Gig haunts aren’t the only places taking the brunt of the pandemic. Geeky havens are feeling the impact as well with notable spot Comic Quest announcing its permanent closure.

Considered to be a hallowed institution for pop culture enthusiasts, the comic book store cited the combined pressure of the pandemic and the disruption of comic books’ global distribution as the cause of its shutdown.

“We’ve had to make the difficult decision to begin the process of closing down Comic Quest. It is and has been an extremely challenging time for us, and we feel that this is our best option moving forward,” they write on a Facebook post.

Founded in 1986, Comic Quest’s journey started as a single branch in BF Homes, Parañaque, before spreading out to several stores in Metro Manila and Cebu. There are currently three branches around the metro, including SM Megamall, SM North Edsa and Festival Supermall in Alabang, Muntinlupa.

As a send-off gift, Comic Quest is holding a special sale from Sept. 16 to October at its SM Megamall branch. All items will be marked down, with discount rates of 50 percent and up.

“We want to thank each and every one of you for being one of our valuable loyal customers and a very important member of the Comic Quest family,” their post reads. “We wouldn’t have reached 35 wonderful years in business without loyal customers like you. Our sincerest and most heartfelt thanks for being with us through all these years.”

As one of those nerdy kids who have flipped through “Star Wars” graphic novels and collected figurines, and looked for safe places that allowed them to wear their passions on their sleeve, the loss of Comic Quest is one too many. I can only echo what they—and the great Stan Lee—have said: “Excelsior!”

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Photo by Waldemar Brandt on Unsplash