman tee and happily introducing each song, Dator seemed pleased with the turnout, and their performance was perfect for the celebratory atmosphere.

And there was a lot to be celebrated on this night, including one of the best things about Alternate Reality Comics – the fact that local creators get the chance to have their books on display next to the big guys. Time Crashers, the second band of the night, have their comic in stock at Alternate Reality, as does PJ Perez, owner of Pop! Goes the Icon and bassist for local band Moonboots. “My favorite thing about Alternate Reality Comics is seeing our comics for sale there. 😉 KIDDING. (kinda)” jokes Perez, as he explains what he enjoys most about the shop. “But really, just how welcoming, approachable and warm it feels. So inclusive. Like a clubhouse, without the ‘club’ mentality. It’s home, really.”

But it’s not just comic books that Ralph celebrates. Local artist are given a chance to showcase their pages in monthly artist spotlights. Inside the shop and in the midst of the party, people were tightly clutching raffle tickets while taking a look at original art by this month’s showcase artist Ron Horsley, Epstein artist / store comic artist.

Outside, folks looking to get fresh air became fast friends, chatting about the changing public perception of comics, the awesomeness of the Aquabats Super Show and their general love of the medium. But they soon began to shift attention to the gentlemen in jumpsuits brandishing instruments and wearing curious goggles. Time Crashers were about to bring a healthy dose of punk rock and hardcore to the Alternate Reality audience.

If you read their comic, you know this band is made up of some of history’s most famous smarties – Nikola Tesla, Gaius Julius Caesar, Leonardo di ser piero da Vinci and Carl Sagan. But despite apparently being capable of time travel, the members of Time Crashers weren’t able to prevent the lack of a PA (something something space time continuum something something destroy the entire universe).

So, with their brains combined, as well as a few called-in favors, the amps were procured. And with a megaphone in hand, it was go time for the group, with frontman Nikola Tesla leading them through about 8 songs of pizza, dinos and cavemen. Tesla made great use of the cordless voice amplifier, balancing on parking space sleepers and zigzagging between the curious onlookers, encouraging them to let loose and rock out. Their interesting costumes brought smiles to the faces of the kids perched on parents’ shoulders, kids who were experiencing their very first punk show.

Sound creative? That’s the kind of thing Ralph has worked to foster. “I’ve lived in Las Vegas since 1980 and it took me a long time to come to terms with this city compared to what I knew or romanticized about other big cities in regards to community” explains Ralph. “For the longest time, Las Vegas was more of a transient town, with people not seeming to take root here. To me, this started changing in the 1990s as more people started making efforts to create a community here in Vegas that other big cities have. I wanted to be a part of this change, nurturing the artistic and musical talent Vegas has.”

Ralph’s nurturing has generated a lot of love. “I don’t doubt the existence of parallel universes, but I have a hard time imagining one where Alternate Reality Comics isn’t the best comic store ever” exclaims Zach Fountain, who performed as Rushmore Beekeepers at the new location’s very first artist spotlight back in 2011. “The fact that the Alternate Reality crew manages a mini art gallery, hosts live music, and holds so many local charity events while maintaining their immense and incredibly diverse comic book selection is mind-blowing. Is it a cop out to say my favorite thing is everything?”

The shop’s close relationship with the community has also helped it weather the many changes in the industry. “A few years ago there was some concern that comic stores might go the way of what has happened to most music and DVD stores, meaning they were having a hard time having a physical storefront when so many people access those entertainments digitally” says Ralph. “But with the increased popularity of superhero movies that have appealed to guys and gals of all ages as well as movies adapted from comics such as Scott Pilgrim and Road To Perdition that appeal to different audiences than the superhero crowd, this has strengthened comic book stores as people look for more stories like those that they’ve enjoyed on the big screen.”

Managing to have continued success in a changing market is something that also applies to local label owners, such as Shahab Zargari, Alternate Reality fan and co-owner of GC Records. “Growing up in southern California, we were always a quick drive away from Vegas, and so my parents would bring my brother and I here almost every summer” says Zargari. “By the time we got to ride the public bus system to escape the casinos and explore the city, we would visit Rock N Java and Benway. Right next door to Benway was Alternate Reality Comics and we’d dip in there and pick up some reading material for the ride back to Circus Circus. Such good memories. So good to see the shop still open. Very inspiring!”

And the shop continues to thrive and inspire, which is something we’re happy for at PIV. As I made my way back to The Dive to catch the rest of No Red Alice’s free pizza gig, I thought about how I couldn’t wait to see what the future holds for Alternate Reality Comics.

I mean, I literally couldn’t wait, so I ran back and asked Tesla:

“The year is 2045. The average comic book cover price is $39.99, Avengers v. Justice League 3: The Revenge of Mister Mxyzptlk has just been released to virtua-theaters, and Alternate Reality Comics is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Standing tall behind the register is the shop’s proprietor, Ralph Mathieu. Through the wonders of modern medical science, now just a human head grafted onto a robot body, tastefully fashioned in the likeness of Gigantor. Despite his age and foreboding stature, he is still a bastion of kindness and a repository of nerdly knowledge to every customer that passes through his doors, be they human, robot, or alien. He flashes his trademark grin, offers them a Red Vine, and dutifully shows them to this week’s indie superhero brainplays, holo-mangas, and even old-fashioned ink and paper comic books. We can only hope that the store will remain so timelessly cool as Ralph prepares for his retirement on Europa colony Zeta Omega, leaving the store in the capable claws of his artificially-created half-man, half-lizard son, Epstein.”

-Emily Matview | https://www.flickr.com/photos/holdfastnow/