Miss. (WLBT) – The city of Jackson’s only comic book store, OffBeat, celebrated Free Comic Book Day on Saturday with live drawing demonstrations, flash tattoos and, of course, free comics for all ages
“We have free comics for people to get into or just some special ones that people already know about, and we’re just trying to get more people into reading and supporting the local comic book store here in Jackson,” said Phillip Rollins, owner of OffBeat.
The event ran from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., though people were already lining up outside before the shop opened its doors, Rollins said.
Although it is a national event, drawing participation from comic book stores across the country, OffBeat incorporated a local spin by highlighting artists Justin Ransburg and Mallory Welch as well as OffBeat merchandise.
Attendees were treated to Ransburg’s live drawing demonstrations and Welch’s flash tattoos.
“This is my first time being part of this event, but I’ve come to Free Comic Book Day before,” Welch said. “I love that it’s a chance to encourage people to read and bring home some free comics.”
For younger comic book fans, temporary tattoos and OffBeat-branded capes were on offer.
2026 marks OffBeat’s twelfth year participating in the nationwide celebration of comic books and he pushes to make the event bigger and better every time it comes around
“We just really want to put forward more effort because we want more people to read. I grew up reading comics and, since we’re the only comic book store in the city, we’re trying to build a bigger community for comic book readers and whatnot,” Rollins explained.
For event attendees like Jaydon Wright, many were introduced to comic books at a young age and the appreciation has remained even years later.
“When I was younger, my stepdad showed me a lot of ‘X-Men’ and ‘Avengers’ and stuff like that,” Wright recalled. “I need to stock back up, get my collection back up. I’ve been reading comics since I was 8, 8 to 10 – around that age.”
In addition to expanding the comic book community of Jackson, Rollins emphasized that comic books encapsulate all sorts of genres and stories, not just the superheroes that initially come to most people’s minds.
“We’re just trying to build a bigger community for comic book readers and let people know that it’s not just about superheroes; anybody can read comics,” Rollins shared. “We’ve got stuff about mystery, about horror, about everything else. There’s autobiographies, stuff like that as well.”
Dylan McGraw, an OffBeat regular who has visited the store since 2016, emphasized how one-of-a-kind the shop is for the Jackson area.
“It’s just a little slice of heaven if you’re into alternative culture, I would say,” McGraw said, picking up some free comic books for his children as well as some for himself.
Rollins said one of his priorities at OffBeat is to create an inviting environment for long-time comic book fans and newcomers alike.
“We try to be open and accepting, making people feel as comfortable as possible,” Rollins added. “Going into any store – comic book shop or anything – it can be kind of daunting. It can be overwhelming as well because it’s like there’s so many options, so many things to choose from. I try to guide people and help them find things and be comfortable because stuff can be cliquish and we try not to be like that here.”
OffBeat is located at 109 N State Street in Jackson. It is open 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.
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